Josh had somehow dodged MATIAS SILPH the entire time he was at the tournament. Whether it was by luck or by the Volatile being a late entry was uncertain. So late in the event, it seemed his luck had run out. While a win here would be nice, a loss here would be no big deal. A win against one of his biggest rivals would feel all the more sweet.

"I've already got my podium spot mostly locked up," Josh replied with a surprisingly calm demeanor. "Honestly, it might be nice having a battle where the stakes aren't so high. Win or lose." Raikiri, on the other hand was growling and purring loudly; it seemed the thundercat was every bit as serious as Josh normally was.

Invisible to the Zeraora, the yellow feline ran right into the SHADOW CLAW, shaking his head as its ethereal talons crossed into the material. With his cheek oozing red, the swift Pokémon was ready to retaliate in an instant, zooming toward the cream-colored cat in a QUICK ATTACK intended to put distance between them after the passing claw swipe.

"I'm being realistic," Josh retorted. "Do you know how hard it is to even get top eight in a field this size? There have to be hundreds, if not thousands, of entrants."

To Matias, that last line may have come off as goading. To Josh though, it was far from it. "You know... Matias, since we had our match at Ever Grande, you've changed. And not for the worse. For the better. I think you finally understand me. And... it makes me happy. Comfortable."

Whether Matias felt the words were genuine or a ploy to distract him did not matter; Raikiri was still giving the match his all. The cream-colored cat was surprisingly swift. There was no outspeeding the speed-trained Zeraora, though, especially not after a powerful burst of AGILITY to try to evade the fellow feline's attack. The aim was to build up enough speed that one or two ultrafast strikes could turn the match around for him.

"If you're trying to get under my skin, what you're doing isn't working," was Josh's answer. "But I genuinely think you've changed for the better since our match. There are still things we won't agree on, and that's fine. I know this is going to sound weird coming from me, but you've helped me grow a lot. This year, I aspire to join your ranks. Not as Elite Four, but as a Champion."

The TRAILBLAZE would force Josh's hand, his Z-GLOVE overflowing with energy. His Pokémon glowed white and yellow with Z-Energy, hopping back to one corner of the arena before ramming toward the normal-type in the fastest move his land Pokémon had in their arsenal. The threat of the HYPERSONIC PLASMA CHARGE would be threefold: electrified paws, a line of lightning bolts in his wake, and the deafening series of thunderclaps they would create.

Whether the good luck wishes were genuine or not, Josh appreciated them. "I imagine the next time I'll see you is at the Pokémon League, when I sign up for the title match. It's hard to get onto Kyle's schedule, but I look forward to it. We're good friends outside the workplace, too... you know?"

For the first time in over a year, Josh walked away from the Volatile with a smile on his face. There was still time to claim that top spot on the leaderboard. Heading back to the commons, he got in line to register for another flight.