The Vermilion Gym Battle

At the Vermilion Gym, Gary's battle against Lt. Surge officially began.

As Lt. Surge's apprentice, Pix looked at his opening Pokémon in surprise. Electabuzz!

In an ordinary Gym battle, Lt. Surge generally wouldn't use Electabuzz.

It was a reserve member of his main team, and its level was far too high for beginners still working their way through the Gyms.

But when Gary's opening Pokémon appeared, Pix understood.

What kind of beginner opened with a Nidoking...?

"Electabuzz, use Thunder!" Lt. Surge started things off with a thunderbolt as a courtesy.

Boom! A thick bolt of lightning descended from the sky. Nidoking stood its ground, absorbed the bolt through its horn, then channeled it into the earth through its feet.

"Electric-type moves don't work at all on a Ground-type like Nidoking. So cut out the little tricks. Nidoking, use Horn Attack!" Gary seized the initiative and counterattacked.

Nidoking briefly gathered strength in its legs, then charged straight at Electabuzz.

"Electabuzz, Swift!" Lt. Surge's expression changed. The speed of Nidoking's charge startled him.

Electabuzz hurled a shower of golden stars, trying to stop Nidoking's advance.

But once Nidoking got moving, it was like a Tiger tank. There was no stopping it!

Bam! A head-on critical hit! Gary noticed how polished Nidoking's charging form was. Not only did its horn strike its opponent, but its right elbow, held in front of its chest, also slammed into Electabuzz along the way. That was downright dirty...

"Would you look at that? Gramps always calls himself an honest scholar, but you'd never know it from the Pokémon he trains~" Gary clicked his tongue, happily taking a jab at his grandfather.

At the referee's station, Pix winced. Good grief, this challenger was an absolute beast!

Cold sweat covered Lt. Surge's forehead, too. Wasn't a master tactician like Gary supposed to rely on clever tricks? Since when was explosive hand-to-hand combat his style?

Still, Gary had never said he wouldn't use clever tricks.

"Nidoking, Earth Power!" Before his opponent could regain its footing, Gary pressed the attack.

"Roar!" Nidoking leaped up, then drove its right fist hard into the ground.

Boom! The ground cracked outward around Nidoking. Earthen-yellow beams shot into the sky, blasting Electabuzz into the air.

It was super effective!

"Electabuzz, don't be afraid! Use Iron Tail from there!" A soldier through and through, Lt. Surge had never lacked the nerve to risk everything.

Using the momentum of its fall, Electabuzz swung its metallic tail hard at Nidoking.

"Dodge it!" Gary frowned.

Whoosh! Nidoking shuffled back and forth with quick little steps, then slipped sideways in a textbook dodge, avoiding Electabuzz's Iron Tail completely!

"A sidestep off a hop! Is this thing a boxer?!" Lt. Surge clutched his head, speechless.

But it wasn't over yet.

After dodging the attack, Nidoking was perfectly positioned to put its full strength into the next blow.

Boom! White light flashed around its right fist as Nidoking threw a straight right.

"Mega Punch~" Gary raised an eyebrow. The Kangaskhan back home really was skilled at close combat. Unfortunately, Nidoking couldn't learn its signature Dizzy Punch~

Bang! One punch drove Electabuzz into the ground. Nidoking lifted its enormous foot. Bam! Another blow to the head!

Even Gary couldn't help covering his face. "Tsk, tsk~ That's just brutal..."

Seeing Electabuzz lying there without a sound, Pix hurriedly raised her hand. "Electabuzz is unable to battle! Nidoking wins!"

"That's enough, Nidoking~" Gary stopped Nidoking in time, too.

Nidoking gave Electabuzz a regretful look. One second later, and it would have unleashed its Double Kick...

"Well... that was certainly unexpected." Lt. Surge recalled Electabuzz, his gaze solemn.

As expected of a man who could visit an amusement park with Lorelei, Gary was no ordinary opponent.

Gary: Excuse me? What does that have to do with my battling ability?

"Come back, Nidoking. Good work." Gary recalled Nidoking and waited for the next round to begin.

"It's still in great shape. You're not going to keep using it?" Lt. Surge asked, puzzled by Gary's decision.

"I have to leave some opportunities for my other partners, too. A Trainer should spread the love." Gary spread his hands.

"Hmph! You won't be so lucky next time!" Lt. Surge threw another Poké Ball. "Go, Raichu!"

Lt. Surge's second Pokémon was none other than the Raichu that had beaten Ash's Pikachu.

"Rai, rai~" Raichu wore an arrogant grin and beckoned provocatively at Gary.

Pix's eyes lit up. She trained her Pikachu using Raichu as a model. She would have to watch this match closely.

Unfortunately, Gary had no intention of giving Raichu a chance to show off.

"Rhydon, time for a little rehabilitation exercise." Gary casually tossed a Poké Ball.

Pop! The Poké Ball opened, and Rhydon made an imposing entrance amid white light. The ball bounced back along its original path into Gary's hand.

"Roar~" Rhydon pounded the armor on its chest with its right hand, producing a metallic clang.

