Pokémon: Did you play Pokémon today?

Chapter 287 Azure: Let's all three of us attack together! He definitely can't handle it!

"A Totem Pokémon?"

Red frowned slightly as he listened to Little Walnut's broadcast that had spread throughout the sea.

He thought for a moment, but couldn't find any relevant information in his mind.

So quite naturally, he turned his head and looked at the green-clad figure on the other small boat next to him, who had his arms crossed and a "don't bother me" expression on his face.

"Tsk—"

Green let out a clearly impatient click of its tongue, and after hearing this familiar "help" signal, it glared at Crimson with displeasure.

What does this guy take him for?

Is it a humanoid Pokémon encyclopedia that automatically responds anytime, anywhere?

However, despite her displeasure, Qinglu will still offer an explanation when necessary.

After all, he, Green, is a highly educated trainer, unlike Red, whose mind is only focused on "battle"!

The single-celled idiot who shouts "Battle! Battle!" is different.

"The term 'Totem Pokémon' originated from the traditional saying of the Alola region."

Qinglu spoke, her tone carrying a cold indifference that suggested she possessed an overwhelming knowledge.

"This refers to the ancient island pilgrimage ceremony in the Alola region," where those responsible for testing the challengers...

Typically, these are gate-guarding Pokémon that are unusually large in size and possess a powerful aura.

At this point, seeing Red's completely bewildered expression—"Alola? Island Tour? What's that? Can you eat it?"—he couldn't help but retort sharply, "Idiot! To put it in terms you can understand, a Totem Pokémon is the strongest Pokémon in a specific region, the leader of all Pokémon in that region! Got it? Leader! Boss!"

"Ah! I see!"

Red suddenly realized, punched his palm, and then exclaimed with a matter-of-fact expression, "Doesn't that mean that Brother Bai Zhou just casually caught the strongest Pokémon in this sea area?"

I never imagined he was such a hidden fishing master!

"Idiot!!! Sometimes I really don't understand, is your brain filled with brain matter or noodle sauce?!"

Green was completely overwhelmed by Red's naive worship of "it's Bai Zhou's brother, so it's only natural," and her impatience was almost overflowing.

"Being able to catch a Totem Pokémon!" This is something that can't be explained by fishing skills alone!

This is practically metaphysics, okay?! That guy Bai Zhou is clearly holding back a huge trick up his sleeve! Don't you understand?!

"Okay, okay, I know what you mean, don't get so worked up."

Crimson waved its hand dismissively, seemingly immune to Green's irritability.

But his eyes grew brighter and brighter, sparkling with excitement.

"That giant tsunami that appeared out of nowhere before—"

Crimson lowered her voice slightly.

"Do you remember those two Pokémon that occasionally appeared around Bai Zhou, Pokémon we'd never seen in the Pokédex?"

"I have a feeling—that tsunami just now must have been one of their surfing techniques!"

This time, Qinglu did not reply immediately, but instead looked Crimson up and down with a strange expression.

No, is this kind of analytical, roundabout way of speaking something you would normally say?

What? You're also trying to scheme against Brother Bai Zhou?

etc----

Why did I say "also"?

Qinglu stared with dead fish eyes and spoke bluntly.

"Speak your mind, or shut up."

"Ha, you figured it out?"

Chi Hong scratched the back of his head sheepishly, chuckled, then leaned closer and lowered his voice even further.

"Um—do you think that battle plan Xiao Lan secretly told us about before—is really feasible?"

at the same time.

Behind the more secluded reefs on the other side of the channel.

"Alright! Everyone's here! The strategy meeting will now begin!"

With a mischievous glint in its azure eyes, the dog crouched down and furtively hooked its arms around Little Yellow and Christal's shoulders.

The three heads huddled together and began their "secret" tactical deployment.

"Did you all hear the announcement? Bai Zhou is about to enter the second stage of the race! Our chance has come!"

"Uh-huh!"

Little Huang nodded vigorously, his eyes sparkling.

"Brother Bai Zhou is amazing! He actually caught the king of this sea area!" Sigh!

"Stop! Little Huang!"

Azure tapped Little Yellow's forehead with her index finger with a serious expression, issuing her first warning.

"This is a serious time for tactical planning! Blindly worshipping the enemy leader is strictly prohibited! It will severely impact our morale and judgment!"

