When Officer Jenny finished explaining, both Dawn and Anabel turned to look at Ash.
Nurse Joy and Officer Jenny did the same.
Four pairs of beautiful eyes all focused on him at once—Ash, however, remained totally unfazed.
"It's actually not a hard problem to fix," Ash shrugged. "There's a direct path from between the tall buildings to the forest outside the city. It's a clear stretch with no large obstacles. If we can lure the Gligar in that direction, then have some Flying-types unleash a powerful Hurricane, we should be able to send them gliding right back to the forest."
Honestly, even if he hadn't said anything, Joy and Jenny would have figured it out soon enough. Ash just beat them to the punch.
"Ash, I don't know what's in your head, but you always seem to think up the perfect plan," Dawn said with admiration in her eyes.
Officer Jenny and Nurse Joy both nodded in agreement—it was a great idea.
"Heh, it's nothing," Ash replied with a modest smile. "Gligar love a variety of foods, especially fruit. Officer Jenny, I'm guessing you've already stored away some supplies to prevent them from raiding the town's food stores. Now's the perfect time to put those to use."
At Ash's suggestion, Jenny and Joy immediately got to work.
Meanwhile, in another part of the city…
Paul had just arrived.
He'd heard from other Trainers in neighboring towns that a particularly strong Gliscor—the leader of the Gligar swarm—had been spotted here.
And for his next Gym battle, a Gliscor could be just the edge he needed.
His Electabuzz had already evolved into Electivire.
But if Paul had known Ash was also here, he might've thought twice about coming.
"…The wind's picking up," Paul murmured.
Walking through the city streets, he scanned his surroundings. Electivire followed close behind, its eyes sharp.
A few gusts later, Paul's gaze narrowed—he spotted them.
A swarm of Gligar—more than a dozen of them—gliding overhead.
Leading the group, unmistakably, was a dark silhouette.
Gliscor!
"Electivire, let's move!"
He rushed forward with Electivire, closing in on the direction the Gligar were heading.
Unbeknownst to him, Ash and the others had lured the swarm toward that very path.
"Gotcha!" Paul's voice rang out. "Electivire, use Thunderbolt! Stop that Gliscor in its tracks!"
Boom!
The attack was powerful, but this Gliscor wasn't your average Gliscor.
It noticed the attack while gliding and dodged with a swift barrel roll!
Then, with a sharp screech, it ordered the Gligar to circle around and distract Electivire.
"Electivire, ignore the Gligar. Use Thunder to blast them away!"
Electivire released a booming Thunder—not to damage, but to create a shockwave to scatter the swarm.
Gliscor seized the opening and dove in with Fire Fang, clamping down on Electivire's arm.
BOOM!
A fiery explosion lit up the area as Gliscor retreated with a flap and a glide.
Though Electivire was injured, Paul remained unfazed—if anything, he smirked.
"Just as they said… This Gliscor's strong. Definitely worth capturing."
Electivire was recalled. It had served its purpose—Gliscor was now locked onto Paul, unlikely to flee.
"Let's go, Weavile—Blizzard!"
Weavile!
A perfect counter—Weavile's Ice-type moves were quadruple effective against Gligar and Gliscor's Ground/Flying combo.
Even with Gliscor's decent level, it couldn't overcome the type disadvantage and was ultimately taken down.
Paul threw a Poké Ball.
Clink… Clink… Click!
Success.
He immediately pulled out his Pokédex to scan the new capture. Just as he hoped—Gliscor had solid level and a well-rounded move pool.
For Trainers like Paul who couldn't see a Pokémon's innate potential the way Ash could with his Aura, judging by growth and moves learned was the only method.
Then—
"I should've guessed you'd show up here too," a familiar voice rang out.
Paul narrowed his eyes. Of course.
Ash.
Ash had been the one guiding the Gligar with fruit, leading them toward the path to the forest. But the moment he sensed Electric-type energy being used nearby, he activated his Aura.
Yup—Paul was here. Likely trying to catch Gliscor, as Ash had recalled from his past life.
"Weavile!"
Weavile took a threatening step forward, but Paul stopped it with a motion.
He knew… right now, he still wasn't a match for Ash.
"Pika!"
Pikachu hopped to Ash's shoulder, glaring warily at Paul and Weavile.
"Gligar's a pretty cool Pokémon," Ash said casually. "I was thinking of catching one too. Pikachu, use Discharge—melt those ice blocks."
"Pika—CHUUU!"
Electricity surged and shattered the ice left behind by Weavile's Blizzard.
Among the freed Gligar, one of them turned to look at Ash… and stuck out its tongue in a playful little taunt.
"That's the one," Ash chuckled. "You little troublemaker."
He picked it up gently. Then called out Monferno, who used Fire attacks to melt the rest of the frozen Gligar free.
…Monferno!?
Paul's eyes flickered.
But he said nothing.
Ash didn't pay Paul much mind either.
With his powers of Aura and the Bonds of Ruin, Ash didn't need to battle to win the Gligar's trust.
The swarm quickly understood he was helping them, not harming them.
And since the city no longer had much food, returning to the forest made perfect sense.
"I see you're planning to catch that Gligar? How about a little competition?" Paul stepped forward. "Let's settle it at the Lily of the Valley Conference."
Lily of the Valley Conference, huh?
Gliscor vs. Gliscor, is it?
"Sure," Ash smiled. "I hope you can actually surprise me. Though I still don't like your training style."
"I take it you're heading to Veilstone City next?" Paul asked. "I'll wait for you there. I want to catch up with my brother."
"…You know my brother?"
Paul's eyes widened.
Ash just smirked. "You don't need to know. Just focus on how you're going to make it far in the Conference."
Ash turned and led the Gligar toward the designated path.
Paul remained rooted in place, stunned.
That guy… knows my brother!?
Ash brought the Gligar to the path they had prepared earlier.
"Pidgeot, use Hurricane!"
With a powerful gust, the Gligar caught the wind and soared back toward the forest.
"GLI-GLI!"
Except one Gligar—the same one who had made faces at Ash earlier—was now happily devouring the fruit prepared by Jenny.
"…Seriously?" Jenny blinked. "Everyone's gone and it's still eating?"
"It's fine, Officer Jenny," Ash chuckled. "I really like this little guy. I plan to catch it."
"Gligar loves fruit, huh? Come with me—you'll have all the fruit you want."
"Gli-Gli!"
It didn't resist—in fact, it stuck its tongue out again with another cheeky grin!
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