Pokémon: I have no choice but to do this old thing?

Chapter 113 Fashion Show? How About a Battle!

Xiao Guang noticed his own little habit of curling his ears, and then patted the little guy in his arms, both amused and exasperated.

"You~"

Xiao Guang gently tapped the tip of the curly-eared, pink nose, her tone a mix of affection and helplessness, "Xin Ye Miao is just happy, why are you glaring at her like that?"

Wearing her adorable cheerleader vest, Curly Ears turned around upon hearing this, burying her face in Xiao Guang's arms, revealing only her two long, slightly trembling ear tips, and making a muffled "meow" sound. She also secretly glanced at Xin Ye Miao in Zhang Jianying's arms out of the corner of her eye.

Shin-Ye-Miao was currently immersed in the joy of "we're so strong," completely unaware of the inexplicable "hostility" from her friend.

Xin Ye Miao lazily yawned, stuck out its pink little tongue, then snuggled against Zhang Jianying's arms before turning into a red light and returning to its Poké Ball to rest, completely satisfied.

Even though I didn't do anything, just watching was tiring, meow.

Zhang Jianying tucked the New Leaf Cat's Poké Ball back into his waistband, just in time to see Curly Earbuds looking jealous and sneaky.

He roughly knew what was going on. If he remembered correctly, this curly-eared creature seemed to be Pikachu's "little fangirl"?

Unfortunately, their new Leaf Cat was simply carried by the big shot and was so smug that it didn't realize it and didn't think about that aspect at all.

At that moment, Xiao Gang, who had been standing to the side and had somehow pulled out a copy of the "Sinnoh Travel Fashion Guide" magazine to read, suddenly looked up!

Xiao Gang's signature squinty eyes suddenly opened, and not only opened, but turned into two sparkling pink hearts!

"Little Chrysanthemum!!!"

Xiao Gang let out a heartfelt shout that rivaled the volume of Master Ji Xianguan, startling several M'Kel who were passing by and causing them to fly away in a flurry.

He lunged at Zhang Jianying in a flash, gripping Zhang's wrists with astonishing strength, his face flushed with an indescribable excitement: "Brother Jian! You—you're still missing one last badge! I remember it's the Binhai City Lighthouse badge, right?!"

Zhang Jianying was taken aback by his sudden "attack" and change of expression, and subconsciously nodded: "Uh, yes, there's only one left."

"Very good!!"

Xiao Gang's heart-shaped eyes lit up even more. "Then let's go quickly! Right now! Immediately! Let's set off for Binhai City right now!!"

"???"

Zhang Jianying was completely bewildered. He tried to pull his hand away, but couldn't, and secretly clicked his tongue in surprise.

That squinty-eyed man's grip was incredibly strong. He stared at Xiao Gang's eyes, which were practically sparkling with hearts, as if he were seeing his dream lover, completely baffled.

"What's wrong with you all of a sudden?"

Zhang Jianying asked tentatively, "What's in the manual? What happened in Binhai City?"

Before he could finish speaking, a Poké Ball on Xiao Gang's waist opened automatically.

A flash of red light, and the Bad Frog appeared expressionlessly behind Xiao Gang. Its dead fish eyes glanced at Xiao Gang, who was in a "rampant" state.

He glanced at Zhang Jianying, who looked completely bewildered, and silently raised his claws, which glowed with an ominous purple light.

[Poison Strike] Charging up —

"Holy crap, wait a minute!"

Zhang Jianying caught a glimpse of that purple color out of the corner of his eye, and his heart skipped a beat.

But the bad frog's movements were swift and decisive.

"Pfft."

The claw, glowing with purple light, accurately stabbed Xiao Gang in the lower back.

"Uh..."

Xiao Gang shuddered violently and instantly released Zhang Jianying's hand.

The blush on his face quickly faded, turning into an eerie bluish-purple color. His eyes rolled back, and he made an unintelligible hoarse sound from his throat.

Then, as if his bones had been removed, he collapsed softly and slowly to the ground, even maintaining a strange "peaceful" posture.

Zhang Jianying: "————"

He gasped, staring at Xiao Gang, who lay motionless on the ground, his face purple, then at the delinquent frog beside him, its claws folded as if it hadn't done anything: "W-Is this really alright?! If I wasn't mistaken, that looked like [Poison Strike], right?!"

Can you just stick this thing into someone? It'll cause problems, won't it?

However, Ash and Dawn remained unusually calm in the face of this situation.

Xiao Zhi squatted down, poked Xiao Gang's purplish cheek, and confirmed, "Hmm, it's not a big problem."

Xiao Guang nodded, his tone relaxed: "Don't worry, Brother Jian. Xiao Gang is used to it."

