I caught a Pokémon

Take Genji right now, for example. In terms of seniority, he became one of the Elite Four when he was young. He was a contemporary of Kikuko from the Kanto region, Kikuno from the Sinnoh region, and Dorasena from the Kalos region. Looking at the whole world, there are very few people who have been in power for a longer period of time than him.

But besides being one of the Four Heavenly Kings, he was also a captain and explorer who spent most of the year at sea. How could ordinary people possibly know anything about him, let alone have heard any of his exploits!

Even the other three Heavenly Kings—Hua Yue, Fu Rong, and Bonnie—are in almost the same situation.

First is Huayue. Don't be fooled by his nice-sounding name, which sounds like a woman's; he is a real man, and a red-haired man who is proficient in evil and used to be a delinquent!

As for why we say "red hair"...

It was precisely because of his round, bald head, with only a small tuft of red hair sticking up, that he looked very individualistic and even less like a good person!

Coupled with his fierce expression, it's difficult for ordinary people to have a favorable impression of him.

As for the other two Heavenly Kings, Furong and Bonnie, they are both women, and it is not appropriate for them to show their faces in public. One is still young, like an islander wearing a grass skirt dancing the cha-cha on a tropical island, and the other is like a noblewoman who keeps people at a distance. Although some people like them, it is equally difficult for them to gain the support of the vast majority of people in the Hoenn region.

In short, Hoenn lacks a flagship figure like Lance, who possesses both excellent image and temperament, whose attributes are widely accepted and recognized, and who inspires great trust!

These thoughts flashed through Xia You's mind, but he didn't show anything wrong on his face.

Regardless of their fame, as one of the Four Heavenly Kings, they are still worthy of Xia You's respect. He was even very happy to run into them here by chance!

"It's not surprising that I recognized you. Anyone who knows a little about Pokémon in the Hoenn region knows you're a living fossil here, a person of great prestige," Xia You said with a smile, then asked with a puzzled look, "But I'd like to ask, how did you come to know me?"

Genji laughed heartily: "It's all because of those rascals on my ship! You know, sailing at sea is incredibly boring and tedious, there's practically no entertainment, so when they have nothing to do, they start watching competitions from other regions. That's when I found out about you!"

"So that's how it is." Xia You suddenly realized.

"You've come to Hoenn this time to compete in the Hoenn Tournament, right?"

"That's right, I've already got six badges. I just need two more to register for the Rainbow Tournament!"

"Just as I expected." Genji nodded with an expression that said, "I knew it." He sighed, "Those kids were all guessing which region you would challenge next after Johto, but only I guessed that you would come to Hoenn and that you would win the championship!"

Unexpectedly, Genji had such a high opinion of him!

"You're giving me too much credit." Xia You shook his head. "The overall strength of trainers in the Hoenn region is much stronger than that in Johto and Kanto. I can't guarantee that I'll win the championship."

"Young man, being too humble isn't a good thing; it'll make you lose your vigor!" Genji snorted. "They're very strong. Do you think your strength can stay stagnant? Actually, compared to those trainers, the biggest obstacle for you in this tournament is the Pokémon League itself!"

"Why do you say that?"

"I think you've already guessed it," Genji said dismissively. "The Pokémon League won't just stand by and watch the same trainer win the regional championships one after another. You don't even need to think about it. When the tournament starts, they'll set up layers of obstacles for you, and the opponents you face will definitely be the most difficult to deal with!"

"Isn't this perfect?" Xia You smiled slightly. "Anyway, winning the championship requires defeating all opponents, so what difference does it make whether we defeat them sooner or later?"

Genji stared at Xia You in surprise for several seconds before suddenly bursting into laughter.

"I take back what I just said. So you're not lacking in energy after all, you're just reserved! I knew I hadn't misjudged you!"

At this point, Genji's expression turned serious, and he asked solemnly, "It's been a long time since I've met someone as interesting as you. How about it? This is a rare opportunity. How about a match with me? Anyway, after you become the champion, you'll also have the opportunity to challenge us. Just like you said, it shouldn't make a difference whether it's sooner or later, right?"

"Let's leave it at that for now." Xia You shook her head. "To be honest, including Kanto and Johto, in my plan, I will not challenge any of the Four Heavenly Kings now. Only after I have challenged all the tournaments will I set my sights on you."

"Oh?" Genji was slightly surprised, but he understood his thoughts. "Alright, since you're unwilling, I won't force you. I just don't know if I'll live to see that day!"

"Of course you can! Seeing how healthy you are, I'm sure you'll live to be a hundred!"

After listening for a while, Xiaoxia couldn't help but interject, "Um... Mr. Genji, since you are a captain, where is your ship?"

"Look, it's right there!"

As Yuanzhi pointed into the distance, Xia You and Xiaoxia looked in the direction he pointed and saw a huge wooden five-masted sailing ship docked at the pier!

