Chapter 175: Fuchsia Gym, vs. Lower Ninja!
2024-05-15 Author: Samsung Charmander
Inside the Fuchsia Gym.
Ash and his companions arrived in a spacious room. Beneath their feet was a wooden floor marked with the official white lines of a battlefield. The floor wasn't too hard; stepping on it forcefully would produce a creaking sound.
After they stated their purpose, the Ninja Girl said she was going to get the Gym Leader. The three of them ended up waiting for nearly twenty minutes. It wasn't until Pikachu had fallen into a deep sleep on the spot that two figures slowly walked out.
Ash quickly straightened his expression and focused his gaze. Just like the Ninja Girl, the Gym Leader was also a middle-aged ninja.
Just from his stern and meticulous aura, Ash knew he couldn't be careless. He thought to himself that he was probably in for a tough battle today.
"..."
Koga glanced at the three of them, his gaze finally landing on Ash.
Just as he had told his daughter, Janine, the first step for a ninja is to observe everything about their opponent. However, this particular trainer left him somewhat puzzled.
Take the Spiky-Haired Youth from Pallet Town a few days ago, for example. He had kicked the door open, strode in with his hands on his hips, and laughed wildly. His attitude was extremely arrogant, like a moron.
But the shrewd Koga naturally saw through him. Although his behavior was arrogant, his eyes were carefully sizing up his surroundings. Clearly, the moronic act was just a disguise; his mind was far more meticulous than that of an ordinary trainer.
It was just a case of feigning weakness to ambush the strong.
If he had to evaluate him, Koga felt that the spiky-haired trainer could barely be considered someone on the third layer.
But this youth in the cap standing before him now... he couldn't see through him at all, couldn't tell what layer he was on.
At first glance, a complete greenhorn.
At second glance, still a greenhorn.
No matter how many times he looked, he was a greenhorn.
But Koga's years of intuition in judging people told him that this youth was not simple. He was definitely not the greenhorn he appeared to be. He could sense a dangerous aura from him. And when he considered that the boy could portray the look and feel of a greenhorn to such perfection, Koga's pupils suddenly contracted, and he couldn't help but suck in a sharp breath.
"I actually can't see through him..."
The two stared at each other from across the hall, their clash of auras resulting in a stalemate.
Everyone else: "?"
Janine and her two companions, watching from the side, couldn't make heads or tails of it. They didn't understand why the two were staring at each other like they were examining a chrysanthemum with a microscope.
"The Fuchsia Gym Challenge Match will be a 3v3 battle! When all three of one side's Pokémon are unable to battle, the outcome will be decided!"
The Ninja Girl, Janine, stood in the middle of the battlefield acting as the referee, her expression exceptionally serious and solemn.
Today was her father's final battle as a Gym Leader. She would commit Koga's every move and every command to memory.
"I get it."
Ash looked around. It was his first time having an indoor battle surrounded by wooden floors and walls, but the space wasn't too cramped. His specialty, speed, could still be put to good use.
"Come out, my Lower Ninja!"
Koga once again threw a Shuriken Poké Ball, muttering an incantation and forming a Tiger Seal.
His Pokémon were divided into four levels. First, the Lower Ninja, specifically for dealing with fodder. A sufficiently strong novice trainer could defeat them. If Archer were to use his combat power scanner, their combat power would be around 2000.
The second level was the Middle Ninja, which could only be defeated by those with strength greater than the average novice trainer. Their combat power was around 4000.
The third level was the Upper Ninja. This was already at the level of an elite trainer, a realm that a newbie couldn't possibly reach without several years of training. Their combat power was around 8000.
As for the fourth level, this was Koga's full strength. Their strength was so great they could even face the Elite Four head-on, and their combat power was indescribable!
Koga had named this level...
General!
The Shuriken Poké Ball flashed open, and appearing before Ash was a round, purple Pokémon with a pair of adorable, large eyes on its face.
"Pokedex Beep. Venonat, a Bug-type and Poison-type Pokémon. Its eyes are as large as bells and function as a radar. Be careful."
