Pokémon, Ash is going to become a perfect man from now on.

"Instead of complaining, you should focus on the battle," Shigeru coldly reminded him. "Otherwise, you'll be too late to lay eggs."

"Lucky~"

The next second, Chansey's complexion instantly improved.

Now, the battle is completely one-sided, an outcome that probably did not anticipate for many people.

Both Shigeru and Dekisugi are quite skilled trainers, and they have already gained some fame in this tournament.

One is Professor Oak's grandson, and the other is a model of striving for a comeback.

However, this clash of titans ultimately turned into Xiaoming being targeted and crushed tactically!

The same thing happened in the later battles. With Golem, a highly intimidating engineer, Xiaoming didn't dare to randomly send out his three flying Pokémon... But when he wanted Alakazam to open up the situation, Xiaoming sent out Gengar again.

Unfortunately, despite Xiaoming's constant vigilance, controlling energy is nowhere near as quick as controlling the body, and in the end, he was helplessly taken away by Gengar's Destiny Bond.

With the score at 2 to 3, Xiao Mao easily traded two Ghosts for Xiao Ming's three main units, leaving the opponent with no chance to turn the tide.

Then, Shigeru actually used Gastly...

"Pidgeot, go ahead!"

"Dark eyes, then the song of destruction!"

Logically speaking, restricting trading shouldn't be very effective against winged Pokémon, but it works surprisingly well against Xiaoming.

Because Shigeru had already figured out through a series of previous matches that Pidgeot wouldn't turn back so quickly.

Xiaoming is the kind of trainer who believes in powerful special moves. The Pokémon he trains are all good at individual combat and he won't use U-turn tactics on their own.

As for why Gastly can use Perish Song, don't ask, it's because Gastly inherits and then evolves.

So, whether to protect it or not, it's all irrelevant now.

"Damn it! How did this happen?" Xiaoming demanded indignantly. "Your Pokémon couldn't have gone through much training, so how could it master these weird and wonderful moves?!"

"You might have misunderstood something. Not all Pokémon moves are trained by their trainers," Gary said noncommittally. "Why do you think I would catch duplicate Pokémon? Besides their different abilities, it's also because they all possess unique moves!"

"you!"

“You’re right about one thing. I didn’t really train them much, because they didn’t need much training to begin with. I just devised a tactic against you based on their own signature moves, and then practiced it a little… Golem, come out!”

"Butterfly, you go!" There are only two left, and Xiaoming absolutely cannot let Butterfly go last, otherwise it will definitely get hit with a Stealth Rock!

Butterfree's performance in this battle was indeed outstanding. Not only did it use psychic interference to quell the sandstorm, it even managed to stop the Golem from rolling in front of it.

Aside from failing to stop Golem from releasing its spikes, its performance was flawless.

But just as it was about to finish off Golem with its energy ball, the latter ended its own life first…

"big Bang!!"

Boom! !

After the fourth exchange, Xiaoming only had one Beedrill left.

Xiao Mao still has two more, but Xiao Ming can only see Chansey.

His Beedrill has also been bred to have high attack and high speed, but this means that if it dares to use a physical attack against Chansey, it will definitely be retaliated against with double the damage and taken out in one hit!

What's more, Beedrill took a hit from a Stealth Rock when it entered the battle.

But if you don't attack like that, Beedrill has no way to deal with Chansey.

You poison them, and they're completely transformed; you use a weak special attack to attack from a distance, and they just stand still and lay eggs. What can you do?

With the outcome already decided, Shigeru went so far as to make Chansey play with its fingers!

"Damn it..." This final scene is definitely not the ending Xiaoming wanted to see.

Beedrill's level was clearly very high... no, all of its handheld items were higher level than its opponent's, but in the end it still ended up like this!

"Lucky~"

The battle ended with Chansey luckily unleashing a Hyper Beam... Xiaoming was stunned as Beedrill's body was engulfed by the energy surge.

"Good job, Chansey." Gary calmly recalled Chansey, glancing casually at Demigod. "You're a good trainer, and I admire your hard work and your training of Pokémon... but you shouldn't have provoked me!"

"Damn it... You stop right there!" Seeing that Shigeru was about to turn and leave, Xiaoming immediately shouted at him, "Why is that? Why did I lose to someone like you? Lose to a bastard trainer who only knows how to catch animals but never how to train them, and who is completely irresponsible?!"

"You...have you always thought you were very strong?" Xiao Mao suddenly turned around and asked.

Before Xiaoming could speak, he immediately answered his own question: "Unfortunately, that was just a false sense of power."

"You've never encountered any tactical trainers, including in this tournament; everyone you've met has been someone who just wants to go head-to-head with you."

Your understanding of battle is so superficial: whoever levels up their Pokémon the highest, hones their moves to be the most powerful, and shouts the loudest during battle is the best trainer.

If you were also proficient in elemental advantages and disadvantages, that would be absolutely incredible, and you'd be praised to the skies!

"So the opponents you encountered before were all those who didn't know how to return the ball after being hit, who would fight head-on even when their attributes were unfavorable, and who would even try to sing a 'kill song' without any protection to drag out the rounds."

Against such an opponent, you'll naturally be invincible thanks to your Pokémon's high level and powerful moves, but that's your limit.

