Roxanne subconsciously bit her lip, her legs clad in pink tights pressing together slightly.
"This new teacher… is way too strong…"
"Not just his team leadership—his individual strength is also insane!"
In the back rows of Rustboro Academy's seating area, the audience whispered among themselves.
Coming down from the battlefield, Iwamura gave a wry smile.
"This is… actually worse than when Erika was leading the team."
They had assumed that without Erika, Celadon Academy would be a weak contender this year.
They never imagined that not only the student matches…Even the teacher matches would be this one-sided.
This Teacher Lu… was just too ridiculously strong!
Another teacher, Hayaki, looked toward Roxanne at the front.
"Teacher Roxanne, should I go next?"
He hadn't expected it to come to a revolving-door tactic.
Hayaki sighed inwardly, 'Still… if that was the case, Roxanne would stand a better chance of winning. To be forced into this kind of situation...'
He looked up at the bold and confident young man on the battlefield.
The shine of both academies had been completely eclipsed by this one teacher.
"You can't beat him."
To Hayaki's surprise, Roxanne shook her head seriously.
"I'll go next."
Both Rustboro teachers were stunned.
It was their first time seeing Roxanne with such a grave expression.
And that meant… Roxanne was treating this match as a battle between equals.
'This young teacher...' Iwamura felt a tremor in his heart. 'Could he actually be a Gym Leader from one of Donghuang's cities!?'
"We've just received word," the commentator said, "that the next trainer from Rustboro Academy will be Teacher Roxanne!"
In an instant, the audience buzzed with chatter.
Roxanne was coming out this early?
In past years, Roxanne always battled against Celadon's ace Erika, usually as the final match.
But this year, just Lu Ye alone had already pushed Rustboro into this position?!
Roxanne, going all-out—even if not quite at the level of veterans like Volkner—was still one of the strongest of the new generation of Gym Leaders.
She had clearly been backed into a corner to come out this early to face Teacher Lu!
"Worth it! This ticket was worth every penny!"
"Now this is a clash of titans!"
"Crank up the intensity!"
In the official livestream chat, a wave of longtime viewers swarmed in.
Seeing Teacher Lu's classic "3:0" sweeps and the upcoming match against Rustboro's Gym Leader, the viewers couldn't help but be amazed.
---
Back in Donghuang, he was still bombing student tourneys like a shark in a kiddie pool.
Now finally… the shark reveals its true form!
"Pure Master. Teacher Lu definitely has elite Trainer-level strength."
"Fighting a Gym Leader? Still just fighting babies!"
"Go Lu-baby!! Wreck 'em!!"
It wasn't just the livestream.
---
In Teacher Lu's friend group, many were also watching the match unfold.
Erika had just finished her Gym inspection.
Her forehead was covered in a light sheen of sweat, her dark hair slightly damp.
After adjusting her breath, she tucked her short hair behind one ear and opened the livestream.
Seeing the scoreboard, Erika was visibly stunned, 'I didn't even participate… and we're already this far ahead? It's not scary that they won—it's scary that they won without me!'
Meanwhile, Ruby and Sapphire were also keeping tabs from Hoenn, following their friend Roxanne's match.
At home, Sapphire had her feet propped on Ruby's legs.
"Roxanne's up against Teacher Lu," she blinked. "She's probably gonna get crushed, right?"
"Don't worry, Teacher Lu has restraint."
Ruby massaged Sapphire's soft white feet, then suddenly smiled.
"Though Wally… seems a lot more cheerful now."
The camera cut to the contestant bench—Wally was chatting and laughing with Gladion.
Gladion had his usual edgy pose, covering his forehead with his golden bangs, nodding now and then.
"It's Teacher Lu's personality charm, duh," Sapphire huffed proudly.
Proud as he was, Ruby just clicked his tongue and muttered, "He's only a little bit more handsome than me anyway…"
---
Back at the tournament venue.
Halftime break.
