Pokémon: Trainers Start as Bounty Hunters.

The voice of a squinty-eyed man in a green vest with dark brown skin came from across the field.

Tetsuya was surprised for a moment, but with the gym battle coming up, he held back and nodded to indicate his confirmation.

“Yes, I am Tetsuya Tamaki from Tokiwa City, and I now formally challenge you to a battle wagered on the Nibi Crest.”

I walked to the platform opposite the trainer's station and looked at the man across the field.

“Alright, Trainer Tetsuya, although you have already received the challenge rules, I still need to explain them briefly.”

The man gestured for the referee to enter the arena. "The Pewter City Gym Battle is a 2v2 Rock Terrain Battle, and the Gym Leader will send out their Pokémon first."

The challenger has the first strike and is allowed to switch Pokémon during the battle, while the Gym Leader is not allowed to switch Pokémon.

The team whose Pokémon are all rendered unable to battle loses.

The referee waved his flag and announced, "The match between Brock of Pewter Dojo and Tetsuya Tamaki of Viridian City shall now begin!"

Brock threw out a Poké Ball. "My first Pokémon is Graveler."

Without hesitation, Tetsuya pulled a Luxury Ball from his waist the instant the opponent released the Pokémon.

"Then go ahead, Mighty Chicken."

Yes, Tetsuya chose the Mighty Chicken instead of the Pidgeot.

After all, compared to the Pidgeot, the Mighty Chicken needs more training at this time.

Besides, gym battles are meant to be fought between Pokémon of similar strength to hone skills, not just for badges.

Xiao Gang looked at Tetsuya's powerful chicken, a hint of amazement and surprise flashing in his eyes.

As a future gym leader and a trainer aiming to become an outstanding breeder, Brock could naturally see that Tetsuya's Maxipopo not only had excellent potential, but that Tetsuya had also trained it to be extraordinary.

As for type advantages and disadvantages, Brock isn't stupid. Although some new trainers might not know this, Tetsuya, who can raise such an excellent Merach, doesn't seem like such a simpleton.

"Confident, huh? Interesting," Xiao Gang thought to himself.

"Approach at high speed and unleash flames," Tetsuya commanded Combusken, testing the Graveler on the other side.

"Roll over the rock and dodge." Brock gave the expert command. Every trainer would start by testing the waters with speed when dealing with Graveler, and Brock had long since developed a routine for dealing with it.

You could have simply rolled away to dodge it. After all, while the Gravestone is slow, it's not bad at being agile, and the speed boost from rolling would be enough to dodge most of its probing attacks of the same level.

However, considering the development of the opposing Mighty Chicken, it was definitely a tough opponent, so Xiao Gang cautiously used a Rock Polish to further increase the Gravestone's starting speed.

The rumbler shrank back and rolled away, its body suddenly becoming shiny as it quickly moved to the side.

“hong~”

The flames spewed by the Mighty Chicken still grazed the Graveler, leaving black marks on its body and the ground.

Xiao Gang's eyes shrank even further. "This Mighty Chicken not only has extremely fast moves, but its flames are also much more powerful than those of its kind."

Tetsuya was secretly shocked. "How flexible the rumbler is! The speed at which it rolls and polishes the rocks is astonishing."

"But there's nothing particularly special about it, and attacking isn't its strong point either," Tetsuya analyzed, looking at the wounds on the Gravestone.

"Just follow him in a flash and kick him away with your lower body."

"Endure!" Xiao Gang was very surprised to hear Tetsuya's command, but his good upbringing made him subconsciously shout out these two words to command the rumbler.

The Mighty Chicken is moving at high speed, steadily approaching the Gravestone.

Upon hearing its trainer's command, a flash of white light appeared on its body, and it arrived behind Graveler at extraordinary speed, poised to kick.

Just as Gravestone was about to react and use Endurance, it was kicked into the air by Mighty Chicken.

"Double kick followed by a tile break, finish it off." Tetsuya's cold voice rang out.

Before Xiao Gang and Long Long Shi could react, the Mighty Chicken jumped up and delivered a double kick.

First, it kicked the unbalanced Gravestone higher, then turned around and kicked it to the ground.

