Pokémon, Ash is going to become a perfect man from now on.

"Young man... are you really not here to buy wholesale goods?" The female shop assistant was speechless.

Xiao Zhi didn't respond.

He couldn't explain why he bought an extra bottle...

Chapter 91 Rika and Satoshi, Two Similar People

"Oh, is this a gentleman buying multiple bottles of perfume at once?"

In the back room of the perfume shop, a young lady in a furisode kimono listened to the gossip of the front desk clerk while curiously looking through someone's phone number and mailing address.

"He's finally here... Ash from Pallet Town~"

Silently reciting someone's name, the young lady gracefully rose and left, heading towards the Jade Rainbow Dojo.

...

Rika, the gym leader of Celadon City, is a well-known celebrity and beauty in Celadon City. Some even consider her and Sabrina from Saffron City to be the two most talented girls in Kanto.

In contrast, while Sabrina is mainly known for her superpowers, Krika is a true all-rounder.

She runs a perfume shop in Yuhong Department Store, as well as her own flower arranging class. She also serves as a special lecturer at Yuhong University as a gym leader and grass-type expert, teaching a group of students who are at least five or six years older than her how to raise rare Pokémon.

Some even believe that if Rika could focus on one thing—such as becoming a researcher—she could very well become an academic elite on par with Professor Oak in the future.

Kelika never thought that way. This young lady, who had a good family background, talent, and good looks, did everything out of interest.

"A young lady with a near-perfect personality... she's really something else."

Xiao Zhi said that there are indeed differences between people.

No matter how hard some people try, they're just not cut out to be museum owners.

But looking at Rika, who clearly only considered being a gym leader as a side job, she ended up being elected as the leader of the Kanto League gym leader.

Strictly speaking, every single one of the other dojos has to call Rika "Commander," not even Blaine or Giovanni.

Ash was quite interested in Rika like this.

Previously, Ash finally experienced a Gym battle that satisfied him at Nobuhiko's place. Now, facing this benchmark Gym Leader of the Kanto League, he can't help but look forward to the upcoming battle even more...

"Hello, I'm here to challenge the Rainbow City Gym." With anticipation in his heart, Ash knocked on the door of the Rainbow City Gym.

“Mr. Ash from Pallet Town… please walk along the path to the very end, Ms. Rika will be waiting for you on the field.”

After a slight hesitation, the staff quickly pointed Ash in the right direction, but did not provide any guides, leaving Ash to wander around the gym alone.

The interior of the Rainbow Gym is very spacious. In addition to Rika's flower arranging class, there is also a free-range area where various Grass-type Pokémon such as Bellsprout and Exeggcute can be seen leisurely basking in the sun.

Ash observed his surroundings and finally arrived at the enclosed battle area, where the elegant and dignified young lady was waiting.

"Mr. Ash, welcome to the Rainbow Gym. I am Rika, the Gym Leader here."

Rika gave Ash a graceful bow. Her voice was soft and soothing, making one feel pleasant and peaceful.

That's how it should be~

Ash could sense it as soon as he entered; Rika was radiating a sharp aura, as if she was trying to intimidate him!

Moreover, something about this empty battlefield is not right.

“Miss Rika, I’m also looking forward to battling you… but isn’t something missing here?” Ash asked directly, “Why are there only the two of us here, and no referee or audience?”

"This was specially arranged for you. The League gave me a mission to test Mr. Ash's true strength..." Rika explained with a serious expression, her face even becoming noticeably tense.

It's like agreeing reluctantly, but then trying too hard because it was so deliberate.

"This no-rules battle, although still wagered on badges, will not be made public, and there will be no referee to adjudicate... So, Mr. Ash, please give it your all!!" As she said this, Rika's aura was highly concentrated, giving off the feeling of someone about to go into battle!

"I see..." Ash's eyes narrowed slightly.

It must have been someone else's idea to instruct Rika to take things seriously with him.

It's estimated that after Ke took it back, he told her about meeting him, and that's when the test began.

Ash could certainly understand the other party's thoughts; they simply wanted to confirm their actual combat strength and see if they could be of great use in the fight against Team Rocket.

But I have to say, this is really unnecessary.

It's pointless to talk about combat power with someone who's cheating, especially the actual combat power of the Pokémon they're holding, since that can change at any time, right?

The League's assessment of Ash was completely misguided.

