Chapter 187: The Indigo Conference Begins
Rio recalled all his Pokémon into their Poké Balls. As he arrived back at the Lavender Gym, he spotted Mr. Fuji taking a walk and heading back to the Pokémon House.
"Getting your Pokémon ready for the Indigo Conference?" Mr. Fuji asked with a smile. "You’re so diligent—you remind me of myself back in the day."
If I told you I just met with Raikou, what would your reaction be? Rio scratched his head. "Compared to you, Grandpa Fuji, I still have a lot to learn."
"You’re getting better and better with words," Mr. Fuji laughed heartily. After a moment, he asked: "Have you decided which Pokémon you’ll use? The Indigo Conference is packed with skilled trainers—you’ll want to think carefully."
Rio paused. To be honest, he hadn’t given it much thought. It might sound arrogant, but with his lineup—aside from Aerodactyl—he felt that any one of his main Pokémon could probably carry him all the way to the finals. If he had to send out a second, his opponent would have to be truly formidable.
But he still needed to register six Pokémon with the League. "I think I’ll go with Charizard, Munchlax, Red Gyarados, Annihilape, Greninja, and Aerodactyl," Rio said after a moment.
"Solid choices—they should serve you well," Mr. Fuji nodded approvingly. "By the way—are you not sending Eevee?"
"Eevee’s free evolution might draw too much attention. I’d rather not make a spectacle of it," Rio shrugged.
"That’s wise—it would be quite shocking to the public," Mr. Fuji agreed.
After chatting a little longer, Mr. Fuji returned to the Pokémon House. "Good luck—I’ll be there with Rina to cheer you on. It’ll be an honor to see someone from Lavender Town become the Indigo Champion."
"I’ll make it happen," Rio said with a smile. After Mr. Fuji left, he muttered to himself: Even if it weren’t for the glory, I’d do it for Mewtwo.
He now had five legendary Pokémon under his command—even if they were all secondary legendaries. He believed that gave him a shot at catching Mewtwo. And if that wasn’t enough, he could always call Rayquaza for backup. Either way, he was determined to succeed.
Ten days later, Rio left Lavender Town on Charizard. As a participant in the Indigo Conference, he needed to arrive a few days early to register.
Flying from day to night, he arrived at the Indigo Plateau. The plateau straddled the border between Kanto and Johto, and by the time Rio arrived, it was already packed with tourists from both regions. Charizard’s black coloration drew many stares. Several people approached Rio after he landed, asking if he was a contestant and if they could take photos with him.
Rio initially thought they meant with him—and agreed. To his surprise, they immediately swarmed Charizard instead, leaving him waiting for nearly half an hour as a small queue formed.
Am I not handsome enough? How come no one wants to take a picture with me? Rio grumbled. Eventually, losing patience, he recalled Charizard and made a run for it.
Out of breath, he arrived at the registration desk and handed over the invitation that Erika had helped him obtain. The registrar was surprised to see a League-issued direct invitation and gave Rio an approving glance before handing him his contestant number and accommodation key.
Rio glanced at his number—144—and headed to his lodging.
After lying down for about an hour, Munchlax popped out of its Poké Ball and demanded food. Rio sighed and got up again, taking Munchlax to explore the food stalls that had sprung up around the conference grounds, offering delicacies from both Kanto and Johto.
Two days later, Mr. Fuji arrived with some Pokémon House volunteers and Lavender Gym trainees. Rio treated everyone to a meal together.
The next morning, the Indigo Conference began. As a contestant, Rio arrived early at the main stadium and stood alongside 200 other trainers to witness the opening ceremony.
This year’s conference had a total of 256 participants. Aside from his League-issued invitation, most had earned eight Gym badges or graduated from Pokémon academies.
"Ah—so sleepy..." Rio yawned during the lengthy opening ceremony.
"Ladies and gentlemen—the torchbearer has entered the stadium!" The announcer’s voice over the loudspeaker caught Rio’s attention. He turned to see a fair-skinned young woman carrying a blazing torch run through the center of the contestants.
"As we all know, the sacred flame comes from the legendary Pokémon Moltres, symbolizing its blessing on this tournament. We hope all contestants will give their absolute best!"
Rio listened and remembered that after returning from Hoenn, he had visited Mt. Ember again, hoping to run into Moltres. He’d waited nearly a week but saw no sign of it.
I wonder where they get the flame from, Rio muttered. Since the organizers managed to get fire from Moltres every year, there must be a way to contact it.
Half an hour later, the opening ceremony ended. All contestants gathered in the waiting area for the draw.
The tournament consisted of eight rounds. The first four rounds were 3v3 battles, held in four different stadiums: Water, Grass, Ice, and Rock. Contestants drew lots to determine which stadium they’d compete in and who their opponent would be.
Rio drew the Water Stadium—and a young man named Yuya as his opponent.
"Now, the fifth match in the Water Stadium is about to begin!"
"On the green side—from Lavender Town, contestant Rio!"
"On the red side—from Lilycove City, Hoenn, contestant Yuya!"
"Notably, Yuya has previously participated in the Ever Grande Conference and placed in the top eight. Rio, on the other hand, is competing in a regional conference for the first time..."
"Without further ado—let’s welcome a fantastic battle between these two contestants!"