The Pokémon Wildcard
Chapter 5: Making a Splash and Getting Schooled
"Looks like we'll soon be arriving at Cerulean City," said Naruto, looking at the map from his PokéGear as he walked beside Leaf and Brock along the dirt path towards their current destination.
"Glad to hear that, we're almost out of provisions and need to get our Pokémon patched up at the Pokémon Center after all those battles we've had along the way," said Leaf.
"You're right, afterwards we can restock before you can prepare for your gym battle," said Brock.
"Then let's get going, can't wait to see how the place is like," said Naruto.
"Pika," Pikachu nodded in agreement with his blonde trainer.
"Do you know which Pokémon you would be using for the gym battle?" asked Brock.
Naruto hummed thoughtfully "I know that the Cerulean gym utilizes water type Pokémon so Pikachu is a default choice but I won't be relying on him alone, plus I'll need to keep an eye out for the kind of Pokémon they would use,"
"Sounds like a good plan for now," Brock looked ahead of the road "We've finally arrived at the city,"
True enough, the group are now standing at the entry point into the Cerulean City and there was even a welcome sign which said 'The Floral Lagoon City'. After receiving directions from the citizens, the group made their way to the Pokémon center where they handed over their Pokémon to Nurse Joy before going to have lunch over at the cafeteria then going to wait over at the lobby for their Pokémon.
Leaf was currently browsing through the internet on her laptop when she came across something interesting and spoke to the boys "Hey guys, have you heard about PokéBlocks?"
"…not exactly, only bits and pieces," said Naruto.
Brock hummed in thought "Same here, although I heard that it originates from the Hoenn region,"
"Well according to the Poké-Forum; PokéBlocks are colorful candy blocks made for Pokémon. They're mostly used by coordinators to increase a Pokémon's condition for Pokémon Contests, there's even a tip that they can also be used in the Safari Zone to make wild Pokémon less likely to escape in battle," said Leaf, reading from the webpage.
"So how are these PokéBlocks made by the way?" asked Brock.
"They're made by mixing berries together, the flavour and color of the PokéBlocks depends on the kinds of berries used in the mixture,"
"All this sounds interesting, I wouldn't mind trying it out,"
They were snapped out of their conversation upon hearing the PA call out their names to report to the counter for their Pokémon. They immediately headed there to acquire their Pokémon with Pikachu hopping onto Naruto's shoulder and putting his hat back on.
"Alright buddy, let's head for the gym and win ourselves a badge," said Naruto with a smirk.
Pikachu raised a paw into the air excitedly "Pikachu!"
"I see you're as pumped-up as ever," said Leaf fondly.
"Sure am, let's go,"
"Well, I need to go do some things in the city so I'll see you guys later," Brock spoke up.
"You aren't coming with us?" asked Leaf.
"Sorry, it's very important,"
Naruto nodded in understanding "It's okay then, wish me luck,"
"Sure thing,"
Receiving directions from Nurse Joy, the trio made their way from the Pokémon Center with Brock taking a different route and were able to locate the Cerulean Gym, however they couldn't help but find the design to be rather tacky in a way with it being a dome-shaped, brightly colored Gym with a gigantic painting of a Dewgong on top of it. But they went inside regardless and noticed that there are quite a lot of people inside.
"What's going on?" asked Leaf confusedly.
"I don't know, let's follow them and find out," Naruto suggested, the duo followed the crowd into what appears to be a performance hall with a large swimming pool at the center "Is it some kind of show?"
"Seems like it,"
"But I thought this place is a Pokémon gym,"
Suddenly the announcer spoke through the loudspeakers for all to hear "And now introducing to you; Cerulean City's Sensational Sisters!" the spotlight moved up to the top of a tall diving board, revealing a trio of beautiful girls dressed in one-piece swimsuits. The music started playing with the girls leaping off the diving board into the pool and proceeded to perform a choreography of water ballet with the crowd cheering them on, especially the males.
"Pikaaaa…," Pikachu was watching in awe at the performance.
"I don't mind repeating myself, but isn't this place a Pokémon gym?" asked Naruto.
"I don't really know, might as well ask around after this show," said Leaf, taking out her camera to record for her blog.
The show eventually ended and everyone left the place with Naruto, Leaf and Pikachu checking the place out, they went downstairs and came across a rather impressive aquarium with various water Pokémon swimming about which further questions whether this place is a gym at place. The trio came upon the three swimmer girls from earlier complimenting each other over their performance and were able to identify the blonde one to be Daisy, the blunette as Violet and the pinkette as Lily.
"Oh I'm sorry but if you want an interview, then you'll have to like call our manager," said Lily upon seeing them.
"Although I wouldn't mind having a one-on-one conversation with you cutie," said Violet eyeing Naruto with a sultry look in her eyes.
Daisy pouted "No fair sis, that was like my intention too,"
"We're not here for an interview, Naruto came here for a gym battle so that he could earn a badge," said Leaf glaring at the three girls.
"Yeah, do you know where the gym leader is?" asked Naruto.
"Actually, you're looking at them," said Daisy.
"Huh?"
"We are the Sensational Sisters!" said Violet.
"And the Cerulean Gym Leaders!" Lily added.
The group were taken aback by what they just heard, the sisters led them to a room with a large pool and floating platforms on the water as seats where audience could sit and watch the battle.
"Since you're the gym leaders, I'd like to challenge you in a Pokémon battle and win your gym's badge," Naruto declared with Pikachu nodding in agreement.
