The morning sun streamed through the glass windows of the Cerulean City Pokémon Center. Ash was sitting on a bench in the lobby, carefully wiping a Poké Ball. Pikachu perched on his shoulder, curiously watching his movements.
"Dratini only hatched yesterday. Is it too rushed to have it participate in a real battle today?" Brock brought three cups of hot tea and placed them in front of Ash and Xiao You.
Ash looked up, his eyes sparkling with excitement: "No! Even though Dratini just hatched, it has already mastered many powerful moves. Besides, Xiao Xia specifically entrusted us to be acting Gym Leaders for a day. Isn't this the best opportunity for training?"
"Pika Pika! (That's right!)" Pikachu's tail stood up in agreement.
Xiao You took a teacup and smiled: "I'm really looking forward to seeing that pink Dratini's performance. Shinny Pokémon are already rare, let alone a Dragon-type Pokémon like Dratini."
Just as the three were discussing, Joy walked out from behind the counter, holding a silver key.
"Ash, this is the key to the Cerulean Gym. Xiao Xia contacted me urgently last night, saying her sisters needed her help with something important. The Gym is in your hands today." Joy handed the key to Ash. "I've already posted a notice at the Gym entrance, stating that acting Gym Leaders will be accepting challenges today."
Ash solemnly took the key: "Please rest assured, we will definitely complete the task well!"
Leaving the Pokémon Center, the three walked along the familiar road towards the Cerulean Gym. Ash occasionally looked down at the Poké Ball in his hand, as if he could feel the Dratini's eagerness inside.
Several Trainers had already gathered in front of the Cerulean Gym. Seeing Ash and his companions approach, they immediately surrounded them.
"Excuse me, are you serving as acting Gym Leaders today?" asked a boy wearing a red baseball cap.
Ash nodded, puffing out his chest: "That's right! I'm Ash from Pallet Town, and today I will represent the Cerulean Gym to accept everyone's challenges."
"That's great! I've been waiting since early morning," the boy said excitedly. "My name is Xiao Ming, and I'm about to collect my third badge!"
Ash opened the Gym door with the key, and the familiar swimming pool area came into view. He took a deep breath and walked to the Trainer's position at the other end of the Gym, while Brock and Xiao You stood by the referee's table.
"Then, the Cerulean Gym acting battle now begins!" Brock announced. "The battle rules are 1-on-1, and only the challenger can switch Pokémon. Now, please send out your Pokémon!"
Xiao Ming threw out his Poké Ball without hesitation: "Go, Krabby!"
A red light flashed, and an orange crab with huge pincers appeared on the floating platform. Ash smiled slightly and took the special Poké Ball from his waist.
"Dratini, I choose you!"
A pink light flashed, and everyone present widened their eyes. Floating on the water was a Dratini, entirely pink with a snow-white belly. It elegantly twisted its body, letting out a crisp cry.
"Th-this is... a Shinny Dratini?" Xiao Ming was so surprised his jaw almost dropped. "And it's pink!"
Gasps of astonishment came from the audience. Xiao You smiled and said to Brock: "It seems Dratini will be the focus today."
Ash rubbed his nose, a little embarrassed: "Dratini just hatched yesterday, so this is its first battle today. Xiao Ming, please guide me!"
Xiao Ming quickly recovered from his shock, his eyes burning with fighting spirit: "Excellent! It's an honor to battle such a rare Pokémon. Krabby, use Bubble Beam!"
Krabby opened its pincers and sprayed out a string of shimmering bubbles. Ash calmly ordered: "Dratini, dodge with Dragon Dance!"
Dratini's body suddenly glowed pink, and it twisted in a peculiar rhythm, all the Bubble Beams narrowly missing it. Even more surprisingly, a faint aura began to appear around Dratini's body.
"What move is that?" Xiao Ming asked, confused. "It looks like Dragon Dance, but it's not quite the same..."
Ash revealed a confident smile: "This is the original form of Dragon Dance—Dragon Dance. It enhances all abilities!"
Brock, as the referee, explained: "Dragon Dance is a rare stat-boosting move that simultaneously increases Attack, Defense, Special Attack, Special Defense, Speed, and Accuracy. However, it must be followed by an attacking move to be used again."
Xiao Ming clenched his fist: "I see... Krabby, don't give it a chance, keep using Bubble Beam!"
