Pokémon: Above the Top

After leaving the desert, Sato, now visibly tanned, arrived at the nearest Pokémon Center with his newly captured Cacnea.

With Cacnea officially registered, Sato had to transfer one of his Pokémon back.

After some thought, he decided to send Ariados to Rose Joy, asking her to prepare an antidote for its venom and to further analyze its toxicity.

Having spent over half a month in the wild, Sato quickly realized that many people had been trying to contact him during his absence.

Leader Howard was eager to finalize his participation in the next Young Elite Tournament.

However, Sato had already made new plans for himself, so he temporarily declined Howard's invitation.

Apart from that, several League officials, both familiar and unfamiliar, had reached out to him, offering jobs, extending invitations for various positions, or even attempting to recruit him outright.

Then there were the personal messages from friends.

Whitney had been complaining in her emails about how her grandfather, Howard, was forcing her to act as a mediator. At the same time, she secretly told Sato not to take it too seriously.

Still, deep down, she probably hoped he would compete again and bring more glory to Goldenrod Gym.

Court had already returned to Johto. Given his age, it was time for him to face reality and take on responsibilities in life.

He had opened a Pokémon training hall in Violet City, and thanks to the reputation he had built over the years, the business was doing quite well. He even invited Sato to join him.

Even Wester, whom Sato hadn't heard from in a long time, personally sent a message to congratulate him and even mailed over a batch of special food for Gengar.

Reading through all these emails, Sato finally realized. He was no longer an unknown Trainer.

After the Young Elite Tournament, his talent had drawn the attention of many.

Some admired him, some looked down on him, others doubted him, and some were outright jealous… The full spectrum of human nature!

Sifting through and sorting the messages one by one, Sato came across two official invitations from the Pokémon League.

One was for the Gym Leaders Qualification Tournament.

The other was for the Pokémon Investigator Selection Exam.

Both Gym Leaders and Pokémon Investigators were combat roles officially recognized by the Pokémon League.

Gym Leaders were responsible for safeguarding their respective regions, recruiting new talent for the League, and training newcomers. In return, they received substantial financial rewards and privileges from the League.

Each year, at least a hundred Trainers qualify for the selection tournament, but only four or five manage to pass.

This extreme elimination rate was due to many factors, one of the biggest being the inheritance system of Gyms.

Every Gym had its own traditions, and as long as those traditions were maintained, the current Gym Leaders could directly appoint their successors.

Because of the deep-rooted influence and reputation that Gym Leaders held in their respective regions, the League was often lenient in their assessments of those taking over established Gyms.

Most Gyms passed their positions to their children or closest disciples.

Over time, many Gyms essentially became the private assets of families or factions. A pattern seen in Blackthorn Gym, Violet Gym, and Ecruteak Gym in Johto.

To counter this issue and to expand the League's strength, establishing new Gyms had become a priority!

In the future, Trainers like Norman (Petalburg Gym) and Bugsy (Azalea Gym) would rise through the Qualification Tournament and successfully become Gym Leaders.

However, every new Gym required extensive development of its host city, often involving major League investment.

Establishing a Gym was never just about setting up a battle facility; it was part of a larger League plan to develop an entire region!

A Trainer with ambitions to become a Gym Leader would need to join the competition early and distinguish themselves from the rest!

As for Pokémon Investigators, they were the sharpest blade of the League, engaging in the darkest and bloodiest conflicts. It was the most dangerous job, with the highest mortality rate.

However, in return, their benefits were exceptional, and their influence within the League was unparalleled. 

Compared to the Gym Leader Qualification Tournament, the Pokémon Investigator Selection Exam was somewhat easier... but not by much.

The main reason was that the death rate was too high, making the demand for personnel much more urgent.

Moreover, Sato knew that Lance would use his newly evolved Dragonite to rapidly climb the ranks, ultimately becoming the League's Chief Investigator.

If Sato chose this path, he would likely follow Lance's lead, which didn't seem like a bad option.

However, after a brief moment of consideration, Sato closed the Pokémon Investigator invitation.

The transition from assassin to League investigator was not something he was mentally prepared for. At least not yet.

Likewise, he had no concept of "good and evil," no sense of justice. A Pokémon Investigator/Agent's role simply didn't suit him.

As for becoming a Gym Leader, Sato was much more interested in that. Given his preference for Dark-type Pokémon, he also met the selection criteria quite well.

Sato clicked the "Participate" button in the email, and shortly after, an automatic response containing the tournament's rules and requirements was sent to him.

After scanning through the document, he quickly extracted the most critical information.

*The selection tournament would take place next June, with the location yet to be determined.

*Participating Trainers must use six Pokémon of the same type, and no substitutions were allowed once the tournament began.

*Battle performance accounted for 60% of the total score, with the top ten competitors receiving full points.

This rule made it clear that raw strength wasn't the only deciding factor for Gym Leaders!

The remaining 40% was divided into several key areas:

*Pokémon knowledge and expertise.

*City protection capabilities.

*Gym leadership and teaching philosophy.

*Political and ideological alignment

Sato couldn't help but smirk when he saw the last requirement.

However, considering the importance of Gym Leaders, it wasn't unreasonable.

Even assassins were trained to be loyal; let alone Gym Trainers, who sometimes held more influence than a city mayor.

After confirming that he had missed nothing, Sato evaluated his current qualifications.... and realized that he was still lacking in several areas!

His Pokémon knowledge didn't concern him, but he assumed that most competitors would have that covered as well, meaning it wouldn't give him an advantage.

As for city protection and political ideology, he was completely clueless, and had no idea what kind of tests would be involved.

Regarding Gym leadership and teaching philosophy, he still had half a year to figure that out, so there was no rush.

Finally, the biggest issue: His Pokémon roster.

By next June, no matter how fast Pupitar grew, it wouldn't evolve into Tyranitar in time, meaning it wouldn't qualify as a Dark-type.

Ariados and Gengar were already disqualified from participation.

Cacnea's evolution into Cacturne within the next six months was highly probable, given that it already had a solid foundation and considerable strength.

However, Eevee was a major uncertainty. Without the life-threatening experiences of its past life, it was uncertain whether it could evolve into Umbreon before the tournament began.

That meant, as of now, the only Pokémon Sato could definitely enter the competition with were: Zoroark, Houndoom, and Sharpedo.

Exactly half the team!

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SPOILERS

In case anyone gets salty about the whole "Gym" thing... it's just qualifications. Even if he wins, it'll take a long time to actually get established. We're just getting started.