Birds of a feather flock together

Riolu froze in place, fine beads of cold sweat gradually forming at its temples.

It had put no less than its full strength into that punch. Given Eevee's strength, dodging it should have been impossible.

Yet its opponent had reacted so quickly that even its eyes could not keep up.

Aura could not lie to it.

This Eevee clearly had little combat ability. Even the punch it had thrown earlier had been feeble.

Then why did it have such terrifying reflexes?

And...

That heartbeat that's been pounding nonstop this whole time has an indescribably oppressive feel to it, too. Has it affected even me without my noticing?

This Eevee definitely isn't as simple as I thought!

Standing behind Riolu, Cynthia noticed its pause, and an elegant smile curved her lips.

Has the little one started imagining strange things again?

She had looked after it for a while, so she had a fairly good understanding of how it thought.

Although it was less than a year old, its extraordinary talent was already apparent. It could even be called a born Aura user.

But perhaps growing up around her main team had caused it to misjudge its own strength. It always felt that it was not strong enough.

Its overly cautious nature made it especially difficult to deal with.

So much so that even some outstanding Trainers from Sinnoh had been unable to win it over.

Still, Qingyu and Eevee seemed to have made a deep impression on it. They were not far from successfully catching it now.

Come to think of it, Eevee and Riolu...

Their lineup is a little like mine.

Cynthia smiled and continued watching the situation on the battlefield unfold.

After narrowly avoiding Riolu's attack with a sliding tackle, Eevee felt its heart leap into its throat.

So scary!

If that punch had landed, it would have really hurt!

This opponent is on a completely different level from Pawmi. How am I supposed to win...?

Eevee raised its head and watched Riolu, who had suddenly frozen in place, with a complicated look in its eyes. Its entire attention was focused on guarding against Riolu's next move.

The more it thought about it, the more nervous it became.

Its heartbeat picked up along with it, pounding like a marching drum.

Thump, thump-thump!

Feeling the tremendous pressure emanating from Eevee, Riolu was just as tense and wary.

It was utterly baffled.

My attacks clearly can't keep up with Eevee's reflexes, so why hasn't it charged in without a care?

There must be something I haven't figured out yet...

With every tick of the second hand on the gym's wall clock, Riolu felt the pressure grow.

But at the same time, it drew another step closer to the real answer.

Seeing Eevee and Riolu enter a standoff, Qingyu clicked his tongue helplessly.

It doesn't look like we have any good ways to attack, either.

Our only attacking move can't hit, and carelessly using Confuse Ray would probably get seen through completely.

How am I supposed to win this?!

Do I have to pin my hopes on Snarl, even though Eevee hasn't mastered it yet?

But wouldn't it be awkward if that failed...?

Qingyu sighed without thinking.

Deep in thought, Riolu immediately noticed the change in the opposing Trainer's expression.

Its brow furrowed even further.

We clearly dodged my counterattack, so why does its Trainer look a little disappointed?

Does he think I'm too weak, so he's deliberately going easy on me?

The more Riolu thought about it, the more likely it seemed.

Eevee's reflexes and attack speed had been on completely different levels. Clearly, it had held back a great deal when attacking.

I see. Is it afraid I won't be able to take it if it goes all out?

Just like Boss's Lucario...

Riolu felt it had vaguely grasped the truth, but that truth was so crushing that it dealt it quite a blow.

The Trainers who had previously tried to catch it had all been so weak that it had nearly fallen under the illusion of, Could I actually be strong?

Fortunately, it had not let itself become so blindly confident.

Now it looks like my talent really is too poor...

Even going all out, I can only force Boss's Garchomp back a single step.

If this human who earned Boss's approval is a truly powerful Trainer, it's only natural that he would be disappointed in me.

So...

It isn't my opponent being tested, but me?

Riolu gradually understood everything, and its gaze grew clear.

Boss was right. This Trainer really is a good fit for me. Even though he's already disappointed in me, he still hasn't stopped the battle.

He's an excellent Trainer with plenty of patience.

In that case, I should seize this rare opportunity.

"Ri!"

Riolu spread its arms, shifting from a defensive stance into an opening attack stance.

Then it threw a punch.

In an instant, its body became a blur as it charged fiercely toward Eevee.

"Eevee, Snarl!"

Seeing Riolu suddenly launch an attack, Qingyu had no time to think and instinctively gave the command.

Already on high alert, Eevee reacted immediately.

It had not actually mastered the proper way to use Snarl yet, but right now, it could only trust its Trainer.

I can do this!

"Vee!!!"

Under the intense pressure, Eevee finally cast aside its worries, opened its mouth wide, and roared at the top of its lungs.

The piercing sound waves instantly reverberated across the battlefield, making Riolu's gaze falter as it unleashed Bullet Punch.

Snarl?

Judging by that frightening presence, that's definitely the move...

But why haven't I taken any damage? All I feel is fear.

Riolu slowly came to a halt, breaking off its attack.

My guess was right. From the very beginning, the two sides in this battle were never on equal footing.

Eevee has no desire to attack at all. It's battling entirely like a superior offering guidance to someone weaker.

Just like Lucario when it trains with me.

If it had gone all out and hit me while I was completely unguarded with a pulse attack of some other type, I would probably already be hurt, wouldn't I?

Now that it understood the truth, attacking again would be rather rude.

"Ri..."

Thank you for the lesson.

After that whirlwind of thoughts, Riolu looked at Qingyu and nodded calmly.

An excellent Trainer who gives decisive commands, yet is as gentle as water. Boss really does have a good eye.

It's just...

I wonder whether he'll think I'm good enough.

Riolu sighed inwardly in resignation. If only it had known, it would have worked a billion times harder during its usual training.

"It looks like this little one has accepted you."

Having watched both sides throughout the entire exchange, Cynthia spoke with a hint of amusement.

Unlike Nemona, who looked utterly confused on the other side, perhaps Cynthia was the only one present who could guess what had gone through both sides' minds.

Although she had thought from the start that Qingyu could earn Riolu's approval, she had never expected the process of catching it to be so...

Interesting?

This is what they mean by 'birds of a feather flock together,' isn't it?

Qingyu and Riolu really do seem like a good match.

"Huh?"

Only after Cynthia pointed it out did Qingyu realize what had happened.

As he breathed a sigh of relief, he was also a little puzzled, but he did not dwell on it.

I don't know what I did, but at least it turned out well!

My personal charm must have worked after all!

"Then here's to getting along from now on, Riolu~"

Qingyu crouched down and held out a hand, doing his best to contain his increasingly unrestrained smile.

Does this mean I've got both a cat and a dog now?

"Ri..."

At such close range, Riolu sensed the sincere emotions within Qingyu and knew that he genuinely looked forward to having it join his team.

Although it did not know why, there seemed to be a few strange black spots deep within his Aura.

Perhaps Aura only condenses like this once someone reaches a certain level of strength?

With him, maybe I can go even further.

Riolu decisively reached out its hand.

It felt as though it had grasped its future.

To live up to my Trainer's expectations, I'll have to work even harder from now on!