In the hall, Ritchie froze for a moment. Then he stepped forward and shook Caster's hand. "Caster, I never thought we'd be facing each other in the next round."
He sounded gracious, but the weight of it showed on his face.
After four rounds, everyone had a fair idea of what the remaining sixteen Trainers could do. Some had reached the top sixteen because they were good enough to make it that far. Others were there only because the tournament hadn't gone any further yet. They were clearly a cut above the rest.
Ash and Ritchie belonged to the first group. Caster belonged to the second.
"I'm surprised too," Caster said with a polite smile.
He meant it. In the original story, Ritchie would have faced Ash in the fifth round. Charizard would have lost interest in fighting Ritchie's much weaker Charmander, costing Ash the match and leaving him in the top sixteen.
But Caster had put an early end to Team Rocket's scheme, and that seemed to have changed the timeline a little. Ash and Ritchie had missed their chance to fight Team Rocket together, so they had no real bond yet. Even the numbers on the fish they'd caught were different.
Secretly, Caster was delighted.
If I can't beat Red, I can at least beat this little punk, can't I?
"I've got something to take care of, so I'll see you all later."
Ritchie nodded to the group and left the hall, apparently to prepare for tomorrow's match.
The other Trainers continued fishing for their matchup numbers. Ash drew A-2, and Gary drew A-4. That put Caster and Ritchie in the first match of the fifth round, Ash in the second, and Gary in the fourth.
If both Caster and Ash won, they would meet in the quarterfinals for a full six-on-six battle.
Caster turned to Ash. "You'd better win. Let's meet in the quarterfinals and give it everything we've got."
"I will!"
Ash's eyes burned with determination. Ever since Caster had crushed him in their last battle, he'd put his Pokemon through a series of training sessions.
They were much stronger now. Charizard in particular wanted another shot at Caster.
The quarterfinals would be the perfect chance.
Gary grew excited too. If he won his next two matches, he would face Caster in the semifinals. He'd been waiting a long time for that battle.
The night passed quietly.
At nine the next morning, Indigo Stadium was packed. Every seat in the vast arena was filled.
With only sixteen competitors left and just eight matches in the fifth round, the tournament no longer needed the smaller venues.
All eight matches would take place in the main stadium, four in the morning and four in the afternoon. By the end of the day, the final eight Trainers would be decided.
Professor Oak, Delia, Misty, and Brock sat together in the stands.
"Caster's in the first match, isn't he? Do you think he'll be all right?" Delia asked.
She didn't know much about Pokemon battles, and Caster was the same age as Ash. As far as she was concerned, he was still a child on his first journey.
The other three exchanged smiles. Of Caster, Gary, and Ash, Caster was the last person they worried about. No opponent had even forced him to send out a third Pokemon. And his Gyarados, the one that had carried him through Trainer Tower, was formidable.
Ash was the one who worried them. His performance could be unpredictable. He wasn't good at choosing Pokemon to counter his opponents, and sometimes he insisted on fighting at a type disadvantage for no good reason.
They couldn't say that to Delia. She was worried enough already.
"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for waiting!" the announcer called over the speakers. "The fifth round of the Indigo League Conference is about to begin! Sixteen Trainers are about to become eight!"
As the crowd cheered, the first two competitors emerged from the players' tunnels. The cameras swung toward them as though they were stars.
Ritchie wore his usual tracksuit and baseball cap. Caster was dressed more fashionably, and his tall, lean build and handsome face made him look older than either Ritchie or Ash.
"Each Trainer may use three Pokemon!" Once they had taken their places, the referee raised his flags. "Trainers, ready!"
Caster and Ritchie each took out a Poke Ball. They looked at one another across the field and threw them at the same time.
"Go, Dragonair!"
Dragonair was Caster's first choice. With a full-team battle coming up, Slowpoke was deep in meditation using a method Sabrina had taught it, preparing to be in the best possible condition.
Shellder didn't need to meditate, but it was being cared for so it would be ready to join Slowpoke in evolving. This was no time to send either of them into a match.
"It's Dragonair! They say if you see one around New Year's, you'll have good luck all year!"
"It's so cool! I'd love to catch one."
"Keep dreaming. Dragonair's so rare you'd have a better chance of winning the lottery."
Dragonair's appearance sent a ripple of excitement through the stands.
Ritchie's first Pokemon, by contrast, was a scrawny, scruffy little bird. Its back was black, its cream-colored chest and belly were finely striped, and a messy brown crest topped its head. It had a short, hooked beak, pink wings edged in pale pink, and three brown tail feathers.
It was a Spearow, a Normal and Flying type.
The crowd and even the announcer were stunned. In a match to decide who would reach the top eight, Ritchie had sent out a Spearow, one of the most common birds in Kanto. Was he giving up?
The cheers for Caster turned to boos for Ritchie. He ignored them.
"Scree!"
Spearow climbed into the air across from Dragonair, quietly putting more distance between them.
Caster glanced at Ritchie and raised an eyebrow. The little punk wasn't one to give up easily.
Does that Spearow have some way to counter Dragonair?
"Dra!"
Dragonair's orbs began to glow, and it let out a long cry. A strange aura spread from its body. Dark clouds gathered above the field, blotting out the clear sky.
Patter, patter!
Large drops quickly became a downpour, soaking the battlefield. Dragonair had such precise control over the weather that the rain stayed above the field. The spectators remained dry.
Spearow wasn't so lucky. In moments, the scruffy bird was drenched, and even its flight suffered a little.
Clang, clang!
The bell rang. The fifth round was underway.
"Dragonair, Extreme Speed!"
Caster suspected Ritchie had a counter ready, but he trusted Dragonair's strength and opened the battle on his own terms.