Chapter 456: Xiao Zhi VS Shinji, This Is Our Bond!

Grape Academy, Battle Hall.

Joy Jingxiang wiped the thin layer of sweat from her forehead, waved goodbye to Ai Li Qi Si and Orla who were about to leave, and watching their figures recede, as if remembering something, she curiously asked Shinji and Peony beside her: "Teacher Luo Mu mentioned a student coming to experience the classes; who exactly is it?"

Joy Jingxiang couldn't figure it out.

Which Trainer could possibly make Luo Mu use his authority to forcibly create a rule allowing an external Trainer not yet enrolled to enter and experience the courses?

Even more amazingly, it was said that Chairperson Geeta didn't even ask a single question, approving Luo Mu's application without blinking an eye.

This even caused Principal Clavell to rush around recently until his hair was almost turning white.

Because Grape Academy won too brilliantly in the exchange battle against Blueberry Academy, attracting many students wanting to enter for trial classes, and just the screening process would take considerable effort.

It seemed that in the near future, Blueberry Academy even had plans to come knocking on their door for revenge!

Facing her question, Peony, looking like a salted fish beside her, waved her hand, ignoring Eevee tugging at her sleeve with a plea for extra training, and said listlessly: "It should be within these two days."

"It seems the other party is a powerhouse who has collected Ba Mei Hui Zhang from two regions; perhaps they are even stronger than Hearing Hearing Nimo—"

Peony's drawn-out tone sounded particularly grating to Shinji's ears; his expression grew even more serious, and even with his personality, he couldn't help but start feeling expectant.

A Trainer who could collect Ba Mei Hui Zhang from two regions, possibly even stronger than Hearing Hearing Nimo whom he currently had no way to defeat, and who was personally brought by Teacher Luo Mu for trial classes—who exactly was this divine figure? Shinji decided that when the time came, he must follow what Teacher Luo Mu and his brother emphasized, and politely invite the other party to a sparring match with him.

Time passed swiftly.

Soon it was time for class.

Hurried footsteps sounded outside the Battle Hall, but for the three of them, this was long since commonplace.

After all, their teacher always upheld the salted fish philosophy of "work is work, life is life" and "under non-special circumstances, absolutely do not consume life's time to complete work."

It was only because his strength was great; otherwise, how could he have so many special privileges?

It was said that Professor Professor Huangbo, now responsible for the battle classes, not only received only half the salary Luo Mu got before his promotion, but also had to teach from morning till night Monday through Friday, and usually had to stay stationed within the academy.

The only thing missing was paying to work.

Then look at Teacher Luo Mu: two classes a week, unshakable, occasionally skipping them, acting so carefree.

While the students' thoughts were flying everywhere, at the very last second before class began, the doors of the Battle Hall swung open with a "swish," and Luo Mu stepped into the Battle Hall right on time.

But at this moment, he was not the main focus.

All three directed their gazes toward the boy following closely behind him.

Joy Jingxiang showed a look of surprise; wasn't this a child who hadn't yet lost his childishness?

The tug-of-war between Peony and Eevee paused temporarily; she subconsciously pushed up her glasses, carefully sizing up Xiao Zhi.

Meanwhile, Shinji, who had been full of expectation, suddenly frowned; looking at Xiao Zhi, whose age seemed similar to his own, or perhaps slightly younger, a nameless fire suddenly rose in his heart.

This nameless fire came strangely, making him feel somewhat irritable, even disrupting his calm emotions.

This was the first time encountering such a situation; Shinji tried his best to suppress his emotions, silently pondering in his heart: Could it be that I don't get along very well with this person?

Paying no attention to the meaningful gazes from the students.

Luo Mu clapped his hands and smiled as he introduced everyone: "This is Xiao Zhi, a Trainer from Pallet Town in the Kanto region; he is currently training for the upcoming Silver Conference, and during this period will study alongside us; let's all get to know each other!"

"Come on, Xiao Zhi, give everyone a... no, make a self-introduction to everyone!"

Receiving Luo Mu's signal, Xiao Zhi nodded, excitement from being taken by Luo Mu on a tour of Grape Academy, shouting and cheering, still lingering on his face.

Having experienced many travels and sights, he wasn't so nervous as to move his hands and feet in unison.

However, his self-introduction lines still retained their original, unadulterated flavor.

"I am Xiao Zhi from Pallet Town; this is my partner Pikachu; my dream is to become a Pokémon Master!"

In just a few short sentences, Xiao Zhi's personality was revealed without any doubt.

"Pikachu, Pika Pika!"

Pikachu also cutely waved hello to everyone.

At this time, Pikachu was in its roundest phase; lacking the reliability it would have after losing weight later, but appearing even cuter.

Joy Jingxiang covered her mouth, seemingly surprised by the grandeur of Xiao Zhi's dream.

At the same time, she was screaming internally that Pikachu was so cute!

Peony maintained her calm, with a slight hint of inferiority.

