Who needs a girlfriend when you have Pokémon?

May immediately gave the command, and a sharp glint flashed in Torchic's eyes. The movement of the tentacles that were about to attack seemed to slow down in its eyes, and it managed to dodge the attack by squeezing through the gaps in the tentacles.

"it is good!"

May cheered, and after another battle, Torchic triggered its Speed ​​Boost ability again, further increasing its speed.

But at that moment, his gaze fell on Xiaoyao in the corner, and a cheer was abruptly choked in his throat.

A flickering light appeared in the corner, and another strange Pokémon, exactly the same as the one in the picture, appeared.

"Haha, two against one, isn't that a bit underhanded?"

May couldn't help but give a wry smile. However, wild Pokémon obviously don't care about "fair play" or about outnumbering others.

Two jellyfish-like Pokémon blocked Torchic from both sides, leaving Torchic vulnerable. Even with its triple speed boost, Torchic was clearly outmatched in a two-on-one fight.

Just as the two jellyfish were about to pounce, a boy's voice suddenly came from behind Haruka...

"...Lie down!"

Chapter Seven: Reunion Three Years Later

"Get down!"

The sudden sound startled Xiaoyao, but she reacted quickly, immediately dropping to the ground upon hearing it...

Just as she lay down, a large swirling leaf flew past her head and crashed directly into the two strange jellyfish-like Pokémon.

Over there, a figure came rushing over, grabbed Xiaoyao's wrist without saying a word, and then turned and ran...

"Eh?"

May still didn't understand what had happened, but she remembered to call out to her Torchic. After all, Torchic had already reached its third stage of acceleration. Although it couldn't beat the jellyfish-like Pokémon head-on, it could still run away without any problem.

Seeing that the two strange jellyfish were entangled by the flying leaves and seemed to lose their sense of direction for a moment, Torchic readily followed May's footsteps, dashing out of the encirclement in a flash and running even faster than May.

"Good guy~"

The figure who rushed to rescue Xiaoyao couldn't help but raise its free hand and give it a thumbs up. Xiaoyao was pulled by the wrist by that figure and ran wildly towards Gumei Town. Looking at the other person's back, a scene in her memory instantly overlapped with it.

"Hey, you're... Luo Wei?!"

That's right, the person who came to the rescue was Luo Wei...

He was asked by Professor Birch to come to Route 103 to find May, but when he arrived, he saw May and Torchic being ganged up on by two strange Pokémon.

Of course, Rowe recognized the two Pokémon's true forms at a glance...

Code name UB01: Parasite, scientific name—

"...Neon Genesis Eidolon?! Holy crap, how did this thing end up in Hoenn?"

Although Luo Wei was quite shocked when he first saw Nihilego, after thinking about it, he realized that he already had a new Leafy by his side, so Nihilego didn't seem so out of place anymore.

The most urgent task, of course, is to get rid of Kyoto Ito...

...With his current strength, Luo Wei definitely couldn't handle fighting two Ultimate Beasts one-on-one, so he chose to run away.

With a single leaf shot, New Leaf Cat disrupted the battle, and then Rowe took Haruka and ran away.

With its speed boost activated, Torchic's two little legs spun like wheels of fire, while Newleafy jumped directly onto Rowe's shoulder.

With Newleaf on one shoulder and May by the other, the two of them and their Pokémon sped away, leaving the still clueless Nihilego behind, and returned to Rosemary Town...

Only then could both sides catch their breath...

"It really is Luo Wei..."

Xiaoyao took a good look at the boy in front of her and couldn't help but chuckle.

She had imagined many scenes of their reunion in her mind, but she never expected it to turn out like this.

Luo Wei, with one hand on his stomach, gasped for breath and gave an embarrassed smile.

"Yeah, I didn't expect it to turn out like this, but thankfully, at least we managed to shake off Nicholas... cough cough, that weird Pokémon..."

“Speaking of which…” Xiaoyao looked at her wrist, which was being held by Luo Wei, but she didn’t seem to care at all. Instead, she even smiled a little, “…it’s exactly the same as back then~”

As he was speaking, Luo Wei came to his senses, and the new leaf cat on his shoulder immediately jumped down from his arm and slapped Luo Wei's palm with its paws in annoyance.

"Sorry, sorry, did I pinch you too hard?"

Luo Wei quickly released his grip, while Xiao Yao shook her head nonchalantly, "It's nothing, thank you for saving me, this is the second time~"

"...Haha, actually, the last time shouldn't count, so let's just say it was my fault."

Luo Wei awkwardly scratched his head, as Xiao Yao brought up the past once again, naturally reminding him of the time when he and Xiao Yao were still neighbors.

"Do you like Pokémon?"

This was the question Luo Wei asked when Xiao Yao first met him.

Xiaoyao was taken aback by the question, but she immediately and instinctively answered, "Yes, I love Pokémon the most!"

"That's good. There are no bad people who like Pokémon. From today onwards, we're good friends!"

That's right, this is how fate brought us together, a story that unfolded in a way that was almost absurd...

Xiaoyao moved with her father to the small town where Luowei lived. When she went with her father to greet the neighbors, she met the neighbor's boy and was then asked this strange question.

However, Xiaoyao soon discovered something incredible about this boy.

Rowe was only four years old at the time, but he knew everything about Pokémon...

