The chapter opens hours after the previous events, following Team Blitz's attack on Bill. Inside the Pokémon Centre, we're greeted by Dango and Rose, who are catching up, with Maylin walking just behind them. Dango talks about his adventure and how he met Maylin. Spotting the girl, Rose thanks her for helping against Team Blitz and steps forward to shake her hand, though she pauses—something about Maylin's face seems oddly familiar.
Maylin shakes her hand with a polite, almost forced smile, and then reveals the truth: she's the same girl Rose shouted at back in Pewter City when she asked for help catching a Pokémon. Rose, now realizing her identity, turns to Dango, catching the boy trying to hold in a laugh. She narrows her eyes and asks if he knew. He casually shrugs and says he did.
Rose gives a quick apology, saying Maylin had just been a bit pushy and annoying at the time. From the background, Dango loudly calls out that her apology is terrible. Maylin laughs at Rose's poor attempt to make amends, waving it off and saying it's fine.
Nurse Joy calls over to Rose for her Pokémon, and Rose goes to retrieve them. After getting them back, and at Rose's suggestion, the group heads outside to battle. Dango mentions his need to get his second Gym Badge, prompting Rose to proudly announce that she already has hers—much to everyone's surprise. Dango congratulates her, and Rose, feeling more hyped than ever, throws out her Grovyle.
Axew, perched on Dango's shoulder, locks eyes with Grovyle. The Grass-type smirks, almost mockingly. Dango is taken aback, impressed and curious how her starter evolved before his. Rose responds smugly, claiming it's because she's simply a better trainer.
Dango quickly argues back, pointing out that she's never beaten him in a battle. Rose shrugs off the comment, stating that since they'll be waiting for Misty to return anyway, they've got plenty of time for a match.
Dango agrees, calling out to Axew. But Axew, still caught up admiring Grovyle, doesn't hear his name the first time. It isn't until Dango calls again that Axew snaps out of it and jumps down, ready to battle. Grovyle steps forward, too, and Maylin steps up to referee. As the battle begins, the two Pokémon charge straight at each other.
Meanwhile, at Bill's house, we see Misty and Bill. They talked about Team Blitz and how they made a move on him. Bill jokes about how they wanted him for his looks, flashing his hair with Misty shouting at him to be serious. Misty asks about this Pokémon, Koragu, and why Team Blitz is so adamant about getting him.
Bill: "Koragu—a legendary Pokémon said to contain the genetic blueprint of every Pokémon species across the entire world."
Misty: "Isn't that just Mew?"
Bill: "You're not wrong. Mew is known to carry the DNA of all Pokémon… but only within its native region."
Misty: "I'm listening."
Bill: "There are eight known Mews—one for each major region. Each of them holds the genetic data specific to the Pokémon native to that region. For example, the Mew from our region contains only the DNA of Kanto Pokémon. But Koragu… Koragu is believed to be the original source—the prime body from which all Mew were derived. It carries the complete genetic code of every Pokémon across every region."
Meanwhile, Axew charged in and landed a solid Headbutt on Grovyle, but the Grass-type barely flinched. With sharp focus, Grovyle countered with two swift Leaf Blade slashes, striking Axew cleanly and knocking him back. Axew hit the ground but let out a fierce roar—glowing rocks rose around him and came crashing down with Rock Slide.
Grovyle's eyes narrowed. He activated Agility, weaving through the falling boulders with blinding speed. He closed the distance in a flash, Leaf Blade glowing once more. Dango shouted for Axew to leap away, and Axew tried—but Grovyle was already mid-air. With incredible precision, he adjusted his angle and brought his blade down hard, slamming Axew back to the ground before he could escape.
Axew tries to get up but falls, unable to battle. Maylin confirms Axew's loss, and Dango rushes over. Axew gets up, weakly, before climbing back on Dango's shoulder. Axew looks at Grovyle, saddened by his loss. Maylin, taking her job a bit seriously, shouts for Dango to fling out his next Pokémon, much to his annoyance.
Dango throws out his Staravia, who bursts into action with blinding speed, wings glowing silver for a Steel Wing. Grovyle braces himself, catches the blow with effort, and quickly counters with a Quick Attack, knocking Staravia back. The two clash mid-field, trading blows in a blur of motion before Staravia rockets into the sky. With sharp precision, it dives back down, striking with Aerial Ace and knocking Grovyle out.