The sisters looked at each nervously before Daisy spoke up "Actually, we don't feel like battling anymore,"
Naruto blinked in confusion "What do you mean by that?"
"Well we got beat by trainers who came from this backwards town called Pallet," said Violet, Naruto and Leaf glowered at her for insulting their hometown.
Lily continued "And our most recent loss was against a guy called Red yesterday, so we had to rush our Pokémon to the Pokémon Center. My eyes were spinning from how fast we lost,"
Violet held out a PokéBall "All we have left is a Goldeen which only knows Horn Attack and nothing more,"
"Not to mention that we barely had anytime for ourselves with these battles interrupting us," said Daisy with a pout.
"Seriously?" Naruto muttered lowly; these are gym leaders that actually don't like battling then how on earth did this gym come to be then?
"So, we came all this way here for nothing?" asked Leaf in annoyance.
"No worries, we have a solution for this…," Lily clapped hands and a Pokémon emerged from the pool, turning out to be a Seel which flopped towards her and stuck out its tongue to reveal a badge in the shape of a light blue raindrop "Here's the Cascade Badge, you can have it,"
Naruto shifted his sight between the badge and the girls several times with a blank expression before finally speaking up "…are you trying to insult me?"
The sisters blinked in confusion "I said 'Are you trying to insult me?',"
"We like don't understand," said Violet.
"It is my job as a Pokémon Trainer to catch Pokémon and raise them to be as strong as they can be, and it is your role as a Gym Leader to see we have what it takes and are ready to face any challenges. The badge represents the Gym Leader's acknowledgment and the symbol of the trainer's hard work, yet here you are simply degrading its worth!"
Leaf smirked, seeing the flabbergasted look on the girls' faces as Naruto continued to reprimand them. She recalls from her younger days that Naruto is at his happiest when he earns something with hard work and hates taking things without something to show for it, often says that it feels wrong to him.
"Do you have any idea that doing this puts the lives of novice trainers and their Pokémon in grave danger?"
"W-What do you mean?" asked Daisy, a bit afraid of the answer.
"By handing over the badge without a battle, you plant a false sense of confidence into them which in turn leads to getting involved with situations beyond their skills and possibly lose their lives. It was even why the Pokémon League changed the age requirement from 10 to 13 so trainers would be more mature and prepared. Can you really live with the consequences of this action of yours?" asked Naruto sternly.
"…," the three sisters could hardly say a word to oppose what Naruto just said as it was the absolute truth and they had been taking things for granted.
"Looks like you've finally realized what you've been doing was wrong all along," a female voice spoke up, everyone turned to see someone standing at the doorway with a frown on her face.
She is a slender girl with a fit build and orange hair held in a spiky ponytail, she wears a yellow top that reveals her midriff, red suspenders, denim shorts that stop at her thighs and red sneakers with yellow lining and white laces.
"Who are you?" asked Naruto curiously.
"The name's Misty and those three over there are my older sisters," said the girl.
"So why are you like back here? You said you wouldn't return until you've like become a Water Pokémon Master," said Violet.
Misty turned to glare at them "I came back because of you three, I was training over at Seafoam Islands when I started hearing gossips of you guys having been giving away badges without having any battles at all. So, I had to return to prevent you from discrediting this gym our parents had built anymore than you already have! It took this guy here to make you realize what you were doing was wrong!"
"Well, we…," Lily started but was interrupted.
"I don't want to hear any of your excuses!" Misty turned towards Naruto "As I am also a gym leader, I accept your gym challenge,"
Naruto smirked in response "Now that's what I want to hear,"
Misty nodded in affirmation "Let me go and change then, we'll have our battle,"
Later on, Naruto and Misty were now standing at opposite ends of the pool atop floating platforms with the latter currently wearing a strapless two-piece blue swimsuit and a pair of sandals.
"So, what are the rules?" asked Naruto.
"We'll both use three Pokémon with only you allowed to substitute and no time limit," said Misty.
"Alright then, let's get started!"
Music Start: Pokémon Black 2 · White 2 OST; Battle! Gym Leader (Kanto)
Misty took out a PokéBall "Misty calls Seaking!" she threw it into the air to open up and a Pokémon to splash into the pool, revealing to be an orange and white, fish-like Pokémon. It has round, dark eyes, prominent pink lips, two small fangs, and a cream-colored horn in the center of its forehead. There are several black markings on its body: two thick lines under each eye, a large wavy patch on its back, and several speckles near its tail. It has billowing pectoral fins and a pair of tail fins shaped like butterfly wings.
Naruto took out a PokéBall "Let's do this Butterfree!" he threw it to call on his Bug type Pokémon as it flittered in midair for battle, that's when he noticed that Misty was looking rather uncomfortable "Hey, what's the matter?"
"Oh don't mind her, Misty's scared of bugs," said Violet in amusement.
"Really?" asked Leaf with a quirked eyebrow.
"Shut it Violet, you have no idea how creepy bugs are!" Misty yelled.
Naruto sweatdropped before snapping back into focus "Anyways, Butterfree use Gust!" Butterfree flapped his wings furiously to launch a powerful gust of wind towards Seaking.
"Seaking quickly, dive underwater!" said Misty, Seaking immediately dove and dodged the incoming attack "Now come out and use Peck!" the water Pokémon shot out of the water with its horn aiming at Butterfree.
