For the citizens of Pewter City, every Friday is a grand celebration. Just like soccer matches in another world, game days always draw huge crowds. But in this Pokémon world, Pokémon tournaments are even grander than soccer matches—it's practically a nationwide event.
In the Kanto region, each of the seven days of the week hosts a scheduled gym challenge from a different city, creating a continuous cycle. Every evening, people eagerly tune in to watch these matches, enjoying the thrill brought by trainers and their Pokémon. This event combines competition and entertainment, ranking only second to the Pokémon League in viewership.
When night falls, people across Kanto gather in front of their TVs, waiting for the gym challenge from that day's featured city. Some viewers even tune in from other regions via satellite broadcast. Every trainer who appears on this highly rated program—whether gym leader or challenger—becomes something akin to an idol.
At 5 p.m., ticket checks and entry had already begun at Pewter City's largest building, the Gym Challenge Stadium. Tens of thousands of fans packed the plaza outside. Men and women, young and old, cheered with horns and shouted organized chants. Through the twelve large entrance gates, the crowd queued in an orderly fashion to find their assigned seats.
Those with tickets chatted excitedly as they entered. Those without either gathered in the square to watch the match on big screens or wandered around hoping to buy scalped tickets at high prices. Meanwhile, in every bar and restaurant across Pewter City, people crowded together, drinking and dining while watching the live broadcast on TV.
Tickets for gym challenge matches aren't sold to the public. Instead, they're distributed through a lottery to Pewter City residents. Those who win just need to pay a basic fee to attend in person. Since Pokémon matches have global appeal, the tournament also boosts local spending, making it one of the League's strategies for stimulating domestic consumption.
The Gym Challenge Tournament consists of eight battles, featuring the eight winners from the preliminary round. Matches are ordered by the challengers' badge count, from lowest to highest. Trainers may use between one and six Pokémon depending on the battle. Sometimes, there may even be a full 6-on-6 battle. Generally speaking, the matches grow more exciting as stronger challengers take the stage later in the lineup, preventing the excitement from peaking too early.
According to League regulations, gym leaders choose appropriately powerful Pokémon based on the challenger's strength. Because of this, gym leaders typically raise a wider variety of Pokémon. Earning a badge doesn't necessarily require defeating the gym leader—these matches are held to foster talent. As long as a challenger gains the leader's recognition, they may receive a badge even in defeat. As a result, roughly 80% of those who make it to the official round walk away with a badge.
In the early matches, gym leaders may win or lose. But in the final few battles, when facing trainers who already hold four or more badges, gym leaders usually deploy their ace Pokémon. For these challengers—many of whom haven't even entered the League Tournament—there's almost no chance of winning. Most of those matches end in defeat.
As one of the challengers, Ryuuske didn't need to enter with the general public. At 4 p.m., he passed through the contestant entrance and arrived inside the stadium. The building was massive—perhaps even larger than the football stadiums in his past life. Initially, Ryuuske was surprised. He'd imagined a gym challenge happening in a small room. He never expected it to be such a formal event.
But on second thought, it made sense. In a tiny room, a powerful Pokémon might destroy the entire place with a single move. In that case, the gym leader's job would be less about battling and more about rebuilding the facility every day.
Led by staff, Ryuuske entered the waiting lounge. Each of the eight challengers had their own room, luxuriously equipped with snacks, drinks, and everything one could want. Before the match, contestants could freely wander the stadium or rest in their room. At 5:30, the venue would provide a free gourmet dinner for each contestant to ensure they had enough energy for the evening battles.
Ryuuske took a look around after arriving at his room and quickly got to know the other seven challengers. Among them, he was the youngest. Although his true strength was by no means the weakest, according to League rules, he would go first—because he still didn't have a single badge.
Everyone was between fifteen and twenty years old, so there was no real generation gap. For now, they weren't competitors but rather comrades on the same path. The group casually gathered to chat.
Having only been in this world for less than three months, Ryuuske had spent most of his time in research facilities or the forest. He mostly stayed quiet and listened as the others—who had traveled through several cities—shared all sorts of gossip and fun stories.
One talked about challenging the gym in Celadon City, praising how gentle and sweet Erika was. Another described how lively and energetic Misty from Cerulean City could be. A third gushed about Sabrina from Saffron City, calling her cold and beautiful. Some had even traveled to Sinnoh and Hoenn to watch the League Championships. This left Ryuuske silently complaining in his mind, You haven't even conquered Kanto yet, and you're already sightseeing in other regions?
As the match time approached, the contestants returned to their rooms to prepare. Ryuuske also went back to his own to rest and clear his mind.
Just as he was getting ready to head to the battlefield, a sudden knock came at the door.
Puzzled, Ryuuske opened it—and was stunned by the familiar face standing outside.
"...Gym Leader Brock of Pewter City?"
To be continued…