In a town not far from Vermilion City, Ash and the others stopped at the local Pokémon Center to rest for a while.
Although Ash was still the same hot-blooded boy as always—
He was no longer a reckless idiot.
At the very least, he wouldn't immediately charge into a Gym challenge the moment he arrived in a new city.
Instead, the group first planned to rest and recover at the Pokémon Center.
But just as they arrived at the entrance—
They saw a rookie Trainer girl carrying a severely injured Pidgey into the Pokémon Center.
"Hang in there, Pidgey!"
"We're almost at the Pokémon Center!"
Ash and the others immediately frowned.
Gary brushed back his hair and said coldly:
"Looks like this unseen Gym Leader battles exactly like Lt. Surge."
"As expected."
"Birds of a feather flock together."
The moment they entered the Pokémon Center, they were stunned.
Everywhere they looked were badly injured Pokémon.
Nurse Joy was so busy she practically couldn't stop moving for even a second.
And scattered around the lobby were rookie Trainers with utterly broken expressions.
"Seriously… this is way too much…"
Seeing the scene before her, Misty stared in shock.
The Pokémon Center looked less like a clinic—
And more like the aftermath of a disaster zone.
Ash's group had all served as acting Gym Leaders before.
Looking at this scene, all of them felt a growing sense of anger.
Watching the injured Pokémon suffering in pain, Brock immediately stepped forward without hesitation.
"Nurse Joy, let me help!"
"Me too!"
"And me!"
The four of them hadn't even had time to rest before immediately throwing themselves into treatment work.
Fortunately, thanks to Red's training, even Ash had learned some basic Pokémon treatment techniques.
The four of them, together with Nurse Joy, remained busy all the way until afternoon before finally settling all the injured Pokémon.
Nurse Joy looked at them gratefully.
"Thank you all so much."
At that moment, Brock immediately stepped forward dramatically.
"It's nothing at all!"
"I simply cannot bear seeing Pokémon suffer without proper treatment!"
Hearing that, Nurse Joy looked genuinely touched.
But the next second—
Brock immediately exposed his true nature.
"So… would you perhaps honor me with dinner tonight, my beautiful—"
Before he could finish—
Misty grabbed him by the ear and dragged him away violently.
Watching the scene unfold, Gary clicked his tongue in amazement.
This was his first time witnessing Brock's behavior firsthand.
After Brock was hauled away, Ash and Gary looked toward Nurse Joy and asked:
"Nurse Joy, why are there so many seriously injured challengers?"
"And most of them are beginners too."
Hearing the question, Nurse Joy sighed helplessly.
"It's all because of the new Gym Leader…"
"Machiki."
"Our city's Gym is called Rapid Gym."
"It was originally recommended by the League as one of the beginner-friendly Gyms."
"But ever since the new Gym Leader took over…"
"He's been getting harsher and harsher on rookie Trainers."
"At this rate, I honestly don't know what to do anymore."
After hearing Nurse Joy's explanation, Ash and Gary walked outside with complicated expressions.
Ash was the first to explode.
"I seriously don't understand how someone like that can become a Gym Leader!"
Seeing Ash's outrage, Gary patted him on the shoulder.
"That's exactly why our master is such a rare exception."
Still, there wasn't really anything they could do about the situation right now.
After venting a few complaints, they could only fall silent.
Just then—
Ash suddenly noticed the rookie Trainer girl from earlier.
She was crouching alone in a corner, silently crying.
"Are you okay?"
Ash stepped forward to comfort her.
"Don't worry."
"Pokémon are tougher than you think."
"At most, your Pidgey will be back on its feet in a week."
Gary also stepped forward reassuringly.
Faced with their comfort, the girl quickly wiped away her tears.
"T-Thank you…"
"If you all hadn't helped earlier…"
Her expression was filled with unwillingness and sadness—
But above all else, heartbreak for her injured Pidgey.
"Do you think…"
"…someone like me is completely unfit to be a Trainer?"
Ash and Gary were just about to say something—
But the girl suddenly wiped her eyes again and thanked them once more before quietly leaving.
Watching her lonely figure disappear, Ash felt an uncomfortable pressure build in his chest.
"She followed the League's recommendation…"
"She even chose a beginner Gym…"
At that moment, Gary sat down heavily as well.
It wasn't just Ash.
Even Gary felt a fire burning inside him.
As the grandson of Professor Oak and a second-generation elite Trainer, Gary had almost never suffered humiliation in his life—
Aside from when facing Red.
And because Gary had spent the longest time acting as a substitute Gym Leader at Mossdeep Gym—
He already understood what responsibilities a true Gym Leader should carry.
"Ahhh, I can't take this anymore!"
"We have to show this guy what a real Gym Leader is supposed to be!"
Seeing Ash ready to explode, Gary nodded in complete agreement.
"That's right!"
"He needs to learn a lesson!"
"Being a Gym Leader isn't just about having strength!"
The next day, Ash and the others headed toward the infamous Rapid Gym.
Looking at the lightning-bolt symbol above the Gym entrance, Gary couldn't help complaining:
"Isn't Rapid Gym supposed to specialize in speed-based Pokémon?"
"This place practically looks like an Electric-type Gym."
Ash, however, looked completely unconcerned.
"Who cares what type it is?!"
The moment they entered, they discovered the interior design really did resemble Vermilion Gym.
Even the Gym Trainers were all delinquent-looking punks with brightly dyed hair.
And after seeing Ash and Gary walk in—
The punks all looked at them mockingly.
"Another bunch of unlucky idiots!"
"Hahaha, wonder how many of them the boss is gonna make cry this time!"
"With strength like theirs, why even become Trainers?!"
…
Hearing the insults, Ash didn't respond.
He simply took a deep breath and clenched his fists tightly.
Watching this version of Ash, Brock and Misty silently thought to themselves:
Ash really has grown up…
Ash stepped onto the battlefield.
At that moment, a man in his early twenties with spiky blond hair walked out.
This was Lt. Surge's cousin—
Machiki.
Machiki glanced at Ash and the Pikachu on his shoulder.
"Oh?"
"Didn't expect so many trash challengers today."
"Finally got someone with a bit of strength."
"Seriously, I'm getting bored to death playing house with all those weaklings every day."
Machiki looked at Ash provocatively.
"Kid."
"You're not bad."
"How about a 3-on-3 battle?"
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