2V2

"Hmph! Just what I wanted. Fan Longsuo, let's head over too." Gu You's face was full of smug satisfaction as he spoke to the burly, dark-skinned boy beside him.

Fan Longsuo was Gu You's best friend in high school, much like Jiang Cheng and Xiao Ran. However, the two pairs had never gotten along, so they had little contact. Who would have thought graduation would bring out Gu You's jealousy and send him constantly looking for trouble with them? Fan Longsuo, who had not gotten into Nancheng University, had clearly been dragged here by Gu You.

Fan Longsuo had gotten into Chen Guang Pokémon University. Although it was less famous than Nancheng University, it was still one of Nancheng's four major universities, with reliable teaching standards and decent starter Pokémon assigned to its freshmen. Bellsprout's Base Stats might not match those of the starter Pokémon, but in certain respects, it was no weaker at all. Clearly, Gu You had dared to bring Fan Longsuo to challenge Xiao Ran and Ye Ling because he was counting on the Grass-type advantage.

"Tch, where did those two get the confidence to challenge them?" Jiang Cheng said, looking delighted at their impending misfortune. Although he kept clamoring about beating Xiao Ran while he still could, that was mostly talk based on his current type advantage, and even then, he had little confidence in winning. Yet these two actually dared to challenge both of them at once.

"Who can stop someone determined to get themselves killed? Better to beat them into submission in one go and save us the trouble!" Shen Yue said irritably. People who spoiled the fun like this had put her in a thoroughly foul mood.

"Speaking of which, just how strong are those two?" Lin Binbin asked curiously as he listened. Jiang Cheng's Magnemite had already seemed quite impressive that morning, yet both Jiang Cheng and the even stronger Shen Yue spoke of those two this way.

"How strong? Hmm... even if your Beautifly hatched, it probably wouldn't be enough to do anything but hand them another easy win," Jiang Cheng said exaggeratedly, without the slightest embarrassment over not really knowing himself. Still, he was not wrong. If Sneasel took the field, it could probably sweep everyone present.

"Ah..." Their homeroom teacher sighed helplessly beside them. He would much rather see his students get along and improve together, but conflict was truly difficult to avoid.

"Then I'll referee. Anyone else who wants to battle can arrange a match and take turns afterward." He had no way to prevent conflicts between his students, but he could guarantee absolute fairness.

"We'll follow our plan. I'll have Natu create an opening for you. With Bellsprout's high Attack and type advantage, we should win easily as long as we land a hit." After walking onto the field, Gu You spoke to Fan Longsuo beside him. It was clear that facing two starter Pokémon at once still left him somewhat uncertain.

"Let's hope so!" Fan Longsuo replied. Now that he was on the field, it was too late to back out.

"Natu, use Leer!" The instant the battle began, Gu You rushed to seize the initiative.

Still hasn't learned his lesson! Xiao Ran thought. Leer had done little in the earlier battle against Jiang Cheng, yet Gu You was opening with it again. It was a textbook example of not using his brain.

"Quick Attack, then Lick," Lingling called softly.

Hearing its Pokémon Trainer's command, Froakie immediately became a streak of Bai light and charged toward Natu.

"Bellsprout, use Vine Whip! Stop it!" Fan Longsuo clearly understood his role and immediately gave Bellsprout its orders.

"Popplio, Growl!" Xiao Ran said little, simply having Popplio let out a cry. This move could draw an opponent's attention. In the games, it lowered the opponent's Attack, but in reality, it mainly reduced the enemy's willingness to attack. Especially now that Popplio had mastered Disarming Voice, its voice had become even more pleasing, making it all the more captivating to its opponents.

"Awoo..."

Sure enough, the sudden cry sent Bellsprout's otherwise sharp Vine Whip astray. It was only for an instant, but that was enough to affect the entire battle. Quick Attack's speed was not something easily caught up to. By the time Bellsprout recovered and prepared to swing its vines again in pursuit, Froakie had already slammed into Natu.

"Natu!" Gu You shouted. He felt helpless now, with no choice but to hope Natu could hold on by itself. But the dark energy that rose around Froakie next plunged him into despair.

Lick was a Ghost-type move with a powerful advantage against Psychic-types. An illusory tongue formed from ghostly energy extended from Froakie's mouth and licked across Natu's entire body. Natu immediately collapsed as though all life had left it. Quick Attack followed by Lick was enough to defeat this Psychic-type Pokémon with its low base stats.

"Whoa... so strong!" Lin Binbin exclaimed. Unlike Jiang Cheng's battle that morning, Ye Ling and Xiao Ran's teamwork this time was flawless: a clean, decisive Quick Attack followed by Lick, and a perfectly timed Growl to interfere. In a single exchange, Natu had been defeated. To rookies who had only become trainers a week ago, that level of strength was truly frightening.