Naruto quickly reacted "Dodge to the side and use String Shot to slow it down!" Butterfree flew sideways to evade the Peck attack and spewed silk from his mouth to wrap around the Seaking several times to restrain its movements "Now use Tackle!" Butterfree flew forward, ready to ram into his target.
"Seaking, use Water Pulse!" said Misty, Seaking open its mouth, releasing a light blue orb of energy which explodes in the form of water "Free yourself by using Flail!" it began to wiggle wildly, soon squirming out of the silk wrapped around it.
"Butterfree, are you okay?" Naruto called out in concern, Butterfree shook his head a few times before turning to confirm that he's okay "It's great that you didn't get confused by the attack, now use Sleep Powder!" Butterfree began dispersing blue spores from his body.
"I don't think so, dive underwater Seaking!" Misty commanded with the water Pokémon diving in.
"Use Confusion to pull it out of the water!" said Naruto, Butterfree's eyes glowed with purple psychic energy and Seaking was levitated out of the water and exposed to the spores before being put to sleep.
"What?!" Misty couldn't believe what's happening "Seaking, wake up!"
"Slam it onto one of the platforms and end this with Bug Bite," Butterfree proceeded to slam Seaking several times on the platform before swooping with his mandibles clamping down on the Seaking, damaging it enough to faint.
"Seaking return," Misty recalled the fainted Pokémon back into its PokéBall before looking at Naruto "You're pretty good, but I'm just getting started. Misty calls Staryu!" she threw her next PokéBall to call onto a golden-brown, starfish-like Pokémon with five appendages which surround an exterior organ called the core resembling a golden metal casing with a red gem in the center, which is held in place by a golden ring looped around Staryu's lower left point.
"Can you keep going buddy?" asked Naruto.
"Free!" Butterfree nodded in affirmation, eager to continue battling.
"Alright but I'll pull you out should things turn sour,"
"This time, I'll be the one to attack. Staryu, use Water Gun!" Staryu releases a spiral of water from the tip of its top-most limb at Butterfree who had to dodge it "Don't give up, keep firing until you finally hit it!" Staryu followed up by firing additional shots of water from its other appendages, forcing Butterfree into the defensive and dodging the attacks.
"I can't attack from close range, best to attack from a distance," Naruto muttered before calling out "Butterfree, use String Shot!"
"I don't think so, Staryu use Rapid Spin!" Misty commanded, Staryu began spinning quickly like a ninja throwing star and shredded through the String Shot before slamming Butterfree into the water "Now finish it with Tackle!" the starfish Pokémon collided into Butterfree with the Pokémon unable to take any more damage and fainting.
Naruto let out a sigh before recalling Butterfree back into his PokéBall "You did your best buddy, leave the rest to us. Pikachu, it's go time,"
"Pika!" Pikachu kept his hat on before leaping off Naruto's shoulder onto the floating platform with sparks flying from his cheeks.
"I was expecting you to use your Pikachu, but I won't back down! Staryu, use Bubblebeam!" Misty called out, the jewel in the middle of Staryu's body glows orange and it released blue bubbles from it at Pikachu.
"Use Thundershock on the bubbles Pikachu!" said Naruto, Pikachu quickly fired a blast of electricity towards the incoming bubbles, successfully erasing them before firing another blast at Staryu.
"Quick, dive underwater!" Staryu jumped off the platform into the pool to dodge "Now use Tackle!" the starfish shot out of the water to attack.
"Dodge by using Agility!" Pikachu began moving at highspeed along the platforms whilst evading Staryu's attacks until Naruto called out "Now knock it away with Iron Tail!" Pikachu's tail turned metallic before spinning round to smack Staryu right in the jewel to send it flying into the water.
"Hang in there Staryu, use Recover!" said Misty.
Naruto frowned a bit upon seeing Staryu heal itself of its injuries "I'll need to inflict enough damage to knock it out or it will simply heal itself again.
Misty called out "Use Water Gun!"
Naruto quickly reacted "Combine both Agility and Quick Attack to get in close Pikachu!" the mouse moved at a much greater speed than before whilst avoiding the incoming shots of water "Now knock it into the water!" Pikachu slammed Staryu into the pool before it could react "And now use Thundershock!"
Misty's eyes widened in realization and called out in a panic "Staryu, get out of the water!" she was too late as Pikachu fired a powerful blast of electricity into the water, then Staryu floated back onto the surface and laid there unmoving "Oh no!"
"That's two down and one more, let's keep this momentum going Pikachu," said Naruto.
"Pika!" Pikachu nodded in response.
"You're pretty good, but I'm not giving up to the very end" Misty recalled Staryu into its PokéBall before bringing out her last one "Misty calls Starmie!" she threw her last PokéBall to call upon a Pokémon similar to Staryu but much larger and resembles two violet starfish with five appendages each. The front starfish has a golden formation in the center. In the center of the golden casing is its red jewel core, which can glow in seven colors and has developed to resemble a cut precious stone. The second starfish is semi-attached to the back of the first and can spin 360 degrees.
"No doubt that is her strongest Pokémon, plus it's a Water and Psychic type. Gonna have to play this smart," said Naruto thoughtfully before calling out "Hey Pikachu, I need you to return for now,"
"Why is he like calling Pikachu back when he has the type advantage?" asked Lily confusedly.
"Because it's like him to do so, Naruto acts differently compared to an everyday trainer," said Leaf with a smile.
"Why did you call Pikachu back?" asked Misty.
