Viridian Gym.
Before the Roman-style building, two guards in armor stood at the ornate double doors, axes in hand.
In the Kanto region, every Gym Leader was free to decorate their Gym however they pleased.
These two guards were Giovanni's idea of atmosphere, doubling as doormen.
"So this is the Viridian Gym!"
Standing before it in the flesh, Fuyuki felt an inexplicable surge of nerves.
After all, Giovanni was one of the most infamous villains in the entire Pokemon world.
In the shadows, he was the criminal mastermind who had built Team Rocket from the ground up. His members spanned Kanto and Johto, and he had even created Mewtwo, an artificial Pokemon born with the power of legends.
On the surface, he was one of Kanto's most prominent business moguls. His company was publicly traded, and its employee benefits were among the best in the world, beloved by workers everywhere.
On top of all that, Giovanni was a League-sanctioned Gym Leader with connections across the globe. Even the Island Kahuna of Alola was an old acquaintance.
"Well, I'm already here. Might as well go in and have a look." Fuyuki thought. They'd cross paths sooner or later.
Besides, he was approaching Giovanni as an ordinary Trainer. It should be fine.
Seeing a challenger approach, the two guards cast a surprised glance at the magnificent Pokemon standing behind the boy, then turned and pushed open the doors.
Fuyuki and Entei stepped inside. The moment they crossed the threshold, the doors slammed shut behind them.
The entire Gym plunged into darkness.
Then, one by one, spotlights flickered on from both sides of the ceiling, illuminating the battle arena in the center.
"I am Giovanni, Trainer of the Viridian Gym."
A voice came from the elevated platform at the far end. A middle-aged man in a khaki suit sat in a single-seat armchair, swirling a glass of red wine.
At his side lay a Persian, radiating an air of haughty superiority.
"I'm Fuyuki, from Pallet Town." Fuyuki called out. "I'm here to earn the Viridian Gym's Green Badge!"
[Giovanni is quite surprised by the Entei at your side. Shock Points from Giovanni +30!]
A notification flashed before Fuyuki's eyes.
Then he heard Giovanni let out a quiet, amused huff from above.
"Hmph. Trainers these days really are something."
Giovanni recognized the Pokemon immediately: Entei, the Legendary Pokemon from the myths of Johto.
What he hadn't expected was that it had been caught by a child.
Still, no matter how rare Entei was, Giovanni didn't spare it much attention.
The Mewtwo Project was in its final stages. Before long, the most powerful Pokemon in the world would be born.
When that day came, he would hold that power in his hands, and the likes of Entei or Zapdos would all fall before him.
"Very well. I accept your challenge." Giovanni's lips curled upward as he spoke.
"Each side may use up to two Pokemon. There is no time limit. The match ends when all of either side's Pokemon are unable to battle!"
The two armored staff members took up their positions as referees.
Seeing that the challenger was ready, one of them struck the match bell, stamped with the Team Rocket emblem.
"Father, I'm counting on you!" Fuyuki said.
Entei gave a solemn nod, then raised a front paw and strode onto the battlefield.
"Go, Golem!"
Giovanni drew a Poke Ball from his suit pocket.
A flash of white light, and a massive creature made entirely of rock materialized across from Entei.
The battle had officially begun!
"Golem, use Stomp." Giovanni's voice was calm, his composure unshaken. He sat in his armchair with the expression of a man who had everything under control.
"Extrasensory!" Fuyuki's command came almost simultaneously.
Both Pokemon moved at once.
Golem slammed a foot against the ground. Entei gathered a massive surge of psychic energy at its forehead and launched it forward.
Before Stomp's shockwave could even fully spread, Golem's body was sent flying backward, smashing into a wall. Out cold.
"How?!" The two guards gaped. The Boss's Pokemon got one-shotted?
[Shock Points from the two guards +100!]
[Shock Points from Giovanni +20!]
Fuyuki was mildly surprised. As expected of Giovanni.
Even facing something like that, the man had barely flinched.
"Not bad at all!" Giovanni's lips curled into a grin. This Trainer was interesting. "Then, you're up next!"
He recalled Golem and sent out a Kingler.
"Kingler, use Crabhammer."
"Extrasensory!"
Kingler hadn't even gotten close before Entei's Extrasensory blasted it away. Just like Golem, it lost all ability to battle in an instant.
"!!!"
The two guards were floored once more.
How... how was this possible?
The Boss actually lost? Just like that?
"Interesting." Giovanni rose from his seat and stepped out of the shadows, looking down at the Trainer below with genuine curiosity.
In that moment, a flicker of regret crossed his mind.
If only the Mewtwo Project were already complete. He would have loved to test whether the artificial Legendary, Mewtwo, was stronger than this Entei.
"No matter. Once Mewtwo is born, I'll use this very Gym to test its power." Giovanni thought.
"It seems I've lost." Giovanni produced a Badge from his suit pocket. "In that case, this Green Badge is yours."
The Green Badge sailed through the air in a perfect arc and landed squarely in Fuyuki's hand.
Even after leaving the Viridian Gym with Entei, Fuyuki's face still carried a look of bewilderment.
They... actually won that easily?
No. Neither Golem nor Kingler represented Giovanni's real strength.
And unlike other Gym Leaders, Giovanni didn't hold the position out of passion or hobby. It was a cover for his true identity.
At the end of the day, being a Gym Leader was just a disposable role to him. One he could abandon whenever he pleased.
Fuyuki checked his Shock Point earnings. The whole trip had netted him roughly three hundred points. Barely anything.
"Giovanni really is something else. Even seeing a Pokemon like Entei only got a flicker of surprise out of him..."
"Oh well. Green Badge in hand, time to move on!"
Fuyuki pocketed the Green Badge and set off with Entei toward Viridian Forest.
Inside the Viridian Gym.
Even after losing the Gym battle, Giovanni's expression hadn't changed one bit.
He sat with one leg crossed over the other, his right hand stroking Persian's head.
Suddenly, Matori emerged from the shadows behind him.
"The Entei's Trainer is named Fuyuki. He recently received his starter Pokemon, Squirtle, and his Pokedex from Professor Oak in Pallet Town." She delivered her report.
"What?" For the first time, Giovanni's perpetually calm expression cracked. "A rookie Trainer?"
Matori looked somewhat embarrassed. "That's correct. The person who defeated you is a rookie Trainer who received his starter less than a week ago. Furthermore, the Viridian Gym was his very first Gym challenge."
Giovanni suddenly questioned his grip on reality.
He'd been beaten by a rookie Trainer? And not just beaten... utterly dismantled without putting up a fight?
Were rookie Trainers really this strong these days? Strong enough to have caught a Pokemon like Entei?
For the first time, genuine shock surfaced in Giovanni's mind.
But it faded quickly, and his composure returned.
"No. He must have encountered something extraordinary before turning ten. That's why Entei is willing to follow him." Giovanni mused.
More importantly, neither Golem nor Kingler were his real Pokemon. They were just window dressing.
If he had sent out his true main team, the outcome would have been very different.
"Boss, should we send people to take that Entei?" Matori asked.
Giovanni shook his head. "It's just an Entei. No need to stir up unnecessary trouble."
Besides, the boy had Professor Oak behind him.
"Be patient. Mewtwo will be born soon enough."
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=--=
You can read up to chapter 113 on patreon.com/NiaXD.