Combusken controlled its body in mid-air, following above Graveler. Its right hand emitted a white light, and after charging up, it used gravity to chop Graveler's body with its hand.

"Boom!"

The rumblestone crashed rapidly into the ground, creating a cloud of smoke.

Chapter 25 Defeating Xiao Gang

Using the recoil from its strike on the rumbler, the Mighty Chicken somersaulted out of the smoke and cautiously observed the surroundings.

Soon, the smoke dissipated, and the eyes of the rumblestone transformed into vortexes.

"Gorilla Stone is unable to fight and is therefore unable to fight. Challenger Tamaki Tetsuya wins!" The referee immediately raised the flag and announced the result.

Xiao Gang picked up the Poké Ball and put it back into the Gravestone, then gave a wry smile.

"An exceptionally strong chicken, extremely fast and powerful, with high-powered flames, and its fighting skills are very fluid. It's also incredibly effective against Gravestone."

Xiao Gang thought to himself that at first he thought Tetsuya's order to make the strong chicken follow was a joke.

After all, once a Gravestone gets rolling fast, most Pokémon simply can't catch up, especially since it's been polished by rocks.

However, his upbringing taught him not to underestimate the commands of the opposing trainer; the other trainer wasn't stupid enough to do something so futile.

If the Brontosaurus can catch up, then the Graveler definitely won't be able to dodge. Instead of commanding it to dodge, it's better to use Endure to retaliate.

However, the opponent's speed was simply outrageous, and Gravestone didn't even have time to use its skills before being kicked away by a low kick.

He then got a beating, which was a foregone conclusion.

Thinking this, Xiao Gang didn't slow down and quickly took out the second Poké Ball.

"Does the challenger need to change their Pokémon?" the referee asked Tetsuya.

Tetsuya shook his head to indicate that he didn't need it, so the referee signaled Brock to release the second Pokémon.

Brock throws out a Poké Ball, "This is my second Pokémon, go Dugtrio!"

"Hot Wind, give the other side a greeting." Tetsuya seized the opportunity to let the Mighty Chicken wear down the opponent.

"Gurgle~" Just as the three-legged mole came out to prepare for battle, it was hit by the oncoming hot wind and let out a painful cry.

Tetsuya looked at the situation on the other side and made an assessment.

"It's stronger than the Rumble Stone, but only by a limited margin. It seems there's no need to compare its carving."

Tetsuya wasn't surprised, after all, there's a reason why gyms use Pokémon with similar strength to yours.

The Gravestone we just saw is roughly level 29, and this Dugtrio is probably around level 35, so overall it's on par with Tetsuya's two Pokémon.

However, these two Pokémon only have elite-level potential, far inferior to Robustamin.

That's why we're in this situation now; otherwise, it wouldn't be so easy for normal trainers to fight in gym battles.

"And the Mighty Chicken is getting stronger and stronger." Tetsuya smiled.

Xiao Gang had no idea what Zhe was thinking at that moment; he was simply amazed by the strength of the chicken.

"Dig a hole and get closer to the opponent from underground," Xiao Gang instructed the three Digletts.

The three hamsters sank down and disappeared underground.

"Keep moving at high speed and watch your step," Tetsuya commanded. Without moves like Earthquake, they had no way to deal with their digging opponent, Riki-Chicken.

However, the longer it drags on, the better for oneself.

Xiao Gang frowned as he watched the rapidly moving Mighty Chicken. What was the point of its efforts being so futile? The Diglett were currently waiting in ambush and still had the intention to attack.

Simply dodging like a strong chicken not only consumes physical strength, but if it takes too long, it will be considered as a loss of fighting spirit and result in a defeat.

Xiao Gang observed carefully for a while and suddenly noticed something was wrong.

"Why is this strong chicken getting faster and stronger?"

No, the change in physical exertion isn't that significant.

This is... a hidden speed-up feature?!

Brock immediately realized something was wrong. Although simply dodging for too long could be considered a loss of fighting spirit and result in a defeat, using the ability to speed up, like Combusken, would not be considered simple evasion.

The referee will only intervene if the speed reaches its limit and there is no way to accelerate further, but that takes too long. Before that, the three moles will be judged to have lost because they do not launch an attack for too long.

