Ash, with his invincible physical body, wants to become a Pokémon Master

"Aren't those muscles a bit too big?"

However, it's a good thing for boys to have more masculinity, and Qianli was very satisfied.

"Xiao Zhi, thank you so much for taking care of these two children. I knew I was right to let you take care of them."

"Not at all, Uncle Qianli, this is what I should do." Xiaozhi acted very modestly, trying to win over Qianli.

"Actually, they helped me a lot during the trip."

For example, Max is in charge of washing the dishes, and Haruka is in charge of looking good. Ash usually relies on these two siblings when he's bored on his travels.

But now is not the time for catching up. Xiaoyao, the big eater, hasn't eaten lunch and is starving.

She quickly followed up by acting coquettishly towards Mitsuko.

"Mom, is there any food left at home? I'm so hungry."

"Really? Are you hungry?" Mitsuko said with a smile.

“Then let’s wait a little longer and then go eat together. You kids have come back at just the right time.”

"We've prepared a big meal for tonight. Once your dad's surprise is over, we'll go in and eat right away."

"surprise?"

The siblings looked at Qianli in confusion.

Even Qianli blushed, a rare occurrence for her.

"Today is my wedding anniversary with your mother, so I made some preparations."

"Thank you for your help, Kim Ji."

"It's Master."

Xiao Zhi and the others came down in such a hurry that they didn't even notice that Qianli's eldest disciple, Jin Zhi, was also here.

After giving a brief greeting to Ash and his friends, he immediately ran to the edge of the greenhouse and activated the mechanism that had been set up there.

Then several dazzling fireworks burst into bloom in the sky.

"So beautiful! They're fireworks shaped like swallowtail butterflies!" Haruka was mesmerized by the beautiful colors in the sky.

At this moment, Mitsuko nestled happily in Chisato's arms.

"Yes, and your father proposed to me in a field full of swallowtail butterflies."

"Really? That's why Dad specially prepared fireworks with this pattern."

It seems that Qianli put a lot of thought into preparing these fireworks. The couple is so loving; even the children are envious.

Haruka glanced at Ash, seemingly thinking about something in the future, and immediately blushed and looked away.

However, Ash was completely unaware of May's little tricks and was simply enjoying the fireworks.

"These must be worth a lot of money..."

At this moment, the muscular man had no thoughts of love, only of his career!

Ah! This is the true Sigma man's mouth and teeth! (Ash's women: How dare you, that perverted scumbag Ash, say something like that?)

There's nothing I can do; ever since Ash got Nexus, his monthly budget has been a bit tight again. So sad~

However, when Jin Zhi returned after activating the mechanism, he looked at the Senri couple, who were focused on watching the fireworks, and sighed helplessly.

"Sigh, they're so loving now, even though Mrs. Mitsuko almost ran away from home this morning."

"What? Tell me more!"

Wow, are all of you hearing this good?

Jinzhi's words instantly attracted Ash, May, and the others.

Gossip is always welcome.

Having no other choice, Jin Zhi could only recount what had happened during this period.

It turns out that Qianli had been going to the Pokémon Center every day to prepare a surprise for her wedding anniversary, just to ask Nurse Joy, who was an expert in fireworks, to help her make fireworks with the pattern of Butterfree.

Although Qianli doesn't look it from the outside, he is actually a clueless straight man with low emotional intelligence.

Whenever he had free time, he would casually run to the Pokémon Center and chat and laugh with Nurse Joy for a long time.

What's worse is that he deliberately came to the center without Mitsuko's knowledge, hoping to surprise her, but he didn't hide from anyone else besides Mitsuko.

As a Hero Trainer in Petalburg City, Senri's every move is watched by countless people.

This suspicious behavior naturally led everyone to misunderstand, and rumors spread like wildfire throughout Orange City that Mr. Qianli might be having an affair with Ms. Joey.

Miss Joey's status was special, and no one dared to say such a thing to her face.

Qianli, who is lacking in emotional intelligence, completely failed to grasp the meaning behind what others were saying and therefore did not clarify.

He continued to come to Miss Joey every day without fail to discuss matters related to fireworks. Eventually, the rumors spread far and wide, and eventually reached Mitsuko's ears.

As a result, Mitsuko was looked at with pity every time she went out during this period.

With their wedding anniversary approaching, her husband ignored her completely, yet he spent his time chatting and laughing with a young and beautiful woman after every dojo match... Mitsuko simply couldn't take it anymore.

It finally erupted this morning; I packed my things and prepared to run away from home.

But when it was time for Mitsuko to say something harsh to her husband before leaving, she still found Chisato chatting with Nurse Joy at the Pokémon Center.

The scene was unimaginable.

“At that time, Mrs. Mitsuko said in anger that she was going to travel alone to a very, very far place and wouldn’t be back for a long time.”

"But the teacher didn't understand what his wife meant at all, and seriously asked her where she was going on her trip and to be careful on the road."

"She even carelessly asked me to cook from now on."

Even now, when Kim Ji thinks back to that scene, he still can't help but break down.

Fortunately, Miss Joy is a normal person, and with her explanation, the couple finally resolved their conflict.

Otherwise, when Xiaoyao and Xiaosheng return, they will be surprised to find that they have become a single-parent family after their trip.

"Oh, so that kind of thing actually happened."

"I really don't want to know that my parents almost got separated."

Xiaoyao and Xiaosheng were speechless after hearing this.