The wicked frog knew its limits; it'll be fine after a nap.

Zhang Jianying: "————"

Have you gotten used to it?

How can you get used to being stabbed in the kidneys by a Pokémon with Poison Jab? What kind of body do you guys have?

Can you withstand a Pokémon move with your bare body and then just stand up after a pat on the butt?

Horror!

After about two or three minutes, Xiao Gang's complexion gradually returned to normal. He twitched his eyelids, groaned, and slowly sat up, rubbing his lower back.

"Hiss—you naughty frog, could you be a little gentler next time—"

While complaining, Xiao Gang expressionlessly took out a Poké Ball and recalled the Delinquent who was hugging its arms.

He shook his head, as if trying to shake off his "infatuated state" completely, and returned to his usual steady and reliable squinty-eyed appearance.

Seeing his rapid change in demeanor, Zhang Jianying's lips twitched. Finally, she couldn't help but ask, "So what exactly happened, Xiao Gang? What did you see? Why are you in such a hurry to go to Binhai City than I am, the official challenger?"

When this was mentioned, Xiao Gang's eyes no longer turned into hearts, but his face instantly lit up again.

He picked up the "Sinnoh Travel Fashion Guide" that had fallen to the ground like a precious treasure, flipped to a page, and excitedly pointed at it: "Look! Binhai City! In the next few days, right here in Binhai City! Little Kiku'er's special fashion show will be held!"

His voice trembled: "Little Ju'er! Do you know? Little Ju'er!!"

"Little Kiwi?" Zhang Jianying felt the name sounded familiar and was searching his memory when Xiao Guang beside him exclaimed, "Little Kiwi?! Is that the Gym Leader of Raven City in the Unova Region, and also a world-renowned supermodel, Miss Little Kiwi?!"

A "ding" sounded in Zhang Jianying's mind, and he remembered!

That Electric-type Gym Leader with his stunning good looks and incredibly long legs is unforgettable!

"Yes! That's her!"

Brock nodded vigorously, echoing Dawn's words, his handbook nearly crumpled from his grip. "This fashion show is her first special performance in the Sinnoh region, and they say there will be a brand-new fashion collection incorporating Pokémon elements! It's a rare opportunity! A once-in-a-lifetime chance!"

Zhang Jianying glanced speechlessly at Xiao Gang's excited expression, like a pilgrim about to meet his goddess, and then recalled the impressive appearance and temperament of the museum owner in his memory, and instantly understood.

He nodded decisively, exchanged a glance with Xiao Gang, and both of them simultaneously revealed a knowing smile full of "admiration and longing".

"elbow!"

Zhang Jianying slapped his thigh. "Let's go check it out! I'm also very curious about Master Xiaoju's fashion show!"

I didn't want to see long legs! (scratch that)

Ash stood aside, looking at the two who had suddenly reached a consensus and whose atmosphere had inexplicably become "mutually appreciative," with a face full of question marks.

"Do we have to go back to Binhai City? Who exactly is Xiaoju'er?"

He scratched his head, looking confused. "What's so interesting about fashion shows? It's just a bunch of people walking around changing clothes, isn't it? I'd rather watch battles or catch new Pokémon!"

Clearly, in the simple thought process of the new Superman, "fashion" and "runway shows" take a much lower priority than "battles," "capture," and "eating."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Guang rolled his eyes at Xiao Zhi, snatched the manual from Xiao Gang's hand, and began to carefully browse through it himself.

"Ash, really—Miss Daisy is a world-renowned model and trainer! Her fashion sense and battle style are incredibly captivating!"

As Xiao Guang rapidly flipped through the pages, her eyes grew brighter and brighter. "And look, the theme of this fashion show is a concerto of light and electricity," she exclaimed. "Maybe it can inspire my costumes and performance for my next glamour contest!"

She closed the booklet and said resolutely, "Yes! I absolutely have to go! This is a great learning opportunity!"

So, with the unanimous agreement of the three, the group's next destination was happily decided—

Target: Binhai City!

Ash was left alone on the side, arms crossed, pouting, muttering, "Damn it! What's so interesting about a fashion show? We can't even use Pokémon to battle, right, Pikachu?"

He habitually seeks support from his shoulder-to-shoulder partner.

However, Pikachu did not agree this time.

It glanced sideways at its trainer, who was almost completely oblivious to concepts like fashion and aesthetics except for battles and Pokémon, and a very human-like sad expression appeared on its round little face.

"Pikachu—Pikachu—"

Pikachu drooped its ears and tail, and sadly cradled its cheeks with its little paws.

It's over—it's all over—

Following a trainer whose mind is consumed by nothing but battles and food, what if we encounter a beautiful female Pikachu during our travels?