Krabby attacked again, but Dratini's speed had clearly increased, easily dodging all the bubbles. Ash seized the opportunity: "Now, Ice Beam!"
Dratini opened its small mouth, and an icy blue beam directly hit Krabby. The water instantly froze with a thin layer of ice. Krabby shivered from the cold, and its movements became sluggish.
"Oh no! Krabby, quickly use Metal Claw to break the ice!" Xiao Ming shouted anxiously.
Krabby struggled to raise its pincers, but Dratini was already ready for the next attack. "Thunderbolt!" Ash ordered.
Dazzling electric light burst from Dratini, conducting through the water. Krabby was shocked, trembling all over, and finally, its eyes rolled back, and it collapsed on the floating platform.
"Krabby is unable to battle, Dratini wins!" Brock announced.
Xiao Ming recalled Krabby, but there wasn't much dejection on his face: "That was amazing! That Dratini is truly powerful, especially that Dragon Dance move." He walked up to Ash, extending his hand, "Thank you for the practice battle, I learned a lot."
Ash shook his hand: "Your Krabby is also very strong, it was just at a type disadvantage. Keep up the good work!"
After seeing Xiao Ming off, Ash knelt down and gently stroked Dratini's head: "Good job, Dratini! You performed so well in your first battle."
Dratini affectionately rubbed Ash's hand, making happy sounds. Pikachu also jumped down from the referee's table and patted Dratini with its tail in congratulations.
"It seems Dratini and Pikachu get along very well," Xiao You said with a smile.
Brock looked at the time: "Let's take a ten-minute break, then welcome the next challenger."
The next challenger was a girl named Xiao Mei, who used Poliwag. Before the battle began, Xiao Mei curiously examined the pink Dratini.
"I've never seen a Dratini this color, it's so beautiful!" Xiao Mei praised sincerely.
Ash scratched his head, a little embarrassed: "Thank you for the compliment. Dratini is also very much looking forward to battling you."
Once the battle began, Xiao Mei adopted a completely different strategy from Xiao Ming's direct offense. "Poliwag, use Rain Dance!" She changed the weather right from the start.
The Gym's ceiling immediately became covered with dark clouds, and heavy rain poured down. Ash frowned. Water-type moves would be strengthened in the rain, which was disadvantageous for Dratini.
"Poliwag, use Water Pulse now!" Xiao Mei seized the opportunity to attack.
Surging water rushed towards Dratini. Ash quickly ordered: "Dodge with Dragon Dance!"
Dratini once again dodged with its peculiar dance, but the slippery conditions in the rain made its movements slightly sluggish, and it was still grazed by Water Pulse.
"Pika... (Go, Dratini)" Pikachu cried out anxiously from the sidelines.
Ash clenched his fist: "Don't worry, we still have a chance. Dratini, use Dragon Pulse!"
Pink energy gathered in Dratini's mouth, then transformed into a dragon-shaped shockwave that directly hit Poliwag. Xiao Mei clearly didn't expect Dratini to counterattack so quickly. Poliwag was hit head-on and sent flying backward.
"Poliwag!" Xiao Mei exclaimed, "Get up quickly!"
Poliwag staggered to its feet, but it was clearly in considerable pain. Xiao Mei bit her lip: "Continue using Water Pulse!"
"The same move won't work on Dratini twice!" Ash said confidently, "Use Thunderbolt!"
The electric light conducted through the rainwater, its power doubled. Poliwag convulsed from the shock and eventually lost consciousness.
"Poliwag is unable to battle, Dratini wins!" Brock announced.
Xiao Mei recalled Poliwag, an expression of admiration on her face: "Your command was brilliant, especially using the rain to enhance the power of electric-type moves. Congratulations!"
Ash humbly shook his head: "You were also very strong, you almost gave us a tough battle."
During the lunch break, Brock prepared a hearty meal. Dratini seemed to have consumed a lot of stamina from the continuous battles and was heartily eating special Pokémon food.
"There should be a few more challengers this afternoon," Brock said, flipping through the registration form. "One Trainer named A-Jie seems experienced; he has already collected six badges."
Ash's eyes lit up: "That's perfect for testing Dratini's true strength!"
The first battle of the afternoon was indeed as Brock had said; A-Jie was a formidable opponent. He sent out a well-developed Pinsir, its huge horns glinting coldly.
"Pinsir, use X-Scissor!" A-Jie launched a fierce attack right away.
