At the Oreburgh Gym, Lady Berlitz gasps with surprise when Cranidos delivers an unexpected Shock Wave, and causes Piplup to tumble back in agony. Roark remarks that the Lady has made the right choice in picking a water type to deal with Cranidos, since water has an advantage over his expert rock type. However, he has made his own measures to counter the natural imbalance as well, and taught it an electric attack which is super effective on Piplup.

Taking a look at the injured little Penguin, Roark grins that it is always advisable to gain an early upperhand, and switches out Cranidos for Onix. Lady Berlitz thinks to herself that while Piplup indeed possesses a type advantage at the rock-type gym, it was actually not her original intention since her aim has been to help Piplup regain its confidence all along. Yet, she rationalizes that all their efforts will become pointless if Piplup gets defeated, and makes up her mind to switch in Ponyta instead.

Roark points out that he has the advantageous side this time with fire against rock, and quickly orders a Double-edge from Onix. The giant rock serpent rams its head into Ponyta, and sends it crashing against the opposite wall. Lady Berlitz reads from her Pokedex that Double-edge is an aggressive attack which is extremely powerful, but risky at the same time since it causes recoil damage on the user.

Roark compliments on the Lady for her knowledge, but reveals that his Onix possesses the Rock Head ability, making it immune to rebound injuries. The Oreburgh Gymleader then decides to add further pressure on his opponent, and commands a Stealth Rock from Onix. Onix wiggles its tails to send boulders swirling around, which eventually encircle Ponyta like a floating cage.

Outside, Pearl struggles to support Dia's weight, and wants to know what is going on now. Dia exclaims that Roark's Onix has unleashed a Stealth Rock, and Pearl recalls that the special move targets not the current Pokemon on the battlefield but the one that is about to be switched in. In other words, the attack was aimed at Piplup.

In that instant, Onix delivers a Slam to hurl Ponyta against the windows, and causes Dia to nearly lose his stance. Fortunately, Chimlord and Chatlord hurriedly hop to his rescue, and use all their might to steady him. The fire pony gets knocked out from the series of physical assaults, and Roark taunts that it is time for Piplup to fight again.

Lady Berlitz knows that she has no other choice, and braces herself as she calls Piplup back onto the field. The floating boulders instantly jab at the little penguin, and take away a good portion of its health. Fighting down its agony, Piplup unleashes a jet of water from its beak, which blasts at Onix like a water hose and quickly faints the rock serpent. Roark grunts that Onix's double weakness to water truly compromises its defence, and proceeds to send out Cranidos again.

With both of them down to one Pokemon each, Roark comments that Piplup has already suffered from the combined damages of Shock Wave and Stealth Rock, and believes that it will be an easy victory for his Cranidos. Lady Berlitz voices her encouragement for Piplup, and tells it to beat its foe with its type advantage.

However, Cranidos begins to create illusions of itself by using Double Team, and Piplup soon finds it increasingly difficult to target the real thing with its Bubble. Roark grins that while type advantages are important in battles, they become meaningless if the attacks fail to hit.

Outside, Pearl requests to know the progress of the match again despite the burden on his shoulders which is getting more and more unbearable. Dia cries with a worried tone that things are not looking good, and Lady Berlitz and Piplup are on the verge of getting defeated. Pearl grits his teeth in frustration, and starts yelling that Lady Berlitz should put into real practice the various attack combos she has learnt from the training menu. He screeches at the top of his voice that he forbids her from losing, or she will have to pay a 1 million dollar fine.

Pearl's hollering not only caught Lady Berlitz's attention but also that of the statue. It thinks that the boys are trying to give advice to the challenger again, and Dia starts to get worried. But Pearl suddenly gets an idea, and yells that they should practice Manzai there, much to Dia's bewilderment. Not knowing what Manzai is, the statue could only wait and see if the boys are going to do anything that breaks the rules.

Pearl: (legs trembling) Spea... speaking of Pokemooon!!
Dia: Speaking of Pokemooon~
Pearl: Speaking of Pokemon, there are lots... of names...
Dia: Lots of names~ Many of them sound so alike that my tongue will surely be all tied up if I have to speak them in a row~
Pearl: Is... that... so. Let's practice some tongue twisters then.

Pearl: Tyrogue Tauros Torkoal~ Abra Arbok Abomasnow~
Dia: Tyrogue Tauros Torkoal~
Pearl: Gastly gets to guess which guest has gas~
Dia: (sweats) Gastly gets the gas to guess...
Pearl: Combee has a contract to make contact with a comet and be compact in a combat~
Dia: Combee contacts comet con...con... con... (gets dizzy) Arrgh, all the coms and cons are making me con-fused!

Dia's last words strike like a radical in Lady Berlitz's mind, and she quickly orders Piplup to unleash another attack. The little penguin generates a circle of water to propel out from its body, and hits all the Cranidos that surrounds it at the same time. Yet, although the real Cranidos receives damage as well, it is barely fazed and continues to speed around its foe with a Double Team. Roark smirks that it is time to finish things off, and orders a Zen Headbutt.

