Kanto Gets Loud
Chapter 43: The School of Hard Knocks (Part 2)
Meanwhile, with Lincoln and Company,
"And this is where exercises in Water Pokemon Training are held," Joe said, as he and Rusty showed their guests an indoor Olympic sized pool.
"Oh, now this is a room I can get used to!" Misty commented.
"So, what sort of Water Pokemon do you train with?" Rito asked.
"All kinds. We even exchange Pokeballs with other, high-ranking schools from all the other regions so that the students can get used to different Pokemon, not just the ones found here in Kanto," Joe replied.
"Just how many Water Pokemon are there in the world?" Nana asked.
"No one knows the exact amount, but they do take up the majority of all recorded species of Pokemon, since Water Pokemon can exist in vast oceans, clear lakes and rivers, and even in murky swamps. There's no telling how many there are," Rusty replied. Just then, the P.A went off.
"Attention all students, will Giselle Seiyo please report to the main battlefield? Again, Giselle Seiyo, report to the main battlefield. And if the American known as Lincoln Loud is still on campus, you are needed at the main battlefield as well," a woman's voice said.
"I didn't think classes were this short," Lincoln commented.
"They aren't. That was Headmistress Verdant. She must've somehow heard about Giselle's challenge to you and decided to move it up in the schedule. I guess she wants the school's reputation to skyrocket that badly," Joe replied.
"Well, Giselle did challenge me, so it would be rude to just run away. Where is this main battlefield?" Lincoln asked.
"We'll show you guys the way," Rusty replied, as the group was led out of the pool area.
Later, at the Main Battlefield,
Giselle was patiently waiting Lincoln's arrival, as many of her peers surrounded the battlefield, like vultures eying their next meal. Headmistress Verdant was in the judge's square, looking quite impatient, "Where could that boy be?" she wondered.
"He'll be here. He and his little group were hanging out with those two slackers, Beige and Rogers, when I last saw him. More thank likely they showed them around the school," Giselle replied.
"Hmm, so you say," Verdant replied. Just then, the doors to the main battlefield room opened, and in walked Lincoln and company.
"So good of you to come," Giselle commented smugly.
"Well, I figured it would be rude to ignore a challenge, so here I am," Lincoln said, taking his spot on the end opposite of Giselle.
"Alright, I, Headmistress Alyson Verdant, shall now explain the rules of the match. Each trainer may use a total of two Pokemon, and the battle will continue until both of either side's Pokemon are no longer able to continue. Substitutions cannot be made at any time. In addition, I shall be calling the match down the middle, with giving no special treatment to either trainer. If both trainers are in agreement with these terms, then please, send out your first Pokemon!"
"I shall start with Graveler!" Giselle said, sending out a Graveler.
"I choose Mesmer!" Lincoln said, sending out his Poliwag.
"Alright, the first match is Graveler VS Poliwag! Begin!" Verdant declared.
"Alright Mesmer, let's get this started strong! Use Water Pulse!" Lincoln instructed. Mesmer then summoned up Water Pulse and launched it as Graveler.
"Graveler, use Dig to dodge!" Giselle ordered. Graveler quickly burrowed underground, dodging Water Pulse. Moments later, Graveler resurfaced, striking Mesmer, sending him back a few feet.
"Mesmer, are you alright?" Lincoln asked.
"A little shaken up, but I'll manage," Mesmer replied.
"Alright then, use Water Gun!" Lincoln instructed. Mesmer then fired off Water Gun.
"Like before Graveler, use Dig!" Giselle ordered, as Graveler once again burrowed underground.
"There's no telling where it'll come up from, so just use Protect!" Lincoln instructed. Mesmer then summoned the barrier around it, just as Graveler resurfaced, bouncing off of the barrier, "Alright, now use Water Pulse!" Lincoln instructed. Once again, Mesmer fired Water Pulse, but since Graveler was still falling from bouncing off of Protect, the attack made contact, causing major damage.
"Clever move, but a simple Water Type attack like that won't be enough to defeat my Graveler," Giselle boasted.
"She's right, Lincoln! Graveler is at a high level so attacks that would normally be super effective won't do much damage!" Joe warned.
"Now then, Graveler, use Rock Polish!" Giselle ordered. Sparks flew off of Graveler before it glowed red, "Now, attack with Rollout!" Graveler now began to roll straight at Mesmer, and a lot faster than expected.
"Whoa, Graveler looks much faster now! What gives?" Rito asked.
