Author's Note : I know this chapter kind of became introspective but it is what it is , besides Volume 1 was all about the common born aspect and his initial struggle , Volume 2 will focus more on emotions and interactions of sort , again it wont be the main focus .
That said man so many of you guys voted for Ttar
Grey's POV
"What do you mean I can't issue a Challenge Mode request?"
The receptionist didn't even look surprised by my reaction.
"I'm sorry, sir, but Challenge Mode battles are currently unavailable. The Gym Leaders are busy, and so are the trainers involved in the Cerulean Water Shows. Because of scheduling conflicts, the gym generally doesn't accept Challenge Mode requests."
I stared at her for a few seconds.
Okay.
What kind of har—
No.
Calm down, Grey.
It's fine.
I took a deep breath before nodding.
"Alright. Then what battle slots are available this week?"
The receptionist smiled and showed me the schedule.
After looking through it, I booked a match four days from now in the morning.
I had already asked Exeggutor how long it would take to teach Charmander Sunny Day, and according to it, four days should be enough to at least get the basics down.
Even if Charmander failed to learn it in time, I still intended to use it in the gym battle.
The entire point was to gain experience.
Besides, if things became difficult, Charmander had teammates strong enough to back it up.
Not that I expected much difficulty after seeing the kind of reputation this gym had.
With the booking complete, I left.
It was already late evening, and I had no intention of doing anything productive today.
Training could start tomorrow.
For now, I wanted food, a bed, and sleep.
I returned to the Pokémon Center and headed to my room.
After settling in, I found myself lying on the bed staring at the ceiling, doing what I always did when I had too much free time.
Thinking.
To be honest, I had expected the situation in Cerulean Gym to be better than it was in the anime.
Apparently not.
The more I researched, the more disappointed I became.
No wonder Misty eventually had to come back and take over the gym after her journey.
If the Sensational Sisters were really running things the way the PokéNet described, then this place was somehow even worse than I remembered.
I spent nearly an hour browsing forums and battle records.
The results were... underwhelming.
Cerulean Gym was considered the easiest of Kanto's major gyms.
Sure, it was still significantly better than most minor gyms.
But that wasn't exactly high praise.
Most discussions described the gym as little more than a stepping stone.
The strongest team they regularly fielded was roughly equivalent to a six-badge level team.
No eight-badge roster.
No elite reserve team.
No main team capable of challenging veteran trainers.
Nothing.
Honestly, I had no idea how they were still considered one of Kanto's primary gyms.
Half the comments online were some variation of:
"If you can't beat Cerulean Gym, you probably aren't making it to the Indigo Conference."
Harsh.
But after reading enough battle reports, I could see where the reputation came from.
Honestly?
Charmander and Axew probably had this battle in the bag already.
If they used standard three-badge Pokémon, my team would walk through them.
Even if they used their strongest six-badge roster, Persian could probably win.
Exeggutor definitely could.
And that thought bothered me more than it should have.
A gym battle was supposed to be a challenge.
That was the entire point.
Yes, I had wanted an easier gym after everything that had happened recently.
But not this easy.
Not after the S.S. Anne.
I rolled over on my bed and stared at the wall.
Maybe the problem wasn't the gym.
Maybe the problem was me.
A few months ago, I would have been thrilled at the prospect of an easier badge.
Now I was sitting here disappointed because I wasn't expecting enough resistance.
Somewhere along the way, I had started craving stronger battles.
Battles that forced me to think.
Battles where every decision mattered.
Battles where I had to squeeze every advantage out of my team just to survive.
It was a little concerning when I thought about it.
The gyms that still interested me the most weren't because of the badges.
They were because they could actually challenge me.
Sabrina immediately came to mind.
From everything I knew, she was strong enough to be considered a potential Elite Four candidate.
Her Alakazam was rumored to rival the ace Pokémon of newly promoted Elite Four members.
Then there was Blaine.
A retired Elite Four member.
A man who had forgotten more about Pokémon battles than most trainers would ever learn.
And finally...
Giovanni.
I shuddered.
Yeah.
No.
Absolutely not.
There was no universe where I was looking forward to that battle.
For all I knew, the guy might release Mewtwo on me the moment I stepped into the gym. I would rather I just go to some minor gym compared to that.
Gary certainly didn't have a great experience in the anime.
The thought made me laugh despite myself.
Still, when I looked at the remaining other major gyms, there really weren't many that could provide the kind of challenge I was looking for. Cerulean and Pewter city gyms might be easy enough to beat then again I went on with tougher gyms first due to my starting location. Hence they are easy enough for me now.
The minor gyms might be different.
I honestly didn't know enough about them.
All I knew were their locations from maps and trainer guides.
I let out a sigh.
Besides, if I really wanted stronger battles, there were other options.
I could challenge Surge again someday.
I could ask Erika for a rematch.
Heck, I could probably contact Red or Blue through the phone if I wanted a battle badly enough.
The realization made me pause.
Bill had warned me about this.
Not directly.
But he had mentioned that strong trainers sometimes became obsessed with growth.
With the next battle.
The next challenge.
The next opponent.
And somewhere along the way, they forgot to enjoy the journey itself.
