I caught a Pokémon

He looked at the girl in front of him and gently hugged her.

Take care of yourself, and hopefully we'll meet again someday!

After bidding her a solemn farewell, Xia You released her arm, flipped over and mounted the fire-breathing dragon without hesitation, lightly tapped her feet, and the next second, the fire-breathing dragon flapped its wings and soared into the air.

The strong winds from the wings not only blinded people but also tore the girl's hair apart.

At this moment, apart from Xiaoyou, no one else saw the two lines of clear tears flowing down Flura's face.

For Xia You, this island was just a small interlude in his journey; his ambition lay in the vast land ahead!

There, countless exciting adventures await him!

Chapter 225 Ayi

Yuzu Island, located in the southern part of the Orange Islands, is one of the few important islands in the region.

Since its formation, the waters north of Yuzi Island have been affected by turbulent undercurrents, making the sea conditions here extremely complex and dangerous.

For thousands of years, it has claimed the lives of countless poor people and torn countless families apart.

Until more than a hundred years ago, in order to prevent too many ships from sinking, the island's residents inserted sixty or seventy huge stone pillars deep into the seabed, creating dozens of large and small eddies that completely changed the direction of the seawater and slowed down the speed of the undercurrents. At the same time, these towering stone pillars became a unique feature of Yuzu Island.

Because they set off at noon, it was already dusk when Xia You and Na Zi arrived at Yuzi Island.

The setting sun shines on this small island, as if it has been sprinkled with a layer of golden light.

After landing outside the town, Xia You didn't waste any time and followed the navigation directly to the Yuzu Gym.

Yuzu Gym is located far from the town. It is a four-story building that doesn't look like a gym at all, but rather like an ordinary Pokémon Center.

Just like the two gyms we challenged before, the Yuzu Gym was deserted, indicating that no trainers usually challenge it.

Xia You climbed the high steps and entered the dojo.

After a staff member informed them, a short time later, a man with red hair, wearing a black shirt and a white vest, walked out of the building with a group of uniformly dressed subordinates.

Judging from his imposing presence and confident expression, the red-haired man at the head of the group must be the owner of this establishment.

But how to put it, Xia You felt that this man's attire made him seem less like a club owner and more like a Latin dancer!

Xia You stepped forward, about to explain her purpose, but the man only glanced at her before walking directly past her and standing in front of Na Zi.

"Beautiful lady, may I ask your name?"

As he spoke, he gave a slight, almost nonchalant bow, as if welcoming a dance partner!

Xia You was speechless. Xiao Dan was the same before, and now the leader of the Yuzu Gym was the same. Why were all the male leaders of the Orange League so frivolous, unable to take their eyes off pretty women?

Seeing Naz's furrowed brows, one could already tell her displeasure. Just before she was about to make a move, Xia You stepped in front of the man and shielded her behind him.

"Judging from your attire, you must be a waiter, right?" Xia You said with a smile. "I'm here to challenge the dojo. Is the dojo master here? Also, could you please not bother my female companion? If you upset her, I think the scene will be quite unpleasant."

"Waiter!?" Sensing the sarcasm in Xia You's tone, the man took a step back and scrutinized her closely. It seemed that only now had this man caught his attention. "Ah, sorry, I was so captivated by the beautiful lady that I forgot myself for a moment. But don't get me wrong, I'm not a waiter. Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is A-Yi, I'm the owner of this place, and also the Southern Star of the Southern Cross!"

After finishing his speech, he even performed a dance, which showed just how proud he was of his identity.

Unexpectedly, Xia You waved her hand and said in a calm tone, "I'm really sorry, I'm from the Kanto region, and I'm not very familiar with the terminology used in small places like yours, so could we start quickly?"

A term used to refer to a small...small place!?

Ah Yi felt his blood pressure skyrocket!

Xia You's nonchalant tone seemed to shatter all his pride!

In the Orange Alliance, they are the focus of attention, and their every move attracts public attention. When did they become so looked down upon?!

The presence of beautiful women beside him made him even more displeased!

Taking a deep breath, A-Yi calmed himself down.

He often boasted about his good looks, but now he had to admit that the man in front of him was indeed 'a tiny bit' more handsome than him.

What an annoying guy!

With a smirk, Ah Yi crossed his arms and said coldly, "It's alright if you haven't heard of me, but my time is precious. I won't casually fight with people who come from nowhere. If you want to challenge me, you have to prove yourself and see if you're qualified to be my opponent!"

"Oh? Proof?"

