Wednesday Night, January 6th.

The moment Natsume-sensei went live, fans from all corners rushed to tune in.

Not just Team Rocket and the International Police—Jennies and Miss Joys of various regional forms too.

The 'Natsume-sensei Fan Group', packed with big shots, was buzzing with activity.

"Natsume-sensei's streaming!"

Gold, who'd been listening to DJ Mary's evening radio show, gritted his teeth before decisively clicking the live stream.

"I'll go back to Miss Mary after I've learned everything!"

Blue Oak, in his white lab coat, paused his research to glance at the chat group. "What's this week's strategy?"

"I know!" Gold blurted. "It's a Sun team—my specialty!"

"Gold... Natsume-sensei already explained it clearly," Crystal sighed. "You weren't even listening."

"Huh? But Torkoal and Venusaur are a classic Sun team combo, right?"

As the classic sunny duo, Torkoal's Drought perfectly complemented Venusaur's Chlorophyll.

Gold himself was a Sun team user... though his ace was another sunny powerhouse—Typhlosion.

Both were sunny sweepers, but their styles couldn't be more different.

Typhlosion relied on its ferocious Eruption, while Venusaur—

Gold glanced at Venusaur's setup, his expression complicated.

Wide Lens plus Sleep Powder?!

Natsume-sensei, you still claim you never use Hypnosis!

"It's a Sun-Sand Team."

Red explained to Gold.

"Unlike a pure Sun team, Natsume-sensei brought a sand setter—Tyranitar."

"Plus the space controller Dusclops."

Red sounded impressed. "Heavy space control, sandstorm defense, sunny speed boost... This is nearly perfect strategy execution."

"Oh, I see..."

Gold crossed his arms, deep in thought, nodding occasionally.

Silver: "...You didn't understand a word, did you?"

"Dammit!" Gold suddenly slammed the table. "I've trained Sun teams for six months, and now they've leveled up?!"

"Gold, maybe you should stick to battling by instinct," Lance suggested kindly.

"Mmm..." Gold nodded to himself, then clicked back to DJ Mary's radio.

Battling should be fun!

Someone as tactical as Natsume-sensei would never bring true joy!

The Sun-Sand Team, a classic weather system, maintained absolute control with dual weather setters.

And Tyranitar, carrying Weakness Policy, became a terrifying sweeper under space control...

Yet Blue Oak frowned. "More options mean higher command difficulty and risk..."

Weather, space control, speed tiers, even Ally Switch—

Compared to the straightforward Unburden Team last time, this required far more strategic calculations.

As for the opponent's team composition—

Blue Oak studied the Charizard circling overhead.

With its devastating Heat Wave that could one-shot Venusaur given any misplay...

And facing Mustard of the Isle of Armor—a league-dominating veteran.

Even for Natsume-sensei, victory wouldn't come easy.

Blue Oak murmured, "The type matchup's unfavorable..."

Ash clenched his fists. "Even at a type disadvantage, with enough determination, we can win!"

Blue Oak's eye twitched.

Is this what I taught you?!

Or did Red secretly corrupt you?!

"Perhaps."

Steven smiled gently, his light blue eyes gleaming with focus.

Type disadvantages... could be overcome.

Yet even Champion-level trainers respected type advantages—it was about battle efficiency.

Besides... Steven narrowed his eyes.

That Mustard didn't seem like a Charizard user.

He felt more like—

The image of a certain Galar Champion flashed through his mind.

Steven smiled.

"This might be an extraordinary battle!"

...

The sun dipped below the horizon, casting a glittering golden glow across the sea.

A massive Wailord breached the surface, leaving a swirling depression in the water as waves crashed in its wake.

The Master Dojo was hosting a feast for its distinguished guest.

"Leon, my boy, eat up if you wanna grow taller, y'hear~?"

Mustard hunched slightly, his kind eyes fixed on his beloved disciple.

Leon, his long purple hair framing his bearded face, laughed heartily. "Digging in!"

