Chapter 563: Assassination Squad

The good fortune from last time did not carry over.

【You have lost to the Goldenrod Gym Leader】

The gambler walked out of the Goldenrod Gym without discouragement, heading straight out of the city.

【You are well aware that, compared to winning against the Gym Leader by luck again, what matters more is whether the Gym Leader can accept this style of battle】

"Ah~"

Baimu suddenly recalled that, after serving as the temporary Gym Leader, he had done a fair amount of homework.

One could say the Gym Leader's authority was considerable — as long as there was a legitimate reason, even if the challenger ultimately won the match, the leader could refuse to award them the Gym Badge.

And in this gambler's era, the Gym Leader's authority was likely even greater.

Once the gambling tactics offended the other party, no amount of effort would matter.

Essentially.

Relying on a single Pokémon that could use a one-hit KO move to defeat the Gym Leader's three Pokémon was simply too fantastical.

Even if he did win by luck in the end, the Gym Leader might not accept it.

【You deeply understand that to win when your hand is shown, you must hold enough chips】

What gambler's mindset and creed.

Baimu grumbled inwardly, but he also agreed with the gambler's basic logic, and now understood why the old man had hurried out the door—

To catch new Pokémon.

The gambler and Vulpix searched the wilderness together, passing by many wild Pokémon, their purpose quite clear.

【You helplessly discover that the Machop you could normally find even in the city seems to have become some kind of rare creature in the wild — is this the God of Gambling punishing you?】

From the narration, one could tell.

Although the gambler was determined to set out on a journey, he was honestly quite old, and had no reliable means of transportation. In his era, even in the mainstream Kanto region, the infrastructure was not great.

Therefore, just catching his second Pokémon cost the gambler considerable effort.

Fortunately, the Lucky Streak talent had been triggering steadily.

Unable to find a Machop in the wild, the gambler chose to buy a Machoke at a low price from Team Rocket — one that had been retired by their construction company due to old age.

Baimu: "……"

Just who owes whom money here? Why is Team Rocket so willing to cooperate with the gambler!?

He truly couldn't figure it out.

What made him even more bitter was the Machoke's situation — the beast-like Team Rocket had used up its labor, and still refused to let it go, selling it off to squeeze out the last drop of its value.

This simulated storyline is so heavy...

【You have obtained a retired Machoke, your roster of old-timers has grown】

【You briefly familiarized yourself with the Machoke, then hurried off to the Goldenrod Gym to issue a second challenge】

Unquestionably.

The gambler's purpose in catching the Machoke was surely to add it to his one-hit KO system. Moreover, Machoke was a Pokémon more suited to using one-hit KO moves than Vulpix.

Because of its ability 【No Guard】.

In the games, the effect is to ignore move accuracy, guaranteeing a hit on the opponent, while also making it easier to be hit.

Combined with 【Fissure】, which Machoke can also learn, in the games it could take out one opponent after another, with the only exception being Flying-type Pokémon.

Of course.

All of this was limited to the games.

In the anime world, there are no guaranteed-hit moves. To put it bluntly, the so-called 【No Guard】 ability was essentially a suicidal attack — abandoning evasion to land one strike on the opponent.

Yet the elderly Machoke the gambler obtained was admittedly at a decent level, but it didn't know Fissure yet. So why was he in such a rush to challenge the Gym?

The answer was clear.

【You put on a show of sending out the Machoke, casually ordered it around until it was defeated, then naturally sent out Vulpix and began the familiar gamble on Fissure】

【Your Vulpix defeated Hitmonlee, Hitmonchan, and Machop】

【You defeated the Goldenrod Gym Leader and obtained the Plain Badge】

That's right.

The Machoke existed to be sacrificed.

To make the Vulpix — which won through one-hit KO — seem relatively less out of place, using one card to cover another, achieving his true purpose.

【Iron Will】, huh.

"Hmm..."

Baimu silently watched the screen, where the gambler was feasting at a tavern together with Machoke and Vulpix to celebrate. Seeing the smile on the Machoke's face, he didn't know what to say.

He was glad the gambler wasn't the type to treat his Pokémon stingily, yet felt a complicated ache in his heart over all the Machoke had been through.

Regardless.

With two companions now in tow, the gambler once again set out on his journey to challenge Gyms through gambling luck.

【You decided your next stop was Azalea Town, and arrived at the underground path】

Baimu was quite surprised that the underground paths in the Kanto region had already been built in that era.