"I wanted to give him a short break but mostly I want to give the next guy a chance to battle or he'll be sulking the rest of the day," said Naruto.
"Who?"
The blonde simply smiled and threw the PokéBall to bring out his third Pokémon which of course had a comedic reaction.
"EEEEEEKKK! ANOTHER BUG AND THIS ONE HAS BLADES!" Misty shrieked.
The Pokémon happened to be Scyther whom seems to be rather offended by the girl's reaction.
"Now that's just being rude," said Naruto with a small frown.
"Starmie, use Tackle!" said Misty, Starmie launched itself while spinning like a throwing star towards Scyther.
"Use Double Team and follow up with Leer!" Scyther's body became outlined in white and he created multiple copies of himself with Starmie completely missing the real one as it went through a copy then they turned to glare at the pokemon with eyes glowing red and reduced its defensive power.
"Take them all out by using Psybeam!" Starmie's jewel shined then released a multicolored beam from it at the copies, taking them all out but the real one is nowhere to be seen "Where is the real one?"
Naruto smirked "Use Slash!" Scyther swooped down from above with his scythes glowing white as he repeatedly slashes Stamie.
"Use your Water Gun Starmie!" the water Pokémon immediately fired a powerful stream of water at Scyther from a pointblank range which knocked him away from it "Now use Recover!" Starmie's whole body glowed yellow and all of the damage on its body disappeared.
"So, it can use that move too huh, it can be a bit annoying from the opposite end. Better work a way around it. Scyther use Focus Energy," Scyther took in a deep breath as his body becomes outlined in a light aura.
Misty tensed, seeing now that there's now a likely chance of being hit with a critical strike "Quick Starmie, use Psybeam and don't let Scyther get close to you!"
"Scyther, get in close with Agility and then use Fury Cutter!" Naruto commanded, Scyther dashed forward, repeatedly vanish and immediately reappears in different spots while dodging the blasts of Psybeam until he was upon Starmie then proceeded to slash at it with each strike doubling in power. Scyther suddenly stopped the assault and calmly flew away with Starmie standing still before collapsing with its jewel blinking, signaling its defeat.
Music End
"Nicely done Scyther, the training is really paying off," said Naruto fondly, Scyther smiled with pride at winning his first gym battle. They all got off the platform and went to meet with along with Leaf and the others at the poolside.
"I gotta admit that you're pretty good, even though you were using bugs," said Misty, shivering from the frown by Scyther.
"Results of good training, this battle helped me learn a few things too," said Naruto.
"Well a win is a win, here's the Cascade badge to represent the gym's acknowledgment of your skills," said Misty holding out the badge whilst glancing towards the sisters who simply looked away.
"Thanks very much," Naruto took the badge then tossed it into the air like a coin before catching it and held it out before him "Cascade Badge acquired!"
"Pi-pikachu!" Pikachu cheered with a victory sign, Scyther nodded in approval.
"Congratulations, that battle was amazing," said Leaf, having been using her camera to record.
"So like what will you be doing next Misty, will you continue with your training?" asked Daisy.
"Yes I will, but not before calling the Pokémon League to send in an official to make sure that you are doing your job right. Should have done this before I left the first time," said Misty, making the older sisters nervous from the statement.
"Well, we'll be on our way now. Good luck with your training," said Naruto.
"Same here with your journey,"
Naruto, Leaf and Pikachu were soon out of the gym and were making their way back to the Pokémon Center so Naruto get his Pokémon healed as well as wait for Brock to meet up with them. On their way, the trio took note of some sort of commotion going on and went to check it out. They came across a crowd gathered around a house and the police were sanctioning the area to prevent anyone from entering the building.
Leaf approached on of the bystanders to inquire "Excuse me, may I know what's happened here?"
A male bystander was the one to respond "Apparently, the owner of the house was burglarized and the thief is nowhere to be seen,"
"Whoa, sounds rough," said Naruto.
"I wonder what it is that was stolen?" Leaf asked.
Naruto shrugged his shoulders and was about to reply when he noticed something from the corner of his eye, he saw someone climb over the wall of a house into the pathway between two houses, he appeared to be a male wearing a black uniform emblazoned with a big red R on it and a black cap, as well as a pair of gray gloves and boots, and a gray belt. Naruto's eyes narrowed upon recognizing the R on the man's uniform and that he's holding something in his hands.
"I think I found our burglar," Naruto went to follow after the man with Leaf being close behind.
"Where are you going Naruto?" asked Leaf.
"I found the thief and he's actually a member of Team Rocket," Naruto replied.
The group followed after the Rocket Grunt all the way to an alleyway before deciding to confront him now that there's lesser risk of bystanders getting injured in the crossfire.
"Hold it right there!" Naruto called.
The grunt turned around and frowned upon seeing the two teens "What do you brats want?"
"We want whatever you stole from that house!" said Leaf.
Music Start: Pokemon FireRed & LeafGreen OST; Battle! (Trainer Battle)
"Like I'm gonna listen to a bunch of kids who are biting off more than they can chew, Go Machop!" he threw a PokéBall to call on the fighting type Pokémon "Gonna make you regret poking your noses into my business!"
"We'll see about that, take to the skies Pidgeotto!" Naruto threw his own PokéBall to call on his flying type as she hovered in the air before him.
"Machop, use Karate Chop!" said the grunt, Machop charged towards Pidgeotto with its hands glowing white with energy for an attack.