"Quicksand Hell!" Xiao Gang immediately commanded the three Digletts underground to launch an attack, attempting to slow down the Mighty Chicken.

However, Brock's command came too late. With the combined speed boost from his Speed ​​Boost ability and Agility, Combusken's speed was far beyond what Dugtrio could react to.

One second, there was a swirling pile of sand under Mermike's feet, and the next second, Mermike had broken free and run far away, only suffering minor injuries.

The three voles were completely unable to contain the Mighty Chicken, which had already accelerated.

"Tsk." Xiao Gang was a little helpless; his chances of winning had suddenly dropped too much.

We still suffered from a lack of intelligence, but identifying the characteristics of enemies is something that trainers should do. It's just that we didn't do it well enough.

Moreover, the criteria for awarding badges in gym battles are based on the strength and teamwork of the trainer and Pokémon, not simply on winning.

Tetsuya had long met the conditions for receiving the badge from the Pewter Dojo.

Xiao Gang, however, was unwilling to admit defeat so easily.

Xiao Gang issued a struggling command: "Triple Mole, ambush, then use Triple Attack."

"Double back! Continuous Flame Fist to stop him!" Tetsuya had the upper hand and was ready to finish the fight quickly.

The three Diglett transformed into a blur and frantically approached the Powerful Chicken, unleashing a surprise attack that slammed into the Powerful Chicken.

The Mighty Chicken, having endured the pain, unleashed a double blow, striking the Diglett hard across its body.

Just as Dugtrio was about to unleash its triple attack, it was interrupted by Mighty Chicken's Double Strike.

Enduring the excruciating pain, Diglett continued to unleash a triple attack, attempting to restrain Mighty Chicken.

With a swift movement, the Mighty Chicken dodged behind Dugtrio at a speed that Dugtrio couldn't even see.

Flames gathered on its claws, and it struck the ground-exposed body of the Diglett forcefully in turn.

"Gurgle~" The three ground squirrels let out a painful cry.

"Don't give up, Diglett! Use your last life-saving ability!" Xiao Gang shouted.

The three ground squirrels used their last bit of strength to perform a miraculous resurrection and crash into the strong chicken.

By this time, the Mighty Chicken had calmly used its speed to hide in the distance, constantly dodging the attacks of the Diglett.

"Gurgle~" Diglett struggled to hit Combustion Chicken, but could not do it. Soon, he was exhausted, his eyes turned into vortexes, and he collapsed on the field.

"The three mole hamsters are unable to fight, and challenger Tamaki Tetsuya wins!" The referee immediately raised the flag and announced the result.

Xiao Gang had no choice but to recall the three ground squirrels.

Although Xiao Gang knew the moment he realized the acceleration characteristic, his chances of winning the battle were slim, he was still a little annoyed that the fight was ended so easily.

Tetsuya then took back the Mighty Chicken.

The two walked outside the venue and shook hands.

"Congratulations on your victory! The Pewter Badge will be sent to you at the service desk in front of the gym. You can pick it up with your ID card after the information is entered."

Xiao Gang congratulated Tetsuya with a smile.

Although losing the match was frustrating, Xiao Gang knew how to deal with the challenges he faced every day, as he experienced both wins and losses against his opponents.

Besides, the trainer on the other side is very strong, so it's not surprising that he lost.

"It would be worthwhile to get to know him," Xiao Gang thought to himself.

Chapter 26 Nibi's Badge! I Got It! (Bonus Chapter: Conversation with Xiao Gang)

"Thank you." Tetsuya gave Xiaogang a brief thanks and then left.

Xiao Gang didn't stop him, watching Tetsuya leave with narrowed eyes.

Anyway, he definitely needs to rest. As long as he's still in Nibi City, Xiao Gang will make sure he knows where he is.

But that's not the most urgent thing right now. Xiao Gang checked the time and realized, "Oh no, it's almost dinner time, and I haven't prepared dinner for my younger siblings yet."

Xiao Gang hurriedly sprinted away, overtaking Tetsuya from behind.

Tetsuya heard the sound of Xiaogang running frantically, and then saw Xiaogang's figure whiz past him.

Staring in astonishment at Xiaogang's retreating figure, she wondered if something urgent had happened.