"Trainers are commanders, the core command center of Pokémon operations... while you, at best, are just a fitness instructor."

"You...you bastard! Irresponsible bastard, stop talking nonsense!" Xiaoming's eyes were filled with suppressed anger. To him, everything Xiaomao said was utter rubbish!

“You keep saying I’m irresponsible and don’t cherish Pokémon…” Gary raised an eyebrow. “So in your opinion, only catching six Pokémon, then carrying them around all the time, personally training and raising them, and building so-called bonds with them is being responsible, right?”

"Hmph!" Xiao Ming snorted coldly, but his pride was self-evident.

Of course that's how it is!

He has fought his way through thick and thin with his six Pokémon, treating them like family and friends, and they will one day walk together into the highest hall of fame!

He has a bond with Pokémon, so he should be at the top!

On the contrary, guys like Shigeru Oki deserve to be condemned by everyone!

"I've caught 200 Pokémon, and more than half of them were ones I didn't want to train for battle. There are many reasons for catching them, such as differences in their abilities, different individual forms, and some I simply wanted to give them more companions to keep them company."

"After capturing them, I provide them with food and water, let them live in a better environment, and help them stay away from predators. Occasionally, I trade them over and give them some pointers... You might think I'm irresponsible, but these Pokémon actually enjoy it."

"Because they have no ambition, when I don't need them to fight, they are happy to be fed and housed, and can lie down in peace."

"As for the remaining half, many of them were captured because they had mastered special moves, and others were of a higher level," Xiao Mao continued. "I won't train them specifically. I'll let them unleash their own special moves and characteristics, and familiarize them with a fixed routine... like the routine to deal with you."

"My relationship with them is limited to me providing them with resources and them fighting for me. We just take what we need... They are not my family or friends, let alone any kind of bond."

"Hmph, so you're an irresponsible bastard!"

“But you are the same way.” Faced with Xiaoming’s criticism, Xiaomao retorted directly, “The bond you keep advocating is just a brainwashing rhetoric.”

"No way!!" Xiaoming roared in anger. "My Pokémon and I are friends. We treat each other as equals, like family... Our bond is absolutely unquestionable!!"

"If you like saying things like that so much, why don't you first find a collar to put around your neck, and then hand the whip to your Sandslash King so it can whip you a few times from behind?" Xiao Mao sneered disdainfully.

"If you can do that, I'll acknowledge that you and Pokémon are truly equal friends. If you can't, then stop spouting nonsense in front of me!!"

"You...you're talking complete nonsense!"

Xiao Ming was clearly at a loss for words, because he really couldn't do it... No one in the world could do it.

In fact, everyone knows that, at least in this era, Pokémon and humans—especially trainers—can never be equal, let alone truly become friends.

Because no matter how much someone advocates for bonds, they would never allow themselves to be captured by a Pokémon!

"So-called bonds are just an excuse you make for yourself." Gary continued to fire. "You only caught these six, but apart from Sandslash, Butterfree, and Beedrill, the rest were all selected from the best; you picked the strongest of the three Rattata, and Alakazam and Pidgeot also have great potential... and they can even Mega Evolve in the future."

"Your deep bonds and the small number of trainers you've caught are actually part of your elite path, with the ultimate goal still being to fight... because the trainer you understand is only responsible for fighting! The purpose of catching them is ultimately to have them help you fight in gym battles, league tournaments, Elite Four battles, and become the champion, in order to gain honor for you as a trainer!"

"You select Pokémon with great potential and strong personalities, forcibly tie their desire to become stronger to your own interests, and constantly encourage them to climb to the so-called peak with you... Where do you think you are so noble?!"

"Finally, having bonds is certainly important, but my interpretation of it is... a fixed handhold." Gary concluded, "How many I catch is my business, I can afford to raise them, and my methods are legal and not illegal... but my energy is limited, and I won't treat all Pokémon the same!"

"My fixed handhelds are only my favorites and the strongest ones! And in the end, the six who truly accompanied me into the final hall have naturally formed a deep bond with me!"

Chapter 209 Pikachu and Pocket are going to be 'released'.

"Has Xiao Mao gone mad?"

This barrage of attacks left not only Xiaoming, who was in his position, and the audience, but even Xiaolan was stunned.

She never knew that her childhood friend could have such sharp words, the kind that could drown someone in their spittle.

"He's not crazy, he's just been suppressing his feelings for a while," Xiao Zhi said, shrugging. "He'll probably face a lot of criticism later, since he's said too many truths, and they've all been quite harsh."

Of course, Ash didn't say the second half of his sentence... As Professor Oak's grandson, those accusations were ultimately just empty words.

...

"Xiao Mao..."

Nanami and Professor Oak, who were also in the stands, were now completely dumbfounded.

Professor Amber had previously reminded Gary that he should pay more attention to his bond and friendship with Pokémon, but Gary continued to do as he pleased.

Only today, after Gary finally expressed his true feelings, did Professor Oak realize that his grandson had seen through the truth about trainers and Pokémon…

This is at least the truth that applies to most people.

Trainers and Pokémon have a subordinate relationship of capturing and being captured, so how can they become true friends?

If everyone were human, would you lock your friend in a ball where they can't stretch out their limbs?