(Flashback)
"Dewott is unable to battle! The winner of this round is Serperior!"
"And wouldn't you know it, Trip's Serperior has taken another pokemon down! That's the third pokemon Ash has lost to the regal pokemon! Just when we thought Ash had it in the bag, this powerhouse completely altered the battle!" the MC yelled into the microphone from his booth. Ash clenched his teeth as he returned the defeated water-type.
"Thanks, Dewott. You scored some critical hits, and they're certainly going to help." Ash whispered, looking at the opposing grass snake. True to his word, the snake was panting heavily with weak marks all over its body. However, despite the state it was in, it still flashed a grin to Ash. He looked up at the scoreboard, seeing his face along with his rival, Trip. He saw Trip was down to one pokemon, but unfortunately so was he. "This is it, Pikachu...this battle is going to determine the winner of the Unova League...you show that snake who's boss." Ash said to his electric mouse. Pikachu grinned and gave the thumbs-up, then hopped off his shoulder and onto the battlefield, sparking.
"And Ash is forced to send his Pikachu back into play! After the previous battles its engaged in, this is sure to be intense! This is it, folks! This match determines it all, so don't refill your popcorn now!" the MC said enthusiastically into the mic. Ash thought he was going overboard, but he figured the job just did something to him. he looked around at the hundreds of cheering fans around him, including the small section of his friends. There he saw his Unova companions, Iris and Cilan, along with some of his old visinng friends like Misty, Brock and Dawn. He frowned, however, as he noticed only those five. He remembered one of his friend's promise they would make it, but unfortunately that didn't work out.
"Leaf Blade!" Ash was snapped out of his thoughts as he looked over to see serperior charging at Pikachu with a glowing tail.
"Dodge it, Pikachu!" Ash quickly commanded. Pikachu jumped into the air and narrowly dodged the attack by his trainer's late command. "Now Thunderbolt!" Ash shouted.
"Grab it with Vine Whip!" Trip commanded. Pikachu released the electricity onto the snake, but it grinned as the electricity coursed through its body. Two vines came from its neck, wrapping around Pikachu. "Now, throw it down!" Trip shouted. Serperior called out as it violently lowered its vines, slamming the mouse onto the ground.
"Pikachu! Thunderbolt!" Ash called out.
"Let it go and use Leaf Tornado!" Trip shouted. Serperior released its grip on the mouse just before the electricity was released, then it used its snake-like abilities to avoid the attack. It spun its body upside down and released a large cloud of leaves towards the mouse.
"Pikachu, counter with Electro ball!" Ash shouted. Pikachu formed a sphere of electric energy on its tail and launched it towards the oncoming leaves. The attacks collided with determination, then the electricity pushed through the leaves.
"Ser!" Serperior called in surprise as the electricity collided with its chest, sending it hard onto the ground.
"Serperior! Get up and use Leaf Blade!" Trip commanded.
"Intercept with Iron Tail!" Ash countered. The pokemon collided tails with their respective attacks, neither giving in. "Paralyze it!" Ash shouted. Pikachu grinned as it gave off a few sparks through its tail, reaching Serperior. Suddenly, Serperior's glowing tail was pushed back and to everyone's surprise, Pikachu pushed both their tails into Serperior's cheek! The snake called out in pain as it fell to the ground in front of its trainer, hurt from its opponent's and its own attack.
"Serperior, you can do this! Get up and use Vine Whip!" Trip called at the snake. Slowly, it rose and wrapped its vines around the mouse again.
"It won't work, Trip! Thunderbolt!" Ash shouted.
"Just what I wanted! Iron Tail in the ground!" Trip commanded with a grin. Serperior's tali glowed white, then it struck into the battlefield as Pikachu's electricity reached its body. Serperior closed its eyes, then stared at Pikachu with an evil grin.
"Not another lightning rod!" Ash said in disbelief.
"Serperior, throw it in the air!" Trip commanded, then the snake launched the mouse into the air. "Leaf Tornado!" Serperior released the cloud of leaves again as Pikachu started falling down from the great height.
"Volt Tackle into the leaves!" Ash called out. Pikachu somersaulted and became enveloped in electricity as it dove into the leaves, being cut on its sides as it charged through.
"Leaf blade, full power!" Trip shouted. The snake's tail glowed green again as it jumped into the air, heading straight for the mouse.
"Go for it, Pikachu!" Ash shouted. Both pokemon drew closer to each other with fiery determination in their eyes.
"Combine your Iron Tail power with your attack!" Trip shouted.
