Pokémon: Above the Top

Sato had a Gym Challenge match with Clair, who had rushed in and then rushed out just as quickly.

In the end, thanks to her own self-sabotage, she didn't even give Sato the chance to "award" her a Badge…

But what Sato really minded wasn't the issue of the Badge; he was actually considering whether he should call Lance and tell him: "Hey, your 'little' cousin might not be quite right in the head."

In the end, a voice from the void seemed to whisper to Sato that saying it would be digging his own grave, so he obediently chose to drop it for now.

He'd tell Lance in person next time!

----

Ever since becoming a Gym Leader, Sato's life had fallen into a very regular rhythm, and time began flying by unnoticed.

Now, Shadownight Gym had already stabilized, the Intelligence Shop was rapidly developing under Amber's management, the Mimicry space was being constructed steadily, and Team Rocket had tactfully kept their distance… or at least hadn't provoked Sato again in the short term.

With nothing else to do, Sato could only train, train, and train some more.

Still, seeing the Pokémon improve every day -even if just a little- was enough to make him happy.

A dazzling blue light flared up in the training grounds. At its center was Sandile, whom Sato had 'caught' in the Unova Region.

Finally, the day had come for Sandile's first major Evolution. Once on all fours, it now stood upright, and its freed front limbs gave it new ways to fight.

In addition to its sharp and sturdy jaws, its claws and tail also became powerful weapons.

"Congratulations on evolving, Krokorok. Here's your reward." Sato walked up to the newly evolved Krokorok, holding a Potential Enhancement Serum colored in dual shades of brown and black.

After more than a year, research on the serum had advanced. The Joy family had successfully developed a one-time dual-type enhancement formula tailored for dual-type Pokémon.

In other words, a dual-type Pokémon now only needed one dose to receive comprehensive improvement. After all, each grade of Potential Enhancement Serum was supposed to be used only once per Pokémon.

For instance, Sandile had been born with both Ground- and Dark-types, and both of its potential had only reached the Elite level.

In the past, Sato would've had to improve its Ground-type potential first, then slowly raise its Dark-type through [Dark Energy: Blood Nourishment].

But now, one vial solved everything perfectly!

"Krokorok" might sound like a thug, but as the youngest in the team, it really wasn't that fierce at all.

It grew up with the support of its older teammates, so its path had been smooth, but that also made it lack a bit of toughness. That was something Sato needed to fix.

"Kroko!"

Krokorok obediently took the Potential Enhancement Serum, then popped open the cap with a pop~, gulping it down in one go, as if it were just Sweet Milk.

As expected, after drinking it, Krokorok quickly fell asleep. Sato returned it to its Poké Ball, waiting for it to undergo its transformation.

"Back to training. Other than working you all to the bone, there's nothing else to do these days." Sato clapped his hands to gather the group, ready to resume the "pursuit of strength".

Just then, Joseph suddenly walked over to Sato, his eyes lighting up. "Joseph, you need something from me?"

Joseph froze, then glanced at the kitchen behind Sato… that was his real destination.

"Nothing, just passing by."

"Oh, then carry on." Sato nodded casually, pretending like nothing had happened. Joseph thoughtfully walked past Sato and into the kitchen.

---

A little while later, Sina and Sia arrived at the training grounds together.

"Sina, did you two need something from me?" Sato asked again.

Both Sina and Sia froze. The two exchanged glances, engaging in some intense eye contact.

"…Did you come to ask the Gym Leader something…?"

"…Nope, did you?…"

"…Me neither…"

"Ahem, Gym Leader, we're just here to collect our Pokémon supplies from Joseph," Sina explained cautiously.

"Oh, then go ahead. Even if there's nothing going on, you should still train as much as you can." Sato nodded and turned back to continue training.

---

Some time later, Mark came running over, loud as always. "BOOOOSS, BOOSS!"

Sato's eyes lit up. "You need something from me?"

"Nope, just saw you and called out, is that not allowed?" Mark glared at him with those mischievous eyes, sensing that something about the "boss" seemed off today.

"You seem pretty free. How about a battle with me?" Sato smirked coldly. 'How come you're never this enthusiastic when there's actual work?'

"Ahaha… well boss, I just remembered! Joseph was looking for me earlier. Said he had supplies for me." Mark twisted his not-so-big brain around and came up with an excuse on the spot, then bolted off.

Watching yet another person head toward the kitchen, Sato suddenly had a thought.

'Why don't I get any supplies?'

"Because you're the Gym Leader. You're the boss. Are you seriously expecting to pay yourself?" Joseph looked at Sato -who had come into the kitchen just to ask that- and wondered if he'd gotten up on the wrong side of the bed today.

"Forget it. Since you've got nothing to do, I happen to have a task for you," Joseph continued.

"I'm busy, you know. I was just training earlier. Go ahead, if it's not too troublesome, maybe I'll help you out."

Joseph rolled his eyes at the air, then turned back to Sato with a completely normal tone, "Amber just informed us that a group of local adventurers who previously leeched off the Intelligence Shop have gathered again and are planning to pull the same stunt.

They're just a disorganized bunch, so I was planning to take care of it myself when I had time. But if you're free, go deal with it."

As he spoke, Joseph pulled out a thick stack of documents. It had detailed records of each problematic adventurer: their involvement level, role assignments, and more. It was impressively thorough.

"The Intelligence Shop found all this on its own?" Sato asked, a little surprised.

"What else? If you're really that free, you should talk with Amber more often about these things. He's been working hard to build the Intelligence Shop for you. If it grows and you don't even know what's going on, isn't that just awkward?"

"Strength is fundamental. Training is real work," Sato stubbornly insisted.

"Heh…" Joseph couldn't hold back, raising his hand to gesture for Sato to leave.

Sato thought about it and decided to let his slightly insubordinate subordinate off the hook -for now- since there was something to do!

"Pupitar, Ariados, Zweilous… you're with me! Big mission ahead!" Sato called out energetically, naming his squad, and swaggered out of the Gym full of confidence.

"Joseph, what's up with Sato today?" Once Sato left, Mark nervously peeked out and asked.

"All he does is train every day. We've been handling everything else, so now he's probably all pent up." Joseph chuckled, clearly identifying the root of the problem.

"I see… looks like we'll have to find more stuff for Sato to do from now on," Mark said thoughtfully.

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250 Pw=ExtraChap

patr3on/Romeloff