"Then in that case, the match rules are three-on-three. Let me see how much you've improved."
Grey also wanted to see how well Ash had raised his Pokémon.
Come to think of it, Ash could count as half a student of his.
Grey's own Annihilape had thrown itself completely into coaching Ash's Primeape.
Of course, before the training started, Grey had specifically asked Primeape whether it had ever done boxing.
After all, in the original story, Ash's Primeape had been taken away by a Trainer with a Hitmonchan, saying he was going to enter a fighting tournament.
It was one of Ash's biggest regrets—losing a Pokémon from his team.
If Primeape had been there for the Indigo Plateau Conference, Ash probably wouldn't have stopped at the Top 16.
Thankfully, because some of Ash's routes were the reverse of the original story—
He went to the fighting tournament first, then caught Primeape.
Only after getting that answer from Ash did Grey feel at ease letting Annihilape teach Primeape without holding anything back.
And that successfully brought Ash's Primeape up to a pretty respectable rank within his team.
If it could evolve into Annihilape, its future would be limitless.
Grey considered who he should send out for this battle.
At the very least, his main squad was out.
Below that, Zapdos and the dojo's Three Generals were also out.
Their strength was simply way too high for Ash.
So a bit lower than that…
Yeah—he'd probably have Poliwhirl, Heracross, Farfetch'd, and Dragonair take the field.
Of course, Dragonair could be swapped for Machoke at any time.
No big deal.
"Alright! Gym Leader Grey, let's hurry to the battle field and fight! I can't wait for a battle!"
Ash was unusually fired up today.
This time, he really was different from before—his overall strength had improved by a huge margin!
He wasn't the Ash from back then anymore!
"Ash, why are you in such a rush?"
Gary, who had come along, covered his face. He was helpless about his childhood friend's behavior and practically wanted to sigh.
"You don't get it, Gary. I really think this time I'm definitely going to win Gym Leader Grey's badge!"
Ash was brimming with confidence.
Ever since catching Aerodactyl, he'd been getting especially full of himself.
"Sounds like Aerodactyl is actually listening to you now?" Grey asked, smiling faintly.
If Ash had really managed to get Aerodactyl to obey him, then this level of swelling ego was understandable.
Among Kanto Pokémon, Aerodactyl's strength ranked pretty high.
Especially Ash's—vicious-looking and ferocious. It made sense he'd get cocky.
Honestly, if he didn't get cocky, that would feel less like Ash.
A newbie being like this was normal.
Grey was pretty tolerant toward newbies.
As long as you corrected them in time, it was fine.
Besides, even Gary—who used to swagger around with a whole crowd of girlfriends—had become a lot more well-behaved.
The three of them chatted all the way until they reached the battle field.
Gary and Ash both noticed the Trainers in the dojo.
They realized there was an extra pretty girl there.
But neither of them had any interest in Caitlin.
"Gym Leader Grey, let's start the battle already!"
Ash couldn't help urging again.
He really wanted Grey to see his current "training results."
"Alright, alright. I'll battle you right now."
Grey stepped onto the command position and said to Bumiao, "I'm counting on you, Bumiao. You're the referee today."
"Coming~"
Bumiao walked over.
Off to the side, Silver was adjusting the streaming equipment.
Title: [Got taken down by the head mod—just make do and watch]
Tags: [Rematch] [Gym Battle] [Vegan] [Super Serious]
[I lost it the moment I saw the title. Did the streamer finally get taken down after causing too much trouble?]
[Baseless slander. This is a wholesome green stream—clearly the mod's fault. (serious face)]
[That kid looks familiar. Isn't he the one who challenged the Gym with Pikachu last time?]
[Yep yep, and he called in before saying he caught an Aerodactyl.]
[Jealous.]
The viewers recognized Ash pretty well.
A lot of Trainers had battled Grey, but very few had pulled off truly eye-catching plays.
Ash was one of the rare ones.
Back then, Charmander and Machop both evolving had left a strong impression.
"Now then—Gym Leader Grey versus challenger Ash, the Gym challenge match, begins officially!"
Bumiao kept the preamble very short.
The moment she finished speaking, Grey immediately threw a Poké Ball.
"Gaa-gaa!"
A brown duck appeared, hauling a leek even bigger than its own body.
Galarian Farfetch'd!
Ash pulled out his Pokédex and scanned it.
Pokédex: "Unable to identify."
Ash: "…"
"Ash, that's Farfetch'd from the Galar region. Fighting-type."
Grey explained it for him.
"I see—then if that's the case! We'll use Fighting against Fighting!"
Ash shouted, gripping Primeape's Poké Ball with both hands and hurling it onto the field.
It burst open at a high point, and a Primeape Grey knew all too well appeared.
[Pokémon: Primeape]
[Type: Fighting]
[Level: 36]
[Ability: Defiant]
[Moves: Rage Fist, others omitted.]
Its level was similar to Farfetch'd, and its Ability was also Defiant—the same as Grey's Annihilape.
If it had been Anger Point, Ash's odds of winning this fight would've been pretty decent.
Unfortunately, it wasn't.
"Feels nostalgic… back when Annihilape was still a Primeape."
Grey was a bit sentimental.
But this was a serious battle. After a brief wave of nostalgia, his gaze sharpened with fierce, rising fighting spirit.
"Challenger goes first."
The moment the words fell, Ash didn't hold back at all.
"Primeape—Cross Chop!"
Another one of Grey's classic opening moves.
Clearly, this Primeape had learned Annihilape's essence.
But—
Grey knew exactly where the weakness of that habit was.
He didn't command immediately. Only when Primeape closed in on Farfetch'd did he suddenly call out:
"Jump and dodge—then use Brick Break!"
Primeape crossed its arms into an X, its muscles tensing to the limit. As it charged forward, it carved deep furrows into the ground!
The Fighting energy it released condensed into a brown, cross-shaped aura in front of it, making the air along its path quake with a shrill scream.
Just as the lethal rush was about to land, Farfetch'd's webbed feet exploded with astonishing jumping power.
The instant it sprang into the air, the vivid green leek in its hands flared with matching Fighting light.
Borrowing the force of its descent, Farfetch'd swung the leek down with brutal force, chopping straight toward Primeape's head!
BOOM!
Primeape's head spun, its motions forced to halt.
"Peck."
The moment Farfetch'd's feet hit the ground, pale blue-white Flying-type energy surged outward.
Under that energy infusion, its beak shot out and stretched, turning into a three-meter-long sharp cone of light, wind spirals ripping across its surface as it tore through the air!
The power might be low—but against a Fighting-type Primeape, it hit like a sledgehammer!
//Check out my P@tre0n for 30 extra chapters on all my fanfics //[email protected]/Razeil0810.