But what left him speechless was that the gambler had come to the underground path not to speed up his travel, but for the pachinko machines hidden there.

True to form, gambling dog.

A dog really can't change its eating habits.

Baimu watched the gambler sitting at the pachinko machine, playing with a burning passion, and finally understood where the 【Hot-Blooded Youth】 talent had manifested.

So it manifested in gambling! Young at heart so he goes for a big bet, right?

【You lost most of your money, and while on a hot streak were dragged away by Vulpix and Machoke】

Within the screen.

The gambler, who seemed to have gone red-eyed with gambling fever, was forcibly dragged away by two Pokémon, and had no choice but to keep walking toward Vermilion City.

And before long, they arrived at Vermilion City.

【You have arrived at Vermilion City, the foremost international port of Kanto. The bustling sights leave you utterly shocked, and you exclaim that this is nothing like thirty years ago.】

Thirty years ago…

Looks like the gambler had traveled out when he was young too?

All Baimu raised an eyebrow.

The Vermilion Gym Leader was, as expected, not Lt. Surge — that Air Force Major was probably still very young at this point, not even having begun his service in the Unova region.

But the typing was still Electric.

After losing to the Gym Leader following the old routine and confirming that the other party approved of this battle style, the gambler once again sought out Team Rocket to try to borrow some travel funds.

【You brazenly declare that at your age, there are simply too many expenses when traveling out, and that you'll pay every last bit back once you get the prize money.】

And he actually got the loan.

All Baimu: "???"

But just as he was wondering whether the Team Rocket of that era were idiots, the scene shifted.

The main viewpoint left the gambler.

Two Team Rocket grunts chatted boisterously after the gambler took the money and left.

Through the narration, it was learned that the two had exploited the gambler's one-hit-KO battle style to open wagers within Team Rocket, attracting quite a few people to join in.

As the gambler defeated the Celadon Gym, even the Team Rocket boss caught wind of it, and apparently had thoughts of using the gambler for marketing to harvest the trainer market — which was why they kept cooperating with him over and over, lending him money and helping him find Pokémon.

In other words, while the gambler thought he was getting the better deal, Team Rocket was actually getting an even bigger bargain — one beyond his imagination.

All Baimu silently watched the gambler arrive at the beach, growing ever more curious about how this story would end.

【You have arrived at Vermilion Beach, searching for your target.】

Compared to Machop.

The Pokémon the gambler was looking for this time — Krabby — was clearly far more abundant. After wandering around for a bit, he found a Krabby in some shadowy corner.

Then he sent out Poliwhirl to attack it.

After two Gym challenges and taking down a total of five opponents, its strength had grown somewhat. Setting that aside, bullying a wild Pokémon was still well within its capabilities.

Without much suspense, the Krabby was caught by the gambler.

【You caught a Krabby. The young lad's numbers have grown.】

And to bulk up his chips, the gambler also began focused training on one-hit-KO moves.

Although Poliwhirl and Machoke's physical capacity was relatively limited by age, they were still far stronger than humans. At the very least, Machoke lived up to expectations and learned 【Fissure】.

Krabby also learned 【Crabhammer】.

"That efficient?"

All Baimu was a little surprised — he didn't even learn moves as fast as the gambler. Could this be the power of specialization?

The legendary one-hit-KO master?

The gambler was undoubtedly thrilled as well. Getting such results from his first serious attempt at raising Pokémon made him start fantasizing — if only he'd worked harder in his youth, he'd be a different man by now.

"Gambling-addict delusions."

All Baimu waved his hand at the narration.

For now, his feelings toward the gambler leaned toward dislike.

Whether it was the loan shark debts that put his grandson in a life-threatening crisis, or his attitude of playing pachinko despite the dire situation, it all made him especially angry.

No respect for his age!

Having grown up in the Orange region, he knew all too well what gambling could turn a person into. Back when a childhood friend of his started gambling — even if it was just betting on his battle results — it had made him furious.

【You begin your second challenge of the Vermilion Gym.】

All Baimu snapped back to attention.

Within the screen.

The gambler once again used the old routine against the Vermilion Gym Leader, and the sacrifice target this time was, without question, the newly joined Krabby.

Being a Water-type Pokémon, it was at a severe disadvantage against Electric-types to begin with.

With Krabby's sacrifice, Machoke and Poliwhirl had a much smoother time fighting.

Especially the former.

