Ash and co are now in front of the Lavaridge gym. It's been a long journey, but Ash is now ready to compete for his fourth badge. Brock asks Ash is he is prepared and Ash says he's confident he'll win. May wonders what Pokemon he'll be using and Max ads in about how Flannery uses fire types. Ash knows this, so he decides to use Pikachu and his water type- Corphish. With that, he tosses a Pokeball releasing the lobster. It lands on the ground and happily dances.

Inside the gym, Ash and Flannery each take their sides on the battlefield. Flannery's grandfather, Mura, is to be the ref. He informs the two that the match will be a three on three battle with no time limit. He then adds in that the gym leader cannot switch Pokemon. Flannery cuts in, exclaiming that it isn't fair. Mura is annoyed and tells her it is an official Pokemon league rule.

Flannery embarrassedly recalls her statement and Mura continues. Mura goes on, and ends up annoying Flannery again. He has to correct her once more before the battle gets close to beginning. Flannery tells Ash she won't be going easy on him, but he remarks that she won't need too. Flannery is shocked by this statement. May comments that Ash seems pretty confident and Brock doesn't think he'll have a problem winning.

Ash remarks about how easy it will be to defeat Flannery since it's her first gym battle, and laughs to himself. Mura then tells the two to begin the match. Flannery starts by releasing Magu (Her recently evolved Magcargo.) Ash knows he needs to start strong, so he calls out Corphish. May remarks that Corphish has the advantage.

Away from the battle, Team Rocket spies on the group from a hill. Jessie and James want to storm the filed and reclaim Torkoal along with Pikachu, but Meowth has a better idea. He suggests that they tunnel under the field, pop out during the match and surprise everyone, and then nab the Pokemon. Afterwards they can retreat through the tunnel and escape by balloon. Jessie and James are enticed by this and everyone grabs some pick axes. Meowth and Jessie begin to dig, but James seems to recall this plan before. He ponders on if it will work while the other two dig away.

Ash has Corphish begin with bubble, but Magu easily dodges it. May and Max are excited by how fast it is. Flannery then has her Pokemon use flamethrower, but Ash counters with harden. Corphish takes the hit and seems to enjoy the heat. Max remarks on how Corphish isn't fazed by the heat and May seems enthralled. Corphish continues to dance in the fire while Ash watches. Brock tells Ash to attack as he can't sit there all day. Ash knows this and says he was about to do that.

Flannery is starting to worry, but she doesn't back down. Ash tells Corphish to use bubble. It blasts the fire away and launches the attack, but Flannery has Magu use double team. Flannery becomes confident now and laughs at Ash. Ash is annoyed, but he knows just what to do. He has Corphish leap up and bubble everywhere till it finds the real Magu. After a short amount of time, the bubble connects. Flannery is shocked, and begs Magu to get up.

Mura wonders how she plans to come back, and Flannery notices him staring at her. He quickly averts his gaze, but Flannery is now very nervous. She knows she has to impress her grandfather in this match, but it isn't looking good. She recalls back to when he used to teach her about the responsibilities of a gym leader, and then recalls how she would fall asleep every lesson. With that in mind, she knows she must show him how much she's learned.

Ash has Corphish go in for a crab hammer, but Flannery has Magu use reflect. Ash is shocked and Brock remarks on how he shouldn't have been too confident. Now steaming with enthusiasm, Flannery orders Magu to use sandstorm. It curls into its shell and begins to spin, causing a large amount of sand to pick up. Corphish is blown back, but it isn't out yet. Ash orders a bubble, but Magu deflects it with another sandstorm. It then manages to hit Corphish again with the attack.

Ash has Corphish try a crab hammer. It leaps into the air and starts to descend on Magu, but Magu diverts the sandstorm so that it points up. Corphish smashes through the sand with crab hammer, and connects with its target. Magu falls to the ground unable to fight. Mura declares the winner Corphish.

Under the field, Team Rocket digs away. Suddenly, they strike water and end up blasting off. Flannery now releases Megu (her Slugma) to try its luck. Ash recalls Corphish for some rest as his friends wonder what Pokemon he'll choose next. Ash shocks everyone by releasing Treecko! Ash informs them that with the right combination of speed and physical blows, Treecko could win.

Megu starts things off with a flamethrower, but Treecko dodges. He then has it rush in for a quick attack, but Megu uses reflect to bash it away. Ash's friends are in shock at how strong the barrier was. Flannery then orders a flamethrower, but Treecko dodges and uses slam. It strikes the reflect again and is blown back. Flannery is worried about Treecko's speed, so she has Megu conceal itself with smokescreen. Mura is impressed and Max is worried.

Ash has Treecko use bullet seed, but it can't seem to find its target. Flannery grins and orders Megu to use body slam. It leaps from the smoke shocking Treecko. It doesn't have time to dodge and Megu comes down hard. Flannery grins, remarking that Treecko's speed can't match Megu. Ash is now mad, and orders a bullet seed. Treecko turns its head and sends the attack right into Megu's face. After some time, Megu is forced to get off. Megu uses flamethrower, but Treecko leaps out of the way. In the process, however, its leg is burned.

