"Usopp—now! Finish it!!!"
On the desolate Gym battlefield, Red shouted sharply at Usopp, who had just used U-turn to evade a frenzied Primeape's wild flurry of attacks.
"Got it!" Usopp responded instantly from midair.
Relying on the burst momentum from U-turn, he hung briefly in the air—just beyond Primeape's reach.
In the next instant, a string of jet-black pellets appeared between his fingers.
Draw, load—one smooth motion!
"Go down for me already!!!"
"Special Move! Booger Star Barrage!!!"
Whoosh whoosh whoosh—
Usopp's arm moved like the legendary single-for-eighteen-years Kirin Arm, firing his homemade ammunition downward at terrifying speed.
In an instant—
A storm of crude bombs made from Gem's specially processed boogers rained down!
Like falling raindrops, they densely covered the entire sky above Primeape, leaving it nowhere to dodge!
BOOM!!!
Blazing fire erupted at the center of the battlefield. Scorching shockwaves carried rolling smoke outward in all directions.
Though the production process was disgustingly vile…
Under the same explosive yield, Gem's boogers were far smaller in volume than conventional gunpowder—and significantly easier to process.
So Usopp grit his teeth, suppressing his revulsion, and used his usual Powder Star craftsmanship to hurriedly make a whole pouch of Booger Stars.
Each bomb still packed the same explosive power.
But their smaller size allowed Usopp to fire far more shots at once.
Not only did it massively expand the blast radius, it also turned quantity into qualitative destruction, producing devastating explosions in a split second.
At the edge of the battlefield—
Before the thick black flames could dissipate, a system notification flashed in front of Red's eyes:
[Usopp defeated the Gym Trainer's Primeape. Gained: EXP +283][Command Evaluation: Average][Bonus Reward Gained: EXP +57]
"Here it comes!"
Red broke into a grin and instinctively opened Usopp's status panel.
The filled EXP bar flashed white—and instantly reset.
That meant Usopp had leveled up for the second time today, reaching Level 23!
By now, more than two hours had passed since they entered the Gym.
By relying on constant U-turn kiting, Usopp had methodically whittled down every one of the Fighting-type close-combat specialists with various ammo combinations.
Every bit of damage came from external equipment.
And that allowed a Level 21 Usopp to cut straight through a Gym full of Pokémon above Level 30!
After a grueling series of battles, they finally stood before the Gym Leader.
"So this is the last one, right?!"
Usopp removed his goggles, revealing a rare heroic expression as his battle-hardened gaze locked onto the deepest part of the Gym…
There stood a martial artist with arms crossed, dressed in a karate gi.
"Well? Need a break?"
Red stepped over and handed Usopp a Super Potion and an Ether, quickly restoring both stamina and Pokémon energy.
Usopp wasn't like Luffy or Zoro—pure combat maniacs.And all of his opponents were at least ten levels higher than him.
On top of that, ranged fighting drained far more mental focus than frontal combat.
After such intense consecutive fights, exhaustion was inevitable.
Truthfully, Usopp had already far exceeded Red's expectations today.
But after hearing Red's concern, Usopp immediately shook his head.
As the weakest member of the crew, he could acknowledge his weakness—but he would never accept being left behind by his comrades.
Today, finally, it was his turn to step into the Pokémon world.
He wasn't about to waste that chance!
"I'm fine—I can keep going!"
"Don't underestimate me, Red!"
"I still haven't used my secret weapon yet!"
As he spoke, Usopp reached into his pocket and pulled out an Usoppgy Bomb, grinning mischievously.
Originally, due to its cost, he only planned to use these in emergencies.
But after tasting the sweet power of Gem's bombs…
He was already imagining a future where Usoppgy Bombs were his basic attacks.
Bomberman Gem had cured his firepower anxiety completely!
As long as he had prep time, he could become an infinite-ammo sniper in minutes.
So bring it on!
He would suppress every enemy on the battlefield—
With explosions and flame!!!
Explosion is art!
"Seriously… are you sure you didn't get switched with someone else? You're nothing like your usual self today~"
Seeing Usopp still bursting with energy, Red teased him with a smirk.