Never mind the ordinary classmates—even Shen Yue's gaze grew serious. Although she had won her previous match against Ye Ling, seeing her fight today left Shen Yue uncertain for a moment. Froakie's speed and mastery of its moves were both far beyond what they had been before.

"Are they on drugs? No, that doesn't make sense either. How could I lose to them if they were on drugs?" Jiang Cheng watched Froakie, his face full of disbelief. At that speed, even if it started thirty meters away from Magnemite, Magnemite still would not be able to dodge.

"So your hopes of winning even once are gone. I, on the other hand, have at least won once, and I might still get another chance later." Having put her mind at ease, Shen Yue mercilessly rubbed it in.

Jiang Cheng...

"Froakie, keep going with Quick Attack and Pound!"

"Wait! I surrender!"

Ye Ling had intended to send Froakie charging in again, but Fan Longsuo had already called out his surrender.

"Fan Longsuo!" Hearing his words, Gu You immediately glared at him.

"It's no use. Forget Popplio—my Bellsprout can't even handle this Froakie. It's too fast, and once it gets close, Bellsprout could suffer injuries it might never recover from. There's no point letting our Pokémon get hurt in a battle we're certain to lose." Fan Longsuo shook his head helplessly.

He had indeed raised his Bellsprout quite well, but there was still a gap between it and the opposing Froakie. With that speed, Froakie could easily dodge Bellsprout's Vine Whip when it did not need to pursue a fixed target. Once it closed in, whether it used Lick or Pound, Bellsprout's poor Defense and Special Defense meant it would fall quickly. The type advantage would hardly help.

"How do you know we'll lose if you don't even try?" Gu You roared, unwilling to accept it.

"Stop fooling yourself. There's no chance, and I'm not going to risk Bellsprout's life. Natu, on the other hand, needs proper treatment." Faced with Gu You's furious shouting, Fan Longsuo found himself at a loss for words, as though he were meeting his best friend for the first time. If Gu You had worked to improve his own strength instead of envying other people's achievements, perhaps things would not have become such an embarrassing mess.

"Hmph! I don't need you lecturing me. A bunch of useless trash. Come back!" With that, Gu You recalled Natu into its Poké Ball and turned to leave, his face dark.

"Ah..." An indescribable disappointment welled up in Fan Longsuo's heart.

Now that the battles had begun, they would not stop so easily. After Fan Longsuo conceded and left, two more classmates stepped up to battle. Of course, this was only a friendly spar, so Xiao Ran and Ye Ling did not seize a quick victory as they had in the previous match. Instead, they used the battle to hone their Pokémon's mastery of their moves.

"Popplio, dodge with Water Balloon, then use Water Gun behind you at five o'clock!" Xiao Ran issued his commands rapidly.

While still in midair, Popplio quickly created a water balloon and leaped to the side, evading Spearow's decisive strike. Then it turned and used Water Gun in the direction Xiao Ran had indicated. Sure enough, a Pidgey flew straight into the stream and took a direct hit.

Spearow and Pidgey were their opponents in this battle. They might not have been as strong as Fan Longsuo's Pokémon, but with Xiao Ran and Ye Ling in no hurry to win, the match turned out to be much more exciting.

"Use Bubble and knock them both down!" Ye Ling was not idle either. Froakie blew out bubble after bubble, sending them hurtling toward the two birds.

After a week of training, Froakie could already use Bubble proficiently, but hitting birds with the move was still quite difficult. Sure enough, the entire string of bubbles missed, without a single one landing.

Even so, the barrage caused considerable interference for Pidgey and Spearow, and Popplio naturally would not let that opportunity slip away. Disarming Voice rang out. Infused with Fairy-type energy, the enchanting, melodious sound dealt a considerable mental shock to both Pokémon, sending the two birds plummeting toward the ground.

"Pidgey!" "Spearow!"

Their Pokémon Trainers cried out in alarm. Losing the ability to fly undoubtedly stripped Flying-type Pokémon of all their advantages, serving them up to their opponents on a platter.

Sure enough, Froakie would not let such an opportunity pass. At Ye Ling's command, it charged forward and released another string of bubbles. To practice its proficiency with Bubble, Ye Ling only allowed it to use that move. But if the entire attack struck the bird Pokémon while they lay helpless on the ground, it could very well cause injuries they would never recover from...

"Popplio, give them a Life Dew." With the battle over, the two classmates looked at their Pokémon with heartache written all over their faces. Seeing this, Xiao Ran did not hold back and had Popplio give each Pokémon a drop of Life Dew, enough to quickly restore their vitality.