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Chapter 280 The Battle for the Strongest Gym Leader? Glucha's Challenge! (5.6k)

Mount Frostmoor in the Padiya region.

The rolling snow-capped mountains in northern Padiya create a unique, frigid environment, where countless Ice-type Pokémon inhabit.

Among them, the highest peak on Frostbite Mountain offers a panoramic view of the entire Padiya region over the bottomless Zero Hole, and is therefore included as one of the "Ten Views of Padiya".

However, very few tourists visit this place.

The reason is simple: nature follows the simplest laws of survival.

The more suitable a place is for Pokémon to live in, the weaker the Pokémon population in the vicinity is generally; while the more difficult a place is to survive, the stronger the Pokémon that can survive are generally.

The Frosty Mountains, covered in snow and ice year-round and a vast expanse of white, are even one of the harshest areas in Padiya in terms of living conditions.

As a result, the Pokémon living in this area, such as Whale, Froslass, Ursaring, and even Styrodinosaur, generally possess strength comparable to elite trainers. Even their harmless, impulsive pranks are generally unbearable for most people.

Therefore, the League specially set up the Frost Mountain Gym in this icy and snowy place, not only to test the willpower of new trainers, but also to facilitate nearby support in case of trouble.

Last year, the Frost Mountain Gym welcomed a young new gym leader, Gurusha.

He showed talent from a young age and his strength grew rapidly, making him a role model for the next generation of trainers in many league leaders.

However, young Gurusha has recently encountered some troubles.

The reason is roughly the same as that of Kiju, who is also one of the "Three Starters" of young dojo masters.

……

Frosty Mountain Martial Arts Hall.

"..."

After a gym challenge, Guruha, with most of his face buried in his scarf, stared intently at his opponent, his expression somewhat complicated.

"you win."

Finally, Gurusha spoke slowly, his tone tinged with weariness.

As the eighth gym in the league's recommended assessment order, he originally thought that there wouldn't be too many newcomers challenging him during this period.

After all, Gurusha had clearly stated this when he attended an event at the Orange Academy—

"If you're hoping to get the gym badge by letting others win, you should give up on that idea."

"Only by defeating me head-on when I'm at full strength will I be worthy of this last Ice Badge!"

Having inherited this dojo from his father, who believed in the supremacy of strength, Glussa will show no mercy to the newcomers.

Most of the second and third-year students had already been severely punished by themselves last year, so they probably wouldn't be so stubborn as to challenge themselves again.

As for the first-year students...

With their limited strength, they were no match for us.

Therefore, Gurusha even believed that no one would challenge him within six months, and settled down in the Frostbite Mountain Gym.

Unexpectedly, in less than a month, several hotheads had already appeared.

What's even harder to accept is...

I actually lost!
The first one was a girl with a ponytail, two green-streaked bangs on her forehead, and a very sporty look.

Although she looked like a sports champion, according to Gurusha's observation, if she hadn't been riding the giant bone-patterned crocodile that could provide continuous heating, she probably wouldn't have been able to climb this Frost Mountain at all...

But the mount itself is also part of the journey, and Gurusha didn't say anything about that.

What truly impressed him was Nemo's unique fighting style, a first-year student.

"Bone-Patterned Giant Crocodile, yawn!"

"Bone-Patterned Giant Crocodile, Phosphorescent Flame!"

"Use singing!"

"Finally a miss? Great, I have to use 'Go All Out' right now!"

In that 3v3 match against her, even Glussia was speechless.

Using a Fire Pokémon to challenge yourself, the Ice-type Gym Leader, is a perfectly reasonable thing to do, and many trainers have done it before.

but……

This is the first time I've ever seen a trainer play like Nemo!

Most of his main attackers are physical attackers. When he gets hit by Phosphorus Fire, the pressure on him is greatly reduced, and he also has to deal with the opponent's type advantage.

Even sending out the Tanabata Bluebird and handing over the Crystallization didn't yield any benefits; they were immediately deterred by the yawns and singing.

This fighting style was almost unheard of for Gurusha before. In the end, he struggled to defeat the Bone-Patterned Giant Crocodile before being finished off by Babu Groundhog.

Of course, if it's just a loss to an opponent, even if Gurusha's traits are competitiveness or unwillingness to admit defeat, he won't say much.

But this kind of loss is really making my blood pressure skyrocket...

After obtaining the Ice Badge, Nemo's unintentional remark further ignited Glussa's rationality.

