To secure his future, Zhang Hong placed the Everstone that Xia Hu Na Pao had given him onto his Snivy. Afterward, he accompanied Xia Hu Na Pao and the others in packing up their tents.
"I say, Boss Xia, you've got quite a few treasures on you," Zhang Hong remarked, yanking out a tent peg he'd personally smashed into the mud the previous day, his gaze drifting towards Xia Hu Na Pao's backpack.
Xia Hu Na Pao patted his backpack with pride. "Of course. This is a third-generation backpack; its storage capacity has increased by several cosmic levels. Let me tell you, I got this through special channels."
As the group chatted and cleaned up their campsite, a rustling sound came from the nearby woods. Then, an Aipom and a person burst out of the trees, shouting as they ran, "Run for your lives! Aipom, run!"
Hot on their heels was a Beedrill, a sight all too familiar to Xia Hu Na Pao and his companions, relentlessly pursuing the pair. Seeing that his group was about to be caught in the crossfire, Xia Hu Na Pao and Yu Long Du quickly threw out their Poké Balls. "Rockruff, use Rock Throw!"
"Charizard, Flamethrower!"
The combined attack of Rockruff and Charizard successfully repelled the swarm of Beedrill. Xia Hu Na Pao reached out and pulled the panting young man to his feet. "Are you alright? How did you provoke so many Beedrill?"
The young man pointed to the Aipom beside him. "It's all because of this guy. He went and poked a Kakuna, and not only did it evolve, but it also brought a whole swarm of Beedrill to chase us!"
Xia Hu Na Pao glanced at the Aipom, which was holding a thumb-thick twig and scratching an itch. He nodded. "I see. Beedrill are indeed very territorial and fiercely protective of their own. But it can't be helped, especially with an Aipom. This Pokémon just can't sit still. It'll be better once it evolves."
"Yes, it'll be better once it evolves. Thank you for saving me. I haven't introduced myself yet, I'm Sha Lue, and Aipom and I are undergoing special training."
Xia Hu Na Pao gestured to Rockruff. "I'm Xia Hu Na Pao, and this is Rockruff."
Yu Long Du and the others also introduced themselves. After that, everyone decided to travel together. Of course, Sha Lue had a strong subjective reason for this decision; he was worried that if he went alone, he might not make it out of the forest. After all, his Aipom was too much of a troublemaker. He had only poked a few Beedrill so far, but what if he took a couple more steps and poked some more ferocious Pokémon?
Regarding this, everyone had the same question: if Aipom caused trouble when left outside, why didn't he keep it in its Poké Ball?
To answer this, Sha Lue conducted an experiment for everyone. "You'll understand once I demonstrate. Come back, Aipom."
Sha Lue recalled Aipom into its Poké Ball. However, as soon as he placed the Poké Ball on the ground, it began to shake rapidly. Then, Aipom sprang out and lunged towards a nearby bush. From the bush emerged a Mankey, which immediately launched into a series of martial arts moves. Aipom was stunned by the onslaught. It was Yu Long Du who scared the Mankey with Charizard, thus saving Aipom.
Xia Hu Na Pao watched the Aipom, which was now hiding behind Sha Lue and taunting the Beedrill, "Although Aipom are quite energetic, isn't this one a bit *too* energetic?"
Sha Lue picked up Aipom. "It wasn't like this before. It's been different since it evolved from Slakoth a month ago. Originally, it was as inactive as I am, but after evolving, even my activity level has increased."
Xia Hu Na Pao chuckled. He had heard that as trainers and Pokémon spent more time together, the Pokémon would become more like their trainers, just like Guagua's battle style increasingly resembled Xia Hu Na Pao's way of thinking. But this was the first time he had heard of a trainer being influenced by their Pokémon.
The group soon emerged from the forest. Xia Hu Na Pao and his companions would continue along the road, while Sha Lue had to turn right to go home. After a few brief exchanges, they parted ways. Zhang Hong asked Xia Hu Na Pao, "What do you think, Boss Xia? He should be a potential opponent for me. If I were to face him in a competition, what are my chances of winning?"
Xia Hu Na Pao shook his head. "If it were still a Slakoth, you could basically beat it easily; that thing takes breaks often. But if it's an Aipom, it's another story. Although its strength isn't top-tier, considering Aipom might not listen to commands very well, I'd say it's a fifty-fifty chance for you both."
"Then I need to work harder. I have a feeling I'll definitely encounter him in the upcoming tournament."
Xia Hu Na Pao casually glanced at Zhang Hong, who was busy planting a flag. "Don't say things carelessly, because you never know which words might come true."
The group walked along the road towards the school. Upon their return, they saw Wei Chi Ting and the others jogging laps around the school grounds. Xia Hu Na Pao raised his hand and stopped Wei Chi Ting. "Stop. What are you guys doing here?"
Wei Chi Ting looked around before replying, "Boss Xia, you're finally back. Lu Bing Ming, you explain. The rest of you, let's keep running."
