Still under that same giant tree, Damian and the others were sitting on a picnic mat.
"So, Akari, were you really sent to the Hisui region by Arceus for a trial?"
Serena looked at Akari in surprise.
"That's right. Aunt Serena, you and the others even celebrated my coming-of-age ceremony for me that day~"
Akari wore a bright smile. Her eyes curved into crescents.
Aunt Serena...
Serena's expression turned a little strange. Akari looked about the same age as she was, so hearing her call her "Aunt Serena" felt even stranger.
However, in terms of family rank, Akari really did have to address her that way.
So Serena could only suppress that strange feeling and think about something else.
That was the fact that Akari had been sent to Hisui by Arceus for training and adventure!
Serena had heard Platinum talk about Sinnoh's myths before. Arceus was the Pokémon at the center of Sinnoh's creation myths!
Did Arceus really value Akari that much?
At that moment, Caitlin's brows also furrowed slightly. She studied Akari from the corner of her eye. Just like Serena, she had realized this as well.
After all, Caitlin was extremely smart.
And Caitlin remembered something else. Back then, Dialga had left its orb with Damian. It had told him to give it to the daughter he would have in the future.
Was that daughter this Akari?!
Caitlin felt that was very likely. After all, the fact that Akari was valued by Arceus already proved how special she was.
To be honest, Caitlin suddenly felt a sense of crisis!
She was not really worried about Platinum herself. Even if Platinum had a daughter like Akari, Caitlin was not too concerned.
Gaining an advantage through one's child? It was not as if Caitlin could not have children herself.
Caitlin was healthy too. She believed she could also have Damian's child in the future. So to Caitlin, the advantage of having a child did not seem that important.
Besides, she was stronger than Platinum.
However, that only applied under normal circumstances. If the child in question was an extremely gifted monster, then it was no longer a normal situation.
And right now, Akari was clearly not ordinary!
In the end, she had overlooked one thing. The fact that Akari could travel back to Hisui and meet Damian in that past era already proved how unusual she was.
Caitlin's eyes flickered slightly. This situation was a little troublesome!
Today, her emotions really had gone through one rise and fall after another. Caitlin's heart was still unsettled.
"Akari, what was Hisui like?" Platinum asked curiously.
Hisui was the old name of the Sinnoh region.
"Hmm~ Mainly, the environment and technology were different. Hisui's environment is quite different from the modern era. Because of that, there are many Pokémon unique to Hisui."
Akari tapped her chin and thought for a moment.
"Hisuian Pokémon?" Serena found that very interesting.
For trainers like them, Pokémon was a topic that never got old.
And when it came to regional Pokémon, there were things like Alolan forms, Galarian forms, Paldean forms, and so on.
In fact, there are many Pokémon with regional differences across the modern regions. Those differences all came from different environments.
Because of that, Serena immediately understood what Akari meant by "Pokémon unique to Hisui."
"Right. For example, Ursaluna, which is the evolved form of Ursaring. Or Hisuian Zoroark. There are quite a few," Akari nodded.
Ursaring can actually evolve?
Hearing that, both Platinum and Serena were quite surprised. As one of the stronger Normal-type Pokémon, Ursaring was already powerful on its own. Its evolved form would naturally be even stronger.
"Actually, during my trip to Hisui, I caught a lot of Hisuian Pokémon. Their information and data have basically all been uploaded to the app. You can exchange your points for them later," Damian said with a smile.
Hearing that, Platinum immediately took out her phone and checked. Sure enough, she found that some new Pokémon had appeared on the list.
"Akari, you're a trainer now too, right?"
Platinum asked her daughter.
She was quite interested in Hisui's Pokémon, and Akari had definitely caught some rare Hisuian Pokémon.
Of course, more importantly, Platinum really wanted to see Akari's current strength.
She also wanted to give her daughter some guidance.
"Yes! Mom, I'm already very strong now."
Akari flashed a big smile. Her eyes curved happily.
"Then let Mom test your level. Let's have a battle."
Platinum smiled gently at Akari.
"Okay!"
Akari agreed immediately. This was exactly what she wanted.
Akari was very eager to battle her mother and show her how much she had improved as a trainer.
It was also a good chance to understand her mother's current strength. Akari was very confident in herself.
"Are you serious? You two are going to battle?"
Serena was quite surprised. A trainer battle between mother and daughter? This was getting interesting.
