Chapter 82: Chapter 82: Cynthia: I've Never Been This Speechless
"Ryo, we're back!"
At that moment, Naruto entered the shop with a bright smile, calling out to Ryo. Behind him, Sasuke and Sakura followed closely.
Seeing them, Ryo nodded with a smile. "Naruto, did you complete your mission?"
"Yeah, we finished it! Oh, by the way, Ryo, my Bulbasaur evolved—it's an Ivysaur now!"
Saying that, Naruto released Ivysaur from its Poké Ball.
"Ivy!"
Upon seeing Ryo, Ivysaur looked delighted and immediately leaped toward him.
"Hmm."
Catching Ivysaur, Ryo nodded approvingly. "Nice job, Naruto. Looks like you've taken good care of it."
Naruto scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "I-It's nothing, really..."
"Boss, my Charmander got a bit injured during the mission. Could you help it recover?"
At that moment, Sasuke stepped forward, holding out his Poké Ball toward Ryo.
Hearing this, Ryo gently placed Ivysaur down, took Sasuke's Poké Ball, and walked over to the Pokémon healing machine.
Opening the machine, he placed Charmander's Poké Ball inside, pressed the activation button, and turned back to Sasuke. "Just give it a moment. It'll be fine soon."
"Wait, that's it? It just needs to sit in there to heal?"
Sasuke looked puzzled.
Shouldn't injuries be examined and treated manually?
But here, all Ryo did was place the Poké Ball inside the machine.
Ryo, understanding Sasuke's confusion, patted his shoulder. "Don't worry, this machine is specifically designed to heal Pokémon. As long as the injuries aren't too serious, it can handle the recovery just fine."
Internally, he thought, This is the same tech Nurse Joy uses. If this doesn't work, what would?
Besides, if Charmander were seriously hurt, Sasuke wouldn't be standing there so calmly.
Sasuke nodded but still seemed skeptical. Then, after a brief pause, he asked, "Boss, what does it mean when a Pokémon stops leveling up right before it evolves?"
Ryo frowned slightly. "That happens?"
Before Sasuke could answer, Naruto chimed in, nodding. "Yeah, Ryo, it's true! My Ivysaur was like that before it evolved."
This made Ryo more confused.
That had never happened when his Espeon evolved.
"It's true."
At that moment, Cynthia's voice came from the side.
Everyone turned to look at her.
"Cynthia, what do you mean?"
Cynthia continued, "Pokémon require energy to evolve. So, when they're close to evolving, training doesn't directly increase their level—it instead stores up energy for evolution."
"But once they evolve, that stored energy gets released, causing a rapid level increase afterward."
"Right!"
Naruto nodded repeatedly. "After my Bulbasaur evolved into Ivysaur, it immediately gained three levels!"
Ryo frowned deeply. "But that doesn't make sense. My Espeon evolved right after it was born—shouldn't that be impossible?"
Cynthia smirked and explained, "Espeon evolved due to high friendship, which is different from energy-based evolution."
"Huh?"
Ryo was still puzzled. "How is that different?"
"Friendship-based evolution happens because of the bond between the trainer and the Pokémon. It doesn't require the Pokémon to store up energy. It's the same concept as evolution triggered by special items—those Pokémon evolve due to external forces rather than their own accumulated power."
Hearing that, Ryo finally understood. "So, Pokémon that evolve naturally rely on their own energy, whereas Pokémon that evolve through external factors—like evolution stones or friendship—don't need to store up energy beforehand?"
Cynthia nodded. "That's one way to think about it."
Now that he had a clear explanation, Ryo didn't press further.
However, when he glanced at Naruto and the others, he noticed they were staring at Cynthia with curiosity.
Realizing this, Ryo coughed lightly. "Oh, I forgot to introduce her. This is Cynthia, an employee here. Don't underestimate her—she's a very powerful Pokémon Trainer."
Sasuke's eyes brightened at that.
His purpose for coming here wasn't just to get his questions answered—he also wanted to learn more about Pokémon.
"Hey, Sasuke, why are you staring at Cynthia?"
Naruto suddenly noticed Sasuke's focused gaze and asked curiously.
But before Sasuke could reply, a mischievous grin spread across Naruto's face.
"I got it! Sasuke, you like Cynthia! Hahaha, I'm such a genius—I figured it out so quickly!"
Then he turned to Sakura and teased, "Sakura, look at this! Sasuke likes older girls. He doesn't like you—you should give up already!"
Everyone froze for a moment.
"NARUTO!"
A second later, Sakura's furious roar echoed through the shop.
Then—SMACK!
A punch landed directly on Naruto's head.
"Ouch, ouch, ouch! Sakura, why are you hitting me? If Sasuke doesn't like you, you should hit him, not me!"
Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Idiot."
His expression nearly broke for a second.
What the hell was that logic?
I was interested in Cynthia's knowledge, not her looks!
On the side, Ryo and Cynthia both twitched their lips in disbelief.
What the hell is going on inside Naruto's head?
Shaking his head, Ryo turned to Cynthia and jokingly said, "Looks like our Champion Cynthia is quite charming—even the kids like you."
Cynthia shot him a glare. "Boring."
Then, she ignored him and continued eating her ice cream.
She wasn't some shy little girl—this kind of teasing didn't bother her at all.
Ryo, seeing this, lost interest in the joke and turned back to the group.
"Alright, enough fooling around. Do you guys need anything else?"
Hearing his words, they quickly quieted down.
Naruto still looked confused, but the others ignored him.
Sasuke, regaining his composure, asked seriously, "Boss, can I study Pokémon knowledge here?"
Ryo's eyes sharpened slightly. "You want to learn about Pokémon?"
Sasuke nodded firmly. "Yes. I don't know enough about Charmander yet."
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