"Huh...wasn't this supposed to be the most difficult dojo? Why does it feel so much less intimidating than Yu-sensei's..."

Gulusha overheard Nemo's quiet mutterings as she left.

While taking a deep breath to try and calm himself down, the name "Teacher Yu" quickly caught his attention.

If nothing unexpected happens, the Yu-sensei that Nemo mentioned should be Qingyu, who is about the same age as her and is also a gym leader of the Eight Dojos.

Although the environment around the Mt. Frost Gym is very harsh, connecting to the internet in the Pokémon world is not difficult; one Rotom is enough.

But aside from contacting the League, Glussa, who doesn't pay much attention to the online world and focuses only on himself and the security of the area around the gym, obviously rarely uses his mobile phone.

Therefore, he was unaware that some changes were quietly taking place among this year's new Patia trainers that he couldn't quite understand...

The culprit behind all of this seems to be a newcomer to the club who was around the same time as him.

At first, Gurusha didn't pay much attention, simply thinking he had encountered a true genius.

But ever since Nemo appeared, the level of the subsequent challengers has been significantly higher than that of last year.

Just last weekend, a newcomer skilled in Sunny Day teams even joined, maximizing type advantage through the synergy between Torkoal, Blademaster, and Houndoom.

After receiving the badge, the red-haired newcomer also mentioned "Teacher Yu".

After repeatedly hearing this name from the students, Gurusha's competitive spirit was reignited, and he finally couldn't help but ask:
"Who exactly is this Teacher Yu you're talking about?"

"Who else could it be? Teacher Yu is of course Teacher Qingyu from Sunshine Dojo!"

……

Back to Sunshine Dojo.

With the appearance of Gurusha, Qingyu could clearly feel the temperature around him drop several degrees immediately, which was especially noticeable in winter.

Gurusha? Why is he appearing in front of me?

Qingyu was immediately puzzled.

Little Key Town is basically the southernmost part of Padiya, in a completely different direction from Frostbite Mountain, the northernmost point.

Even if you caught a shiny Magikarp, it shouldn't be able to get lost this far, right?

but……

Guru Shah seems even cuter in real life!
Just as Qingyu was staring at Guruxia, the blue-haired beauty opposite him was also quietly observing him.

Although they are both gym leaders, they have never actually met in person, only exchanging a few words in the league group chat.

Therefore, Qingyu's first impression on him was actually quite ordinary.

I didn't see any of the imposing presence one would expect from a powerful gym leader, but this friendly demeanor certainly makes him more attractive to other newcomers.

As for his actual strength...

It seems we'll only know once we've actually fought them.

Let me see just how good Qingyu really is, the one that the newcomers consider the "strongest gym leader".

"Hello, Master Qingyu."

Gurusha nodded slightly, extended his gloved right hand, removed the scarf covering his face, and spoke first.

"Let's skip the small talk for now. I've come to Little Key Town for only one purpose—"

"Come and challenge the Sunshine Dojo."

"I wonder if Master Qingyu has some time?"

Upon hearing this, Qingyu immediately raised an eyebrow.

Good guy...

Although he had a rough idea in his mind, Qingyu was still a little puzzled after hearing it from Guruxia himself.

Why would the nominally strongest gym leader in Padia take the initiative to challenge me?
The two should just have a normal working relationship, and this was even their first time meeting in private.

So far, only one fellow member of the Sunshine Dojo has come to challenge us, and that was Kiju-senpai, who came with a clear goal in order to boost each other's popularity.

However, since they've already come knocking on our door, Qingyu's idea is quite simple—

Fight them!
"Of course, there are no other challengers right now."

Qingyu smiled slightly and quickly accepted his challenge.

As a trainer, the moment your eyes meet, the Pokémon battle has already begun!

"However, may I ask why?"

"..."

Gurusha fell into a long silence.

He couldn't very well say that he was curious to see what level Qingyu was at when he went all out because he was defeated by the students taught by "Teacher Yu," could he?

It was just a moment of impulsiveness. Didn't he have any shame in saying something like, "I want to compete with him to see who is the strongest gym leader in Padia"?

Therefore, he spoke again after waiting for a moment.

“Xinli Tianwang mentioned to me before that if I have time, I can come to Sunshine Dojo to spar with you and improve our skills together.”

Although it's a rather perfunctory excuse, it sounds very official as a reason.

Upon hearing his words, Qingyu's lips twitched violently.

