1. Ash's Story (Part 10: Galar)

Chapter 29: Fire Roadblock

Hop was waiting outside Motostoke Stadium with his Fire Badge held high enough for half the plaza to see. He looked like he had slept, battled, won, and somehow gained more energy from doing all three in the wrong order.

"Slow moving, aren't you, Ash?" Hop called the moment he spotted me. "I've already gone and earned my Fire Badge. Kabu is exactly what people say he is. That man of fire nearly roasted my whole plan, but I won in the end."

"Congratulations," I said, smiling because his pride was honest.

Hop leaned closer with a grin. "Now get a shift on. I bet you can beat him too."

Alice stood beside me, her Gym Challenge case in hand but closed. "This one is Ash's battle. My third Badge is still waiting with the Electric Leaders."

Hop nodded like that made perfect sense. "Then win yours your way, Alice. Ash can handle the fire today."

Pikachu pressed his paws on my shoulder, cheeks warm with quiet spark, "The fire ahead is not yours until you step into it."

"Right," I said. "Then let's step in."

The stadium doors opened with a rush of heat, sound, and red light. Motostoke Stadium always looked bold, but with the Fire-type banners hanging above the entrance, it felt like the whole building was breathing toward battle. Staff members guided challengers through the registration path, and one of them brightened when he saw me.

"A Gym Challenger! That's a welcome sight," she said. "Leader Kabu has made this Gym Mission difficult enough that many challengers never make it past him."

"How difficult?" I asked the staff member.

She smiled like answering would ruin the point. "You will find out. First, please change into the Fire Gym uniform."

The uniform was red with black stripes and the Fire Gym logo sharp against the chest. When I stepped out, Gloria gave a low whistle.

"That really suits the fiery theme," she said.

Helen looked proud in a different way. "Dad will appreciate that you are taking this seriously."

"I am," I said without hesitation.

The staff member checked the number on my back, then fastened a small mission tag to my sleeve. "Leader Kabu values Trainers who can keep moving under pressure. His Gym does not test only strength. It tests whether you can make the right decision while another Trainer is trying to make a better one."

"That sounds like him," Helen said from the waiting side.

I flexed my hands once. Fire-type battles often looked direct from the outside, but Kabu's reputation had never been about simple flames. If he was called a roadblock, then the roadblock had to start before the battle itself.

Alice smiled, but her eyes were steady. "Then show him why you earned the first two Badges."

That stayed with me as I walked toward the Gym Mission field. I was not carrying Alice's third Badge for her. I was carrying my own road through Kabu's fire.

Dan waited in the center of a grassy indoor field with three Gym Trainers positioned around the tall grass. Heat lamps and safety barriers ringed the area, and the grass shifted with hidden movement. This mission was not a simple battle arena. It was a test of decisions under interference.

"The Gym Mission for the Fire-type Gym is this!" Dan announced. "Catch or defeat Pokémon to earn points. Defeating a wild Pokémon earns one point. Catching one earns two points. Earn five points to clear the mission."

Three shapes stirred in the grass: Vulpix, Litwick, and Sizzlipede. All were Fire-type Pokémon, all fast enough or tricky enough to make a careless plan collapse.