Pokémon: Simultaneous time travel, this Ash is too versatile!

Chapter 74 Tactical Little Ash: Me vs. Lt. Surge? 99 out of 10, I have 99 ways to beat him.

With its full power, Pikachu is now capable of fighting even against professional-level Pokémon, and other Pokémon are also steadily improving.

Ralts is almost ready to evolve.

Judging from Ralts' usual performance, she is not far from evolving, and her level is already at the peak of normal. It is estimated that as long as she can get over this hurdle, she will evolve into Kirlia.

The little one won't be able to sit on his shoulders every day anymore, and I'm a little sad about that.

But Ralts can't stay in this form forever. Not to mention whether Ash wants it or not, Ralts herself doesn't want it either. She's influenced by Ash and thinks about going to the battlefield every day to fight all over the world!
Squirtle's level remained unchanged, but Bulbasaur and Charmander's levels increased by one level, one becoming a peak ordinary level and the other a high ordinary level.

The former had already been at the Normal High level for some time, so after joining Ash's team and improving its nutrition and training methods, its level was able to rise by one level in a short period of time.

But Charmander is different... He only recently went from Beginner to Intermediate! In just four days, he has leveled up again, a speed of improvement that even Xiao Gang finds astonishing.

The last thing that surprised him so much was Ralts.

As an experienced gym leader, he had seen countless Pokémon, but in his memory, the only Pokémon he knew that were this abnormal were the two that Ash had.

Not only is the species rare, but its talent is also top-notch... Can this really be described as luck? Is it luck or destiny?
Besides Charmander, Pidgeotto also leveled up to intermediate advanced level. However, Pidgeotto is similar to Bulbasaur; it has been accumulating experience in the beginner advanced level for quite some time, so its level increase is only natural.

These are Ash's improvements over this period of time. He has finally arrived in Vermilion City and is ready to challenge his third gym.

After a long journey, Ash had arrived in Vermilion City and wanted to challenge the gym he had been longing to visit as soon as possible, since they arrived in Vermilion City at noon on the third day, which was still relatively early.

Brock suggested that he go to the Pokémon Center to rest first and check out the information about Vermilion City. He didn't know much about the Vermilion City Gym, only that the Gym Leader seemed to be a retired soldier, so he figured he shouldn't be an easy opponent.

Ash thought it made sense, so he went to the Pokémon Center in Vermilion City to let his Pokémon rest and also to wash up. They had been lost along the way and hadn't had time to take a bath.

Xiaozhi and Xiaogang were alright, but Xiaoxia couldn't stand it at all. Her once fragrant body had become smelly. What girl could stand that?
The fact that she could endure for so many days already exceeded the patience of ordinary people.

After washing up, Ash and his friends returned to the lobby of the Pokémon Center.

"It's a bit strange, Ash. Have you noticed that there are far more injured Pokémon here than in other places?" Brock asked Ash, looking around the Pokémon Center with some confusion.

Ash looked around and had the same puzzled expression on his face: "Yeah, the number of injured Pokémon here is almost equal to the total number of injured Pokémon I've seen at any Pokémon Center."

"These were all made by the Gym Leader of the Vermilion City Gym." A soft voice came out, and everyone looked in the direction of the voice to find that it was Nurse Joy who spoke.

Xiao Gang looked at Miss Joy with a slightly flushed face. His thoughts, which had been on why the elves around him were behaving this way, were instantly thrown far away.

He has absolutely no resistance to older women.jpg

"The Gym Leader of Vermilion City? Aren't Gym Leaders usually only challenge challengers to test them? Even if they defeat a challenger's Pokémon, they usually wouldn't use such a brutal attack," Misty said, her brows slightly furrowed.

The surrounding Pokémon were injured in varying degrees of severity, some even with their entire bodies wrapped in bandages, while their trainers held them, heartbroken.

If the dojo master is responsible for these injuries, then that's going too far.

"The leader of the Vermilion Dojo is Lt. Surge. He is a veteran, so he is basically ruthless towards challengers. This is his style when he was in the army, and now he brings this style to the dojo challengers."