Then, she looked at Christal, who was relatively calm, and spoke in a serious tone.

"I don't need to emphasize just how much of a foul Bai Zhou committed, do I? The three of us—"

"No, if you include Crimson and Green, Ah Jin and Little Silver, the seven of us combined have suffered enough at his hands, haven't we?"

Christal nodded silently, indicating that she deeply agreed.

"but!"

Azure changed the subject, her eyes filled with fighting spirit.

This might be our only chance to defeat him and prove our strength! So we must not let our guard down!

'

"My original plan—"

Azure picked up a small twig from somewhere, squatted down, and started gesturing on the deck.

"In the middle of the second stage of the course, a meticulously designed multi-layered water trap was set using several buoys and hidden fishing nets!"

"We'll trigger it when he passes by, causing him and the boat to fall in. Then we'll swarm him, using our numerical advantage and a surprise attack to take him down in one fell swoop!"

As she finished speaking, she sighed in frustration and scratched her hair.

"But I never expected that the obstacle in this damn race's second stage" would be—this interference factor was so uncontrollable! My traps were dismantled as soon as I set them up! They were completely useless!"

"Therefore, I've decided to temporarily change the battle plan!"

His azure eyes sharpened again, and he raised a finger.

"The core of the new plan is—speed and ambush!"

"We need to figure out a way to sneak around that obstacle and get through the second stage as quickly as possible!"

Charge straight in!

She pointed ahead along the channel.

"Our goal is to be the first to enter the third stage, which is the final straight-line race!"

"Because the last stage is purely a speed contest, with no obstacles."

"Therefore, when Bai Zhou enters the third stage, he will definitely focus on catching up with the other players ahead and planning the fastest route."

"This is when he's least vigilant!"

Little Huang seemed to have thought of something, and timidly raised her little hand, wanting to express her opinion.

But Azure was in the midst of her "tactical mastermind" excitement and didn't give her a chance to interrupt. With a wave of her hand, she made the final decision.

"That's exactly the kind of relaxation we want! He'll never imagine that someone would be lying in ambush at the entrance to the racing track! That's called reverse thinking, taking things by surprise!"

"To ensure everything goes perfectly!"

A smile that seemed to say, "Everything is under control," appeared on Azure's lips.

"That noisy guy, Ah Jin, I've already had Xiao Yin arrange it." Okay.

"They'll stage it as a chance encounter, deliberately creating a commotion at the crossroads of the third stage to attract Bai Zhou's attention!"

"And us," she said, her gaze sweeping over Little Yellow and Christal.

"We'll ambush them in a blind spot right next to the entrance! The moment Bai Zhou's ship is drawn away by A Jin and the others, and they relax a little—"

"Even if he's incredibly skilled, he definitely wouldn't be able to react in such a rush!"

Azure made a clean and swift "hand chop" motion, her eyes dangerous.

"The three of us together! He definitely can't take it!"

"So—the reason you keep circling my hook, using your domineering aura to drive away all other Pokémon that want to get close—"

Bai Zhou looked at the ugly fish in front of him, which was huge, had a rather "distinctive" appearance, and had an unexpectedly cute and silly look in its eyes.

His facial expressions shifted rapidly between a mixture of amusement and disbelief, sudden realization, and a profound sense of powerlessness.

"Is it because you don't want my food to be taken away?"

"Hakka fish! You bastard—"

He couldn't hold back in the end, and his tone was filled with complex emotions.

"Do you even know what fishing is?!"

Bai Zhou thought about how he had spent so much time casting his line, staring blankly at the sea like an idiot.

The real reason we finally had to resort to "cheating" was actually because of the fish's "good intentions" —

He really wanted to be like those strict trainers in anime, standing with his hands on his hips and giving some decent criticism and education.

But when he lowered his head and met the Ugly Fish's sincere and innocent big eyes—

Those harsh words that were on the tip of my tongue seemed to be blocked, and I just couldn't say them.

After all, this silly fish's original intention was—

It's hard to say if it's bad.

He deliberately put on a serious face, trying to make his voice sound more stern.

"While your perspective may be somewhat understandable, setting aside the facts, aren't you completely without fault?"

"The incident where I almost failed to score, and the energy cube that got eaten—it's all your fault, isn't it?"