Will I be rejected because my trainer is too unsophisticated or too stereotypically straight, and end up not being able to find a partner?

Thinking of that bleak future, Pikachu was overcome with sorrow, and even the electric sacs on its cheeks dimmed a little.

But despite the sadness, we still need to urge those who need to be urged to do so.

Pikachu sighed, snapping out of its emo state. It stretched out its little paw and patted Ash's head hard, almost knocking his hat off. Then it pointed to the other three, who were already excitedly discussing their route and had completely forgotten about Ash.

"Pikachu! Pikachu!"

"Huh? Oh, oh!"

Ash was woken up. Although he still wasn't enthusiastic about the fashion show, since his friends had decided to go, he naturally wanted to go too.

"Wait for me!" He quickly took a step and caught up with Zhang Jianying and the other two.

Meanwhile, the Rocket trio, who had been secretly listening nearby—

"What?! Those brats are going to Binhai City to see Xiaoju'er's fashion show, meow?!"

Meow Meow jumped out of the bushes where she had been eavesdropping, her eyes shining. "I heard there will be lots of rich people and reporters! It's a great opportunity to pull off a big heist, meow! And—Little Chrysanthemum is beautiful too! Meow!"

Musashi perked up, tossing his long hair: "That's right! Kiku's outfit must be priceless! If we could buy one, we'd definitely get a high score in the next fashion contest!"

Kojiro stroked his chin: "More importantly, Binhai City is close to the coast, so there might be rare Water or Electric-type Pokémon there. Plus, the large population makes it easier for us to hide and move around!"

"Alright! Since that's the case—"

'

The three of them shouted in unison, striking their classic pose: "White Hole! A white tomorrow awaits us!"

"That's it~ Meow!"

"Whoosh—Nus!"

Zhang Jianying and the other two began planning their route to Binhai City with great enthusiasm. Although Xiao Zhi looked bored, he obediently followed along.

Seeing that Xiao Zhi wasn't interested, Xiao Gang deliberately said something in an attempt to persuade Xiao Zhi to change his plans and go to the fashion show together.

"I heard there are some rare Pokémon near the coastal city, Ash. Don't you want to catch some Pokémon you've never seen before?"

Hikari agreed wholeheartedly and joined the team trying to trick Ash.

Upon hearing "catching Pokémon," Ash's eyes immediately lit up: "That's right! How come I didn't think of that! Pikachu, maybe we can meet new friends at the beach!"

"Pikachu————"

Pikachu responded listlessly, still worried about its trainer's steel-headedness and its own future.

Zhang Jianying glanced at the two who were ruthlessly fooling Xiao Zhi just to see Xiao Ju'er, and suppressed a laugh.

"It's okay, even if there aren't any Pokémon I haven't seen before, I can still try challenging Daisy after the fashion show." "That makes sense. The Gym Leaders of the Unova region must have some Pokémon they haven't seen before. It's decided, target: Seaside City!"

"Speaking of which, Brother Jian..."

As Ash walked along, he asked curiously, "The color and pattern of your Salamence's scales are a bit different from the Salamence I've seen before. Is it a special form? I remember my Pokémon had the same ones at Professor Oak's lab."

Zhang Jianying gently stroked Salamence's Poké Ball, his expression tender: "It's like this because of some bad experiences. It used to be a restless little guy too."

The Salamence inside the Poké Ball heard its trainer say it was restless and scratched at the ball's walls in dissatisfaction.

Zhang Jianying patted Salamence's Poké Ball reassuringly and briefly explained Salamence's history.

The three were filled with righteous indignation after hearing this.

Ash was silent for a moment, then suddenly said, "Brother Swordsman, if we encounter them again, I will help them too. I will never allow anyone to act so recklessly and harm Pokémon!"

Xiao Gang and Xiao Guang nodded in agreement, both indicating that they would also help. Zhang Jianying smiled and said, "No problem, I'll let you know if we run into each other in the future."

Without further delay, the group bid farewell to Ji Xian and Ali and left the bustling Great Wetland Arena, embarking on their journey to Binhai City.

On the flight, while dealing with the hot-blooded Ash, Brock secretly pulled out the "Sinnoh Travel Fashion Guide" from his backpack again, flipped to the page with the interview with Kiku, and looked at the radiant photo on it, a smile unconsciously appearing on his lips.

Zhang Jianying caught a glimpse of his subtle movements and smiled to herself.

He gazed out the window at the darkening sky, where the stars began to twinkle. His aura extended outwards, allowing him to sense his companions resting peacefully in their Poké Balls.

Coastal City, the Lighthouse Badge, Little Daisy's Fashion Show, and the Sinnoh League Conference that followed.

This journey is getting more and more interesting.