"When you've spent some real time around him, you'll get it~"
The little Riolu wagged a finger at Mewtwo a few times.
Some things had to be experienced firsthand.
Since Mewtwo was curious about Grey, it should just find time to interact with him—chat a bit, have a spar, anything.
"I seriously don't get you. Is that human really so worth following?"
Mewtwo's frown never eased.
Grey wasn't that strong—so why were so many Pokémon willing to follow him?
Especially Mew. Was it really just sticking with a Trainer like that for food?
"Mew~" (I told you already—go spend time with Grey yourself and you'll know. Some things can't be explained with words. Standing here yapping just makes you more annoyed.)
While Machoke and Heracross went to grab more barbecue, the little Riolu hid away and chatted with Mewtwo for a bit.
"Mew." (Besides, aren't you following that guy too? The leader of… what was it… that fire organization…)
The little Riolu scratched its head, pretending it couldn't remember, making a few circles above its head with its hand.
"Team Rocket," Mewtwo reminded flatly.
"Mew~" (Right, right, Team Rocket. Aren't you staying with Team Rocket's boss? I've never accused you of doing all kinds of awful stuff, but you turn around and accuse me of eating and drinking all day and hanging out with sketchy people. Tell me—are you jealous of me!)
The little Riolu's words came out like a machine gun, leaving Mewtwo completely speechless.
It was true. It was staying with Team Rocket's boss too.
Even if it was "cooperation," it was still living alongside a human.
"Forget it. We won't talk about that. When I get my new power, I'll make you see who the strongest close-combat Pokémon really is!"
Right now, Mewtwo sounded like a kid picking a fight—half-revealing things on purpose to bait Mew's attention.
"Mew~" (We'll talk about that later. Hurry up and grill! This place has a time limit—if we don't grill now, we're losing money!)
Seeing Mewtwo only wanted to talk tough, the little Riolu hurriedly motioned for it to grill together.
"Boring. It's just greasy human food."
Mewtwo analyzed the barbecue ingredients at a glance.
All it was: grill meat, brush on sauce, wrap it in greens.
It dragged it here for this?
Mewtwo had no appetite, so it simply sat across from the little Riolu and watched it eat.
"Mew…" (What do I do… if Mewtwo doesn't grill, that's one less portion for me… Oh—right! I can do it this way!)
Mewtwo was still sitting there with folded arms and a cold snort when the little Riolu, grilling meat, suddenly lit up with an idea.
"Mew-mew!" (Alright, buddy—how about this! Let's have a match! Just do what I do!)
As it spoke, the little Riolu used psychic power to lift two sets of tongs, handing one to Mewtwo while it clamped a piece of raw meat and placed it onto the grill.
"What are you trying to compete in?"
The moment Mewtwo heard it could "compete" with Mew, its fighting spirit surged.
Forget everything else—if it could spar with Mew in any way, Mewtwo was willing to do it.
Seeing Mewtwo take the bait, Mew fought back a laugh and spoke in a serious tone.
"Mew~" (Alright then—let's compete to see who can grill the most meat, and the tastiest meat, within the time limit! The loser has to handle the grilling after that~)
That was Mew's trap.
If it was going to be a contest, the reward obviously had to benefit it.
And it just happened to be short one dedicated grill chef.
If Mewtwo lost to it…
Then it would never be lacking a grill chef again~
"Fine! When it comes to grilling, there's no way I'll lose to you!"
Mewtwo didn't even know how many times it had said that exact line.
Every time, it said it confidently—every time, Mew beat it anyway.
Of course, they didn't actually meet that often.
"Mew~" (Then I declare the match officially begins~)
"I'm not going to lose!"
In a blink, time reached 1:00 p.m.
Their competition was absurdly intense.
Even at this point, it still hadn't ended.
And over on Grey's side, a fierce battle was about to begin.
…
…
Saffron City, the Fighting Dojo.
After a short rest, Grey got up. When he walked out of the bedroom, he found Lt. Surge sprawled on the couch, scrolling on his phone.
The moment he saw Grey come out, Lt. Surge sprang up impatiently.
"Gym Leader Grey, you're finally awake!"
The Electric-type Gym Leader bounced like a spring, the metal chains on his army-green tank top clattering loudly. "Let's fight right here! My boys can't wait to see Zapdos!"
"What's the rush? You've gotta beat two of my partners before you even get to see my ace, you know~"
Seeing how crazed Lt. Surge looked, Grey couldn't help covering his face.
Way too impatient.
But it did fit that Electric-type label—fast and fierce.
Pretty much exactly what everyone imagined when they pictured an Electric-type trainer.
"Hurry it up! Why are you talking so much? I know that! Just send out your Pokémon already!"
Lt. Surge paced back and forth like an overcharged Electabuzz. After the seventh lap, he stopped in the middle and pointed at Grey. "Let's start with some appetizers—warm up first!"
"Yeah, yeah, I know. Why so impatient?"
Grey lazily opened the livestream app. "Gotta let the viewers get in position first~"
[Oh? Streamer's battling Lt. Surge again?]
[But this is the first time we're seeing the streamer fight Lt. Surge.]
[Is Lt. Surge using the Gym's Pokémon, or his actual main team? Those aren't the same difficulty at all.]
[Lt. Surge better not tell the streamer he'll only use the Gym's roster, then bring a full main squad.]
[That'd be so nasty!]
Of course, the chat was mostly just teasing.
Most trainers in Kanto knew what Lt. Surge was like.
When it mattered, he really showed up.
At worst, his mouth was just a bit vicious—otherwise, nothing to complain about.
"Lt. Surge, how about we both send out Pokémon at the same time?" Grey said, tapping the Poké Ball button with a fingertip. The mini-sized Poké Ball instantly expanded, landing securely in his palm.
"Exactly what I wanted!"
Lt. Surge grinned wide, his thick finger already pressing down on his own Poké Ball.
"Now beginning: Gym Leader Grey versus Gym Leader Lt. Surge. Each side may use three Pokémon. When one side's Pokémon are all unable to battle, that side loses."
After announcing the rules, Silver raised both arms, then slammed the flag down hard!
"I choose you!"
//Check out my P@tre0n for 20 extra chapters on all my fanfics //[email protected]/Razeil0810.