“When facing challengers, he usually raises the difficulty level by one level. What was supposed to be a beginner becomes an intermediate, and what was supposed to be an intermediate becomes an advanced… He calls this a test for the trainer. Only by passing this test can one become a Champion-level trainer in the future,” Nurse Joy said with a sigh.

"This is too much! Isn't this putting undue pressure on the challenger?!" Ash exclaimed angrily.

If Xiao Gang had given him a medium difficulty level when they faced each other, he probably wouldn't have gotten his first badge at all.

A mid-level Pokémon is at least at the peak of its advanced stage, or even possibly elite level. How could a novice trainer like him possibly defeat it?

This is an impossible challenge. If you don't want to give a badge, just say so. Why torture the challenger like this?
"There's nothing we can do about it. The difficulty of the gym challenge is chosen by the gym leader himself. If you don't agree, you can choose not to challenge. After all, the challenge isn't mandatory. If you don't want to challenge the difficulty set by the gym leader, you can choose to go to other gyms. Perhaps the gym leader of the Vermilion Gym is trying to discourage challengers by using this method..."

Xiao Gang also snapped out of his daze and began to analyze the situation calmly.

"But why would he do that?" Ash asked, puzzled. Isn't the Gym Leader's job to help challengers learn more, improve their skills, and lay the foundation for participating in the League Conference in the future?
Why would a gym want to discourage challengers? Are they giving up gym quotas?
"Maybe... he doesn't want to fight weak challengers? If he can build up his reputation, then all the trainers who come will be strong, and he can have a more satisfying battle," Miss Joy guessed.

This is related to Ma Shi Shi's status as a veteran. In the military, there is no mercy. You train until you die. So after retiring and becoming a dojo master, Ma Shi Shi has no idea what mercy means.

If it weren't for the league's rules, he wouldn't even have set up beginner or intermediate levels; the challenge would be all about going all out!

"This is troublesome... Ash, do you still want to challenge him?" Misty asked Ash with some concern.

Ash initially thought this place would be about the same difficulty as the Rainbow Gym, but judging from the opponent's personality, the challenge Ash faces is definitely far greater than that of the Rainbow Gym. This battle might very well be Ash's first defeat, and if not handled well, it could even affect Ash's confidence.

"...I'm going! I'm going to teach that guy a lesson! Not because he's harsh on challengers or anything, but because he did something like that to a Pokémon! Even in a battle, inflicting that level of injury is too much! It was definitely intentional!" Ash looked at the Pokémon Center, which was full of wounded Pokémon, his eyes firm and his words powerful.

Ash's love for Pokémon is unparalleled, but it is definitely among the top in the world. He is the kind of person who will let his Pokémon leave first when they are in danger, and then stay behind to cover their retreat.

The elf's life is greater than his life.

He also cherishes his Pokémon very much. Their training is usually tough, so he trains with them and even trains more than them. After training, he uses the basic massage techniques he has learned to relax everyone.

I usually work with Xiaogang to research the food flavors our Pokémon like, what ingredients to use, and how to cook it so that our Pokémon can not only eat delicious food but also absorb enough nutrition...

Therefore, Ash can't stand people who treat Pokémon badly, whether it's abandoning a Pokémon or severely injuring it to the point of near death... it's all the same!

The latter is even more despicable. Lt. Surge's actions undoubtedly provoked Ash's anger. This time, Ash challenged Lt. Surge not only to teach him a lesson, but also to prevent him from doing such things again.

Although I don't know if I can do it, I have to take action first! How can I know if I can do it if I don't try?

If it succeeds, then at least those who challenge Vermilion City Gym in the future will not have to suffer the same pain as the trainers at the Pokémon Center now.

"This opponent won't hold back; they might even go all out. Are you sure, Ash?" Brock asked, frowning slightly with concern.

Even if a typical gym leader sees that Ash has two badges, they would probably still choose the beginner difficulty level to challenge him after knowing that he has only been traveling for a little over a month.

But this owner of the Dead Leaf Pavilion doesn't play by the rules...

Ash knew the level of the Pokémon he had, and if the Vermilion City Gym Leader chose a medium-difficulty challenge, Ash should have a good chance of winning.

However, if the opponent were to choose the highest difficulty challenge for Ash... Ash is still too difficult to handle at his current level.