"Push back with Gust Pidgeotto!" Naruto commanded, Pidgeotto flapped her wings quickly to launch a powerful gust of wind which disrupted Machop's attack "Now use Wing Attack!" her wings glow white before slashing Machop with one of them.
The grunt snarled in anger "Why you little- Use Leer!" Machop glared at Pidgeotto with glowing red eyes but the flying type hovered in the air unaffected whatsoever "Why isn't it working!?"
"Pidgeotto's ability is Big Pecks which prevents any moves from reducing her defensive power. Use Quick Attack!" Pidgeotto swooped towards Machop with great speed as white energy trailed behind her.
"Quick Machop, use Low Kick to slow that bird down!" said the grunt, Machop reared its leg back to attack the moment the target got close enough within range.
"Switch to Wing Attack!" Naruto called out, Pidgeotto rapidly switched her flight path to go past Machop to get behind it and knock it facefirst to the ground with her wings. Machop struggled to get back up but collapsed with swirls in its eyes.
The grunt groan in annoyance as he recalled Machop into its PokéBall "Useless thing, let's see how you handle my next Pokémon! Go Drowzee!"
"Pidgeotto use Gust!" Naruto called out.
The grunt sneered in response "Oh no you don't, use Disable Drowzee!" Drowzee's eyes glowed light blue, causing Pidgeotto to be outlined in light blue briefly and she suddenly stopped using the attack.
"Oh no, Pidgeotto won't be able to use Gust for some time," said Leaf worriedly.
Naruto frowned at this "Gonna have to manage without it for now, Pidgeotto use Wing Attack!"
"Drowzee, use Hypnosis!" said the grunt, Drowzee waves its hands, releasing multiple multicolored circles from its face at Pidgeotto which caused her to fall to the ground fast asleep "Now use Pound!" Drowzee's hands glow yellow and it hits the sleeping Pidgeotto with them.
Naruto gritted his teeth as he brought out his PokéBall "Pidgeotto return!" he recalling her before any further damage was done "Sandshrew, you're up!" he threw another PokéBall to call on Sandshrew who appeared ready for battle.
"Switching Pokémon doesn't change a thing, Drowzee use Hypnosis!"
"Not so fast, Sandshrew use Sand Attack and aim it at Drowzee's eyes!" Naruto commanded urgently, Sandshrew dug his claws into the ground and flung dirt right into Drowzee's face which disrupted its attack.
"What?!" the grunt was taken aback by this sudden move.
"I was keeping an eye out for when you try that move again and adjusted accordingly, now use Scratch while Drowzee is still blinded!" Sandshrew lunged at Drowzee and proceeded to scratch at it with his claws.
"Don't just stand there, strike back with Pound!" said the grunt angrily.
Naruto saw Drowzee about to attack and quickly called out "Sandshrew, use Defense Curl then follow up with Rollout!" Sandshrew quickly curled up into a ball before being pushed back whilst sustaining a small amount of damage ten he began to roll at the Drowzee and slam into it with great speed and power.
"What the?! That move shouldn't be as strong!" said the grunt in shock.
"By using Defense Curl first, it doubles the power of Rollout when used afterwards so guess what's gonna happen now?" said Naruto with a smirk, Sandshrew continues to repeatedly attack Drowzee with power increasing from every hit till the psychic was unable to endure anymore and collapsed in a faint.
Music End
"Nicely done Sandshrew, and you're only gonna get better!" said Naruto fondly, Sandshrew jumped up and down while squeaking happily.
The Rocket Grunt took a step back in shock at what just happen, a brat actually beat him "I'm getting outta here!" he returned the Drowzee to its PokéBall and turned to run away.
"Oh no you don't, Pikachu use Thunder Wave!" Pikachu leapt from Naruto's shoulder and fired a weak jolt of electricity towards the grunt, making him fall to the ground paralyzed "Now then, let's see what you were trying to get away with," Naruto and Leaf took te item from the grunt and were surprised to see what it is.
"That's a TM Case, and it contains a lot of TMs too," said Leaf.
"No doubt, he wanted to use these TMs to teach his Pokémon powerful moves," said Naruto, closing up the TM Case "Go and get Officer Jenny while we keep him company, Leaf-chan,"
"Okay, I'll be back soon," Leaf quickly left the alleyway while Naruto leaned back against the wall and kept an eye on the immobilized grunt.
Some time later, Officer Jenny had arrived to take the grunt to the police station then had Naruto and Leaf follow her to meet the owners of the burglarized house which turned out to be an elderly couple to return the TM Case, they were so grateful that they offered a TM as a reward. Naruto tried to refuse but had to take one due to their insistence, so he was given a TM 28 which teaches the move Dig and learnt that unlike in the past that TMs are now reusable.
"Hey guys, how did your gym battle go?" asked Brock as he entered the Pokémon Center and met up with the duo at the lobby.
"See for yourself," Naruto revealed his newly acquired Cascade Badge "I was able to win after a good battle with the gym leader,"
"Congrats with the win,"
Leaf looked through the Map App on her PokéGear "According to the map, the next gym is in Vermillion City,"
"Then that's our next stop, we already purchased provisions for the trip so we're good to go," said Naruto.
"Geez, just how thick can this fog be?" asked Leaf, wondering about their current predicament.
It has been a couple of days since they had left Cerulean city for Vermilion city and Naruto's next gym battle when the trio found themselves being slowed down by the weather.
