I am Giovanni

Chapter 96: Special Children

The two bickering children quickly spotted Giovanni and his two companions ahead. As for the Charizard, it must have noticed them long ago but was simply too lazy to bother. In the eyes of a Champion's Pokémon, perhaps only a someone of a similar level or Legendary Pokémon could truly catch its attention.

Giovanni and Archer weren't even worth a single Ember.

Upon seeing them, Red let out a soft, "Oh, there's someone."

Professor Oak's grandson, Blue, observed much more carefully. His gaze swept over their waistbands, and his eyes lit up. "Poké Balls? They're trainers!" Fortunately, for the sake of disguise, they only had six Poké Balls on their waists. Otherwise, things would have gotten interesting.

"Trainers?" Red's eyes immediately sparked with excitement. He ran a few steps forward, inadvertently drawing the Charizard's gaze with him. This made Giovanni's heart sink, but even if he made a move, he couldn't defeat a Charizard of that caliber. It was better to remain calm— a false, friendly smile appeared on his arrogant face.

"Big brothers, are you trainers?" Red asked. "Are you here in Pallet Town to challenge Grandpa Oak? What a shame, he's not here these days."

Blue slowly walked over and scolded the naive Red. "Red, are you an idiot? Why do you blurt everything out?"

Red looked confused. "What's wrong?"

"You don't even know if they're bad people, and you just talk to them," Blue said with exasperation. "What if they want to harm you?" His words were harsh, but full of concern. He was cold on the outside but warm-hearted.

However, with what he had said, even if Giovanni were given the courage, he wouldn't dare to touch the two of them. Did he really think the Charizard Professor Oak had left in Pallet Town was just for show?

Giovanni shook his head, pulled out his fake identification, and spoke under the wary gazes of the two children. "I'm not a bad person. We are trainers from the Alliance. These are my companions. We're not here to challenge the Champion this time; I don't have that strength. We just want to travel from the dock ahead to Vermilion City."

Archer and Mars nodded quickly.

Blue paid more attention to Giovanni's earlier words. He lifted his small face and spoke with an air of arrogance. "It's good that you have some self-awareness." He clearly admired his grandfather greatly.

"Travel!" Red was different. He had mainly heard the latter part of the sentence, and his face was filled with envy. "Is it to become a Pokémon Master, make more Pokémon friends, and then travel all over the world?" he asked expectantly.

Though Blue maintained an arrogant demeanor, his ears were perked up, and his eyes held a hint of longing.

"Yes," Giovanni said with a slight smile. "Isn't that the meaning of travel?"

"That's amazing!" Red exclaimed. "Blue and I have always wanted to travel, but Grandpa Oak and my parents keep disagreeing, saying we're still too young."

"Hmph," Blue lifted his head. "It's because you're too weak. If it weren't for you, I would have gone traveling long ago."

"No way! I'm very strong!" Red immediately retorted, casually throwing out a Poké Ball. "Come out, Squirtle!" An adorable Squirtle appeared, turning its head in confusion.

Giovanni glanced at it and couldn't help but sigh inwardly. Squirtle? Isn't it supposed to be Charmander? Ah, it doesn't really matter when he has all three at Mt. Silver...

"Nice." he said with a smile. "It seems you've put a lot of effort into training it."

"Really?" Red shouted happily.

Blue, unwilling to let him be happy, immediately struck him down. "Your Squirtle can't even beat my Bulbasaur. He's just comforting you."

Upon hearing this, Red eagerly said to Giovanni, "Big brother, let's have a battle! Let me see the strength of a real trainer."

Giovanni was stunned for a moment. This brat... is he that bold? I've beaten you in Mt. Silver and the Battle Tree! I don't mind at all!

The clever Blue pulled him aside. "What are you thinking? You've only been raising Pokémon for a few days. If you want to see their strength, why not let Charizard battle them?"

"Roar." The Charizard behind them disdainfully snorted two streams of scorching flames from its nose and let out a low growl— a drop of cold sweat immediately ran down Giovanni's forehead. Uh...

"Don't let me get a chance later," he thought to himself, then quickly refused. "This is the Champion's Pokémon, right? I'm no match. There's no need to make a fool of myself."

"Yeah!" Red said, finally catching Blue in the wrong. "Aren't you bullying people?"

Blue hadn't thought much of it just now, but he waved his hands repeatedly. "That's not what I meant."

"It's alright," Giovanni said, like a warm and understanding big brother. "Although I can't be your opponent right now, as long as you want to become trainers, we will definitely meet again in the future. At that time, let's have a battle."

Red clenched his fists and shouted enthusiastically, "Okay! We'll both become trainers very soon. When that happens, you must have a battle with me! Oh, by the way, big brother, what's your name?"

"Giovanni," he said with a soft smile.

Blue looked at him, his small eyes gleaming with intelligence. Though a bit of a tsundere, he was still very polite. "Big Brother Giovanni, could you let us see your Pokémon? I want to see what kind of strength is needed to go traveling."

"Yes, yes!" Red immediately chimed in.

"Alright," Giovanni said, placing his hand on his belt and taking out two Poké Balls. "Since you want to see them, I'll show you."

His Machoke and Nidorino were released, both full of vigor— but upon seeing the Charizard, they were clearly startled. Still, they were like young calves unafraid of tigers, their gazes determined.

"Wow, it's a Machoke and a Nidorino!" Red exclaimed.

Blue, on the other hand, carefully observed them, speaking like a wise little old man. "Whether it's their physique, spirit, or potential, they are all top-tier."

Giovanni gave Blue a deep look— as expected of Professor Oak's grandson. He can make such accurate judgments just by looking. "That's right," he said. "You're very accurate."

"Blue, you're so amazing!" Red tugged at his arm, pleading. "When did you learn this skill? Teach me too!"

"Not you," Blue said to Red exasperatedly. "You're too stupid." Then he added, "But I'll help you look when the time comes."