However.

This inferiority was merely Peony being surprised that Xiao Zhi could articulate his dream in front of a large crowd.

If it were her, she would definitely dig a hole three feet deep out of shame.

Shinji clenched his fists tightly.

It wasn't that he was deliberately targeting Xiao Zhi, but rather that he realized one thing.

He seemed to be naturally incompatible with people of Xiao Zhi's type.

He just felt Xiao Zhi's dream was too vague, describable only as aiming too high without solid footing.

Shinji knew he didn't like this kind of person; he probably clashed with Xiao Zhi.

Luo Mu naturally did not miss the change in Shinji's expression.

As expected, there was some mysterious chemical reaction between rivals; sparks were about to fly so soon.

Immediately, a plan came to mind.

Revealing a slightly sinister smile, Luo Mu clapped his hands and got straight to the point: "Just right; to celebrate Xiao Zhi's joining, let's all have a tense and exciting Pokémon battle!"

"Ah, weren't we supposed to have a theory class today?"

Joy Jingxiang widened her eyes, looking somewhat disappointed.

For someone like her who became a Trainer halfway through, suddenly involving another field meant countless pieces of knowledge and common sense to supplement; what a Pokémon Nurse learned might help with the identity of a Trainer, but there were also times when it didn't apply.

Practical battles could happen anytime; for her, she looked forward more to learning various tactics from Luo Mu's mouth.

Joy Jingxiang completely failed to notice that her thoughts had already been influenced by Chansey and Porygon... Peony, who also wanted to slack off, raised her hand, frantically agreeing with Joy Jingxiang's idea.

Luo Mu knew that, based on his understanding, Peony and Joy Jingxiang would definitely raise objections.

But this suited him just fine.

Once you two withdraw, doesn't that leave only Ash and Paul to battle?

Luo Mu felt his current mindset resembled Cynthia from the anime, silently acting as a shipper for the couple, wondering if sparks might fly between them.

When life meets life, it can give birth to... Stop the nagging in your mind first; Luo Mu then offered a "solution" acceptable to all four.

"Then let Ash and Paul battle first; let me see what you're made of!"

"After the battle, we will continue discussing the 'gang-up' tactic from last time!"

Shizuka and Peony immediately breathed a sigh of relief; this was something they could accept.

Meanwhile, Ash and Paul suddenly locked eyes.

Compared to being excited about having a battle right away, Ash, who likely had plenty to talk about with Hearing Hearing Nimo...

Paul tightened his grip on the Poké Ball in his hand, snorted coldly, and said, "I will win this battle!"

The battle would be a two-on-two single battle; whichever side's Pokémon lost the ability to battle first would mean the other side claimed victory.

The reason for choosing a two-on-two battle was mainly because Luo Mu, considering the number of Pokémon in Paul's team, made an adjustment for balance.

After all, Ash had been a Trainer and traveling for training outdoors for quite a bit longer than Paul; in terms of lineup, Paul was already at a disadvantage.

Among the three Pokémon he currently possessed:

His Turtwig was still a little short of evolving.

His Fuecoco had recently evolved into Crocalor.

And there was one Cubchoo he had specifically caught upon Luo Mu's suggestion.

Since Cubchoo could hardly be used as combat strength, wasn't a two-on-two battle the only option? Picking up the whistle he only wore around his neck during class, Luo Mu blew it and declared, "Battle start; both sides release your Pokémon simultaneously!"

As a single-celled organism, Ash simply wouldn't consider anything else.

At this moment, there was only one thing in his eyes—

A Pokémon battle! Pointing confidently at the battlefield, he shouted, "Pikachu, I choose you!"

On Paul's side, he tossed out a Poké Ball.

"Crocalor, prepare for battle!"

There stood the chubby Pikachu, and a crocodile with a steaming "egg" atop its head.

Seeing Crocalor, Ash's eyes immediately lit up.

"Wow, a Pokémon I've never seen before!"

Ash subconsciously pulled out his Pokédex and scanned it.

Unfortunately, his Pokédex hadn't been upgraded to the National Dex yet, so it contained absolutely no information on Crocalor.

Since this battle was intended as a sparring match anyway, Luo Mu casually turned his gaze to Paul.

Paul nodded indifferently.

Perhaps for the Paul in the anime, he rarely warned his opponents, but the Paul of now had taken a turn in his experiences and held an indifferent attitude toward this.

He didn't want to earn a reputation for winning through unfair means.

Luo Mu then directly took out his phone and played a prepared audio recording.

"Crocalor, the evolved form of Fuecoco. Due to the combination of fire energy and Crocalor's excess life force, an egg-shaped fireball has formed atop its head.

During battle, it can freely use this egg-shaped fireball as a move; it also seems to possess unique talents in terms of sound."

All three people listened to this passage very seriously, except for Ash, who still looked completely bewildered, perfectly illustrating what a poor student looked like.