"I would say thicker than soup," Naruto mused.
"Pika," Pikachu waved a paw at the fog to see if he could grab it, only for his paw to go through it instead.
"Then we say we take a break for now to wait it out or we might end up getting lost," said Brock, already setting up the tableware to begin cooking "As much as I'd like to get cooking, I'm gonna need some firewood,"
"In that case, I'll go and search for some," said Naruto, getting up from his seat with Pikachu climbing to his shoulder.
"I'm coming too, would make things easier if we work together," said Leaf.
"Okay then,"
Naruto and Leaf set out and began picking up the firewood but had to make sure that the were dry enough to burn. So far they had gathered a sufficient amount and were about to return to Brock when Pikachu noticed something in the distance and tapped Naruto's cheek to grab his attention.
"What's up Pikachu?" asked Naruto.
"Pika Pikachu," the electric mouse pointed at a certain direction for them to look, there they saw a soft glow of light through there.
Naruto released a pulse of his aura and soon detected several signatures "Seems like there are a group of people over there,"
"In this fog, I wonder why?" said Leaf thoughtfully.
"Let's go and find out,"
The duo approached the glowing light to come across a group of boys dressed in school uniforms albeit one of them was running on a treadmill while surrounded by the rest. It appears that they were quizzing the one running, so far the boy was doing alright till they asked at which level a Pidgey evolves when he slipped and fell off the treadmill.
"Can you really call yourself a Pokémon Tech student when you can't answer a question like this one? Why are we even bothering ourselves with someone like you?" said the older student with contempt.
The younger student stared at the ground in shame "I'm sorry…,"
"Hey, just what is going on here?" they turned to see Naruto and Leaf approach with frowns on their faces.
"This is a private training session which doesn't concern the likes of you, there's no room for losers in our school. We're trying to maintain our standards," said the older student.
Leaf gently helped the boy up from the ground before glaring at the older students "I don't know or care about the kind of standards that your school has but Naruto and I won't approve of how you're treating him,"
"Call it however you want to see it, your opinions don't mean a thing to us. Let's go guys, no point wasting our time. See you later at school Joe," the students walked away with a prideful stride, leaving the boy with Naruto and Leaf.
Leaf turned to speak with the boy whose name is Joe "Are you okay?"
Joe nodded in affirmation "I'm okay, my name's Joe. Who are you two?"
"My name's Leaf and he's Naruto with his partner Pikachu," said Leaf with Naruto and Pikachu waving at Joe in greeting.
"So who were those guys?" asked Naruto.
"Those were the infamous Tech students," a voice spoke up, revealing to be Brock "I was wondering what was taking you two so I came to check up on you,"
"Sorry about that Brock, but the name sounds kinda familiar," said Naruto thoughtfully.
"We heard of it back at Pallet town, it's called Pokémon Technical or Pokémon Tech for short. It's a boarding school for exceptional students who wish to become Pokémon Trainers, a guarantee to directly enter the Pokémon League without having to travel around to collect badges. I also read that the entrance and tuition fees are very expensive due to its high standards,"
"Sounds like a rather lazy shortcut if you ask me, where is this school anyways?" asked Naruto with a quirked eyebrow.
"It's right over there," said Joe, pointing ahead of them. Suddenly the fog began to clear, revealing that they had been standing right in the middle of the school campus itself "The fog was actually part of a simulation for training in the weather,"
"We'd like to know why those guys were making you run on a treadmill while asking questions, I find it rather odd," said Leaf.
"My friends were just trying to help me," said Joe.
Brock frowned at this "With friends like those, who needs enemies?"
"But they help me learn how Pokémon evolve and learn particular moves upon reaching certain levels. Sometimes, I even pretend that I don't know the answers as the questions would get much harder. My mom and dad worked hard and saved money so I could come to school here," Joe explained.
"But that kind of help wouldn't be doing your any favors besides striking at your self-confidence, what do the teachers say about this?" asked Leaf.
"They don't know, but if they do then they would pretend to be unaware of it,"
Naruto frowned at this and Pikachu wasn't pleased with it either "I gotta agree with Leaf-chan that this system is doing more harm than good for the students here, I'd like to meet the person in charge so I can put a stop to this,"
Joe reached into the pocket of his jacket and held out a photo "Here's her picture," everyone looked to see a picture of a rather pretty girl about his and Leaf's age.
"Wow, she's so pretty…," said Brock with a dreamy look on his face, but got smacked in the back of the head by annoyed Leaf.
"Will you stay focused? Geez," Leaf groaned "Why you even carry her picture around?"
Joe responded sheepishly "I may hate the way she treats us but I like the way she looks,"
Naruto rolled his eyes at that "Seriously man? Think you can take us to meet her?"
"Sure, I need to warn you though. Giselle is ranked as the top beginner here in the Tech,"
"What exactly do you mean by rankings?" asked Brock.
"Those in the Beginner Class has the same qualifications of a Trainer with two Badges, the Intermediate Class has the qualifications of a Trainer with four Badges, Advanced students has the qualifications of a Trainer with six Badges. Once a student graduates from Pokémon Tech, they earn a diploma and automatically qualify for Kanto's Pokémon League Conference," Joe explained.
"Sounds interesting and all, but let's go find this girl and see what we can do about this dumb system," said Naruto.
