Kuroda

"Whoa, Bai Shi! You actually beat Oniki!"

Ishimaru's eyes went wide. "I can't believe it!" he shouted.

He had just gotten off work when he heard that Bai Shi had defeated Oniki.

He had rushed straight over.

Ishimaru still remembered Bai Shi telling him, only a few days ago, that he needed time to train his newly caught Pokémon before battling anyone.

Back then, Ishimaru had naively assumed "time" meant months.

Yet less than a week later, word had spread that Bai Shi had beaten Oniki.

If Bai Shi had a whole month to train his Pokémon,

wouldn't he be ready to challenge a Gym?

"I only won by a little."

Bai Shi was fairly calm about it, showing no great excitement.

The other orphans he had grown up with weren't like students at Pokémon School. They had never been systematically taught how to raise Pokémon. They had learned as they went,

and could only figure things out for themselves while training.

More importantly, money was tight. Even after getting a Pokémon, they had to work and train whenever they could spare the time.

Bai Shi hadn't attended Pokémon School either.

But at least he could draw on training methods from the anime and fan fiction he knew.

He had also started saving money months in advance so he could train his Pokémon.

For now, he didn't have to worry about work and could devote himself entirely to training.

Naturally, he was getting much better results than they were.

So Bai Shi didn't consider beating Oniki a particularly great achievement.

Unfortunately, his friend Ishimaru saw it differently.

In Ishimaru's eyes, Bai Shi had mastered his craft and could sweep through everyone their age from the orphanage.

"Since you took down Oniki, Kuroda should be easy too, right?"

"Want me to arrange a battle with him?"

Ishimaru's eyes shone as he made the suggestion.

As far as he was concerned, Bai Shi's victory over Kuroda was a sure thing.

"Hmm... I suppose that works."

Bai Shi rested his chin on his hand. After a moment's thought, he accepted Ishimaru's suggestion.

Kuroda had gotten his Pokémon even earlier than Oniki had.

His Pokémon was probably stronger, too.

Honestly, Bai Shi wasn't all that confident he could beat him.

But Starly had been getting a little too full of himself lately.

Even if they lost to Kuroda, that might not be a bad thing.

It would be just the thing to bring Starly back down to earth.

Starly needed to learn that there was always someone stronger.

"Great. I'll go find him now and set a time for the battle."

"When the time comes, teach Kuroda a lesson for me. Maybe then he'll stop lecturing us."

With that, Ishimaru hurried off toward Kuroda's house.

He could already picture Kuroda looking utterly crushed after his defeat.

"Forget it. I'll leave him to it and check in first."

Bai Shi shook his head and turned his attention to the system.

Congratulations, Trainer! You received a large bag of Pokémon Food!

After the check-in, a large red plastic bag appeared out of nowhere in front of Bai Shi.

He looked inside and found nearly ten packs of Pokémon Food.

That was enough to feed Starly for a week.

"Nice. That's more money saved."

Bai Shi put away the big bag of Pokémon Food, grinning from ear to ear.

The next day.

After Ishimaru contacted him, Kuroda readily agreed to battle Bai Shi.

The three gathered at the same open ground where Bai Shi had battled Oniki. The fight was about to begin.

"Bai Shi, don't think beating Oniki means you can measure up to me."

"Before we start, you should ask me how a real battle works!"

Kuroda adjusted his glasses and fixed Bai Shi with a pompous stare.

Of everyone their age,

Kuroda had been the first to get a Pokémon. He didn't believe Bai Shi, who had only just gotten his, could be a match for him.

How could the likes of Oniki compare to a genius like him?

The Zigzagoon he had raised with such care would teach Bai Shi that harsh lesson.

"Enough talk. Let's start!"

Bai Shi paid little attention to him and urged him to send out his Pokémon.

He was here to battle, not listen to another lecture.

In this world, Pokémon didn't have clearly defined levels.

The only way to know which was stronger was to fight.

"If you're that eager to taste defeat,"

"then I'll oblige you!"

"Come out, Zigzagoon!"

Kuroda threw a Poké Ball, sending a brown, raccoon-like Pokémon onto the field.

"Starly, get ready to fight!"

Bai Shi sent out Starly right after him.

"Starly!" (Ha! Time for me to shine again!)

Starly spread his wings as he appeared and let out an excited chirp.

"So that's Bai Shi's Pokémon? He looks so cool!"

Ishimaru, acting as referee, couldn't help exclaiming in admiration.

A powerful desire to get a Pokémon stirred within him.

He wanted to catch one and battle other people, just like Bai Shi.

"Then I declare this one-on-one battle between Bai Shi and Kuroda officially underway!"

Envious as he was, Ishimaru hadn't forgotten his job.

Once he confirmed that both Pokémon were in position, he called out at once.

"Starly!" (Take this...)

Starly was raring to give his opponent a rough start.

But one glare from Bai Shi stopped him just as he was about to charge.

He had clearly remembered yesterday's lesson.

So Starly decided to wait for Bai Shi's instructions before making his next move.

Looks like he did take my words to heart.

Bai Shi breathed a sigh of relief when Starly didn't act on his own.

Starly knew only two moves at the moment.

Bai Shi had to make sure each one counted.

He couldn't let Starly use them blindly to attack, as he had in yesterday's battle.

"Zigzagoon, use Swift!"

When Bai Shi made no move, Kuroda attacked first.

Zigzagoon opened its mouth and fired a barrage of yellow, star-shaped rays at Starly in the air.

"Starly, dodge, then circle around it!"

At Bai Shi's command, Starly beat his wings and deftly dodged Zigzagoon's attack.

Then he began flying around Zigzagoon,

looking for the right moment to strike.

"Not bad speed! But what about this?"

"Zigzagoon, use Tail Whip!"

Kuroda's expression didn't change as he gave Zigzagoon a new command.

Zigzagoon turned its rear toward Starly and wagged its tail,

taunting him from below.

"Starly!" (How dare you!)

Starly felt deeply insulted by the sight.

Forgetting Bai Shi's instructions, he used Tackle and flew straight at Zigzagoon.

Oh no!

Bai Shi's heart sank. He had a bad feeling about this.

"Just as I thought. He took the bait!"

"Zigzagoon, use Sand Rush!"

Kuroda seized the opening and immediately shouted to Zigzagoon.

Zigzagoon swept its forelegs across the ground, flinging a spray of sand at Starly as he flew right into its path.

The sand struck Starly square in the eyes.

Unable to see, he stopped his attack and floundered in panic.

"Now's our chance! Zigzagoon, use Headbutt!"

Kuroda pressed his advantage, ordering Zigzagoon to keep attacking.

Putting all its strength into the blow, Zigzagoon rammed its head into Starly's belly.

"Starly!" (Ow! That hurts!!)

Starly's eyes bulged from the impact, and he fell out of the sky.

He landed on the ground and covered his belly with his wings, trembling. He was clearly badly hurt.

"Finish it, Zigzagoon! Use Swift!"

Kuroda showed no mercy, ordering Zigzagoon to deliver the finishing blow.

Before Starly could recover, Zigzagoon's Swift struck him.

Boom!

An explosion kicked up a thick cloud of smoke that engulfed Starly.

"The battle's over!"

Kuroda adjusted his glasses and gave Bai Shi a confident smile.