Brock notices this and says that Treecko will be a lot slower now. Mura is impressed by this feat and wonders what Ash will do. Ash ends up recalling Treecko and sending Corphish back in. Megu uses smokescreen, but Corphish blows it away by using a spinning crab hammer. It then goes in to finish Megu off, but Flannery has it use yawn. A pink bubble exits Megu's mouth and connects with Corphish, causing it to fall to the ground asleep. Flannery grins, remarking that a water type doesn't have the advantage while sleeping.

Mura sees how well she's doing. Ash begs Corphish to get up, but it's dead out. Megu then uses flamethrower to knock the sleeping Pokemon back. Ash has no choice but to recall it. Ash knows Treecko is burnt, so he doesn't know who to use next. Suddenly, Pikachu leaps onto the field. Megu uses flamethrower, but Pikachu dodges with quick attack. It slams into the reflect and smashes it. Flannery has Megu use smokescreen, and Ash tells Pikachu to listen for it.

After some time, it senses Megu and goes in for an iron tail, but Megu dodges and strikes Pikachu hard with a flamethrower. It weakly gets up and uses thunderbolt. Flannery grins, remarking that the thunderbolt will never connect with Megu while it's hidden. When the smoke clears, however, Megu has taken a major hit. Flannery is shocked and Mura just nods.

Brock points out that the electricity must have used the smoke to find its target. Flannery orders an attack, but Pikachu quick attacks Megu before it can release it. Pikachu then uses thunderbolt to take out Megu. Mura looks at Flannery as she recalls her Pokemon. She seems depressed and he knows she needs to think things through. She's trying so hard to win that she isn't seeing what can happen on the field. He knows she has one Pokemon left, and he hopes she can win.

Meanwhile, Team Rocket has found a random hot spring. They warm themselves up as they discuss about giving it to the boss so he can relax after a day's hike through freezing snow. After discussing their promotions, they all cheer at the idea. Wobbuffet randomly pops out from the water and cheers along.

Flannery tosses her last Pokeball and Torkoal appears. Ash is somewhat worried, but he can't give in. He orders Pikachu to thunderbolt it, but Torkoal just uses withdrawal. It then pops back out and releases a flamethrower. Pikachu dodges and goes in for an iron tail, but Torkoal withdrawals again. Pikachu's tail hits the shell and bounces right off. Torkoal pops back out and sends a sludge bomb at Pikachu, blowing it back. Pikachu tries a thunder, but it just bounces off the shell again.

Torkoal pops out again and Flannery commands an overheat. Ash is shocked as a giant stream of fire impacts into Pikachu and smashes it away. It hits the ground dizzy with pain. Mura declares Torkoal the winner. Flannery congratulates her Pokemon as it snorts smoke. Ash's friends are in shock at how strong overheat is. Ash knows Corphish is asleep, so he only has one choice now.

Ash calls out Treecko, who falls limp from its burns. Knowing it can't move, Flannery commands another overheat. It smashes into Treecko causing it to faint. Ash is now very worried. Meanwhile, some Murkrow fly above Team Rocket as they continue to bask. As they enjoy themselves, Jessie suddenly notices some dark shadows through the steam. Meowth orders the shadows out of their hot springs, but they soon come into view to reveal a pack of Ursarings. In one swipe of a paw, Team Rocket is sent sky high.

With no choices left, Ash is forced to send out his sleeping Corphish. He begs it to wake up, but it just lies there. Flannery asks if he gives up, but Ash refuses. Flannery grins and has Torkoal use overheat. It strikes Corphish and blows it back, but it isn't out. It still continues to sleep though. Brock remarks that after so many overheats, the attack becomes less effective. Flannery then commands a flamethrower. The attack strikes Corphish as it continues to doze.

Ash begs his Pokemon to wake up. Finally, after some time, the Pokemon wakes up. It feels the fire and begins to freak out. Ash is overjoyed and Flannery is shocked. Ash orders a crab hammer, but Torkoal withdrawals and it just bounces off. Torkoal then sends a barrage of sludge bombs which connect with Corphish. Ash tells it to break free and use crab hammer. It does, but Torkoal just withdrawals again. Ash is now lost for ideas when he suddenly comes up with something.

He tells Corphish to use crab hammer again, and Flannery laughs. Her Pokemon withdrawals again, but this time Corphish strikes the side of the Pokemon causing it to go into a spin. When it can't bare it any longer, Torkoal emerges and Corphish finishes it off with bubble. Mura declares Ash the winner and he jumps for joy. Flannery recalls her Pokemon and says it did great.

Mura approaches his granddaughter and informs her that using a barrage of overheats was very risky and foolish. Flannery is depressed by this, but Mura then adds in that she battled well for her first and he couldn't be more proud. Flannery is shocked and he adds in that they gym is officially hers now. She thanks him and says she'll do her best to uphold the family business. Mura says he thinks she'll become a great gym leader.

Flannery then approaches Ash and presents him with the Heat Badge. Ash does his usual badge winning pose, and the episode comes to a close.

Thanks To GoldenNoctowl For Writing this for us