In the last episode, Ken had reached the Hoenn region and was ready to start his quest to the Hoenn League. He headed to Littleroot Town, and ran into Professor Birch, who was being chased by a wild Poochyena. After hearing him tell our hero to release one of his three Pokemon, Ken sent the Professor's Torchic into battle, which scared off the Poochyena. Seeing how good he was with Pokémon, Birch decided to give him the same Torchic he used. After introducing it to his other Pokémon, Ken headed for Route 101. But is that Poochyena really gone, or is it waiting for our hero to return?
Walking along Route 101, Ken noticed Pokémon that were common in the Hoenn region, such as
Wurmple and Zigzagoon, so he wasn't going to bother trying to catch them. He figured it was
better to register for the League at the Oldale Pokémon Center. However, he soon found himself
surrounded by a pack of Poochyena. "So, you guys think you're so tough in a pack, huh? Fine,
I'll just catch one of you guys and be on my way. He noticed a particular Poochyena from before,
mainly because of the battle scars it had from Torchic's Scratch attacks.
"It's you again. If you want a rematch, bring it. Torchic go!", he called out, throwing the
Pokéball. "Torchic!", the young Pokémon called out. "Come on Torchic, use Scratch on that
Poochyena like you did before." The Pokémon headed for the Poochyena, its talons ready to hit
its target. But the other Poochyena started attacking Torchic before it could connect. "Hey,
Ken called out. "This is one on one. If you want to interfere, you'll have to deal with my
other Pokémon." He pulled out two Pokéballs and tossed them into the air. "Happy Ness! Pichu!
Help me out with these Poochyena.
The two came out and stared down the pack. "If they interfere with my battle, let them have it"
he called out. "Now that it's back to one on one, Torchic, try your Scratch one more time"
Torchic headed for Poochyena, this time however, the attacked connected, causing Poochyena some
intense pain. "Now that you're softened up, you're mine." He pulled out an empty Pokéball from
his pocket and enlarged it. "Pokéball, go!" he called and threw it at the weakened Poochyena.
The ball headed for its target, and once it hit Poochyena, it caused a red beam that caused the
Pokémon to be sucked inside. The ball shook for a little bit, as the Poochyena attempted to
escape. However, the ball sounded and the Pokémon now belonged to Ken. "Yes! Poochyena is mine"
he called out. Torchic, Happy Ness, and Pichu cheered with their Pokémon cries, now that they
have another team member. Ken turned to the Poochyena pack. "So, anyone else want to battle me?"
The pack fled off, not wanting to be caught as well. "Now that I've caught a new Pokémon, it's time to head for Oldale Town. Return everyone." he said and recalled his three Pokémon to their Pokéballs. Ken continued along Route 101, where he reached Oldale Town. He checked into the Pokémon Center where he registered for the Hoenn League, and left his Pokémon with Nurse Joy to be healed. While there, he decided to call Professor Oak.
"Hello Ken.", Professor Oak answered. "What can I do for you?" "Is Yoshette there? I'd really like to talk to her if possible.", he asked. "She actually just left. She said she was going to meet up with you. She left her Sandslash and Gengar here, since she wanted to concentrate on her Wooper and Steelix. Hopefully she'll run into you later." "In that case, I'll keep an eye out for her. By the way, Professor Birch gave me a Torchic and I managed to catch a wild Poochyena."
"Excellent." Oak replied. "Make sure you treat them well. Your other Pokémon are doing fine"
"Thank you Professor." Ken answered, and hung up the phone. Nurse Joy came up to him. "Ken, is
it? Your Pokémon are fully healed.", she said and gave him his four Pokéballs. Now with his
Pokémon healed, he decided to head towards Petalburg City, the location of the first Hoenn
League gym. Meanwhile, Yoshette was headed towards the port in Vermilion City to catch a ferry
to Slateport City. "We'll be together again.", she thought to herself, as she blushed. Will she
manage to catch up to him? Find out in the next episode.