"Rock Polish. It's a move that increases the users speed by reducing drag on it's body," Brock replied, as Graveler slammed into Mesmer, sending the Tadpole Pokemon skidding back a few feet.
"M-Mr. Lincoln? If it's alright with you, can we use one of the new moves I just learned?" Mesmer asked. Lincoln looked intrigued.
"'New moves'? Which new moves are you talking about?" Lincoln asked.
"I know one of them is called 'Bubblebeam', but the other one isn't so much a 'new move' as it one that I remembered. I think it's called 'Ice Ball'?" Mesmer replied.
"Well, if you think they'll work, then let's give them a try! Mesmer, use Ice Ball!" Lincoln instructed. Mesmer then formed a basketball sized ball of ice before firing it at the still rolling Graveler. It did slow it down a little, but not nearly enough to stop it, "Protect!" Mesmer wasted no time in forming Protect, which stopped Rollout.
"That Protect is amazing!" Nana commented.
"Protect is a move that nullifies almost any move, regardless of how powerful it is," Raigo replied.
"Now, let's give that Bubblebeam a try!" Lincoln instructed. Mesmer then fired a steady stream of bubbles at Graveler. Try as it might, Graveler was unable to withstand the onslaught and fell to defeat.
"Graveler is unable to battle! The round goes to Poliwag!" Verdant declared, sounding irritated that Giselle lost the first round, as the aforementioned student recalled her Pokemon. It was then that a bright light erupted from Mesmer, as it began to evolve, eventually becoming a Poliwhirl.
"Mesmer, you've evolved!" Lincoln happily exclaimed.
"Now I remember why my Mommy told me Bubblebeam was a special move! She said that it's a sign that I'm close to evolving! And now I have arms!" Mesmer happily said.
"Miss Seiyo, please send out your next Pokemon," Verdant ordered, in a tone that said "you had better win this." Giselle felt a chill from the implied tone, but regained her nerve.
"And now, for my strongest Pokemon! Go, Cubone!" Giselle said, as she sent out a small, brown, lizard like Pokemon wearing a skull and holding a bone.
"Who's that Pokemon?" Lincoln wondered, pointing his Pokedex at the new Pokemon. Verdant was shocked to see the device in question.
"Cubone, the Lonely Pokemon, a Ground Type. This Pokemon wears the skull of it's deceased mother. Sometimes it's dreams make it cry, but each tear shed makes it grow stronger," Dexter explained.
"Yikes, sounds like a Pokemon Lucy wouldn't mind having," Lincoln commented.
"Mr. Loud, where did you get that Pokedex? It's not a toy, you know," Verdant demanded.
"Professor Oak himself gave it to me," Lincoln replied. Verdant didn't seem to thrilled about.
"Alright, continue the battle!" Verdant declared.
"Alright Mesmer, use Bubblebeam!" Lincoln instructed. Once again, Mesmer fired off Bubblebeam.
"That may have worked before, but not twice in a row! Cubone, use Bonemerang on those bubbles!" Giselle ordered. Cubone threw it's bone like a boomerang, cutting through Bubblebeam with ease, "Now, use Earthquake!"
"Wait, WHAT?!" Lincoln exclaimed, as Cubone leapt high into the air, before coming back down, slamming the ground so hard that the entire battlefield began to shake. Mesmer tried his hardest to withstand the attack, but got hurled into the air.
"Now, use Bonemerang!" Giselle ordered. Cubone once again threw it's bone at Mesmer, striking the newly evolved Pokemon, sending it down to defeat with a thud.
"Poliwhirl is unable to battle, the round goes to Cubone!" Verdant declared, sounding pleased with the result.
"You did great Mesmer, take a long rest!" Lincoln said, recalling Mesmer, "I wasn't expecting an actual earthquake attack," he said, shaken up from the previous battle.
"Believe it. Earthquake is among the most powerful Ground Type moves there is," Giselle replied.
"Alright, I'm still in this battle. My next Pokemon will be…"
"Me, I hope," Pikachu said, stepping forth.
"You, Pikachu?" Lincoln asked.
"That's right. I want to try out our strategy for our rematch with Surge and his Raichu, and this seems like a prime opportunity to try it out," Pikachu replied.
"Well, if that's how you feel, then I'm going with you!" Lincoln declared, as Pikachu dashed out onto the battlefield.
"A Pikachu?"
"What, is this kid nuts or what?"