"Use iron Tail too, Pikachu!" Ash shouted. Pikachu's tail became silver as it swung it down towards the snake. Serperior's tail glowed silver for a second, then it became a shiny dark green as it swung it up towards the mouse. The two tails clashed and released sparks and small rays of steel energy around them. Both pokemon's faces were right up to each other, bearing their teeth in anger as they tried to overpower the other. Suddenly, the two tails glowed brightly right before a large explosion occurred in the air. The cloud quickly stretched to the battlefield so no one could know who won, but everyone could hear the two separate thuds on the battlefield.
"Serperior!"
"Pikachu!"
The cloud remained for a few seconds, but after a little while it parted. Both pokemon were on the ground.
"Both Serperior and Pikachu are unable to battle, this ma-"
"SER/PI!" everyone gasped at the angry replies. Both pokemon's eyes snapped open, then they struggled to lift themselves up.
"Pikachu, you can do it buddy!" Ash called in support.
"Come on, Serperior! You can beat them!" Trip called sportingly to his pokemon. Both pokemon grunted as they pushed themselves up. Pikachu finally stood on its hind legs, staring at the snake. The snake struggled to pull its head into the air, but managed as it glared back at the mouse.
"All right!" both trainers called as the pokemon glared at each other.
"This is clearly a battle of will now..." Ash whispered to himself.
"They both have taken took much damage to attack...now it's a stare-down to the finish..." Trip thought. Both pokemon grunted their names as they stared at each other intensely, neither side backing down. After almost a minute of the intense stare-down, then snake grunted as its head fell to the ground. "No!" Trip called.
"Serperior is unable to battle, the winner is Pikachu! This round and Unova League match goes to...Ash Ketchum of Pallet!"
"And there it is, folks! ASH KETCHUM has won the UNOVA LEAGUE TOURNAMENT!" the MC spoke rather loudly and over-enthusiastically into the microphone, just as the crowd erupted into a large cheer.
"WHOO! Yay, Ash!" Iris called out excitedly.
"Way to go, Ash!" Misty called out.
"We knew you could do it!" Cilan shouted to the boy.
"We...we won..." Ash whispered to himself, looking around the stadium. Ash ran on the battlefield and crouched beside Pikachu, holding him in his arms. "Pikachu...we won...it's over..." Ash whispered happily, hugging the mouse. Pikachu gave a half-smile as it weakly gave a thumbs-up. "Don't overdo it, buddy. You're weak and we should get you to the pokemon center right away." Pikachu nodded, then closed its eyes to rest. Ash stood up and waved his one arm to the crowd, then looked across the field to see Trip crouched beside Serperior.
"You did your best, Serperior. I'm proud of you, now take a well-deserved rest." he said, returning the snake into its pokeball. He stood up, then looked over to see Ash staring at him. They both walked to the middle of the field.
"...Good battle, Trip." Ash said, holding his hand out.
"...yeah, good battle. Congratulations on the win." Trip said, returning the handshake.
"Thanks, I hope we get to battle like this again someday." Ash said, smirking.
"Back at you. You're not bad, coming from the boonies." Trip smirked as he turned and walked to his exit. Ash shook his head and sighed as he turned towards his exit as well, heading to the pokemon center. After a few hours of resting his pokemon, requested by Ash, the league finally continued with the winner's podium.
"Ash Ketchum, on behalf of the Unova Region and pokemon league committee, I proudly present you the Unova league Champion trophy!" Charles Goodshow spoke happily, handing the golden trophy to Ash.
"Thanks, Mr. Goodshow." Ash said happily as he accepted the trophy. he eyed it in amazement, happy beyond reason for winning. "After these years of training, we finally won, Pikachu. All our training paid off on our journey." Ash said to the mouse on his shoulder. It nodded happily as it rubbed the trophy with its paws, cleaning a small spot. Ash laughed heartily at his friend, then the two made a few poses with the trophy for the newscasters. After an hour or two, the stadium was finally being evacuated. Ash walked out the main lobby with the trophy in-hand, then saw his friends waiting by the entrance. Misty looked back, then saw the boy.
"Ash!" she called happily, running towards him. The others looked over, and soon were running behind her. Ash was surprised as Misty hugged him when she came close. "I'm so happy you won! Congratulations!" Misty said happily.
"Thanks, Misty." he said, going a bit red unseen to her.
"I gotta say, I was a bit worried." Ash looked over to see Brock coming closer with his arms crossed.
"A 'congratulations' will do, Brock." the boy chuckled.
"Good job, Ash. You finally won." Brock said, hugging the boy.
"Still no 'congratulations'?" Ash asked as he rolled his eyes.
"Not bad for a kid, Ash." he became insulted at the oh-so-familiar comment made by his Unova native friend.
