Pokémon: Did you play Pokémon today?

Chapter 296: Three Minutes of Silence for the Doctor...

"Pfft! Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey!"

Chi Hong spat out the salty seawater that had splashed into his mouth, feeling his clothes instantly soaked and clinging to his body, still somewhat dazed.

They were still completely stunned by what had just happened.

"W-This isn't right! Why is this happening!?"

He wiped his face, his tone filled with unbelievable frustration.

"Idiot! Don't you understand yet?"

The green-haired man next to him was in no better condition; his hair was wet and stuck to his forehead, and a few strands of emerald green seaweed were comically hanging on his collar.

With a dark expression, he stiffly plucked the seaweed and tossed it back into the sea with disdain.

His voice was colder than the seawater.

"Ignoring us! Utterly ignoring us! Brother Bai Zhou doesn't even consider the two of us a threat!"

"We issued the challenge so formally, and what did he do? He couldn't even be bothered to give us a proper response!"

"Damn it—damn it!"

Qinglv has truly broken down this time.

He had thought this would be a long-awaited, memorable, and official showdown between the two sides.

In the end, it was just their burning fighting spirit that ignited on their own, only to crash into an indestructible wall of air!

To paraphrase Bai Zhou's occasional joking words, isn't this just pure clownish behavior?

How could he possibly accept this!

Green had to admit that although Crimson was sometimes a bit dim-witted, her previous statement had inadvertently revealed part of the truth.

Bai Zhou accepted Bi Lan's challenge, but ignored the other two's invitations! Isn't that favoritism?!

This is blatant favoritism! Differential treatment!

"No! Green! You've misunderstood!"

Crimson frowned slightly, showing no agreement.

His dark pupils, which always reflected the flames of battle, now flickered with a strange and profound light.

The aura of someone who is "in battle" was faintly emanating from his body.

After only a moment of contemplation, the light suddenly burst forth!

The confusion and frustration on his face vanished, replaced by a radiant smile that he could no longer contain, a mixture of ecstasy and reverence!

"This is not ignoring us! Nor is it a rejection!"

His bright red voice was filled with barely suppressed excitement.

"It's—a perfectly legitimate invitation!"

"?"

Green turned her head and looked at Crimson expressionlessly, her eyes seeming to look at an idiot whose brain had been damaged by seawater.

Are you kidding me at this moment?

Seemingly noticing Green's undisguised "looking at an idiot" gaze, Crimson was not angry at all, but became even happier.

It even carried a hint of superiority from intellectually superiority.

"Someone who prides himself on being incredibly intelligent, never expected that at a time like this, his mind would fail him—"

He deliberately dragged out his words.

Get to the point.

Green interrupted impatiently, her expression still indifferent, but a hint of doubt arose deep in her eyes because of Crimson's unusually confident tone.

"Haven't you figured it out yet?"

His crimson eyes narrowed slightly, as if he had seen through the truth.

"Don't forget we're in the middle of a game right now!"

Having undergone the brief but highly effective "special training" by Boss Giovanni, Crimson is no longer the mindless fighter he once was.

Now appearing is the answer to the question: the Rainbow Rockets' ace, Crimson, who combines super intelligence and super power!

(Self-proclaimed)

Faced with things that were hard to understand, he learned to think and to analyze the logic behind his opponents' behavior.

I've also learned to look at problems from different, even tricky, perspectives.

In just a moment of review and reasoning, he "discovered" the "profound" intentions behind Bai Zhou's actions.

At the same time, my admiration for Bai Zhou arose spontaneously and reached a new level.

"Given Bai Zhou's notoriously lazy, trouble-averse, and 'salty fish' personality—who'd rather sit than stand—"

Crimson lowered his voice, as if he were strategizing.

"When have you ever seen him have such a strong competitive spirit in an exhibition match? Especially in front of the two of us? This is so unusual!"

"You mean—"

Following Crimson's train of thought, Green's displeasure and frustration began to dissipate like mist exposed to sunlight.

A more "reasonable" hypothesis gradually emerged.

"Did Bai Zhou participate in this exhibition match from the very beginning in response to our challenge?"

Once this thought arose, it quickly took root and grew in Qinglu's heart, becoming incredibly clear.

"Little Silver, Akin, Little Blue, Little Yellow, Christal————"

Qinglu's eyes shone brightly, and his tone became calm and resolute.