"Everyone knows Ground Type Pokemon have an edge over Electric Type Pokemon."
"Are you certain you want to battle with Pikachu, Mr. Loud?" Verdant asked.
"Yeah, I'm sure. Pikachu wants to battle, so I'm going to let it," Lincoln replied.
"Well, suit yourself. You pretty much sealed your own defeat. The next round will be Cubone VS Pikachu! Now, before we begin, I have one thing to say. Miss Seiyo, you are NOT to use Earthquake again. The room has sustained quite a bit of damage from that last attack," Verdant declared.
"As you wish, Headmistress," Giselle replied.
"Alright, BEGIN!" Verdant declared.
"Let's start off fast with Quick Attack!" Lincoln instructed. Pikachu took off like a rocket, racing right at Cubone.
"Cubone, counter that with Iron Head," Giselle ordered. Cubone's skull then became metallic, as it charged headfirst at Pikachu, meeting the Quick Attack with a resonating metallic clang which caused just about everyone to wince.
"Ooh, that had to hurt!" Haruna commented. And she was right, as Pikachu stumbled back.
"Note to self: Do not use Quick Attack against opponents using Iron Head," Pikachu said, making a mental note, shaking off the pain of the impact.
"Cubone, use Bone Rush! Don't stop until you've defeated that Pikachu!" Giselle ordered. Cubone once again charged at Pikachu, wielding it's bone.
"Quick, deflect that Iron Tail!" Lincoln instructed. Pikachu was quick to use Iron Tail to smack away the Bone Rush, before striking Cubone with the Steel Type move as well.
"Clever move, but not nearly enough. Cubone, use Bone Club!" Giselle ordered, as Cubone caught it's bone. It then wasted no time in striking Pikachu with the club. No one saw the sparks flying off it Cubone.
"Pikachu, are you alright?" Lincoln asked.
"Y-Yeah, I'll be alright, but I don't think I can withstand another super effective move like that. If we want to win, we have to do it now!" Pikachu replied.
"I know what you're trying to say. Want to give your newest move a try?" Lincoln asked.
"Like you even need to ask," Pikachu replied.
"Alright, in that case, Pikachu, use Grass Knot!" Lincoln instructed. Pikachu's eyes began to glow green, as the entire battlefield became covered in grass.
"Whoa, what's this move?" Kotegawa asked.
"It's called 'Grass Knot'. It's a move that deals more damage if the target weighs a lot," Brock replied.
"But Cubone can't possibly weigh that much," Nana commented.
"According to the Pokedex entry, Cubone clock in at an average weight of 14.3 pounds (6.5 kg)," Leaf replied, looking at her Pokedex, as Cubone was getting tripped up by several patches of grass.
"Nice one, Pikachu! Now, dive into the grass!" Lincoln instructed. Pikachu did as he was told.
"Cubone, chase after it! Don't give it a chance to recover!" Giselle ordred. Cubone dove in after Pikachu, looking around for the Mouse Pokemon.
"Alright, I never thought I'd take a page from Team Rocket, but Pikachu, use Quick Attack from inside the grass!" Lincoln instructed. Cubone got blindsided, as Pikachu slammed into it from the grass, before diving back in, and repeating the process again.
"Hold on, this has to be against the rules!" Giselle complained.
"Sorry Ms. Seiyo, but hit-and-run attacks aren't technically against the rules, as much as I am against them," Verdant commented.
"Are they really legitimate?" Lincoln asked.
"They are, Lincoln! Agatha, a member of the Elite Four, specializes in hit-and-run attacks," Brock replied.
"Cubone, try to sense where Pikachu is coming from, then use Bone Rush!" Giselle ordered. Cubone listened in, making sure to hone in on Pikachu. It eventually caught on, and turned to face the Mouse Pokemon.
"Pikachu, Protect!" Lincoln instructed. Bone Rush bounced off of Protect, "Alright, now, let's wrap this up with Iron Tail!" Pikachu then swung its Iron Tail at Cubone, sending it out of the grass. As it laid motionless, Verdant shakily rose her hand.
"C-Cubone… is unable to battle, the winner is Pikachu, and the victor is Lincoln Loud!" she declared.
"I… I lost? I actually lost?" Giselle questioned, as Pikachu dashed over to Lincoln.
"Nicely done, Pikachu," Lincoln replied.
"Thanks. Maybe we can use hit and run tactics in our rematch with Surge," Pikachu suggested.
