"That's going way too far!"
Watching Ma Zhiji's conduct, Joy Xue, as a medical professional, was so angry that her teeth were practically grinding together.
She looked like she wanted to jump onto the battlefield herself.
Turning to Red, she said,
"Gym Leader Red, I know the chances are slim, but you have to beat that jerk!"
With that, she gritted her teeth and actually took out a peak Elite-level Venusaur Fruit along with a small pouch containing a shed scale from Latias, handing them to Red.
Before Red could say anything, Ninetales, who was standing beside him, saw the Elite-level Venusaur Fruit.
Her eyes sparkled.
Drool almost began dripping from the corner of her mouth.
"Master!"
"I want that one!"
"And that dragon scale too! I really like the Psychic energy inside it!"
Red rubbed her fox ears helplessly.
"You little glutton."
Still, faced with a gift from the wealthy Joy Xue, he grinned.
"Then I'll gladly accept."
The moment the Venusaur Fruit was in her paws, Ninetales opened her mouth, revealing a pair of tiny canine teeth, and swallowed the fruit whole without the slightest hesitation.
Afterward, she happily patted her stomach.
Meanwhile, Red looked thoughtfully at the Latias scale in his hand.
"Although it's only a naturally shed scale..."
"...it still contains a considerable amount of pure Psychic energy."
"I'll string it together with the one you gave me last time and make it into a necklace for Ninetales."
"Once all the Psychic energy has been absorbed..."
"...what remains will be pure Dragon-type energy."
Then, thinking about the Dragon Den that would soon be his, Red couldn't help considering another matter.
"Maybe..."
"It's about time I raised a Dragon-type Pokémon."
"If nothing unexpected happens, Ninetales' child should hatch in Celebi Forest."
"It's time to start training my second generation of Pokémon."
Looking at Ninetales' thoroughly satisfied expression, Red suddenly wore a strange look.
"It's kind of odd to think about..."
"But technically..."
"...you're a married woman now."
"Hmm?"
"A married woman... I guess so."
Ninetales tilted her head before suddenly remembering the setting she'd almost forgotten.
Then she smiled brightly.
"But I still like Master the most!"
As though recalling something, crimson flames suddenly enveloped her body.
An instant later...
Her appearance transformed completely.
The adorable white-haired, red-eyed fox girl disappeared.
In her place stood an enchanting beauty dressed in flowing crimson robes, her figure voluptuous and every bit the image of the legendary Daji.
She smiled seductively.
"Master~"
"Do you like this version better?"
Red's expression remained perfectly calm.
"No."
"I prefer how you normally look."
Ninetales giggled and immediately returned to her usual appearance.
"Hehe~"
"Whatever kind of appearance Master likes..."
"I have one for it!"
"No matter what you look like..."
"You'll always be my Pokémon."
For one of the few times in her life...
Ninetales simply stood there, frozen for several seconds.
At that moment, the announcer's voice echoed across the arena.
"Next, please welcome Gym Leader Red from Songzao Gym!"
Red gently rubbed Ninetales' soft ears one last time, clearly reluctant to stop.
"I'm heading into battle."
"Master!"
"I want to fight too!"
Red looked at her.
"What about your condition?"
"I'm fine!"
"That Venusaur Fruit wasn't for nothing!"
Red checked her status.
Level: 50 (Originally 65)
Potential: High (Originally Top-Tier)
Ability: Drought
Special Ability: Initial mastery over Moltres's Sacred Flame.
Evaluation: A Ninetales whose vitality has been severely depleted. However, her Psychic power is exceptionally strong, and she possesses remarkable talent for transformation. Recently, she has been researching whether humans and Pokémon can produce offspring.
After confirming that her condition was indeed stable, Red nodded.
"Then I'll leave this battle to you."
"Leave it to me!"
Ninetales leapt into her Poké Ball.
Red raised it.
"Go, Ninetales!"
His opponent this round was a Water-type Gym Leader.
Originally, the man had already resigned himself to defeat.
Although Red's Pokémon were lower in level than most Gym Leaders', their combat ability far exceeded ordinary Pokémon of the same rank.
But...
When he saw Red send out what appeared to be an utterly ordinary Ninetales...
His eyes suddenly lit up.
"Maybe..."
"I actually have a chance."
His confidence wasn't without reason.
Even a three-year-old child knew...
Water beat Fire.
Without hesitation, he released his ace.
A towering, muscular Level 49 Poliwrath appeared on the battlefield.
"Poliwrath!"
"Hydro Pump!"
The torrent blasted toward Ninetales.
Then...
It passed straight through her body.
Both Poliwrath and its Trainer froze.
"An... illusion?!"
Red casually snapped his fingers.
A tiny spark suddenly appeared in front of Poliwrath.
The little flame fluttered like a tiny bird before gently landing on its body.
The next second...
Towering flames erupted into the sky, instantly engulfing Poliwrath.
Startled, the Water-type Gym Leader hurriedly shouted,
"Poliwrath!"
"Use Hydro Pump to extinguish the flames!"
Poliwrath obeyed immediately.
A tremendous jet of water burst into the sky before raining back down over its body again and again.
Just as Poliwrath thought it had succeeded...
The referee, Agatha, and everyone nearest the battlefield gradually realized something was wrong.
"Why..."
"Why won't the fire go out?!"
The flames continued burning fiercely...
Using even water itself as fuel.
The poor Water-type Gym Leader felt his scalp go numb.
"A monster..."
"This is an absolute monster!"
"Is Red really just an ordinary Gym Leader like the rest of us?!"
Watching Poliwrath rolling around in agony within the blazing inferno, the Gym Leader was about to plead for mercy—
But Red calmly spoke first.
"That's enough, Ninetales."
"Call the flames back."
Ninetales let out a melodious cry.
As though alive, every flame left Poliwrath's body.
They gathered together in midair into a tiny cluster before flying back into the flame-shaped mark on Ninetales' forehead.
Red looked toward his opponent.
"Go ahead."
"Send out your next Pokémon."
...
Faced with Ninetales' terrifying illusions...
Combined with the inextinguishable flames of Moltres...
She effortlessly swept through all three of her opponent's Pokémon.
Victory.
"Master! Master! You're the best!"
"Master really is invincible!"
Looking toward his three cheering disciples in the distance, Red smiled helplessly.
Ninetales transformed back into her human form and proudly looked at him.
"So, Master?"
"Pretty strong, aren't I?"
Red gently patted her head.
"You are."
"Very strong."
However, after the battle, Ninetales was completely exhausted.
She immediately crawled back into her Poké Ball and fell fast asleep.
After that match...
Both Red and Ma Zhiji advanced to the semifinals.
As for the remaining battles...
There was little suspense.
Both of them easily defeated their final opponents and advanced to the championship match together.
After the day's matches concluded...
Inside the competitors' area...
Rather than glaring at Red, Ma Zhiji approached with the smile of an old acquaintance.
He even patted Red on the shoulder.
"Isn't this Gym Leader Red?"
"It's been a long time."
Red smiled back just as pleasantly.
"Oh?"
"Isn't this... that Gym Leader I beat before?"
"Sorry, sorry."
"I honestly can't remember the names of all the Trainers I've defeated."
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