Pokémon, Ash is going to become a perfect man from now on.

"Preparing for the match?" Ash looked at Rika with a puzzled expression.

"Miss Ami wants to participate in the Grand Contest - Asagi Tournament, which will be held in a few days, and she's worried about it."

"A Grand Contest?!" *N

Rika's words undoubtedly attracted the attention of everyone present... especially Rukia.

This is her specialty, and she never expected to be involved in such a grand competition recently.

“I’ve always been very interested in the Grand Contest, and I really wanted to go out and participate after the Johto region started holding the tournament,” Ami explained. “But because I have no experience with it, I haven’t been able to go yet… Plus, Hikaru is seriously ill, so it’s even harder to find time to practice.”

"I came here for the same reason, hoping to offer Miss Ami some help... but now that Mr. Xiaozhi has arrived, I probably won't need to help you anymore."

"Me?" Rika's words puzzled Ash.

"Well, I have a favor to ask..." Ami earnestly pleaded, "I know you're a very strong trainer, Ash, could you please give me some pointers on how to train for the Contests?"

“In exchange, I can provide steel badges.”

Chapter 506 Xiao Gang and Xiao Gang, so hard to tell them apart~

Upon arriving in Asagi City, I heard that the local guild master was going to give me a badge…

Okay, this is actually considered compliant.

The Gym Leader's task is to assess the current level of trainers and award badges to challengers they approve of... even if the challenger did not win the battle, or did not have a battle at all.

In the original manga, Ash Ketchum obtained at least half of his eight Kanto badges in this way.

Therefore, Ash wouldn't reject Amy's suggestion. At least she wasn't like the three sisters at the Cerulean Gym, who openly gave up.

The problem is, while compliance is possible, Xiao Zhi's major is not relevant to his job!

He's a traveling trainer who challenges gyms everywhere. Besides, Ash made it clear in the Whirl Islands that he wouldn't participate in the Contests. So what's the deal with Amy asking him for advice?

If we're talking about who should be the coach, wouldn't the Hoenn idol next to me be a better fit?

“Because Rika said that you, Ash, are an all-rounder just like her,” Ami explained earnestly. “I was thinking, for Rika, who has the perfect young lady persona, to praise you so highly, you must have considerable expertise even in areas you haven’t explored before. Besides, I don’t know any Coordinators well…”

"If that's the case, I'll do my best." Seeing the eagerness in Rika's eyes out of the corner of his eye, Ash immediately agreed.

He now knows that this Miss Ami is probably not very good at dealing with strangers and tends to rely on acquaintances to solve problems.

Now that she has found Rika, Ash certainly won't let the young lady down.

Rukia was clearly very concerned about this unexpected incident.

She realized that Rika, who was supposedly not Ash's girlfriend, held an extraordinary position in Ash's heart... she could even be said to be second only to Blue!

In addition, Rukia has also decided to participate in this Asagi Tournament.

She wanted to meet the trainers in Johto and also see for herself how well Ash could train Amiya in just a few days…

"Just a friendly reminder..." However, just as she was pondering this, Xiao Lan's voice suddenly entered her ears.

"If you really can't accept what Ash did, then you should stop gossiping about him as soon as possible, and it's best not to have anything to do with him anymore!"

“You…” Ryukia subconsciously turned to Ran, only to find that Ran’s expression was extremely serious and her eyes were so sharp that no one dared to look directly at her.

That sharp gaze, like radiating rays, was enough to scan her thoroughly from the inside out!

“I’ve never said anything like this to anyone else before, you’re the first,” Xiao Lan said quietly. “Xiao Zhi already has enough trouble around him, and there are quite a few people who criticize him for various reasons… I don’t want you, who has nothing to do with him, to bring more criticism to him, or even drag us all into it!”

Ryukia understood the next sentence; the other party was there to stand up for Misty.

"Furthermore, Ash doesn't have a very good impression of you Hoennians..."

"What did you say?!" Rukia's eyes widened suddenly; those words were quite a stab in the back.

What's wrong with Hoenn? Why should they be disliked?!

"If you want to gossip, go back and ask your uncle. I don't have time to explain the details to you." Xiao Lan gave a cold smile. "In short, this is my attitude... If you're not happy, feel free to fight back anytime~"

After a brief exchange, Blue ignored Ryukia, whose chest was heaving with anger, and caught up with Ash, who had deliberately slowed down.

When Rukia looked over, she found Blue standing between Ash and Misty, chatting and laughing with everyone.

For a moment, she even had the illusion that the one being surrounded by everyone was not Ash, but Blue!

...

After resting for a day in Asahi City, Ash and his friends met up with Honey at the Asahi Gym the following morning.

"Miss Ami, let me see your Pokémon."

"Okay, everyone come out!" At the gym training ground, Ami threw out a few Poké Balls and showed Ash her usual handheld Pokémon.

Magnemite, Magneto, Forretress, and of course, my favorite Steelix.

However, as Xiaozhi looked at them one by one, his expression was not so optimistic.

"...are they not allowed to be used in the competition?" Ami asked nervously.