Xia You thought for a moment, then took out the badge collection box from her bag, opened it, and showed A Yi the two Orange Alliance badges inside.

"Before you, I had already successfully challenged two gyms. I wonder if these two badges count as proof?"

Ah Yi glanced at the box, snorted, and said disdainfully, "Even among the masters, there are differences in skill levels. Those two don't understand combat at all. Don't compare me to them!"

"Really?" Xia You feigned surprise. "That's wonderful! To be honest, I was worried that the matches here would be as childish as the previous two gyms. Now that I hear what you've said, I'm really relieved. After all, it's been a long time since I've participated in a gym match, and I've almost forgotten what that feels like!"

On the side, Naz could clearly feel the two arguing fiercely, their words brimming with tension.

In the past, when she encountered situations like this where someone tried to hit on her, she would handle it herself, using her superpowers to "warn" these people to stay away from her. But right now, she really didn't expect that Xia You would actually compete with someone else for her sake!

Moreover, after last night, she could clearly feel that Xia You seemed to have regarded her as a 'private possession' that outsiders could not touch.

She had never felt this way before. Strangely enough, even though she was being treated like an object, it wasn't annoying at all. Instead, she felt a warm current enveloping her heart!

At this moment, led by A-Yi, they arrived at a river behind the dojo.

The river is flanked by cliffs covered with dense shrubs, and there is a small dock on the bank where a speedboat can be seen moored.

Ayi pointed at the speedboat and said, "Proving it is actually very simple. Just ride this speedboat, go down this river, and have your Pokémon use moves to shoot down all the targets you encounter along the way. That will prove you are qualified to fight me!"

At this point, he changed the subject, giving a forced smile, "By the way, it's getting dark now. I originally didn't want to conduct the test at this time, but since you're in such a hurry, I suppose you wouldn't mind even if it's nighttime?"

"Of course, no problem." Xia You glanced at him, knowing that he was making things more difficult, but she still looked indifferent. "Whether it's day or night, it's the same to me."

"You're quite confident, aren't you?" A-Yi chuckled. "Then I'll be watching closely."

Chapter 226 Target Practice Test

After untying the ropes, Xia You, Na Zi, and A Yi boarded the speedboat one by one.

As the speedboat driver, A-Yi was also responsible for supervising Xia You's progress, so he naturally had to travel with them.

His men, on the other hand, left ahead of time to take control of the targets at various locations.

After waiting for a while, and upon learning over the walkie-talkie that everything was ready, A-Yi started the speedboat.

Buzzing...

The diesel engine of the speedboat was billowing smoke as it carried three people upstream toward the forest inside Yuzu Island.

The small boat sped away, creating ripples on the river. Fortunately, the water was calm, and the speedboat did not bounce as Xia You had expected.

The scenery along the riverbank flashed by quickly. After driving for more than a minute, A-Yi, who had been silent for a long time, suddenly spoke again: "The track I carefully prepared is just a hundred meters ahead. How about it? Are you ready?"

Xia You nodded, thought for a moment, opened the Poké Ball, and released her Jolteon.

As soon as Rayquaza appeared, it nuzzled affectionately against Xia You. After Xia You explained the mission to it, it let out a soft cry, turned around, and immediately got into focus, carefully watching every little movement in front of it.

"Oh, it's Jolteon." Ayi looked at the bristling Pokémon in front of him with a slight surprise. "On this kind of water, to avoid being affected by the rocking of the boat, I thought you would send out a Water-type Pokémon like the other challengers before you."

"Don't worry," Xia You said expressionlessly, "My Jolteon is very strong. With it, it's more than enough to handle this kind of small situation."

However, despite saying that, Xia You had actually considered using Blastoise to accept the challenge.

Just as Ah Yi said, Blastoise has been living in the water for many years and is used to the swaying of the water surface. Moreover, its water gun is not only fast but also very stable. Most importantly, the power of the move is great enough to shatter ordinary wooden targets.

Unfortunately, its drawbacks are also very obvious. Because of its enormous size and heavy weight, summoning it from a ship would definitely cause the speedboat to sink.

At that moment, a circular target suddenly drooped down from the trunk of a large tree. Xia You immediately turned her head to look, and at the same time, Rayquaza shook its stiff fur. Instantly, a flash of electricity shot out and struck the target.

boom!

The current hit its mark precisely, and unsurprisingly, the target was blasted into countless fragments, which fell into the water.

Looking at the debris, Xia You estimated its power, then squatted down next to Lei Yibu and instructed, "Well done, but be careful to conserve your energy next time. The attack was a bit too powerful. Next time, it's best to weaken it a little."