"Huh? A sailboat!?" Xiaoxia was taken aback. She thought that as one of the Four Heavenly Kings, Genji's boat would be some kind of luxury yacht!

Sensing the surprise in Xiaoxia's tone, Yuanzhi scoffed, "What do you greenhorns like you know? Sailing is the true romance of the sea! No technology is needed, just the sea breeze and currents to navigate the ocean, overcoming giant waves and whirlpools—that's the kind of adventure a man should pursue!"

Although he seemed to be getting really fired up, I'm sorry, but Xiaoxia just couldn't relate to what he was saying.

When you're on a boat, shouldn't you be lying on the deck, comfortably enjoying the sea breeze?

Although she likes Water-type Pokémon, she thinks it's better to stay away from storms and giant waves.

Of the two, only Xia You could somewhat agree with Genji's ideas.

After all, he had watched several pirate movies before he traveled through time, and he also liked the various pirate ships and warships in them.

Moreover, he knew that older people like Genji were quite nostalgic. It wasn't that they couldn't accept modern cruise ships, but rather that retro sailboats gave them a feeling of chasing their dreams when they were young!

After gazing at Genji's sailboat for a while, Genji turned to Xia You and said, "Alright, since we can't fight, let's go up to the ship and take a look. Most of the guys on board are your fans, and they'll be very happy to see you!"

Without a doubt, since Genji had spoken, Xia You naturally had to give this Four Heavenly Kings some face.

Nodding, he and Xiaoxia followed behind Genji and walked towards Genji's sailboat.

But when he got closer, he could clearly feel that the sailboat was much bigger and more magnificent than it had looked from a distance!

The black hull with white sails, covered with ropes, looks just like a pirate ship!

A rope ladder was then thrown down from the ship.

Xia You looked up and saw a man in his late twenties, wearing a white shirt and with slightly tanned skin, waving at Yuan Zhi.

"Captain! Preparations are complete, we can set sail!"

"No rush." ​​Genji nimbly climbed the rope ladder, saying, "We have guests arriving."

"guest?"

The man was taken aback, because in his memory, apart from the captain's few old friends, he had never seen him bring anyone on board as a guest.

Thinking of this, he turned his suspicious gaze to Xia You.

On the dock, seeing that Yuanzhi had already climbed halfway up, Xia You first pulled hard on the rope ladder to confirm that it was indeed sturdy enough before signaling Xiaoxia to go up first, while she would bring up the rear.

That way, even if Xiaoxia unfortunately falls, he can catch her from below.

However, he was clearly overthinking it. After traveling with Xiaozhi to two regions, enduring wind and rain along the way, she had seen and experienced all kinds of grand scenes and hardships. This difficulty was almost nothing to her, and she could climb up easily.

The only thing that made her feel awkward was that crawling in front of Xia You would inevitably expose her butt to him, and since she was wearing shorts, if Xia You looked up, well… it wasn't entirely impossible…

Before she could think further, urged by Xia You, she could only shyly climb the rope ladder.

As Xiaoxia climbed the rope ladder, Xia You followed closely behind.

Looking up was inevitable, but when Xia You saw Xiaoxia's skin twisting and turning on her head and her long legs swinging back and forth, she remained calm and had no distracting thoughts.

He has no pedophilic tendencies. Most importantly, he has always treated Xiaoxia like a younger sister. How could he have such filthy thoughts?

However, to avoid suspicion and to prevent misunderstandings and unnecessary trouble, he tried to keep his eyes level and focus on the rope ladder in front of him.

He waited until he was level with the ship before he was about to step onto the deck when Xiaoxia's fair little hand was already outstretched in front of him.

A faint smile graced her face, her expression seemingly expectant, as if she wanted to discern something from Xia You's eyes.

With a blank expression, she took his hand, and with his help, Xia Youping smoothly boarded the deck.

At this moment, at Genji's call, the man who had just lowered the rope ladder and some sailors around him had all gathered around.

Chapter 697 Friendships Are Never Wasted

"Hey kids, look who I've brought!"

Genji laughed heartily at the group of sailors in front of him, drawing everyone's attention to Xia You.

As Genji just said, all of his sailors had indeed watched Xia You's competition videos and talked about him more than once, so they were naturally familiar with Xia You's face.

Immediately, someone recognized him and pointed at him, exclaiming in surprise.

"My God, it's Xia You!!!"

"Huh? What's he doing here!?"

"He's in Hoenn!?"

"Are you going to challenge the Rainbow Dance Competition!?"

The sailors quickly surrounded Xia You, looking at him with excited and delighted eyes, and some even touched his arm.

Their cautious demeanor made it seem as if the person in front of them wasn't a real person, but an illusion!

"It's alive!"

