Pokémon, but cultural invasion

"Nani?"

It looked at Eevee with a puzzled expression.

Eevee blinked cutely and brushed past it.

Gloom was startled; the gadgets it had hidden on its body had disappeared!

Instead, a small, silvery-white spiky ball pierced my skin, causing excruciating pain.

"Boy!"

Ibrahimovic, with a red apple in his mouth, had already run several steps.

Rika's face darkened, and she said, "Mr. Izumi's fighting style is truly despicable."

The spiky ball attached to the back of the Gloom is called the "Attachment Needle," and it can cause damage depending on the wearer's movements.

Eevee's charge was just a facade; once she got close to Gloom, she immediately used "Desire" to steal the item.

Upon physical contact, the attachment needles automatically adhere to the Gloom Flower due to the properties of the prop.

The leftovers that Gloom carried were taken by Eevee.

Back and forth they went, Gloom was constantly losing energy, while Eevee was constantly recovering its energy, with a huge difference between them.

“Miss Lijia is no less impressive.”

Izumi glanced at the lush green battle arena, which was a "grassy field" display.

With Rika's Gloomy strength, it only takes a second to take root, and everything else is just paving the way for the grassy field.

If Rika's tactics hadn't been figured out, with her triple recovery from rooting, grassy terrain, and leftovers, and possibly even photosynthesis, Gloom would have been invincible.

In a sense, the Gym Leaders are the eight strongest monsters selected from the entire region.

Truly one in a million, with top-tier talent, tactics, and bond with the elves.

Defeating them would be as difficult as climbing to the sky.

Chapter 41 Ibu

The stinky flower did not panic when its props were changed. A pale yellow liquid flowed from the corner of its mouth, and the ground beneath its feet shimmered with a green light.

Grassy terrain continuously heals injuries caused by the attached needles and also enhances the power of Grass-type moves.

The "dissolving liquid" dripping from the corners of his mouth covered the ground, looking like a puddle of peanut oil from a distance.

The slippery dissolving liquid is very unfriendly to Pokémon that move on land, and it should be a countermeasure that Rika devised for high-speed Pokémon.

"Ibrahimovic, Plan D."

"Boy!"

Ibrahimovic dug through the ground and disappeared underground like a diver.

Lijia was taken aback. What kind of command method was this?

Are you planning to use "digging" to launch a sneak attack?

Stinky Flower felt the slight vibrations in the ground, and a few seconds later, it suddenly shot a "magic leaf" behind it.

A leaf shimmering with iridescent light flew past Eevee's scalp as it poked its head out, startling Eevee into quickly retreating.

The leaf, radiating a glowing light, seemed to have eyes; it flew back like a boomerang and followed Eevee's direction into the ground.

"Mr. Izumi's plan might backfire!"

Hearing the muffled groans coming from underground, Lijia laughed and said, "I've only ever seen a commander who doesn't leak any information with Natsume."

Is it a magic leaf that guarantees a hit?

Although it's not guaranteed to hit, the magic leaf that can automatically track is harder to dodge than other attacks.

Izumi remained unmoved; trash talk was also part of the gym battle.

The ability to remain calm and make sound judgments even when at a disadvantage is a fundamental quality of a trainer.

Ibrahimovic seems unaware of the futility of his digging tactics and continues to attempt to ambush Gloom from underground.

But each time, the stinky flower's keen sense of touch detected its roots, allowing it to easily counterattack.

"Eevee should just stay as a pet before it evolves; such a cute Pokémon isn't suitable for battle."

Lijia covered her mouth and smiled faintly.

She didn't show it on her face, but she was puzzled inside.

Why were the intervals between Eevee's sneak attacks from underground getting longer and longer? At first, she thought that Eevee was seriously injured by Magic Leaf and was becoming increasingly sluggish.

But gradually, Rika realized that wasn't the case.

When Eevee emerged from the ground for the fifth time, she was enveloped in a pastel aura, and her body hair floated upwards like a Super Saiyan.

"You're using 'meditation' to enhance yourself underground?"

Rika finally realized it.

The magic leaf that Gloom unleashed pierced through the pink aura and struck Eevee, leaving it weak and powerless.

Its enhanced special defense easily withstood Gloom's meticulously trained moves.

"Boy!"

With her hands on her hips, Ibuki's restless energy made her feel like she could take on five people at once!

"A good tactic, but there are many limitations to its use. The key to its success lies in deception."

