The once-innocent Pikachu slowly peeked out from the edge of the dense forest, its eyes filled with confusion as it looked at the boy's back.
Its round little face tilted slightly, radiating pure cuteness, completely unable to understand what this scene meant.
The boy suddenly lowered his body, dropping to one knee on the damp soil.
"Listen carefully, Pikachu," Ash said in a voice so low it sounded as if it had been ground down by gravel, utterly stripped of its usual bright vitality. "I think… it would be better for you to stay here."
The voice that once echoed through valleys now sounded dim and hoarse, weighed down by restraint.
"In this forest," his gaze struggled to pull away from Pikachu, fixing instead on the distant canopy, "there are countless companions who share your bloodline."
"You can find true happiness here. A carefree life."
"Pika… pi?"
Pikachu's electric eyes widened instantly, unable to comprehend this sudden "verdict."
Ash could no longer bear the scorch of that gaze. He reached out abruptly and rubbed Pikachu's soft little head hard.
"Then… goodbye."
"…Pikachu."
…
Before the massive sky-high screen, champion-level trainers around the world collectively froze.
Lance: !!! My brain just crashed!
Steven: …This script is wrong!
Wallace: Damn it! What kind of plot twist is this?!
Diantha: ??? Is he in his right mind?
Cynthia: Unbelievably foolish!
Alder: What is he trying to do?!
Leon looked as if he'd just been struck by a full-powered Thunderbolt—his entire body stiffened, eyes wide, facial muscles twitching violently.
"Are you kidding me?!" Leon practically roared. "Ash, what are you trying to do?!
Don't tell me you're planning to release Pikachu?! Are you serious?!"
"That's Pikachu!!" Leon shouted, his signature purple hair seeming to tremble.
"That's your absolute core ace! Your strongest partner! The most irreplaceable Pokémon on your entire journey!"
He stared at the screen, utterly bewildered, disbelief flooding his eyes. An impulse surged within him—to break through the screen, grab Ash by the collar, and scream questions into his face.
"Do you have any idea what kind of terrifying existence you're releasing?!"
In the trainer world, releasing a Pokémon was the most common tragedy—usually reserved for those with mediocre aptitude, terrible compatibility, or trainers cold-hearted enough to abandon the weak.
Leon maintained a neutral stance: he understood the instinct to pursue strength, but once you captured a Pokémon, responsibility followed. To abandon one simply for being "weak" was, to him, a betrayal of the very idea of a contract.
But someone like Ash—
voluntarily abandoning his core powerhouse, a Pokémon with god-slaying potential, a trump card capable of shaking the halls of creation itself…
Such a scene had never been seen before.
Leon had to admit it: Ash had redefined the upper limit of "eccentric trainers" in his mind.
Yet quickly, the Champion's expression shifted—from shock to understanding, and then to admiration.
"Just to let Pikachu have the happiness it believes in…" Leon murmured, awe heavy in his sigh.
"No wonder it's you, Ash. Only you could make a choice so far beyond ordinary people—almost saint-like."
On the other side, his rival Gary's mouth twitched until it nearly went numb.
His nerves felt as though they were being repeatedly electrocuted by something indescribable. He even had the urge to drag Ash out of the video and strap him to a lab table for a full psychological evaluation.
"This guy's brain is completely busted, right?!" Gary shrieked, his voice sharp as shattered glass.
"Cutting off your bond with your main Pokémon when it hasn't even asked for it?!"
"His brain must've been flooded, otherwise there's no explanation!"
Gary's pupils shrank violently, as if hit by a magnitude-10 earthquake.
Look carefully—that was Pikachu!
The invincible war god that swept everything aside!
And Ash wanted to abandon it?!
Was Ash mentally unstable, or was Gary hallucinating such an absurd scene with his own eyes?
"I can't understand it!" Gary shook his head repeatedly, frustration spilling over.
"Even if you gave me a hundred years, I still wouldn't be able to comprehend Ash's transcendent way of thinking!"
"If that Pikachu were mine…"
Before he could finish, Gary shuddered violently.
No. No, absolutely not!