As Professor Birch's daughter, May was also influenced by her father from a young age and acquired a wealth of Pokémon knowledge. However, even she, the professor's daughter, was surpassed by Lowell.

Moreover, while May was still only at the theoretical stage, Rowe was already able to actually command his father's Pokémon, conducting some decent training and tactical planning.

This sparked a strong interest in May, who also loves Pokémon. Whenever Pokémon is mentioned, the two of them can talk endlessly about it.

May admires Lowell's knowledge of Pokémon. She always hears fresh and interesting stories from him, so she enjoys being with him very much.

The desire to see wild Pokémon with their own eyes also began to sprout in their hearts.

However, children without a partner Pokémon are not allowed to go alone to areas where wild Pokémon are found.

After all, the temperament of wild Pokémon is hard to predict, and even adults can easily get injured by attacks from wild Pokémon without their Pokémon partners by their side.

This longing lasted until Rowe was six years old, when he finally got his own Pokémon.

Lowell naturally adored Newleafy, as it was his first partner Pokémon. However, Newleafy at the time showed nothing but disdain for Lowell.

Faced with Rowe's constant attempts to curry favor, New Leaf Cat resolutely stretched out its paws in protest. Of course, this was actually useless and did nothing to stop Rowe's determination to get closer.

Newleafy is incredibly aloof to strangers, but once she's committed to her trainer, she becomes very clingy and may even get jealous and throw a tantrum if her trainer favors other Pokémon or even humans.

A week after Rowe got the new Leafy Cat, Rowe came to a conclusion.

"I think Shin-chan and I need some activities to strengthen our friendship!"

At that time, with his head covered in scratches, Luo Wei spoke to Xiao Yao with utmost seriousness.

Fortunately, since Newleaf Meow was specifically bred to be a partner for new trainers, it wouldn't really hurt the trainer, so Rowe only had his hair messed up.

If this were a wild Pokémon with a bad temper, Loew might have been disfigured a dozen times over...

...Of course, the physical abilities of humans in the Pokémon world are far superior to those of Earthlings. For example, how many times has a Mega Rookie taken a 100,000-volt hit in the face? And he's still completely unharmed.

In short, after hearing what Luo Wei said, Xiao Yao looked blank and asked a question.

"So, what?"

"Let's go on an adventure in the back mountains! I think a little adventure together will really improve the relationship between me and Xinye Miao!"

In response to Shin-chan constantly scratching her hair, Luo Wei said the following...

"..."

Chapter Eight: Kittens like you are born to be eaten by their mothers~

With his messy, disheveled hair still sticking up from being caught, Luo Wei spoke earnestly...

"...Let's go on an adventure in the back mountains!"

"Eh?!"

The back mountain of the town where Rowe lived at that time was also a place where wild Pokémon lived, but because the Pokémon there were generally not very strong, it was almost a place for beginners to practice.

It's fair to say that most of the trainers in Luo Wei's hometown town leveled up their initial levels by relying on the various flowers, birds, fish, and insects growing on the back mountain...

Therefore, relatively speaking, there is not much danger in the back mountain. Now that Luo Wei has his own partner Pokémon, he is theoretically qualified to go to the wild Pokémon activity area on his own.

These words really appealed to Xiaoyao.

As Professor Birch's daughter, she has accumulated a wealth of Pokémon knowledge since childhood. With Loewy, a childhood friend who is practically a living Pokédex, she naturally yearns for wild Pokémon.

Unfortunately, May doesn't have the cheating ability of Lowell, who can get his own partner Pokémon at the age of six, so she naturally doesn't have the qualifications to go to the wild Pokémon habitat alone.

She had asked Professor Birch for help, but the professor ultimately refused, worried about his daughter's safety. After all, Haruka was still young and would have plenty of opportunities in the future, so there was no need to rush.

This was Professor Birch's consideration from an adult's perspective, but for Haruka, who was only six years old at the time, curiosity naturally took the lead.

So when Luo Wei extended the invitation, Xiao Yao thought for a moment and then readily agreed.

Of course, this is also because there are indeed no dangerous Pokémon in the back mountain. As a training area for beginners, it is full of Pokémon that are no more than level 5, which is enough for Loewon's Newleaf Cat to handle.

In any case, as a starter Pokémon, Newleafy is specially bred and selected only because it has good growth potential.

Its initial attributes already set it apart from other Pokémon, and it also has an advantage in level. Even without any synergy with its trainer, it is more than capable of handling a group of low-level Pokémon.

Luo Wei naturally had this in mind when he extended the invitation to Xiao Yao.

So, the two little guys took Xin Ye Miao with them and secretly slipped into the back mountain at midday.

This was the first time the two had ventured into the territory inhabited by wild Pokémon, and the feeling was naturally incredibly exciting.

To be honest, this kind of beginner village is not challenging for professional trainers, but for two six-year-old boys and girls, it is full of surprises.

With each step I took, it felt as if the knowledge from those books in my memory had become reality, and those cold words were replaced by the real Pokémon ecosystem. This kind of experience is something that you can never have, no matter how long you study in the academy.

It felt like it was the first time in his past life that Luo Wei had ever traveled to the seaside. Words could not describe the awe-inspiring impact he felt when he first gazed upon the vast and boundless ocean.

No matter how many documentaries you watch or how many written records you read, nothing compares to the moment of "seeing is believing"...