"This should be a very interesting battle," Caitlin said with a faint smile. She could use this chance to learn more about Akari.
She had a feeling that Akari might be very strong!
After all, besides Damian and Akari, Caitlin was the person there who understood Arceus the best.
Just how special was Akari, someone Arceus had treated differently and even given a trial?
Through this battle, she might be able to see a little of that!
"Yes, let's see Akari's current level."
Platinum was smiling. She did not think she would lose to Akari.
After all, according to Akari, she had only been in Hisui for four months.
Platinum naturally did not think there was any chance she would lose to a trainer who had only been improving for four months.
She was Platinum Berlitz, the most talented trainer the Berlitz family had seen in two hundred years!
Even in Team Rocket, where many strong trainers had gathered, she was among the very best of her age group.
Platinum's original goal for this battle was to give Akari some guidance.
Damian raised an eyebrow and looked at Platinum with a strange expression.
Since they had decided to battle, the group did not stay seated. They found an open area nearby.
"Then I'll be the referee," Serena stepped forward and volunteered.
"The battle will now begin. The competitors are Platinum and Akari."
"The rules are a full 6-on-6 battle. When all six Pokémon on one side are unable to continue, the other side wins."
"Begin the battle."
Serena briefly explained the rules. After all, this was not an official arena match.
It was just a simple formality.
"Yay~! I finally get to enjoy a proper modern full-team battle!"
Akari took out a Poké Ball. A spirited look appeared on her face. Her eyes were full of excitement.
It was easy to see that Akari's fighting spirit was very strong.
Hisui was ancient Sinnoh, after all. Whether it was the battle rules or the battling style, to a modern girl like Akari, everything there had felt too rough.
But now, she could finally have her "first" proper battle!
"Akari, be careful. I'm very strong," Platinum said. The Poké Ball in her hand enlarged as she warned Akari.
"Show me everything you've got!"
"Uh-huh! I will!"
Akari's eyes curved with her smile.
Platinum smiled knowingly. Then she held the Poké Ball in front of her and took a light breath. Her gaze turned calm as she entered battle mode.
Platinum was ready to challenge!
Even though her opponent was her future daughter, a battle was still a battle. For a trainer, taking every battle seriously was basic.
Platinum threw the Poké Ball in her hand.
"Alright. Then my first Pokémon is this one."
"Froslass!"
A Froslass, looking as though she were wearing a kimono, floated in front of Platinum. She was one of Platinum's main Pokémon. Her types were Ice and Ghost.
"Mom, your luck isn't very good."
Seeing Froslass, Akari grinned. She threw the Poké Ball in her hand with a backhand motion.
"Arcanine! Go!"
Along with a loud roar, a Hisuian Arcanine full of energy landed in front of Akari.
"Is this the Hisuian form of Arcanine?"
Seeing this Arcanine, Serena understood immediately.
That was because this Arcanine looked very different from a normal Arcanine. A normal Arcanine has orange fur, but this Hisuian Arcanine had grayish-black fur.
And compared with the usual Arcanine, it looked less like a dog and more like a lion. The flames swirling around its mouth looked as if they could burst out at any moment.
"That's right. Hisuian Arcanine is Fire and Rock type. It really does have a type advantage over Froslass."
Damian nodded and stated Hisuian Arcanine's typing.
"That type combination isn't especially good."
Caitlin quickly ran the numbers in her head and reached a conclusion.
While the Fire and Rock combination had decent resistances, it only had four weaknesses.
But the problem was that it had a four-times weakness to both Ground and Water. Both of those were very common and popular types.
One four-times weakness was already dangerous enough, let alone two.
That typing was actually not as good as a normal Arcanine's pure Fire typing.
"A Pokémon's real strength or weakness depends on the trainer," Damian said with a chuckle.
"And Akari is no ordinary trainer. The Hisuian Arcanine she raised might put on a very impressive performance."
Hearing that, both Caitlin and Serena were startled.
Did that mean Damian had very high expectations for Akari's performance?
But the problem was that Akari had only been a trainer for four months.
"Come on, Akari. Remember to go all out."
Platinum let Akari make the first move.
My future daughter, just how strong have you become during your journey in Hisui?
Platinum was very curious. After all, Akari was the daughter of both her and Damian.
Logically, she should have inherited the trainer talent of one of them.
After all, both Damian and Platinum were exceptionally gifted trainers