Especially since the person in charge of the inspection was Lijia, this gentle and charming young lady, who probably didn't want to take on this job from the very beginning.

So, Ash's choice is...

"Miss Rika, if you're being coerced, just blink. I can talk to him myself."

The unexpected joke instantly ruined the tense atmosphere.

"Ah, this..." Rika's hard-won composure crumbled instantly.

But just as she was about to speak, she suddenly felt a chill on the back of her neck, which almost made the hairs on her body stand on end!

"Miss Rika, the outcome is decided." Ash smiled slightly, and Gengar slowly emerged from the shadows behind Rika.

Clearing out the audience and removing the referee—that's what you call a no-rules fight?

In a real fight, there's no time for you to pose and show off. The outcome can often be decided in a second!

"Alright... I admit defeat." Rika reluctantly conceded, clearly not in a good mood after losing without a fight.

However, she also realized that when it came to this kind of unregulated combat, she might not be able to match the boy in front of her.

"As expected, I am not capable of this task..."

"In my opinion, Miss Rika probably had no choice but to accept this job because she couldn't refuse," Xiaozhi said with an understanding smile.

"Eh... how did Mr. Ash know?" Rika was slightly surprised. She realized that Ash seemed to understand her thoughts very well.

"Because Miss Lijia, like me, has her own ideas... We don't want to be disrupted, and we don't want to be told to do things we don't like."

As a perfect young lady who excels at Grass-type Pokémon, Rika might be dutiful in Gym battles, but she certainly wouldn't like real battles where Pokémon have to risk injury or even their lives!

Ash didn't even need to confirm this with her; he could just look at the Pokémon roaming freely in the gym area and he would know.

This is indeed very similar to Ash, because he also dislikes being forced to plan and achieve certain goals... especially being told what to do about his Pokémon!

He didn't even bother to listen to any of the talk about how your Pokémon should train to fight Team Rocket and what level of true strength it should reach.

To reiterate, Ash's Pokémon are training specifically for this Pokémon League tournament, not for fighting Team Rocket!

For real battles, he, the overpowered trainer, can handle it himself, which is also the original intention behind his recent frantic training.

As for his Pokémon, he just needs to accumulate steadily and climb upwards step by step!

"Miss Rika, please have a gym battle with me."

"That's exactly what I was thinking."

At this moment, the two people with similar traits simultaneously understood each other's pursuit.

One of them wants to engage in pure gym battles, while the other simply wants to fulfill the duties of a gym leader!

Chapter 92 VS Rika, Thank you for the sunny weather gift, Miss.

"Mr. Ash, how many badges do you have now?"

Composing herself, Rika also suppressed her overly fierce fighting spirit, restoring her original peaceful and gentle demeanor.

"Today we will receive the fourth one."

"It's almost halfway through... Well then, let's adopt the three-on-three rule for gym battles. Please allow me to go and change a batch of Pokémon."

Asking the challenger about the number of badges beforehand is a necessary procedure for gym leaders who don't set any challenge thresholds, just like Nobuhiko has done before.

Their gyms can be used as the first gym for newcomers to challenge at any time. As gym leaders, they must provide challengers with the most suitable tests and guidance.

To put it bluntly, if Ash didn't have any badges, then the Pokémon that Rika would send out first would at most have the strength of one badge.

These details are the criteria for judging whether a museum owner is qualified.

A moment later, Rika returned to the battlefield... and then sent out a 'Little Blue'~

"I apologize for keeping you waiting. My first one is this: the Vine Monster."

A bizarre body entwined with vines, and a pair of red shoes at its feet... The appearance of the vine monster is always accompanied by unavoidable urban legends.

However, Ash isn't worried right now, as Blue is perfectly fine staying in Goldenrod City.

Besides, even if that girl were to change, she would only turn into an octopus in the future…

"My first strike is on it... Squirtle!" After clearing his mind of all those random thoughts, Ash sent out the delinquent turtle wearing sunglasses.

"Water type?" Rika was taken aback by this type reversal; she genuinely hadn't realized Ash had such a hidden, stubborn ability.

However, she quickly adjusted her mindset. After participating in many dojo battles, it's inevitable to encounter some oddballs. Rika once met a challenger who was throwing powder at her like crazy.

"Please come over, Mr. Ash."

"Squirtle, U-turn!" As the battle began, Ash, who was attacking first, immediately chose to speed up and get close.

"Vine Monster, Paralysis Powder!"