Satoshi hadn't expected to suddenly be hugged—especially not by a girl who looked at him with the familiarity of an old acquaintance.
Honestly, compared to things like this, what he wanted far more was to battle. With something like Armarouge standing right in front of him, how could he possibly hold back that urge?
I'm the man who's going to become a Pokémon Master. Women and stuff just get in the way!
[Satodear, don't say it like that! This girl probably had something with you in the past. My advice: give her a kiss. Ehehe~]
Furiko paid no mind to Satoshi's predicament, while both of them suddenly noticed Anon approaching from not far away.
She's losing it, huh!
Satoshi felt a headache coming on as he tried to recall the past—but no matter how hard he tried, nothing came back.
And right now, MYGO was already slipping to second and third place. If he got tangled in some drawn-out childhood-friend drama here, wouldn't that drag them down even further?
At that point, MYGO's pressure-monster Shiina Taki would probably grab Satoshi by the collar and say: "Satoshi, wasn't that match loss your fault?"
Which meant—he had to shake off this overly passionate girl as fast as possible, and get back to what really mattered: a glorious Pokémon battle!
"Long time no see, Karen."
Satoshi pushed away the girl called Aijo Karen. They stared at each other.
Beside them, Anon blinked in confusion.
The current situation looked like this…
Satoshi, Karen, Sylveon, Raichu, Froakie, Grookey (all watching the drama), and their classmates.
Anon.
Anon: I want to go home.
How had it only been one minute without seeing Satoshi, and already she was getting Tauros'd?!
Anon's heart filled with pain. She couldn't find words to express it—she instinctively stepped back. Satoshi noticed the movement and turned his head, but by then, Anon already wanted to escape.
"Sorry, I came at the wrong time."
She wanted to run—just like fleeing Galar, just like ducking away when pressured by Rikki. But would Satoshi let her go?
A lifetime of Pokémon battles—if Anon really tried to run, Satoshi might just drag her back home and lecture her!
"No, you came at the perfect time."
Satoshi reached his hand out toward Anon. The classmates watching around them were shocked speechless—what kind of harem line was that?
Only the Pokémon by his side stayed calm.
"Rai (Standard)."
"Kerokero (Same here, I'm used to it.)"
"Pachi (Mhm)."
"Friend?" Karen tilted her head, eyes blinking with innocent confusion.
"A teammate!"
Thinking it through, Anon decided—no, there was no way Satoshi would go sneaking off to find another girl.
This was the legendary epic blockhead, after all. No need to even consider it. It was only the shock just now that scrambled her thoughts.
Which meant… this brown-haired girl might be another one like Soyo—a scheming, heavy-minded rival!
She needed to be taught a lesson in Pokémon battle.
"It's time, Satoshi. We should get back to the Cup."
With that thought, Anon walked up behind Satoshi, arms wrapped at her stomach, pulling their distance close, drawing him back into her embrace.
Though the move was a bit intimate, Anon was already growing used to it.
"Mm. Sorry, Karen, but we'll have to catch up another time. I've got things to do."
With Anon's words, Satoshi too forced down his inner desire and said farewell.
I want to battle Armarouge!
I really, really want to!
But he had to endure. Normal reminiscing would drag on too long, and Satoshi was carrying his whole team on his back. He couldn't stop here.
The two of them turned to leave. Aijo Karen's face visibly dimmed.
"Eh? But we only just met! Satoshi, you're not really going to part with your childhood friend like this~~"
Her sad voice rang out, but Anon's grip didn't loosen, her steps didn't stop.
No matter what was said—grinding battle points was the most important thing!
Satoshi had already made up his mind: MYGO's progress came first.
Once they could head to the EcoDome, he'd be able to catch new Pokémon—and draw closer to becoming a true strong trainer.
This level of temptation? Nowhere near enough to shake the Super Rookie.
"Right—it's been ages since we last battled. How about a match today? I've already got a ten-win streak going. If you win, your battle points will skyrocket."
Karen's lips curved into a sunny smile as she pulled a Poké Ball from her pocket, clearly certain he wouldn't refuse.
To restore MYGO's glory—it's my duty!
"Of course. No problem. The battlefield from earlier is fine, right?"
At that, Satoshi stopped in his tracks. There was no way he could hold back.
Of course he was going to stomp Aijo Karen!
Pokémon battles—for battle-brain Satoshi, there was no resisting that temptation.
Especially with an Armarouge as the opponent. Just imagining it was thrilling!
He wanted to take an [Armor Cannon] head-on, to feel what that was like.
The Super Rookie couldn't help but let such thoughts stir.
Crap—maybe this girl really was his childhood friend. She'd seized his greatest weakness!
Anon's Danger Sense kicked in, but inside she wasn't panicking much at all.
Even if you're a childhood friend, you won't take down this blockhead!
That's what I'm saying!
Still… was it just her imagination? Anon thought she saw a glimmer of cunning deep in Aijo Karen's eyes. Not the same as the carefree genki-idiot her looks suggested.
This was Anonstein's intuition.
Both our names start with A. Can we not play these mind games?
So the three of them, with four Pokémon, returned to the battlefield where Karen had fought earlier.
"Raichu, I choose you!" Satoshi shouted, arm stretched forward, blood pumping hot.
"Rai… (I'm really battling Karen? You serious?)"
Raichu tapped its cheek. Unlike its trainer, it could see the situation clearly.
Win—and it was a wingman for Anon.
Lose—and it was a wingman for Karen.
Because if they lost, Karen would definitely cling to Satoshi, pestering him for rematches. And of course Satoshi wouldn't refuse.
But there was no helping it. Raichu wanted to fight too, and so it leapt eagerly onto the field.
Victory was what mattered most!
On that point, it and Satoshi were completely aligned.
"Rai~~!"
The yellow pouches on its cheeks sparked to life, electricity crackling in rhythm with its fighting spirit.
As for losing—impossible. Together with Satoshi, they were invincible!
They would win!
"Armarouge, I choose you!"
"Hmm?"
Maybe it was just his imagination—but the way Karen threw her Poké Ball looked almost exactly like his own motion. No—it was identical.
And with that, Satoshi… truly believed Aijo Karen was his childhood friend.