In the White World
Faced with Lance's question, Ash went silent for a moment.
Ash: "Actually… Pidgeotto evolved into Pidgeot after the Indigo Plateau Conference… but I… left it behind."
Alder: "???"
Lance: "???"
Cynthia: "???"
Was Ash the one with the problem… or were they?
With White-World Ash's team, once Pidgeotto evolved into Pidgeot, it would've been an enormous boost. Even by the standards of Ash's Indigo Plateau run, you couldn't just ignore the combat power of a Pidgeot.
So why on earth did he "leave it behind"?
Ash: "Uh… to be accurate, I didn't release it. I asked it to protect a Pidgey flock in the forest outside Pallet Town."
Ash's expression dimmed.
Ash: "I said I'd come back for it… but when I went through the forest again, I couldn't find my Pidgeot."
He hadn't forgotten his promise.
But… he'd been too naive.
The forest was huge. Pokémon moved around constantly. If he wanted to find Pidgeot again, he'd need something like Black-World Ash's Aura—being able to search for a specific presence.
Otherwise… it was basically a dream.
Mewtwo: "You couldn't find it? Pidgeot knows where Pallet Town is. Why not call it back?"
Ash: "Huh? I can't even find it—how would I call it back?"
Mewtwo: "This live chat isn't only visible to humans. Pokémon around the world can see it too. The text is converted into a form they can understand."
Mewtwo's tone stayed flat, but the meaning hit like a Thunderbolt.
Mewtwo: "So… what you're saying here can be seen by Pidgeot. Call it back. Otherwise it might think you abandoned it."
Ash's eyes widened.
Ash: "Really?! Pidgeot—can you see this?! I miss you!"
Misty smacked him (verbally) back into reality.
Misty: "Idiot! Tell Pidgeot to go back to Professor Oak's lab in Pallet Town! Then have Professor Oak send it to you—easy!"
Ash: "Right! Pidgeot—if you see this… if your flock is doing okay… please come back to me. I'm sorry. I said I'd pick you up after the Orange Islands, but…"
At the edge of Pallet Town, in the forest—
A regal Pidgeot, carrying the air of a king, stared fixedly at the screen.
If it could speak human words, it would've answered immediately.
It wanted to tell Ash it didn't blame him.
Ten years. Twenty years. It would wait as long as it took.
Now that Ash was calling it back… how could it refuse?
"Piiidgeot—!"
After issuing a command to the newer, grown Pidgeot beside it, it spread its wings wide—
and flew straight toward Pallet Town.
It was going back to its Trainer.
In the Black World
Ash finished the qualifiers with a clean, decisive win.
But even after the battle, his mind was still stuck on one thing:
the martial-arts-like technique he'd seen from that Bellsprout.
If Monferno could learn something like that…
Then for a Fighting-type, it would be like giving a tiger wings.
It might even become one of the team's core members.
Right now, Monferno didn't have a stable slot in the main roster.
The "starter trio" already took up three spots, plus Pikachu and Pidgeot, and then there was Dragonair and Aerodactyl competing for priority.
Monferno was likely stuck further back.
Which was exactly why Ash valued that technique so much.
Learn it—and you skyrocket. No exaggeration.
After leaving the stadium, Ash met up with his companions.
Well—three companions. That number had become normal now.
They congratulated him, and the group headed back to the Indigo Plateau Conference grounds.
Over the next few days, it'd be hard for Ash to keep "grinding" nonstop.
Not just him—his Pokémon needed a break, too.
It was like cramming right before an exam, then easing off during the exam—
and only fully relaxing once it was finally over.
Ash, of course, was the type to "relax during the exam," then go right back to studying afterward.
Still… he had to admit—
shopping with girls, grabbing snacks, playing little games…
It was actually pretty fun.
If his willpower weren't ironclad, he might've fallen straight into the "gentle trap" already.
After the Top 32, there was a two-day break before the Top 16.
During that time, Gary came by once.
He'd also made the Top 16.
But not from the same bracket.
Meaning if they wanted to meet, it would likely take a final.
Gary patted Ash on the shoulder and told him to toughen up.
Ash told Gary to relax too—within reason.
After all, the Conference wasn't over yet. If you fully let go now, how were you supposed to win the rest?
Ash said it plainly:
"Today I'll go out with Misty and Sabrina. Tomorrow I train all day. The day after that—battle."
Gary: "…"
Who told you to be that disciplined?!
People don't "grind" like this while dating two girls!
After a day of playing, Sabrina and Misty finally had their fill.
Since Ash still had a match the day after tomorrow, they stopped dragging him around and instead trained with him.