Then he stopped wasting time and stepped forward, calling out encouragement:
"In that case—go all out!"
In the next moment, the Gym Leader's dialogue sequence triggered.
The martial artist planted his hands on his hips, wearing a disdainful expression.
"Hmph! What nerve—coming here to challenge my Gym!"
"I am this Gym's Leader, Kiyo! And don't expect any mercy!"
"Take this!!!"
With that, Kiyo openly walked down the steps and entered the battlefield himself.
"Uh…"
Red couldn't help muttering:
"Even without official approval… your presentation is seriously low-budget."
No cheering crowd. No flashy cutscene.Just the Gym Leader calmly walking to his position.
"…Why do I suddenly feel kind of bad for him?" Red smacked his lips.
The battlefield activated.
Kiyo immediately hurled out his Poké Ball.
"Go—Poliwrath!"
A red flash burst forth.
A massive blue frog with powerful arms and a spiral emblem on its chest appeared.
"Wait—Poliwrath?! Water/Fighting?!"
Surprise flickered in Red's eyes—followed instantly by a grin.
"How lucky… Poliwrath is completely countered by Usopp."
"And look at that dry skin—definitely not the Damp Ability!"
"Nothing to worry about now."
Poliwrath was Water/Fighting.Usopp was Bug/Grass.
Water moves were resisted by Grass.Fighting moves were resisted by Bug.
Both dealt half damage.
Meanwhile, Usopp's ammunition had nothing to do with his typing—
Pure flame and impact.
As long as Poliwrath didn't pull out some off-type move, Red genuinely couldn't see how Usopp could lose.
Battle erupted instantly.
As a Fighting-type Gym Leader, Kiyo skipped ranged Water attacks and ordered immediately:
"Poliwrath, use Close Combat!!!"
It was clear he'd recognized Usopp's fighting style from the start.
Close Combat abandoned all defenses to charge straight in—A Fighting-type dash move with built-in gap closing.
But both Red and Usopp were ready.
Before Red could even speak, Usopp was already moving.
"U-turn!"
Swish—!!
Usopp blurred into a streak, vanishing from his spot in an instant.
He dodged Poliwrath's charge—and kept moving.
Charging straight toward Poliwrath's original position!
In a blink, human and Pokémon crossed paths, swapping positions entirely.
Though U-turn was a Bug-type lunging attack—
In Usopp's hands, it had become an absolute god-tier spacing tool!
"Usopp! Use Tri Attack!"
"And try infusing your ammo with Pokémon energy!"
Red shouted urgently.
Not because he needed to assert authority—but because he'd spotted the ammo in Usopp's hand.
That was an Usoppgy Bomb.
If he didn't speak now, Usopp would miss out on command EXP!
But what Red didn't expect—
At the instant his words landed, Usopp's slingshot hand erupted with red, yellow, and blue light!
The very energies of burn, paralysis, and freeze.
Then—
Under Usopp's control, the red and blue energies vanished.
Leaving only the crackling yellow lightning!
Maybe it came from his experience crafting Nami's Clima-Tact…
But in that moment—
Usopp cleanly extracted the lightning component of Tri Attack, injecting it straight into his ammo!
"This is—?!"
Controlling Pokémon energy for the first time, Usopp froze—
Then burst into ecstatic laughter.
"Take this!"
"Usopp Special Move! Ultimate Finisher—THUNDERCLAP · USOPPGY BOMB!!!"
The pitch-black projectile ignited midair, blasting forth terrifying heat as it hurtled toward Poliwrath!
Demonic flames instantly swallowed its body.
And then—
From within the fire, a torrential surge of lightning erupted, surging alongside the blast and tearing through Poliwrath's entire form.
Though still weak—
That lightning became the final straw.
Staggering out of the smoke, Poliwrath was covered in wounds.
Golden arcs of electricity flickered across its body.
Thud!
Its body shuddered—and collapsed.
Poliwrath lost consciousness.
Usopp—
Solo-KO'd a Pokémon eleven levels higher than him!
Victory goes to—USOPP!!!
(End of Chapter)