August 1st.
In the Kanto region.
It had been a long time since Green's battle with Red. Ever since stepping down from the Champion's throne, Green had become rather laid-back.
He wandered from place to place, sometimes lingering wherever he happened upon a Pokémon that caught his interest. If he found one intriguing or remarkable, he'd stay for a while to train it. Whether the Pokémon chose to remain with him afterward didn't really matter it was all just a hobby driven by curiosity.
After all, his ultimate goal was to complete the entire Pokédex.
Today, though, he found himself back where it all began Pallet Town.
In Professor Oak's lab, Professor Oak sat perched on a tall stool, wearing his signature white lab coat and slurping instant noodles.
Suddenly, he looked up and spotted a young man standing at the doorway brown hair, a slim and tall figure, and a necklace glinting at his throat.
Professor Oak rubbed his eyes and then broke into a warm laugh. "Green! You've got good timing. You're just in time to bump into Red. He got back just a moment before you."
"Huh?"
Green's expression stiffened immediately. The calm nostalgia he'd felt upon returning home evaporated in an instant, replaced by bristling irritation. "Don't lump me together with that guy!"
But before he could say more, a red-clad figure stepped out from the backyard.
"Hm? Green? You came back too."
"What was that about comparing us?"
Wearing a red cap with a half-circle Poké Ball emblem, a matching red jacket, and light blue jeans there was no mistaking it. This was Red.
Red tilted his head slightly, curiosity sparkling in his eyes. "Want to have a battle?"
Green's expression hardened into one of characteristic arrogance. "Cut the crap. Let's go. And make it the kind where we can actually hit the Trainers too!"
"Let's do it!"
Nearby, Professor Oak shook his head as the two young men stormed off. He turned his attention back to his noodles, muttering to himself.
"They've both been Champions… yet whenever they meet, it's like they've swallowed gunpowder."
Slurping down the last mouthful of noodles, a look of contentment spread across his face.
Just then, a loud, brash kid burst into the lab, wearing a tank top. "Professor Oak! Professor Oak! How much longer until I can start my journey?!"
Seeing who it was, Professor Oak beamed.
"Oh, it's Ash! Well, why don't you go home and count how old you are? Once you hit the right age, you'll be able to choose your first Pokémon and set out on your journey."
A second kid suddenly entered from outside, his tone immediately antagonistic.
"Heh! Ash, just make sure you don't oversleep on the day you're supposed to pick your first Pokémon. With the way you are, you'll never become a Pokémon Master! The only one who can become a Pokémon Master is me!"
As Ash and Gary launched into yet another argument, Professor Oak rubbed his temples, looking thoroughly exasperated.
"You two…"
Why did these kids remind him so much of the two who'd just walked out… Red and Green?
…
At the entrance to Viridian Forest.
Red stood up and stretched, glancing at Green, who was looking rather defeated.
"It's been ages… but battling you is still the most fun."
Beside Green stood his Blastoise, carefully brushing soot and scorch marks off its shell. On Red's shoulder, meanwhile, perched a Pikachu.
Despite their drastic size difference, the tiny Pikachu somehow seemed to loom over the massive Blastoise.
Green seemed like he wanted to retort but ultimately said nothing. He just curled his lip in annoyance. "This is boring…"
Then he noticed Red fiddling with his phone and raised an eyebrow. "What are you watching?"
"Oh, this?" Red held up his screen. "Lately I've been scrolling through Douyin and came across an account called 'Neighbor's Breeding House.' It looks pretty cool the owner's just living the good life, farming every day in his little breeding shop."
Red leaned closer, grinning. "Actually, you've probably seen it too. Remember that video where a Snivy was battling a Lapras? You even left a comment on it."
"Recently, the creator caught a Shiny Gardevoir."
"Everyone who's bought Pokéblocks from this breeder says they're amazing. I'm kinda curious how they'd compare to the Pokéblocks you make."
Red was babbling with enthusiasm.
Ever since winning both the Johto League and the Indigo League, he'd relaxed his pace and hadn't been eager to challenge other league champions.
Over time, he'd grown fond of this peaceful, farming life.
Lately, he'd even been toying with the idea of establishing his own challenge venue like a personal gym where Trainers could come seek him out for battles.
And what better place than Mount Silver, perched right at the border of Johto and Kanto?
"Huh? A breeding shop? Gardevoir?" Green leaned in, puzzled, studying the video title on Red's screen.
"'Widening the Irrigation Channel with Help from Gardevoir Doing Heavy Lifting! My Orchard is Thriving!'"
That title…
Even as a Pokémon Breeder himself, the corner of Green's mouth twitched involuntarily.
Good grief. This guy had really figured out how to game the content algorithms for views.
Why didn't he just get Gardevoir to start making Pokéblocks instead?
But as the video played, a flicker of confusion crossed Green's eyes.
When he saw that pair of crimson eyes sparkling in the video and the Shiny Gardevoir's unique color palette his expression shifted to surprise. "Wait… is that the same Gardevoir?"
Red blinked in curiosity. "What, you know her?"
Green nodded. "I met her before. She was cursed by Darkrai. I tried to help her."
Red burst out laughing. "Ha! So that's it. I knew there was no way you'd see a Shiny Gardevoir and not want to catch it. So… you failed to capture her, huh?"
"Shut up!"
Green suddenly lunged forward, grabbing Red's wrists and pinning him to the ground. "What do you mean, failed to capture her?! I already caught that Gardevoir once. Don't you dare go around slandering me."
"Oh, so you wanna fight dirty now?"
Red immediately began struggling, but the scuffle clearly annoyed Pikachu, who shook its head and released a crackling bolt of electricity onto both of them.
"Pika!"
With hair standing on end and a tingling numbness buzzing through their bodies, the two finally calmed down.
After a long moment, Green spoke again. "Send me that Douyin account."
"Sure but only if you say thank you…"
"Thank you… Champion!"
…
August 1st.
Early morning.
Three days flew by in a flash.
Staring at the newly completed irrigation channel, Lin Feng kept bowing and thanking the construction crew.
"Honestly, most of the credit goes to Gardevoir. We were just doing the hammering and hauling…"
The burly Hoopa scratched the back of his head and insisted on charging only a third of the usual price. No matter how Lin Feng tried, he refused to take more.
So Lin Feng gifted each of them a large watermelon and a set of Dragonfruit Pokéblocks.
"You guys are just too good-hearted."
Lin Feng didn't even stop to think that the value of the Pokéblocks far exceeded the cost of the job. He watched the crew leave, shaking his head in admiration.
"Garde…"
Gardevoir stood beside him, looking rather exasperated…
Ah, sure, sure…
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