"Rai?" Raichu's confidence instantly shrank.

"Kid, you really... aren't pulling any punches~" Lt. Surge's mouth twitched.

Gym Leaders often faced unfavorable type matchups, but honestly, this was the first time Lt. Surge had met someone who targeted him as thoroughly as Gary did.

"Your Raichu seems to specialize entirely in Electric-type power, doesn't it?" Gary asked with a smile.

Lt. Surge rolled his eyes. That was right. His Raichu was an Electric-type archmage, able to unleash almost any powerful Electric-type move effortlessly.

In exchange, it barely practiced any other moves...

"Why don't you try hitting us with Thunder?" Gary suggested.

Rhydon cheerfully waved its thick arms, indicating that it was ready.

Honestly, Gary had just used Appraisal to check Raichu's move list, and he had nearly laughed out loud.

Aside from its collection of powerful Electric-type attacks, the only moves Raichu had trained to an acceptable proficiency were Body Slam, Mega Punch, and Iron Tail...

Using close-combat moves against a steel-armored behemoth-just imagining it was quite a spectacle.

"Raichu, don't let them look down on you! Use Wild Charge!" Lt. Surge gritted his teeth and ordered a suicidal charge.

"Rai, rai!" Raichu squeezed its eyes shut as electricity surged wildly over its body. Covered in golden lightning, it charged fearlessly toward Rhydon.

"So you were in such a hurry to evolve it that you used a Thunder Stone before it even learned Volt Tackle!" Gary shook his head regretfully.

This was exactly why Gary didn't advocate evolving Pokémon too early.

Some moves could no longer be learned after evolution. For instance, Pikachu could only master Volt Tackle by practicing an extremely high-speed Quick Attack alongside Discharge!

After evolving, it would never be able to learn that move, because Raichu's build meant it could never reach Pikachu's top speed...

And although Wild Charge was also a powerful Electric-type move, it was still a tier below Volt Tackle!

"Enough talk! Take this!" Gary's questions had gotten under Lt. Surge's skin.

Pix, meanwhile, looked thoughtful. Under Lt. Surge, she had been taught that Electric-type Pokémon should learn every powerful Electric-type move.

Evolving Pikachu as early as possible would allow it to store more electricity and increase its power.

But after hearing Gary's words, Pix hesitated. Was evolving Pikachu earlier really always better?

On the other side, Gary showed Lt. Surge no mercy. His gaze sharpened. "Catch it!"

Bam! Rhydon slammed both thick arms down. With electricity writhing all over its body, Raichu was like an off-road vehicle that had crashed into a mountain. It raged helplessly, unable to advance an inch.

Finally, the lightning gradually faded, and Raichu collapsed to the ground, panting.

"Rhydon, use Stomping Tantrum!" Gary ordered mercilessly.

Rhydon abruptly raised its right foot and stomped hard toward Raichu on the ground.

"Get out of there, Raichu! Jump!" Lt. Surge improvised in desperation.

Raichu rolled aside, then pushed hard with its tail, flinging its entire body into the air.

Rumble! Rhydon's stomp missed, and the entire battlefield rocked from side to side as cracks spread through the ground!

"That's Stomping Tantrum? If you used Earthquake, would I even have a Gym left?" Lt. Surge went pale. "Raichu, use Iron Tail!"

"Grab it!" Gary raised an eyebrow. Raichu might have been a heavyweight Pokémon, but only compared with a small, nimble speedster like Pikachu.

It was still a little difficult for Rhydon's moves to land with perfect accuracy, and Gary wanted a guaranteed hit!

Smack! The tail, gleaming with a metallic sheen, struck Rhydon's left hand. Rhydon immediately closed its right hand around Raichu's tail!

"Now~ it's all yours~" Gary spread his hands.

"Roar~" Rhydon gave an innocent smile, then pulled hard with its right hand.

A meteor hammer~ Rhydon swung Raichu in wide circles, smashing it into the ground over and over across the battlefield.

After a few rounds, Raichu went from struggling and wildly discharging electricity to staring blankly...

Looking at Raichu lying on the ground, hugging itself, Rhydon tilted its head. "Roar~" (What a weak opponent...)

Gary nodded in satisfaction. Rhydon's physical strength had mostly recovered. He could start reducing its protein supplements next.

"Raichu... has lost the will to battle. Rhydon wins." Pix sounded a little dazed as she announced the result.

Gary's performance in this match had shattered her faith in everything she knew...

"Great work, Rhydon. Next up is this little guy." Gary recalled Rhydon and sent out Psyduck.

A vein bulged on Lt. Surge's forehead. "Who the hell are you looking down on?!"

Psyduck spread its hands. Hey~ I feel personally offended.

Gary gave a small, polite nod. "I'm not trying to mock you. I just want to see what this little guy can do. If it loses, I'll still use my earlier Pokémon to battle you."

Lt. Surge took out his last Pokémon's Poké Ball and hurled it onto the battlefield. "Voltorb, teach him a lesson!"

Gary shrugged at Psyduck. "Come on, show us what you've got~"