Pokémon: I have no choice but to do this old thing?

Pushing open the door of the Black Gold Dojo, Zhang Jianying was almost blinded by the sight before him—not because the lights were too bright, but because it was so dark.

"Did you just finish renovating and don't have money to pay the electricity bill?"

He muttered to himself, squinting for a while to adjust his eyes before he could see a few searchlights flickering desperately on the rocky ground.

He walked in with the mindset of finishing work as soon as possible, but with a "bang," he tripped over the threshold and stumbled.

"Be careful!"

Wearing a helmet, Hyota caught him just in time and laughed, "Thanks to you for delivering the information to Professor Yamanashi in time, the dojo was able to be repaired and reopen on time today. However..."

He then changed the subject, saying, "We won't follow the rookie's requirements for the match. After all, I heard from Dr. Yamanashi that you had a great match with Champion Cynthia."

"???"

"This is only the first badge, and it's already like this. Does this mean we'll have to face the Gym Leader's main Pokémon in every gym battle from now on?"

Zhang Jianying was on the verge of tears. How come she hadn't noticed that the serious Dr. Yamanashi had a habit of tipping people off?

"Dr. Yamanashi, cross that out..."

"Ghost and Torterra, it's all your fault for insisting on challenging me!"

He turned and "scolded" his Pokémon.

Piao Tai didn't let him off the hook, continuing to tease, "I heard you guys dug in Mine No. 3 for four or five hours and only dug out a pile of waste rock?"

He was struggling to hold back his laughter. "The miners are all betting that you'll dig through the dojo today too."

Zhang Jianying: "(╯°□°）╯︵┻━┻, feeling the pain... no, wrong channel. If I don't follow your instructions and dig through the gym today, making you renovate it, I might as well not play this league match!"

"This is the Black Gold Gym Challenge. The rules are 2v2, the Gym Leader cannot change their Pokémon, and there are no restrictions on the challenger. Let the match begin!"

The match began as the referee waved the flag.

Hyota's expression was surprisingly serious when he entered battle mode, after all, he was a gym leader who was extremely responsible for newcomers.

Piao Tai threw out a Poké Ball, and with a flash of red light, Warhammer Dragon appeared on the field.

This was the first time Zhang Jianying had seen a Rock-type Pokémon other than Geodude's family, and he curiously opened his data vision.

Warhammer Dragon

[Characteristics: Breaking rules]

[Skills: Double-Edged Headbutt, Mind Blast, Rock Slide, Flame Fist, Crunch...]

[Inherited Skill: Cause a ruckus, charge headlong into the enemy...]

"Isn't this a bit too advanced? Is this a beginner's gym?"

Zhang Jianying's expression was complicated. "If gym leaders are at this level against everyone, then the newcomers in Sinnoh are just as miserable as the newcomers in the Kanto region."

Recalling a joke he had seen before, he thought to himself somewhat nonsensically, but he quickly realized the reason for this over-the-top choice. It must be Dr. Yamanashi's "tipping off"!

"I've only been a trainer for a little over three months..."

He wailed inwardly.

Put aside distractions.

"It's up to you now, Turtle, let's go!"

The Forest Turtle silently stepped into the arena, looking at the equally silent War Hammer Dragon opposite it, and prepared itself.

As the referee waved his flag, both sides issued their instructions simultaneously.

"Forest turtle, tie a knot in the grass!"

"Warhammer Dragon, Double-Edged Hammer!"

Several thick vines quickly wrapped around the Warhammer Dragon's body, pulling its forward-rushing body to a stumble.

However, they were unable to interrupt the Warhammer Dragon's skill.

The Warhammer Dragon charged forward, its head radiating Rock-type energy, its aura menacing.

I wonder if Turtle can withstand this double-edged hammer. Oh well, I'll play it safe!

"Use the power of the earth, then pull yourself up!" Zhang Jianying thought quickly. "Use your best skill!"

The forest turtle's eyes lit up: "Mmm! (๑•̀ㅂ•́)و✧"

With a slap of its front paw—"Thump!"

Perfectly recreating the famous mine scene, the "disappear on the spot" trick is mastered!

The charging Warhammer Dragon: "(°ー°〃) ?? Where's that huge turtle?"