These are all things from the distant past.

It seems that in order to quickly get up to speed and become a qualified gym leader, Xinli "deliberately" gave the other gym leaders a reminder.

Well, it's not because I beat you in the assessment that I'm holding a grudge.

However, over such a long period of time, only Qishu and Gurusha, those two "hotheads," actually listened to Xinli's words. The other gym leaders were all seasoned veterans, skilled at slacking off, and wouldn't even consider this kind of non-mandatory extra work.

After receiving the answer, Qingyu didn't dwell on the question too much and quickly smiled again.

"By the way, as a unique feature of the gym, the weekday challenges at Sunny Gym will be presented to other newcomers via live stream. Gym Leader Gurusha shouldn't mind, right?"

"I have no opinion."

Gurusa nodded coolly, then walked towards the battle arena outside the gym.

……

At noon, in Qingyu's live stream room.

[Great! This is my second favorite Yu-Teacher's noob-stomping match!]

Starting this week, challengers can choose the lineup they face, which feels like the old strategies will come in handy again!

Where is Teacher Yu? Is she going to be late?

A few minutes before Qingyu started his live stream on time, a lot of viewers had already gathered in the live stream room, waiting for him to appear.

A few seconds later, a white light flashed on the screen, and Qingyu's figure standing in the sunlight quickly appeared on the screen.

[Oh, oh, oh, Teacher Yu has finally appeared!]

[Is the game starting right in the battle arena? Have some little gluttons already come to challenge the gym?]

Before Qingyu could even speak, the viewers in the live chat had already started discussing it enthusiastically.

Their attention quickly turned to the familiar figure standing opposite Qingyu.

Then, everyone was dumbfounded.

[Holy crap, isn't that Glushers from the Frostmourne Gym? What's he doing here with Yu-sensei?]

[Could it be that he's here to challenge us? Or was he also disgusted by Teacher Yu's dirty tricks, so he came to the real event...?]

[Or rather, I've heard recently that several newcomers have already cleared the Frostbite Mountain Gym. Could they all be "prodigies" taught by Master Yu?]

[Damn it, how could Teacher Yu be so mean!]

Is this a battle for the title of strongest dojo master? Who will be stronger between these two unsportsmanlike young men?

Regardless, playing at home gives Coach Yu the advantage!

"Ahem—, today, Gurusha from Frostmountain Gym is visiting our Sunshine Gym, so we'll have a friendly spar."

After Qingyu spoke briefly, Gurusha on the other side waved as a greeting.

【Gurusha? He's actually a boy? I can't accept that!】

Oh no, now I can't tell the difference between men and women either?

[Hiss—bro, you smell so good…]

"Without further ado, let's get straight to today's main story!"

After glancing at the comments, Qingyu quickly waved his hand and looked at Guruxia, who was quietly waiting for the battle to begin.

Today's live stream content—

"A full-force battle between the two dojo masters!"

"The battle rules are 3v3. When all of one side's Pokémon are unable to battle, the other side is considered the winner."

"is that OK?"

After Qingyu quickly explained the rules of the battle, Gurusha quickly nodded in agreement.

Since both are owners of the same venue, no other additional rules are needed; the only factor affecting the outcome is the strength of both sides.

"So……"

"The battle begins!"

Because Nemo, the dojo apprentice, was away on a trip, Qingyu took on the role of referee himself, raising his right hand high and then quickly lowering it.

"Go, Nine-Tails!"

Gurusha was the first to throw a Poké Ball.

Since it's a battle between gym leaders, he won't use only the Pokémon with relatively average strength from his team, unlike in regular gym assessments.

He immediately went all out from the start.

Under the flashing red light, a mythical beast, pure white with nine long tails held high on its back and exuding an aura of nobility, appeared before Qingyu.

Upon seeing this Pokémon for the first time, Qingyu unconsciously raised an eyebrow.

Nine-Tails (Alolan Form) (Male)

[Attribute: Ice + Fairy]

[Feature: Snowfall]

Good grief, even the Alola Ninetales has arrived...

It seems we can give Lorelei a preview and show her how this Pokémon can play a role in the snowy environment.

Wait a minute... isn't the color of this Nine-Tailed Fox wrong?

[Yes, yes, bro. Teacher Yu even specifically introduced this before; it's Nine-Tails' special form in the Alola region.]

According to Teacher Yu, this character is actually the Snow Team leader, with their ability changed from Sunlight to Snowfall!

