Pokemon: I am Gary

On January 22nd, after a day of rest, Gary's second match in the preliminaries was about to begin.

During Gary's rest period, Giselle, Jeanette, and Ash all won their second preliminary matches and successfully advanced to the top 64.

In the Rock Arena, Giselle, dressed in her JK uniform, lightly touched her lips and smiled as she commanded, "Marowak, Bone Boomerang!"

The bone club dodged the opponent Poliwhirl's Water Pulse and struck the back of its head at an unusual angle.

Boom! Poliwhirl rolled its eyes and fell to the ground.

"The winner is Giselle!" The referee raised his hand to announce.

"Phew~ Marowak, good job." Retrieving Marowak, Giselle blushed slightly and sighed with relief. "Finally, I didn't embarrass Professor Oak~"

Although Gary had only accompanied her in two training matches, in Giselle's heart, Professor Oak was her true master.

Well~ As they say, once a teacher, always a father...

"Ah~ Dad and all that…" Giselle seemed to be having another episode...

In the VIP box, Agatha nodded approvingly. "This child is Gary's student? Her skills are indeed impressive."

"Hmm~ Those stockings are quite white~" Bruno suddenly chimed in.

Agatha and Lance, who were watching together, showed expressions of disbelief; they didn't expect Bruno to be like this!

"Hahaha~ It's only natural; after all, I'm still single~" Bruno scratched his head.

"Stop! She's still a child! Pervert!" Agatha picked up her cane and hit Bruno on the head twice.

Crack… The cane broke…

Bruno looked bewildered as he scratched his head. "Uh… This doesn't mean I have to pay for it, right…"

Lance facepalmed; in some ways, Bruno really was quite innocent.

"Ha ha, pay? Not necessary~" Agatha smirked. "Gengar, use Hypnosis and then Dream Eater…"

Bruno {{°△°"}}! Ah—Yamete!

After the match ended, during the post-match media interview, a blushing Giselle shyly stated that her current achievements were due to her teachers' hard work.

Upon learning that Gary was a guest professor at Celadon University and also the grandson of Professor Oak, reporters began to fawn over him.

"A true master always retains a heart of an apprentice~"

"Competing side by side as master and apprentice; he not only works diligently in academia but also personally participates in league matches. Truly, I'm moved to tears~"

"In the most competitive position in academia, can Gary inherit his grandfather's legacy!"

...

Deep autumn had quietly left, and winter had subtly arrived.

Thanks to Silver Mountain's barrier, strong cold air had yet to affect Indigo Plateau.

However, the chill in the wind was indeed becoming more pronounced.

On the main venue's broadcast screen, highlights of thrilling battles from the four sub-arenas were rolling.

Gary and silly ninja Janine were sitting on a bench in the square holding cups of soy milk tea.

"Gary, is your match in the afternoon?" Janine asked curiously.

"It's the last match of the morning—in the Water Arena," Gary replied vaguely while using a small spoon to scoop soy milk foam and chewy balls into his mouth.

"What Pokémon are you planning to use?" Janine's eyes sparkled with interest as she pressed on.

"Nidoking," Gary casually responded.

"Huh?" Janine was taken aback. "Using Nidoking? Is that really okay?"

"Don't worry; we've got this," Gary smiled slightly. In the preliminaries, he intended to let Nidoking train hard without revealing his trump card.

Ding! Side quest triggered: Advance with one Pokémon through Indigo League preliminaries.

Reward: Qualification Enhancement Card x1, Achievement Points 3000, Life Pearl x1.

Ding! Main quest: The Young Eagle Takes Flight. Achieve a ranking above 32nd in Indigo League for rewards based on placement...

Gary raised an eyebrow; wow, it seems like you have quite an affection for Nidoking!

Forced Ability + Aura Techniques + Life Pearl + Qualification Enhancement Card.

This is pushing Nidoking down the path of a berserker!

"Speaking of which, you've been increasingly less present lately," Gary thought to himself.

Ding! It's become a habit—just pretend you don't have a system. Um… The host is busy… Better that way…

Gary felt a twitch; what is this feeling of an empty nester...

"By the way, Janine—aren't you going back? Erika returned to Celadon City yesterday." Looking at Janine who was vigorously sipping her milk tea with cheeks puffed out like a hamster, Gary asked with a smile.

"Hmm~ I'm not going back!" Janine immediately exploded. "Wah wah wah! My stupid dad went to Johto; Aunt Lingzi is watching over our house. I finally managed to sneak out for some fun!"

"What about your gym? Aren't you the gym leader?" Gary asked again.

"Oh please! During competitions, gyms are closed; I'm just here at Indigo Plateau until the closing ceremony. Gym leaders get free food and lodging during competitions! I'm not leaving until I've had my fill!" Janine turned her head away defiantly.

"Well then…" Gary shook his head. "You're still just a kid!"

Janine turned back with teary eyes. "How could you think of sending me away when I came all this way to cheer for you? Don't you remember how you treated me like this... that... Gary is such an idiot!"

