c8: Kanaz Gym
His own brother, Master Qianli better known to most as Norman had the nearest Gym. But what about Norman's true strength? The man was no ordinary Gym Leader. In the Pokémon Adventures manga, Norman was depicted as a serious, powerful Trainer whose battling style resembled that of an Elite Four member. He trained in secret, often with Slaking and Vigoroth, focusing on timing and power. So naturally, Alex wasn't exactly eager to march in and hand himself a crushing defeat.
Besides, Alex's purpose in coming to see Norman was simple: to confirm if Ruby had been through already. He wanted to verify where they were in the plot's timeline and, incidentally, check in with Ruby's father.
"Uncle Norman, are you there?" Alex knocked on the door and called from outside the Gym.
"Who is it?" The door creaked open, revealing a tall, lean man with short black hair and a red trench coat. It was Norman himself serious-eyed and calm, just as he'd appeared in the manga's Petalburg arc.
"Uncle Norman, it's me, Alex. Has Ruby been by here?"
"Oh, it's you. That boy Ruby did drop in, he left just yesterday, actually."
After some small talk and a few questions about Ruby's training, Alex politely declined a Gym battle, stating he lacked the experience and strength for a real match.
With that, Alex left Petalburg City and made his way non-stop toward Rustboro City, the site of the first real Gym challenge he could attempt.
On the first stretch of road, he faced several Trainers and battled wild Pokémon hidden in the tall grass. After a short rest and some healing, he approached Petalburg Woods, a place known in the manga for several dramatic showdowns, including Team Aqua ambushes.
"All right! Target: Rustboro City let's go!" he said, fists clenched in determination.
While traversing Petalburg Woods, Alex found several useful items like a Miracle Seed—perfect for powering up Grass-type moves and an Escape Rope. Both would likely come in handy soon.
At the forest's exit, Alex thought the journey would now be smooth. But fate had other plans.
"Hey! Kid! Hand over your Pokémon!"
Blocking his path was a man in full Team Aqua uniform blue bandana, black vest, and a self-important smirk.
"Oh wow, isn't this Team Aqua?" Alex muttered, blinking in disbelief.
The Aqua grunt grinned wider. "Since you know who we are, quit stalling and give me your Pokémon!"
Alex, both confused and annoyed, still found the nerve to ask, "Have you seen a kid wearing shorts, a red-and-black shirt, a white cotton cap, and a green sling bag?"
"You mean that arrogant brat?" the grunt growled.
Bingo. The same Team Aqua goon Ruby had embarrassed during the manga's early Hoenn arc. Small world.
Meanwhile, at the Rustboro Gym, Ruby suddenly sneezed while polishing his freshly won badge. "Achoo! Someone must be gossiping about me... I bet it's Alex."
Back in the forest, Alex grinned. "Heh, then you're about to be disappointed. Duraludon, Gastly go!"
"Wait, wait! What happened to fair one-on-one matches and not attacking Trainers? Whatever happened to 'sportsmanship'?" the grunt panicked.
At this point, it was hard to tell who the real villain was.
(Side note: Dreepy evolved—now Dreepy, level 24. Gastly gained three levels, now level 20.)
Eventually, Alex arrived at Rustboro City. Just outside the Gym, he bumped into Ruby, who looked unusually proud, his badge case clutched tightly.
"Hey hey, Alex! Uncle Ruby's got himself a shiny new badge!" Ruby said, waving the badge around like a trophy.
"Oh, come on. You just got a head start. If we battled right now, I'd absolutely wipe the floor with you."
Ruby scoffed. "Sure, sure. Go on in, then. I'll be in the spectator stands munching melon don't embarrass yourself too hard!" He zipped inside the Gym with his usual dramatic flair.
Alex stepped into the Rustboro Gym, a rock-type facility designed like a training dojo. He was met by three Gym apprentices. To reach Roxanne, the leader known for her tactical battling style and high defense strategy, Alex had to defeat all three.
"Come on, challenger! Geodude, I choose you!" The first apprentice threw out a Poké Ball dramatically, clearly a bit of a chuunibyou.
"Go, Gastly!" Alex replied.
After quickly checking with his system, Alex noted this Geodude's Sturdy ability. That meant a one-hit KO was off the table but not for long.
"Eh? What is that thing?" The apprentice blinked, clearly never having seen a Gastly before.
Energy Ball, launched from Gastly's ghostly core, struck true. A four-times super effective hit—Rock and Ground stood no chance against Grass.
The other two apprentices also used Rock- or Ground-type Pokémon. One Geodude had Sturdy, which meant Gastly took a bit of chip damage, but nothing serious. The rest of the battle was clean.
One apprentice looked utterly crushed.
Gym Apprentice: Mentally defeated.
After healing Gastly with a Potion, Alex prepared for the real fight. He knew from the manga and game data that Roxanne's Nosepass wasn't just tanky it also had Recover and an ironclad defense. Dreepy wasn't well-suited for a drawn-out battle, so he had to keep Gastly fresh.
