◉◉◉◉
Kai had no idea what Ninja was thinking at that moment.
Even if he did, he probably would've just shaken his head and sighed at how narrow her worldview was.
That was the true advantage of traveling the world your perspective broadened, no longer confined to a single town or island.
For the residents of Dewford Town, Ninja certainly had reasons to be proud.
Brawly was famous here, after all.
But no matter how renowned Brawly was on Dewford Island, his reputation didn't extend beyond it. Within the Hoenn region, he was still just an ordinary Gym Leader. Compared to Elite Four members or Champions, the gap was obvious.
Even among Gym Leaders, every city had its own local hero each with strong prestige and devoted supporters. Brawly wasn't unique in that regard.
And Kai and Bea?
One was a Trainer who had already claimed championship titles in two regional leagues.
The other was herself a Gym Leader.
Neither of them was inferior to Brawly in status or strength.
So why would either of them care about his local fame?
Not to mention that Ninja was merely Brawly's student and his girlfriend.
Kai stepped forward, stopping at the spot where Bea had just stood, facing Ninja across the battlefield.
After the previous match, Ninja's Meditite was clearly no longer able to continue battling. And aside from it, whether she had underestimated Kai or simply lacked stronger Pokémon, she sent out only a single Machop.
It wasn't that Kai looked down on Machop.
But ever since his days in Kanto, he had battled countless Machop, Machoke, and Machamp. Their move pools, habits, and combat rhythm were all deeply familiar to him.
To be honest, he didn't feel much pressure at all.
Naturally, Ninja didn't know this. She spoke confidently on her own terms:
"My rules are simple. Before tomorrow's official Gym Battle, as long as you can defeat me in a one-on-one match, you'll earn the right to challenge Brawly."
She deliberately emphasized Brawly's name, trying to remind Kai just how difficult it was to even meet the Gym Leader.
Unfortunately for her, Kai's expression didn't change in the slightest.
He clearly hadn't taken the hint.
…What a blockhead.
"I understand," Kai said calmly.
He took out a Poké Ball and released his Pokémon.
Since he was challenging a Fighting-type Gym, he decided to respect the local customs.
And he happened to have just the right Pokémon for it.
"Go—Combusken!"
A flash of blue light burst forth, and Combusken appeared in front of Machop.
Both Pokémon stood under a meter tall, staring each other down as sparks of fighting spirit seemed to ignite in their eyes.
"Oh? A Combusken?" Ninja placed her hands on her hips, unimpressed.
"That's a pretty ordinary Pokémon."
Hearing the faint mockery in her tone, Kai glanced at her Machop.
You really have the nerve to say that?
Combusken was native to Hoenn and only rarely seen elsewhere—globally speaking, it was far from common.
Machop, on the other hand?
You could find them practically anywhere.
Kai couldn't be bothered to argue. He simply ignored her comment altogether.
Having run into a conversational wall, Ninja's smile stiffened for a moment—but she quickly refocused on the battle.
As acting Gym Leader, she also served as the referee.
Seeing both sides ready, she raised her voice.
"Alright—battle start!"
The moment she finished speaking, she immediately ordered Machop to charge straight at Combusken.
Seeing such a direct approach, Kai didn't have Combusken attack from range with Fire-type moves. Instead, he called out:
"Combusken, Bulk Up!"
Bulk Up was a Fighting-type move that tightened the user's muscles, increasing both Attack and Defense.
From that single command, Ninja could already tell—
Kai intended to fight her head-on, just like Bea had earlier.
Combusken raised its arms and struck a classic bodybuilder pose. Its muscles visibly tightened, radiating strength and density.
Ninja laughed loudly.
"Perfect! That's exactly what I wanted—let's settle this up close!"
"…That phrasing really doesn't sound right coming from you," Kai muttered to himself.
Still, he had already figured Ninja out.
She was the same type of Trainer as Ash—straightforward, emotional, and impulsive. She had some cleverness, sure, but not much subtlety. Everything she felt was written clearly on her face.
Fighting someone like that was exhausting…
And strangely easy.
On the field, while Combusken was powering up, Machop had already crossed half the battlefield.
It leapt into the air, aiming a flying kick straight at Combusken's head.
Kai had been expecting this.
"Combusken—Double Kick!"
Bang!
Both Pokémon's legs collided midair, evenly matched in force.
But before Machop could land, Combusken twisted its body and snapped out a second kick—slamming its foot directly into Machop's abdomen.
The first kick was blocked.
The second wasn't.
Empowered by Bulk Up, the blow sent Machop stumbling backward several steps before it barely regained its balance.
"Careful!" Ninja shouted.
"Don't clash head-on—find a way inside its guard!"
Machop charged again.
This time, having learned from before, it moved more cautiously. Once close, it feinted—then raised its right arm high and brought it down in a powerful chop.
Karate Chop.
Simple, but devastating.