With that, Wei Chi Ting ran to the group. "Let's go, we'll keep running. Seventeen laps left."
Hearing Wei Chi Ting say there were seventeen laps left, Xia Hu Na Pao was shocked. Although Liu Ling Great wasn't a particularly large university, each lap around the east campus covered several kilometers. Seventeen laps was like running a marathon. Even though trainers generally had good physical fitness, this was still asking too much.
Saying this, Xia Hu Na Pao turned his attention back to Lu Bing Ming. "Lu Bing Ming, tell me, what's going on?"
Lu Bing Ming panted heavily. "Cruel, too cruel. Sister Ru treats us like dirt! The training today started with us fighting against her and the principal. One Pokémon each, against the two of them, with a one-hour time limit. One loss per lap. We lost over twenty laps in an hour..."
Xia Hu Na Pao gave an awkward laugh. This training method was brutal. He wondered who had taught it to them. However, Xia Hu Na Pao was currently looking for some pressure; perhaps he could try challenging the two sisters with Guagua.
While Xia Hu Na Pao was lost in thought, he heard Tong Ruo's voice at the school gate. "Lu Bing Ming, you seem quite relaxed. Have you finished your laps? You should still have seventeen left, right? If you don't run, do you believe I'll invert that seventeen into seventy?"
Hearing that he might have to run seventy laps, Lu Bing Ming quickly stood up. "I was wrong. I'm running now, immediately."
Watching Lu Bing Ming depart with heavy steps, Xia Hu Na Pao sighed. "Lu Bing Ming, are you and Wei Chi Ting both fools? It's a shame you were even my students. I've said all I can. Whether you can finish this afternoon before school ends depends on your luck."
With that, Xia Hu Na Pao and Yu Long Du entered the gates of Liu Ling Great. Lu Bing Ming, after running about a hundred meters, stopped and pondered Xia Hu Na Pao's words. Not long after, Wei Chi Ting, leading the school team members, ran over. Seeing Lu Bing Ming sitting there silently, he asked, "Hey, what are you doing sitting here? If you don't run, you won't finish this week."
Lu Bing Ming asked Wei Chi Ting, "Captain, what do you think Coach Xia meant by that?"
Wei Chi Ting retorted, "What did Coach Xia say?"
Lu Bing Ming stood up and mimicked Xia Hu Na Pao's disappointed tone. "Wei Chi Ting and I are two idiots who don't deserve to be his students..."
Lu Bing Ming's embellished words, combined with his smug tone, were sure to attract hatred. Whether it was Wei Chi Ting, Xing Kai, or even the usually quiet Chu Xiao Die, they all felt like kicking their feet into his face.
Fortunately, Wei Chi Ting reacted quickly, preventing Lu Bing Ming from digging his own grave.
"Boss Xia is right. I really don't deserve to be his student. I'm an idiot."
Through Wei Chi Ting's explanation, everyone finally understood Xia Hu Na Pao's words. Because the school team's training room was on the east campus, Wei Chi Ting and the others had subconsciously assumed the twenty laps were limited to the east campus. However, the east campus was the old campus of Liu Ling Great, dating back to its founding, and it included the mountain behind. Therefore, one lap was exceptionally long.
The west campus, on the other hand, was a new campus built in recent years. It would be more accurate to call it the main campus and a satellite campus, rather than dividing them by east and west. A lap on the satellite campus was significantly shorter than a lap on the main campus. Who could say that the satellite campus wasn't a campus, or that its lap wasn't a lap?
Just as Wei Chi Ting and the others understood Xia Hu Na Pao's meaning and began running laps on the satellite campus instead of the main campus, Tong Ruo, who had been walking ahead, smiled and removed her earbuds. "Little Xiazi, Wei Chi Ting misses you more and more. He's really learned your devious ways perfectly."
Xia Hu Na Pao smiled innocently. "Sister Ru, what are you talking about? What do you mean by 'devious'? Wei Chi Ting and I are both very intelligent people. Coming up with resourceful solutions should be affirmed and encouraged, right?"
Hearing Xia Hu Na Pao's unreserved self-praise, Tong Ruo turned around. "Alright, let's assume you're intelligent. Then, intelligent student Xia Hu Na Pao, is there something you need?"
"Sister Ru, you understand me best. I heard that Wei Chi Ting and the others were beaten up by you and Sister Xiao Xiao. Can you beat me up too?"
Tong Ruo leaned her face close to Xia Hu Na Pao. "Oh? Beat you up too? You really dare to say that. Aren't you afraid Xiao Yu will get jealous?"
Tong Ruo's closeness made Xia Hu Na Pao flustered. He took a few steps back. "Sister Ru, please maintain some distance..."
Tong Ruo straightened up. "Boring, can't even take a joke. But since you want it, let's give it a try. A beating, but not you challenging us two. Instead, it will be you and Sister Xiao Xiao teaching your whole group a lesson. Understand?"