This match was never really a contest.
The terrain offered no advantage whatsoever, and the type matchup was completely one-sided. In the water, Kingdra's straight-line charge speed was like a speeding motorboat. Every time the Cinnabar Island trainer ordered Flareon to counter with Flamethrower, Chubbs would slyly have Kingdra dive beneath the surface.
It was an infuriatingly shameless strategy that made full use of the battlefield, and there was simply no good answer to it.
Of course, if Flareon's strength had been high enough, a few Flamethrowers could have heated the entire pool to a rolling boil—Kingdra wouldn't have stood a chance hiding underwater. Push it further, and a powerful enough Fire-type move could have evaporated the pool entirely, ending the fight in a single decisive blow.
Unfortunately, this Flareon was nowhere near that level.
After firing off more than a dozen Flamethrowers, it had only managed to evaporate a small amount of water—insignificant compared to a pool spanning over two hundred square meters. Worse still, Flareon was left panting heavily, its stamina dropping into the red.
That was when Chubbs gave the final command.
Kingdra unleashed Twister, dragging Flareon into the water, then followed up immediately with Hydro Pump, blasting it straight out of the pool.
Double damage.
Flareon was finished.
...
"I didn't hear that wrong, did I?"
Daisy stared at the chubby boy in disbelief. "You're saying you're giving up the final match?"
"You do realize you've already made it to the last round, right? If you beat that handsome black-haired guy, you'll get to serve as our Cerulean Gym's temporary Gym Trainer for three days! That's thirty thousand Pokédollars a day, and if you manage to defend the Gym for all three days—keeping challengers from earning the Cascade Badge—you'll also receive a Surf TM worth over 650,000 Pokédollars!"
"I know exactly what I'm doing," Chubbs nodded calmly.
"Brother Kael is definitely stronger than me—I'm very aware of that. And honestly, I hate trouble. If I know I'm going to lose, why bother fighting in the first place?"
Daisy didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
You've already made it to the finals—win or lose, shouldn't you at least try?
With a helpless shake of her head, she said,
"Fine. Since this is your decision, then today's final winner is Kael. As for you, you annoying little chubby brat, go back to wherever you came from. Understood?"
"Understood! Totally understood!"
Chubbs nodded repeatedly. "Besides, there's nothing fun about Cerulean City anyway. I already got the Cascade Badge too—honestly, this was the easiest badge I've ever earned. The reputation of Cerulean Gym as the weakest Gym in Kanto really isn't exaggerated."
"You little—!"
Daisy was instantly furious.
Before she could charge forward, Chubbs bolted for the Gym entrance at a speed completely at odds with his round physique, shouting over his shoulder:
"Brother Kael, that's it for me! I'm heading to Pewter City for my next badge! I've got your contact info—let's grab a meal sometime! Bye!"
"Speak!"
Daisy spun around, hands on her hips, glaring at her two visibly nervous sisters.
"Which one of you gave that brat a Gym Badge?! Was it Violet, or Lily?"
"It was me…"
Violet raised her hand sheepishly. "You and Lily were out shopping that day, remember? That chubby kid showed up, and his Kingdra was way too fast—my Poliwhirl couldn't keep up at all…"
"Big sis, it's not like this is the first time," Lily hurriedly added.
"Everyone knows the Cascade Badge is the easiest one to earn anyway."
"You two…"
Daisy's face flushed red with anger. "Can't you show even a little ambition? We don't have to be the strongest Gym in Kanto—but we absolutely can't keep being the weakest!"
Then she grabbed Kael by the arm.
"Look at this!" she declared.
"I've brought in a trainer this strong—and this guy! I want him to make Cerulean Gym famous in three days. Every challenger who comes through those doors is going to leave bruised and battered!"
"Agreed!"
"Agreed!"
Violet and Lily exchanged a glance and nodded in unison.
Was this borrowing someone else's authority to intimidate others?
Kael could only awkwardly avert his gaze. The Cerulean sisters' way of thinking was truly something else—rather than improving their own strength, they chose to patch things over by hiring a temporary Gym Trainer.
They might make excellent water ballet performers—but they would never be great trainers.
Fortunately, they still had a youngest sister with remarkable potential. In the future, she would be more than capable of holding up Cerulean Gym's reputation and finally shedding the title of Kanto's weakest Gym.
...
Walking along the corridor paved with transparent glass tiles, Daisy began explaining Kael's upcoming duties.
After all, taking someone's money meant delivering results. As a self-proclaimed professional bounty hunter, Kael knew that reputation mattered—good reviews brought repeat business, and satisfied clients brought more clients.
"Cerulean Gym uses a 3-on-3 battle format, and one of the Pokémon must be Water-type," Daisy said, stopping in front of a massive pool filled with playful Water-type Pokémon.
"But since you don't have a Water-type of your own, you can choose any one from here. If that Pokémon is willing to follow you afterward, you can even take it with you once the job is done—provided that…"
"—No challenger earns the Cascade Badge," Kael finished for her with a smile.
"Don't worry. For the next three days, not a single person will leave with that badge."
"A bounty hunter's promise," he added calmly,
"and a man's word."