At the moment, Silk was practicing the move Magical Leaf with Fluffletuff. As a reward from the Grass Gym, the TM for this move wasn't a single-use item but a reusable one, which meant it was of relatively high grade. Naturally, to make full use of it, Marie and Yuri had each taught it to all the Pokémon on their teams who could learn it.

This gave them a solid advantage for the upcoming Water Gym challenge.

As a Grass-type, Fluffletuff picked up the move much faster than Silk. Silk was also splitting her focus on learning some off-type techniques, so although both Pokémon started at around the same time, it was now Silk's turn to ask Fluffletuff for help with channeling Grass-type energy and understanding more complex mechanics behind the move.

For the Water Gym challenge, Yuri had chosen Appledrake, Fluffletuff, and Eevee to participate.

Her Toxtricity had only just evolved and needed time to adjust to the sudden spike in power. What she needed now wasn't battle experience but internal training to get a firm grasp of her enhanced abilities.

Considering Toxtricity's current lack of move proficiency, Yuri wasn't foolish enough to throw her into a Gym battle. That would only do her harm.

So, even though the battle might be difficult for Eevee, Yuri had asked him directly and gave him the spot after he agreed.

Of course, this didn't mean Toxtricity could slack off. As the team's only Water-type, she needed to keep honing her precision and also help the others prepare. Her role was to simulate real battles, including how to deal with opponents lurking underwater.

And speaking of underwater there was the problem of Chuchu. His feathers hadn't evolved to the steel-armor texture of a Corviknight yet, and weren't water-resistant. While Nessa probably wouldn't deliberately field something like a Goldeen that never leaves the water, Marie still needed to prepare him just in case.

At the very least, Chuchu had to be comfortable entering the water and locating his target immediately upon impact.

Marie mentally made a note to adjust his training plan to include that scenario. Even if they ended up handling such situations with Silk's psychic abilities instead, she'd rather be safe than sorry.

When Marie approached, she saw Toxtricity darting through the water with agility, dodging Magical Leaves from Fluffletuff and Silk. Every now and then, she fired back a Water Gun to disrupt their aim.

"Oh, Marie, what brings you over here?"

Yuri noticed her approaching and waved with a smile. Eevee was training nearby with Appledrake, practicing Quick Attack and Swift. Fighting an underwater opponent was proving difficult for him. He had no long-range attacks, nor a way to create a stable footing on the surface of the water.

Yuri was even considering buying a one-time-use TM for Shadow Ball to expand his options.

With just Swift, Eevee was basically a last-resort pick for Dynamax, and anything short of that left him struggling to gain the upper hand.

"What are you thinking about?" Marie asked.

"Just... wondering what kind of strategy would work for Eevee."

Marie followed her gaze and looked at Eevee, who was dashing back and forth beside Appledrake. She nodded slowly. Yeah, at least Chuchu could fly. Eevee, on the other hand, had it rough against Water-types.

"Come up with anything yet?"

"Not really... Right now, my best bet is to make Eevee the Dynamax opener. He can take down two opponents, and then the other three Pokémon can gang up on Nessa's Drednaw."

"Well, that's a bold plan."

Marie didn't dismiss the idea. It was hard to gauge how much Dynamax would amplify Eevee's strength. Still, judging from the current average strength of Yuri's team, Nessa's Pokémon might not be her strongest options either. Taking out two was plausible.

Gym Leaders usually saved their Dynamax for their last Pokémon anyway, which was a subtle way of leveling the playing field.

"But... Fluffletuff and Appledrake aren't built for defense. I'm worried we won't be ganging up on Drednaw he'll Dynamax and wipe out all three of mine in one shot."

If only Fluffletuff had already evolved...

Both girls knew how flimsy a Cottonee was. They exchanged a glance, silently acknowledging it without saying it aloud. No point in adding pressure to their Pokémon.

"Want to borrow one of my TMs?" Marie offered after a short pause, her eyes still on Silk as she spoke.

Yuri smiled awkwardly and rubbed her face, then suddenly wrapped her arms around Marie's neck from behind, draping herself over her.

"You're so unfair, Marie! How many things do you want me to owe you? I'll never be able to repay them all!"

Marie stumbled, quickly grabbing Yuri's hands wrapped in front of her chest for balance. Hearing the odd tone in Yuri's voice, she thought for a moment, then half-joked,

"Then keep owing me. I'll make you pay me back slowly."

"Why?! That means I'll be stuck by your side forever!"

Yuri tilted her head to rest it on Marie's shoulder, her warm breath brushing Marie's ear as she spoke, making Marie visibly uncomfortable.

"You don't like the sound of that?"

"That's not it! It's just... such a weird reason! Why do I have to follow you around like some kind of indentured servant?"

Marie chuckled.

"Miss Yuri, may I ask what sort of things you're imagining with that tiny head of yours? I never said anything like that."

"Eh? I wasn't imagining anything! You're the one being weird here!"

"Oh? Then what exactly did you think I meant? I was just saying you're treating me like some kind of shady merchant."

"Well... that's exactly what I meant too! Hmph!"

Yuri puffed out her cheeks, still clinging stubbornly to the argument, then buried her now flushed face in Marie's shoulder. The small cap on her head slid off again, landing neatly in Marie's palm.

Judging by how violently Yuri was trembling, Marie could tell she was mortified. She stifled a laugh, not daring to tease her further in case Yuri exploded in embarrassment.

Still red-faced, Yuri stomped once in place, then suddenly looked up, ready to switch tactics altogether.

"Fine! I don't care anymore! Marie, what kind of TM were you thinking of lending me?"

"How about Hyper Voice? I figure Eevee probably wouldn't enjoy playing support by boosting stats or using Baton Pass to set things up for others. He seems more like the head-on brawler type."

"Hmm... I don't know about that."

Yuri rubbed her chin. Her Eevee definitely liked charging in headfirst, but it wasn't that extreme. He knew when to attack and when to retreat. Marie made it sound like he had zero tactical awareness.

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