Upon hearing that Roxanne would be stepping up, Teachers Roger and Wen Zi were pacing anxiously.
"Teacher Lu, want me to go in first? I can chip some HP for you."
"Teacher Lu, want a Wiki Berry? Bring two—maybe sneak in a nasty surprise!"
Lu Ye twitched slightly at the corners of his mouth, 'That's… borderline cheating, isn't it?!'
But since this was a match against Roxanne, he couldn't afford to be careless.
When he said "hold back," he actually meant to send Squirtle.
For the 3v3 format… as for the last slot—
"Veeon~?" Sylveon stood beside him, ribbons tied to Lu Ye's arm, blinking its big sapphire eyes.
"Friendly exchange," Lu Ye said thoughtfully. "You… get what that means, right?"
"Veeon! (▼皿▼#)"
You absolutely don't get it!
Lu Ye looked a little uneasy.
Still, with this little one by his side, he could feel more secure.
He returned Sylveon to its Poké Ball and headed back onto the battlefield.
The cheering only grew louder.
"This will be… a main event showdown ahead of schedule!" The commentator shouted.
By now, no one doubted it anymore.
This young teacher was the real ace of Celadon Academy.
And Roxanne, roughly the same age as Lu Ye, would now stake the reputation of Rustboro Gym on this match.
Roxanne, her twin tails swaying, shook hands with Lu Ye.
"Please take care of me, Teacher Lu."
"You too," Lu Ye smiled back.
"I'll treat this match as an official Gym Challenge." Roxanne's eyes were sharp.
Lu Ye's expression changed slightly, 'Come on, that's not necessary. Really!'
"Both trainers ready!"
The referee raised the flag high.
"Begin!"
As the flag dropped, Roxanne threw out her Poké Ball:
"Go, Nosepass!"
Her signature Pokémon—Nosepass, encased in an electromagnetic field, stood like a one-meter-tall stone statue.
Three tiny components orbited around it—formidable weapons in their own right.
[Nosepass– Rock + Steel]
[Ability: Sturdy]
[Held Item: Leftovers]
[Moveset: Stealth Rock, Thunder Wave, Magnet Rise, Gravity, Rock Slide, Earth Power…]
Lu Ye frowned slightly.
The exchange tournament had no move restrictions, which made prediction significantly harder.
And from another perspective, a tanky status-spreader like Nosepass was a total headache.
"Careful, Arcanine," Lu Ye said grimly.
"If you can't beat it, just surrender."
"Arrooo!" Arcanine nodded, full of pride.
Roxanne blinked.
'Was that… the most timid thing said in the firmest tone?!' No—Roxanne shook her head. 'That's clearly just trash talk tactics!'
"Nosepass, Magnet Rise!"
Being 4x weak to Ground, Magnet Rise could negate that fatal flaw.
As electromagnetic energy surged, Nosepass slowly levitated.
Lu Ye's eyes narrowed. "Arcanine, Flamethrower!"
Arcanine opened its jaws—roaring flames gathered at its mouth, casting red light across the whole arena.
"Zap Cannon!" Roxanne commanded.
The three orbiting magnets aligned in front of Nosepass, forming a triangle.
As magnetic energy built up—
BOOM!
Blazing white light and Arcanine's flames collided in midair.
Smoke billowed.
The three mini magnets detached and flew through the smoke, homing in on Arcanine.
A series of explosions followed—Magnet Bombs detonated directly on Arcanine!
Lu Ye's frown deepened.
"Arcanine, Morning Sun!"
A ray of sunlight pierced the clouds, bathing Arcanine in its glow.
"Arrooo!! (｀0´)"
Arcanine howled skyward, its mane shimmering in the light—its injuries visibly healing!
Even someone as composed as Roxanne couldn't help but curse in her heart, 'Finally wore it down a bit… and you just healed it all back?!'
---
In the livestream chat, viewers groaned.
"Please, just be human, I beg you!!"
"Gotta say… this really is classic Teacher Lu style."
