Bang—
Green collapsed to the ground.
The victory sound Red expected didn't play. Instead, the communication channel exploded with a roar so loud it nearly clipped the mic.
"RED!!! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING!!! I SPENT HALF AN HOUR FISHING UP THAT SHINY DRATINI!!!"
"Huh? Green?!"
Red's voice shot up instantly, filled with disbelief.
"How is it you?! I—I thought you were—"
"Right or wrong, I have no interest in discussing it."
Green's icy voice cut him off, anger compressed to its absolute limit.
On the screen, Green slowly stood up, locking his gaze on Red, who was quietly trying to step backward.
"Let's battle, Red. Right now."
"Fight! Fight! Fight!"
"Red vs Green! Legend vs Legend! A historic moment!"
"Hahaha! Red knocked Green down with one punch! Physical interrupt on the fisherman!"
"He fished up a Shiny Dratini! According to the forum experts, that's about a 1-in-10,000 chance! Green's gone berserk!"
"Place your bets! Red odds 1:10! Don't miss out!"
The chat went completely insane—people instigating, screaming, laughing—flooding the screen instantly.
Seeing he couldn't stop it, Rei Akagi wisely moved Little Rei to the edge of the battlefield.
If circumstances allowed, he'd probably grab a bag of sunflower seeds and enjoy the show.
Even the drowsy Ghastly in his arms suddenly perked up, eyes wide open.
On the screen, Green's character performed a very personal signature move.
He suddenly whipped out a chain of Poké Balls.
Six dazzling beams of white light shot skyward before crashing down onto the ground with overwhelming momentum.
Venusaur Lv.38
Pidgeot Lv.36
Arcanine Lv.35
Gyarados Lv.40
Rhydon Lv.42
Alakazam Lv.45
The moment they appeared, all six Pokémon locked their eyes on the pitiful Red.
"Six Pokémon! The lowest level is 35! The game's only been out for a few days!"
"This is the legendary Green! That's the gold standard of the Breeder!"
"Breeder × / Level Grinder √"
"How many Gyms have we even cleared? Even a Gym Leader's ace Pokémon isn't as high-level as Green's lowest one!"
Watching this outrageous team, the chat was delighted to stir up trouble.
Even Rei Akagi couldn't help clicking his tongue.
"As expected of the Breeder. Ridiculous in real life—and even more ridiculous in-game."
Seeing explanations were useless, Red swallowed hard while facing the six looming powerhouses.
It wasn't fear.
He had never feared a challenge.
It was just…
He felt a little guilty toward Green.
"Come on out, everyone!"
Red shouted, and his partners appeared one after another.
Charizard, Pikachu, and Poliwrath.
Among them, Poliwrath had the highest level—barely Lv.40.
Whether in numbers or overall strength, this battle looked like a complete stomp.
But—
His name was Red.
The battle erupted instantly.
Green showed no mercy, issuing commands like a raging storm.
"Venusaur! Sleep Powder!"
"Pidgeot! Use Tailwind and blow it over!"
"Arcanine and Rhydon—support with Helping Hand!"
"Gyarados, Hydro Pump! Target Charizard!"
"Alakazam—Future Sight!"
As the commands fell, Venusaur's flower instantly bloomed, releasing clouds of pollen.
Pidgeot whipped up a powerful accelerating wind, blowing straight toward Red.
Arcanine and Rhydon channeled their energy into Gyarados.
Wrapped in destructive force, a roaring pillar of blue water blasted forward toward Charizard!
At the same time, Alakazam floated in the air, its eyes glowing with mysterious light.
Future Sight.
It guarded against Red's desperate counterattack while preparing the final strike.
Red had never intended to fight head-on.
His reaction was lightning fast.
"Pikachu, Quick Attack! Push Poliwrath forward!"
The small Electric Mouse became a streak of golden lightning, slamming into Poliwrath's sturdy back.
"Poliwrath! Hold on! Then—Protect!"
Using the impact from Pikachu's charge, Poliwrath was shoved directly into the path of the terrifying Hydro Pump!
It crossed its arms as a blue energy shield instantly formed in front of it.
BOOM—
With a deafening explosion, the shield shattered almost instantly.
The remaining force of the Hydro Pump slammed into Poliwrath!
But the half-second of breathing room it bought—
That was exactly what Red needed.
"Charizard!"
Red's shout carried absolute resolve.
"Use Brick Break—and throw me over there!"
Charizard roared, its muscles bulging as it grabbed Red.
The Fighting-type power of Brick Break wasn't used to attack.
Instead, all its strength was poured into a throw.
If this were an official Pokémon League battle, Red might have considered surrendering.
But—
This was a no-rules fight.
Red's body shot through the air like a blurred projectile, so fast no one had time to react.
CRACK—
A crisp bone-cracking sound.
Red's head slammed squarely into Green's head.
The massive impact sent both characters spinning into a bizarre mid-air double backflip.
Then they dropped like puppets with cut strings, crashing onto the bridge.
Motionless.
Both Red's and Green's screens went completely black.
Today's result—
A draw.
This breathtaking clash and unbelievable strategy seemed long, yet it had actually happened in the blink of an eye.
No prolonged exchanges.
No drawn-out maneuvering.
Just one round, ending in the most dramatic way possible.
After a brief stunned silence, the livestream chat exploded.
"WHOA! THAT WAS INTENSE!!!"
"I DON'T UNDERSTAND ANYTHING! BUT MY BLOOD IS BOILING!!!"
"So exciting! Watching such powerful Trainers battle—worth dying for!!!"
"YES! THIS is what a true battle between masters looks like!!!"
"Red: As long as you take out the Trainer, it doesn't matter how strong their Pokémon are!"
Rei Akagi chuckled and poked the stunned Ghastly in his arms.
Then he calmly controlled his character, Little Bai.
Surrounded by Pokémon that had lost their Trainers and were now looking at each other in confusion—
He slowly strolled between the two "corpses."
Then, under the burning gaze of a million viewers, he extended those sinful hands…
And began searching their bodies with great familiarity.
"Little Rei obtained 5,000 ₽ from Red."
"Little Rei obtained 8,000 ₽ from Green."
The chat filled with question marks.
Then instantly exploded again.
"???"
"Damn! You can do that?! Teacher Salted Fish, you're so shameless! I love it!"
"'The Clam and the Snipe Fight' → 'The Fisherman Wins' → 'Salted Fish Victory'"
"Red & Green: Both sides heavily injured. Salted Fish: Hand it over."
"Case solved! Red only attacked Green because Salted Fish was fighting the NPC Green earlier! Now he's looting both bodies! He's the real mastermind!"
"GENIUS! That's galaxy-brain thinking! Someone discharge this man from the hospital!"
After confirming he hadn't missed any loot, Rei Akagi finally controlled Little Rei to calmly pull out two softly glowing irregular fragments from his bag.
Then he stuffed one into Red's mouth…
And the other into Green's.
Moments later—
Both characters slowly woke up.
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