Kanto Region — Pewter City.
Time flew by in the blink of an eye. After several days of travel, Hayato finally made it through Viridian Forest and arrived in this stone-gray city — Pewter, the city of rock. Its Gym Leader was none other than Brock, and defeating him would earn Hayato the Boulder Badge!
"Brock's Onix is really strong… I don't think I stand a chance right now.Huh, weird — Brock's still here, but I haven't seen Ash. Don't tell me he's behind me this time?"
Brock specialized in Ground- and Rock-type Pokémon. If Hayato's Psyduck would just listen to him for once, maybe he'd have a chance. But Hayato knew full well what kind of unreliable duck he was dealing with — sending it out would be pure comedy.
"Right, the Fusion System should have reset its cooldown today, right?"
Ever since he captured Oddish and Sandshrew, Hayato had been waiting for his second fusion attempt. After so many days, he'd nearly forgotten about it.
Finding an empty clearing, Hayato released both Pokémon from their Poké Balls.
"Heh, all right—wait, what about their genders?"
Realizing that oversight, Hayato almost wanted to slap himself. If the genders matched, he'd have to go all the way back to Viridian Forest to catch new fusion materials!Thankfully, his luck wasn't that bad — the pairing worked.
"Good! Then, the fusion ritual begins now! Appear before me, mysterious Egg! …Wait, not Exeggcute, I meant Pokémon Egg! Slip of the tongue!"
As the light faded, a Pokémon Egg appeared before him, etched with faint black markings.
"Hmm, it's smaller than I expected… Wonder what's inside?"
The shell began to crack. From within emerged a black, gaseous body. The moment Hayato saw its shadowy shape, his heart skipped a beat.
"A Gengar?"
Once the figure came into focus, he sighed.
"Ah… no, just a Haunter. Still, not bad! At least it's useful."
The Fusion System always produced Pokémon Eggs rather than instant results. Hayato figured this was so one could gift the egg away before hatching. Of course, he also suspected it was similar to breeding — sometimes a fusion could yield something extraordinary, far beyond what normal breeding could achieve.
[Haunter – the Gas Pokémon. Hidden in darkness, it loves to sneak up behind people and tap their shoulders with its gaseous hands. Those who feel its touch will be overwhelmed by fear.]
Checking its status panel, Hayato noticed something surprising: its level wasn't Lv. 1. The fused Pokémon's level turned out to be the average of its materials — meaning no need to grind from scratch!
Pokémon stats were divided into six core values — HP, Attack, Defense, Special Attack, Special Defense, and Speed — visible only through a Pokédex.
Other parameters like Nature, Type, Gender, Ability, Held Item, Rarity, Base Stats, and Moves could also be viewed through the Pokédex, with Base Stats being the most crucial factor determining a Pokémon's potential ceiling and floor.
For example, Pikachu's base stat total was 320 — HP 35, Attack 55, Defense 40, Sp. Atk 50, Sp. Def 50, Speed 90 — while a Salamence, a pseudo-legendary Pokémon, had a whopping 600 total: HP 95, Attack 135, Defense 80, Sp. Atk 110, Sp. Def 80, Speed 100.
Unless you counted type advantage or sheer protagonist luck, a Pikachu had essentially zero chance to defeat a Salamence of equal level. That was the natural difference between species.
Beyond that were hidden stats: Effort Values, Individual Values, Friendship, CP (Combat Power), GO Energy, Accuracy, Evasion, buffs and debuffs — and eventually, even Mega Evolution, special forms, and unique transformations like Shaymin's Sky Forme, Kyogre's Origin Forme, or Giratina's Origin Forme.
In short, everything boiled down to Base Stats and type synergy. Understanding type matchups and team coverage was the foundation of becoming a Pokémon Master.
Haunter's Nature was revealed to be Timid — one of the best possible. Hayato was thrilled.
