Ariel methodically wrote the word "Newcomer" in the nickname column of the form, then paid the registration fee.
Soon, his name was announced over the broadcast.
"Next up, please welcome the new challenger—Newcomer! His first opponent is our old friend, Whirlwind Kid, Ah Fei!"
Ariel stepped onto the battlefield amidst scattered applause and a few jeers.
The nickname "Newcomer" clearly made the audience think he was either here for laughs or just a reckless rookie.
His opponent, a teenager with dyed yellow hair, was smugly spinning a Poké Ball in his hand.
"Hey, Newcomer! I suggest you surrender now to avoid embarrassing yourself in front of so many people later! My Golbat can whip up a whirlwind!"
Ariel ignored his taunts and calmly threw out his own Poké Ball.
A red flash, and the burly Krokorok appeared on the field. It yawned, looking half-asleep, its eyes half-closed behind sunglasses.
"Huh? A Krokorok? That Pokémon is so slow, how could it possibly beat my Golbat!"
The Yellow-haired Teen laughed even more happily.
"Golbat, show him what you've got! Use Supersonic!"
Sharp sound waves instantly spread out.
In the audience, some people already wore pained expressions, as if they could see the Krokorok falling into confusion and being beaten passively.
However, Krokorok just shook its head impatiently, as if bothered by a fly. The Supersonic that could give ordinary Pokémon splitting headaches had no effect on it.
"How is that possible!" The smile on the Yellow-haired Teen's face froze.
"Too noisy."
Ariel finally spoke, his voice not loud but clearly audible across the entire field.
"Krokorok, Dig."
Krokorok lazily raised its claws, scraped the ground, and its massive body instantly disappeared into the field.
"Trying... trying to attack from underground? Naive!"
The Yellow-haired Teen forced himself to stay calm.
"Golbat, fly to the highest point, watch for movement on the ground!"
Golbat immediately flapped its wings and soared high.
However, just as it reached mid-air, the ground directly below it exploded!
Krokorok's huge figure burst out of the earth, its gaping maw drawing a vicious arc in the air, biting the Golbat that hadn't had time to react.
"Crack!"
A crisp sound of bone breaking rang out.
Krokorok landed, casually spat out the Golbat that had already lost the ability to battle, and yawned again, looking half-asleep.
As if defeating this Golbat was as simple as eating or sleeping.
The entire venue fell into dead silence.
The Referee froze for several seconds before stammeringly raising his flag:
"G-Golbat is unable to battle! So the winner is... the new challenger!"
Whoosh—!
After a brief silence came a tidal wave of exclamations.
"Holy crap! One move? Instant KO?"
"That Krokorok's power is terrifying!"
"That Newcomer... doesn't seem simple!"
The Yellow-haired Teen stared blankly at the field, his hand trembling as he recalled Golbat.
Ariel expressionlessly recalled Krokorok, turned, and left the field, waiting for his next opponent.
His performance perfectly embodied the image of a "Newcomer" with a powerful Pokémon but a slightly rough fighting style.
Soon, the second battle began.
This opponent was clearly much more cautious, sending out a Graveler known for its defense.
"Graveler, use Harden!"
The opponent tried to boost defense first, then look for an opportunity.
"Crunch."
Ariel's command remained simple.
Krokorok roared, its massive body charging forward with astonishing pressure.
Graveler's hard rock body was as fragile as a biscuit against Krokorok's fangs imbued with Dark-type energy.
Another cry of pain, Graveler's shell was directly bitten through, its eyes rolled back, and it collapsed on the ground.
Another instant KO!
If the first match was luck, the second was absolute domination by sheer strength.
The audience seats completely erupted!
"Monster! That Krokorok is a monster!"
"Too strong! This isn't the strength a Newcomer should have!"
"Go Newcomer! Take down the next one!"
The atmosphere at the sidelines instantly ignited, people starting to cheer for this mysterious and powerful Newcomer.
The third match, the opponent was a middle-aged man who looked experienced. He sent out a Fighting-type Machoke.
"Interesting kid," the uncle grinned. "But your winning streak ends here! Machoke, Cross Slash!"
Machoke's muscles bulged, its arms crossed, charging at Krokorok with a fierce gust of wind.
"Block it, then, Free Rein."
Ariel's voice remained calm.
Just as everyone expected a clash of strength, Krokorok made a surprising move.
It didn't retreat but advanced instead, its thick tail sweeping like an iron whip, accurately striking Machoke's lower body during its charge.
Machoke stumbled, and before it could steady itself, Krokorok closed in, locked its arms around Machoke's neck, and executed a fierce shoulder throw, slamming the taller Machoke hard onto the ground!
"Boom!"
A loud crash, the ground shook from the impact.
Machoke foamed at the mouth, completely knocked out.
Three consecutive wins!
The entire venue erupted in thunderous cheers, even the previously lazy Staff Member now wide-eyed, mouth agape enough to fit an egg.
This was nothing for Ariel, after all, the Trainers here were too weak, their battles far from reaching the intensity of Ariel's usual training.
Ariel recalled Krokorok and glanced at an inconspicuous corner on the second floor of the audience seats.
There, a man in a black suit and sunglasses was holding a communicator, seemingly reporting something.
Objective, achieved.
But not enough.
Ariel walked back to the front desk to collect the extra reward for three consecutive wins—ten thousand league coins and several precious berries.
"Um... Mr. Newcomer,"
The Staff Member's attitude did a complete 180, fawningly smiling,
"Would you like to continue challenging?"
"Switch Pokémon."
Ariel said, stepping onto the battlefield again.
This move made the venue, which had just calmed down somewhat, erupt in noise again.
"Still fighting? And switching Pokémon?"
"Too arrogant! But I like it!"
"Does he have other powerful Pokémon?"
Under everyone's expectant gazes, Ariel threw out a second Poké Ball.
This time, appearing on the field was a small purple figure.
Sneasel.
Its opponent was a Manectric known for its speed.
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