The Third Test – Practical Assessment

“Ding—”

As the bell rang to start the third round of competition, Nurse Joy and the examiner on the battlefield simultaneously sent out their Pokémon to battle.

“Squirtle, use Water Gun!” Nurse Joy commanded with professional precision.

Water shot from Squirtle’s mouth in a powerful stream, spraying directly onto Charmander’s body. The water-fearing Fire-type immediately let out a frightened cry, steam rising from its tail flame.

“Squirtle, use Skull Bash!”

Nurse Joy decided to press her advantage, not missing any opportunity to attack. She quickly commanded Squirtle to follow up with a devastating physical assault.

“Bang—!”

Squirtle’s reinforced head slammed into Charmander’s body with tremendous force, knocking the Fire-type to the ground and securing victory in the match.

“Go Nurse Joy, that was beautiful!” Brock exclaimed from the audience, his voice carrying across the arena. “Todd, now’s the time—that glistening determination is the perfect moment to press the shutter!”

Of course, Brock wasn’t urging Todd to take photos just to preserve memories of the battle…

“Yes, yes,” Todd replied with obvious disdain, answering dismissively. He deliberately refrained from pressing the shutter—he didn’t want Nurse Joy to mistake him for some kind of pervert.

After Nurse Joy finished her impressive match, Red’s group approached the examiner, preparing to select their Poké Ball belts for the competition.

“Come on, please choose any one,” the examiner said, gesturing to the seven identical belts arranged on the table.

“Which one should I choose?” Ash looked at the selection with obvious indecision, hesitating for a long moment as he tried to divine which might contain the strongest Pokémon.

“Can’t we know what Pokémon are inside?” Ash asked hopefully.

“That’s what makes it an exam,” the examiner explained patiently. “These Pokémon are all trained for battle—they’ll listen to your commands. We want to see whether trainers can adapt no matter what kind of Pokémon appears.”

“We’re challenging you directly, right?” James asked, seeking clarification.

“That’s correct,” the examiner confirmed.

After understanding the rules, Red confidently selected the rightmost Poké Ball belt, while Ash and James also made their choices with varying degrees of uncertainty.

Through a drawing system, Red became the first of the three to challenge the examiner.

“Ding—!”

The battle bell rang with authority, and Red and the examiner, standing on opposite sides of the battlefield, simultaneously threw their Poké Balls.

As the two white lights faded, Wartortle and Butterfree materialized before the expectant crowd.

“Excellent, it’s actually Wartortle,” Red nodded with genuine satisfaction, already formulating his strategy.

“Luck is also part of strength,” the examiner said with a helpless smile, privately guessing that he might be swept by Red’s single Wartortle. As an examiner, he naturally knew what lineup was contained in each Poké Ball belt.

“Wartortle, use Water Pulse!”

Water condensed into a perfectly spherical projectile, instantly shooting from Wartortle’s mouth toward Butterfree as it hovered in the sky.

“Butterfree, use Psychic to reflect it back!”

Butterfree’s compound eyes released brilliant blue light, seizing control of the Water Pulse and redirecting it back toward its original source.

“Use Ice Beam, then follow up with Iron Tail!” Red commanded with tactical precision.

Ice Beam instantly crystallized the Water Pulse into a solid ice sphere. Without missing a beat, Wartortle pivoted and used Iron Tail to shatter the frozen projectile, transforming it into a barrage of razor-sharp ice shards that struck Butterfree’s body with devastating accuracy.

Even though Butterfree desperately tried to dodge, it couldn’t escape the relentless storm of ice fragments.

“Excellent tactics, worthy of Prof. Red!” the examiner praised, inadvertently revealing Red’s distinguished identity to the crowd.

“Right now I’m just an ordinary test-taker,” Red said with measured seriousness. “You don’t need to go easy on me.”

‘Go easy? I’d need to have the power to go easy!’ the examiner thought with dark humor—he really wasn’t planning to hold back.

“Use Icy Wind to freeze Butterfree in the sky!”