"It would be a smart move," Lincoln replied, as Giselle, holding her Cubone, walked over to him.
"That… was admittedly, one of the best battles I ever had in a long time," Giselle said. Lincoln was surprised with how humble Giselle was suddenly being.
"Heh, thanks. Though I will admit, you didn't make it easy for us," Lincoln replied.
"Well, perhaps if you ever come back, we can have ourselves a rematch? I won't be the same trainer you just battled just now," Giselle proposed.
"Heh, anytime, anywhere," Lincoln replied.
"Very good show of sportsmanship, young lady. However, there won't be any rematch between the two of you on this school's grounds," Verdant suddenly interrupted, sounding less than friendly.
"What do you mean, Headmistress?" Giselle asked, unnerved by Verdant's tone.
"Allow me to explain," Leanne said, suddenly coming into view, a look of wicked glee on her face.
"Oh, jeez, not this girl again!" Misty groaned.
"Look around you, Giselle," Leanne urged. Looking around at the students gathered in the battlefield stands, Giselle saw only disgust on the faces that once held great respect and admiration for her, "You, the former top student of the academy, had her first ever loss. And to make it even worse, you lost to a gaijin, like this runt," she said, motioning to Lincoln, who looked rather annoyed.
"Leanne, listen, I…" Giselle then took a moment to process what the mousy girl had just said, "Wait, what do you mean 'former top student'? I'm still at the top of the class.
"Not anymore, Miss… no, you don't deserve to be called that anymore. Not after you brought shame not only to this school's reputation, but to MINE as well!" Verdant snarled.
"Headmistress, I…"
"No, you are not to call me 'Headmistress' ever again, trash. You are officially expelled from Pokemon Tech, and you can NEVER rejoin," Verdant said in an icy tone, before turning her attention to Rusty and Joe, "The same goes for those two slackers there. Your grades are the lowest in Pokemon Tech's history. I'm sure we'll be a lot better off without a couple of failures like you holding everyone back. I never want to see the three of you, ever again!"
"Fine with us. Rusty and I were planning to drop out anyway!" Joe said, as he and Rusty turned to leave, "Now, if you'll excuse us, we need to go and pack our things."
As both boys left to collect their things, Verdant turned back to Giselle, "And what do you think you're still doing here? I thought I told you to get out of MY school!"
"But… you can't do this to me! You don't have the right to do so!" Giselle exclaimed, only for a cruel smirk to work its way onto her former headmistress' face.
"You seem to forget my position. I own this school, and therefore, I alone have the right to decide who stays and who gets cut. If I want something done, I can and will do it. And seeing as how you're not going to willingly leave," Verdant said, pulling out a Pokeball, releasing what appeared to be a large, four armed humanoid Pokemon with greyish blue skin, "Machamp, see to it that this piece of trash is thrown out of the institute, would you?" with a nod, Machamp lifted Giselle, and carried her away.
"No, wait! I beg of you to give me another chance!" Giselle pleaded, only to be ignored by Verdant, who simply turned her back on Giselle, and walked off. The other students began to hurl insults and jeers at Giselle. Giselle now knew what it was like to receive the same treatment that she and the other upper-class students gave to the lesser students. Leaf, however, wasn't having any of it, as she stormed up to Verdant, just before she could exit the battlefield.
"What the hell is your problem, you old witch?! Kicking out one of your students over one loss?!"
Verdant turned to face Leaf, looking less than pleased to see her, "Leaf Rose, it's been quite some time since I saw you last. I never could fathom why you would abandon the pinnacle of education for a less than adequate school."
"There was only so much mistreatment you and everyone else in this school gave to the lesser students that I could bear to stomach. And I have never once regretted my choice to ditch this dump of a school for basic education!" Leaf retorted.
"Even so, I seem to remember saying that you are forbidden to ever come back here," Verdant said with a sneer.
"Oh believe me, this is one place that I would've rather never come back to, but this isn't about me. It's about how you're choosing to act like a sore loser all because Giselle lost one battle," Leaf replied.
"Failures like her and those other two have no place in this institute. When one enrolls in this school, they either show promise or they'll be left to rot with the rest of the garbage," Verdant replied, giving Leaf and the others a scowl, "And speaking of those who are no longer welcome in this school, you and the rest of your pathetic friends are hereby given a lifetime ban from this school."
"Fine with us! Let's get going," Lincoln said, as he and the others left.
"Normally I would blanche at the thought of getting kicked out of school, but this is an exception to that rule," Kotegawa commented.
