I caught a Pokémon

"Is the card still valid?"

Blastoise looked at its trainer in surprise after hearing this, and when it saw that Xia You didn't seem to be joking, it nodded.

"No card, no card!"

On the other side, Dunmei thought Xia You was simply outlining a battle plan, but because she was too far away, she hadn't heard what he was saying. After he finished explaining, she asked, "How is it? Can we begin?"

"Let's begin."

To Dunmei's surprise, even before the frisbee was launched, the two cannons on Blastoise's back had already begun to accumulate energy.

Ok?

Dunmei stared at Blastoise's every move with puzzlement. She knew that while accumulating water gun power now would greatly increase its strength, it would also become difficult to control and very unstable as the pressure increased!

She believed that Xia You couldn't possibly be unaware of this, given that the other party was the champion of the Quartz Conference.

So what exactly was his purpose in doing this?

Compared to her, Ada in front of the frisbee machine didn't think so much. Seeing that Xia You didn't question the competition, he thought that his goal had been achieved. He excitedly pressed the switch, as if he could already see the scene of Blastoise's water gun missing its target and failing!

However, at the very moment the frisbee was launched, two thick streams of water also shot out. But their purpose was not to predict the highest point of the frisbee's trajectory, but to fly straight towards the frisbee machine in front of Ada!

Within the massive water guns that were almost converging together, the three flying discs had barely left their positions and hadn't even had time to disperse before they were all destroyed!

The scattered water sprayed all over Ada's face, soaking his clothes that he had just changed, and even some of the frisbee fragments fell on Ada along with the water!

"oops!"

Ada dodged in a sorry state, but it was too late!

Dunmei then realized that Xia You had actually chosen this method!

Keep in mind that if the initial speed is too high, it is easy to miss the disc. The best time to shoot is when the disc slows down, is about to reach its apex, or is just falling.

Wiping the water off her face, Ada shouted, "That doesn't count! That doesn't count! Sister, he aimed at me on purpose!"

"I think you're the one doing this on purpose!"

At Xia You's signal, Gastly flashed in front of Ada and used its claws to forcefully pull the disc machine fixed to the ground and deliver it to Atsumi.

“Miss Dunmei,” Xia You said, squinting, “take a good look. I never expected Xia Gan Dojo to have such a unique feature!”

Dunmei was taken aback at first, but after taking a closer look, she instantly understood what was going on, and her expression changed drastically!

"Ada! You!!"

In front of her, the museum owner and the Quartz Conference champion, she never expected that her own younger brother would resort to such despicable means!

Although Ada may not have had any bad intentions and just wanted to play a prank, if this got out and other trainers or ordinary people found out, it would be a huge blow to the reputation of not only the Summer Gym, but also the entire Orange League!

Anger almost took over her mind. Dunmei shouted and rushed to Ada. She raised her fist and gave Ada a hard knock on the head!

"Ouch, that hurts! Sister..."

"go out!!"

"elder sister…"

I'll tell everyone!!!

Atsumi's terrifying voice echoed inside the dojo. Ada, who had never seen her sister so angry before, was so frightened that she trembled all over. Not daring to disobey her sister, she could only slink away from the dojo through the side door.

Seeing that Ada had disappeared, Dunmei let out a long breath, calmed herself down, and put on an awkward smile.

"I'm so sorry to have made you laugh. It's all my fault for being too lenient with him, which has led to his mischievous personality. However, this was not my intention, so please don't spread this around, Mr. Xia You!"

Hearing her say that, Xia You didn't pursue the matter further, but said in a slightly harsher tone, "I said before that your brother should be disciplined more, but I didn't expect him to make such a mistake on such an important occasion. I think this is not just being naughty, but a terrible incident of being completely ill-mannered!"

Dunmei's face turned from pale to red, and she nodded awkwardly, her words becoming more earnest: "You're right, please rest assured, I promise this situation will never happen again!"

Chapter 187 Wave Riding Competition

Now that things have been discussed openly, let's put the matter behind us. Xia You didn't hold a grudge and continue to pursue it.

After all, he only came to challenge the gym. If he hadn't been involved this time, it would have been completely irrelevant to how Ada would grow up or what the reputation of the Shagan Gym would be.

"It seems the second match is another draw. I wonder what Ms. Dunmei's next event will be?"

After this incident, Dunmei no longer dared to underestimate Xia You. With mixed feelings, she said, "The last match is the Wave Ridership Competition. As long as you can win, you can get the Sakura Badge of Xia Gan Dojo."

As they were talking, Dunmei put away Seadragon and led Xia You and Sabrina to a beach outside the gym.