Lijia remained calm and composed, unmoved by her opponent's repeated enhancements.

Quanshu's heart stirred slightly. Could it be that this dojo master had some other trick up his sleeve?

This digging-enhancing build does have many limitations, such as being vulnerable to "earthquakes" or being discovered by opponents who then enhance it as well.

Self-suggestion, inversion, and cleanse smoke can also counter Eevee's boosted state.

As far as he knew, Gloom could not possibly have mastered these countermeasures, unless the Gloom was illegal.

"Acid bomb!"

Faced with the deep purple sticky ball generated by Gloom, Eevee did not choose to take it head-on like it did with Magic Leaf.

It darted around, dodging each attack, then leaped high into the air, swishing its tail, and burst forth with shimmering golden stars that covered the field in an inverted cone shape, leaving no room for escape.

The regular "Swift" is only the size of a fist, while Eevee's enhanced version is as big as a head.

Rika, realizing she couldn't withstand it, decisively shouted, "Leaf Storm!"

"Nani!"

Stinky Flower's entire body was tense, and the lush green grass transformed into countless tender leaves, which were pulled upwards by the storm.

The enormous emerald tornado struck upwards, colliding with a dazzling swarm of incandescent meteors.

"Boom boom boom!"

The sound of explosions was endless.

The spring tree lowered the brim of its hat, and its clothes fluttered in the air currents.

As the smoke cleared, Stinkweaver was panting heavily, while Ibrahimovic remained calm and composed.

Another high-speed star attack will deplete the grassland's Gloomy flowers, making them difficult to withstand.

He looked at Lijia.

Standing beside her was a Leafeon, which formed a barrier that blocked the dust kicked up by the blast wave.

"It's a bit tricky, I give up."

Lika stroked her cheek and said in a monotone tone, "You're incredibly strong, please accept the Rainbow Badge..."

"...This feeling?"

"Hmm...that's not right either."

She tested her defeat speech, puzzled, "Something feels off. Oh well, anyway, Mr. Izumi won this battle."

"Bui——"

Ibrahimovic deflated like a punctured balloon, his once-fluffy fur now shriveled up.

Maintaining the enhanced state is clearly a considerable burden for her.

"Concession."

Despite winning against Rika, Izumi wasn't really happy.

After all, Gloom is not one of Rika's six main Pokémon; Bellamy and Queen of Paprika are.

"They have a good grasp of timing in battle, a fixed set of tactics, and good chemistry with Ibrahimovic. How can they be eliminated in the first round every year with such strength?"

Amiya muttered to herself, "With the strength that Izumi has shown, he has a chance to make it to the top 64. Are there really any young trainers like this nowadays?"

"You're tired from the battle, please rest in the pavilion over there."

Lijia clapped her hands, and two flower therapy rings flew out from the arched flower stand, circling around Eevee.

"Buyi yi~~"

The unique fairy-type move "Flower Therapy" belonging to Flower Therapy Ring Ring is activated, filling the air with a fragrant aroma.

Ibu let out a comfortable cry, feeling as refreshed as if he had just had a foot bath spa treatment.

“Boo...Boo…”

After being healed, Eevee lay limply back in Izumi's backpack, like a lump of mud with its spine removed.

Quanshu sat down on the stone bench in the pavilion.

Lijia lit the red clay tea stove, adding charcoal and incense.

"Now let's talk about cooperation."

The two discussed specific details of their collaboration.

First, the Plants vs. Zombies collaboration period lasted until three months after Izumi's filming ended.

Secondly, regarding publicity, it is handled by the operators of the Lijia Botanical Garden.

The ticket price for the botanical garden remains unchanged after the collaboration. Rika doesn't seem to have any intention of making money from it; she just wants to increase visitor traffic.

Finally, regarding the location and time of the shoot, Lijia granted him permission to shoot in the Dongcheng District.

Compared to the North and West districts where Yuhong Department Store is located, and the South district where the game city is located, the East District has a smaller number of residents.

The two discussed some minor details and finalized everything.

After finishing discussing business, Ami complained that she was being excluded and forced herself to join the discussion.

"Since Miss Lijia wants to increase visitor traffic to the botanical garden, why not try opening a flower market?"

A flower market?

Lijia hesitated; she might not be able to find the time to do the buying and selling.

In this world where Pokémon can act as pets, a flower and bird market naturally didn't emerge.

Quanshu explained, "The large open space around Yuhong Dojo allows vendors to set up stalls and sell plants freely, which may attract many people."