Outside Pokemon Tech School Grounds,
Giselle was sitting underneath a tree, a lost look on her face, just as Lincoln and friends exited the school, along with Rusty and Joe, "Well, I certainly won't be coming back here anytime soon," Lincoln commented, before noticing Giselle sitting under the tree, "Is… she going to be alright?"
"Yeah, I think so. She's probably just shaken up from getting kicked out of school, which I think is a bunch of B.S. for Verdant to do that to her. I may of hated Giselle's snobbish attitude, but even she didn't deserve that," Joe replied.
"Based on the way she was acting, I think that Leanne girl had something to do with it," Raigo commented.
"More than likely. Though, there's not much use in dwelling on it now. So, what are you guys going to do now?" Lincoln asked Joe and Rusty.
"I think we'll go ahead and start traveling the Johto Region and try to work our way into the Johto League," Joe replied.
"That sounds like an excellent plan, but how far is Johto exactly?" Lincoln asked.
"It's little over a day's walk west of the Indigo Plateau," Brock replied, pointing in the direction he was talking about.
"It may not be the quickest way of entering a Pokemon League, but now that we're out of this school, it's the only way we can do so," Rusty replied.
"So, what about you guys?" Joe asked.
"Well, we need to get back to Vermillion City. If we leave now, we should be there by sunset. Anyhow, despite all that happened today, it was nice meeting you guys," Lincoln replied.
"Likewise. Hopefully we'll run into each other at some point," Rusty replied.
"…Lincoln," Giselle said, standing up. Lincoln tensed up, not knowing what Giselle would do since he unwittingly caused her to get kicked out of school, "Before you go… I want to thank you."
Lincoln, much like the others, were perplexed, "Wait, you're thanking me? Aren't you, I don't know, pissed that I got you thrown out of your school?"
"It is true that I am upset about getting tossed out, but the two different lessons you taught me in our battle more than makes up for it," Giselle replied.
"Uh, what lessons did I teach you?"
"First off, you taught me to think outside the box in battle, using unconventional tactics to get an upper hand over an opponent you were at a disadvantage against. And the second one… you were able to show me just how awful that I, along with everyone else in the school, had been treating the lower ranked students like Rusty and Joe," Giselle replied, turning to the two boys in question, "Joe, Rusty… words can not even begin to express how truly sorry I am for all the mistreatment that I helped put you through."
"Giselle, I'm going to be quite frank when I say this; You were among the many reasons that Rusty and I wanted to drop out of school, with how much name calling you and the others did and getting the others to pick on us by using us as bait to lure in unsuspecting trainers. It's going to be quite some time before either of us can take your word for it," Joe stated firmly.
"And I intend to wait however long and do whatever I can to make amends to both of you. And as for you, Lincoln," Giselle said, turning to the white-haired boy with a determined look in her eyes, "Don't think for a minute that I'll let such a blow to my pride go unavenged. As of this moment, you and I are now rivals!"
"The same goes for Rusty and I. We want to have a chance at battling you sometime ourselves," Joe added.
"Well, I have no qualms about that. Here's to hoping you make it into the Johto League," Lincoln replied.
"The same goes for you and the Kanto League," Giselle replied. She then turned to Joe and Rusty, "I know it'll be some time before you can forgive me, but would you at least consider having me on your travelling team?"
"Fine with me," Joe replied.
"I'm not against it either," Rusty said.
"Well, I guess we'll see each other again someday," Lincoln said, as they all went their separate ways.
"Well, looks like badges and Pokemon aren't the only thing you're collecting, Lincoln," Leaf commented.
"Yeah, three more rivals for me," Lincoln replied.
"How many do you have? Rivals, I mean," Nana asked.
"Uh, lets see, there's Leaf, Gary, Red, Samurai, AJ, and now those three, which makes a total of eight," Lincoln replied.
"And the path to the Kanto League is still a long road to travel, so I have no doubt in my mind that you'll have more rivals by the time the League rolls around," Brock replied.
"Speaking of which, I wonder how that meeting Surge had to go to is going?" Lincoln wondered.
Meanwhile, at the Kanto Pokemon League HQ in Indigo Plateau,
Flint, Misty's mother and sisters, Lt. Surge, and several other people had gathered in a large conference room. At the head of the room were four individuals. The first was an extremely gorgeous and busty woman with long red hair wearing glasses. The second was a towering, muscular man wearing only tattered pants. The third was an elderly woman holding a wooden cane. The fourth and final one was a red headed man in a black and red bodysuit with a cape, "I'd like to that all of you Gym Leaders for coming today, even if we're only missing one. We have a pressing matter to discuss, involving Team Rocket," the man in the cape said.
