[Ash: Hey, hey, hey! What's going on here?! Why does the me from the black world get a Rainbow Feather, and I get nothing?!]
[Lance: That's… the Rainbow Wing! The legendary feather from Ho-Oh's own body!]
[Morty: No doubt about it—that's definitely a Rainbow Wing! It's exactly the same as the one depicted on the murals in Ecruteak City! Black World Ash's been chosen by Ho-Oh!]
[Misty: Wait, what do you mean by that? Are you saying White World Ash wasn't chosen by Ho-Oh?]
[Morty: Uh… I'm not too sure. In theory, since Ho-Oh—a Pokémon said to be unseen for a thousand years—appeared right in front of Ash, that should mean he was chosen as the Rainbow Hero.]
[Professor Kukui: I think White World Ash might not yet be strong or mature enough in mind or power. But Ho-Oh has acknowledged his heart—his love for Pokémon. So right now, White World Ash is still in a kind of probation period!]
[Professor Kukui: Black World Ash, on the other hand, is mentally and physically far more developed. That's why Ho-Oh chose him directly as the Rainbow Hero!]
[Professor Oak: Mhm. That sounds very reasonable. Given how composed and mature Black World Ash is, even if he got a Rainbow Wing, he wouldn't go shouting it from the rooftops.]
[Professor Oak: But White World Ash? The day he got one, the whole world would probably hear about it by nightfall!]
[Ash: Hey!! Professor Oak! Am I really that bad?!]
[Professor Oak: Not bad, exactly. Compared to most rookies, you're already doing well. But, well… when you compare you to you, the difference speaks for itself.]
It was true.
White World Ash wasn't weak by any means—but compared to Black World Ash, the difference was night and day.
He was already strong by normal standards, but against his alternate self… he looked lacking.
[Raihan: By the way, did anyone else notice that flash of blue light in his eyes again?]
[Diantha: I saw it, but so what? None of us know what that is anyway!]
[Ash: Gah, I swear—I'll train until Ho-Oh gives me a feather too! Speaking of which… what exactly does that feather do?]
[Morty: That's the thing—it's never been clearly explained. The old legends of Ecruteak don't describe its effects at all.]
As the Gym Leader of Ecruteak and caretaker of the Bell Tower, Morty himself didn't know the Rainbow Wing's true power.
If even he didn't know, it was safe to say no one in the world did.
Whatever its secret was, only Black World Ash might discover it.
The black screen froze on the image of Ash holding the Rainbow Wing, then slowly faded away.
Everyone knew what that meant—
—the story was about to switch back to White World Ash.
Sure enough, the white screen flickered to life.
After seeing Ho-Oh, Ash and Pikachu finally staggered into Viridian City.
Ash immediately rushed Pikachu to the Pokémon Center for treatment.
Before long, Misty showed up—hauling the burnt remains of her bicycle—and demanded an explanation.
After a long series of awkward apologies and clarifications, the misunderstanding was cleared up.
But the debt for the bike? Still there.
Before they could even argue about compensation, the Pokémon Center was suddenly attacked!
A cat and two humans burst in, announcing themselves as Team Rocket—and they started stealing nearly every Pokémon in the Center!
Ash stepped in front of the wounded Pikachu to protect it, refusing to let them take him.
Ironically, Team Rocket wasn't even interested in his Pikachu at first.
They sneered, calling it a "common" Pokémon unworthy of capture.
They learned very quickly how wrong they were.
That day, Pikachu taught them the difference between an ordinary Pikachu—
—and the Thunder God Pikachu!
[Professor Kukui: Wait a sec—talking Meowth?!]
[Professor Sycamore: I've heard of Pokémon that can communicate telepathically, but one that can actually talk out loud? I've never seen that!]
[Professor Oak: Ah yes, that particular Meowth is rather unique. Those three even tried to break into my lab once.]
[Ash: Yep, this was the moment I got stuck with them! They chased me across three regions! Three!!]
[Ash: From Kanto to the Orange Islands, from there all the way to Johto! Are you guys insane?!]
[James: You don't get it! After chasing you this long, if we gave up now, all that effort would go to waste!]
[James: And besides—that Pikachu of yours is worth it!]
[Ash: Oh gee, thanks! Should I be honored or something?!]
Ash was fuming.
Those three idiots had pursued him across half the world, building a new robot or gimmick every single day to capture Pikachu.
With that kind of persistence, they could've become engineers or inventors—but no, they chose petty crime.
[Lance: Team Rocket… now I remember. The same trio that showed up at the Lake of Rage, right? So they've been chasing you that long, Ash? At best, they're low-level grunts. Hardly a threat.]
[James: Who are you calling a grunt?!]
[Ash: Allow me to introduce you properly. The guy above you is Lance—Dragon Master, League Champion of Johto, Kanto Elite Four member, and world-class Pokémon G-Man.]
[James: Ah—my apologies! I meant no offense, sir!]
And just like that—poof, gone.
James had indeed met Lance once before—
the red-haired G-Man who had personally blasted them into the stratosphere.
Only now did he realize the man's real status—
Champion of Johto and member of the Kanto Elite Four.
Two League seats. "Invincible Dragon Master."
Yeah. Definitely not someone to mess with.
[Misty: Mr. Lance, you don't know how bad they are. They might not be strong, but they're sticky. Like taffy. You can't shake them off! They literally followed us across three regions!]
[Lance: …With that kind of persistence, couldn't they have done something useful instead?]
Lance's thoughts perfectly mirrored Ash's—
If those three had devoted that much energy to anything else, they could've been legends by now.
But no—they chose to chase one Pikachu across continents.
Brains clearly fried.
James merely snorted in defiance. They had their reasons—Ash's Pikachu represented something special!
The white screen continued to play—
After blasting Team Rocket off, Ash and Misty headed into Viridian Forest.
Along the way, Ash caught a Pidgeotto and a Caterpie—the latter evolving twice in quick succession into a Butterfree.
Soon, the two emerged from the forest and reached Pewter City.
There, Ash faced his first Gym challenge—
—and suffered his first crushing defeat.
Author's Note:
In the original world, Ash remained mentally immature all the way up to the Silver Conference—especially at the start of his journey.
He did love Pokémon, no doubt, but his early actions were often impulsive, thoughtless.
That's probably why Charizard refused to listen to him—
After all, who else brings a "coach" to a League match?