Ramos And Coumarine Gym

Umbreon is a Pokémon skilled in defense and support, but when it comes to attack and agility, it cannot match Decidueye. It quickly succumbed to Decidueye's Spirit Shackle.

Umbreon was powerless against the control effects of Spirit Shackle.

After recalling the fainted Umbreon, Gary, with a serious expression, said to Ash, "We can't keep fighting individually anymore. The only chance we have to win is by cooperating well."

Ash firmly nodded in agreement, "Alright, I understand!"

Gary's last Pokémon was his starter, Blastoise.

...

[ Blastoise ]

Type: Water

Ability: Torrent

Gender: Male

Potential: Indigo

Level: 61

Moves: Tackle, Water Gun, Withdraw, Bubble, Rapid Spin, Water Pulse, Aqua Tail, Skull Bash, Iron Defense, Rain Dance, Hydro Pump, Ice Beam, Gyro Ball, Surf, Waterfall, Mirror Coat, Water Pledge, Ice Punch, Dragon Pulse, Flash Cannon.

...

Yet another indigo potential Pokémon. But thinking about it, it makes sense. Professor Oak is the most famous Pokémon Professor in the world, so it's not surprising he could give his grandson a indigo potential Pokémon as a starter.

However, seeing this pseudo-Elite level Blastoise in front of him, Yuga finally realized that Ash and Gary are both prodigy trainers.

Watching the anime in the past, Yuga always felt that Ash's inability to win championships made his strength seem unimpressive, even thinking he was just average.

But now, after seeing an pseudo-Elite level Snorlax and an pseudo-Elite level Blastoise, plus having witnessed so many trainers in the Pokémon world, Yuga realized that Ash and Gary had improved tremendously. After all, this was only their third year of traveling.

As soon as Blastoise entered the field, under Gary's command, it launched Water Cannons from the two cannons on its back, bombarding Decidueye in the sky.

All the shadow arrows shot by Decidueye were intercepted by the barrage of Water Cannons.

When it came to offensive power, Umbreon could never compare to Blastoise. Under the pressure of Blastoise's Water Cannons, Decidueye struggled to keep up, especially since it hadn't yet broken through to the pseudo-Elite level.

Once Blastoise forced Decidueye back, it immediately rushed in front of Snorlax and used Iron Defense to block Abomasnow's Ice Punch.

Water-type Pokémon resist Ice-type moves, and with Blastoise's naturally strong defense, further reinforced by Iron Defense, Abomasnow's Ice Punch did not cause much damage to it.

Taking advantage of this, Snorlax used Belly Drum, a move that sacrifices half of its HP in exchange for a massive boost in attack power, a desperate but powerful move.

As soon as Belly Drum was complete, Snorlax, like it was on steroids, went wild and used Giga Impact, slamming into Abomasnow. Even with Abomasnow's huge size, it was still sent flying by Snorlax's strike.

Unfortunately, neither Gary nor Ash knew about Abomasnow's special ability: incredible regenerative power. Even though Abomasnow was nearly incapacitated by Snorlax's blow, in just an instant, all of its wounds healed completely.

Seeing this, both Ash and Gary widened their eyes in disbelief.

How could they win now?

Snorlax, seeing Abomasnow back on its feet, charged at it again with another Giga Impact.

Abomasnow's massive size granted it powerful attack and recovery abilities, but at the cost of speed. It couldn't dodge any attacks due to its size and lack of speed.

Once again, Abomasnow was sent flying by Snorlax's attack, but its injuries healed instantly.

In terms of raw power, Snorlax, after using Belly Drum, had far surpassed Abomasnow.

But, as the saying goes, "The first attack is fierce, the second weakens, and the third exhausts." After two Giga Impacts, Snorlax's stamina was completely drained.

In this situation, Ash and Gary were undoubtedly going to lose.

However, Yuga chose not to command Abomasnow or Decidueye to continue attacking. Instead, he decided to end the battle.

As Yuga handed over the badge, Ash, confused, asked, "But didn't I lose the battle?"

Yuga shook his head and replied, "My Abomasnow is a bit special, as you saw. It has the ability to heal instantly. If it weren't for that, it would've been knocked out already. Decidueye alone couldn't have defeated both Snorlax and Blastoise together."