Maybe I was starting to fall into that trap.
I had spent nearly the entire evening thinking about gym battles.
Not once had I considered exploring Cerulean.
Not once had I thought about visiting Bill's mansion which was near cerulean
Not once had I thought about sightseeing, relaxing, or simply enjoying being healthy again.
A week ago, I had been in a coma.I just recovered to walk well , I should be living my life
But I was annoyed because a gym wasn't strong enough.
That perspective hit me like a truck.
I laughed at myself.
"Okay, Grey. You officially have issues."
The room remained silent.
I rubbed my face.
Tomorrow I would still train.
That wasn't changing.
But I was also going to actually explore Cerulean City.
Walk around.
See the sights.
Visit places.
Maybe even check out Bill's house in person.
I had four whole days before my gym battle.
There was no reason to spend all of them obsessing over training schedules and battle strategies.
With that thought in mind, I finally relaxed.
For the first time since arriving in Cerulean, I stopped thinking about badges, battles, and gym leaders.
Then I rolled over, closed my eyes, and quickly drifted off to sleep.
——————————-
Grey's POV
The next day arrived,
I woke up early, brushed my teeth, took a bath, got dressed, and prepared to make proper use of the day.
The first thing on my agenda was training.
So after a quick breakfast at the Pokémon Center, I headed back to Route 5.
Once there, I released my entire team and gathered them together.
"For the next four days," I told them, "the focus won't be on individual growth. We've already done plenty of that. Instead, we're going to focus on training as a group."
The team listened attentively.
I then explained my plan for the Cerulean Gym battle.
"Axew and Charmander will be taking the lead for this gym."
Most of the team nodded in understanding.
Cloyster, however, immediately looked offended.
I sighed.
"Cloyster, unless the Gym Leader suddenly decides to bring out a six-badge-level Pokémon, there won't be much of a challenge for you."
The shell Pokémon looked unconvinced.
"Even then," I continued, "if you get a Shell Smash off, you're probably sweeping the battle."
That finally seemed to satisfy it.
Somewhat.
"If the battle ends up being a three-on-three, my third choice will probably be Persian. If something goes horribly wrong, Exeggutor will step in."
Exeggutor looked pleased by that.
"If it's a four-on-four battle, both Persian and Exeggutor will get to participate."
With the lineup settled, I moved on to the actual training plan.
"The main goal for these four days is refining your existing skills and helping each other improve."
I looked specifically at Exeggutor and Charmander.
"For you two, I have a special assignment."
Both Pokémon paid closer attention.
"Exeggutor, your priority is teaching Charmander Sunny Day."
The palm-tree Pokémon nodded immediately.
"And Charmander, your job is learning it."
The lizard eagerly puffed out its chest.
Honestly, teaching Charmander Solar Beam was a plan for much later. Eventually, I wanted it to learn the move and fully abuse its Solar Power ability. But for now, Sunny Day alone would be enough.
A weather move would already give Charmander far more options during battles.
I turned back to Exeggutor.
"Your first priority is helping Charmander learn Sunny Day. If you still have enough time and energy afterward, you can continue practicing Solar Beam yourself."
Exeggutor agreed without complaint.
Next, I looked toward Cloyster, Axew, and Persian.
"Cloyster, you're working with those two."
The giant shell tilted slightly.
"I want you to use Icicle Spear on them."
Axew blinked.
Persian immediately looked annoyed.
"For Axew, the goal is simple. Either deflect the attack or learn to take the hit head-on."
Axew nodded seriously.
He was already accustomed to dealing with Shellder's Icicle Spear from back when Cloyster was unevolved.
The problem was that Cloyster's version was in an entirely different league.
The attacks were faster, stronger, and carried far more force behind them.
If Axew could improve his reactions against those attacks, it would help prepare him against Ice-type moves in the future.
A Dragon-type that could handle Ice attacks to some degree would be great.
"As for Persian," I continued, "your focus is speed control."
The cat perked up slightly.
"This is a Water-type gym. There's a decent chance the gym's Pokémon will know Ice-type attacks as coverage. I don't want Axew getting caught off guard."
If Axew failed to dodge an Ice Beam or Ice Punch in the future, then all the power in the world wouldn't matter.
This training wasn't just for Cerulean Gym.
It was long-term investment.
Once everyone understood their assignments, I let them get started.
Charmander immediately ran over to Exeggutor.
Cloyster began preparing a barrage of Icicle Spears.
Persian already looked like it regretted agreeing to participate.
Axew, meanwhile, looked excited.
Typical.
With my Pokémon busy training, I sat beneath a nearby tree and pulled out my phone.
If I was going to spend four days in Cerulean, I might as well learn what the city had to offer.
I opened the PokéNet and began researching.
Cerulean was surrounded by four major routes.
To the south was Route 5, where I was currently training.
To the west was Route 4, leading toward Mt. Moon and Pewter.
To the east was Route 9, a route I hadn't explored yet.
And to the north was Route 24, home of the famous Nugget Bridge.
That route was also where Bill's seaside mansion was located.
Come to think of it...
I should visit Bill's mansion as he is sponsoring me.
Maybe that was something worth doing during my stay here.