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Mr. Kurt's task was complete, and Azalea Town's drought was over. The Azalea Gym had reopened, and it was finally time to challenge the gym.
"Is this really the Azalea Gym? It looks more like a botanical garden!" Slowly walking inside the gym's entrance, Misty still had no idea what she was about to face. Ash couldn't help but remind her, "Uh, Misty, do you remember what type of gym this is?"
"What is it?"
Before Ash and Brock could answer, Misty had already realized. This Azalea Gym was a Bug-type Gym! Before she could even react, Caterpie and Metapod suddenly dangled down from the trees, appearing directly in front of her.
"Bugs!!!"
Misty instinctively threw herself onto Ash's back, hiding behind his head, daring not to look directly at the surrounding Bug-type Pokémon. Ash couldn't help but smile wryly; they naturally knew Misty was afraid of Bug Pokémon. However, seeing these Caterpie, he felt a wave of nostalgia. He wondered how Butterfree, who had flown off with its girlfriend to live happily ever after, was doing now.
"I'm very sorry, my companion is a girl after all!" Gently patting Misty's arm, Ash looked at the boy who emerged from behind a tree.
"It's alright. But, don't you think Bug Pokémon are the best Pokémon?" the boy said.
"I think all Pokémon are the best. I like Bug Pokémon, and I like Bird Pokémon too," Ash replied. "No one has the right to force their preferences on others, or compel others to accept their tastes, do they?" Hearing Ash say this, the boy looked at Ash a bit more closely, then finally nodded. "You're right, that's indeed the case. I should apologize for that!"
"Hello, I'm Bugsy, the Gym Leader of Azalea Gym, known as the living dictionary of Bug-type Pokémon! It's a pleasure to meet you!"
"I'm Ash from Pallet Town! I've come to challenge the Azalea Gym!"
The battle thus began! The Azalea Gym strongly resembled a botanical garden. The battle arena was in the center of a dense forest, surrounded by trees, clearly giving Bug-type Pokémon a significant advantage.
"Starting now, this is an official match between Azalea Gym Leader Bugsy and Challenger Ash from Pallet Town, with the badge at stake! Each trainer is limited to three Pokémon!"
"Ash, have you ever heard the saying that conquering Bug Pokémon means conquering the world?" Before the battle began, Bugsy asked again. So far, the two trainers in the Johto region he had met were quite eccentric: one passionate about Bird Pokémon, and the other about Bug-type Pokémon.
But before Ash could answer, Bugsy had already sent out his first Pokémon. As per Gym challenge rules, the Gym Leader sends out their Pokémon first, allowing the challenger to adjust their strategy based on the first opponent.
"The silent warrior among Bug Pokémon, go, Spinarak!"
Ash was, of course, very familiar with Spinarak. In Spinarak Town, they had even partnered with Spinarak to apprehend Team Rocket's trio. That had also been one of the most peaceful periods of Ash's journey. Coincidentally, Team Rocket was currently trying to break into the gym, only to be caught again by the gym's Bug-type Pokémon.
"It's decided, Slowpoke!"
Misty and Brock hadn't expected Ash to send out his recently caught Slowpoke. But seeing this Slowpoke, Bugsy's face changed. "I didn't expect you to have gained the Slowpoke God's acknowledgment! Ash, facing you, I must use my full power!" The problem was, Slowpoke was a Water/Psychic-type Pokémon, and Bug-type moves were super effective against it!
"Spinarak, String Shot!" Spinarak's String Shot attack easily hit Slowpoke. No matter how unusual this Slowpoke was, its speed was still its weakness.
"You can't move now, can you?!" Bugsy believed victory was in his grasp. "Use Poison Sting!"
"Slowpoke, use Water Pulse!"
Water Pulse wasn't aimed at Spinarak. Instead, Slowpoke directed it at the ground, and then Water Pulse transformed into a two-meter-high wave, forming a shield that blocked all the Poison Sting attacks.
"My turn now, Telekinesis!"