Maylin responds, sending out Rookidee. The two birds clash high above the field, but Staravia is relentless. After two clean hits with Aerial Ace, Rookidee falls from the sky and fainted.
The battle rages on until it comes down to the final moments—Dango's Elekid versus Maylin's Pikachu. Sparks fly, moves clash, and in a hard-fought exchange, Elekid lands the final blow. Dango stands victorious, breathing heavily but proud, his team battered but triumphant.
Rose returns her Pokémon, casually remarking that she still has more badges. Soon after, Maylin stepped up to face Rose herself—but even though the match was close, Rose came out on top, winning with slight difficulty.
Later, our heroes sat on a bench, catching their breath. Dango leaned forward, glancing at Rose, and asked how many Pokémon she'd caught so far. When she answered forty-five, Dango practically fell off the bench.
He stared at her in disbelief, trying to figure out how it was even possible to find that many in such a short time. Maylin just crossed her arms and shot him a look, telling him flat-out he needed to stop wasting time.
Dango glanced over at Axew, noticing the lingering sadness in his eyes. He wanted to understand what was weighing on his partner's heart. Without saying much, he stood up, mumbling something about going to catch more Pokémon—an excuse to slip away and leave Maylin and Rose alone.
Arriving back at Route 4, the sun was starting to set. Dango walked quietly, trying to spend some time alone with Axew. He talked to his partner, wanting to understand what was going on.
Suddenly, there was a rustling in the bushes. Three wild Zangoose jumped out, landing right in front of them. Dango, realising he didn't have one yet, scanned it and called for Axew to battle. But to his surprise, Axew didn't get ready. Instead, he tried to climb back up onto Dango's shoulder.
One of the Zangoose lunged to attack, but Dango moved fast, dodging and quickly throwing out Staravia. The Flying-type burst forward, taking down the first Zangoose with ease.
The next two Zangoose leapt in to attack—but before they could reach Dango, two flashes of light sparked behind him. Elekid appeared in an instant, electricity crackling around him.
Without waiting for a command, Elekid dashed forward, fists glowing with power. With two clean Thunder Punches, he knocked both Zangoose out cold.
Meanwhile, back at the Pokémon Centre, Maylin and Rose sat together on a bench outside, enjoying some ice cream. At first, things were a little awkward, but it didn't take long before they were laughing, bonding over shared interests and experiences.
Curious, Rose asked why Maylin even wanted to become a trainer. Maylin paused for a second, then admitted that once she found out her grandmother had been a top-tier trainer, she wanted to follow in her footsteps. But deep down, she wasn't sure if she had what it takes.
Rose nodded, understanding completely. She shared that she'd had the chance to become a great Pokémon researcher, just like her father. But in the end, she chose a different path—the path of a trainer, inspired by her uncle, Blue.
Maylin: "WHAT?!" (She drops her ice cream, eyes wide.) "Your uncle's who?!"
Rose: "Blue. What's the matter?"
Maylin: "Ohhh, I get it. He just shares a name with the Elite Four member, Blue."
Rose: "No, it's that Blue. Didn't Dango tell you?"
Maylin: "He didn't?! And he knows how much of a fan I am! Hey, hey—can you get his autograph for me?" (She leans in close, practically nose-to-nose with Rose.)
Rose: "I'll try."
Maylin: "Thanks! And here I thought my family was wild… with my grandmother being Agatha and all."
Rose: "WHAT?!"
Back with Axew and Dango, Dango's guess about Axew's mood was right. He tells Axew not to worry, the evolution will come soon enough. Axew lowers his head, feeling sorry for his weakness. Dango understands more; at first, Axew just wanted to get stronger. Axew always tried to be Dango's strongest Pokémon. But when he saw the power Starly gained by evolving into Staravia, Grovyle's strength, and even Golduck's Mega form, he realized he stood no chance. Still, Dango tells him, even without evolving, he's keeping up, and that's what matters.
Dango comforts his Pokémon, gently placing a hand on Axew's head. He tells him that his time will come—and when it does, he'll be stronger than ever before. Axew's eyes brighten, a spark of hope flickering back to life. Unbeknownst to them, just behind, a strange, small monkey-like Pokémon floats silently before darting away into the trees. And with that, the chapter closes.
To Be Continued!