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Unlike other Gym Leaders, Hakuya didn't earn much money from his side jobs.
As an employee of a welfare home and a part-time teacher at the Pokémon school, he didn't earn much.
When Whitewind Gym needed renovations, Hakuya used up all his savings but still couldn't meet the construction standards of a core Gym.
Fortunately, thanks to his good reputation, he eventually received support from all walks of life in Whitewind Town and was finally able to completely refurbish the symbol of the town's Pokémon Trainers.
Since he had chosen Normal-type Pokémon, Slaking and Snorlax were naturally the strongest, and Hakuya was well aware of this.
However, having captured fourteen Pokémon in total, Hakuya had to give up on the ever-hungry Snorlax due to financial concerns.
"This is Slaking?" Mai asked curiously as she opened her Pokédex.
"Slaking, the Lazy Pokémon. It lives lying down. If there's no food nearby, it will reluctantly get up."
This colossal Pokémon had already woken up when Hakuya stepped into the courtyard.
When Slaking saw Hakuya, Mai, and Luther circling around it, it only let out a lazy grunt. It scratched its head and squinted its eyes before going right back to dozing.
A Cinccino mischievously dangled its white fur around Slaking's nose. This reckless act quickly earned it a grab from Slaking, who casually tossed it into the snow.
Hakuya sighed at the sight of the Cinccino buried headfirst in the snow. He clapped his hands and gestured for the Cinccino to come to his side.
As they were heading back inside, Luther suddenly remembered something. "Slaking must eat a lot, too, right?"
"Nowhere near as much as Snorlax. Besides, when Slaking isn't battling, it's so lazy that it won't move unless there's no food at all. You could say it's quite energy efficient."
Luther thought of Ash and then of Professor Oak.
The professor's research lab was home to many Pokémon, including several big eaters, yet he never went bankrupt.
...
Junna's cooking was excellent. After just a couple of bites, Mai scooted over to chat with Junna about cooking techniques.
Luther and Hakuya could only exchange helpless looks before focusing on their own meals.
They knew Hakuya wanted to say something, but writing in his notebook during dinner was too inconvenient.
As they were about to finish eating, Hakuya's large Sentret came running over with its food box and presented it to Hakuya.
Hakuya understood at once and packed the leftovers into the box. The Sentret left happily with its prize.
"That's for Dunsparce. Dunsparce has quite the appetite," Hakuya explained to Luther, raising his notebook.
No wonder Dunsparce was so large, it had practically grown from all the extra meals.
After lunch, Hakuya and Luther took a short nap on the sofa while the Pokémon exercised to digest their food. Once everyone had recovered their energy, the referee, who had gone out for lunch, returned and got into position, starting the Gym Battle early.
"Whitewind Gym Battle Rules: No restrictions. Moves and battle time are unlimited, and both sides may freely switch Pokémon at any time. Each side may use four Pokémon."
After announcing the rules, the referee watched as Hakuya was the first to throw out a Poké Ball.
His first Pokémon was Ursaring, which had put on an outstanding performance in the morning battles.
Luther thought for a moment, then sent out Espurr.
Hakuya's Ursaring had the Guts ability. Using Jumpluff would be a waste of training because any status powder would just give Ursaring a chance to explode in strength.
Compared to other Pokémon, Espurr's advantages were her small size and her ability to float with psychic power. Against Ursaring, who wasn't known for his speed, these strengths would be amplified.
The noise from the gym quickly drew the trainers waiting in the lounge for the afternoon session. Soon, they crowded into the stands. This early battle was as lively as Hakuya's morning matches.
Hakuya gestured, signaling for Luther to make the first move.
This seemed to be part of Hakuya's strategy. Each of his battles that morning followed the same pattern: Hakuya gave away the first move, allowing his opponent to set the rhythm of the battle.
He was extremely confident in his ability to counter with his "Second Move."
"Reflect."
A faint glow gathered around Espurr as if it were coated in a thin layer of shimmering armor.
Luther chose the safest opening, immediately setting up Reflect to reduce physical attacks and increase error tolerance in the early stage of the battle, thus avoiding an unexpected Ursaring burst.
Hakuya's harmonica began to play. Since he couldn't immediately know Hakuya's command, Luther had to focus entirely on Ursaring's movements, trying to anticipate them.
When Ursaring crossed its arms over its chest, Luther understood Hakuya's plan.
It was Cross Chop, a two-handed strike that could deal massive damage to an opposing Pokémon.
At the same time, Luther noticed something he hadn't seen from the stands earlier.
While he was trying to read Ursaring's moves, Hakuya had effectively compressed his reaction time. When Luther tried to command Espurr to use Psyshock, he immediately rejected the choice.
Ursaring was already closing in on Espurr, who floated backward instinctively.
"Float forward instead, dodge under Ursaring's arms."
Luther had no choice but to abandon his offensive plan.
Espurr followed the command, using its small size to its advantage. It gracefully bypassed Ursaring's attack and moved behind it.
"Now use Psyshock."
Hakuya smiled and played the harmonica, producing a dense sequence of notes.
Ursaring spun around quickly, its claws glowing dark purple as it slashed through the air toward Espurr.
It was another high-critical-hit move, this time, a Ghost-type Shadow Claw!
Espurr's training paid off. It floated upward, adjusted its posture, and released Psyshock just in time to avoid the incoming Shadow Claw.
Psyshock struck Ursaring. The move, which Luther had trained it to perform, packed considerable power. Ursaring squinted its eyes and glared angrily at Espurr.
Espurr was momentarily stunned by Ursaring's furious expression. Luther reacted immediately: "Keep floating backward. Don't be distracted by Ursaring's gaze and expression. He's trying to influence you."
He looked at Hakuya. Hakuya removed the harmonica from his mouth and grinned.
This was one of the battle techniques that Hakuya's Pokémon possessed, the so-called "presence."
Hitmontop had been intimidated in battle before because Hakuya's overwhelming aura and fighting spirit had caused it to instinctively fear Tauros during the fight.
Clearly, Hakuya had mastered this tactic. His Pokémon exerted pressure whenever they executed or prepared a move, causing the opponent to become nervous.
This had nothing to do with Pokémon abilities; it was a skill developed over countless battles, a form of on-the-spot psychological manipulation. Hakuya had undoubtedly instilled this mindset in his Pokémon to gain an advantage.
It was similar to how Luther had Jumpluff use taunts in battle to annoy opponents.
(End of chapter.)