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As they walked deeper into the underwater structure, Kai spotted several photographs posted prominently along the corridor wall.
He glanced at them and was surprised to see Dorian posing alongside Cerulean's famous trio: Daisy, Violet, and Lily.
In the photo, Dorian and the three sisters stood soaking wet in their water ballet outfits beside a pool, clearly having just finished a performance. Their expressions were warm and relaxed like old friends sharing a memory.
Judging by how recent they looked, it seemed the photos had been taken not long ago.
"You know the Cerulean Sisters too?" Kai asked.
"Of course!" Dorian replied, a nostalgic smile forming on his face as he turned toward the photo. "I admire them a lot. In fact, they were the reason I wanted to become a water ballet performer in the first place. After I started performing, I made a trip to Cerulean City just to train with them and we took that photo together as a keepsake."
Then something clicked in Dorian's mind. "Wait… you said too. So you know them as well?"
Kai gave Sabrina a quick glance, then answered vaguely, "Yeah, you could say that. Cerulean was actually one of the first Gym I challenged when I started my journey."
A strange coincidence.
But in truth, Kai's relationship with the Cerulean Sisters went far deeper than that. They weren't just acquaintances.
He'd even helped them with one of their stage shows and shared a kiss with Violet at the curtain call.
He also had a few photos with them on his phone… much more flattering and, frankly, jealousy-inducing compared to Dorian's innocent snapshots.
"So Cerulean was your first challenge? That makes you a Kanto native?"
"Not really," Kai shook his head. "My journey just happened to begin in Kanto."
"Ah, that explains it you don't have a Kanto accent at all."
As they continued chatting, the corridor led them into a wide, open chamber.
A massive glass wall stretched across the far end, revealing the breathtaking view of the sea floor beyond. Shafts of sunlight filtered down through the water, casting soft ripples of light. Wild Water-type Pokémon swam through the coral and seaweed, darting in and out of view.
No matter how many times you saw it, the ocean's depths never lost their magic.
Dorian stepped forward and pointed beyond the glass. "We're here. This is the Gym's official battlefield."
Kai followed his gaze. A large, flat patch of ocean floor had been cleared of debris and marked with white lines to form a rectangular arena.
"This is the battlefield?" Kai asked, surprised. "You mean… we're actually battling underwater?"
Dorian grinned. "Exactly. Not just the Pokémon the Trainers fight underwater too!"
An underwater Trainer battle is definitely not something you see every day.
It was Kai's first time encountering a Gym with an actual subaquatic battlefield, and it immediately changed the dynamic. Only Pokémon that could breathe and maneuver underwater would be viable. The rest? Completely useless.
Dorian handed him a compact underwater rebreather.
"This little gadget lets you breathe underwater for over twenty minutes—more than enough time for a full match. By the way… do you know how to swim?"
"More or less," Kai replied. "I've been through a shipwreck before, so I've got some survival experience. Not exactly Olympic-level, but I won't panic in the water."
Taking the rebreather, Kai added, "What are the match rules?"
"Standard three-on-three. Knock out all your opponent's Pokémon to win."
Simple enough. But Kai frowned slightly as he considered his team options.
His Blastoise was still back at Sakuragi Park, and there was no way to swap remotely right now. That meant his only Water-type available was Gyarados a powerhouse, yes, but way too overpowered for a match like this. It might end up accidentally destroying the arena.
Luckily, he had another Pokémon that could handle underwater combat just fine.
Since he didn't bring a swimsuit, Dorian kindly gave him a brand-new one to use. After changing in the locker room, both Trainers climbed the stairs to a diving platform.
With rebreathers in place, they dove into the water.
SPLASH!
The instant Kai hit the ocean, the temperature sent a chill through his skin, giving him goosebumps. But the sun was still high overhead, and the water wasn't too cold. After a few seconds, his body adjusted.
He stretched out his limbs, getting used to the resistance and buoyancy, then swam toward the marked Trainer area of the arena.
When he turned around, he saw Dorian already waiting flanked by the same trio of Pokémon from the earlier show: Qwilfish, Mantine, and Lanturn.
Apparently, they weren't just performance partners they were Dorian's battle team.
Seeing Kai ready, Dorian gave a swift hand signal, and Qwilfish swam forward to take the lead.
Qwilfish, a Water/Poison-type Pokémon, looked like an angry pufferfish round, bloated, and covered in toxic spines. According to studies, Qwilfish struggled with swimming due to its rotund shape. To attack, it absorbed huge volumes of water to puff up, firing poisonous barbs in defense. The larger its opponent, the more water it gulped growing larger and more dangerous.
Kai grabbed a Poké Ball.
A flash of blue light illuminated the water, and Dragonair emerged to face Qwilfish.
Type-wise, there were no direct advantages Dragonair's Dragon typing didn't give it super-effective hits against Water types. But Water-type moves dealt half damage to Dragon-types.
Just like that, Qwilfish was already fighting at a disadvantage.
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