The Cerulean Gym was packed with spectators. Amidst the shouts and cheers of the audience, the three Cerulean Sisters completed a perfect performance.
As the "Water Ballet" concluded, the audience began to file out. Led by Violet, the three Cerulean Sisters also prepared to depart.
Dressed in bikinis, the three sisters picked up their clothes, preparing to head through the tunnel back to their rooms to change.
However, they soon noticed Fuyuki, who remained in the spectator stands.
"There's still one spectator who hasn't left yet!" the second sister, Violet, noted.
"Could it be a reporter who wants to interview us?" the third sister, Lily, shouted toward Fuyuki. "If you want an interview, you have to go through our manager!"
An interview? No, he wasn't a reporter.
Fuyuki shook his head. "Ladies, I am a Pokémon Trainer here to challenge the Cerulean Gym."
"I see!" the eldest sister, Daisy, realized. She handed her clothes to her sisters and said, "In that case, let me take the challenge! I happen to have one Pokémon left that can still fight."
"Just one?" Fuyuki was stunned for a moment.
"That's right!" Daisy said helplessly. "Before you arrived, several Trainers from Pallet Town had already come and battled with us."
"Our Pokémon were beaten up miserably by them," the youngest, Lily, pouted. "Miserably, miserably... so miserably that even their eyes were crooked by the end. Honestly!"
"And besides, all our Pokémon are currently hospitalized at the Pokémon Center," Daisy added.
Fuyuki: "——"
"So, if you want to earn the Cascade Badge, bring it on! But don't underestimate my last Pokémon!" Daisy declared.
Fuyuki: "——Alright then."
One would do! As long as he could harvest some shock points, it was okay!
Fuyuki jumped down from the stands. Seeing this, Raikou, who had been lying on the floor hidden by the back of the seats, also stood up and leaped down from above.
Seeing this Pokémon with such an extraordinary aura, the three Cerulean Sisters were instantly frozen in place.
"That Pokémon is...?!"
"It looks like Raikou! I heard it's a new Legendary Pokémon discovered by Professor Oak three years ago!"
The discovery of Raikou back then had caused a massive stir in the Pokémon world. As the Cerulean Gym Leaders, they had naturally received the news immediately.
But—Raikou had actually been caught by a Trainer?
That was simply... incredible!
The way the three sisters looked at the young man before them changed instantly.
Glancing at the shock points being sent by the three sisters on his panel, Fuyuki gave a shy smile and introduced himself: "I'm Fuyuki, a Rookie Trainer from Pallet Town. I'm here to challenge the Cerulean Gym. Ladies, please guide me!"
Daisy, Violet, Lily: "?"
A massive question mark appeared over the heads of the three Cerulean Sisters.
"What?" Lily cried out. "A Rookie Trainer?"
Are you kidding? What kind of Rookie Trainer carries a Legendary Pokémon around with them?!
"Pallet Town—it's Pallet Town again!" Violet's face showed an expression of grief and indignation. "The guys who beat us up so miserably earlier were also Trainers from Pallet Town!"
The eldest sister, Daisy, still tried her best to remain calm. "Well then, since you want to challenge the Cerulean Gym, please get ready!"
"I'm ready." Fuyuki looked around. "Where is the battlefield?"
"Right here." Daisy clapped her hands, and several boards soon floated up in the pool that had been used for the performance.
She walked to one side and said to Fuyuki on the opposite side, "This water field is a specialty of the Cerulean Gym!"
"However, since our Pokémon are all hospitalized at the Pokémon Center, I only have one Pokémon left capable of fighting. So, the rule for this match is 1v1. If you win, this Cascade Badge is yours!"
As she spoke, Daisy took out a blue badge shaped like a water droplet.
"No problem." Fuyuki stretched his wrists and grinned. "We're determined to win!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the Raikou that had been standing behind him suddenly lifted its paw and walked forward.
Seeing this, Lily's eyes widened instantly.
She said in disbelief, "Hey, this guy... he wouldn't be thinking of using Raikou to challenge the Gym, would he?"
Violet couldn't help but gape. "These Pallet Town Trainers are really too much!"
They just knew how to bully the Cerulean Gym!
"Sigh, there's no choice. Who told us our strength is the weakest among all the Gyms?" Lily spread her hands helplessly.
If one were to ask which Gym Leader in the Kanto Region was the strongest, it would undoubtedly be Mr. Giovanni of the Viridian Gym.
Next would be Blaine of Cinnabar Island, and then Sabrina of Saffron City.
Speaking of Sabrina, the two sisters couldn't help but shiver. That woman was very cruel to Trainers who challenged her Gym!
Sabrina was a famous Psychic within the Kanto League. It was said that Trainers who failed her challenge would be imprisoned by her Psychic powers or even turned into dolls as punishment!
"I wonder what kind of scene it would be if this Trainer met Sabrina—"
While the sisters were lost in thought, the battle on the water field had already begun.
Raikou vs. Luvdisc!
Facing a Legendary Pokémon like Raikou, the eldest sister Daisy didn't dare to relax for a second. The moment the battle began, she ordered the Luvdisc in the water to use Agility to increase its speed as much as possible, hoping to narrow the gap with Raikou.
But in the face of absolute overwhelming strength, even stat-boosting moves couldn't do much.
Facing the Luvdisc darting around in the water, Fuyuki simply used a brute-force approach with Discharge, instantly knocking the Luvdisc out of the fight.
The Luvdisc rolled its eyes and slowly floated to the surface of the water.
The battle was over!
"Honestly, I knew it!" Lily said huffily. "These Pallet Town Trainers are really too much!"
Fortunately, Daisy was a good sport. She recalled Luvdisc into its Poké Ball and then handed the Cerulean Gym Badge to Fuyuki.
Fuyuki reached out to take the droplet-shaped badge, then opened his badge case and happily tucked it inside.
At that moment, the sharp-eyed sisters suddenly noticed that there were already two badges next to the Cascade Badge.
Those were—the Viridian Gym Badge and the Pewter Gym Badge!
"How can that be?" Violet was shocked. "Even Mr. Giovanni lost to him?!"
That was the strongest Gym Leader in the Kanto Region!
"Wait!" Lily seemed to suddenly remember something. Her pupils shrank as she said in shock, "Pallet Town is right next to Viridian City. Does that mean the first Gym he challenged was the Viridian Gym?"
A Rookie Trainer—starting off by challenging the most powerful Gym and actually winning? This kind of thing was just too absurd!
[Lily is incredibly shocked that you have already collected the Viridian Gym Badge. shock points from Lily +100!]
[Violet is... shock points from Violet +100!]
[Daisy is... shock points from Daisy +150!]
Another three hundred and fifty shock points arrived.
Hearing the sisters' words, Fuyuki looked up and said with a smile, "Mr. Giovanni is a very powerful Trainer. I only won after a hard-fought battle!"
The three sisters: "——"
"Well, it seems our skills are just inferior!" Daisy sighed helplessly, though they were genuinely impressed.