【Fissure】's accuracy was far higher than the latter's. Of the Vermilion Gym Leader's three Pokémon, two were taken down by its Fissure.

【You defeated the Vermilion Gym Leader and obtained the Thunder Badge.】

The current Vermilion Gym Leader was a young man, who greatly admired the gambler for chasing his dreams at his age, and had no ill feelings toward his one-hit-KO style — on the contrary, he rather appreciated it.

The other party even took the initiative to help Machoke experience that era's relatively novel trading system, evolving it into Machamp.

【You find the machine before you utterly novel.】

【Your Machoke evolved into Machamp.】

【You gaze at Machamp's four arms and think to yourself that if only you had four hands when playing cards, cheating would be so much easier.】

…This old man is a lost cause.

All Baimu stared at the narration, speechless.

Three Badges in hand, all thanks to one-hit-KO moves — in that era, someone like this did indeed have value as a gimmick.

And under Team Rocket's machinations, the gambler was forced into fame.

The narration said that to make the gambler's situation more controversial and discussion-worthy, Team Rocket even specially dispatched a group to protest his "opportunistic" behavior, sparking heated public debate.

The gambler, of course, knew none of this at the time. He was preparing to pass through Diglett's Cave to reach Pewter City, far to Kanto's west.

And was preparing to add another general to his ranks.

【You have arrived at the Diglett's Cave, searching for your target this time.】

The Gambler's target this time was a Diglett with the Sand Veil ability.

This Pokémon can also learn Fissure, and the 【Sand Veil】ability can restrict the opponent's Pokémon—in the games it prevents the opponent from switching out, and in the anime the effect is…

"A miniature Quicksand Hell, huh. Looks like it could raise Fissure's accuracy."

All Baimu watched the Diglett on screen create a sand pit to restrict Vaporeon's movement, and suddenly realized he too had started thinking with one-hit-KO moves as his baseline.

Too bad.

Wild Diglett have a hard time learning a move like Fissure, so trapping Vaporeon would only force it to take a Hydro Pump to the face.

【You caught the Diglett. The young upstart's roster has grown.】

After successfully catching the Diglett, the Gambler sped up his advance and successfully reached Deep Gray City (Pewter City).

【You went to the local underground casino, but for some reason everyone was looking at you with very strange eyes. This made you feel extremely uneasy, so you turned around and left.】

The Gambler had been around long enough to have a decent sense of danger, so he didn't linger long in an unfamiliar place like Deep Gray City, planning to clear the Gym quickly and then leave.

Unexpectedly.

The Pewter Gym Leader, a slit-eyed man named Takeshi—no, Brock—saw right through his name and battle style in a single breath.

Then, in a daze, the Gambler learned everything from the other man's mouth.

【You looked at the newspaper the other man handed you, read the debate over whether one-hit-KO strategies count as cheating tactics and should be banned, and couldn't help but sigh.】

It really was absurd.

All Baimu nodded. The Gambler hadn't chosen the one-hit-KO style out of his own preference—it was simply that his Pokémon training experience and age weren't enough to let him defeat opponents through normal means, so he'd resorted to this tactic.

After catching the Diglett and Krabby, the Gambler had thought about training them properly, using ordinary tactics and one-hit-KO moves to support and reinforce each other.

Unfortunately, the profession of Trainer was far more profound than he'd imagined.

The Diglett and Krabby's progress in every aspect was honestly weak, leaving the Gambler no choice but to find every way possible to raise their levels—otherwise he wouldn't even be able to use the one-hit-KO strategy anymore.

【You begin your challenge of the Pewter Gym.】

The Gym Leader, Brock, was without doubt Brock's father—no, wait—Brock's father was, without question, Takeshi—no—Brock. In this world he was still quite young, young enough that he might not even be twenty yet.

But even so, this Gym Leader still dragged the Gambler into a bitter fight.

First, the Diglett and Krabby's levels couldn't compare to Brock's Pokémon, so the Gambler could only rely on Machamp and Vaporeon again.

Fortunately, the two had a type advantage, and when Fissure missed they could still use other moves to stall.

But it was still extremely difficult.

In the end, after three attempts, the Gambler barely secured victory, and through it he saw where his own limits lay—

【You defeated the Pewter Gym Leader and obtained the Boulder Badge.】

The Gym challenge wasn't as simple as he'd imagined. Even if his tactics earned the Leader's approval, if his Pokémon's strength couldn't rise, it was all for nothing.