He couldn't even imagine coexisting peacefully with that Pikachu, which radiated overwhelming dominance. They'd only end up trying to kill each other in the most violent way possible.
Forget leaving Pallet Town—whether they'd survive ten minutes together was already a huge question mark.
With that thought, Gary looked at the boy and Pokémon on the screen with a mixture of disgust and sympathy.
Conclusion: as expected, only a lawless Pikachu like that paired with an "overly kind idiot" like Ash could ever be a perfect match.
They were made for each other.
…
Inside the footage—
After saying those heartless words, Ash pulled the brim of his hat down hard, said nothing, turned around—
And ran.
Pikachu immediately cried out anxiously, "Pika—pi!", chasing after him desperately, eyes filled with helplessness.
Ash's body jerked to a stop.
He didn't turn around. His voice was squeezed out of his chest, roaring with resolute pain toward what lay behind him:
"Stop following me!"
"I know! I understand! Everyone in this forest needs you! You have a mission—to make them stronger!"
"So go back!"
Pikachu tried to move closer, trying to warm its trainer with its body.
But Ash recoiled as if bitten by a venomous snake, rejecting it again and sprinting even faster!
Don't come closer. Don't come any closer!
Witnessing all this, the viewers felt their hearts clenched by an invisible hand. A dead silence fell.
Leaving Pikachu was undoubtedly the cruelest form of emotional execution upon Ash himself.
But after countless nights of torment and struggle, Ash finally chose to loosen his grip.
Between his own need for Pikachu
and Pikachu's chance at true peace and happiness—
He chose the latter without hesitation.
Even if it meant eternal separation.
The audience's hearts trembled violently. They understood his choice—and were left utterly speechless.
What kind of earth-shattering resolve was this?
A sacrifice no ordinary person could reach even in a lifetime.
And it was at this very moment that everyone, as if bathed in divine light, finally understood—
Why the legendary Flame Bird, Ho-Oh, had chosen this seemingly ordinary boy.
Because deep within Ash's soul burned an unconditional love and willingness to sacrifice for all life—fierce as raging fire.
The footage continued.
Ash ran forward mechanically, driven by some unseen force, not daring to slow down.
He was afraid—afraid that if he slowed even slightly, that bone-deep attachment would crush him instantly and make letting go impossible.
In his chest beat a heart shining with a purity brighter than diamonds.
His mind replayed his entire journey with Pikachu like a film on fast-forward.
From initial rejection and resistance,
to being electrocuted black time and again,
to their perfect synergy and peak battles side by side…
"This is for the best!"
"This is the most perfect ending!"
Ash repeated it again and again—not so much to the world, but to numb and convince himself with everything he had.
"Compared to a journey filled with hardship by my side, Pikachu can find the peace it longs for here!"
Behind him, Brock and Misty watched his lonely back, throats tight, unable to offer a single word of comfort.
The dawn sun slowly rose in the east.
Ash lowered his head, hiding his bloodshot eyes beneath the brim of his hat. He didn't want anyone to see his weakness.
And then—
In the very next second, a painfully familiar figure and a warm glow burst through the golden light of dawn and appeared at his side!
It was Pikachu—
the Pikachu that had chased him all this way, proving its choice through action!
…
"Waaah! I'm completely broken!"
"Pikachu! Pikachu's love for this kid is as deep as the sea!"
"This is true mutual devotion, nya! A soul-engraved contract! Eternal redemption, nya!"
Team Rocket's trio completely lost control in front of the screen, clinging to each other and sobbing uncontrollably.
Heavens above!
The bond between this pair had pierced them straight through!
Ash and Pikachu had to be bound by the gods themselves with the strongest chains imaginable!
What do you mean 'separate'?
In front of them, that word was nothing but a bad joke!
Kalos Region
Serena's eyes brimmed with shimmering tears, sparkling beautifully.
"So many years have passed… and Ash has never changed."
"He's still that pure, passionate boy who treats every Pokémon as life itself."
Oh! Facing such sincerity that hurt the heart, how could she possibly—cough—
At that thought, Serena's cheeks were instantly washed in heat, flushed with a delicate, moving red.
~~--------------------------
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