Chapter 832: Rock Star

Evening.

All Baimu declined Acerola's dinner invitation.

He had a premonition that eating at the same table as Nanu would be awkward.

Influenced by the trials, he definitely wouldn't be able to leave Melemele Island for the next few days, so he sent a message to Gladion, who was scheduled to come for a challenge in the morning.

"Understood."

The chuunibyou teenager's response was as brief as ever.

All Baimu wasn't sure if Gladion continuing to battle him like this would affect the future Manalo Conference. For instance, by turning the tables and defeating Ash.

Probably not, right?

At this moment, he was also very curious about the results of the Masters Eight, regretting why he hadn't transmigrated later—at least then he could have seen what exactly happened in the finals!

While he was at it, he could have played Scarlet/Violet to figure out what was going on with the mascot legendaries...

It had been nearly two years since he transmigrated, yet there wasn't a single piece of news on the internet about the Scarlet/Violet legendaries or the Paradox Pokémon; there was just an Ancient Donphan that people called the "Great Tusk Titan," making it seem as if all the data he saw was fan-made.

They were hiding it so well!

While grumbling to himself, All Baimu arrived at the hotel pre-booked by his Poryphone.

"Welcome!"

A dark-skinned landlady in a kimono knelt to welcome him, accompanied by a Lurantis of normal size; both wore smiles and respectful expressions.

Johto style was Japanese style, without a doubt.

The room was a standard tatami room, with a thin Japanese screen separating the living room from the bedroom, and outside the balcony facing the door was the famous Malie Garden of Ula'ula Island.

"The tourism economy is incredible!"

All Baimu exclaimed in admiration.

He felt that Malie City could simply be called the second hometown for people from Johto.

Perhaps many cities in Johto didn't even have such a rich traditional cultural atmosphere; one day in the future, someone might even shout—"The orthodoxy of Johto is in Alola."

He went out to the Pokémon Center.

Nurse Joy, who spoke with a thick Johto accent, left him not knowing how to react; he figured a traveler from Johto would find it very heartwarming.

He routinely handed his Pokémon over for a check-up.

All Baimu waited in the lounge, and before long, a man with a punk-style outfit, red and white hair, and a rock-star vibe strode in.

"Which one of you is All Baimu?"

This tone, like a local hoodlum looking for trouble, was truly eye-catching.

Nurse Joy also gently expressed her dissatisfaction: "Ryuki-kun~ be quiet, this is a Pokémon Center, everyone needs quiet."

"Sorry! But I! Am a superstar!"

"Shut up!"

"Hi."

The loudmouthed local hoodlum suddenly turned into a local idiot.

All Baimu wasn't unfamiliar with the idiot... *ahem*, with Ryuki; he was a special NPC who appeared in both the anime and games, having come to the Alola region to make it big with the dream of becoming a rock star.

That's right.

This guy really was into music.

He stood up, walked slowly to Ryuki, and said, "I am All Baimu. May I ask what you need?"

"You are? Great, man! Hurry up and accept the battle!"

Ryuki's eyes lit up as he raised his right hand to show his phone screen.

It was clearly the World Coronation Series app interface.

Did he find him using the keyword search function?

All Baimu glanced at his ranking—4666, then glanced at his own—4322.

"Fine."

He'd have to battle sooner or later.

The battle location was set at Ryuki's turf, one of the tourist attractions, the Kantonian Gym, though the boss and his subordinates had completely inconsistent styles.

The boss was a rock star (self-proclaimed), and the subordinates were ninjas.

——

Kantonian Gym.

A six-story tower-style building, with the battle location on the top floor.

All Baimu stepped on the hardwood floor; honestly, in this environment, he didn't dare let his Pokémon use their full strength. If a move missed and tore down the place, how could he afford to pay for it?

"What are you doing?"

He looked at Ryuki standing inside, who was busy operating something with his head down.

Ryuki replied: "Adjusting the microphone and speakers. I'm used to commanding in a rock style; after all, I am a superstar!"

This guy kept saying "superstar" every other sentence; he was almost obsessed.

The debugging wasn't finished.

The Drone Rotom responsible for acting as the referee hurried over and started announcing the battle rules without a word, leaving Ryuki in a flurry.

Fortunately, with the help of his ninja subordinates, it was quickly sorted out.

*Ding ding ding! *

Flashy lights hit the stage, illuminating the flamboyant and unique background board.

The World Coronation Series officials usually arranged 2v2 for indoor battles and 1v1 for outdoor battles; this wouldn't change until the Hyper Class.

The Drone Rotom announced coldly: "Will both trainers please send out their chosen Pokémon!"

*Bang! *

A shadow splashed onto the ground like black water, and a Gengar with a sinister smile slowly floated up.

