Inside Sprout Tower, Silver gets a call on his Pokégear saying that whether or not he can evolve Totodile is up to his skills.
Outside the tower, Gold wonders why it is called Sprout Tower, which is when he reads the signpost explaining the legend of the 100 foot tall Bellsprout. He then proceeds to sneak into the tower through a window. He finds a lot of machinery inside the tower, almost getting hit by a gear. Suddenly, a bunch of Sages appear out of the blue, thinking that Gold has come to train in Pokémon combat. They say that they must shave Gold bald. Gold says he likes his hair how it is, and that he only came to catch a thief. The Sages however, try to get Gold to join by force. They attack him with their Bellsprout, slicing off the front of Gold's hair. This enrages Gold, and he has Aibo attack them. The sages have their Bellsprout form a tower and use Reflect.
Gold checks his Pokédex and sees that Bellsprout is skinny and quick. He begins to wonder if they even have a weak spot. The sages ask what formation Gold would like for the final attack. Gold tricks them into making the Bellsprout form a tower and has Exbo use the fire on its back to attack the Bellsprout. The sages let him up to the second floor, finding another Sage. The Sage says the second floor is another training floor. He describes Silver to the Sage, and the Sage points to Silver, who is standing in the doorway. Gold tells Silver to stop, but Silver has Totodile use Slash, causing the stairs under Gold to fall. Aibo helps Gold hold on to the staircase.