The Semifinals would be held at the Indigo Plateau's main stadium.
Under the blazing Sacred Flame, the two finalists would engage in a full battle.
Truthfully, aside from that one 6v6 friendly match with Leon…
This would be Natsume-sensei's first official full battle.
Honestly, he was a little nervous.
"Blastoise…ヾ(■_■)"
Sweat beaded on Blastoise's forehead, too tense to sleep.
A full battle… The opponent would surely be strong.
Even if they lost, they couldn't embarrass their Trainer!
"Blastoise!" With one arm behind its back, Blastoise resumed its one-armed push-ups.
Natsume glanced at the silently training Blastoise and realized he'd overthought things.
"Guess I've caught Blastoise's cautious streak."
He looked up at the sky.
"Trainers really do grow to resemble their Pokémon, huh…"
"Gengar…" Gengar nodded solemnly.
Right now, Natsume was in his hotel room, preparing to head out.
To celebrate his advancement to the top four, his friends at Indigo Plateau had arranged a victory dinner.
A warm gesture in the lingering chill of spring.
But for Natsume-sensei's opponents…
Indigo Plateau felt more like the dead of winter.
After the official release of the quarterfinal battle footage…
The post titled [Arcanine 1v3! Reverse-Type Sweep!] went viral.
"I was there—the way it bulldozed the competition was insane!"
"Hell yeah, that got me pumped!"
"Wait, why were there two of them? (dog emoji)"
Kyle's mentor, Pastoria City's Gym Leader Wake, appeared in the comments.
"That Arcanine's got spirit! Hahaha!"
He also gave a professional breakdown.
"Beyond breeding, the Solar Beam and Wild Charge in its moveset were key to victory."
"But without Natsume's command skills, don't try this at home. Water-type specialists aren't pushovers."
Wake sighed. "Two Trainers already brought their Arcanine to my Gym yesterday. Both ended up at the Pokémon Center."
After all, reverse-typing a 1v3 sweep—with instant KOs—was too flashy to ignore.
Naturally, copycats emerged.
The results, however, were… less impressive.
"Predicting Natsume-sensei's Semifinals Team Composition."
At the dinner, Misty propped her chin on her hand, scrolling through forums.
"With Sirfetch'd and Arcanine, another shutout's totally possible!"
She looked up curiously. "Natsume-sensei, what's your plan for the next round?"
"Undecided." Natsume accepted a plate of curry rice from Brock. "First 6v6—gotta take it seriously."
Brock's hand trembled, nearly spilling the sauce.
Your idea of 'serious' is just steamrolling the opponent, isn't it?
"Ash's quarterfinal at the Ever Grande Conference just wrapped up."
Green checked her phone, sighing. "Too bad—he stopped at top eight."
The Indigo Plateau and Ever Grande Conferences were only days apart.
For Ash's second year as a Trainer, reaching top eight in his third region was impressive.
"What's next for him?" Brock untied his apron, sitting beside Natsume.
"Battle Frontier." Green smiled. "But he'll probably come cheer for Natsume-sensei during Finals!"
The curry rice smelled heavenly.
Though the hotel's meals were high-class, they couldn't match Natsume or Brock's cooking.
Fighter, tank, medic, and chef…
Natsume marveled.
Life had taught Brock too many skills.
Thanks to Lance's arrangements, they'd rented a restaurant kitchen for the celebration.
Efficient, really.
Natsume scooped up curry with one hand, typing in the group chat with the other:
"@Ash, no worries—just train harder for the next one!"
Ash, currently researching 'reverse-type' strategies, replied instantly.
"I'll do my best!" His text practically radiated determination.
"Semifinals are the day after tomorrow," Lorelei teased. "Shouldn't Natsume-sensei be preparing?"
Gold grumbled. "Like it matters. He'd win half-asleep."
"@Gold, get to Indigo Plateau. We need help." —Silver.
"No way! There's zero business there!"
Green's smile froze before she slumped. "How? With me as the poster girl, how are there no customers?!"
The red-haired youth stayed silent, discreetly checking a Trainer Card in his pocket.
[UR - Giovanni]
For intel-gathering, Silver had pulled this card on his first try.
UR-tier usually meant Champions, followed by Elite Four and Gym Leaders.
Yet here he was, holding a UR-rated card.
Well-made, too.
Silver pocketed it, satisfied.
"Battle matchups are out."
Inspector Lance, swamped with work, managed to tag Natsume:
"Natsume-sensei's opponent is Kenpei from Slateport City, Hoenn."
"A seeded Hoenn Trainer!" Sapphire noted.
"When he challenged my Gym," Roxanne added, "his Aron was a gift from Mr. Steven, right?"
"Correct." Steven confirmed. "Met him during travels. Promising kid, so I entrusted him with an Aron."
As Hoenn's former Champion, Steven had a reputation for nurturing talent.
He'd even gifted Mega Stones to rookies like Sawyer on live TV.
With a Champion that generous, Hoenn's newcomers had it easy…
"Meanwhile, Kanto's basically hell mode."
Natsume muttered. "First a Mega Steelix, then Blue Oak…"
Night fell, and the celebration wound down.
"Cheers~!"
"Gengar~(￣▽￣)~*"
The drinks varied—water, soda, orange juice…
Sirfetch'd surveyed the options before making a bold choice.
"Sirfetch'd!" It plucked a leaf from its leek.
One scallion juice, please.
Stepping outside, the night breeze carried the scent of Indigo Plateau's starry skies.
Somewhere on Mt. Silver, Red was likely admiring the same view with his Pokémon.
Natsume and Brock walked back to the hotel, pausing in the hallway.
"Watching tomorrow's matches?"
"Yeah. I'll keep an eye out for you."
Brock's voice lowered. "…Worried about Forrest and the others."
"If Ash can grow, so can Forrest."
Brock smiled. "Thanks, Natsume-sensei."
Back in his room, Natsume fed Arcanine two Pokéblocks, ruffling its mane.
The 1v3 champion showed no signs of fatigue.
"Sylveon! (╬ ò﹏ó)?" Sylveon, however, scratched at the door, restless.
Let me out! I need to grind wild Trainers!
Rumors of a 'Pink Menace' near the training facilities had surfaced.
Natsume assumed it was Saffron City Nurse Joy's Chansey.
As for Sylveon…
What evil could Sylveon possibly have in mind?
He scooped it up, considering.
Maybe field Sylveon next match?
But the opponent's ace was clearly a Steelix.
Reverse-typing wouldn't help much.
"Eh, it's 6v6. Worst case, Baton Pass to Blastoise for cleanup."
Natsume nodded decisively.
That night…
Gengar floated out with Poké Balls for secret training.
Blastoise continued one-armed push-ups in silence.
Sylveon sparred with Arcanine, gleefully dominating.
"Arf! QAQ"
"Togepi doo-ee~(｀▽｀)" Togepi swayed its feet, attentively taking Mew's online class.
Natsume-sensei and Sirfetch'd slept soundly.
"Sirfetch'd~~"
Having excelled last match, Sirfetch'd lacked Arcanine's stamina.
Gengar didn't have the heart to wake it.
Suddenly—Sirfetch'd's eyes snapped open.
Sword and shield in hand, it waddled out the door after the others.
No one stops this duck!
Too dark in here—training time!!
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