Piao Tai stared in disbelief: "This... Forest turtles can learn digging skills too?"

Although shocked, Piao Tai reacted quickly, immediately commanding, "Warhammer Dragon, charge down!"

Meanwhile, the forest tortoise in the cave had already pulled itself up by tying knots in the grass, leisurely avoiding the Warhammer Dragon's double-edged hammer.

The two Pokémon stared at each other as they ascended and descended.

Warhammer Dragon: "Trainer, you tricked me!"

Forest Turtle: "You big oaf, if you're so tough, jump up here!"

As Zhang Jianying gave the order to use the seed bomb, the forest turtle happily started playing "groundhog".

Whenever Warhammer Dragon uses Giga Impact or other skills under Pyota's instructions to jump up using the momentum of the skill, it will either get hit in the face by a Forest Turtle's Seed Bomb or be tied up at the bottom of the cave by a grass knot.

Enraged, Warhammer Dragon used Rock Slide to engage the Forest Turtle in a crossfire through the cave.

However, the forest turtle seized the initiative, and Zhang Jianying took every opportunity to have the forest turtle use curses multiple times to increase its attack and defense.

The Warhammer Dragon's Rock Slide attack eventually felt like it was scraping the skin off a Forest Turtle.

The forest turtle even managed to use the Invisible Rock once.

Seeing this, the Warhammer Dragon simply rolled its eyes in exasperation.

"Come back, Warhammer Dragon..."

Piao Tai glanced at the Torterra opposite him with a complicated expression, then took out a second Poké Ball. "This is truly an unexpected battle."

"Go, fossil pterosaur!"

A colossal gray-purple figure appeared above the dojo, exuding the aura of a prehistoric sky overlord.

Just as the fossil pterosaur was about to unleash a menacing roar to demonstrate its terrifying power, it was impaled by the dense array of sharp rocks in the arena.

"Ouch! Woof?"

The fossil pterosaur nearly suffocated, losing a quarter of its strength, and quickly flapped its wings a couple of times to avoid falling from the sky.

"Pfft..." Zhang Jianying quickly covered his mouth, "Thank goodness I didn't laugh out loud, otherwise Turtle would have been in big trouble."

Seeing the pterosaur's furious expression, he wisely chose to suppress the laughter that was about to escape his lips.

"To be honest, Aerodactyl is a pretty cool Pokémon." Then he looked at Aerodactyl's stats:

Fossil pterosaur

【Characteristic: Hard Head】

[Skills: Stone Strike, Twin Wings, Rock Slide, Dragon Claw, Earthquake, Roost...]

[Inherited Skills: Tailwind, Dragon Breath, Wide Guard...]

Zhang Jianying stroked his chin, thinking how greedy Du Piao was at replying. "Forest Turtle, hang in there! Give it a specially made Leech Seed!"

Just as Zhang Jianying finished speaking, Piao Tai interjected, "Use the Sharp Stone attack to hold it back, then use Feather Perch!"

The forest turtle nodded knowingly, recalling the trick its trainer had told it before, and covered the seeds with the powder of the hypnotic powder.

It strives to mobilize the energy of both skills.

"Wow! This guy's skill is really powerful!"

The forest turtle, having barely withstood the pterosaur's sharp rock attacks, tossed a few parasitic seeds coated with hypnotic powder to the pterosaur, which was landing on the ground and using its roost to recover its strength.

The seed sprouted from the fossil pterosaur's body, growing into thorny vines that entwined around it and continuously drained its energy.

The fossil pterosaur struggled restlessly, but it couldn't break free from the vines' hold.

"Don't panic, use your wings to take it down!"

The fossil ape roared, its wings glowing with sky-blue flying-type energy, and it instantly appeared in front of the forest turtle as a gray shadow.

"Ugh!"

The Torterra cleverly used Protect before the trainer could give the command.

It certainly didn't want to test the strength of a pterosaur's attack by testing the hardness of its shell. The turtle might not want to use its brain, but it's not truly brainless!

"Hold on!" Zhang Jianying's voice finally rang out.

A transparent barrier appeared before the sound.

The skills that the forest turtle had reluctantly learned proved extremely effective in this battle.

As a plume of black smoke billowed out, the barrier shattered with a crack, but the forest tortoise remained unharmed.