"Brother Bai Zhou didn't choose to avoid any of us; instead, he used a competition to directly defeat everyone, including Bi Lan."

"He's not ignoring us—"

Qinglu gazed intently at the distant silhouette of the white boat, which had become almost a tiny dot.

"He's taking this competition very seriously! He wants to defeat both of us fair and square on this final, most formal stage!"

Although her expression remained largely unchanged on the surface, a deep and indescribable emotion welled up within Qinglu.

Let this high-profile, formal competition become a stage for them to challenge and respond to each other, rather than some childish, private contest.

Brother Bai Zhou is really quite "biased" towards those two.

Having figured everything out, Qinglu couldn't help but curl her lips upwards.

He slowly extended his clenched fist and offered it to Crimson.

Crimson was taken aback at first, then understood, and a similarly fervent smile bloomed on his face as he also extended his fist.

No need for further words, our fighting spirit is already aligned!

The moment the two fists collided heavily, two commands, seemingly capable of tearing through the sea breeze and brimming with boundless fighting spirit, exploded simultaneously!

"Gyarados! Surf!!"

"Laplace! Surf!!"

The red light from the two Poké Balls flashed almost simultaneously!

Gyarados and Lapras appeared simultaneously in the waves, lifting the small boats beneath their green and red feet respectively, and letting out a loud roar that echoed across the sea!

Boom—

Beneath the surface of the sea, which was originally only slightly undulating, the undercurrents suddenly surged wildly!

The two massive water systems converged and intertwined, forcibly creating a huge wave on the sea surface that was far larger than usual!

The waves gently lifted the two small boats, and with astonishing speed, they surged and roared in the direction the white boat had left, sweeping away!

"They've joined forces!?"

"The legendary trainers Red and Blue have teamed up!?"

On the live stream channel, Xiao Hu Tao watched the terrifying giant wave that suddenly rose in the live feed, and her voice changed from shock to reality.

-

"After being surpassed by Dr. Shiraishu, these two lifelong rivals, who had been competing against each other since the beginning of the tournament..."

"They actually put aside their competition and chose to join forces to pursue them!"

Her tone grew increasingly agitated and worried.

"It's all over!"

"Dr. Shirafune is really in a desperate situation now!"

"Faced with the combined pursuit of two legendary trainers, escape is virtually impossible!"

The names Crimson and Cyan exude an overwhelming sense of authority and oppression.

It wasn't just Xiao Hu Tao who was worried about Bai Zhou; the live stream chat was instantly flooded with all sorts of concerns and exclamations.

"Wow!!! Two legendary figures have joined forces!!! To witness such a sight! It would be worth dying for!!!"

"Doctor, I'm so sorry! Although I really believed you would win, but—please forgive my betrayal! You can't win, you simply can't win!"

"This is no sportsmanship! Two against one! And it's crimson and green! I think I can see the character 'danger' above the doctor's head!"

"Someone come to my rescue!"

"Dr. Shirafune, run! Although it seems like there's no escape—then rescue personnel, get ready! Be prepared to retrieve the athletes who have fallen into the water!"

"Although... this scene is so damn cool! Gyarados and Lapras surfing together! The power and momentum! No wonder they're legendary trainers!"

"Three minutes of silence for the PhD student —"

Achoo!

White Boat, who was concentrating on directing Ugly Fish to make its final sprint, suddenly sneezed loudly without warning.

He rubbed his slightly itchy nose, looking completely bewildered.

"How strange—who's talking about me?"

Given his current physical condition and control over his own energy, it's impossible for him to catch a cold.

In most cases, this happens when someone with a close relationship and strong feelings repeatedly "thinks about" him and is vaguely sensed by his super-resistance.

However, Bai Zhou didn't pay much attention to this little incident at the moment.

He was currently on the final straight stretch of the route to the finish line, his nerves were on edge, and he simply didn't have the energy to be distracted by this tiny ripple of telepathy.

-

Objectively speaking, Bai Zhou didn't need to go to such lengths.

Because after surpassing Crimson and Cyan, he was already the undisputed number one.

The sea ahead was vast and empty, with no longer any leading competitors.

Although there were pursuers behind, given the ugly fish's speed and stamina, they had no chance of overtaking it in the final stretch.

If he maintains his current pace and speed, he will have at most five more minutes to cross the finish line without any trouble and secure the championship trophy.

The only possible unexpected event —

It's probably because those two "cheat-like" guys, Crimson and Cyan, suddenly acted out of the ordinary, giving up their competition and joining forces to go all out against him.