"Idiot, what are you talking about? Of course he's alive!"

"Ah... I'm sorry, I meant that the real person appeared in front of me, it's really unbelievable!"

Everyone was talking at once, and their excited expressions even startled Xiaoxia.

She was filled with doubt and surprise, wondering how Xia You had suddenly gained so many male fans. She knew that with Xia You's face and Pokémon skills, he had always been very attractive to young girls. How could he be so popular among men?

Even Xia You was somewhat overwhelmed by the enthusiasm of these people. This feeling was as if he had returned to the Kanto region and the situation when he first encountered that group of biker gangs.

However… if he could, he would actually prefer to be surrounded by a group of beautiful girls rather than these muscular sailors…

The man who had just thrown down the rope ladder spoke up, "Welcome aboard our ship. Do you wish to fight the captain?"

The sailors around him became even more excited when he mentioned the battle.

A man who holds two regional championships is sure to have a very exciting battle against the Four Heavenly Kings!

Seeing Xia You turn her gaze to the man, Yuan Zhi introduced him to Xia You: "His name is Liang Guang. He is my top disciple and also the first mate on my ship. He is a reliable man who accompanies me on my sea voyages and in search of treasures!"

"Hello." Liang Guang extended his hand to Xia You. "I watched all your matches at the Silver Conference and the Indigo Conference. You are a truly amazing trainer. It is an honor to meet you!"

No wonder he was accepted as a disciple by Genji and became the first mate. This man named Yoshimitsu, apart from being slightly tanned, not only has a good appearance and temperament, but also speaks very politely, which shows that he is also a calm person.

"You flatter me." Xia You shook hands with him. "What I did before was just a small test. The fact that it went so smoothly is largely because I didn't encounter any particularly strong opponents."

Seeing that the two had finished exchanging pleasantries and seemed to have a good impression of each other, Genji nodded in satisfaction.

He was already an old man, and although he wouldn't admit it, he knew in his heart that he probably didn't have many years left to live. The reason he brought Xia You on the ship this time was not only because he admired this man, but more importantly, to let Liang Guang and Xia You get to know each other, which could be considered as paving the way for his disciple.

Who says a man who wants to conquer the sea only cares about his dreams and doesn't care about worldly matters?

See? That's pretty shrewd!

He waved his hand, signaling the surrounding sailors to step back. He coughed lightly and said loudly, "I have no battle with him this time, so please stop making a fuss. Xia You is a guest I invited back, so you all need to behave yourselves and not scare others!"

Hearing his words, the sailors indeed became more obedient.

Later, at Genji's invitation and accompanied by Ryoko, Xia You and Xiaoxia strolled around the deck a few times, truly feeling the historical weight of this five-masted sailing ship. It seemed that even Xiaoxia had gained some understanding of its charm.

After the two finished their fascinating tour, the group went into the cabin.

Once they arrived, only Xia You, Xiaoxia, Yuanzhi, and Liangguang remained. Without the sailors who had been casting curious glances at Xia You, their conversation became much more casual.

It was only then that Xia You learned that Yuan Zhi and his ship were about to set sail again, and what awaited them was another unknown and long treasure hunt.

Treasure hunting...

It can be said that treasure hunting is Genji's greatest hobby in his spare time from his job as one of the Four Heavenly Kings. In fact, every time he returns to shore, it is to prepare for the next voyage!

This is a man who was born entirely for the sea!

The visit to the ship proceeded in a friendly atmosphere, but both Yuanzhi and Xiayou had their own matters to attend to, so they couldn't stay long.

After staying for just over half an hour, Xia You got up to say goodbye.

It's worth mentioning that during their casual chat, Genji treated the two to his specially made hot Moo Moo milk.

There's only one word to describe it—sweet!

It's so sweet!

After tasting it, Xia You felt that Yuan Zhi had added at least five large spoonfuls of white sugar, far exceeding the normal range!

But as sweet as it is, it's actually quite delicious when you taste it closely, with a rich milky flavor.

At least Xia, who was standing next to me, seemed to really like the taste.

Only children would like this flavor...

He shook his head helplessly, then gritted his teeth and tilted his head back to drink the entire cup of Moo Moo Milk. Just as he put the cup down, he saw a satisfied look on Genji's face, and Ryomitsu with a forced smile on his face beside him.

Sigh, it seems being the top disciple isn't so easy after all...

……

Standing on the dock, Xia You and Xiao Xia waved to the sailboat that had set sail and watched it leave the port.

For them, meeting Genji was just a small episode in their journey.

What difference does it make whether I know this one of the Four Heavenly Kings or not?

The world is so big, the ocean is so vast, and unlike Ash, I don't have the destiny of being a protagonist. It's safe to say that if I don't schedule a challenge, I'll probably have to search for a needle in a haystack to meet him again.