"Lost… Thank you, Little Guren, you did really well."
Karen walked up to Armarouge, crouched down, and sprayed a [Potion] onto its body.
[Nuzzle]really is a god-tier move~~ guaranteed paralysis, the gold value is way too high.
In the games it even breaks [Focus Sash], and it's so much better than [Thunder Wave]'s shaky 90 accuracy.
How can a move be this cool!
After a fierce battle, Satoshi was basking in satisfaction over his "[Nuzzle]." But that satisfaction didn't last long—Anon came bouncing up happily, handing over another [Potion].
"Hooray! It's Satoshi's victory!"
To be honest, she had been really nervous just now. If Satoshi had lost, she was already thinking about avenging him herself.
"Sylveon, you could have won, right?"
"Ninf~ (I'd lose!)"
Fortunately, Satoshi won. That way she didn't have to face the nightmare of woman-versus-woman hair-pulling.
Wait… don't tell me this girl Aijo Karen was using Pokémon battles to try and steal Satoshi away!
She's stronger than me… Sylveon definitely can't beat Armarouge…
No way. Absolutely not!!
Just imagining it made Anon's head ache. But—she wasn't panicking too much yet.
At least her potential for growth was huge!
…Low EQ phrasing: She was still weak!
"This was thanks to your support, Anon." Satoshi took the [Potion] from her and sprayed it gently over Raichu's body.
"Raichu, you did great."
"Rai-rai~"
Raichu hadn't taken heavy damage in the battle, so it was still standing tall, bright-eyed and full of energy.
Karen finished tending to Armarouge, recalled it, then stood up and came over to Satoshi.
"Amazing~ As expected, I still can't beat you. It's been six years since we last met, right? Speaking of that… do you remember the promise?"
She was as lively as ever—but at the words "the promise," her cheeks flushed red, giving her a special, shy look.
"..." Satoshi stayed silent.
What promise?
[Satodear, say something already.]
I can't!
At this point there was no way he could admit it—that he'd hit his head in his sleep and lost some of his memories!
Such an embarrassing thing, he absolutely couldn't say. And it'd be a pain to explain.
"…Of course I remember."
"Really? Then the two of us, right now…"
Karen's eyes lit with joy, a smile spreading across her face.
But—
"Satoshi has to battle with me in the Cup. There's no time right now. Catching up can wait until it's over."
Not a moment of hesitation, Anon joined the battlefield, her voice flat as she grabbed Satoshi's hand and forcefully pulled him away.
The battle just now was more than enough "catching up."
"Ehhh~ you can't do that~"
"Then why not just team up with me, Satoshi?"
With that thought, Karen caught hold of his other hand. Their eyes clashed—two pairs of clear eyes, two hearts boiling with conflict.
"Uh…?"
A bad premonition seized Satoshi.
"Our time is valuable."
"I can lend Satoshi my Pokémon."
"And what about your Pokémon's opinion?"
"They don't mind!"
And just like that, it turned into tug-of-war.
Was this seriously a tug-of-war?
The Pokémon beside them just treated it as entertainment.
"Rai-rai (Not my problem)"
"Kerokero? (Can I just go grab a snack first?)"
"Pachi-pachi (Sylveon, aren't you gonna stop them?)"
"Ninf~ (Can't beat Armarouge anyway.)"
The struggle didn't last too long. Soon, the two girls relented.
"In any case, I'll go with Anon first to continue the Cup. When it's over, I'll come find you, Karen."
"Uuuh… fine. But you have to come find me!"
Anon mainly couldn't stand the classmates' stares—while Satoshi, the battle-brain, just wanted to get back to fighting.
The energetic girl in front of them, though, didn't care about either. Her skin was thick as city walls.
"No problem. I'll definitely come get you."
[By 'get,' you don't mean 20 years later, right?]
How could that be? Karen wasn't a Pidgeot. Of course he'd come get her!
Satoshi believed he wouldn't make that kind of mistake.
A trainer with an Armarouge? He'd love nothing more than to battle her day and night, until Karen was exhausted. How could he ever forget!
As the two walked away, Aijo Karen's gaze clung to their backs, following them until they disappeared from sight.
"This time… I won't let you run away."
...
With limited members now, MYGO's rank had slipped to third place. Time was short. Without hard grinding, they'd fall even further.
In simple words—they had to grind.
Battle, and battle fast—cut down opponents with priority moves, win without taking damage.
Satoshi was already thinking ahead, preparing for the future High School League.
At present, his record was a fifty-win streak, still climbing.
Most opponents weren't that strong. Plenty used baby Pokémon. And against him, those were just instant knockouts.
Which was why his title had already shifted—from "Class A's Invincible Little Red Riding Hood" to "The Red-Hooded Devil Who Slaughters Noobs."
"[Grassy Glide]!"
With that move, Satoshi ended another battle, flattening yet another challenger.
The Cup's countdown was winding down.
The numbers gap in their team was hard to make up. The top two teams had nine members each. To surpass them, they'd have to defeat players with huge win counts.
In short—opponents who battled like him, Warriors of Musou-style Pokémon battles.
First Satoshi thought of the Elite Four. But according to Anon, the school's Elite Four and Champion weren't allowed to join the Cup. They had privileges better than Cup winners.
That left Satoshi disappointed.
Somehow… it made him want to pull off an "overthrow-the-strong" run.
"The next one is Kagura Hikari. She's not far."
Anon, hand still firmly holding Satoshi's, guided him along. She'd checked the forums for high streak players, leading him right to them.
And secretly, it doubled as a date. Karen's actions earlier had rung a loud alarm in her heart—so Anon had been holding Satoshi's hand the entire afternoon.
Of course, she knew the consequences…
Soyo would kill her!
Just picturing it gave her chills. But it didn't last.
Ehehe~ Satoshi's hand is so big, so cute.
And with all these people looking at us with admiration—this Cup is the best!
For the vanity-prone Anon, nothing could be sweeter.
"Ehehe~" Her silly little laugh slipped out, but Satoshi paid it no mind. He was used to it.
At last, the final match approached. Satoshi locked eyes with his opponent, releasing Anon's hand.
"Kagura Hikari… forty-win streak. Beartic, prepare to battle!"
"Satoshi, fifty-win streak. Raichu, I choose you!"
Battle rules: 3v3!
The final showdown of the Afro Buffalo Cup!