Muk was a decent opponent, but expecting Weavile to break through with just that one battle was obviously unrealistic.
In the end, the Sand Arc Forest was not the inner region of Mt. Silver, so there was no way Peak Elite level Pokémon would be everywhere. Muk was already one of the more powerful presences in the surrounding area.
Of course, the three didn't come to the Sand Arc Forest solely to help Weavile break through; exploring the unknown during their journey was also a major draw.
Otherwise, Mt. Pyre would be far more suitable for "grinding."
Weavile continued its journey of beating up weaklings, and the three had no objections. They walked and paused, taking the opportunity to enjoy the contrasting scenery of the Sand Arc Forest.
"Wea Wea!"
Suddenly, Weavile let out two wary cries and tensed its body, ready to attack.
The three immediately dropped their relaxed, sightseeing attitude and focused their attention in the same direction. A massive black shadow slowly emerged.
A towering figure, sharp claws, eyes squeezed shut in a perpetual squint, and a round belly that could easily double as a trampoline…
Snorlax…
A Snorlax that was awake!
Looking at the over-two-meter-tall "cutie" in front of them, it was no wonder even Weavile was on edge.
"Are you... excuse me, are you the great Sato?"
"Eh? The Snorlax can talk?" Mark exclaimed in surprise, causing a few black lines to appear on Sato and Joseph's faces.
"No, no… there's someone behind it." Snorlax scratched its head and then plopped down. A head soon poked out from behind it.
"Hello, I... I'm Sakura. This child is my partner, Snorly."
A short golden-haired girl slowly slid into view. She looked a bit shy but had sparkling eyes fixed on Sato, clearly full of admiration.
"I'm Sato. You know me?"
"Mm! I was there at the Pokémon Center when you taught the Hanazaki siblings a lesson!" Sakura said excitedly.
"Oh, hello." Sato nodded. Yesterday's incident had clearly spread; quite a few people knew. But what exactly was this girl named Sakura up to?
"I… I just came to say thank you. My Waky was also tricked and taken by them before. Oh right, Waky is a Marowak."
"So that's what happened. I'm Mark. Sato stepped in yesterday just to help me," Mark chimed in.
"Why do you sound so proud? Did I misremember? Weren't you the one who lost?" Joseph snorted, completely confused about what Mark had to be smug about.
"Hey, I meant to say she and I share the same misfortune," Mark muttered discontentedly, then turned his gaze toward the seated Snorlax.
"Sakura, you must be rich, huh? To afford such a massive glutton!" Mark said casually, only to be met with a fierce glare from the gluttonous Snorlax.
Even if its eyes weren't visible, it was clearly very angry.
"I... I'm not…"
"..."
Running into other Trainers on the road was a perfectly normal occurrence. If they hit it off, it was easy to become friends.
The little girl + Snorlax combo quickly caught Mark and Joseph's attention, and the two sides started chatting right away.
Though in most cases, it was Mark doing the talking, Sakura answering obediently, Joseph occasionally chiming in, and Sato staying silent.
"I came to help Snorlax break through. It's been stuck at Peak Elite level for a long time," Sakura eventually said, and the topic circled back to Snorlax.
Sato suddenly lifted his head and glanced at the golden-haired girl. Not bad at all.
"Hey, Sato, aren't you focusing on training Weavile recently? Why don't the two of you have a battle?" Mark said gleefully, clearly eager to watch a fight.
Sato didn't respond, but his eyes were already on Sakura.
"Ah? I can't do it. You're so powerful, Sato, you even beat the Hanazaki siblings in a 1v2... I really can't..." Sakura shook her head, refusing frantically.
Just imagining battling her idol made Sakura's legs go weak.
"Snor!"
Suddenly, Snorly stood up and reached out a paw toward the Weavile who was only as tall as its belly, surprisingly issuing a direct challenge.
"Weavile!"
Weavile glared coldly at Snorlax with blood-red pupils, involuntarily sharpening its claws, itching for a fight.
"See, see? Both Pokémon want to battle, so what's there to hesitate about?" Mark clapped Sakura on the shoulder excitedly, causing her to stagger forward.
Joseph rolled his eyes and pulled Mark aside by the ear. 'How could he be so handsy with a girl!'
"Are you a Trainer?" Sato asked.
"Ah? Uh, yes, I am."
"Then let's battle. How can a Trainer not battle?"
"O-okay..." Sakura looked at Sato's smile and nodded dazedly.
"Now, 1v1 match between Trainers Sato and Sakura! The battle ends when one Pokémon lost the ability to battle!" Mark announced excitedly, taking on the role of referee.
"Battle start!"
"Weavile, Swords Dance!" Sato didn't hold back in the slightest, issuing his command the moment the match began.
On the other side, Snorly suddenly curled into a ball and, without missing a beat, rolled straight toward Weavile.
Defense Curl + Rollout.
Strangely, Sakura didn't issue any command, seemingly letting Snorlax act freely.
'A Trainer unable to command their Pokémon?' Sato quickly shook his head. That was practically impossible.
Though Sakura didn't seem good at battling, her bond with Snorly was evident. Sato could tell that much.
Something's off.
Sato quietly raised his alertness. After Weavile jumped away from the incoming Rollout, he commanded, "Ice Shard!"
Dozens of Ice Shards launched in an instant, but Snorly completely ignored them and barreled forward with overwhelming momentum.
Thick Fat ability, halves the power of Ice- and Fire-type moves.
Swords Dance-boosted Ice Shard was no joke, but from the looks of it, Snorly didn't seem to care at all.
"Agility to dodge!"
As Rollout came again, Sato immediately ordered Weavile to evade.
Although Rollout hadn't hit Weavile yet, so its power hadn't increased, the sheer presence of Snorlax rolling like that was still intimidating.
A two-meter-tall giant meatball… there was hardly anything it couldn't steamroll.
If there was, then just roll over it twice!
"Snorly, Yawn!"
"Weavile, Brick Break!"
Snorly seemed to realize that Rollout wouldn't land on the nimble Weavile, so it suddenly stopped. At that exact moment, both Sato and Sakura gave commands.
Sato was startled. He had been wrong, Sakura wasn't not commanding. She only gave instructions at critical moments, leaving the rest entirely up to her Pokémon's own judgment.
This type of command style… Sato had seen it in his past life. When used well, it was extremely strong. When used poorly, it was very weak.
Free-command style!