"I take it those goons are up to no good as usual?" Surge asked, crossing his arms.
"Indeed. We have received intel about a string of their most recent activities, which include the poaching and trafficking of Pokemon, as well as a slew of other crimes," the red headed woman replied.
"How did you get this intel?" a man dressed as a ninja asked, as he sat next to a teen girl, also dressed as a ninja.
"We have some spies working on the inside of Team Rocket. Most of their operations they have planned for the future are of little concern, but there are quite a few that we can't simply ignore," the caped man replied.
"Would you be willing to share some of these operations, Lance?" Misty's Mother asked.
"One such operation is a complete takeover and raid of the Silph Co. in Saffron City. Which is going to happen sometime after a plan they have for the Saint Anne," Lance replied.
"The Saint Anne? But that's just a luxury cruise liner. What does Team Rocket want with it?" a woman in a red dress with long, black hair asked, never once breaking her stoic expression.
"According to our sources, they've been passing out free passes to any Pokemon Trainer in Vermillion City who wants to board it," Lance replied.
"They're handing out free passes? Is anyone really dumb enough to fall for something like that?" Lily asked.
"Well, think about it, young lady; If you had a chance to take a cruise on such a cruise liner, wouldn't you want first dibs on it?" Flint asked.
"Fair point," Lily conceded.
"We're getting off topic here!" the elderly woman said.
"Right, Agatha. Continuing where we left off, the operation they have planned for the St. Anne is actually quite a well thought out strategy. They're planning an ambush on a cruise ship that's way out in the middle of the ocean, where police would not be able to help out," the glasses wearing woman added.
"Fortunately, we had received one of those free passes from one of our G-Men who was in the area at the time," Lance said, holding up a ticket.
"But there's a slight problem with that, Lance. You're too well known throughout Kanto. If Team Rocket saw you on the ship, they'll know you're there to bust them, which could jeopardize our chances of making a mass arrest," Agatha replied.
"I know, which is why I'm sending in someone else," Lance replied, handing the pass to the glasses wearing woman, "Lorelei, can you handle this?"
"Of course. With all the trouble I've heard Team Rocket causing on Four Island, I'd be more than happy to teach them a lesson," Lorelei replied.
"Good. Now then, as for Agatha, I want you to go to Saffron City with Sabrina to help out with the lockdown. If Team Rocket is behind it, I need the two of you to look into it," Lance said to the elderly woman.
"Of course. It's high time we took down those awful crooks once and for all," Agatha replied.
"And finally, there's your task Bruno. I want you to go to the P-1 Grand Prix, and scout out any potential trainers that can help out with taking down Team Rocket," Lance said to the towering man.
"As last year's champion, I was already planning to go anyway, but you can count on me," Bruno replied.
"And what'll you do, Lance?" Lorelei asked.
"As you said before, Team Rocket is also operating in the Sevii Islands, so I'm going to go patrol them and see about busting any hideouts they have," Lance replied.
"And what about the rest of us?" Surge asked.
"All the Gym Leaders are going to tasked with keeping a watchful eye in each of their respective cities. If you see any activity caused by Team Rocket, you are to contact the Pokemon League immediately, and we'll send out some of our best men to help take them down. And with that, I think we've tackled everything that needed to be discussed. So, meeting adjourned," Lance replied, as all of the Gym Leaders got up and out of their seats, proceeding to leave.
"Where do you think Giovanni could've been?" a teen girl in a beautiful kimono asked.
"Who knows? That guy's almost never at the Viridian Gym," a woman dressed like a cavewoman, with fang accessories, replied.
"That guys is certainly a suspicious character," the ninja girl commented.
"Janine, are you saying that Giovannie could be involved with Team Rocket somehow?" the older ninja asked.
"It's too early to say for certain. But with how rarely he's at his gym, he's certainly one to watch out for," Janine replied.
"Well, I need to get back to Vermillion City. I got me a rematch with a challenger waiting," Surge said.
"Oh? It's not like you to anticipate rematches so casually," Flint replied.
"Yeah, well, I suppose you could say I feel a sort of kinship with this one," Surge replied.
Team Updates:
Lincoln:
Poliwag Poliwhirl (Mesmer)