Following the tire tracks left by Gary's sports car, Ash and his group arrived at the construction site where the request had been posted.
More than a dozen Trainers had gathered there while the foreman spoke enthusiastically.
"As long as you drive away the Diglett, you'll receive 10,000 Poké Dollars, plus a hot spring voucher!"
The surrounding Trainers looked excited.
Although the reward was slightly lower than the money earned from defeating a Gym Leader, this job seemed much easier.
Challenging a Gym wasn't guaranteed to succeed—but dealing with a group of Diglett? That sounded simple.
It was practically free money.
"Alright, hurry up and get going!" the foreman urged impatiently.
The Trainers rushed off excitedly.
"Ash, you're not going?" Gary asked in surprise.
"You probably noticed the situation here too, right?"
On their way here, they had encountered several Diglett sending distress signals. Since they were rodent-like Pokémon, Pikachu had been able to communicate with them. Misty and Brock had guessed the meaning from Pikachu's translation.
"Of course I noticed," Gary said, folding his arms confidently.
"The Pokémon refuse to come out of their Poké Balls to battle the Diglett. That means something's wrong here."
"The truth is, the Pokémon all realize that if the Diglett colony is driven away, once the reservoir is finished, it will cause massive flooding."
"That flood would seriously harm the forest's Pokémon. That's why no Pokémon wants to fight the Diglett."
Ash raised an eyebrow slightly.
Gary immediately felt irritated.
Normally he was the one teasing Ash—why had the roles suddenly reversed?
The more Gary thought about it, the more annoyed he became. After throwing a few sarcastic remarks at Ash, he left with his group of girls.
"How are we supposed to solve this problem?" Misty said worriedly.
"Let's just explain the truth to the foreman," Ash replied.
There didn't seem to be any other solution.
Brock spoke with the foreman and explained the reason behind the Diglett's sabotage.
The foreman was half skeptical.
The Diglett's behavior was strange. Could it really be the construction project causing the problem?
Meanwhile, the recruited Trainers had already thrown their Poké Balls—but their Pokémon refused to come out.
Helpless, they also reported the strange situation.
The foreman still didn't fully believe it, deciding to investigate the matter first.
Pikachu seemed especially concerned and urged Ash to help the Diglett.
"Don't worry," Ash said while calming Pikachu.
He then led the foreman along the Diglett's tracks.
Soon they found a field inhabited by Diglett and Dugtrio.
"Is this where the Diglett live?" the foreman asked.
"Yes," Brock replied seriously. "They're building the forest here."
Looking at the Diglett tirelessly digging soil and planting seeds, it seemed likely that many of the trees in the forest had actually been planted by them.
No wonder wild Berries were so abundant here—Diglett probably deserved a lot of the credit.
"…I understand now," the foreman said with a forced smile.
If the reservoir were completed, this entire forest would be flooded, leaving the Pokémon living here homeless.
"I'm sorry. We ignored their feelings."
His gaze drifted toward the fields protected by the Diglett.
After half a day of persuasion, the foreman was finally convinced.
Ash and his friends exchanged smiles.
The problem had been resolved much more easily than expected.
The next day, after resting, Ash and his companions headed toward Fuchsia Gym.
Unlike most Gyms, Fuchsia Gym was located deep in the wilderness, hidden within the mountains.
This Gym probably doesn't get many challengers…
Ash looked at the steep wooden bridge leading to the entrance, puzzled why someone would build a Gym in such a remote place.
"There's even a huge, creepy traditional house here," Misty complained.
"Wouldn't it be better to build the Gym in a city? It'd be convenient for everyone."
"Ash, this Gym Leader isn't ordinary," Brock reminded him.
"He's aiming to challenge for a spot among the Elite Four of the Johto region."
Ash shrugged.
"The Gym Leader probably won't send out his strongest Pokémon against a rookie Trainer anyway."
After all, Ash had been traveling for less than a year. Gym Leaders usually tested challengers—they weren't there to crush beginners.
Their job was to determine whether a Trainer was worthy of earning their Gym Badge.
They pushed open the door.
Inside, the building was quiet and empty.
"No one here?" Misty called out.
There was no response.
"They're probably hiding inside," Ash said calmly.
He could sense three presences nearby.
Two humans… and one Pokémon.
This Gym definitely had a strange sense of humor.
It was filled with traps.
Using his psychic perception, Ash could sense traps everywhere.
Trainers would travel all the way here only to be tortured by the Gym's prank-filled layout.
"I've got a bad feeling about this… Could there be traps inside?" Misty asked uneasily.
Her intuition was spot on.
The famous sixth sense…
Hidden in the shadows, Aya watched Ash and the others enter the Gym without any precautions.
Finally, some challengers had arrived.
She wondered how many traps they would trigger. Would they break the record?
"Stay behind me," Ash whispered.
"There are a lot of traps here."
Since he already knew their locations, he wondered if he could turn the tables and prank the siblings instead.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
They avoided three Voltorb electric traps and two hidden trapdoors.
"This Gym is way too annoying!" Misty complained angrily.
"The traps are probably meant to test a Trainer's reaction speed," Ash replied.
From her hiding spot, Aya heard trap after trap being destroyed.
But strangely… she never heard any screams from challengers falling into them.
Did they just get insanely lucky?
Watching secretly, Aya saw the entire process.
Every time, Ash seemed to accidentally dodge Voltorb attacks—and somehow the Gym's equipment ended up getting wrecked instead.
Are you playing ball here?!
What annoyed her even more was that Pikachu used its tail like a bat, smacking the Voltorb away like baseballs.
Aya could no longer allow these people to keep destroying the Gym's carefully prepared traps.
She jumped out to stop them—
But the moment she appeared, she was struck by a powerful electric shock.
Fortunately, she wasn't blasted away.
Ash, Misty, and Brock stared at the suddenly appearing girl, whose hair was standing on end from the shock.
Pikachu tilted its head awkwardly and scratched its head.
It seemed it had reacted a little too quickly.
"D-Don't think you'll get away with this!" Aya said, her body still twitching slightly.
"My brother won't forgive you!"
It was the first time she had taken such a powerful electric attack.
"Are you the Gym Leader?" Ash asked with a smile.
However, the smile looked… dangerously friendly.
Aya suddenly shivered.
PS: I've been releasing chapters daily . Honestly, it hurts seeing almost no support on Patreon after all that work.If you're enjoying the fic, even a little, supporting me would mean a lot. It helps a student stay independent .
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