Pokemon: Trait Master

Pikachu's trait attributes were quite good, 

but when it came to its level, it was somewhat lacking— 

especially compared to its Trainer. 

Aside from the Rainbow-ranked Infinite Reincarnation and Thor, 

the rest of its traits were barely worth mentioning. 

Not even a single Red-ranked trait. 

Right now, Pikachu was at the High-tier Gym level, 

and the next step up was the transitional Pseudo-Elite Four tier, 

after which it could truly enter the Elite Four level!

If Master of Acting could be upgraded to Red or even Gold, 

then even when facing a Champion-level opponent, 

Pikachu might still be able to put up a fight! 

But that was still too far away. 

Forget about upgrading traits—just trying to push Pikachu's actual level to Elite Four would require a crucial opportunity. 

That is, a battle against a truly equally-matched opponent. 

So far, Ash had yet to encounter such a rival. 

Even if Gym Leaders were to show their true strength, it probably still wouldn't be enough. 

However, Ash was still unaware— 

that the Gym Leaders of Kanto were not to be underestimated… 

— 

During their three-day journey through Mt. Moon, 

Ash managed to evolve Metapod into Butterfree, 

and once again encountered Team Rocket. 

As expected, they were sent blasting off again. 

In the original timeline, these three weren't exactly pure evil, 

but they weren't much better either— 

at best, they were just a tiny bit more moral than other villains. 

Among them, James was truly kindhearted… 

But that had nothing to do with Ash. 

They had their eyes on his Pikachu, 

so he sent them flying— 

simple as that. 

After defeating Team Rocket, 

Ash and his group received gratitude from the Clefairy, 

as well as several Moon Stones. 

Among evolution stones, Moon Stones were relatively cheap, 

but they weren't that cheap either. 

Even the lowest-quality Moon Stone was considered highly valuable.

For Ash, it wasn't a big deal,

but for Serena and Misty, these stones were incredibly precious!

The cost alone was enough to cover their entire travel expenses for a year,

yet Ash handed them over without hesitation. 

This left the two girls shaken— 

and their favorability toward Ash skyrocketed! 

There's a saying— 

"Love doesn't require money…" 

"But proving love, every moment, does." 

Ash didn't think much of gifting the Moon Stones, 

nor did he realize that his gesture had significantly increased the girls' affection for him. 

Serena's affection was already close to maxed out, 

but for Misty, it completely changed her perception of Ash. 

A powerful Trainer, good-looking, skilled at cooking, and wealthy… 

Whoa. Isn't this the perfect husband material? 

However, Misty could see it clearly—Serena was obviously interested in Ash, 

and Ash seemed to reciprocate those feelings… 

"What am I even thinking? We're only ten years old! I need to put that aside!" 

"What I should focus on is squeezing all the Trainer knowledge out of Ash!" 

"And all his wilderness survival skills! If I can learn how to cook too, even better!" 

"Yes, Misty, stay strong! Don't get caught up in romance! If you become excellent, won't people naturally pursue you?" 

After successfully hyping herself up, 

Misty finally suppressed the fluttering feelings in her heart. 

---

After crossing Mt. Moon and traveling for a while longer, 

they finally arrived in Cerulean City on the seventh day. 

Cerulean City was about the same size as Pewter City, 

but it was most famous for its water ballet! 

And this water ballet was performed in none other than the Cerulean Gym! 

"…Back in the day, Cerulean Gym was one of the strongest Gyms in the entire Kanto League!" 

"But the Gym Leader passed away too suddenly, leaving behind three irresponsible daughters…" 

"And a youngest sister, who was actually the strongest Trainer of the family!" 

"But since the youngest sister was too young, the Gym was left in the hands of the three irresponsible older sisters for the time being." 

"As a result, Cerulean Gym became the weakest Gym in Kanto! If not for the water ballet, they probably… no, they definitely wouldn't even be able to afford the Gym's daily expenses!" 

Misty explained every detail about Cerulean Gym to Ash and Serena. 

Of course, she sugarcoated some parts, 

but back in its prime, Cerulean Gym was indeed formidable. 

It could educate both novice Trainers and seasoned Trainers alike. 

However, the Gym Leader had gone missing during an official mission, 

and despite the League's search efforts, no trace was ever found. 

Eventually, the League declared the Gym Leader deceased. 

Since they had perished on duty, 

even though Cerulean Gym had declined into the weakest Gym, 

and couldn't even meet its KPI, 

it was allowed to remain operational in Cerulean City— 

a privilege granted by the League. 

Ash had learned all this back when he was working as an assistant under Professor Oak. 

In fact, this incident had caused quite a stir within the League. 

Because the mission that Cerulean's Gym Leader was assigned to… 

was related to a Legendary Pokémon! 

As for which Legendary, Ash wasn't sure. 

But regardless, it didn't change the fact that Cerulean Gym was now the weakest Gym in Kanto. 

Brock's Onix was at the Advanced level, 

but that wasn't even the Gym's ace Pokémon. 

Meanwhile, Misty's Starmie was already the strongest Pokémon in Cerulean Gym… 

And to make matters worse, Misty wasn't even at the Gym right now! 

Just how weak was the current Cerulean Gym? 

It was unimaginable!