"If it evolves into Gengar, I can build it offensively — moveset idea: Shadow Ball + Sludge Bomb / Focus Blast + Hypnosis / Thunderbolt + Destiny Bond!"
(Gym battles and tournaments often limit move counts, though some don't — details will come later.)
Of course, there was no "perfect" moveset. Team synergy was key — balancing offensive coverage with solid defensive pivots.
Soon after, the Fusion System refreshed again, and Hayato almost burst out laughing when he saw the new fusion recipe:
"Bellsprout + Psyduck = ? Ha! You two really are meant for each other! One male, one female — seven days later, I'll witness a miracle!"
Feeling elated, Hayato set off for Pewter Gym to challenge Brock.
The Pewter Gym's structure was built from reinforced steel and stone, resembling a museum from the outside. The sign above the entrance read: "Pewter GYM."
Inside, the battlefield was a rocky terrain. Brock stood on the opposite side, ready.
"Challenger," Brock said seriously, "Gym matches are official League-sanctioned battles. My rule here is simple — each trainer may use only two Pokémon. Understood?"
Hayato nodded. He currently had Spearow, Psyduck, Oddish, and Haunter. Disregarding Psyduck, he still had solid options.
"Got it. Let's begin!"
"Go, Geodude!" Brock called.
"Let's go, Bellsprout!" Hayato countered.
"Bellsprout, use Vine Whip!"
Twin green vines lashed forward.
"Geodude, dodge behind the rocks!" Brock ordered.
"Bellsprout, wrap around and grab it!"
The field was small — perfect for Bellsprout's reach. Its vines snaked around the rocks and bound Geodude tightly.
"Now, Seed Machine Gun — fire away!"
Geodude struggled, but it was hopeless. Rock and Ground types suffered quadruple weakness to Grass — a single Bullet Seed barrage was enough to decide the match.
Brock recalled the fainted Geodude, his expression darkening.
"You used type advantage well. I underestimated you. But remember — type advantage means nothing before absolute strength! Let's go, Onix!"
The massive Onix burst forth, towering over the battlefield. Hayato couldn't help but smirk.
"A Ground- and Rock-type again? That's practically a bigger target. Where does he get this confidence?"
"Bellsprout, attack with Bullet Seed again!"
Brock chuckled.
"Onix, use Tackle!"
Even as seeds pelted its body, Onix charged through without slowing. The power gap was enormous — Brock's Onix was clearly far better trained.
With a single swing of its stone tail, Bellsprout was sent flying, collapsing to the ground.
"Return, Bellsprout. You did great. Haunter, you're up!"
The moment Haunter appeared, Brock blinked and pulled out his Pokédex.
"A Haunter? You? A rookie trainer caught that? Incredible… But don't think my Onix will lose easily!"
"Onix, charge again!"
Hayato didn't even flinch.
"Normal-type attacks don't work on Ghost-types, you know. Haunter — use Smog!"
Dark, poisonous mist seeped from Haunter's form, enveloping Onix. Though its base power was only 30, with the Poison-type STAB bonus, its effective power rose to 45 — boosted further by Haunter's high Special Attack.
Onix's charge passed right through Haunter's intangible body, leaving it open to the cloud of toxins.
Brock's eyes widened.
"Right… Ghost-types! Normal moves like Tackle or Bind don't affect it! Onix, use Rock Throw!"
"Haunter, Hypnosis!"
Chunks of rock flew through the air — but before they landed, Onix's eyes glazed over. It slumped, fast asleep.
"Onix! Wake up! Come on, Onix!" Brock shouted.
Hayato pointed forward.
"Haunter, finish it!"
Onix had already taken massive damage from Bellsprout's earlier attacks. Now, weakened and asleep, it was helpless. The battle was over.
Outside the Gym, Brock handed Hayato a silver-gray badge with a warm smile.
"Congratulations. This is the Boulder Badge. Go forth, young trainer — chase your dream."
Hayato nodded, pocketed the badge, and continued toward his next destination.
(End of Chapter)