Ash and Sabrina even did a friendly battle.
No special powers.
Sabrina didn't use psychic "cheats." Ash didn't use Aura.
Just a straight match between Charizard and Alakazam.
Yes—Sabrina's Kadabra had evolved into Alakazam.
Before, Sabrina mostly trained herself.
But after fighting Ash, she'd learned two things:
her psychic power wasn't invincible, and
the real strength of battle lay in the bond between Trainer and Pokémon.
So in just a few months, she'd pushed Kadabra into Alakazam and built up a proper Psychic-type roster.
Charizard won by a narrow margin.
It was a friendly match—no need to push to full knockouts.
Still, Sabrina's growth genuinely surprised Ash.
From a reckless girl who relied only on psychic power…
to someone whose command skill—while still not at Ash's level—was already far beyond most Trainers.
Misty watched it all, fists clenched.
A flicker of frustration rose in her chest.
Sabrina was stronger than her in battle.
And on the journey, Ash often ended up taking care of Misty more.
Misty wanted to be reliable—someone who could fight beside Ash, not just follow behind.
So she made a quiet decision:
When Ash trained in the future, she'd train too.
Even if she and Sabrina had mostly made peace—
she refused to lose to Sabrina in this.
During training, they met a Trainer named Richie.
With an "assist" from Team Rocket shenanigans, everyone ended up becoming acquainted.
Then, that afternoon—
Ash's next match draw revealed something absurd:
his opponent was Richie, the same guy he'd met that morning.
So it was set.
Tomorrow's battle would be all-out.
The Top 16 was split across morning and afternoon sessions over two days.
Ash's match was the last match of Day One.
Team Rocket tried to sabotage again, disguising themselves and luring Ash away so they could trap Pikachu.
But this wasn't White-World Ash.
Black-World Ash punched through the trap like it was paper.
Then Pikachu sent them blasting off with Thunderbolt.
Ash watched their "twinkling star" exit and muttered, completely serious:
"These three… are they made of Legendary Pokémon or something? How are they still alive no matter how many times I send them flying?"
Even Ash had to admit it.
His own physique was already ridiculous by human standards.
But Team Rocket's ability to survive getting launched?
It felt even more absurd.
Back at the Indigo Plateau Conference stadium, Ash arrived just as his match began.
Against Richie, Ash's opponent had first move.
Richie led with Butterfree.
So Ash, without hesitation, sent out Charizard.
Top 16 meant no messing around.
Using a Fire-type against Butterfree was basic logic.
And then—
Butterfree got deleted by Flamethrower.
When Charizard fired Flamethrower and Richie tried to have Butterfree dodge, but failed—
Ash froze.
No…
Qualifiers being weak was one thing.
But this was Top 16.
Was this… real?
Richie was stunned too, but he quickly recovered, withdrew Butterfree, and sent out his second Pokémon:
Charmander.
Ash scratched his cheek, expression weird.
Using Charmander against Charizard—did Richie have a trick?
Ash decided to test him first.
Ash: "Charizard—Fire Spin!"
Richie: "Charmander—Flamethrower!"
Charmander's Flamethrower collided with Charizard's Fire Spin—
and in under a second, Charmander's flames were swallowed whole.
Fire Spin wrapped around Charmander and tightened.
Charmander was engulfed.
When the fire cleared, Charmander lay charred, eyes spinning, fainted.
Ash: "?"
When I'm making this face, it's not me who has a problem.
I'm pretty sure you have a problem.
This guy wasn't "hiding something" earlier.
He was just… charging in recklessly.
No tactics. No matchup planning. No power calculation.
And yet this was Top 16?!
The most outrageous part?
Ash felt like he saw a tiny shadow of himself in Richie.
And that made him even more confused—
because Ash was cautious. Tactical. Calculated.
So why did this reckless style feel familiar at all?
Richie didn't give up.
He finally sent out his ace:
Pikachu.
Ash's eyes sharpened.
This was the first Trainer Ash had met who treated Pikachu as an ace like he did.
So to show respect, Ash recalled Charizard—
and sent out his own Pikachu.
Both Pikachu used Quick Attack—
Richie's Pikachu got blown back and knocked out instantly.
One hit.
A complete second.
The "intense battle" everyone expected… never happened.
Even Ash hadn't expected it to look like this.
He'd thought Richie must've been hiding something earlier.
Turns out the clown was Ash—just for expecting more.
And just like that, Ash advanced to the quarterfinals of the Indigo Plateau Conference.
On Day Two, Gary also won his match—
advancing to the quarterfinals as well.
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