"Um... Nurse Joy, do you know what Lt. Surge's strongest Pokémon is?" Ash nodded firmly, then turned to Nurse Joy and asked.

"The strongest Pokémon... should be Raichu. It's said that it's the Pokémon that has been by his side since he joined the army, and its strength seems to be at the professional level."

“Pro-level… I understand. Thank you, Nurse Joy. Let’s go, Brock, Misty.” Ash said, leading Pikachu and Ralts out of the Pokémon Center.

Xiaoxia and Xiaogang exchanged a glance, and then had no choice but to follow Xiaozhi out. Xiaoxia had even decided that if the other party dared to attack Xiaozhi's Pokémon too hard, she would intervene in the battle to stop them!
Given Ash's love for Pokémon, he'd probably cry if his Pokémon looked like the ones in the Pokémon Center.

On the way to the Vermilion City Gym, Ash walked in front, with Misty and Brock following closely behind. However, what the two did not see was that Ash had his eyes closed.

……

[Newbie Ash: Guys, I need some help. If I go all out with Pikachu, can I beat a pro-level Raichu?]

A few seconds later

[Tactical Master Ash: If you give me that Aura Fusion and Partner Form, I'd be 99/10. I have 99 ways to do it.]

[Newbie Ash: ...And what about me?]

[Tactical Master Xiao Zhi: As for you... it depends on who you're fighting. Is the opponent a Champion? What's their class and level at the time?]

[Newbie Ash: No, I mean Lt. Surge, the gym leader of Vermilion City. I don't even know his job level yet.]

[Tactical Master Ash: Oh, it's Uncle Lt. Surge. Well, as long as his Raichu isn't at the Elite Rank, you should have a win rate of over 70%. He's not very bright. As long as you use what I taught you properly, you basically can't lose. If you do lose, don't say I taught you.]

[Newbie Ash: Ahem, even if I win, I wouldn't dare say you taught me. Fine, I'll go then.]

……

After exchanging messages in the group for less than a minute, Xiao Zhi opened his eyes, his gaze full of confidence.

Since even Tactical Xiaozhi said he has a 70% chance of winning, it means that his current strength is definitely enough to go toe-to-toe with Lt. Surge.

Tactical Intelligence's estimate is likely to be lower, not higher; it says 70%, but in reality, it's at least 80%.

Although the Lt. Surge from other worlds cannot compare to those from this world, Ash's words about tactics still gave him some confidence.

That's right. If we're going to win a battle, we need to defeat the opponent's strongest Pokémon!
So Ash's target this time is Lt. Surge's strongest Pokémon—Raichu!
The three of them arrived at the entrance of the Vermilion City Gym.
After Ash announced that he was there to challenge the gym, the gates of the Vermilion Gym opened.

Inside, a muscular, tall, and strong blond man looked at Xiaozhi and his two companions with a frivolous expression.

"Hey, so you're the challengers? Hehe, these challengers are quite cute~"

As he spoke, the burly man fixed his gaze on Misty, who was standing next to Ash.

Then he hugged Xiaoxia, as if he wanted to greet her with a hug.

Xiaoxia was so startled that she took a step back, but she couldn't escape the other person's embrace, since the other person was almost twice the size of Xiaoxia.

Just then, Xiaozhi stepped in front of Xiaoxia, raised his hand and pressed it against the man's chest, instantly preventing the big man from advancing an inch.

Seeing this, the big man looked puzzled. He looked at Xiao Zhi's thin, muscleless arms and was full of questions.

How did those skinny arms manage to hold him up with one hand?
With a slight tremor of his hand, Xiao Zhi sent the tall, burly man staggering back more than ten steps, widening the distance between them.

At this moment, the big man's face was filled with disbelief.

What kind of strength does this guy have? How could he push him so far away in one go?

Is it reasonable to have such small arms and legs?
"Please don't harass my friend. Also, I'm the one who challenged the gym," Ash said coldly.

He already had a bad impression of the Vermilion Gym, but when he entered the gym, someone harassed Misty, which made his impression even worse. What kind of people are these!
The big man paused for a moment, then burst out laughing: "Hahaha, little boy, are you kidding me? You brought a Pikachu to challenge me? This is a gym, not a children's playground!"

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(End of this chapter)