The waves lapped at their feet as Xia You and Na Zi walked side by side, leaving two rows of footprints, one deep and one shallow, on the beach. But when they reached this point, Xia You turned around and made a new discovery.

From this angle, the shape of Xiagan Dojo is less like a warehouse and more like an overturned red Coca-Cola can!

Even its windows are shaped like the opening of a soda can!

Pointing to a buoy with a red flag in the distance, Atsumi said, "See that flag? Whoever's Pokémon reaches it first, circles the flag, and returns first will be the ultimate winner!"

Looking up, Xia You could only see a small dot swaying gently in the waves. According to his estimation, the buoy was at least six or seven hundred meters away from the shore where they were.

If you calculate it this way, the round trip is more than a thousand meters. This will undoubtedly be a great test of the Pokémon's stamina, especially for small Pokémon like Seadra, in terms of endurance and burst of power.

Dunmei was obviously aware of this as well, and since this was her own competition event, she was naturally well-prepared.

She opened the Poké Ball and released a Blastoise!

When the blue light flashed, the two Blastoises stood together. Although they looked no different from each other, as a qualified trainer, Xia You could still accurately tell which one was his Pokémon.

However, his own Blastoise had already exhausted some of its strength in the first two rounds of the competition, so Xia You simply recalled it and released another Pokémon.

"It's all up to you now, Gyarados!"

As soon as the enormous Gyarados appeared, it roared to the sky. Its terrifying power even made Dunmei's Blastoise retreat repeatedly!

Dunmei quickly calmed Blastoise down, then turned to look at Gyarados and exclaimed in surprise, "What a powerful aura! I've seen many Gyarados before, but few have such a formidable presence!"

"Really? I don't think it's any different." Xia You shrugged nonchalantly. "I usually just use it as a means of transportation across the sea."

Atsumi looked on in surprise: "Such a powerful Pokémon, and you only use it as a means of transportation? No wonder you're the champion of the Indigo League, what a waste..."

"Not at all," Xia You waved her hand modestly. "Actually, I have several Pokémon like this, but they're nothing special!"

Xia You's tone at this moment was exactly like someone praising their masterpiece to their face. Although they pretended not to care, they were actually overjoyed inside.

It has to be said that since the Indigo League, after undergoing several intense battles, Gyarados has grown rapidly and its aura has become increasingly frightening!

Fortunately, after the initial beating following its evolution, it remains very obedient and has never disobeyed any of Xia You's commands.

Atsumi shook her head and sighed, no longer dwelling on the topic. Instead, she urged her Blastoise to jump into the sea, and she followed suit, leaping onto Blastoise's back.

Seeing Xia You still standing there, she slapped her forehead and exclaimed, "Oh, I forgot to tell you, trainers also have to participate in this Wave Rider competition!"

Although Xia You had doubts about why he did this, he was not the kind of pampered or cowardly trainer. Since it was a gym rule, he didn't say anything. Instead, he grabbed Gyarados's scales and, with a graceful flip, jumped onto Gyarados's body.

He patted Gyarados on the head, and at his signal, Gyarados swam into the sea and came to the starting point with Blastoise.

On the shore, since Ada was not there, Naz temporarily acted as the starter. She picked up the starting pistol, pulled the trigger, and fired a shot into the air.

boom!

At the sound of gunfire, the two Pokémon suddenly accelerated. Despite being prepared, Xia You and Dunmei's bodies still trembled involuntarily.

The two Pokémon swam like arrows, going further and faster. However, in terms of speed and stamina, Blastoise was slightly inferior to Gyarados in every aspect, so it was already at a disadvantage when the match started!

Wave after wave of water splashed onto the two Pokémon.

At first, Dunmei wanted to use his years of competition experience and the ocean currents to let Blastoise catch up, but as Xia You just said, Gyarados, as a tool Pokémon, also has rich experience in controlling the ocean.

The seawater in front of me rushed past me.

Standing on Gyarados's back, Xia You observed for a while and then commanded, "Gyarados, move to the inside!"

Although they start side by side, on this type of circuit, taking the inside route is usually the fastest and least strenuous. Therefore, getting to the inside early and seizing the initiative becomes especially important.

Just as Gyarados was about to change course, its body suddenly jolted again.

Xia You nearly lost his footing, but luckily he reacted quickly and grabbed Gyarados's neck, preventing him from falling into the sea.

When he regained his footing and looked back, he realized that Dunmei also wanted to occupy the inner route, so Blastoise's hard shell slammed into Gyarados!

Seeing Xia You looking over, Dunmei said loudly, "I'm sorry, but this is a Pokémon competition after all, and physical contact is unavoidable! Please don't mind!"

Xia You shook her head and turned her gaze back to the distance.

