Ash and his friends, after traveling through the forest for an unknown amount of time, finally left it and arrived at the closest town to Petalburg City—North Petalburg City.
"Let's find a Pokémon Center and rest for the night!" Ash suggested to the group.
"Agreed!" (x3) After camping out in the forest for so long, they were more than ready for a proper rest at a Pokémon Center!
They quickly found the Pokémon Center. Brock immediately rushed forward. "Nurse Joy, your humble servant has arrived!"
Max quickly stepped up and restrained Brock, and Spinda also emerged to help pull Brock away.
Brock looked forlornly at the heartbroken Spinda. He shouldn't have caught it; it's too much suffering. Before it was one person stopping him, now it's two!
"Oh?! Aren't you the children of Norman, the Petalburg Gym Leader?! You're May and Max, right!" Nurse Joy instantly recognized May and Max.
Just then, a woman delivering groceries to the Pokémon Center overheard the conversation.
May and Max reluctantly confirmed their identities.
The woman's expression immediately turned serious. She bolted out and shouted at the top of her lungs, "Disaster has struck! Norman's children are here in North Petalburg City!"
No sooner had the words left her mouth than the ground began to shake. Dust flew up as a massive crowd rushed toward the Center like a stampede. "Where are Norman's children?!" A group of people frantically looked around the woman.
The woman pointed toward the Pokémon Center. "Charge! Don't shove me, I need to see them first!" "Get out of the way, it should be me!" "Ah! I want an autograph!"
Ash and the others, who had just walked out of the Pokémon Center, were surrounded by the massive crowd and were utterly shocked. They initially thought they were being attacked for revenge, but it turned out to be a massive fan gathering!
A reporter aimed his camera at May and enthusiastically said, "You are Norman's children, correct! I'm a reporter from North Petalburg City!"
The siblings nodded, confirming their identities, completely unaware of what was about to happen next!
"It's said that Ms. May is traveling to become a top Pokémon Trainer. May I ask, what have you accomplished so far?"
May was completely thrown off, as she hadn't participated in any Gym Battles. Prompted by a nudge from Max, May awkwardly pulled out her sole Ribbon to show them.
The scene fell silent. Just as May and Max were becoming deeply embarrassed, the reporter spoke up: "As expected of Norman's child! To have earned a Contest Ribbon in such a short time traveling!"
"That's right!" "So amazing!" "Truly Norman's child!" Everyone began praising them wildly, leaving May and Max flustered. They looked around for Ash but couldn't find him.
May performed a brief Contest demonstration for the citizens, which only made the crowd even more fanatical, showering May with fervent adoration!
As for Ash and Brock, they had long been squeezed out of the crowd. The two were now standing outside, sharing an awkward glance.
Team Rocket's Fraudulent Scheme
Meanwhile, the impoverished Team Rocket trio also arrived in North Petalburg City.
"I'm so hungry, meow…" "But we don't have any money…"
The Team Rocket trio walked dejectedly down the street. Jessie suddenly pointed at a billboard. "Huh?! Isn't that the twerpette's father!"
"It really is, meow!" Meowth and James looked closely to confirm.
"I think his name was Norman!" James recalled, then pointed around them. "Look!"
The Team Rocket trio turned and saw that everyone—on their hands, their clothes, and even their dolls—featured Norman.
"It's a Norman frenzy, meow!"
Jessie's eyes lit up, and she gave a wicked smile. "Hehe! I have a great idea! We can use this frenzy to make a fortune!"
The trio quickly conferred and began their disguise. James impersonated Norman and Jessie impersonated Caroline, Norman's wife. The two actually looked quite convincing, but what was with the blue-skinned Max and the cat-faced May, who was even shorter than Max?
The most unbelievable thing was that the citizens actually believed them! Especially a vegetable vendor who personally vouched for them, claiming Norman's relatives were his neighbors. Why don't you bring your neighbor over to identify them then!