"Thanks a lot, Iris. It means a lot." Ash rolled his eyes again, making the others laugh.
"congratulations, Ash. I could tell when you beat me at the Striaton Gym you would go far." Cilan said, extending his hand.
"Thanks, Cilan." Ash said, returning the handshake.
"So, Ash, what now?" Misty asked.
"Honestly, nothing yet. I'm just going to go home for a little vacation, maybe look for a new region I haven't been to." Ash said.
"Well, call me if you find a place. I've been getting cramped up in the gym lately, but get this. My sister have actually agreed to take care of challengers!" Misty spoke in disbelief.
"Really? Wow." Ash said.
"What made them change?" Brock asked.
"I don't know. Probably some sort of boyfriend infection." Misty shrugged her shoulders.
"You mean they've moved on from me!" Brock asked as the sound of glass shattering was heard.
"Brock, they were never on the same level with you." Misty sighed, yanking his ear.
"YOWCH!" Brock exclaimed, rubbing his ear gently. Everyone laughed at the gestures between the two, just like the old times. The group had taken the Unova Subway south, back to Nuvema Town. Once there, they stood on the docks, watching the boat-planes land.
"Well... guess this is where we part..."Misty said.
"It's been an honor traveling with you, Ash. I hope we do something like this again soon." Cilan said.
"Me too, Cilan. I've enjoyed traveling with you. You're one of the only matches for Brock's cooking." Ash chuckled, joined by the two men.
"Well, I try my best." the connoisseur said.
"It's not going to be the same without you, Ash." Iris said sadly.
"Don't worry, Iris. Maybe I'll visit sometime, who knows." Ash said.
"I hope so, and so does Axew. Right?" Iris looked over her shoulder, then a small green tusked pokemon popped out.
"Axew, ax..." it said sadly, its head held low.
"Axew, don't worry. We'll definitely meet again." Ash said, rubbing the pokemon's chin. It looked at him sadly, then smiled.
"keep true to your word, Ash." Iris said, surprising everyone by pulling him into a hug. Ash was taken back, but smiled as he realized even she had her weaknesses beside ice-types. When Iris pulled away, she was looking away, ashamed of what she just did.
"Don't worry about it, Iris. Everyone's sad when their friend leaves. I had to split from one of my friends...but it was different than others..." Ash said quietly, looking at the trophy in his hand.
"Do I hear right? Ash has a crush?" Misty asked, making Ash go pink.
"You hear right. Maybe I'll just tell her about this..." Brock said to himself.
"No! Don't go making up lies to anyone! I don't like anyone!" Ash quickly defended himself.
"Then the pink is for nothing." Misty playfully stuck out her tongue. Ash turned his head from everyone and sighed.
"Well, our plane's going to leave soon." Brock said, pointing back to the ship on the water. Everyone shook hands, or hugged, then bid farewell as the group split into Kanto and Unova natives. The three old friends got on the plane and sat in the seats.
"Just like old times, huh guys?" Misty asked.
"The original three, back together for a small adventure." Brock said, smiling.
"You got that right, Brock-o." Ash said, smiling.
"So, Ash, if you find another region, I'm assuming you'll enter a pokemon league?" Misty asked him.
"Of course! I'm going to get stronger, and me and my pokemon going to become pokemon champion!" Ash said, lifting his Unova trophy shortly in the air.
"And maybe next time, you won't win narrowly by sheer luck." Brock said, giving a small laugh. Misty joined in, too. But Ash's smile disappeared as he stared at the trophy.
"Sheer luck..." he thought sadly to himself, staring at his reflection in the gold.
"Ash? You okay?" he shook his head and saw Brock looking at him. "I was only kidding, you know." he said.
"I know, I was just thinking of something else." Ash lied, looking out the window. The engines started, and the plane took off.
"You mean like your wedding with-"
'SHUT UP, BROCK!"
"And that's the story of the Unova League ending." Ash said, concluding the story to the professor.
"I've enjoyed the story, but I only got one idea from that story why you left. And that's the 'sheer luck' business." she said.
"Right on the nose, Professor. Pikachu just barely outlasted Serperior, probably by a few seconds. I got completely lucky on that win, and I knew my mother and Professor Oak would stop me from training really hard every day in Pallet." Ash said.
"So you took all your pokemon and left civilization, making home on the small island." Professor added.
"Not quite. You see, throughout my journey I heard about plenty of rough and vigorous spots where people train to get a lot stronger. So I thought over it, and decided on one spot from each region that was the best training spot for any kind of weakness. I excluded Kanto, however, because I didn't want to risk getting recognized so close to home. But before I left for these spots, I visited some of my old pokemon in the wild and offered them to join me again. Some agreed and some declined, and a few I couldn't contact since they were constantly on the move. But on my journey from one training spot to the next, I think they sensed where I was, and they decided to come and join me." Ash explained.