Rayquaza called out again in response, and just then, another target was erected behind a boulder. This time, Xia You didn't need to say anything; another electric current struck, and the target shattered once more.

This time, although the target was also shattered, the damage was noticeably less than before.

"Very good!" Xia You patted Lei Yi Bu's head with satisfaction. "Keep it like that!"

The speedboat continued forward, and then the frequency of targets appeared increased. Not only did moving targets appear, but sometimes two or three targets appeared at the same time!

Despite the increasing difficulty, Raybuck performed exceptionally well, methodically shattering all the targets as the current surged.

Bang! Bang! Bang bang!

The sound of shattering echoed continuously over the silent river.

At the stern, A-Yi watched Rayquaza's performance with great astonishment.

The sun had already set, but the sky was not completely dark yet; it was in a state of hazy or semi-hazy light, making visibility increasingly poor.

Among the challengers he had encountered in the past, their Pokémon levels varied, so he set a pass rate. Generally, as long as the hit rate of the target reached more than 80%, the test was considered passed.

He knew that Xia You must have some skill to defeat the first two gym leaders. However, he originally thought that Xia You's Pokémon would be affected by the weather, or at least perform poorly, missing a few targets and losing their usual level.

Then, he can say a few sarcastic remarks, and while Xia You is embarrassed, he can "make an exception" once more and, as if it were charity, agree to let him challenge him. That way, he can vent his anger from earlier.

But I didn't expect Ray to perform so well!

This truly disappointed him greatly.

But then I thought, this must be Xia You's most powerful Pokémon...

That must be it!

Hmph, in order to pass the test, you actually revealed all your cards. How naive!

The more he thought about it, the more convinced he felt that his guess was correct.

After the speedboat circled around, it eventually returned to the starting point.

When the speedboat came to a stop, Ah Yi was somewhat disappointed, but he still acknowledged Xia You's strength.

"You've passed." He said arrogantly, with an expression that said, 'I've seen through your thoughts.' "According to the rules, you can come to the dojo to challenge me tomorrow. However, if you reveal your ace so early, what will you do during the official match tomorrow?"

Ok?

Xia You looked completely bewildered.

My trump card?

Are you talking about Reeves?

Originally, he had just heard Ah Yi say that this was a track he had carefully prepared, and he thought it would be very difficult, but after walking one lap, he found it to be so easy.

Perhaps this is due to one's limited perspective...

Having never ventured out into the world, he probably thought everyone was at the same level as the trainers in the Orange League.

Seeing Xia You in a daze, A Yi thought he was at a loss because he had exposed Xia You's mistake.

He smiled and continued, "In tomorrow's match, I will use a Pokémon of the same type as yours to battle you. The rules of Pokémon battles are one-on-one, three-round battles. As long as you can win two of them, I will consider your challenge a success!"

After saying that, he walked up to Naz and extended his hand in an extremely gentlemanly manner, still harboring wicked intentions, and said, "Well, it's getting late, beautiful lady, would you like to have dinner with me?"

Nazi ignored him and instead looked at Xia You, tilting her head as if asking if she could teach this arrogant guy a lesson.

Xia You chuckled at her, then turned and left. Seeing this, Na Zi completely ignored A Yi and turned to follow Xia You.

Ah Yi was left standing there awkwardly, slowly lowering his right hand that was raised in the air.

Chapter 227: Another Move

After leaving the dojo, Xia You and Na Zi returned to the town of Yuzu Island.

They chose a relatively upscale restaurant, and after enjoying a sumptuous meal, they went to find a place to stay for the night.

However, when passing by the Pokémon Center, Xia You did not choose to go in. Instead, under the pretext of sleeping more comfortably, she took Sabrina to a nearby hotel, checked in, and booked two double rooms.

After all, while the Pokémon Center provides free food and accommodation, it is divided into separate dormitories for men and women. The environment is not only average, but there is also little privacy. Although you can move in with your bags at any time, it is still not very convenient.

Normally, if there are many people, it's perfectly fine to stay there. Everyone can have a lively time, tell stories before bed, and share their experiences. This not only deepens friendships but also broadens horizons, which is really interesting.

But right now it's just him and Natsume, it's so lonely.

And most importantly, he had just taken advantage of the situation last night and was thinking of pushing his luck further, so naturally he didn't want to live in the Pokémon Center that was in his way.

As the daytime hustle and bustle gradually subsided, the moonlight once again enveloped the earth.