“Using them in the competition would definitely put us at a disadvantage,” Xiao Zhi said frankly.

“I checked the records of the recent tournaments yesterday. Since the tournaments are just starting out in Johto, the Pokémon participating in the performances are mainly flashy and beautiful… Miss Ami’s Steel-type Pokémon doesn’t have an advantage in terms of appearance.”

To put it bluntly, Xiaozhi said that Ami is a beginner, and it's a pipe dream for her to transform the appearance of a group of ordinary people into someone who can rival the looks of internet celebrities in just a few days.

"What should we do..." Ami couldn't help but feel frustrated.

The idea that participation is the most important thing is sometimes just talk. In a competition held in one's own backyard, even if Ami is a beginner, she would definitely want to get a good ranking.

After Xiaozhi's analysis, it became clear that she wouldn't even make it past the initial stage.

"Oh right...don't you still have an Ampharos?" Ash suddenly remembered the one in the lighthouse.

"It's here too, it's just resting." Ami threw out another Poké Ball and sent out a little guy that looked a bit weak.

"Guang'er has indeed recovered after taking the medicine, but he may still need to rest."

"If it's just weakness, I should be able to help." Ash casually waved a ball of Aura, which transformed into pure life force and flowed into Ampharos's body.

The next second, the previously weak electric dragon became lively and excited, rubbing against Ami's arm.

"Guang'er, you...you're so kind!" Ami was overjoyed. "Xiao Zhi, thank you so much!"

“That way we can use it to enter the competition,” Ash said nonchalantly. “The first round of the Pokémon Contest is supposed to highlight the charm of Pokémon, but the judging criteria are very subjective and depend entirely on the judges’ tastes. As long as Hikari mainly uses the Flash move and supplements it with some of her favorite moves, she will definitely be able to pass the first round. After all… this is the Asagi Contest.”

“This… I understand!” Ami suddenly realized.

Let's put it this way: at the Asagi Festival right in our backyard, the radiant lighthouse itself makes its appearance... If Hikari's dazzling performance fails to pass the first round of review, all the judges will be drowned in the spittle of the local audience!

"After that comes the second grand battle. This tournament allows us to send out different Pokémon. Miss Ami, just choose the one you're best at," Ash continued.

"Then I'll definitely use Xiaogang..."

"Huh? Miss Ami, are you going to use me? I'll definitely fight my hardest... even if the opponent is a Pokémon!" Mistaking his name for his own, the person suddenly perked up, even planning to go head-to-head with a Pokémon like Ash...

“Uh… Steelix is ​​my Steelix.” Ami pointed speechlessly to the largest Pokémon in the arena.

"Is that so...? This is truly a match made in heaven!" What was expected to be awkward turned into something much more challenging for Uncle Gang. He became even more determined, "Miss Ami, please subdue me just as you subdued Little Steel..."

"Alakazam, take him outside to cool off." Ash sighed and put his hand to his forehead. He had no choice but to let Alakazam drag Brock away quickly, otherwise he would definitely dig out a three-bedroom apartment.

"By the way, speaking of Steelix..." Ami seemed thoughtful, then suddenly looked at Ash with a hopeful expression, "I heard from Rika that you also have a special Steelix, Ash, I wonder..."

"Understood." Ash nodded and threw Steelix's Super Heavy Ball.

Rika's name is so useful to Ash.

Boom!

The earth trembled, and a colossal Steelix made its grand entrance, its terrifying length of forty meters instantly scaring Ami's little Steelix into shrinking into a ball.

"This...this Steelix is ​​absolutely amazing!!" Ami's eyes were shining, as if she had completely unleashed her passion.

It just goes to show that everyone has different tastes. Who would have thought that this quiet-looking young lady would like such a big and hard steel behemoth?

Moreover, she earned the nickname "Iron Wall" because of this.

"I can lend you my Steelix for training these few days before the competition," Ash promised. "I can't say you'll master any fancy moves, but you can still try out some tricks."

"Fancy patterns?" Ami asked, puzzled.

"It's probably... like flying and disappearing into the ground~"

Chapter 507 The Asagi Tournament... An Encounter Outside the Venue

A few days later, the Grand Contest - Asagi Tournament was held as scheduled.

The venue for the competition was located near the Lighthouse of Radiance, where a magnificent and newly built stage had been constructed, and the stadium was packed with spectators that day.

The Grand Contest has quite a history, having been held in Kanto and Johto in the past.

However, due to various reasons, it has been suspended for a period of time and remains so to this day, so it can be considered a relatively new thing.

The two regions of Guan Yu and Shiro, which had long been shrouded in the shadow of Team Rocket, have now seen the light of day. In addition to the numerous industries that need to be rebuilt, the activities of various trainers also urgently need to be enriched.

The Grand Prix is ​​undoubtedly the best supplement at present, so there are quite a few contestants, and many people even come from other cities to register.

As for the organizers of the event... it's just those same old lookalikes again~

The judges are a trio: Conkenstein, the director of the tournament's secretariat; Sukizo, the president of the Pokémon Fan Club; and Nurse Joy, a local woman.