"Gengar!"

Ryuki's movements were a beat slow, or rather, he deliberately slowed down his ball-throwing motion to let his Pokémon appear a step later.

"Yo! That's pretty rock! Come and see my baby!"

*Bang! *

"Roar!"

A fierce dragon beast with a red head, blue body, and spikes all over appeared.

It's you! The "Dragon Shame" of Gen 5, Druddigon!

All Baimu was observing his opponent when explosive music suddenly rang out in the gym.

Ryuki shrieked, "Yeah!! The concert has begun!"

The ear-piercing screech made him frown, but the opponent ignored him and started feigning playing the bass, while Druddigon's head swayed up and down to the rhythm.

Gengar was a bit confused.

It was its first time battling such a bizarre opponent, so it couldn't help but look at the Drone Rotom.

No reaction.

Proving that Ryuki's behavior didn't violate the rules.

He saw him roar: "Become a prisoner of my music! Throat Chop!"

"Roar!"

Druddigon hissed and flew forward, its sharp claws wrapped in blood-red lightning, just like a thunderbolt across the sky!

*Hiss! *

The air shrieked!

Gengar stared silently, and the moment Druddigon approached, it turned sideways, dodging the claw strike.

Because the movement was truly too "careless," Ryuki, holding the microphone, froze for a second, almost forgetting to use his rock scream to hype up the atmosphere.

"Psychic."

The blood-red eyes were covered by a glowing blue light, and a psychic force locked onto Druddigon's lower body from the front, making it unable to move its waist to turn around and attack Gengar, who was on the side.

The other claw naturally missed as well.

Druddigon was shocked and angry; while struggling constantly, its head still kept swaying up and down to the rhythm.

What kind of disco are you dancing to...

Gengar locked onto Druddigon's lower body, not letting it move.

Compared to restraining the whole body, restraining half was faster and consumed less, and it could better test the opponent's mettle.

Since he was a Dragon-type specialist trainer who had appeared in the anime and opened a gym in Malie City, All Baimu, also a Dragon Tamer, naturally held him in higher regard.

But as far as the current situation went...

"Outrage~~!"

Ryuki brought out his screaming command technique again, even adding the classic rock gesture.

All Baimu said: "Dazzling Gleam."

"Gengar!"

Gengar floated behind Druddigon, ignoring the dark red smoke rising from its body. After a breath of psychic power gathering, the brilliant, colorful radiance bloomed like a flashbang!

The intense light forced Ryuki to cover his eyes instinctively.

At the same time.

Druddigon, having broken free from Psychic, also turned around abruptly, waving its powerful arms and ferocious mouth, anger brewing in its vertical pupils, as if it wanted to tear Gengar into pieces.

But after turning around, what it saw wasn't Gengar, but a flashbang that caused it immense pain!

*Buzz!! *

Countless needles of light pierced through Druddigon's body, and the anger and madness in its eyes instantly froze.

"Roar—"

Hearing the painful howl, Ryuki lowered his hands and immediately saw Gengar with its back to him and Druddigon falling to the ground with a crash, screaming: "My baby—"

The Drone Rotom was cold and heartless: "Druddigon is unable to battle, Gengar wins. The match continues."

"Goo! I won't forget your sacrifice!"

Ryuki covered his face, then turned and shouted passionately: "New member, enter! Eon!"

*Bang! *

A Pokémon that All Baimu was very familiar with, and Gengar was particularly surprised by, appeared.

"Hey-duh!" "Hey-duh!"

Zweilous roared hoarsely, its two heads bumping into each other like they had split personalities, far less obedient than Hydreigon had been.

Without a doubt.

This had a certain connection to the trainer's cultivation methods; on the other hand, it concerned whether Zweilous realized the other head was also itself.

Pokémon were indeed intelligent, but ultimately, their beastly nature outweighed their human nature, especially for a Pokémon like Zweilous.

The current situation was like a cat mistaking its own tail or leg for an enemy.

Ryuki naturally had a way to wake them up.

"Get hyped!! Oh yeah—!!"

Amidst his screaming, Zweilous also started acting up like Druddigon, its two heads swaying up and down.

No!

Its entire upper body was swaying!

Gengar: "..."

Do this person and his Pokémon have some kind of illness?

It couldn't help but turn its head to look at its trainer. All Baimu was also a bit helpless, and even more curious that after witnessing Dazzling Gleam, he would still send out a Pokémon that was 4x weak to Fairy-type.

Did he have an extra ace up his sleeve?

Really, anything can be a Dragon-type specialist these days!

"Roar!"

Ryuki's shout provided the answer.

