My Pokemon Turned into Girls?!

The sudden blackout at the Vermilion Gym created a tense atmosphere, like a scene straight out of a horror movie. Fortunately, the gym's backup power kicked in within half a minute, and the lights returned.

With such a commotion, the gym leader couldn't possibly ignore it. Soon enough, Kazuki and his group met the leader of the Vermilion Gym, Lt. Surge.

He was a tall, muscular middle-aged man with a square jaw and spiky yellow hair, exuding an air of toughness. Before this, Kazuki had privately make complaints that the Kanto gyms seemed oddly juvenile, as all the gym leaders he'd met so far were either just a bit older than him or around his age. Lt. Surge was the first gym leader who fit the stereotypical image Kazuki had in mind.

However, Kazuki's first impression of him wasn't great, and the reason was…

"I heard someone drained the power dry and thought we finally had a real challenger. But I didn't expect…"

Lt. Surge bent down, looking down at Kazuki and Sabrina with a condescending gaze. "It's just two little kids. Hey, what are you here for? Did you get lost?"

This guy… Kazuki frowned. Not wanting to cause unnecessary trouble, he decided not to argue and spoke directly, "I'm here to challenge the Vermilion Gym. Can we start now?"

"Challenge the gym? Pfft, hahaha! Kids like you should go home and get some sleep. This is a place for adults."

Lt. Surge laughed, joined by his two subordinates, a man and a woman.

"What did you say?" Before Kazuki could react, Sabrina stepped forward, her crimson eyes icy cold.

"Haha, boss, the little one's throwing a tantrum. How cute…" The male subordinate reached out to pat Sabrina's head, but before he could touch her, green psychic energy enveloped him.

His body was lifted off the ground by an invisible force, and the man struggled in panic. With a slight movement of Sabrina's finger, he was flung into the wall.

The room fell silent, save for the groans of the man curled up on the floor. Lt. Surge's smile froze, and he took a closer look at the girl he had initially dismissed due to her youthful appearance.

Suddenly, his eyes widened in recognition. "You're… the one from Saffron City…"

Since the two cities were so close, he had heard plenty of rumors about the "Saffron City Witch" from challengers. The fear in their eyes when they recounted their experiences had left a deep impression on him.

"Interesting! I've been wanting to see your skills for myself. Let's start the gym challenge right now!"

"Gym challenge?" Sabrina's cold gaze didn't waver, and her eyes glowed green as she prepared to use her psychic powers again.

"Sabrina." Kazuki gently took her hand, and the light in her eyes dimmed as she silently stepped back behind him.

"I'm afraid, Gym Leader, Sabrina is just here with me. I'm the only one challenging the gym."

"You?" Lt. Surge glanced skeptically at the Eevee perched on Kazuki's shoulder. "You're not planning to fight me with that little thing, are you? Just so you know, I don't go easy on anyone. If you don't want that cute little guy to get seriously hurt, you might want to think twice."

"Don't worry about that. Instead of worrying about my Pokémon, you might want to prepare yourself. I'd hate for you to have a heart attack when a 'little kid' beats you."

Since Lt. Surge was being so dismissive, Kazuki saw no reason to hold back. He looked directly into the tall man's eyes without flinching.

"Hmph, you've got quite the mouth on you." Despite his words, Lt. Surge didn't seem angry. In fact, he was smiling.

"Alright then, follow me. Xiao Liu, take Monkey to get treated, and tell him his training is doubled when he's done. Crying like a baby after getting beaten by a little girl is just pathetic!"

"Yes, sir." The female subordinate saluted and dragged the man away. Kazuki and Sabrina followed Lt. Surge to the gym's battle arena.

"The rules are three-on-three. The battle ends when all Pokémon on one side are unable to fight. Any questions?"

Seeing that Kazuki had no objections, Lt. Surge immediately threw a Poké Ball. A red light shot onto the battlefield, revealing… another red-and-white ball?

"Show me how you plan to beat my Voltorb."

Voltorb, a spherical Pokémon that for some reason looks almost identical to a standard Poké Ball. Many unsuspecting trainers have mistaken it for a Poké Ball and ended up getting electrocuted.

It's a fast Electric-type special attacker. Given that, Kazuki decided to send out…

His hand reached for the Poké Ball containing Hei, but before he could throw it, a gray sphere floated onto the battlefield.

"Zzzz~"

Seeing the strange Pokémon float out from Kazuki's side, Lt. Surge's eyes lit up. "Oh? A Magnemite? You use Electric-types too? I'm starting to like you more and more."

"Uh, actually…"

"Voltorb, use Charge Beam!" Before Kazuki could explain, Lt. Surge gave the order.

