Pokémon, Ash's art style is off!

Page 77

As she spoke, her slender fingers reached towards her proud chest, beginning to explore that alluring area.

Ash and Pikachu became even more nervous.

His gaze was fixed on the peony's movements, and he even held his breath.

Suppressing the restless, nosebleed-prone Xiao Gang beneath him, Xiao Zhi couldn't help but swallow hard.

I can only say he truly lives up to his reputation as the museum's owner!

Even with such a simple outfit, I still keep the Poké Ball close to my body!

This must be for a lightning strike!

These techniques...

A strong person!

That's what a strong person is like!

Xiao Zhi's heart was surging with excitement.

come on!

Send out your Pokémon!

Let me, Xiao Zhi, assess your strength!

Peony finally finished searching, but what she pulled out was not the Poké Ball she had expected, but a badge that shimmered with a light blue luster and was shaped like a water droplet.

She handed it to Xiaozhi with a smile.

"...Then this badge is for you."

Xiao Zhi: "?"

Pikachu: "?"

A huge question mark instantly filled the heads of the man and the mouse.

"wait wait wait!"

Xiao Zhi suddenly came to his senses, but didn't reach out to take it. His face was full of confusion and disbelief.

"Badges...aren't badges something you can only obtain through formal battles and based on your strength?"

This is completely different from the rules he's heard since he was a child!

“Since the Pokémon you sent was Pikachu, it means you’ve mastered type advantages,” Sakura explained with a smile, as if it were the most reasonable explanation. “In that case, this blue badge, symbolizing wisdom, is naturally yours.”

"This...this works?!"

Ash felt that his worldview had been shaken.

Are gym challenges in the Kanto region... all so casual?

A surge of trainer pride welled up within him, and he straightened his back, righteously and firmly refusing.

"No way! I, Ash, will never accept handouts! I will earn the badge through my own strength!"

"Well said!"

Peony's eyes lit up.

"Unswayed by external things! Have ambition! Have integrity! If that's the case...!"

Then, under the tense gazes of Ash and Pikachu once again...

Peony reached her hand into the deep cleavage and began to explore skillfully.

"...Then this badge will be your reward!"

She also took out a blue badge and handed it over.

"I don't want a reward! I just want to challenge the gymnastics team fair and square!"

"That's persistence!"

Sweet flag shook its head.

As she spoke, she smoothly pulled out a third badge from her cleavage.

"Here, this is for you~ Consider it a token of friendship?"

Ash & Pikachu: "..."

Brock, who was firmly suppressed by Ash but witnessed the process of taking the badges three times up close, was now in a state of ecstasy, muttering to himself.

"Ash, I have no regrets in this life..."

He completely lost all his strength.

"I....."

Xiao Zhi wanted to say something more.

A voice came from afar.

"Don't say anything, Xiao Zhi."

Xiaoxia, who had left, returned with her arms crossed, leaning against the door frame, her face filled with a speechless expression that said, "I knew this would happen." She sighed.

"Even if you say you don't want to fight and just want the badge, they might just smile and say, 'You're greedy, you've got ideas,' and then hand you the badge without hesitation."

She knows her sisters' ways of doing things all too well.

"Oh, it's Xia."

"Xia is back!"

"That's going too far, Xia!"

When the three sisters saw their youngest sister, they showed no embarrassment at being exposed; instead, they all greeted her with smiles.

"So... as long as people come, they can get a badge?"

Ash turned to Misty, his face still full of surprise and incomprehension.

No wonder everyone says that the Cerulean Gym's badge is at the very bottom of the social hierarchy!

It's completely free!

"No, that's not it~"

Changpu shook her finger and winked playfully.

"We don't give to just anyone!"

Peony immediately chimed in, her face bearing an air of "we are very principled."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Zhi breathed a slight sigh of relief.

"Then who would refuse to give it?"

"No tickets will be given to those who don't buy them."

34. Sea Starfish - Peony's Choice!

Cherry blossoms in a single sentence.

This immediately silenced the three of them.

Thanks to the prestigious reputation of synchronized swimming, the three sisters have never been short of money.

The official subsidies from the dojo are less than the income from a single commercial performance for them.

If it weren't for the fact that the Cerulean Gym is a legacy passed down from generation to generation, and that the members are the image ambassadors and public figures of Cerulean City...

Don't give up easily, lest it bring negative consequences.

They may have already devoted themselves entirely to their performing careers.

Given their talent and popularity, they could very well become the second, third, or even fourth star like Karuni.

"What are you talking about?!"

Xiaoxia's fingers trembled.

"Is this how you run the dojo after I left?!"

She knew her sisters weren't particularly interested in the dojo's affairs, but she never expected them to be so perfunctory!

Even if you don't want to spend time evaluating someone, you should at least come up with a decent reason, right?

For example, they might say things like "Those who are not strong enough will not be received," "Those with ulterior motives, please leave," or "Those who do not understand the charm of Water-type Pokémon need not apply."

A perfectly legitimate excuse befitting a dojo master!

"You, you all... you've made me lose face in front of my comrades!"

Ash and Pikachu exchanged a glance.

face?

That kind of thing has been gone for a long time, hasn't it?

Upon hearing this, the eldest sister, Sakura, was visibly shocked for a moment.

"Them...companions?"

His gaze swept back and forth between Ash and Brock.

"Are they your companions?"

"Xia, is that your companion!?"

"of course!"

Xiaoxia had no idea what was so surprising about this.