"C'mon Roxanne! Don't lose to him!!"
But as a Gym Leader, Roxanne quickly regained her composure.
"Nosepass, close-range Thunder Wave!"
Arcanine was incredibly fast, but under a magnetic field, Thunder Wave could lock onto it perfectly.
Rumbling filled the arena—Nosepass slowly floated toward Arcanine.
Point-blank Thunder Wave? Isn't that asking to get slapped?
Lu Ye frowned, but still commanded: "Arcanine, Fire Blast!"
"Gravity!" Roxanne dropped the hammer.
A crushing force weighed down on Arcanine—its gathering fire scattered and exploded at the wrong angle.
Now!
Roxanne's eyes gleamed. "Earth Power!"
Thud!
Nosepass slammed into the ground.
A shockwave burst outward in all directions—Earth Power, double effective against Fire-types, and Arcanine couldn't dodge under gravity!
The commentator screamed: "Earth Power, double-effective on Arcanine—this is Roxanne's true trump card!"
This hit would absolutely take Arcanine down!
Even Ruby, watching the match, sighed. "Looks like Roxanne's got this one."
"No—look!" Sapphire gasped. "Ruby, look!"
"Arcanine, Snarl!" Lu Ye ordered calmly.
"That won't help!" Roxanne shouted. "Even if you lower my Sp. Atk, Arcanine still takes massive damage!"
"You're right."
Lu Ye looked pained, eyes deep and thoughtful, 'but what I'm using… is Reversal.'
[Reversal: A full-power move that grows stronger the lower your HP is.]
"Arcanine, Reversal!"
Crap!
Roxanne's heart jolted.
Swallowed by the Earth Power, Arcanine howled in pain—but in its eyes was a flicker of primal rage.
Like a lion, it leapt forward—slamming into Nosepass with a devastating Reversal that dented its steel armor!
4x effective—super effective!
"No—it's not over!" the analyst yelled. "Nosepass's Sturdy ability saved it from the KO!"
Roxanne seized the opening: "Magnet Bomb!"
Tiny magnets shot at Arcanine's battered body—ready to explode.
The audience, moments ago hopeful, suddenly felt a bucket of cold water dumped on them, 'Had Teacher Lu finally miscalculated?'
After all, the sheer number of tactical exchanges in just those few seconds had already gone beyond normal human processing!
'A misstep? You think I'd let you outplay me?' Lu Ye gave a cold smile: "Arcanine, Extreme Speed!"
With priority, Arcanine lunged forward—one paw slamming Nosepass to the ground before the bombs could even explode!
Roxanne felt like she couldn't breathe.
She could only watch, helplessly, as Arcanine—with barely a sliver of HP—countered and defeated Nosepass, 'Just seconds ago, Nosepass had been at full health! This level of prediction and adaptation… is that even human?!'
The arena fell completely silent.
The audience stared at each other in disbelief. 'Wasn't Nosepass just dominating? How did it suddenly get reversed in a blink?'
"Holy sh*t, that Arcanine's using a one-HP cheat!"
"That reaction speed is insane!"
As wave after wave of gasps rippled through the crowd, Roxanne stared at the man calmly orchestrating everything. 'In a no-restrictions match… This strength he displayed… is just too overwhelming.'
"But there's still hope," Roxanne whispered, tossing out a Poké Ball.
"Go, Graveler!"
Meanwhile, Lu Ye walked up and patted his exhausted Arcanine.
"You did well."
He tapped the Poké Ball to its forehead.
"You've earned a break."
"Arrooo~" Arcanine licked Lu Ye's face with its wet tongue.
After returning Arcanine to the Poké Ball, Lu Ye sent out Sylveon.
Elegant and adorable, Sylveon's appearance drew a wave of screams from the crowd.
Used to the attention, Lu Ye once again reminded it:
"Friendly exchange—got it?"
"Veeon! (#｀皿´)" Sylveon nodded.
Don't worry!
No one understands "friendly exchange" better than me!