Ichigo has done what most have hoped they could do. He's defeated Kisuke and became the new champion of Kalos. Now that he's done that, he could be settling for a new life in Kalos. Before that happens, he and his friends have caught a cruise that is heading Unova so that Ichigo can see his family.

Ichigo and Absol stood at the front of the boat. That provided the opportunity for Orihime to say a little joke.

"Look at you, Ichigo." Orihime said. "You're the new champion of Kalos and you feel like you're king of the world." She giggled.

"Come on. I wouldn't feel that dorky." Ichigo said.

"Ichigo, be proud of yourself." Rukia said. "You won the Champion League. You're the new champion. It's okay to feel overzealous or such."

"I guess you're right." Ichigo said as he was feeling good about himself. He looked out to the great blue sea and thought back to his life. "It's hard to believe I really made it this far." All of them were feeling happy for what has happened. They all came far from when they all met and started traveling together. While the rest of them were up in front of the boat, Chad stayed back and thought about the same things.

'It's great that Ichigo became the new champion.' Chad thought. 'Orihime lived her dream and won the Ultimate Talent Star. They both have really made the dreams come true.' Chad was happy for them, but it had him wondering about something. 'What about me? Have I even changed since I first started traveling with them?'

Each and next chapter, the ultimate goal

Ready for battle, brave and bold

I know we're gonna make it

We will find a way

Oh-oh

We've come so far

We fought so hard to get where we are

Oh-oh

We belong together

It's always you and me

Pokemon

(Ichigo's voice): The Way to Our Dreams

Chad is beginning to wonder if he even has pursed a dream of any kind. Seeing how well his friends have done, he's beginning to wonder if he even knows what he wants in life. He stood off to the side and looked out at the sea himself and tried thinking about it.

"There you are." Rukia said as she came over to him. "What are you doing over here? Is something wrong?"

"No. I'm just doing some thinking." Chad said.

"About?" Rukia asked.

"Rukia, I am happy for Ichigo and Orihime for what they've accomplished." Chad claimed. "I'm just wondering if I have followed their example. Do I even have a dream to purse?"

"I think I see what you mean." Rukia said.

"What about you? Have you been following your dreams?" Chad asked. That had Rukia thinking about the same things herself.

"I'm not sure. All I wanted when I started my journey was to gain my brother's approval and respect, and I did." Rukia said. "After that, I just stuck by you guys because you were my friends and I wanted to see Orihime and Ichigo obtain their goals. Maybe we should follow their example." Rukia and Chad are starting to wonder where they should go now.

"Well, we still got a few hours before we make it to Unova." Ichigo said as he and Orihime came over to them. "What should we do to fill the time?"

"I think I have an idea." Rukia said. "I heard that there's a small battle tournament happening on the boat. Since you're the new champ, want to try and defend your title?"

"Actually, my pokemon and I have been battling so much." Ichigo said. "Those were some of the most intense battles we've ever been through. I think all my pokemon and I are going to do is take a nice break from battling."

"Still, the battles should be interesting to see." Orihime said.

"Well, if you're not going to battle, Ichigo, I think I will." Rukia said. Ichigo actually wasn't expecting that.

"You're going to battle?" Ichigo said.

"Why not? I think it's time I get back in the battling." Rukia said. "Is there some sort of problem with that?"

"No. It's just weird." Ichigo said.

"What's weird?! You saying me wanting to battle is weird?!" Rukia said.

"No. I'm just saying you don't usually battle." Ichigo said. "Sure you have some times, but I just wasn't expecting you to battle this time."

"Please stop." Orihime said as she could see where this was going. "Please don't argue. Chad, what about you? Are you going to battle too?"

"Well..." Chad said as he wasn't sure. He put some little thought into it and it reminded him of why he started traveling in the first place. "I think I will."

"A battle between the two of you? It should at least be an interesting to see." Ichigo said.

...

Later

"Go, Cryogonal! Blizzard!" Rukia said as she was finishing her battle. Crygonal attacked and took out a Vibrava with that attack and made Rukia the winner.

"Sableye, Power Gem!" Chad said. Sableye attacked and blasted a Serviper with a blast from its eyes. Serviper was beaten and Chad won his battle as well. Rukia and Chad decided to battle in the small tournament that was happening on the boat. The two of them were actually the top contenders.

"Way to go, guys." Orihime said.

"You both are flying through this tournament." Ichigo said. "You both made it all the way to the finals and you're against each other."

"Looks like it. That was actually too easy." Rukia said. "No offense to the other trainers, but it looks like Chad or I had this in the bag. Chad, you better make it a good battle."

"Uh... Yeah..." Chad said, but he didn't sound so sure about himself. "There's some time before the battle happens. I'm going to take a few minutes." Chad just walked away with them curious as to what was going on with him. Chad separated himself from his group and was still trying to figure things out.

"Chad, are you okay?" Ichigo asked as he and Absol came over. "Is there something bothering you?"

"It's nothing." Chad said.

"Come on. You might be strong and silent, but it's easy to see that there's something bothering you." Ichigo said. "Come on. Just talk to me." Ichigo and Chad have been friends for a long time. He figured there was nothing wrong with talking to him.

"It's just... I'm not sure if I'm living up to my potential." Chad said. "When we first met, I wasn't sure where I wanted to go. I didn't know what my dreams are. Now, look where we are now. You and Orihime have managed to make your dreams come true. I still don't know if I have any. I figured battling here might help me with that, but I'm still not sure."

"I think I get it." Ichigo said. "You're just confused and don't know where to go from here. Hey, I don't know where to go from here either."

"You don't?" Chad questioned.