With the vendor's guarantee, the citizens became even more frantic, and Team Rocket successfully began their grand scheme of fraud!
First, they sold Norman's "autographs," then they sold "Norman family commemorative bottle caps," causing people to rush and scramble for them, successfully stuffing Team Rocket's wallets!
Ash's Defense and Typhlosion's Evolution
On Ash's side, he and Brock were still waiting behind the crowd for May when two young boys approached them.
The red-shirted boy leading the group spoke aggressively, "You're the ones who call yourselves Ms. May's traveling companions, right! What are you doing in Petalburg City?"
"That's right!" Brock, without thinking, blurted out their purpose. "We're here to challenge the Petalburg Gym!" Clearly, Brock didn't realize the seriousness of the situation. Fanatics are terrifying, and Ash was too late to stop him! Oh well, might as well earn some experience points, Ash thought. It's almost time for another Mega Stone anyway!
"What?!" (x2)
The red-shirted boy pointed right at Ash's nose. "You? With your level? Lord Norman is no ordinary Gym Leader! You're a million years too early to defeat Lord Norman!"
Ash was perplexed. It wasn't me who answered, why are you pointing at me???
"But isn't challenging a Gym the right of any challenger?!" Brock countered.
"That's our local rule! Anyway, if you want to challenge the Gym, you have to defeat me first!" "That's right!"
Ash sighed helplessly. "Fine, come on!"
The group moved to a nearby park. "Go, Golduck!"
[Golduck] [Elite - Mid Stage]
"Go, Beautifly!" "Huh?! A different kind of Beautifly?! But mere beauty won't defeat Lord Norman!"
"Beautifly, Silver Wind!" Beautifly flapped its wings, launching a flurry of silver wind blades. "Golduck, Focus Punch!" The red-shirted boy was pure recklessness; he didn't care for fancy techniques!
Naturally, before Golduck could even launch Focus Punch, it was struck and knocked back. Ash looked up at the sun in the sky and smiled. "Beautifly, show them the results of your recent training. Solar Beam!"
Beautifly's wings gathered solar energy, firing a white beam of light toward Golduck. "Golduck, Hydro Pump!" Unfortunately, the massive water column was destroyed by the Solar Beam, which passed right through and struck Golduck. Golduck lost the ability to battle!
When the boys in the park learned that Ash intended to challenge the Petalburg Gym, they couldn't stand idly by!
"Let me teach him a lesson!" "No, it should be me!" They instantly lined up in a queue several meters long, all coming to challenge Ash!
Ash had no choice but to send out Torkoal, Grovyle, and Ralts to fight in rotation, one after the other, until they were defeated. Though the quality of the opponents was low, there was quantity, and they all became experience fodder for Ash's Pokémon! Ralts reached Elite - Early Stage, and Beautifly reached Elite - Late Stage!
But the boys were still fiercely competitive and demanded to bring out new Pokémon to continue the fight!
Ash was truly exhausted. He couldn't help but yell in frustration, "Enough! All of you, come at me! I'll defeat you all at once!"
"Fine! What arrogance! Go!" Suddenly, numerous Pokémon—including Igglybuff, Shroomish, and Zangoose—appeared in the arena.
"Go! Quilava, Eruption!" One powerful area-of-effect move instantly cleared the field! "Boom~" Quilava finally gained enough experience and burst into a blue-white light of evolution! Its body grew larger, and flames erupted from its neck—Typhlosion had arrived!
[Typhlosion] Strength: Gym Leader - Mid Stage Moves: Double-Edge, Gyro Ball, Inferno...
"Boom~" Typhlosion looked menacingly at the boys.
The boys couldn't help but take a step back. Don't come near us!
A few of them even ran off, seemingly to call for reinforcements!
The Call for Reinforcements
The fleeing boys, seeing their plans thwarted, rushed to the street where May was still performing and dragged her away. Though they "asked" her to come, they merely said a quick word before whisking her away, followed by a large crowd of citizens eager to watch May battle!