However, the probability of such a thing happening—how could it possibly be—

They at least have some sense of shame.

Before Bai Zhou's thoughts could drift away, his sixth sense, originating from the power of the super-counter, suddenly began to buzz wildly!

A tremendous sense of crisis washed over him like ice water, making his hair stand on end!

He almost instinctively turned his head to look behind him.

Suddenly, a massive, roaring wave surged forth at an incredible speed!

At the crest of the wave, there were two small boats braving the wind and waves, and on them were the two figures he had just been "talking about," one red and one green!

"Abu! Help!"

"Gyarados! Hydro Pump!"

There were no unnecessary words, not even a pre-battle declaration!

The moment they confirmed that White Boat was within effective attack range, Crimson and Blue immediately gave commands to their respective Pokémon!

Their teamwork is terrifying!

"Eebu-i"

Espeon gracefully leaped from its crimson waist, the ruby ​​on its forehead shining brightly, and mysterious psychic energy rippled around it.

A halo brimming with amplifying energy spread out from its center, instantly enveloping a large area of ​​the sea in front, greatly enhancing the power of subsequent attacks!

"roar"

Gyarados leaped into the air from the giant waves, its massive body stretching out in mid-air, bringing an unparalleled sense of oppression!

It opened its mouth wide, and the surrounding water vapor was compressed wildly, condensing into an extremely condensed giant water ball!

With the help of Espeon's "Help" move, the light of this water ball became even more dazzling, and the energy fluctuations became even more terrifying!

A massive, incredibly thick column of water shot out, like a dragon piercing the sea, tearing through the air with a deafening roar!

With terrifying power and speed several times greater than conventional water cannons, it pierced through hundreds of meters of sea surface and shot straight toward the back of the white boat!

The sheer scale and the concentration of energy were completely incomparable to the previous "playful" confrontations between Azure!

This is a truly top-tier trainer's determined joint attack!

Bai Zhou: "???"

No! What's wrong with you two?!

Little Blue's antics are one thing! But why are you two putting on this "subordinate overthrowing superior" act?!

And without even saying a word, he just went straight for the big attack?!

Do you even still see me as your older brother?!

All I wanted was to win the competition smoothly! What could I have done wrong?!

Speechless as I am, I'm complaining as I am.

Bai Zhou's fighting instincts were already ingrained in his bones.

He would never underestimate the power of this "Water Cannon" enhanced by "Help" and unleashed at full power by Gyarados!

When Crimson and Cyan get serious, they're on a completely different level, like they're using cheat codes!

Therefore, before his mind could process what was happening, his body had already taken the safest emergency measures.

"Ugly Fish! Leap!"

7"

'

Uglyfish understood perfectly. With a powerful flick of its tail on the surface of the sea, the entire fish leaped high into the air like an arrow, attempting to escape the straight trajectory of the water cannon.

Almost at the same instant the ugly fish leaped up, Bai Zhou's second command was delivered, spoken as fast as the wind.

"Gardevoir! Teleport!"

"Yes, Master!"

Gardevoir, who had been quietly by her side, responded instantly, gracefully clasping her hands together in front of her chest.

A powerful superpower surged from the core of its chest, spreading out like invisible ripples, completely enveloping White Boat, Ugly Fish, and the space around them.

The next instant.

It's like the game screen experiencing frame drops and misalignment!

Everything within the spherical area centered on the white boat suddenly became blurry and illusory, and then it was erased out of thin air as if by an eraser!

Then, it was instantly "reloaded" in the air above and to the side, dozens of meters away!

The location where it appeared was perfectly aligned with the parabolic trajectory of the Ugly Fish's "leap".

The ugly fish slid down smoothly and fell back into the sea, splashing a small amount of water. The whole movement was fluid and graceful.

The small boat also appeared smoothly on the new sea surface.

And right where they disappeared.

The super water cannon, enhanced by "help," crashed down!

The terrifying energy erupted instantly, blasting a towering wave that was over ten meters high into the sea!

The seawater was violently churned, forming a giant, bottomless, rapidly spinning vortex that emitted a terrifying suction force that devoured everything!

However, just as the deadly vortex spread to the vicinity of the ugly fish's new landing point, it seemed to have hit an invisible wall, and the force was cleverly dissipated.

It only stirred up a ripple before mysteriously subsiding, having no real impact on Bai Zhou and Chou Chou Fish.