"No. I beat Kisuke, but I didn't think about where I was going to go after that." Ichigo said. "That's part of the fun being a trainer. You don't know where you're going, but you know you're going to get there. The first thing about finding your dream is finding your passion. What about that wrestling stuff you did? Weren't you offered a chance to train and go pro by Dane?"

"I was. Do you think I should take it? That means I would spend most of my time in Kanto." Chad said.

"It's your choice, Chad. I'm just pointing you in a direction." Ichigo said. It was certainly for something for Chad to think about.

...

Rukia

Rukia was with Orihime and was telling her a similar problem she was having. Rukia wasn't quite sure what she was going to do herself.

"After seeing you and Ichigo in action, it has me thinking of what I want to do." Rukia said. "All I wanted was to have my brother's acceptance, his respect, and I got that. So, where do I go from here now?"

"I guess none of us have really thought about what we would do after Ichigo and I got what we wanted." Orihime said. "The goals gave us all a good reason to keep traveling together."

"That part doesn't really have to end, but that all decides on what we do from here." Rukia said. "That's why I wanted Chad and myself to take part in this battle. I'm hoping it could give at least one of us some answers." Rukia and Chad are both battling to gain a little clarity as to what they should do now. Orihime and Ichigo has inspired them to go for their own dreams. They just need to find what it is.

...

The Battle

Chad and Rukia returned to the battlefield for the finals of this little tournament. Since they're both fighting for the same thing, it will all come down to see who wants it more to who will win.

"Let's do this, Chad." Rukia said.

"I'm ready." Chad said. They both got their pokeball and tossed out the pokemon they were using. Chad was using Hawlucha and Rukia was using Dewgong.

"Hawlucha!"

"Dewgong!"

"Hawlucha vs. Dewgong... They're both their trainers number one partners." Ichigo said. "That alone sounds like it could be a great battle to watch."

"Hawlucha is a fighting-type. Fighting-types are strong against ice-types. That should mean that Chad has the advantage." Orihime said.

"That might be true, but Hawlucha is also a flying-type. Flying-types are weak against ice-types." Ichigo said. "I guess we'll just have to see who uses the better moves."

"I'm ready to get this started. Dewgong, Ice Shard!" Rukia said.

"Dewgong!" Dewgong formed a shard of ice and shot it straight at Hawlucha.

"Hawlucha, Karate Chop!" Chad said. Hawlucha swung his arm down and smashed it against the ice before it could do any damage. "Now use Flying Press!" Hawlucha jumped in the air and tried coming down on Dewgong. The attack landed and did some damage to Dewgong.

"Dewgong, Ice Beam!" Rukia said. Dewgong blasted Hawlucha since Hawlucha had no time to escape. Hawlucha was knocked to the ground and took a lot of damage.

'I get it. She allowed that attack to hit so she could blast Hawlucha with Ice Beam.' Chad said as he could see this was turning into a tough battle.

"Now use Brine!" Rukia said.

"Dewgong!" Dewgong unleashed a blast of water, but Hawlucha was able to pull it together and moved out of the way before the attack could hit.

"That's good, Hawlucha. Keep it up. Now use Karate Chop!" Chad said. Hawlucha charged right at Dewgong, but Dewgong moved out of the way and avoided the attacks.

"Blast Dewgong with Signal Beam!" Rukia said. Dewgong focused power into its horn and blasted a multicolored beam. Hawlucha blocked its arms and was able to block the attack. "Keep Hawlucha on its toes! Blast it with Ice Beam!"

"Dodge it, Hawlucha!" Chad said. Dewgong fired a cold beam, but Hawlucha jumped around the field and was able to avoid the attack. Dewgong kept the attacks going and Hawlucha was doing its best to avoid the attack.

"Chad might be in trouble." Orihime said as she was worried for him.

"Maybe, but I have a feeling Chad isn't done yet." Ichigo said. Chad was trying to think of a way out of this. He hadn't been in a tough spot since it competed in poke-wrestling. That's when he got the idea when he thought about that.

"Hawlucha, grab Dewgong by the tail and toss it to the ground!" Chad called. Hawlucha kept on avoiding attack and got close enough to grab Dewgong by the tail. When Hawlucha grabbed Dewgong's tail, Hawlucha twirled Dewong around and smashed it against the ground. That caused Dewgong to drop its guard. "Now use Giga Impact!" Hawlucha had energy spiral around itself and smashed itself against Dewgong. Being hit by a powerful attack like that, Hawlucha was knocked out of the battle.

"Dewgong is unable to battle! Hawlucha is the winner! Victory goes to Chad!" The referee said with the crowd cheering for him.

"Pretty good, Chad." Rukia said.

"Thanks. You did pretty good yourself, Rukia." Chad said. Chad was rewarded a medal for his win, but this battle has helped him realize something.

...

Later

Further down the ocean they travelled until they could finally see the end of their journey. Unova was just ahead now. They were finally home.

"Hey! Look at that!" Orihime said as she pointed to the dock. They all looked and saw Ichigo's family with signs that was welcoming home and boasting the fact that he was a champion now.

"It's good to be home." Ichigo said.

"It sure is." Chad said as he now knows what to do from here. 'I won that battle because of what I've been through. I now know what I want.' He thought

It would seem that Ichigo and Orihime aren't the only ones moving on. Chad now sees the path he wants to take. What will happen with our heroes from here on out? Stay tune to find out.

To Be Continued...

Pokemon Question: This is it, trainers. Here's the answer to the last question, and I'm sure some of you thought it was a tough one. The Youtube channel mentioned was called Watchmojo. Here's the other eight pokemon that were Ash's top Ten. Lapras, Bulbasaur, Heracross, Squirtle, Infernape, Sceptile, Snorlax, and Greninja. Added to Pikachu and Charizard, they were once considered Ash's top ten.