Slowpoke was a Water/Psychic-type Pokémon. Perhaps it was Ash's Psychic ability that drew Slowpoke to him. Its eyes flashed with blue light, enveloping Spinarak.
"Spinarak!"
Spinarak was already immobilized. Bugsy was completely helpless; it wasn't strong enough to break free from the Telekinesis's hold! Bugsy could only watch as Slowpoke slammed Spinarak to the ground, rendering it unable to battle!
"Ash's Slowpoke is so strong!" Misty compared it to her own Psyduck. Both used Telekinesis and looked呆呆 (dull), but why was the difference so vast!
"Return, Slowpoke!"
Slowpoke was still covered in silk threads, after all, and might be targeted in the next match. Seeing Ash recall Slowpoke, Bugsy glanced at him. "Next, my second contender is the proudest warrior among Bug Pokémon, Shuckle!"
Upon seeing this Pokémon, Ash's expression also changed. For no other reason than Shuckle's species' stat distribution was incredibly frustrating. Its Attack and Special Attack were extremely low, while its Defense and Special Defense were extremely high. If paired with another move...
"So it's Shuckle. In that case, Bayleef, it's your turn!"
Bayleef, upon emerging, habitually went to Ash's side to snuggle. "I'm counting on you!" Ash, of course, doted on this Grass-type, affectionate young girl.
"Ash, are you underestimating me? Facing my Bug-type, you're sending out a Grass-type Pokémon to battle?" Bugsy was a little angry. Ash had repeatedly sent out Pokémon that were weak to Bug-types. However, Ash shook his head. "Of course, I have my reasons for using Bayleef. Come on!"
Sure enough, Bugsy's first command was the Psychic-type move, "Shuckle, use Power Split!" This move could forcibly average out the Attack and Special Attack stats of both the user and the opponent. Shuckle, whose Attack and Special Attack were inherently very low, instantly became equal to Bayleef's. However, Shuckle's Defense and Special Defense remained unchanged, still extremely high!
However, Ash let Bugsy equalize their Attack stats, while simultaneously having Bayleef use a move, "Poison Powder!" Purple powder almost simultaneously enveloped Shuckle. No matter how high its Defense, once it was poisoned, it would continuously lose HP!
"I get it now! Ash used Bayleef just to poison Shuckle!" Brock finally understood. He hadn't expected such a tactic to defeat the opponent! Ash was no longer the rookie who only knew how to attack head-on! In this Bug-type Gym challenge, Ash was determined to take his disadvantageous-type strategy all the way.
Facing Bugsy's third Pokémon, Scyther, Ash actually sent out Heracross, which was also a Bug-type. This left the Fire-type Quilava without a chance to battle. However, Scyther was a Bug/Flying-type, while Heracross was a Bug/Fighting-type.
"First strike! Scyther, Quick Attack!" Bugsy had Scyther use its speed advantage to rush forward first. But seeing this, Ash actually smiled. Against Heracross, Bugsy only used Quick Attack, which meant this Scyther didn't have any Flying-type moves at all!
"Heracross, next!"
Scyther, a very cool-looking Pokémon with two sharp scythes, charged towards Heracross like a bolt of lightning. The heroic Heracross's eyes were fixed on Scyther's figure. Then, its powerful arms easily blocked Scyther's scythes, halting its charge.
"How is that possible!"
Bugsy couldn't believe what he was seeing, but Heracross's attack hadn't even begun!
"Heracross, use Mega Horn!"
Starting with a powerful Bug-type move, Heracross's large horn glowed with dazzling Bug-type energy, sending Scyther flying.
"Scyther is unable to battle! Heracross wins! Therefore, the victor is the challenger, Ash from Pallet Town!"
"Scyther, return! You did well, but the challenger was too strong!" Bugsy recalled Scyther and looked at Ash. "Ash, you are truly amazing. This Hive Badge is yours!"
"Hive Badge, I got it!"
"Pika-Pikachu!"
Slowpoke: 135/180
Bayleef: 195/210
Heracross: 145/252