The Pokedex prompted. After a moment, it issued another prompt:
"Radar: An instrument that uses special electromagnetic waves to detect targets and determine their spatial position."
It was worried its trainer was illiterate and wouldn't understand the meaning of radar, so it gave a well-intentioned reminder.
"Don't look down on me, I know what a radar is!"
Ash's face flushed red, but he silently wondered if his Pokedex was a mind-reader. He had just been wondering what a radar was.
He only knew about detonators. When he was a kid, he and Gary would often go to the back mountain of Pallet Town to blow up Tauros dung with detonators. His first reaction to the word radar was that it was some kind of bomb.
"A Bug-type, huh? It looks a little weak... Then I choose you, Pidgeotto!!"
Ash sent out his workhorse ace.
"Pidgeot-to!!"
Pidgeotto flapped its wings and rose with a loud cry. He hadn't seen it for a few days, and the feathers on its body were now glistening brightly. Its level seemed to have increased quite a bit.
"A Flying-type, is it? This is our last battle. Venonat, there's no need to hold back anymore," Koga suddenly said, his words baffling.
As his voice fell, the Venonat burst into a white light. In less than a few seconds, its form changed completely, having undergone evolution into something else.
It had a moth-like body, pinkish-white all over, and seemed to be covered in a hazy powder of scales. It flapped its two wings, quickly adapting to its ability to fly.
Venomoth!
Ash: "?"
Evolving on the spot again?!
Was raising a Venonat that could evolve all just to counter me in this battle?!
But even so, his opponent was a Bug-type and Poison-type, and Pidgeotto's advantage was still clear. Yet Ash didn't dare to be careless. The feeling this middle-aged ninja gave him was completely different from other Gym Leaders.
The battle begins!
"Venomoth, use Stun Spore!"
Right at the start, Koga took the offensive, still leading with Stun Spore.
However, the power of this Venomoth's Stun Spore was far greater than that of Janine's Venonat. The yellowish powder howled through the air, covering a very large area.
"Hmph, an ordinary Pidgeotto's Gust won't be able to blow this away."
"Pidgeotto, use Defog!"
Following Ash's shout, Pidgeotto beat its wings. Its wings actually carried a pure white aura of purification, and as it flapped, this white energy easily blew away the cloud of Stun Spore.
Koga's brow furrowed slightly. This was the first time he had seen a Pidgeotto that knew Defog.
The move wasn't over. The power of Defog transformed into a blade of white energy and shot forward.
"Venomoth, use Psybeam!"
A blue light flashed in Venomoth's eyes, and the menacing Defog energy was frozen in mid-air. With a mere thought, its direction suddenly changed, shooting back toward Pidgeotto.
"Pidgeot-to!!"
Pidgeotto crossed its wings in front of itself and powerfully slapped the Defog energy, neutralizing the move with brute force.
"Moth..."
But just as it moved its wings from in front of its eyes, it was shocked to find that the Venomoth, which had been five meters away a moment ago, had somehow appeared directly in front of it.
"Such incredible speed!" Ash was slightly startled.
Koga, however, formed a hand seal and shouted:
"Hmph, use Toxic!"
How could a Poison-type Gym not use poison?
"Moth—"
Venomoth shook its wings, and at point-blank range, the Toxic energy completely enveloped Pidgeotto. In the next second, Pidgeotto's complexion turned dark, and purple bubbles appeared on its body.
Pidgeotto entered a Poisoned Status!
Koga revealed a cold smile, thinking to himself that the outcome of this battle was already decided. All he had to do now was drag it out, and he would be in an unbeatable position.
"Utility Bird, use Heal Bell," Ash suddenly shouted.
Koga: "?"
Had this trainer gone mad? To call out a move a Pokémon couldn't possibly learn... It seemed he was nothing to be afraid of.
"Ring, ring~~"
In the next second, the sound of a bell, clear and melodious, strangely reached Koga's ears. Then, a faint green light appeared on Pidgeotto.
Pidgeotto was cured of its Poisoned Status!
Koga was so shocked his eyes nearly popped out of his head.
So this trainer was a magician too?
(end of chapter)