Yet to Ninja's shock, Kai reacted instantly.
"Block."
Combusken crossed its arms, stopping the strike cleanly—then lifted its right leg and kicked Machop in the stomach again.
"What?!"
Hit in the same spot for the third time, Machop clutched its abdomen and staggered backward, gasping in pain.
Ninja stared at Kai in disbelief.
"How did you know what move I was going to use?!"
Kai glanced at her coolly.
"That's not hard. If you've fought enough of the same Pokémon, you start to understand their habits and options. Your Machop isn't especially strong, and it hasn't learned any unusual moves. Its attacks are easy to predict."
What Kai didn't say was that he had fought far too many Machop in his life.
Unfortunately, Ninja didn't catch that nuance at all.
She only heard one thing—
You're weak.
"How dare you look down on my Pokémon?!"
Furious, Ninja clenched her fists.
"I'll show you!"
She ordered Machop to attack recklessly, throwing caution aside.
To her credit, when she went all out, the pressure was real.
The two Pokémon exchanged dozens of blows in rapid succession. Machop took hit after hit, yet pressed forward relentlessly—trading damage for damage, completely ignoring defense.
Even Kai couldn't immediately shake it off.
But this approach came with a fatal flaw.
With Bulk Up active, Combusken was tougher and stronger. Fighting it head-on in this state was pure foolishness.
At first, Kai thought Ninja had some hidden strategy.
But as the fight dragged on, he realized—
She really was just attacking blindly.
Just like Ash in his early days: attack, attack, and attack again.
That style wasn't wrong—but it had its place.
And this wasn't it.
Combusken lashed out once more with Double Kick, striking Machop square in the chest.
This time, battered and exhausted, Machop could no longer endure it.
It fell backward and collapsed, unconscious.
"Yes!"
Misty jumped to her feet and clapped loudly, not even bothering to hide her excitement.
She had disliked Ninja for quite a while now—
her attitude, her arrogance, and her blind worship of Brawly.
If the match hadn't still been ongoing, Misty would've argued with her ages ago.
Now that Kai had won?
She didn't bother saying a word—just raised her chin proudly.
Ninja didn't look at Misty. Her voice was low as she said,
"You win. You can come challenge Brawly tomorrow morning."
Before the battle and after it, Ninja felt like two completely different people.
That final kick hadn't just knocked out Machop—it had shattered her pride.
In Pokémon battles, strength was everything.
And after losing twice in a row—overwhelmingly—to Bea and then Kai, the blow to her confidence was enormous.
Since they weren't close, and their goal had already been achieved, Kai nodded politely, said goodbye, and left the Dewford Gym with Misty.
They hadn't met Brawly yet—but at least they now had the right to challenge him.
The sky had grown noticeably darker.
Once they were far enough from the Gym, Misty finally complained:
"Seriously! I've never seen a Gym like this before. You have to earn the right to challenge it? You'd think we were going up against the Elite Four!"
Kai chuckled helplessly.
"It's probably just their local rule. Brawly's a professional surfer on top of being a Gym Leader—he doesn't have time to deal with challengers all day. This is likely how they filter people out."
They passed back through the distinctive mountain gate and began descending the gentle slope toward town.
Then Misty noticed it.
Far on the horizon, thick black clouds were rolling in over the sea.
"Looks like a storm's coming. We should head to the Pokémon Center."
Dewford Town was far more prosperous than the average island settlement—one of Hoenn's key hubs.
Tall buildings lined the streets, and the town buzzed with life.
A sudden gust of wind swept through.
The clouds were closer now.
The two quickened their pace and reached the Pokémon Center just before nightfall.
After checking in, they sat down for dinner—and overheard other Trainers talking about typhoons and torrential rain.
Outside, rows of palm trees along Dewford's streets began to sway violently, their massive leaves shuddering under nature's force.
Misty listened for a bit, then whispered,
"They're saying that cloud mass we saw earlier… It's a typhoon."
Kai nodded.
"Not surprising. Island towns deal with extreme weather all the time."
"Do you think it'll affect tomorrow's Gym Battle?"
Kai glanced out the window again. From the Pokémon Center's elevated position, he could see faint flashes of lightning deep within the clouds.
"At this rate, it might make landfall late tonight. Hopefully it won't interfere—but if it does, there's nothing we can do. Even if we finish the Gym Battle, leaving the island will probably have to wait until the typhoon passes."
"So… we're stuck here for a while," Misty said, sticking out her tongue—completely unconcerned.
After all, seaside Pokémon Centers were built with disasters in mind.
At worst, they'd just be staying a few extra days.
And really—
What was the problem with that?
◉◉◉◉◉
~Support with 200 PowerStones = 1 Bonus Chapter
◉◉◉◉◉
For early access to advanced chapters on P-atreon:
P-atreon/iamxeno
(Just remove the - hyphen to access normally)
Thank you so much for your support and for reading!