Ugly Fish was now filled with regret.

If fish could shed tears, they would probably have cried themselves into a river.

It clearly remembers that it has been trying its best to resist the fatal temptation of that cube and stick to its post!

But for some reason, for a fleeting moment just now, it seemed dazed, and when it came to its senses again—

That little cube, exuding an unparalleled aroma, was no longer on the hook, but had gone into his own mouth!

Immediately afterwards, an irresistible force came from the fishing line, trying to pull it out of the water!

This won't do!

He persisted in stealing, and was even arrested on the spot by someone he trusted.

No!

But things didn't go as planned, and it was still "fished" up, caught red-handed.

This was its most devastating Waterloo on its path to perfection!

The ugly fish opened its distinctively large mouth and let out a low groan full of regret.

"youngest----"

"Simply saying sorry isn't enough."

Seeing this, Bai Zhou knew that the time was almost right. He patted the Ugly Fish's cold, muscular body and smiled knowingly.

"An apology needs to be expressed with concrete actions to show sincerity, right?"

He leaned forward slightly, his voice carrying an alluring quality.

"Then————"

"Would you be interested in teaming up with me to win this maritime competition and become the champion?"

"Once it's done, I'll make sure you eat as many of those energy cubes as you want!"

The reason why Bai Zhou wanted to spend time "arguing" with Chou Chou Yu about right and wrong was because...

Appeal to their emotions and reason with them.

This is because Water-type Pokémon successfully caught in the deep-sea fishing area during the first stage are allowed to participate in subsequent stages of the competition.

This rule was specifically set up by the competition organizers to accommodate some competitors who might not have a suitable Water-type Pokémon for navigation.

The prerequisite is that the Pokémon itself must give its consent.

In retrospect, this "deception"—well, "communication"—was quite effective.

Upon hearing this, Ugly Fish's previously dim eyes instantly lit up!

Its massive body trembled excitedly, almost shattering the "Water Cube" that Gardevoir was maintaining with its psychic powers, and it was full of surging energy!

Although it doesn't quite understand what a "competition" or a "champion" is—

But it understood the most crucial point—it needed it right now!

That's enough!

That's exactly what it was meant to be!

really!

Did the seemingly perfect man ultimately accept his own pursuit of perfection?

"youngest-

—

The ugly fish responded with a powerful and determined voice!

Immediately afterwards, its invisible aura of dominance suddenly burst forth!

In an instant, its power broke through the mental energy binding its body, creating a few gaps!

Whoosh—

Its massive body crashed back into the sea, creating a huge white splash.

But before the waves had completely subsided...

The poor little wooden boat at Bai Zhou's feet had been steadily lifted up by Chou Chou Fish with its broad and sturdy head!

"Great! Very energetic!"

Bai Zhou was inspired by Chou Chou Yu's decisive and swift action, and a surge of pride welled up in his heart as well.

He stood at the bow of the boat, pointing forward with a triumphant air.

"Destination—Stage 2! Full speed ahead!"

The words had barely left his mouth!

There was a sharp "whoosh" sound as it cut through the air!

The ugly fish, like a torpedo launched from its barrel, disappeared from the spot, propelling the small boat forward!

It moved so fast that it left only an endless white trail of water on the azure sea, and the mournful sound of the sea breeze being torn apart in the air.

On the small boat.

"Ugh!"

The sudden surge of strong winds caught Bai Zhou completely off guard!

The powerful airflow made it almost impossible for him to open his eyes, his hair was being pulled back wildly, and he was even having trouble breathing!

Just a millisecond before Ugly Fish started, some clueless guy...

It was already wiggling its chubby bottom when it cleverly scooped up the young Gilas who was still curiously looking around.

With a swift movement, it gracefully disappeared into the shadow beneath Bai Zhou's feet, like a diver gracefully, perfectly avoiding all wind pressure risks and concealing its merits and fame.

On the other hand, Gardevoir, who had been silently protecting Bai Zhou, reacted the moment the wind pressure struck.

A pink light flashed in its eyes, and a soft superpower barrier instantly enveloped the white boat, isolating it from the turbulent air currents and splashing seawater.

With one going up and the other down, one fleeing and the other protecting, the difference in their abilities is immediately apparent!

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