But as a man of action, Ash couldn't care less about all that; knowing that Crocalor was a Fire-type Pokémon was enough—

As for the rest, regardless of the consequences, just charge straight in! "Pikachu, Thunderbolt!"

He started with a classic move.

Pikachu clenched its small hands and began releasing lightning from its electric sacs with great force, striking straight toward Crocalor.

The power and speed of that lightning were quite impressive; this guy was indeed worthy of being a strong trainer who had collected Ba Mei Hui Zhang; although he looked a bit silly, his foundation was very solid.

Paul's expression turned serious, and he said without hesitation, "Dig!"

Avoid the enemy's sharp edge and wait for an opportunity! No one knew how Crocalor had trained, but those short little claws dug incredibly fast; one second before the Thunderbolt struck, its entire body had vanished into the hole.

The Thunderbolt missed; although Ash and Pikachu felt frustrated, they weren't that disappointed.

For them, this was just a common occurrence.

Similarly, they had also gained some experience with the move Dig.

"Pikachu, pay attention to movements underground!"

Ash shouted loudly as a reminder.

Crocalor moved continuously underground, digging out a complex network of tunnels, searching for an opportunity to attack the vigilant Pikachu above.

Luo Mu's expression became slightly stiff.

He knew that after today's battle, this battlefield would probably need to be called in for repairs again.

Having the Grape Academy cover the costs wasn't a big problem, but the key issue was that once repaired, he, as the person in charge, would have to inspect and accept the work!

To avoid the danger of ground collapse, a careful inspection was mandatory; carelessness was not an option.

So annoying! At this moment, new changes occurred on the battlefield.

Crocalor seemed to have finally found its chance; it burst out of the ground in one go, about to hit Pikachu with a highly effective attack.

But Ash reacted even faster, blurting out his three-character mantra.

"Dodge quickly!"

Under Paul's astonished expression, Pikachu, with agility incongruous with its plump figure, avoided Crocalor's attack by a hair's breadth, and immediately countered with another Thunderbolt.

The gap in levels did exist; however, Crocalor, having just completed its first evolution, forcibly endured this hit, and its aura instantly became listless.

Paul gritted his teeth, silently cursing Ash and Pikachu for their monster-like reaction speed, and quickly activated his contingency plan.

"Yawn, Croconaw!"

A yawn resembling a snot bubble drifted lightly up from Croconaw's nose and landed on Pikachu, who was hovering mid-air without any footing.

The moment Pikachu touched the ground, a fierce wave of sleepiness struck directly.

Its steps unsteady, it spun in a circle on the ground; unable to resist the drowsiness any longer, it simply fell asleep right there.

Luo Mu, of course, would not blow the whistle unfairly over a single sleep status; under his expected expression, Shinji unhesitatingly chose to recover.

"Slack Off!"

Croconaw closed its eyes and dozed off; immediately, green light symbolizing recovery illuminated its body, and within just a few breaths, most of the injuries inflicted by Pikachu were healed.

Once Croconaw had fully recovered, seeing Pikachu still sleeping soundly despite Ash's shouts, the corner of Shinji's mouth curled into an imperceptible arc.

No matter how strong your power is, you still fall to my tactics.

"Scorch!"

Shinji unhesitatingly ordered Croconaw to begin its assault.

The egg-shaped fireball atop Croconaw's head suddenly expanded; under its control, it tore through the air and struck Pikachu directly, delivering a heavy blow instantly.

Whether due to Shinji's luck being too good or not, even after taking one hit, Pikachu still did not wake up.

Shinji sneered and commanded Croconaw to continue attacking.

He knew.

He had won the first match! Throughout this, Ash kept calling out to Pikachu, attempting to wake it.

To this, Shinji merely felt Ash was naive.

Did he really think his voice could reach the ears of Pikachu, whose consciousness was asleep? That was useless!

"Decide the match with this one move, Scorch!"

Just as Shinji ordered Croconaw to unleash the fatal strike,

Ash widened his eyes and shouted again: "Wake up, Pikachu!!!"

"Hmph, use... less?"

Shinji was about to call Ash naive, but suddenly, an unexpected change occurred.

Indeed, Pikachu's scar-covered body began to move under Ash's calls.

Shinji was completely stunned.

No way.

To ensure Pikachu slept more soundly, I specifically had Croconaw insert some Yawn moves between its attacks.

How did you wake up!? But bonds are simply that unreasonable.

As if responding to Ash's feelings, dazzling and brilliant Jin Guang instantly lit up on Pikachu's heavily wounded body.

Powerful electric current, as if entering an uninhabited realm, directly destroyed Scorch and once again struck Croconaw fiercely with an electric shock.

Shinji hurriedly ordered Croconaw to Dig and hide underground, ceasing active attacks while seeking another opportunity to use the Yawn move.

But at that moment, Ash shouted a command completely beyond Shinji's expectations.

"Pikachu, use Iron Tail on the field!!!"

(End of Chapter)