Chapter 372 · Gary vs. Moore

"All three of rookie Gym Leader Flannery's Pokémon have been defeated. The winner of this Gym challenge is Ash," Mr. Moore declared.

After the match, Moore began lecturing his granddaughter.

"Flannery, Overheat is an extremely powerful Fire-type move and should be saved for a finishing blow. Every time you use it, your Special Attack drops by two stages.

Spamming it weakens your later attacks considerably. Most Fire-types rely on Special Attack, so you need to use Overheat sparingly."

"I'm sorry, Grandpa. I won't make the same mistake again," Flannery promised. Fiery by nature, she loved ending battles with a dramatic strike—much like a Fire-type herself. She enjoyed using finishing moves to defeat her opponents in one blow.

"Good. Heal your team, and then act as referee for the next battle," Moore instructed.

"Yes, sir."

Flannery led Ash to the infirmary, placed her fainted Pokémon into the healing machine, and quickly returned to the battlefield. Ash followed close behind—eager to see how strong Gary had become.

Gary had vowed to use only Pokémon he had caught in the Hoenn region for this year's Ever Grande Conference.

Since the two had parted ways back in Petalburg Woods, Ash had no idea how far Gary's new team had come.

When Flannery returned, both Gary and Moore were already at their positions.

"The Gym battle between Gym Leader Mr. Moore and challenger Gary Oak from Pallet Town will now begin," Flannery announced. "Each side may use three Pokémon. Only the challenger is allowed to make substitutions. Are both sides ready?"

Moore gave a proud nod, pleased by Flannery's professionalism.

"This is my first time watching Gary in a Gym match," May whispered. "I wonder what kind of battle it'll be."

"May, take a closer look. Even though Coordinators don't focus on battles, some tactics from regular Pokémon battles can help you in Contests too," Brock said.

"I didn't know regular battles could help with Contests," May replied, pleasantly surprised.

"I'm excited too," Max added. "Gary's already a two-time Conference Champion—I want to see how strong he is now."

Moore eyed Gary carefully. He didn't know Gary's exact strength, but since Gary and Ash hailed from the same town, he figured they must be evenly matched.

"Go, Growlithe!" Moore called, tossing a Poké Ball.

FWIP!

[Lv. 30 Growlithe ♂ / Gym]

Moore opened with a level 30 Growlithe—an average-strength Pokémon, not overly powerful.

Among the system's task rewards, only an Intermediate Rare Candy had been issued, implying that Moore would not use overly strong Pokémon for this Gym challenge.

"Breloom, your turn!" Gary called, sending out his Pokémon.

FWIP!

[Lv. 31 Breloom ♂ / Gym]

"A Shiny Breloom!" Moore exclaimed—he hadn't expected to see such a rare-colored Pokémon.

"What Pokémon is that?" Ash, watching the battle, took out his Pokédex and scanned it.

Pokédex: "Breloom, the Mushroom Pokémon and the evolved form of Shroomish. It scatters toxic spores and then closes in to deliver punishing punches."

"So it's the evolved form of Shroomish," Ash said. He remembered Gary capturing a Shroomish, but didn't expect its evolved form to look so different—it took him a moment to recognize it.

"Breloom is a Grass-type. Why would Gary use something weak to Fire?" May wondered aloud. "Is there a hidden strategy here for Coordinators?"

"Probably not one you need to copy," Brock said awkwardly. "Gary usually doesn't start with a type disadvantage."

Gary hadn't intended to either—but from his current Hoenn team, which included Breloom, Grovyle, Lairon, and Latios—Breloom was the best lead.

Gary didn't plan to use Latios, it would completely overpower the battle. Grovyle shared Breloom's Fire weakness, and Lairon was too high-leveled for a warm-up.

All of Gary's team, except for Lairon, had a Fire-type disadvantage, and Lairon was too strong to use right away. Still, Gary hadn't caught a single Water-type Pokémon yet.

He had tried fishing often but never found one he liked. The Water-types in Hoenn hadn't impressed him.

Only Milotic and Swampert met Gary's standards. He didn't want to train the others.

"You're opening with a Grass-type against a Fire-type? Interesting. Growlithe, Flamethrower!" Moore commanded.

Growlithe unleashed a stream of flames toward Breloom.

"Breloom, use Dig!" Gary countered.

Breloom burrowed underground, the flames missing entirely.

Flannery winced—she had just finished repairing those craters.

"Growlithe, use Odor Sleuth to lock onto Breloom's position. Dodge his attack and use Fire Fang!" Moore ordered calmly.

Moore truly deserved his title as a Fire-type specialist—he battled using Growlithe's natural strengths.

Growlithe's nose twitched, and it quickly locked onto Breloom's scent. Breloom burst out of the ground, fists glowing with Ground-type power, aiming to land a hit.

But Growlithe anticipated the attack. It quickly backed away, then lunged forward, sinking flaming fangs into Breloom's glowing fist.

"Breeloooom!" Breloom cried out, the flames scorching its wrist—but then its Effect Spore ability activated. A burst of spores hit Growlithe's face, and the pup suddenly stiffened—paralyzed.

"Don't let Breloom recover! Flamethrower!" Moore commanded, unaware of the paralysis.

"Mach Punch!" Gary snapped.

Whoosh!

Breloom lunged forward with a lightning-fast punch, striking Growlithe square between the eyes and knocking it back several meters.

Growlithe, struggling against paralysis, forced out another Flamethrower.

"Dig again!" Gary shouted.

Breloom burrowed underground once more, dodging the fiery blast.

"Odor Sleuth, again," Moore ordered.