"Xiao Alex! You can do it!" Ruby was already seated in the viewing stands, casually munching on watermelon in one hand, popcorn in the other.
"That kid Ruby really knows how to enjoy himself," Alex muttered with a sigh as he stepped into the arena and saw Gym Leader Roxanne already in position at the far end of the field, composed as ever in her formal trainer's coat. Just like in the Pokémon Adventures manga, her demeanor was calm and scholarly, befitting her role as both Gym Leader and a teacher at the Rustboro Trainers' School.
"Is this your first Gym challenge?" Roxanne asked with a small smile, adjusting her glasses.
"Yes, this is my first official Gym challenge."
"I see. Then this will mark the start of your journey as a recognized Trainer. Rustboro Gym uses a two-on-two single battle format. Do you accept these rules?"
"I do." Despite having challenged dozens of Gyms in the game, Alex couldn't hide his excitement. This was his first real-life Gym battle, and it carried weight beyond game mechanics.
"Go! Geodude!"
Roxanne's opening move was no surprise: a level 18 Geodude, known in both game and manga to often have the Sturdy ability.
"Go, Drakloak!"
"Dra-kloak~"
"Geodude, Defense Curl!"
Geodude tucked in tightly, its body shimmering as its Defense rose. Alex knew immediately what was coming.
"Ah, the old Defense Curl into Rollout combo. Dreepy, begin with Infestation then use Substitute!"
Dark spectral threads surrounded Geodude, binding it with a swarm of ghostly energy. Infestation meant it couldn't be switched out and would take damage over time. Then, a faded doll appeared as Dreepy consumed HP to create a Substitute a time-buying move that mimicked the SubProtect strategy Alex admired from competitive battlers.
Roxanne still didn't seem alarmed. "Geodude, Rollout!"
The first Rollout, even with boosted power, slammed into the substitute but failed to break it.
"Drakloak, follow up with Crunch!"
With a brief flash of fangs, the vanished Dreepy bit through the rocky armor. The combo of Infestation chip damage, Substitute, and Crunch wore Geodude down rapidly. Although the level gap was significant, Roxanne had underestimated how efficiently Alex's strategy could counter her setup.
Moments later, the weakened Geodude fell to a final Crunch, just as Infestation ticked it into the red.
Roxanne blinked, mildly stunned. "Ah, a strategy player. I admit, I misjudged you. You show potential, Alex. But this battle isn't over yet. Go, Nosepass!"
Her ace entered the field—Nosepass, level 21, known in both manga and game as having high Defense, access to Recover, and a unique Magnet Pull ability that once trapped Steven Stone's Steel-types.
"Appreciate it. Dreepy, return!"
Alex swapped out Dreepy and sent in his Shiny Gastly, who floated in with an eerie grin.
"Let's go, Gastly!"
"Heh heh heh…"
The crowd stirred. Some Rustboro citizens cheered, while from the stands, Ruby shouted, "Xiao Alex is killing it!"
"Gastly, use Curse!"
At level 20, Gastly had just learned Curse. Alex planned to use it to chip down Nosepass and bypass its stall tactics. A spectral nail materialized and slammed into Gastly's own vaporous form.
"Quick, Nosepass Protect!" Roxanne called.
A green energy shield flared around Nosepass, nullifying the cursed energy. The Curse, redirected, returned to Gastly.
Though it didn't land, Alex wasn't too concerned. Curse was a double-edged sword anyway, and it would've halved Gastly's HP. Roxanne had adjusted quickly this time, but Alex was already adapting.
"Nosepass has low Special Defense," Alex noted aloud. "Gastly, Energy Ball!"
The orb of condensed Grass-type energy charged rapidly in Gastly's mouth.
"What?!" Roxanne's eyes widened.
Gastly fired the Energy Ball, catching Nosepass between Protects. The hit landed cleanly—it was super effective, slamming Nosepass down to critical HP.
"Nosepass, Recover!" Roxanne ordered quickly.
A soft green glow began to restore Nosepass's stamina, but it was clear the next Energy Ball would finish it.
Alex smirked. "Gastly, again!"
The second Energy Ball shot out before Nosepass could prepare a defense.
"Enough!" Roxanne raised her hand. "There's no point in continuing. You've won. I don't wish to see Nosepass pushed beyond its limits. You've earned this your Stone Badge, and this Rock Tomb TM."
"Thank you, Gym Leader." Alex bowed slightly, accepting the badge and TM.
As he stepped away from the battlefield, Ruby came sprinting over.
"Wow, Xiao Alex, that was so fun to watch! That Infestation totally shut down Geodude!"
Roxanne raised an eyebrow. "You know I'm still standing right here, yes?"
"Oh come on, Lu Chi," Alex sighed. "You're asking for a smackdown, saying that in front of the Gym Leader."
The two boys laughed and waved farewell to Roxanne as they exited the Gym, badge gleaming in hand and the road ahead full of possibility.
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