"Okay, it's this way," Joe guided them towards the main school building and took them to an elevator which took them up several floors before stopping. They stepped into a room to a lot of computers placed in rows of two and there's even a battlefield at the center of the room, the group then heard mild sounds of commotion which meant that someone is here "I think Giselle's around since she often comes here to practice,"
They located the source of the commotion and sure enough, they found Giselle along with the very same group of boys from before and they seemed to be amused about something. They turned to see Naruto and co walking but Giselle focused mostly towards Joe who became a bit nervous.
"Are you Giselle?" asked Naruto.
"Indeed I am," Giselle got up from her seat and curtsied "I'm the top student in the beginning class of the most exclusive club in the world, Pokémon Tech. It's sad that others aren't blessed with my beauty, my talent, my humble attitude. People call me a star, but I'm just Giselle,"
"Wow, ain't she full of it," thought Naruto and Leaf.
Giselle approached Joe with a small frown on her face "My classmates told me what happened Joe and I must say…I am quite disappointed,"
"Huh?" Joe was taken aback with shock.
"I've been looking over your performance and test results which show that you've been falling behind. If you don't shape up, you'll be left behind and never graduate which would bring shame to us all!" Giselle turned away from Joe with the boy simply there as the tendrils of despair began to wrap around his heart.
"It shouldn't be a surprise with how faulty and stupid this kind of tutoring system really is," Naruto spoke up, getting Giselle and the other students to face him.
"What did you say?" Giselle frowned at the blonde trainer and his Pikachu.
"Did I say stutter? I said your system is pathetic and nothing more than sophisticated bullying,"
"I don't know who you are, but that doesn't give you the right to criticize how I do things in this school,"
Leaf scoffed "More like this should have been done in the first place and you wouldn't be this egotistical,"
Giselle simply smiled "Goes to show how much you know, no doubt you aren't aware that Pokémon are only as strong as the Trainer who raises them. A Pokémon that's weaker but better trained can still win, depending on the Trainer," Giselle glanced towards Joe "I hope you're learning something from this Joe. A Pokémon's Level of Training is just as important a factor as a Pokémon's Type in deciding a match, a First-Class Pokémon Trainer can calculate that,"
Naruto stepped forward to confront the socalled top student "Now hold on there, there's so far more to training a Pokémon than simply calculating levels,"
"And who might you be?" asked Giselle.
"My name is Naruto U.N Ketchum and she's Leaf Green, we're both from Pallet Town,"
"Then how long have you been on your Pokémon journey?"
Naruto hummed in thought for a moment before answering "Give or take, about one month and three weeks, I've earned the Boulder Badge and the Cascade Badge,"
Giselle gasped in faux shock "That long and you let your Pikachu out free without taming it? Maybe your Pokémon are training you instead since you're letting it wear a hat?"
"First of all, Pikachu is a guy. Second of all, he doesn't like being inside his PokéBall and prefers to be outside which is fine by me. I always consider the opinions of my Pokémon,"
"Which is how many by the way?" asked Giselle.
"In addition to Pikachu, I have five Pokémon with me," said Naruto.
"That's all you have? New trainers at this point would have six Pokémon and yet you won two badges with only five. Seems like you've been having a lucky break, wouldn't you agree?" the students sans Joe agreed to Giselle's statement.
"That's not true, Naruto earned those badges because he trained his Pokémon very well," said Leaf, angry at Naruto's efforts being downplayed like that.
"Then under normal circumstances, Pikachu should be at level 25 and had learnt Thunderbolt, but I can tell it hasn't learnt it yet," said Giselle.
"Chuuuu," Pikachu glared at the girl who doesn't know his true capabilities and yet is acting like she does.
"We could keep on talking which would take up a lot of time or we could have a Pokémon battle to see who's in the right once and for all," said Naruto, Pikachu jumped off his shoulder to the ground and stood at the ready to battle with sparks emitting from his cheeks.
Giselle smiled arrogantly and brought out a PokéBall "Then this Pokémon will be more than a match for you, Cubone go!"
She threw the PokéBall to bring out what appears to be a small bipedal dinosaur-like Pokémon with a light brown hide that covers most of its body except for its cream-colored belly. Two small claws with one on each hand to serve as its thumbs and one large nail on each foot make up its toes. It has two small spikes on its back and a short tail. On its head, Cubone wears a skull which has two rounded horns on the top of its head and a tooth-like point on the lower sides as a helmet which hides its face save for its triangular black eyes and a small area surrounding them. It also carries a bone with it.
Naruto took out his pokedex to scan the Pokémon and was saddened upon hearing the info.
Cubone, the Lonely Pokémon. A Ground type. Cubone wears a skull as a helmet, concealing its face as it sheds tears for its long-lost mother. It cries loudly to express its loneliness. It also always carries a long, thick bone.
Music Start: Pokemon FireRed & LeafGreen OST; Battle! (Trainer Battle)
"Let's stay focused and win this buddy, start off with Quick Attack!" Naruto commanded; Pikachu immediately complied as he dashed forwards at highspeed with white energy trailing behind him.
"Cubone, use Growl," said Giselle, Cubone opened its mouth and lets out a loud cry that releases white shockwaves, disrupting Pikachu's attack "Now use Bone Club,"
Naruto saw Cubone rush up to Pikachu with its bone raised to strike and quickly called out to him "Pikachu, use Agility to get away from Cubone then retaliate with Tackle," Pikachu listened in time to blur out of side then reappear to slam into Cubone from the side.
