To Inshu, Luo Yuan appeared around the sa age as him and was probably just a trainee from the gym.
He found it odd that Cerulean Gym, known for its all-female staff and refusal to admit male trainees, would take in soone like Luo Yuan. But with Luo Yuan's friendly smile, he figured he'd be an easy opponent.
"At least, he should be easier to deal with than the actual Gym Leader, Misty."
Thinking this, Inshu nodded confidently.
"The battle will be a 3-on-3 match. The first side to have all their Pokémon lose the ability to fight will lose. During the match, the challenger can switch Pokémon, but the Gym Leader may not. Any questions?" Luo Yuan asked.
Although Luo Yuan didn't have three Water-type Pokémon, he figured it wouldn't matter.
"No questions!"
"Then let's begin," Luo Yuan said, stepping up to the Gym Leader's side of the battlefield.
Daisy took up her role as the referee.
For the past two months, she had been the referee for every challenger who ca to the Cerulean Gym. While she might not have much talent for Pokémon battling, she certainly had a knack for officiating matches.
"The challenger from Fuchsia City, Inshu, will battle the temporary Gym Leader, Luo Yuan!"
"Luo Yuan?" Inshu frowned. "Why does that na sound familiar?"
The thought flitted through his mind, but he shook it off as he prepared his Poké Ball.
Seeing both trainers ready, Daisy lowered her hand.
"Battle begin!"
Two Poké Balls flew through the air at almost the sa ti.
Poof!
With a flash of white light, Inshu's Poké Ball released a Gloom, looking chipper and ready to fight.
Unlike so trainers who treated the Cerulean Gym like a badge dispensary, Inshu had done his research by consulting forums and learning from recent challengers. From what he gathered, the new Cerulean Gym Leader was a lot tougher, and getting a badge wouldn't be so easy anymore.
So, he'd specifically caught this Gloom for battling Water-types at the Cerulean Gym.
But it turned out the situation wasn't quite what he expected, with a temporary Gym Leader instead.
"If I'd known they were switching trainers, I wouldn't have wasted so much effort."
Just as Inshu started feeling a bit annoyed at his wasted preparations, a bright white light flashed before him.
ROAR!
The deafening roar made his ears ring, and he stared, wide-eyed, at the scene in front of him.
"A...a Gyarados!?"
Both he and his Gloom blanched at the sight of the massive Gyarados, exuding a wild, untad power that was as intimidating as it was overwhelming.
From behind Gyarados, Luo Yuan gave Inshu a small, beckoning wave.
"Co on. I'm in a bit of a hurry."
Inshu swallowed hard.
He wasn't sure if he should keep fighting or give up.
Giving up felt like a bitter pill to swallow, but a small, foolish part of him clung to a faint glimr of hope.
Maybe, just maybe, he told himself, this Gyarados is all bark and no bite.
He'd spent three whole days in the wild catching this Gloom, after all.
Thinking of all his effort, he straightened his back, determined that his hard work wouldn't go to waste.
He completely missed the sympathetic look Daisy shot him from the sidelines.
---
"Poliwhirl is unable to battle. The challenger's three Pokémon are all unable to fight. Luo Yuan wins!"
Daisy glanced at the fainted Poliwhirl floating on the surface of the pool and declared the result.
The word "crushed" didn't even begin to describe the match.
In fact, the whole thing had been more like a massacre.
Luo Yuan's Gyarados had taken down all three of Inshu's Pokémon with just four moves.
A single Hurricane wiped out Gloom, Hydro Pump obliterated Electrode, and while Poliwhirl had tried to hide underwater to avoid Gyarados's Crunch, it was ultimately no match for Gyarados's Twister.
Watching the whole ordeal unfold, Daisy couldn't help but marvel at Gyarados. She knew from Misty that Luo Yuan had recently caught a Gyarados, but this was her first ti seeing it in action.
It was rare to see a trainer able to command such a notoriously unruly Pokémon with such ease.
She found herself increasingly approving of her sister's boyfriend.
For the longest ti, Daisy had been concerned that the burden of managing Cerulean Gym alone was too much for Misty. But after seeing Luo Yuan's strength firsthand, Daisy felt reassured.
Maybe now she could leave the gym to Misty entirely and finally devote herself fully to her career in water ballet.
Across the field, Inshu looked utterly defeated.
He glanced from the Gyarados to Luo Yuan, and suddenly, a realization struck him like a bolt of lightning.
Wait a minute... Now he rembered why Luo Yuan's na sounded familiar.
He'd read about him in the Kanto Daily!
If he wasn't mistaken, the article's headline was sothing like "Renowned Trainer Luo Yuan and Saffron Gym Leader Sabrina Bust Pokémon Poaching Ring."
That story had taken up nearly a whole page. How had he forgotten that?
Realizing this, Inshu felt a pang of regret.
If he'd known he was up against soone capable of taking down a group of poachers, he'd never have walked into this battle just to get steamrolled.
And now he was left in awe of the Cerulean Gym.
If a trainer as powerful as Luo Yuan was rely a "temporary" Gym Leader here, then how strong was Misty herself?
All those rumors about Cerulean Gym being a "badge giveaway" had to be lies.
It had to be the work of challengers who'd gotten crushed, trying to lure in clueless newbies like him.
Muttering under his breath, he recalled his Pokémon and left the Cerulean Gym with a grumbling heart, already itching to take to the forums and set the record straight.
"Are there any more challengers? Might as well take care of them while I'm here," Luo Yuan asked Daisy.
Seeing Luo Yuan's nonchalant deanor, as if handling challengers was no harder than catching a Magikarp, Daisy couldn't help but feel dazzled.
"So bright..."
After a mont, once she'd recovered, Daisy pointed to the empty waiting area. "Nope, that's all. There was one other, but they left right after you took out Gloom with Gyarados."
Hearing this, Luo Yuan just chuckled. It didn't surprise him.
---
T/N: cant believe i missed to post a Chapter AGAIN
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