"So where did you go to train?" Juniper asked.
"First, I went to the Desert Resort, here in Unova. I chose my group of pokemon carefully for that area, I wanted to help my pokemon overcome their weaknesses. So, in the Desert Resort, I switched in parties of flying and fire-type pokemon, to help overcome their weaknesses to the sandstorms and land environment." Ash told her.
"But there had to be other environments, you couldn't have just trained in sandstorms." Juniper told him.
"Right again. Next, I went to Sinnoh's Stark Mountain for their boiling lava rivers. I trained my grass and bug-types to withstand the heat and expertly attack without flinching or having their power lowered." Ash said.
"I would figure you would go to a rainy, sunny, or snowy area after that." the Professor suggested.
"Two out of three. I went from Stark Mountain to Mt. Coronet for their sun on the mountainside. I had my water-types stay in the sun for hours, not begging for a drink or anything. As well as that, we fired water attacks into the air for long periods of time, training our attack durations and weakness to the weather." Ash told her.
"Snowy or rainy next?" she asked.
"Snowy. We headed to the last place on my list, Mt. Silver. Said to be the toughest mountain in all the five regions. I got my grass, ground, dragon and flying-types for Mt. Silver's famous blizzards on the mountaintop. We trained day and night, enduring the cold. After we were done there, all my pokemon were evolved and determined in their power. But some of them wanted to become tougher, to impress me. I tried to say it was enough, but they kept asking for more training." Ash said.
"So what did you do? You trained your pokemon against weather weaknesses, what else is there?" the Professor asked.
"They wanted more battle experience. I couldn't figure out what to do, so I headed back to Unova. I traveled the more private areas in search of a large, secluded area I could use to train my pokemon. Unfortunately, I found nothing. But, on the plus side, I did find-" Ash was cut off as a blue flash of light appeared beside him and when the light dimmed, a girl stood beside Ash.
"There, Ash. I changed my hat to black. Happy now?" she asked.
"Zo, I think it looks better on you than the red." Ash said, crossing his arms.
"Thank you, but it doesn't feel the same." she crossed her arms and turned her back to him. She opened one eye, noticing the Professor in front of them. "Oh, hi! Sorry to ignore you, I'm Zo!" she said happily, extending her hand.
"...How...?" the Professor was at a loss of words.
"How am I? Well, I've been better, but being in that pokeball for a long time can be kind of lone-"
"Zo, quiet." Ash said in a strict tone.
"But Ash, I was just answering-" she stopped when she saw Ash's eyes stare coldly at her. "...Fine. I'll just go for a walk, then." she turned towards the door.
"You'll do no such thing, I can't risk you getting attention towards us!" Ash told her.
"Well sorry for being myself!" she threw her arms in the air.
"How...how was she in a pokeball?" the two looked at the confused Professor. "Ash...how did you capture a human girl?" she asked. Zo grinned at Ash.
"See, Ash? My appearance is enough to trick other humans. I told you so!" she said.
"That's not what she meant, Zo. You came out of your pokeball right in front of her, in human form. you see the mix-up?" Ash asked.
"...Oh! Sorry! I guess that is confusing, so I'll just change back." Zo said, laughing nervously. Ash sighed as she jumped, then transformed into her original appearance.
"A Zorua!" the professor gasped.
"Yeah, I was getting to that point in the story but she interrupted. Along the way in Unova, I ran into her again with her Mee-Ma, a Zoroark, and she wanted to join me on my journey." Ash said calmly.
"Wow, Ash, you've got yourself a pretty rare pokemon." Juniper said, crouching down and admiring the small fox. It began laughing, then jumped on the table between them and Ash. From there, it jumped onto Ash's unoccupied shoulder.
"She's like a mischievous Pikachu." Ash sighed, stroking his finger under her chin. Zorua began laughing again.
"I see..." Juniper said, standing up again and looking at the fox. "Oh, that reminds me! Ash, it just so happens I have some information on the Arc Tournament." she told him.
"Really? What do you know?" Ash asked.
"It's a small bit, but it could still help anyone. I know hundreds are going to compete and it's being held right here in Unova's Pokemon League!" she said excitedly.
"So we're entering another Unova tournament." Ash said to the pokemon on his shoulders.
"Ash, it's going to be held just next week." she said.
"Really? So soon?" She nodded. "Well guys, looks like we have a little last-minute training to do." Ash said, turning towards the doorway.