Freezing air instantly enveloped Butterfree’s form. Before the Bug-type could react, its entire body was encased in ice, causing it to plummet to the ground, where it was finished off by Wartortle’s decisive Iron Tail.

“Butterfree is unable to battle!” the referee announced.

“Even using Wartortle for the first time, Red can give commands so skillfully,” Brock exclaimed in amazement. “Truly worthy of his reputation!”

“Click! Click!”

The enthusiastic Todd had already drawn his camera, frantically photographing Red’s masterful command of the unfamiliar Wartortle.

Seeing Wartortle’s energetic condition and high morale, Red chose not to switch Pokémon, allowing his temporary partner to continue the battle.

The examiner sent out his next Pokémon, looking somewhat helplessly at the Venomoth now flying overhead.

Red raised an eyebrow, seeming to anticipate that the examiner’s third Pokémon would be his most familiar opponent.

“Ding—!”

The battle bell rang again. This time the examiner took the initiative, commanding Venomoth to ascend and use Stun Spore. The paralyzing powder scattered quickly from the Poison-type’s wings.

“Use Rapid Spin in place to create airflow!”

“Wartortle! Wartortle!”

Wartortle retreated into its shell and spun at tremendous speed. The powerful airflow generated by the high-velocity rotation scattered the falling Stun Spore harmlessly, with some particles even being blown back toward Venomoth. Fortunately for the examiner’s Pokémon, it managed to dodge in time.

“Use Ice Beam to freeze Venomoth’s wings!”

Wartortle adjusted its shell to achieve the optimal firing position, and an Ice Beam shot forth with pinpoint precision, striking Venomoth’s wings and encasing them in solid ice.

With its wings frozen solid, Venomoth couldn’t maintain its aerial superiority and was forced to crash to the ground, where it was met by Wartortle’s devastating Skull Bash, ending the battle in a single decisive blow.

“Venomoth is unable to battle!”

Due to Red’s absolute dominance, the audience erupted in cheers, celebrating his overwhelming display of tactical brilliance.

“I didn’t expect so many people to support Big Brother,” Ash said with genuine emotion, clenching his fists as he vowed that his upcoming match would be equally spectacular.

The examiner threw his final Poké Ball, and the last Pokémon to appear was Beedrill—exactly as Red had predicted.

“As expected…” Red shook his head with resigned amusement.

“Red’s luck really is incredible…” Misty complained from the sidelines.

“Even without luck, Big Brother would still win,” Ash immediately countered, his loyalty to Red absolute. As Red’s biggest fan, he refused to let anyone diminish his brother’s achievements.

“Yes, yes, I was wrong,” Misty chose to surrender immediately, not daring to argue with the passionate Ash.

The battle between Wartortle and Beedrill ultimately ended with the same result as the previous encounters—Wartortle’s complete dominance.

“Beedrill is unable to battle! The winner of this match is contestant Red!” the referee announced to thunderous applause.

“Congratulations, Prof. Red… contestant Red, please accept this qualification badge!”

After the match concluded, Red and the examiner performed the traditional post-match handshake ceremony. The examiner handed over the qualification badge from his chest with obvious respect.

“I’m still curious,” the examiner said, his voice filled with genuine puzzlement. “Why would someone of your stature specifically come to this Pokémon Certification Center to take the exam? Your strength is clearly sufficient to defeat many gym leaders.”

“Just for interest,” Red answered with characteristic understatement, pinning the newly obtained qualification badge next to his collar. “Collecting League badges I encounter is also one of the joys of traveling.”

“The Earth Badge?!” the examiner exclaimed, his eyes widening in shock as he noticed the first badge on Red’s collar. It was unmistakably the Earth Badge from Viridian Gym—the strongest gym in the entire Kanto region.

“Just got it by luck,” Red said with his typical modesty, offering no further explanation. He exhaled a relaxed breath and walked toward the audience where Ash’s group was eagerly waiting, leaving the stunned examiner to contemplate the true magnitude of the trainer he had just faced.

[Chapter Complete]

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Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep