Naoki scanned the tablet screen, where the profiles of five Trainers appeared:
Name: Renzo | Region: Galar | Badges Collected: 5
Highlights: Top 16 in the Galar Championship Cup.
Name: Luna | Region: Paldea | Badges Collected: 3
Highlights: None listed.
Name: Kaito | Region: Hoenn | Badges Collected: 6
Highlights: Top 4 in both the Evergrande and Silver Conference tournaments.
Name: Corina | Region: Paldea | Badges Collected: 0
Highlights: None listed.
Name: Miji | Region: Paldea | Badges Collected: 1
Highlights: None listed.
Naoki paused at Kaito's profile and raised an eyebrow.
"A semifinalist in two League tournaments…" he muttered. "Now that's a serious challenger."
Anya chimed in again. "We notified all registered challengers this morning that the Gym is now open again. They're already gathered at the central plaza for the battles. Should we begin?"
Naoki nodded. "Let's go."
He left the Gym and made his way toward Levincia's central plaza, where all official Gym Battles were held.
By the time he arrived, a crowd had already gathered around the battlefield. Most of the spectators were Iono's fans, and many of them looked confused when they saw someone else in the Gym Leader's spot.
"Wait, where's Iono?"
"Did Levincia get a new Gym Leader?"
"Isn't that Iono's husband? I saw her announcement post. She said she's pregnant and that her husband will take over temporarily."
"Didn't he run a ranch out in the country? Can he really handle Gym challenges?"
"He's not just a rancher! Haven't you heard about the Tree House ranch?"
Whispers spread like wildfire. The crowd's buzzing was loud, but Naoki didn't let it faze him. He wasn't here for fanfare.
He pulled out his Rotom Phone, logged into Iono's livestream account, and started the broadcast.
Immediately, a stream of confused comments and question marks flooded the screen.
"I'm not great at livestreaming," Naoki said after a pause. "But for her sake… I'll do my best."
He tapped the phone, letting it hover in the air to record the battlefield.
From the opposite side of the plaza, the first challenger emerged.
He wore a black jacket, his short hair spiked slightly upward, and his sharp gaze gave off a calm but commanding presence. Cool and confident.
This was Kaito, the Trainer from Hoenn who had made it to the semifinals of both the Slateport and Silver Conferences.
"This guy's definitely no rookie," Naoki thought as he glanced at the challenger's resume. "Alright then… let's make it a 3-on-3 battle."
He stepped forward and raised his voice to the crowd.
"Welcome to the Levincia Gym. I'm Naoki, acting Gym Leader. Today's battle will be three versus three. If you manage to defeat all three of my Pokémon, you'll earn the Electric Badge!"
"Then show me what Levincia Gym's really made of," Kaito replied with a confident smirk.
His strength had already surpassed the typical Gym Leader's. To him, Gym battles were just formalities, stepping stones on his way to the Paldea League Conference. So far, every badge had come easily. Only two more remained before he could take the stage in the tournament.
Naoki narrowed his eyes slightly at the tone. This guy wasn't just here to challenge the Gym, he was here to steamroll it.
Sure enough, Kaito casually rolled his wrist, and a Poké Ball snapped open mid-air.
A flash of white light burst forth, and a massive Pokémon with green, armor-like scales landed heavily on the battlefield.
The moment it appeared, the battlefield was swept with swirling gusts of wind, laced with sharp grains of sand.
A sandstorm had begun.
"Tyranitar… with the Sand Stream Ability," Naoki muttered, recognizing the sudden weather shift.
Gasps and murmurs rippled through the crowd. Some spectators even had to retreat further back to avoid the stinging sand.
Every move Tyranitar made exuded raw power, and the swirling dust gave it the aura of a desert tyrant, commanding, unyielding.
Tyranitar. A pseudo-legendary Pokémon from the Johto region. Rock and Dark-type. A natural counter to Electric-types.
So this was his strategy: lead with his strongest and crush the Gym battle in one clean sweep.
"Not so fast," Naoki said quietly, and tossed his own Poké Ball.
"Pikachu, I choose you!"
A burst of white light landed on the field, and Pikachu appeared, cheeks sparking lightly, eyes sharp and ready.
The first match of Naoki's debut Gym Battle had officially begun: Tyranitar vs. Pikachu.
"Tyranitar, use Earthquake!" Kaito barked without hesitation.
Tyranitar roared and stomped its massive foot into the ground. The floor cracked open with a thunderous rumble, and jagged fissures raced toward Pikachu, surging with raw Ground-type energy.
"Pikachu, use Agility!" Naoki countered swiftly.
A soft blue glow surrounded Pikachu's body, and in the blink of an eye, it darted across the battlefield with incredible speed.
Cracks tore through the ground in its wake, but Pikachu stayed just ahead, zipping across the field like lightning itself.
Kaito watched calmly, arms crossed. "You know it's pointless. Earthquake's area of effect is massive, and the battlefield's not big enough for Pikachu to escape. It's only a matter of time."
Pikachu kept weaving and dashing through the cracked terrain, the tremors always close behind. But as the seconds ticked on, its speed kept increasing faster and faster, until afterimages flickered in its trail.
Pikachu's blazing speed stirred up powerful currents of air, and under the sudden vortex, the sand whipped up by Tyranitar's Sand Stream began to swirl violently, gathering into a massive sandstorm sphere!
Naoki's eyes narrowed. "As expected of a clone of Ash's Pikachu. Now, Pikachu jump and use Electro Ball!"
Pikachu glanced at the fractured ground beneath it, then leapt into the sky. As it ascended, sparks surged around its tail, rapidly forming a glowing, crackling orb of electricity.
Spinning midair, Pikachu twisted its body and launched the glowing sphere like a tennis serve, hurling the massive Electro Ball straight at the swirling sandstorm.
The moment the Electric-type attack struck the sandstorm vortex, and collided with the quake's seismic shock, an explosive blast rocked the battlefield.
BOOM!
The impact unleashed a massive shockwave. The sandstorm, once dense and oppressive, was utterly swept away.
"What… was that?" a spectator gasped.
"He used the airflow generated by Pikachu's high-speed movement to condense the sandstorm, and then used the force of Electro Ball colliding with Earthquake to blast it all apart?"
Kaito's eyes sharpened. In that instant, he realized this Gym Leader wasn't just some countryside rancher.
"Fine then. Tyranitar, Earthquake, again!"
"Pikachu, charge in and use Iron Tail!"
Thanks to its speed boost, Pikachu was already at Tyranitar's side before the behemoth could raise a foot.
Its tail shimmered with a metallic glow as it slammed down hard across Tyranitar's head.
The force staggered the hulking Pokémon, but it didn't go down.
"Close range, huh? Forget Earthquake, Tyranitar, use Crunch!"
"Pikachu, Iron Tail again!"
Tyranitar lunged with fangs glowing dark, trying to clamp down on Pikachu. But the Electric-type darted forward, tail glowing white once more, and struck Tyranitar square in the jaw.
The blow sent a shudder through Tyranitar's massive frame. It recoiled slightly, jaw aching.
But Tyranitar was no pushover. Regaining balance, it swung its heavy tail with a roar, sending Pikachu flying across the field.
Pikachu yelped and rolled through the dirt, struggling to stand.
"Tyranitar, finish it, Earthquake!"
Tyranitar stomped with crushing force. The ground ruptured, seismic waves racing outward in jagged lines.
Pikachu, still recovering, couldn't escape.
The Earthquake hit dead-on, blasting Pikachu skyward before it hit the ground hard and lay still.
Pikachu was unable to battle.
Naoki clenched his fists.
"Still not enough."
He remembered how Ash's Pikachu had defeated many Tyranitars before, even Alain's powerhouse Tyranitar. But this one was different.
Maybe it was because this Pikachu was cloned too early… or maybe because Ash's Pikachu had traveled the world, facing Gym Leaders, Champions, and even Legendary Pokémon.
This one… had lived peacefully at the World Tree. A Pokémon with strength, but not the scars of battle.
"Pikachu is unable to battle! Tyranitar is the winner!" the referee declared after checking the Pokémon's status. "Challenger Kaito, would you like to switch Pokémon?"
"No need," Kaito replied coolly, casting a confident glance at the Gym Leader across from him.
...
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