It wasn't just the musician that taught him that lesson. Others had taught him that lesson, too. Elinor Anderson came to mind in their battle at the Pokémon League. "My time as a Gym Leader has taught me that, as well. That's one thing that you don't get taught in any battle class. It's something you have to learn by doing." He had priority moves to counter Trick Room. He had ride Pokémon that weren't quite so fast but could hold their own, like his Gogoat, against defensive Pokémon. Twilight's Swords Dance would be very good at handling highly defensive Pokémon, as well. He had plans for every obvious counter he was aware of.

The follow-up question was a natural one. "There were two I lost to. I lost to CIAN MAHER from underestimating just how powerful an unevolved Pokémon would be. He had used a Tyranitar and Larvitar against me. I did everything to neutralize the Tyranitar, but the Larvitar was his true ace. Failure to recognize that was beyond me." The second one hit him a lot harder, both when it happened as well as now.

"And my second was to kyle lopez in his Battle Arcade. And that's part of how I even got to ride Raikou in the first place. You see, I found out about Entei through his Battle Arcade. He used Entei there, and I felt helpless. Entei was able to shrug off even powerful Water attacks like they were nothing. Ground attacks, Rock attacks, you name it. Not even a scratch. The only attack that even worked on Entei at all was my Manectric's HYPERSONIC PLASMA CHARGE. And yet..." A long pause. "And yet, there is something in me that tells me with certainty he will use Entei against me again as part of the Elite Test."

"Which one are you referring to?" Josh asked Matias to clarify, then he figured he may have wanted to hear about both. "Cian is the easier one. I went into his Gym not knowing what to expect. If it's about weathering a sandstorm, I can bring a team that's more adept at fighting in one. Meteos, my Aerodactyl, seems like a great way to handle a Gym Leader that likes sandstorms, while also maintaining my speed advantage." Ever since he had become a Pokémon trainer, overreliance on speed had been a big problem for him. There was absolutely nothing wrong with speed as a tool. And yet, it was no more than a tool in the Gym Leader's toolbox.

"Kyle, though, is much more complicated. Given my relationship with him, there is absolutely no way he will allow me to become a Champion until I can conquer a legendary Pokémon without using one myself. Specifically, Entei." He shared with Matias the unboosted speed he was able to measure Raikou at during his fateful ride. "Entei's gotta be almost that fast. Nothing I have on my team is anywhere close to that fast. This is something I've been working on with Katherine Fairburne . I got to battle her Pheromosa, and learned a lot about battling without my speed advantage just from that single encounter. That, combined with what Elinor and Callan caught me, has helped a lot. If you've watched any of my recent Gym matches as a Leader, you may have noticed that I've become a lot more flexible with the way I battle."

That was only half the battle with the Beast, though. "I need more experience battling legendary Pokémon. And to do this... I may need another favor of you, Matias. I'm sorry to have to depend on you, but before I battle Kyle, I want you, or someone else on the AQUA Initiative, to take me under their wing to AQUA headquarters. I need to figure out what circumvents a legendary Pokémon's blanket attack immunity from ordinary Pokémon. Like I said, I had Hydro Pumps, Rock Slides, and Earth Powers just bounce off Entei. I know Z-Moves harm them, but I only get one of those, and I clearly need more than that to defeat Entei. Once I know what works and doesn't work, I can formulate a plan for it, and conquer the Beast."

Josh's heart visibly sank as Matias delivered the bad news. It was his close loss to one of the newer Gym Leaders, CIAN MAHER , that appeared to be the difference maker. Even Saber let out a whine, the Manectric close enough to him to feel his disappointment. It took him quite a while to even respond. "...I get it. Ever since I thought about my battle with the Top Champion in his Battle Arcade, I realized that as much as I've improved, I'm just not ready. The others may use legendary Pokémon against me, too, and I need to learn how to fight not just Entei, but legendary Pokémon in general. Plus, Twilight still can't Mega Evolve yet. I really need to replace her Absolite first. I want to be at full strength."

With the interview over, Josh pulled out his phone, went to the League's website, and signed up for a battle with the Rustboro Leader. "Just registered for a battle with him. Now that I know what's up, I can pick the right Pokémon for the job. I do look forward to seeing you again, whether it be here or during the Elite Test." Standing up, Josh held the Raikou plush underneath his arm. He had one more question of Matias.

"Once I get my Absolite back, can you take me to see Heatran?"