Since Lorelei had already introduced this "relatively obscure" Pokémon before, the audience was quite familiar with it.

"I choose you, Lucario!"

Qingyu quickly smiled.

Question: What are the weaknesses of the Ice + Fairy type?
If you hesitate for even a second, go back and rewrite the attribute counter table ten times!

This attribute combination is actually not bad, but the fatal problem of being four times weak to steel is difficult to solve.

Fortunately, one of Qingyu's generals was very effective against it.

Since it was a battle between gym leaders, Qingyu couldn't continue using borrowed Pokémon with limited strength, just like he did during gym assessments.

That's perfect, because he hasn't been under much pressure lately and hasn't been able to command his main Pokémon in battles for a while.

Glussa's arrival gave him the perfect opportunity to test the current strength of the Pokémon in his team.

"Luka..."

Lucario, with its body made of steel, quickly appeared, squinting at the Pokémon opposite it while adopting a wary stance.

It's a Pokémon I've never seen before.

Therefore, we must be even more careful!

With the appearance of the two Pokémon, a few snowflakes suddenly fell from the originally clear blue sky, and quickly formed a considerable amount.

Alola Ninetales' Snowfall ability was quietly triggered, and the weather quickly turned into a snowy landscape.

At this moment, people in other areas were immediately puzzled—

Why is the snowfall from Ninetales in Alola so gentle? When Abomasnow appears, it's like a hailstorm, giving everyone a headache!

Perhaps... because Parthia's climate is relatively warm, hail doesn't fall?

【How could that be? Hailstorms are most likely to happen in summer, don't think I don't know!】

In Generation IX, the previously common hail weather was replaced by snow. This much gentler snowy weather no longer indiscriminately attacks Pokémon on both sides, but instead increases the defense of Ice-type Pokémon.

As for the principle...

In fact, Qingyu didn't know either.

No matter what explanation you give, it's hard to be convincing. If you have the chance, I'll ask Arceus what he has to say.
A light snowfall swept through, instantly dropping the temperature by several degrees, causing Qingyu to sneeze instinctively. At the same time, she glanced at Gurusha, who was fully bundled up and bundled up to the brim, silently grumbling to herself—

No wonder they were dressed so warmly even though it was frosty on the mountain; it turns out they were going to play in the snow!
"Nine-Tailed Fox, activate Aurora Curtain!"

Gurusha spoke first, giving instructions.

"mum!"

Because Alola Ninetales is quite fast, it began to act as soon as Grusha's voice fell, and soon a transparent barrier that shone like the aurora appeared near the center line of the field.

【What kind of move is this?】

[It looks a bit like a light screen? Is it some kind of signature move?]

Why haven't I seen Glussa use this move when I challenged the gym?

The barrage of question marks was too much for Qingyu to notice.

At this moment, all that remained in his heart was admiration for Gurusha's mastery of the snow.

It must be said that Grusha is very strong to become the last Gym Leader on the Road to Champion as a rookie.

Alola Ninetales has already used its standard combo moves.

Qingyu had previously complained that Alola's Nine-Tails could basically be considered the captain of the snow team.

Moreover, its position as the number one is practically sealed; even the Coal Turtle in the Sunny Day system isn't as indispensable as it.

The reason is very simple—

It is a weather unit, a support unit, and a damage dealer, and its speed is also excellent, allowing it to reliably gain the initiative.

Aurora Curtain is a move that can only be used in snowy weather. It has the effects of both a light wall and a reflective barrier, making it a very powerful support ability.

The opening move features a snowy landscape and two walls, creating an advantage that is virtually unmatched. This immediately maximizes the durability of the snow team, forcibly giving the bottom-ranked team among the four weather types some presence.

In other words, the Snow Team's strength largely comes from the three main attacks of Alola Ninetales.

but……

Cracking the aurora screen isn't that difficult.

Qingyu quickly put on a smile and spoke easily:
"Lucario, use Brick Break!"

"Luca!"

Lucario was already poised to strike, and in an instant, it stepped forward, raised its right hand high, and slashed at the transparent wall created by Alola's Ninetales.

Brick-splitting involves using superior fighting skills to concentrate all power into one point, unleashing a burst of power that can break through any obstacle.

Sure enough, the moment the palm touched it, the dazzling aurora screen shattered.

Meanwhile, Lucario's offensive showed no signs of slowing down, charging straight at Alola's Ninetales!
(End of this chapter)