"I think you've already learned the rules of the battle from the manual you have in your hand. So, let's choose a venue first. Oh yes, I still need to ask some routine questions before the match starts, and hopefully you'll be able to answer them in a moment. ”

Standing in the middle of the empty hall, Xiao Gang stopped and turned to Xiao Zhi, who was looking left and right.

"Then I'll go to the audience first."

Kasumi patted Ash on the shoulder, pointed to the side of the audience, then crouched down and touched Pikachu and Sika's heads, and sat on the raised audience under the gaze of Sika's dead fish eyes.

“... Those questions will affect the difficulty of your next Pokémon Challenge, so don't hide anything if you don't want to be judged cheating. ”

Xiao Gang pointed to the huge sticker on the other end of the hall, which depicted the basic rules of the Gym Tournament and the general situation of the dueling venue.

"The above is an introduction to the duel venue, if you are not in a hurry, you can take a look before deciding in which arena to fight with Pokémon."

“... What's that? ”

"That's the basics of the Pokémon I'll be using during the battle against you, and it's also written in your manual."

"I know that, but I'm not talking about the picture, it's the one next to it."

Xiao Gang turned his head suspiciously, and looked in the direction that Ash was pointing, and there was a white satin plastered with black and white and color photos hanging next to the sticker introducing the venue and Pokémon.

"Oh, that's the Pokémon Trainer who passed the Gym in Nibi City with flying colors, and only Pokémon Trainers who have been recognized by the Gym Trainer as having excellent potential can be posted on it."

"But this may be a unique feature of our Nibi City Gym, right?"

He said proudly, but then turned back and asked:

"Do you want to go closer and take a closer look? There's also a text about the venue, so you might think of a good idea for a fight. ”

"No, I was already deciding on the venue for the fight long before I came here. I chose to play a 2v2 rocky field battle. ”

"yes, it looks like I've been prepared for a long time. Well, as you said, let's have a 2v2 Pokémon duel in a while. ”

"So... What's that problem you're talking about? ”

Ash asked:

"Didn't you say you still had to ask me some questions?"

"I'm going to ask right now. Actually, don't worry, it's just a routine problem. ”

Xiao Gang replied.

"Are you a trainer who only set off on this year?"

"That's right. Uh, haven't you already asked Dr. Ohki? ”

"That's why it's a routine problem. The battle between you and my Pokémon will be recorded by the video recorder and tape recorder, and every Pokémon Trainer who successfully challenges the Pokémon Gym and obtains a badge will need to submit the battle video to the relevant departments of the Pokémon Alliance for review. ”

He pointed to his head, and Ash followed his line of sight, and saw a ball-shaped camera in the center of the hall and in the upper and lower corners, flickering with a faint red light.

"Of course, this isn't the only way to tell if a Pokémon trainer has lied about the truth. When the Alliance Conference arrives, trainers will also need to check the authenticity of badges before the tournament begins, as well as conduct Pokémon battles to check strength, etc..."

"I'm sorry, maybe I'm a little verbose, but these are all necessary things that gym trainers need to teach newbies, so whether you want to listen to it or not, I'm going to talk about it."

Sika was already rolling her eyes.

"Okay, without further ado, let's end the problem as soon as possible, and we can start fighting as soon as possible."

Xiao Gang took a deep breath, coughed, and continued to ask:

"How many gym badges have you earned officially recognized by the Pokémon Alliance since your trip?"

"Well, this is my first gym challenge, so."

"I know that every trainer has their first gym challenge. So, you and this Pikachu and this one... uh..."

When he saw Sika, Xiao Gang was suddenly stunned.

Sika had been hiding behind Ash just now, plus he was not tall and very petite, so he patronized to introduce the situation of the gym to Ash, but he didn't pay attention to Sika's appearance.

After all, he didn't see it completely just now, and it's understandable to mistakenly think that it is other Pokémon.

"It's called Sika, and it's from the Hoenn region... Uh, Pokémon from the Sinnoh region. ”

Ash remembered what Dr. Ohki had told him later.

"Because Leo Lu was first discovered in the Hoenn region, but now it is more of a survival in the Sinnoh region, and when I introduce it to others in the future, it will be a lot less trouble if I directly introduce it to the Pokémon that extends to the region..."

"Did you come to Kanto from the Sinnoh region?"

"No, it's just an accident that I subdued him."

Ash shook his head slightly.

"Ahem, anyway, uh, how long have you been with the two of them?"

"It's probably more than half a month. Pikachu and I have been a little bit longer, close to a month. ”

"Hmm... Is there anything special about your Pokémon? For example, not following orders, not wanting to be close to you, etc.? ”

"Uh... There is such one, but for some reason, I am not very convenient to show you. ”

"So, what kind of Pokémon does it look like?"

Sika was so bored that she rolled her eyes.

It's a Pokémon that can kill you, please, is it necessary to check the household register like this for a Gym Challenge?

However, what Sika didn't expect was that such a "cross-examination" would actually start the battle in the gym more than twenty minutes later.

Eventually, in the confusion of Sika's eyes that were about to close and start eating chicken nuggets while he didn't know when, holding Ash's backpack, the two of them and a Pikachu finally stood on either side of the hall.

Is it finally about to begin? Pokémon Gym Battles?

But I don't know why, I can't get the feeling of energy no matter what... Please, can you hurry up, if you don't fight again, I'm going to fall asleep...

He looked at Xiaoxia next to him with a loveless look, and found that this gym trainer who also had the qualifications to become a Pokémon Gym substitute coach no longer knew when to hold his cheeks and wander out of the world.

...

As the roar of the machine sounded, Ash watched in amazement as the walls on both sides of the wide hall clicked open a crack in the middle, slowly moving to the sides as the machine moved.

In the stands, a Pokémon and a girl were already asleep.

Although I know, gym trainers often use this method to reduce the tension of novice trainers...

Sika knew that the warmth of the tail was not because of Xiaoxia's hands covering his tail, but because of the heat emanating from the hair on Pikachu's head after Pikachu used his tail as a pillow.

Does this count as cheating by a gym trainer?

Before the battle began, the challenger two Pokémon were forcibly incapacitated to fight...

It's scary to think about.

The gym trainer deserves to be the gym trainer...

Talent!