Ash didn't take the badge from Yuga's hand and muttered, "But we still lost."

Yuga continued, "Our battle already went beyond a typical gym match. You've earned this badge fair and square."

At this moment, Gary nudged Ash with his elbow and gave him a look, prompting Ash to finally take the badge.

When Yuga handed a badge to Gary as well, Gary asked in surprise, "I get one too?"

Yuga smiled and said, "It's a rare battle, so take it as a memento."

Hearing this, Gary nodded and obediently accepted the badge.

By the time May and the others woke up, Yuga and the others had already finished their match. Max was bitterly complaining to Ash for not waking him up in time, causing him to miss such an exciting battle.

Later that morning, Yuga flew to Kalos, leaving the gym's affairs in the hands of Beidou. The research team would be staying at the gym for a while longer, so Beidou had to take care of them. However, Ash and his group were soon going to continue their journey, so there was no need to worry about them.

For this trip to Kalos, Yuga brought both Floette and Aegislash along. He had previously promised to help Aegislash find its former master's grave but had been too busy to fulfill that promise. This trip to Kalos was the perfect opportunity to try.

The friend who had sold Aegislash to Ogata had already been contacted by Ogata on Yuga's behalf. This friend had also provided clues regarding the grave's location, so Yuga hoped the journey would go smoothly.

After some time of recovery, Aegislash still hadn't returned to its peak condition, but it had regained the strength of an average Master-level Pokémon, more than capable of acting as Yuga's bodyguard for this Kalos trip.

Yuga's main objective in Kalos was to secretly cooperate with the Kalos League in investigating Lysandre and to take AZ with him. The Hoenn League had already coordinated with the Kalos League, and they would fully support Yuga's mission.

Since this was a covert investigation, the Hoenn League had arranged a cover for Yuga: he was going to Kalos as a Gym Leader to engage in a cultural exchange with Kalos' Grass-type Gym.

Given Yuga's elevated status as a Hall of Fame-level trainer of the Hoenn League, it would arouse suspicion if he appeared in Kalos without a legitimate reason. Hence, this cover was necessary.

Because the exchange was centered around Grass-type Gyms, Yuga's first destination was Coumarine City, where he would visit the Gym Leader, Ramos.

Two days later, Yuga arrived at Coumarine City's airport as scheduled. Upon exiting the airport, he immediately spotted Ramos waiting outside.

Ramos, who was assisting Yuga with his mission, was well aware of the details of the task. He had arrived riding a Gogoat, making him easy to spot. Ramos, too, quickly noticed Yuga.

"You're the Gym Leader Shimizu, right? So young!"

Ramos guided his Gogoat slowly towards Yuga and said with a cheerful smile.

"Nice to meet you. Sorry for the trouble," Yuga replied politely.

"Shall we head back to the Gym together? Would you like to ride my Gogoat?" As Ramos spoke, another Gogoat, slightly smaller in size, approached from behind him.

"Then I'll graciously accept."

At Ramos' gesture, the smaller Gogoat knelt down, allowing Yuga to mount it.

Thus, the two of them rode their Gogoats slowly towards Coumarine Gym.

Coumarine City is a place rich in Grass-type Pokémon. Not only is the city covered in extensive greenery, but it's also common to see people strolling or shopping with their Grass-type Pokémon, much like Verdanturf Town.

However, unlike Verdanturf Town, Coumarine City isn't a tourist or agricultural city, marking a major difference between the two.

As they rode, Ramos grumbled, "The League really doesn't care much for an old man like me, making me worry about all these things at my age."

Yuga laughed and responded, "It just shows how much they trust you."

The two continued chatting as they rode out of Coumarine City.

Yuga soon realized that the Coumarine Gym wasn't in the city itself, but on a mountain outside of town. The giant tree visible from a distance was where the Gym was located.

Coumarine City sits at the foot of Coumarine Mountain, with the Gym situated at the top.

Though called a mountain, Coumarine Mountain isn't steep or high. Riding the Gogoat along the grassy path, Yuga felt like the mountain was more of a gentle slope.