Pinsir charged towards Dratini with astonishing speed, its horns crossed into an X-shape. Ash quickly shouted: "Quickly dodge!"
Dratini narrowly dodged, but Pinsir's offense was like an endless tide. "Continue, use Rock Tomb!" A-Jie pursued the advantage.
Rocks crashed down from the sky. Although Dratini tried its best to dodge, it was still hit by a few stones, letting out a cry of pain.
"Dratini!" Ash cried out, his heart aching, then he calmly thought of a countermeasure, "Use Dragon Dance!"
Dratini once again performed that peculiar dance, its whole body glowing pink. A-Jie frowned: "A stat-boosting move? Pinsir, don't give it a chance, use Fury Cutter!"
Pinsir's horns glowed white, continuously slashing at Dratini. But this time, Dratini dodged all of them with astonishing speed, its enhanced abilities beginning to show.
"Now, Ice Beam!" Ash seized the opportunity to counterattack.
The icy blue beam hit Pinsir, and Pinsir painfully retreated a few steps. But A-Jie didn't panic: "Hold on, use Close Combat!"
Pinsir endured the pain and rushed in front of Dratini, launching a fierce attack. Dratini was hit by a series of punches and kicks, its situation critical.
"Pikachu!" Pikachu jumped anxiously on the sidelines.
Ash's eyes flashed with determination: "Full power attack, Dragon Pulse!"
The enhanced Dragon Pulse was incredibly powerful. The pink energy wave directly sent Pinsir flying to the side of the arena, where it crashed against the wall and slid down, losing consciousness.
A-Jie stood stunned for a few seconds, then gave a wry smile as he recalled Pinsir: "I lost. Your Dratini is truly incredible, especially that stat-boosting move... I've never seen a move that can boost so many abilities at once."
Ash breathed a sigh of relief and walked over to check on Dratini: "Are you okay, Dratini?"
Although Dratini was tired, its eyes sparkled with the Joy of victory. It affectionately rubbed Ash's hand. Ash turned to A-Jie: "Your Pinsir is also very strong, we just got lucky."
A-Jie shook his head: "No, this is a difference in strength. I hope to have a chance to battle you again." He bowed solemnly to Ash, then left the Gym.
In the evening, after the last challenger was defeated by Dratini, Ash finally relaxed. He sat on the edge of the Gym, watching Dratini happily swim in the water.
"Today was truly a fulfilling day," Xiao You walked over and sat beside him. "Dratini has made great progress."
Brock walked over with tea: "Indeed, especially the tactic of continuously using Dragon Dance to stack abilities, it was very brilliant."
Ash smiled sheepishly: "Actually, I just thought of it on the fly. Dratini really worked hard..."
Just then, the Gym door was pushed open, and a familiar figure walked in.
"It seems the Gym ran very well while I was away!" Xiao Xia smiled as she walked towards them, her Starmie following behind her.
"Xiao Xia!" the three exclaimed in unison.
Ash stood up and returned the key to Xiao Xia: "Mission accomplished! There were five challengers today, and Dratini performed exceptionally well."
Xiao Xia looked at the pink Dratini in the water, her eyes lighting up: "Wow, is this the Shinny Dratini you were talking about? It's so beautiful!"
Dratini swam to the edge of the pool, curiously examining Xiao Xia. Xiao Xia knelt down and said gently: "Hello, Dratini. I heard you won many battles today."
Dratini made happy sounds, seemingly very fond of Xiao Xia. Pikachu jumped over and stood between Xiao Xia and Ash, as if introducing them.
Xiao Xia stood up and patted Ash's shoulder: "Thank you for your help today. My sisters had an urgent matter, and if it weren't for you, the Gym would have had to close for a day."
Ash shook his head: "No problem, we also got a great training opportunity." He looked at Dratini, "Especially Dratini, it grew a lot today."
As night fell, the four walked out of the Gym together. Xiao Xia waved goodbye at the door: "Be careful on your way! Your next meeting with them might be at the League Competition."
Ash confidently gave a thumbs-up: "I'll definitely win then!"
"Pika-chu! (That's right!)" Pikachu also cried out with enthusiasm.
Dratini poked its head out of its Poké Ball, letting out a crisp cry, as if also bidding farewell to Xiao Xia. The three walked away from Cerulean City under the starlight, their hearts full of anticipation for the future.