When Andrew introduced him by what was clearly an Internet handle, Josh entertained providing his own. "You might also know me by RaikouGoesFast." He couldn't help but laugh at the man's enthusiasm, as vulgar as it was. "He's not that much bigger than others of his kind," the Gym Leader clarified. "He just runs on all fours instead of stands upright. I wouldn't have it any other way. Isn't that right, Raikiri?" he stepped to the edge of the box to cuddle face-to-face with his precious thundercat.

There would be little time for anything else; while Raikiri could chase after a Charizard, he would rather keep the winged lizard grounded. He lunged toward Andrew's fire-type with blistering speed, voltage-laced PLASMA PAWS sparking bright whites and yellows in an effort to overload its muscles.

The sudden cone of flames forced Raikiri slightly off course. While paw and claw whiffed, the electrical arcing that came with it may have nicked the dragon enough to sting. Even if it was a small advantage, Josh had the initiative; he was right in his element.

With extreme AGILITY perhaps unlike anything Andrew had ever seen, Raikiri circled the Charizard like an orbiting comet on a collision course with the stellar object caught in its gravity. While the dragon had a moment to prepare for the impact, whatever the mythical cat was about to do would be truly devastating if Josh, a Gym Leader renowned for speed, gave him a chance to recover.

Josh smirked; he had Andrew on the defensive the entire way. That Charizard was good at defense, yes, but it was clear that Andrew was struggling to take advantage of that defense and find a way to turn the match around. Josh wouldn't allow him to find that window.

In what could have been seen as an act of brutality, Josh turned his Z-GLOVE to face Raikiri, the QUICKINIUM-Z hidden beneath his fur gleaming white and yellow. In a HYPERSONIC PLASMA CHARGE whose speed was impossible for anyone except Josh and a select few to follow, the yellow feline seemingly teleported from one side to another. Paw and claw came at the Charizard in a split second, a prelude to the line of lightning bolts and thunderous sonic boom in its wake. The only sign that Raikiri was in contact with the FIRE SPIN at all was the smell of hot fur.

That Charizard had to have dragon blood in it to withstand the triple threat of supersonic paw, burst lightning, and sonic shockwave. With Raikiri reeling from his exertion, the fire-type had all day to SLASH at him. The deep gashes proved the thundercat, yellow fur bleached red, was far from invincible.

Once Josh's Pokémon had caught his breath, he backed away from his foe. ELECTRO BALLS formed at the tips of his whiskers and in the middle of his faceplate. Raikiri charged the flying-type's way before sharply about-facing, launching the three shocking projectiles toward Andrew's partner.

The trio of ELECTRO BALLS, on top of all the Charizard's previous wounds in the battle, prompted the judges to whistle for the end of the match. With red flags pointed at Andrew, Josh had been declared the winner.

"Great match," Josh exhaled, glad to see he had won one to bolster his spot in the rankings. "I thought you were gonna turn it around when your Charizard was still standing after the Mauville Gym Special. You should be proud of your Charizard for having fight in them after that."