On the way, Hanae explained the situation at the Cerulean Gym to Ash and Brock. She didn't reveal anything about the Gym's Pokémon, but instead told them why the Cerulean Gym had earned the title of the weakest Gym.
Normally, a city's Gym had to pass a strict series of League assessments before it was granted official Gym status.
Even the weakest Gyms had to field at least Professional-tier Pokémon—that was the baseline requirement.
But since Gyms were hereditary, they changed hands from one generation to the next. Sometimes a child or grandchild would inherit the position, and as Beginners, their strength was fairly average. They might only have Elite-tier or Advanced—Peak Pokémon.
In most cases, though, the parents would stay on as Gym Leader for a while longer, holding the position until their children grew strong enough to take over completely.
That meant if the younger generation took over, the parents were the safety net. If the challenger was a Beginner, the kids would take the fight. If the challenger was strong, the parent would step in.
Bit by bit, the responsibility of the Gym would transition from parent to child.
Gyms also underwent regular evaluations. If a Gym failed, its qualification could be revoked. It didn't happen often, but it wasn't unheard of either.
So being a Gym Leader didn't mean you could just sit back, hand out Badges, and live off the League stipend. Without effort, a Gym could lose its status.
Take Pewter Gym, for example. If Brock hadn't been so exceptionally talented, holding everything together after his parents left, Pewter Gym might've lost its qualification too.
At twenty, Brock had already raised Pokémon at the Professional—Peak tier, surpassing even his parents' generation. But most of those stronger Pokémon were left at the Gym with Flint as its backbone. The only ones Brock traveled with were the Geodude and Onix he'd used against Ash.
And recently, he'd caught a Zubat at Mt. Moon, bringing his team to three.
Compared to the Pewter Gym, the Cerulean Gym hadn't been nearly as fortunate.
It had four successors—the four sisters. By logic, at least one of them should've had the talent to carry on the role of Gym Leader, right?
And there was one. The youngest sister. But she was only fifteen this year. Their parents had secretly given her Pokémon early, taught her battle strategies, how to train and raise Pokémon, and shared every bit of knowledge they could.
She showed astonishing talent, far outshining her three older sisters in every way. But before she could grow into the role, tragedy struck—their parents died in an accident.
With no parent left to back them up, and the youngest sister still too inexperienced, the Cerulean Gym instantly plummeted to the weakest Gym in Kanto—without question.
Even with all her effort, the youngest sister could barely scrape out victories against Beginner Trainers. But against anyone more seasoned—anyone who'd traveled for half a year or more—she stood no chance.
It wasn't just her Pokémon's strength. She'd also been shut away in Cerulean City her whole life.
How could someone who'd never seen the wider world understand its vastness? How could she deal with challengers coming in from different towns and regions?
A Gym Leader with less experience and knowledge than her challengers was no help at all. Beyond handing out Badges, she offered nothing. At the next evaluation, there was a very real chance Cerulean Gym would lose its status.
The youngest sister fought with her older sisters over this. She felt it wasn't right for her to shoulder the Gym alone—they should help too.
But the three older sisters argued they performed the Water Ballet every day, and every cent they earned went into raising her Pokémon. They had no extra money to raise more Pokémon, and no time for training or battles.
Furious, the youngest sister stormed out of the Gym. She declared she didn't need their support—that she would raise her Pokémon on her own. And when she came back, she swore she'd be an even stronger Trainer than their parents ever were.
"…But with the young miss gone, the Cerulean Gym's gotten weaker than ever," Hanae sighed. "Before, at least her Pokémon could hold the line against challengers. Now the strongest Pokémon left in the Gym are only at the Advanced tier.
"And Daisy and the others… they don't know the first thing about Gym battles. Even beginner challengers can wipe the floor with them. I don't know when the young miss will return."
Ash and Brock exchanged looks. Neither of them had expected such a backstory. Ash had never even heard the title "weakest Gym" before Hanae mentioned it.
Brock knew Cerulean Gym had the reputation of being the weakest in Kanto, but he hadn't realized the hidden reasons behind it.
Now he also understood why Misty had left Cerulean City—and why she refused to return. She'd stormed out after clashing with her sisters.
But Brock thought she'd made the right choice. Without seeing the outside world, anyone—no matter how gifted—would stagnate.
Even he had left on a journey at fifteen before returning home. That was why, even after his parents left and he had nine siblings to care for, he'd still managed to keep the Gym alive.
By now, the three had reached the backstage door. Hanae knocked, and a voice inside called, "Come in."
They entered to find the three Cerulean sisters, now changed out of their swimsuits, towels in hand as they dried their damp hair.
The blonde sitting at the center of the vanity mirror blinked in surprise at Ash and Brock, then caught on quickly. "You're here for a Gym challenge, aren't you?"
Anyone brought back here by Hanae at this time had to be a challenger.
"That's right. I'm Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town, here to challenge the Cerulean Gym."
"I'm Daisy, one of this Gym's Leaders… but challenging us right now might not be very convenient."
"Not convenient?"
"Mm. You see…" Daisy explained the Gym's situation.
The official Gym Leader was their youngest sister, but she'd left to become a stronger Trainer. So the three of them had been managing the Gym in her absence.
But none of them had real talent as Trainers. Years of focusing on Water Ballet meant they'd neglected battling entirely. Their Pokémon were weak, their commands clumsy—sometimes even worse than those of rookie Trainers.
Just yesterday, another Trainer from Pallet Town had come by and thrashed all their Pokémon. They were still recovering at the Pokémon Center and wouldn't be back until tonight. Which meant no battles until at least tomorrow.
"A Trainer from Pallet Town… spiky hair, kind of an arrogant face?" Ash asked, picturing Gary Oak. Daisy nodded in confirmation.
"That guy… always one step ahead of me!" Ash clenched his fists, teeth grinding in frustration. His rival always beat him to the punch. How could that not drive him crazy?
"Anyway, that's the situation," Daisy said with a small shrug. "But since you're from Pallet Town too… you look a little hot-headed, but you should be strong, right? If you're fine with it, we can just give you this Badge."
Beside her, Violet—with her sky-blue hair—pulled out a Cascade Badge and offered it.
Lily, sitting nearby, nodded her agreement.
Ash: …
Brock: …
This… this is a Gym Leader? Badges handed out for free? Since when were Gym Badges this cheap?
And what did she mean by "hot-headed"? Was he really worse than Gary?!