Just like their training days, the two began a spirited eating contest.

Mustard's chopsticks hovered over a steamed bun as he raised an eyebrow. "Leon, what brings ya to the Isle of Armor all of a sudden?"

"Master, I've seen through your little tricks!"

Leon, surprisingly adept with chopsticks, snatched the bun first. "Truth is, I just went out for a stroll with Charizard today, and then..."

"Got lost?"

"...Yeah." Leon nodded.

Mustard burst into laughter. "Well then, stay the night! We'll send ya back to Galar tomorrow!"

"But I've got work to—"

"Leon." Mustard's tone turned serious. "A true warrior knows when to rest. That's how ya grow stronger."

With a playful flick of his chopsticks, Mustard grinned. "Yer too caught up in yer reputation and Champion duties, y'know~?"

Leon blinked in surprise.

Mustard gazed out the window, bathed in twilight. "Sometimes, stoppin' to look around ain't so bad~."

"Alright!" Mustard clapped Leon on the back, laughing. "Yer stayin'! Perfect chance to train with this old man!"

Leon sighed in defeat. "Guess I'm in your care, Master!"

Two hours later.

"C'mon!" Mustard nudged Leon excitedly. "One more win, and we're rank one in the world!"

Leon stared at the gaming monitor, sweatdropping.

This was the so-called "training"?

Sure, his Master was a hardcore gamer who'd camp in front of the screen 24/7.

But using this as training?

Leon forced a smile. "Master, you'll get banned if they find out."

"Pfft, it's just one Charizard."

Mustard crossed his arms, smug. "A Dragon-Fighting team with a Charizard? Totally legit!"

Leon shook his head, exhaling. "Fine. Last match."

"Heh, after this, this old man's gonna be the best in the world~!"

Leon was no slouch in the Battle Domain either.

Even his real team had powerhouses like Dragapult and Aegislash.

So, naturally, he played better than Mustard.

In two hours, he'd crushed Raihan, Flint, Aaron—all of them.

Especially Aaron, the Bug-type specialist.

Charizard had nearly traumatized the poor guy.

As the victim Aaron later recalled:

"o(╥﹏╥)o That was nothing like Mustard's playstyle! Charizard's just broken!"

Mustard's account skyrocketed to world rank #2.

Then, the matchmaking screen spun.

Mustard, grinning ear to ear, suddenly froze.

Leon frowned. "What's wrong?"

Mustard blinked, looking uneasy. "We matched with... someone familiar."

Leon turned to the screen.

The username looked vaguely familiar.

He'd once watched Raihan's weather team get obliterated by Natsume-sensei's Tailwind strat.

And now, he was facing Natsume-sensei himself.

Even Leon couldn't help but feel intrigued when he saw Natsume's team.

"Sandstorm team?" He eyed the Tyranitar.

His friend Raihan was a sandstorm expert, and Leon himself knew a thing or two about weather.

But then—his brow furrowed.

This wasn't just one weather system. This was—

"Sun-Sand Team?!" Leon's eyes widened.

This guy... Not just stall tactics, but weather systems too?

Raihan, a weather specialist, had both sandstorm and rain teams.

But in terms of synergy and raw power...

Natsume's Sun-Sand composition was on another level!

"Master." Leon's voice dropped low. "I might... have to use my own team for this."

"Huh?" Mustard blinked. "Not gonna use yer Dragon-Fighters?"

"It's a 6-pick-4 format." Leon smirked.

"Let's send out the others first."

The trainer cards flickered on-screen.

For a moment, Leon felt like he was standing on the familiar grassy battlefield.

And across from him—a composed young man with a faint smile.

Both threw out two Poké Balls in unison.

"Go! Dragapult! Cinderace!"

On Natsume's side—

A raging sandstorm erupted, carrying an overwhelming, oppressive force.

"Tyranitar—!" The monstrous beast roared, whipping up a furious tempest.

Natsume's voice cut through the storm.

"Tyranitar, Dusclops—battle stations!"

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