Voltorb, its eyes filled with anger, gathered golden electricity into a sphere in front of it. After a brief charge, it fired a dazzling beam of electricity.

"Haha, in battle, you've got to strike first! You've got a lot to learn!"

Seeing Kazuki's complex expression, Lt. Surge assumed the boy was caught off guard and laughed, raising an eyebrow at him.

Without even time to give a dodge command, Lt. Surge thought the Magnemite would be heavily damaged, if not knocked out, by the Charge Beam. But when he looked at where the beam had hit, he was stunned—

Golden electricity crackled over Magnemite's body before being completely absorbed into its magnets. Its single, vacant eye stared at him, exuding an inexplicable sense of mockery.

Clearing his throat to hide his embarrassment, Lt. Surge ordered, "Voltorb, keep using Charge Beam!"

Storing some of the charged energy, Voltorb fired continuous beams of electricity, each one more intense than the last.

The golden beams all struck Magnemite, and then… were all absorbed.

Seeing that Magnemite was completely unaffected and even seemed to be getting more energetic, Lt. Surge fell silent. Before he could give another command, the gray sphere floated closer to Voltorb, swaying its magnets as if asking:

"Got any more?"

At this, Voltorb's eyes widened, and its upper half turned increasingly red. Then, it exploded… literally.

The move Self-Destruct left a crater on the battlefield, and Voltorb, now blackened, fell to the ground, completely unable to fight.

Lt. Surge recalled the blackened Voltorb and laughed, though his laughter sounded forced.

"Hahaha, not bad, not bad. Passing my test proves you're worthy of challenging me. Of course, Voltorb is my weakest Pokémon. The next one will be a bit more serious."

"Go, Raichu!" He threw another Poké Ball, and a larger, orange version of Pikachu appeared.

Raichu, the evolved form of Pikachu using a Thunder Stone, is far stronger than Pikachu in every way. However, its cuteness factor takes a hit after evolution, making it less popular.

But Lt. Surge clearly didn't care about such trivialities. Raichu stood confidently on the battlefield, its arrogant demeanor a perfect match for its trainer.

"Raichu, use Thunderbolt!"

The golden sacs on Raichu's cheeks symbolized its far greater electrical capacity compared to Pikachu. At Lt. Surge's command, sparks flew from the sacs, and a blinding golden bolt of electricity shot out, causing explosions in the air as it struck Magnemite.

Kazuki's expression turned serious. This Raichu's power was indeed impressive. If Hei or the others were on the field, they'd need to be cautious… but right now, it was Magnemite out there.

It wasn't that Kazuki didn't care just because Magnemite wasn't his Pokémon. It was just that… after seeing it withstand the high-voltage electric grid and drain the entire gym's power, he didn't think pure Electric-type moves would have much effect.

He didn't recall Magnemite having abilities like Lightning Rod. Could it just be… really good at eating electricity?

Sure enough, the massive bolt of lightning struck Magnemite, but it was like giving it a bath. The only effect was making its metallic surface shinier.

Seeing this, Raichu rubbed its eyes, making sure it wasn't hallucinating. Refusing to believe it, it fired another Thunderbolt.

Once again, the electricity was absorbed like a snack. After two Thunderbolts, Raichu's energy was significantly drained, while Magnemite remained as indifferent as ever. The gap was so great that Raichu slumped to the ground.

"Sorry for not feeding you enough, Magnemite."

Seeing his Pokémon in such a state, Lt. Surge threw caution to the wind and shouted, "Raichu, don't give up! If special moves aren't working, use physical attacks! Thunder Punch!"

Hearing its trainer's encouragement, Raichu mustered some fighting spirit. Its fists crackled with golden electricity as it roared and punched Magnemite.

Surprisingly, this actually had some effect. Caught off guard, Magnemite was sent flying by the punch. It bounced back up, its vacant eyes staring at Raichu, as if confused why the kind mouse that had been feeding it suddenly started hitting it.

Oh no! Regardless of Magnemite's intentions, it had helped Kazuki take down one of Lt. Surge's Pokémon. He couldn't just sit back and let it get beaten up. Kazuki urgently shouted:

"Magnemite, use Flash Cannon… or Thunder Wave, or something!"

Hearing the strange command, Lt. Surge frowned but didn't wait. "Raichu, keep using Thunder Punch!"

Encouraged by its success, Raichu rushed forward and landed several more punches, sending Magnemite flying around the battlefield. In its excitement, Raichu didn't notice Magnemite's single eye glowing blue as it scanned Raichu's body.

"Zzzz~"

Analysis complete.

Silver light gathered in Magnemite's eye, forming a thick beam that shot out, blasting Raichu through the ceiling and out of the gym.

----

Join my patreon to read chapter early

patreon.com/rivyura