"Stop stop stop! If you want to play then play; I won't care anymore. Just don't make it seem like I abandoned you or something!" Gary hurriedly covered this girl's mouth in fright.

Wow—so none of my friends are normal?

Ding! Is it possible that your only male best friend is Ash while everyone else is female...?

Gary tilted his head; wait a minute—what about my online friends like Steven, Giovanni, Archer... uh... okay fine; none of them are normal either...

"Could it really be like that?" Gary suddenly froze.

"Ah?" Janine looked at Gary who suddenly spaced out and thought he was angry.

"Um… Gary, please don't be mad! I was just joking. How about this—if I let you kiss me, will you not be mad?" The little girl closed her eyes with an expression as if she was thinking of him.

"You can forget about that! I'm going to my match; don't eat too many snacks!" Shaking his head helplessly, Gary pointed at Janine's forehead before turning around to run away.

"Hey? Wait for me! I want to watch the match! Ninja Technique—Ouch!" The little girl stepped on her own scarf and fell flat on her face...

"Ow ow x﹏x…" Janine cried as she looked up only to see a pair of white high-top sneakers.

"Get up; what a silly child." Helping Janine up, Gary helplessly patted her purple hair. "Be careful walking; I need to go to the player lounge first. Message me if anything comes up."

"Oh~ Okay." Watching Gary leave again, Janine adorably rubbed her head before taking out her Rotom phone and cheerfully standing back up.

After saying goodbye to Janine, Gary stuffed his hands into his pockets and donned his hoodie as he approached the player check-in passageway.

"I'm back~" Lorelei's voice rang out.

"Oh! I went for some milk tea with Janine," Gary replied honestly. "That girl has such thick skin; I don't know how she has survived until now."

"Pfft~ Be careful what you say; Mr. Koga might take issue with you," Lorelei laughed while covering her mouth.

"How could that be? He'd better not mess with me." Thinking about Fuchsia Gym, Gary couldn't help but shiver slightly.

"By the way, Lorelei—what are you doing here?" Gary asked curiously.

"I'm part of the inspection team today; it just so happens that it's my turn at the Water Arena so I came here to cheer you on," Lorelei said while brushing her long hair behind her ear with a gentle smile.

"So after your match we'll go home for dinner?" Gary asked.

"Mhm~ For inspection teams there shouldn't be any issues with skipping work," Lorelei nodded seriously.

"Then let's have hot pot for dinner," Gary suggested as he nodded back.

Lorelei's eyes sparkled slightly. "Then it's settled! I'll wait for you at the player exit?"

Gary pulled down his hood revealing a confident smile. "Ten minutes~"

As he walked through the dark corridor into the bustling Water Arena where his match officially began,

The girls screamed excitedly: "Wow! It's Gary! So handsome!"

"Gary darling! Mommy loves you!" Even mommy fans cheered enthusiastically.

"Gary! I want to have your babies!" Goodness gracious—who is this big brother? Get him outta here!

Gary's opponent from Cerulean City looked helplessly at all the support around him.

Eighty percent were fans of Gary!

"Hmph! It's just because he looks good!" Wasabi trembled angrily with his long rectangular face and flaring nostrils.

As he stepped onto the trainer command platform, Gary paused. "This guy... does he have any relatives related to hippopotamuses?"

"What do you know? This is called a square face—it's very sexy! You little pretty boy with your pointy chin!" Wasabi nearly exploded from anger.

Does this guy not know how to speak? He keeps poking at my heart!

"Alright then~" Gary shrugged as more screams erupted from female fans below again.

The referee glanced at Wasabi speechlessly; this guy is somewhat blindly confident—how can square faces be compared with hippopotamus faces?

"Both sides prepare!" The referee crossed his arms and walked up to officiate.

"Ladies and gentlemen! In this final afternoon match at Water Arena from Pallet Town, we have contestant Gary facing off against contestant Wasabi from Cerulean City!

Let's take a look at both sides' starting lineups!" The announcer held up his microphone and began live commentary.

"Oh! Wasabi's first Pokémon is Gyarados! This is quite powerful combat strength in water!

Now let's see what Gary will bring out... What?! Gary actually sent out Nidoking?!"

Ignoring the announcer's astonished shout, Gary checked his phone for time—it was still fifteen minutes until Venusaur's supermarket special sale started. "Nidoking—take him down."

"The match begins!" The referee nodded affirmatively.

"Who do you think you're looking down on?" Wasabi shouted passionately as if inspired by Spartan blood. "Gyarados! Use Hydro Pump!"

"Thunder!" Gary declared without hesitation.

Boom! Golden lightning shot straight into the sky! A thick bolt of lightning surged forth as electric sparks filled the arena with tingling sensations!

Sizzle~ Gyarados was directly electrocuted from its mouth where it shot Hydro Pump!

Smack! Gyarados fell into the pool while smoking all over its body as Nidoking sneezed disdainfully—was that it