However, just when the attack is about to make contact with Piplup, Cranidos steers off into another direction, and rams its hard skull into a rock instead. Little Torchics start flying in circles around its head, and Roark gasps that it has been confused. The headbutt Pokemon keeps delivering a series of Zen Headbutt, but ends up hurting itself more but crashing into nearby rocks everytime. The accumulated damage soon drains it of its health, and the little dinosaur collapses to the ground with a thump.

At that moment, Roark finally realizes that the last move Piplup delivered was Water Pulse, an attack not intended to cause damages but aimed at confusing the foe. The statue states that Cranidos has been rendered unable to battle further, and declares Lady Berlitz the winner. Outside, Pearl breathes out a sigh of relief and finally collapses, causing Dia and everyone else to tumble over.

Back in the gym, Roark says he is truly amazed, and still finds it hard to believe that he has destroyed himself at the end. But he grins that his defeat is a solid fact, and hands over the Coal Badge to Lady Berlitz as a recognition of her true strength. The Lady seems pleasantly surprised that winners even get sparkly souvenirs from gym challenges, and decides to pin it onto her scarf. Next to her, Piplup puts on a thrilled and content look, and clutches its little hands in a victorious pose.

A while later, Lady Berlitz leaves the gym in high spirits to rejoin the boys outside. Dia immediately hops up to congratulate her, while Pearl wears a tired look, and slowly massages his sore back. Pearl can tell from Piplup's perky face that it has finally regained its confidence, and feels grateful about it. Although the little penguin keeps its arrogant look as Pearl speaks, it secretly steals a glance at the boy once he has turned his head away, and momentarily shows a look of gratitude. The Lady grins that she owes everything to Dia and Pearl, and thanks them for their little hint during the match.

After they return to the hotel, Lady Berlitz suddenly remembers how Pearl advised Piplup to use Bubble instead of Pound when she was battling the first virtual Youngster. At that time, she has not given any commands, and wonders how Pearl knew Piplup was going to use the move Pound. Dia giggles that Pearl has always been to tell what attack a Pokemon is planning use simply by looking at its movements, and Pearl shrugs that it might be due to his father's influence on him.

Lady Berlitz puts on a look of confusion, and Pearl explains that his father is a very skilled and powerful Pokemon trainer who used to teach him a lot about battling during his childhood. Although he didn't really learn too well, he still managed to pick up some important techniques during all those sessions. A few years back, his father has gone off somewhere and Pearl has honestly no idea what the man is doing right now, but he reveals that the training menu he gave Lady Berlitz was written from recalling the things his father has coached him on before.

Thought taken by surprise, Lady Berlitz is amused that both father and son are professionals in battling, and secretly feels grateful that her own father and Prof. Rowan have picked such a competent bodyguard for her. She then reaches into her bag, and grins cockily that she didn't need to pay her penalties after all.

Dia and Pearl have no idea what she is talking about, and she reminds Pearl of the money fine which he mentioned during her gym challenge. She proceeds to pull out a pile of bank notes worth 1 million dollars, and causes both boys to drop their jaws in astonishment. Dia stares in disbelief at the extraordinary sum of money, but Pearl's lower backache is starting to make him feel dizzy, and the boy says he will need his bed immediately.

A few moments later, in Dia and Pearl's suite room, Pearl has dropped dead on his bed, and Dia gently pulls the scarf off him. Dia remarks that Pearl must be exhausted and tells Lady Berlitz how the boy supported him on his shoulders to pry on the gym battle earlier, much to the girl's shock. The Lady can't understand what makes the boy try so hard, and Dia explains that Pearl is someone who will stand his ground and see to the end once he has made up his mind about something. This time, he has decided to help Piplup regain its confidence, and thus remained persistent regardless of what it took.

Dia puts on a proud grin for his childhood companion, and says Pearl certainly has a tough mind, an ultimate toughness without a doubt. Behind him, Lady Berlitz feels touched by their strong friendship, and puts on a gentle smile...

(Original Japanese Jokes)

1. During the gym challenge, Pearl and Dia have recited a tongue twister to give hints to Lady Berlitz, starting just with Pokemon names that end with the same syllable, and then adding in other words that also rhyme with the names. The whole verse is 'Utsudon Utsudon Lizardon; Porygon Kabigon Dorapion; Ghos ga jyouzu ni byoubu ni Ghos no e wo kaita; Konya Kongpang ga contest konran no combo de katsu kontandaro konchikushou', which means 'Weepinbell Weepinbell Charizard; Porygon Snorlax Drapion; Gastly adeptly drew Gastly on a screen; Venonat the devious creature won the contest tonight with a confusion combo'. The main aim of the whole verse is to make the Lady think of 'Confusion'.