In contrast, a fossil pterosaur lay fast asleep on the ground before it. The parasitic seed continued to drain its energy, but the outcome seemed inevitable.

Piao Tai stared at the neatly arranged pit in the field for a long time, then silently took out a Poké Ball and recalled Aerodactyl: "That's enough, you've passed the gym's test. But... your fighting style makes me want to report you."

Just as Zhang Jianying was about to receive his first badge, he heard two consecutive "thumps" and turned around in confusion.

The Torterra is showing off its skills to Gastly, skillfully digging two perfect holes...

His forehead twitched. "They're not really going to renovate the Black Gold Dojo, are they...?"

"Um..." Suddenly, Piao Tai lowered his voice, "With your drilling skills... how about some part-time work at the mine? Room and board included!"

Forest Turtle: "Ugh! ✧(≖◡≖)" (Finally, someone appreciates the art of my earth-powered magic!)

"..."

"I'll pass on the part-time job, Mr. Hyota. Let's continue our travels and see what happens. I guess I don't need to be responsible for the underground cave."

Zhang Jianying asked cautiously.

Piao Tai waved his hand, both amused and exasperated, and handed him a brand-new Coal Badge: "It's alright, we'll apply for subsidies from the champion and the league, you don't need to take responsibility."

He then accepted the badge with a sigh of relief, thanked Hyota, quickly called back the Forest Tortoise that had lost its mind again, and led the Pokémon out of the gym.

As Zhang Jianying left the gym, he had a Gastly on his head that had turned into a purple pancake from being unable to compete and being constantly provoked by Torterra. He held onto Torterra, who was still trying to dig a hole to show off its talents.

"Please, please don't dig anymore! The hotline is going to be flooded with calls to report it!"

Kirlia was putting the badges into a badge box when she suddenly seemed to "see" something and took out her Pokédex from her backpack: "Sword, Cynthia has sent a message."

"???"

Why are all these gym owners, champions, and PhDs so free?

Sender Cynthia: I heard someone used a special digging technique to get through the Rock Gym and almost got a part-time job? (smiley face)

Zhang Jianying held the forest turtle in one hand and replied with the other.

Reply: How come you guys are so well-informed? Do you have a special little group for this?

He had just sent the message when the other end replied almost instantly, as if they had been holding the encyclopedia all along.

Sender Cynthia: Gym repair assessments and expense applications require approval from both me and the League. Also, there's no such thing as a small group chat; it's just that as the champion, I need to stay informed about promising newcomers. (Attachment: A perfectly dug burrow by a Torterra (jpg))

Zhang Jianying didn't notice the flaw in his words at all; he was only focused on looking at his turtle's masterpiece, feeling ashamed.

Reply: This... I shouldn't need to pay compensation, right? (Shaking emoji)

Sender Cynthia: It's okay, the League will handle it. Keep it up and try to get all the badges as soon as possible.

Reply: Understood, I will try my best. (Striving emoji)

Just as Zhang Jianying was about to send another message, he suddenly heard a series of eerie laughs and turned around to look.

Gastly was excitedly crawling into the vending machine when, "bang!"...

Zhang Jianying looked around, seeing Gastly stuck at the shipping port, Torkoal eager to find a place to practice digging, and Kirlia trying to pull Gastly out with its psychic powers. He sighed wearily.

"So... what was I thinking about just now? What was the itinerary for the rest of the trip?"

In the research institute in Masago Town, Cynthia finished reading the reply, tapped her fingertips lightly on the table, and took a sip of her flower tea.

"Is this news from Black Gold City?"

Dr. Yamanashi was passing by with the documents in his hand. "That child should have passed the test by now."

Cynthia subtly turned off the Pokédex screen, her voice as calm and gentle as ever: "Hmm, they used a very interesting tactic."

As she got up to refill her tea, she casually put the illustrated guide into her coat pocket.

These details did not escape the eyes of the old man who watched her grow up.

Dr. Yamanashi put down the documents, his expression as serious as ever. He then stroked his beard knowingly, recalling Cynthia, who had "coincidentally" come to the research institute to check trainer files today.

At that moment, Zhang Jianying was busy helping Kirlia pull Gastly out of the vending machine, completely unaware that with so many new characters every year, Cynthia couldn't possibly keep track of every single one...