Gengar rushed forward upon hearing the sound; Protect couldn't block Roar, and the arena was too clean, with nowhere to dodge.

The only plan now was to try and dive into Zweilous's shadow to ensure it wouldn't be switched out.

Unfortunately.

Thinking before acting made it a step too late.

"Gengar!"

Gengar was unwillingly pushed back into the Poké Ball at All Baimu's waist by the sound wave, and another Poké Ball opened in response.

*Bang! *

Light flashed, and a bewildered Dragapult appeared in mid-air.

It looked around, at a loss.

"Loo-pa?"

Why was it sent out without notice?

The little Dreepy in the launch ports were quite active; they hadn't come out to battle external enemies for a while, and the combat power in the Alola region was too low-end, almost leaving no need for them to act.

And Ryuki, seeing Gengar successfully switched out, was exceptionally excited, screaming into the microphone: "Now! Take it down with Dragon Rush, oh yeah—!!"

"Hey-duh!" "Hey-duh!"

Azure light released from the top of Zweilous's head, its four little stubby legs moved, and its wings flapped wildly as it pounced forward!

*Boom! *

The unstoppable posture was like a meteor!

In the sky, Dragapult stared blankly at the pouncing Zweilous, when a command suddenly came to its ear.

"Turn invisible and dodge, then throw it to the ground and use Dragon Darts!"

As the words fell.

It swam forward like a conditioned reflex, not retreating but advancing, and as they approached, it turned invisible and disappeared right in Zweilous's face!

"Hey-duh!?" x2

"Nani!?"

The energy on Zweilous's head dissipated, and it looked around in disbelief along with Ryuki.

Such a big dragon just disappeared...

Ryuki screamed: "It turned invisible! It's still by your side!"

But before Zweilous could sniff and search, Dragapult appeared behind it, flicking its translucent tail to entangle one of its hind legs, and used gravity to throw it down!

*Thud! *

The floor shook violently!

Dragapult's triangular-wing-like head hung low, and a large amount of azure flames gushed out from both sides, and the two little Dreepy whistled as they flew downward!

"Hee-ya!!" x2

They were like two miniature homing missiles, swaying with incomparably brilliant flame tails, hitting Zweilous's two heads with extreme precision.

*Bang bang! *

"Hey-duh—"

Two exceptionally clear screams mixed into the erupting dust.

Ryuki's voice cracked again: "Zweilous!!"

*Whoosh! *

The two little Dreepy pulled back, clearing a circle of dust, allowing the Drone Rotom to see Zweilous lying on the ground, motionless.

It announced the match result coldly and mercilessly: "Zweilous is unable to battle, Dragapult wins. The final winner is All Baimu from Malie City."

"Based on this battle, the World Coronation Series ranking will change!"

*Buzz buzz~*

The Drone Rotom flew away from the window.

"Well done."

All Baimu raised his right hand, smiling as he tapped the tails of the two little Dreepy, then silently put his left hand behind his back.

Dragapult, returning together, had a serious face, but the tip of its tail quietly wrapped around to the trainer's back to tap the left hand placed there.

The overly extreme socially anxious dragon didn't even like to celebrate in front of outsiders.

The Poryphone flew in front: "Ranking increased to 3565, breaking into the Hyper Class is just around the corner."

"3565..."

The progress was a bit slow.

Did the number of participants increase again?

How many rounds did Ash battle to get to the Hyper Class?

All Baimu recalled slightly and found it had no reference value at all, because the anime production team didn't draw every battle.

Upgrading quickly really meant finding battle festivals or something.

He thought while shaking hands with Ryuki in a friendly manner.

"Very happy to have battled you."

"Me too! After battling you, I feel like I'm only one step away from being a superstar!"

"Ah~ then I wish you get your wish."

"Hehehe! Of course!"

Before parting.

Ryuki forcibly stuffed a few tickets for a rock music festival into his hand.

All Baimu accepted them with a helpless smile.

Although he severely disliked this guy's rock-and-roll battle style—it was really too noisy, making him feel uncomfortable all over—Ryuki wasn't a bad-hearted person, just a local idiot chasing a dream.

The previous evaluation of "what kind of weird thing" was a bit too harsh.

The key was that Ryuki reminded him of the Musician, who also used music instead of commands and became famous at the Unova League with a song called "Heart of Unova."

Rock...

All Baimu couldn't evaluate it; his first impression of rock was noise, and Ryuki's rock battle made his fists clench.

But since it could be popular for a while, it must have its unique points.

After checking the health status of his Pokémon.

All Baimu bought a few kinds of snacks Mawile wanted and returned to the hotel to rest early.

He had to catch the sunrise tomorrow, so he had to get up before dawn. ===== CHAPTER 833 =====