"You have no idea how cautious I was during that time. Every day felt like I was walking a tightrope!"

Unfortunately, as the eldest disciple, Kinji couldn't hide even when Haruka and Masaru weren't around. He also didn't know if Senri had truly fallen in love with Joey from Orange Blossom City.

He could only help Qianli mediate, but it exhausted him.

"But if that's really the case, wouldn't it be better to just marry both girls?"

"Xiao Zhi, you're such an enviable Kanto native... oh, I don't hate you!" Jin Zhi gritted his teeth when he saw Xiao Zhi say such a thing.

"Although we in Hoenn don't prohibit multiple marriages, you should know that your teacher and his wife are..."

"Hey Jinzhi, you're talking a bit too much."

"I'm so sorry, teacher!"

Only afterward did he realize how outrageous his actions were, and naturally he quickly stopped his eldest apprentice from continuing to recount his dark history.

The fireworks display ended, and Mitsuko quickly invited everyone inside for dinner.

After a long day of hunger, May and Max were finally able to feast, and Ash joined the ranks of those eating without hesitation.

The sheer amount of food the three of them ate left Kim Ji speechless once again.

"Haha, it's okay, eat as much as you want, we've prepared plenty of food."

For this wedding anniversary, Qianli was hosting all the apprentices at the dojo, so there was naturally a lot of food at the banquet.

However, most people are in the front yard of the dojo, while the back is considered a family banquet, which is only attended by the core members of the Orange Blossom Dojo.

Of course, that's what they say, but apart from the family of Senri, only Satoshi and Kinji are there.

At the banquet, Senri suddenly turned her aura on Ash, who was still stuffing food into his mouth, and Pikachu beside him.

At this moment, Qianli, as a hero of Orange Blossom, reveals his true self.

His entire body seemed to be wrapped in sharp blades, making people afraid to look him in the eye; just getting close to him made them realize how incredibly strong he was.

He truly lives up to his reputation as someone who is no less than any of the Four Heavenly Kings.

"Ash, you've come here this time to officially challenge the Petalburg Gym, right?"

"Hmm!" Xiao Zhi immediately looked up and met Qianli's burning gaze, then nodded.

"And I will definitely beat you, Uncle Qianli, tomorrow."

"Haha, really? Actually, ever since we parted ways before, I've been looking forward to fighting you again with all my might."

"Tomorrow I'll be using Slacker, Hyperactive Monkey, and Slaking from my main team. Is that alright with you?"

"Of course, please fight me with all your might!"

Xiao Sheng was incredulous when his father so easily revealed his lineup for tomorrow.

"Hey, Dad, isn't it okay for you to leak this information?"

"Katsu, I only hope to have a battle with Ash that I will not regret."

At that moment, Qianli's eyes gleamed with the pride of a strong person, and he stood up and extended his hand to Xiaozhi.

Ash grabbed it, showing respect for a worthy opponent.

Chapter 449 The Battle Begins

[Ding! Congratulations, host, you have triggered a new main quest, "Challenge the Petalburg Gym!": Defeat Petalburg Gym Leader Senri to obtain the Libra Badge!]

【奖励：联盟币+3000；特攻+2；特防+2；自由属性点+3；技能“再来一次”+1】

Early the next morning, Ash and Senri were already ready on the battlefield at Petalburg Gym.

The referee for this challenge was Jin Zhi, and Xiao Yao and Xiao Sheng were also allowed to watch the match with their mother, Mitsuko.

"I'm so excited! This is the first time I've ever watched my own dojo compete!" Xiaosheng said excitedly.

"Yeah, I'm so nervous. I don't want him to lose on either side. What should I do?" May hugged the Pikachu that Ash had entrusted to her care, looking conflicted.

"Pikachu~"

"What are you saying, sister? Of course we should support Dad! Go Dad!"

Qianli smiled and waved to Xiaosheng and the others. At this moment, Jinzhi had finished reading the rules, and the competition officially began.

"Ash, this is my first Pokémon, let's send out Slaking!"

A gray-white sloth with lazy eyes appeared on the field, and Ash quickly took out his first Pokémon.

"You're the one for the first match, Lizard King!"

The Lizard King made his grand entrance with his arms crossed, his well-defined muscles and sharp, triangular eyes a true symbol of strength.

It had a twig in its mouth, like a cowboy smoking a cigarette. Upon seeing its opponent, the lizard king quickly got into a fighting stance.

"Oh, this lizard king looks to be very well raised."

Mitsuko immediately praised Ash after seeing the muscular green lizard he released.

"Compared to this, Dad's Lazy Man seems so weak. Is it really okay to send it out?"

The girl was worried.

"Xiaoyao, don't underestimate your dad's Lazybones. Back when Qianli was young, he made his name with it in his first battle."

"That's right, Dad's so amazing, there'll be no problem!"

In Xiaosheng's mind, his father had never lost, so even when facing Xiaozhi, he would still firmly believe that his father would win.

Meanwhile, on the field, Ash was sizing up Senri's Slaking.

"In Hoenn, Senri is known as a man born for Pokémon, not to be underestimated, but his first lead Pokémon was Slaking...?"

It's no wonder Ash is conflicted now, considering that Slaki's base stats are pretty bad, and it also has a very fatal ability: Laziness.

Pokémon with this ability will rest after each attack, making it a purely negative ability; it's better not to have it at all.