Viridian Gym.
In front of the Romanesque-style building, two guards clad in armor and wielding sharp axes stood before the luxurious gate.
In the Kanto Region, every Gym Leader could freely decorate their Gym according to their preferences.
These two guards were staff sent by Giovanni to serve as atmosphere enhancers and incidentally guard the gate.
"This is Viridian Gym!"
When Fuyuki truly set foot on this land, he felt inexplicably nervous.
After all, when it came to Giovanni, this well-known villain, he was famous throughout the entire Pokémon world.
In secret, he was the crime boss who single-handedly founded the evil organization Team Rockets, with members spread across the Kanto Region and Johto Region, and even created Mewtwo, an artificial Pokémon born with legendary power.
On the surface, however, he was a renowned entrepreneur in the Kanto Region, whose company had long been listed, and its benefits were among the best worldwide, beloved by countless office workers.
Not only that, Giovanni was also a Gym Leader affiliated with the Kanto League, with connections spanning the globe, and even the Island Kings of the Alola Region were old acquaintances of his.
"Well, since I'm here, I might as well go in and take a look!" Fuyuki thought to himself; they would meet sooner or later anyway.
Moreover, he was facing Giovanni as an ordinary Trainer, so there shouldn't be any issues.
Seeing a challenger arrive, the two guards glanced in surprise at the extraordinary Pokémon behind the young man, then turned and pushed open the gate.
Fuyuki and Entei stepped inside, and as soon as they entered the Gym, the gate behind them slammed shut.
The entire Gym instantly became pitch dark.
But then, beams of light lit up from both sides of the ceiling, illuminating the central battlefield.
"I am the Trainer of Viridian Gym, Giovanni."
A voice sounded from the platform opposite, where a middle-aged man in a khaki suit sat on a single sofa, holding a glass of red wine.
Beside him was a seemingly haughty Persian.
"I am Fuyuki from Pallet Town," Fuyuki announced. "I've come to obtain Viridian Gym's earth badge!"
[Giovanni is quite surprised by the Entei by your side. shock points from Giovanni +30!]
A notification suddenly flashed before Fuyuki's eyes.
Immediately after, he heard a faint chuckle from Giovanni above.
"Hmph, Trainers these days are truly young and promising!"
Giovanni recognized the Pokémon's identity at a glance—Entei, a Legendary Pokémon from the legends of the Johto Region.
What he hadn't expected was that this Entei had been captured by a child.
However, no matter how rare Entei was, Giovanni didn't pay it too much attention.
Currently, the Mewtwo Project had reached its final stage, and soon, the world's strongest Pokémon would be born.
By then, wielding this power, even Entei and Zapdos would become his defeated opponents.
"Very well, I accept your challenge," Giovanni said with a slight smile, his voice soft.
"The limit is two Pokémon per side, with no time restrictions. The match ends only when all Pokémon on either side lose their ability to battle!"
The two armored staff members took on the role of referees.
Seeing that the Trainer was ready, one of them forcefully struck the match bell bearing the Team Rockets emblem.
"Dad, I'm counting on you!" Fuyuki said.
Entei gave a dignified grunt, then lifted its front legs and walked onto the battlefield.
"Go, Golem!"
Giovanni took a Poké Ball from his suit pocket.
With a flash of white light, a massive creature composed of rocks appeared opposite Entei.
The battle officially began!
"Golem, use Stomp," Giovanni commanded calmly, still seated on the sofa with an expression of complete control.
"Extrasensory!" Fuyuki gave his order almost simultaneously with Giovanni.
As the commands were issued, both Pokémon moved at once.
Golem stomped heavily on the ground, while Entei gathered an immense psychic force at its forehead and unleashed it with a powerful blast.
Before the aftershocks of the Stomp could fully spread, Golem's body was instantly sent flying backward, crashing into a wall and losing its ability to battle.
"How could this be?!" The two guards were shocked. Had Giovanni's Pokémon been defeated in an instant?
[shock points from the two guards +100!]
[shock points from Giovanni +20!]
Fuyuki was quite surprised. As expected of Giovanni.
Even in such a situation, he was only slightly taken aback?
"Not bad at all!" Giovanni smiled slightly. This Trainer was interesting. "Well, I choose you!"
Giovanni recalled Golem and sent out a Kingler instead.
"Kingler, use Crabhammer."
"Extrasensory!"
Before Kingler could get close, it was blasted away by Entei's Extrasensory, losing its ability to battle instantly, just like Golem.
"!!!"
The two guards looked shocked once again.
How... how was this possible?
Had the boss really lost just like that?
"Interesting," Giovanni stood up, stepped out of the shadows, and looked down at the Trainer with keen interest.
At that moment, he felt a twinge of regret.
It was a pity the Mewtwo Project wasn't complete yet; otherwise, he would have liked to test whether the artificial Legendary Pokémon Mewtwo or this Entei was stronger.
"Well, once Mewtwo is born, I'll use this Gym to properly test its power," Giovanni thought to himself.
"It seems I've lost," Giovanni said, taking a badge from his suit pocket. "In that case, this earth badge belongs to you."
The earth badge arced through the air in a parabolic trajectory, landing precisely in Fuyuki's hand.
Even as he walked out of Viridian Gym with Entei, Fuyuki's face still held a look of bewilderment and disbelief.
Had they... really won so easily?
No, whether it was Golem or Kingler, they likely weren't Giovanni's true strength.
Moreover, unlike other Gym Leaders, Giovanni served as the leader of Viridian Gym not out of interest but to conceal his identity.
Ultimately, being a Gym Leader was just an optional job for him, something he could abandon at any time.
Fuyuki glanced at his shock points gain. This trip had only earned him about three hundred shock points, which was very little.
"As expected of Giovanni. Even when seeing a Pokémon like Entei, he was only slightly surprised..."
"Well, since I've got the earth badge, I should continue on my journey!"
Fuyuki put away the earth badge and turned to head toward Viridian Forest with Entei.
Inside Viridian Gym.
Even after losing the Gym battle, Giovanni's expression remained unchanged.
He crossed his legs and stroked Persian's head with his right hand.
Suddenly, Matori emerged from the shadows behind him.
"That Entei's Trainer is named Fuyuki. Not long ago, he received his starter Pokémon Squirtle and Pokédex from Professor Oak in Pallet Town," she reported to Giovanni, sharing the information she had gathered.
"What?" Hearing this, Giovanni's usually calm expression finally cracked slightly. "A rookie Trainer?"
Matori looked somewhat awkward. "Yes... the one who defeated you is a rookie Trainer who received his starter Pokémon less than a week ago. Moreover, Viridian Gym is the first Pokémon Gym he's challenged."
Giovanni suddenly began to doubt his life.
Had he been defeated by a rookie Trainer? And one who had effortlessly overwhelmed him?
Were rookie Trainers this powerful nowadays? To even capture a Pokémon like Entei... At that moment, Giovanni finally felt a surge of shock.
But he quickly calmed down again.
"No, he must have had some extraordinary encounter before turning ten, which is why Entei is willing to follow him," Giovanni pondered calmly.
More importantly, neither Golem nor Krabby were his true Pokémon; they were merely decoys.
If he had sent out his real main team, the outcome would have been different.
"Boss, should we have our people seize that Entei?" Matori inquired.
Giovanni snapped back to reality and shook his head. "It's just an Entei. There's no need to stir up unnecessary trouble."
Besides, the other party had Professor Oak backing him.
"Just wait a little longer. Mewtwo will be born soon."
....
Power Stones PLZZZZZ
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