"Not bad, let's see how you handle this. Cubone, use Leer," said Giselle, Cubone glared at Pikachu intently with glowing red eyes through its skull helmet.
"Close your eyes buddy!" said Naruto, Pikachu immediately complied and was able to avoid the effects of the Leer.
Giselle smiled haughtily "Now your vulnerable, Cubone use Headbutt!" Cubone rushed forward and slammed headfirst into Pikachu, knocking him back.
"Hang in there Pikachu and use Thundershock!" Pikachu got up and fired a bolt of lightning at Cubone which was deflected to the side by Cubone's bone.
Giselle laughed haughtily "Surely you don't mean to tell me that you're unaware that ground types are immune to electric type attack, are you? Cubone use Bone Club," Cubone rushed towards Pikachu, ready to strike.
Naruto remained ever determined and called out once more "Use Thundershock again and this time aim at the ground before Cubone!" Pikachu complied to the commanded and fired another bolt to create a small hole on the ground which Cubone stepped into and tripped while dropping his bone "Strike now with Quick Attack!" Pikachu rapidly closed in and slammed into Cubone with a highspeed tackle.
Everyone was shocked at what just happened, especially Giselle "B-But how?"
Naruto and Pikachu smirked with the former speaking "I'm aware of the Ground type's immunity to electricity, but I used your own arrogance against you to set you up for a trap. There's a difference between knowing a move and how to use a move,"
"It's just like Naruto to pull off something like this, he really moves at his own pace and the Pokémon comply with it as well," said Brock, recalling the battle he had back in Pewter city.
"I know, I remember he won our games back home through methods no one would have come up with," said Leaf, watching the battle attentively.
"Cubone, hurry and get your bone back!" said Giselle urgently, Cubone got up and ran for its bone laying nearby.
"Not gonna happen as it's already over, Pikachu use Iron Tail!" Naruto called out, Pikachu rushed towards Cubone as his tail took on a metallice sheen and leapt into the air with a somersault. Just as Cubone reached for its bone, Pikachu slammed his hardened tail right on its head, making it collapse to the ground with swirls in its eyes which marked the end of the battle.
Music End
Giselle shakily held out her PokéBall towards her fainted Pokémon "…Cubone return," she recalled it back into the ball "I never read of a Pikachu being capable of learning Iron Tail or even using Thundershock in such a way,"
"It goes to show that books won't always hold all the answers, technically books are the records of what trainers experienced in the past. I train my Pokémon to be ready to go against anything especially type mismatches, they believe in me just as much as I believe in them and we both learn so many things as we go about our journey. My Pokémon and I don't like taking shortcuts like what this school offers but rather take things head-on with hard work and determination,"
"Amazing," said Joe in awe of the battle while the other students were in shock.
"I hope this helps you realize how flawed your system is and to help your fellow students at a steadier pace with no bullying involved," said Leaf wanting to make that they got the message clearly before they left.
Giselle nodded in understanding "I see now there's more to battling than what's written in the textbooks,"
"But I won't downplay your skills though, we both still have a lot to learn as trainers," said Naruto with a foxy grin, getting Giselle to smile as well.
"I've decided," Joe spoke "I'll go home and start fresh as a Pokémon trainer by going on a journey like you Naruto, I'm sure to learn more than here,"
"That's cool Joe, but remember that you don't exactly have to travel alone either," said Naruto.
Soon it was time for Naruto and others to be on their way for Vermilion city while Joe began making plans to return home to properly restart his career as a Pokémon trainer and explain the reasons for doing so to his parents.
Giselle watched Naruto leave with a thoughtful look on her face "Hmmmm, perhaps I should take a small break to decide on what would be my next step," she took out the PokéBall containing Cubone and looked at it in silence.
This is Hussbek online with the latest chapter, Naruto and co have arrived at Cerulean city where he would battle the gym leader for his second badge. There was a mild hiccup due to the current gym leaders revealed to be three sisters weren't exactly being serious with their duties and tried to give him a badge for free which he vehemently refused with disdain but that changed when the fourth sister Misty stepped up to challenge him for the badge which he eventually won and was happier about it.
On their way back to Pokémon center, Naruto and Leaf came across a house which has been burglarized and they found the suspect turning out to be a Team Rocket grunt and were rewarded with a TM after returning the TM case to the rightful owner. Later on, the group found themselves involved with an educational institute with a flawed system which they resolved by Naruto having to battle Giselle who was the one to create the system and won. Now the group resume their journey towards Vermilion city and the next gym battle.
Naruto's Team
=Pikachu [Ability: Static] (Moves: Tackle, Quick Attack, Thundershock, Agility, Iron Tail, Thunder Wave)
=CaterpieButterfree [Ability: Tinted Lens] (Moves: Tackle, String Shot, Bug Bite, Gust, Confusion, Stun Spore, Sleep Powder)
=Pidgeotto [Ability: Big Pecks] (Moves: Tackle, Gust, Quick Attack, Wing Attack, Twister)
=Scyther [Ability: Swarm] (Moves: Vacuum Wave, Quick Attack, Leer, Focus Energy, Pursuit, Slash, Double Team)
=Sandshrew [Ability: Sand Veil] (Moves: Scratch, Defense Curl, Sand Attack, Rollout)
Leaf's Team
=Bulbasaur
=Rattata
=Clefairy
=?
=?
Brock's Team
=Onix
=Geodude
=Zubat
This is Hussbek from Ghana.
Signing out.