Given Gyarados's size, it is naturally no match for Blastoise, and now that it is prepared, it is even more fearless.

Thus, although the two Pokémon occasionally came into contact, Xia You always took the lead and was the first to pass the buoy and begin to turn back, swimming towards the shore.

Despite its best efforts, Dumei's Blastoise was unable to catch up with Gyarados due to its lack of power, and the gap between them only widened!

One body length... two body lengths, up to three body lengths...

In the end, Gyarados, with a huge advantage, reached the finish line first, leaving Dunmi with a helpless, bitter smile!

Chapter 188 The Little Girl's Message in a Bottle

When Xia You came ashore, Na Zi greeted her with a smile, and a few seconds later, Dun Mei also reached the finish line on Blastoise, jumped down, and landed on the beach, walking up to them.

"Congratulations on winning the final victory and earning the Cherry Blossom Badge of the Summer Dojo!"

As she spoke, Dunmei took out a pink seashell from her bosom and handed it to Xia You.

Xia You looked down and saw that the seashell had obviously been carefully polished. It shone in the sunlight and looked incredibly smooth. But what was most attractive was the blue gemstone set on it, which looked like an eye!

Is this the cherry blossom badge?

After obtaining the badge, Xia You touched it and discovered that it was not actually a gemstone, but just a piece of crystal glass. The shell that served as the main body was a unique shell from the Orange Islands called the 'Cherry Blossom Shell'.

Although the materials seem to be readily available and nothing particularly special, the badge is still very well made and looks quite exquisite!

If it were a girl, she would definitely love this kind of pink stuff, right?

Sure enough, when he handed the badge to Naz, although Naz still looked expressionless, her constant playing with the badge made Xia You realize that Naz, like any normal girl, also really liked these cute little trinkets that resembled accessories.

Seeing that Xia You and Natsumi were both interested in the badges, Dunmei explained from the side: "Actually, it's not just our Xia Gan Gym; the badges of the other three gyms are also made of seashells, just in different varieties."

"I see..."

Xia You nodded, turned her gaze away from Nazi, glanced at her phone, then turned and waved to Dunmei.

"Alright, it's getting late. Now that we've achieved our goal, let's not linger any longer and take our leave."

"Wait a minute!" Seeing that the two were about to leave, Dunmei took out another exquisite little box and handed it to Xia You. "I'll also give you this badge collection box as an apology for what happened earlier!"

Upon seeing the box, Xia You realized that besides the Quartz League's collection box, she didn't have any other containers to hold badges.

"Ah, then I won't stand on ceremony."

After thanking her, Xia You put away the collection box and waved her hand, summoning the fire-breathing dragon that had been sunbathing on the warehouse roof.

The Charizard flew down from the warehouse, crouched low, and hoisted Xia You and Sabrina onto its back.

Once they were settled, it immediately spread its wings and took flight, carrying Xia You and Na Zi away from Xia Gan Island. Under Dun Mei's watchful gaze, it headed towards the other islands of the Orange Alliance.

...

Heading east, Charizard crossed the sea and flew over Citrus Island, but did not stop. Instead, before the sun set, it continued to the next gym island.

It wasn't until they flew over Ponkan Island and saw that it was getting late that Xia You prepared to land and rest.

Just like before, Charizard landed on the beach without attracting anyone's attention.

At dusk, on the beach, they saw a little girl, about five or six years old, with pigtails, throwing several glass bottles into the sea one by one.

Perhaps startled by the fire-breathing dragon that suddenly appeared from the sky, the girl cried out "Ouch!" and took a step back. She then threw all the bottles in her arms into the sea and ran away without looking back.

Their flustered appearance made it seem as if Xia You and the others had stumbled upon some secret.

When Sabrina released her hand from Xia You's waist and got off the Charizard, she looked at the girl's disappearing figure and tilted her head in confusion: "What's she doing so mysteriously?"

"I don't know." Xia You shrugged, her curiosity piqued. "But if we pick up a bottle and open it, everything will be clear."

As he spoke, he walked a few steps into the sea, waded through the water with his shoes, picked up a glass bottle that had not yet drifted away, and returned to the shore.

The afterglow of the setting sun shone on the bottle, reflecting beautiful orange rays.

When Naz came closer, she discovered that there was a rolled-up letter in the bottle—it was a message in a bottle!

Naza asked in surprise, "This isn't a deserted island, and people can communicate with just a phone call. How come there are still people so primitive as to use message bottles to send messages?"

Shaking her head, Xia You smiled and said, "I guess it's just that little girl's wishful thinking. She's doing this in the hope that the sea or the person who gave her the message in the bottle will help her realize her wish."