"Ash, wait." he turned to face the professor. "I'm not one to be not satisfied, but I can't shake the feeling you have other reasons for leaving...Is there another reason besides the 'sheer luck' that you left?" she asked. Ash looked down at the ground, then nodded to Zorua and Pikachu. Zorua jumped off his shoulder and transformed back into Zo form, walking out the door with Pikachu on her shoulder.
"...You're right, Professor. I have a few reasons I left, but some of them I won't tell to anyone no matter what. I'm willing to share this with you." Ash said, looking at the woman.
"I'm all ears, Ash." she said.
"Well...during the Unova League, I told you how one of my friends promised me they'd be at the Unova League, then didn't show up. I was the only one who knew about this promise, so the others didn't expect another visitor. Luckily for them, they weren't surprised after all." Ash said gloomy, leaning on the examination table. "I was sad she didn't show up, but after the day was through, I was kind of glad since she would have murdered Brock for his taunting." Ash chuckled weakly, then sighed.
"So this was the girl Brock said you liked?" she asked.
"...Yes. I haven't seen her personally since we parted on our journey, but we promised to keep in touch. We talked on videophone once a week, keeping each other informed of our journeys. But when she promised for the Unova League, I was happier than I'd ever been." Ash said, lowering his head. "But when I saw she didn't come, I was heartbroken. And... I wasn't focusing on the battle completely, I was thinking about her too." he said.
"But...then that means you didn't win by luck, you won because you were almost distracted too much...as well as a little luck." she told him.
"But I was thirteen years old, then. I was the emotional, wannabe pokemon master with a lot of emotional friends. Now, I'm the guy with no friends but his pokemon." Ash said.
"But...are you still...?"
"Emotional? Hardly. Over the years of training in the various places around the globe, I came to realize that no matter how friendly you are with someone, you can never truly rely on them. You think you can, but you can't completely. So as well as my pokemon training, I learned to train my emotions. Now, I'm a master of my own feelings, and can push away an emotion if I want to." Ash explained.
"But, if you don't get emotional...how do your pokemon feel?" Juniper asked.
"They feel the same as me. Some of my pokemon are bent on getting stronger, more than making friends with others. They had no problem with my new attitude, but others had to adjust to the new life we were going to live from then on." Ash told her.
"And how did you find that island, anyway?" she asked.
"We were flying from Unova back to Johto, since we thought of making Mt. Silver our home. But along the way, since we passed over a different ocean, we found that island and explored. it had plenty of fruit, shade, space and had the wild feel to it. We took a vote; it became our home." Ash said calmly.
"Wow..." she whispered.
"And now, we're back from the island to civilization, coming to show everyone what we've been working on for the past five years." Ash said.
"So you're going to reveal yourself right away?" she asked curiously.
"No, no. I'm thinking on using another ID into the Tournament, I don't want my friends to meet me that way after all these years." Ash said.
"Well, you're in luck. There are a few different types of rounds in the tournament, and you don't have to use your actual name until the top six. At the beginning, you can use any name you want." she told him with a friendly smile.
"Thanks, professor." Ash said. After a few minutes, they were standing at the door. "Professor Juniper, you don't know how grateful I am for all the help you've given me..."
"No problem, Ash. Just make sure you do your best in the tournament." she said.
"No problem. I'll see you later, then, Professor." Ash said, turning and having the electronic doors open in front of him. He looked to see Zo and Pikachu sitting on the steps. Pikachu looked back and waved at its trainer.
"Take care, Ash!" she waved to him as the two walked away.
"Goodbye, Professor!" Ash waved back, as well as Zo.
"So, Ash, where we headed?" Zo asked.
"Pokemon League. But can you please be quiet along the way? I have to make a few calls first." Ash said, raising his PokeTransceiver.
"Oh, sure, put others ahead of your own pokemon." Zo said sarcastically, petting Pikachu in her arms.
"Quiet." Ash said. "..Now...let's hope I got this right..." Ash said, watching the electronic phone shake. Soon, a man's face came on the screen. He had short black hair that just went down to his eyes-height, all around his head underneath a white cap, brimmed with dark blue and a red pokeball symbol on the front.
"Yo, what can I do for you?"
"Hey, Hilbert. Turns out I'm coming your way, how 'bout a visit?"
No problem, man. Hilda's not here, though. She was talking about some tournament..."
"Judging by her ability for finding tournaments, I'm thinking it's the same tournament I'm entering. You might want to contact her and tell her to watch out for me, I'm not taking it easy if I face her. I'll be there in a few hours, then."
"Talk to you then, man. See ya in a few."
END