As they rode, Yuga and Ramos entered a vast pasture, where a large number of Skiddo and Gogoat were grazing leisurely on the grass. There were also patches of Sunflora basking in the sun, alongside other Grass-type Pokémon such as Oddish, Cottone, Victreebel, and Exeggutor.

"What a huge pasture!" Yuga exclaimed. The only place comparable in size was Grandpa Howard's Miltank Ranch.

However, the Pokémon in the two ranches were different. Grandpa Howard's ranch exclusively raised Miltank, while this pasture mainly housed Skiddo and Gogoat, along with many other Grass-type Pokémon.

Hearing Yuga's praise, Ramos proudly said, "How about it? My pasture's pretty impressive, right? It's taken a lot of work to manage it."

Yuga, surprised, asked, "This pasture is yours?"

"Of course," Ramos replied, pointing to the vast expanse of grass around them. "Over there, and there, and even there—it's all mine."

Following Ramos' hand, Yuga glanced around and could only sigh: these Gym Leaders sure are wealthy—Ramos is, and so is Grandpa Howard.

Of course, Grandpa Howard was no longer a Gym Leader. He had handed over the Goldenrod City Gym to Whitney and fully dedicated himself to managing the ranch.

But as Yuga watched the Skiddo and Gogoat grazing in herds, he thought how great it would be to bring some back to the Ecopark, and maybe even introduce a batch to Verdanturf Town.

However, he was concerned that Verdanturf Town's climate might not be suitable for raising Skiddo and Gogoat on a large scale, as the environment differed greatly from Coumarine City.

Yuga realized he was becoming more and more accustomed to his role as the Verdanturf Town Gym Leader, always looking for ways to bring benefits to the town.

The Coumarine Gym was quite a distance from the city, with a long path winding from the base of the mountain to the top. Yuga rode his Gogoat behind Ramos for quite some time before finally arriving.

Once they reached their destination, Yuga realized that the Coumarine Gym was built on a gigantic ancient tree—the same one he had seen from the mountain's base. Up close, the tree was far larger than he had imagined.

Although this tree wasn't as large as the Nimora Chesto Berry Tree in Fortree City, it was still impressive enough to leave Yuga in awe.

After arriving at the Gym, Ramos gave Yuga a brief tour of the place.

The Gym's buildings, the battlefield, the greenhouse, and even the vegetable garden were all built on the massive tree, creating an atmosphere that felt deeply connected to nature.

As soon as they arrived, Floette, who had been quietly following Yuga, became lively, clearly enjoying the environment. In the blink of an eye, it disappeared into the flower bushes. Knowing that Floette could take care of itself, Yuga didn't restrict its movements.

Compared to the nature-filled Coumarine Gym, Yuga suddenly felt that his Petalburg Gym didn't quite resemble a Grass-type Gym as much.

Seeing Floette dart off and disappear instantly, Ramos asked curiously, "Is that the legendary Floette?"

Yuga nodded, "Yes, that's it."

Ramos smiled upon hearing this and said, "I didn't expect it to actually exist. Seems like living long has its perks—you get to see things others never will."

Yuga thought to himself: "I get it, that's the whole 'living long enough to see everything' thing."

After this moment of reflection, Ramos added, "Let's head inside to talk."

Yuga nodded and followed Ramos into a study, where a young man, dressed like a Gym apprentice, served them both tea.

Ramos picked up his cup, gently blew on it, and then asked Yuga, "Do you have any plans for the mission?"

Instead of answering right away, Yuga asked Ramos, "Does the Kalos League have any arrangements?"

Ramos responded seriously, "Although the Kalos League has agreed to investigate Lysandre, the fact is, without solid evidence, many people are opposed to it. You know Lysandre's status—his social network is complicated and reaches into many areas. If we move against him, it will affect the interests of many people, so even the League has to tread carefully."

Yuga sighed, "I understand."

It was because he understood this that he had obediently followed the League's orders to come to Kalos. Otherwise, Yuga would typically leave such complicated matters to the League to handle themselves; he wasn't fond of getting involved in overly intricate affairs.

"I'm here to assist you whenever needed. If you come up with a plan, just let me know," Ramos said, noticing Yuga's serious expression.

"I will, thank you, Ramos. But before anything else, I need to meet someone. We'll talk after I've seen this person."