As dawn broke, Ash cracked open his eyes. He felt a yawn coming and was about to cover it with his hand, but then he found both hands occupied with something else. He looked down and smiled as he saw them wrapped around his adorable partner, Pikachu, who was snoozing comfortably and peacefully.

Ash knew that Pikachu had gone through a lot. The little mouse had tried his best to hide as much of his discomfort as he could, but unlike Ash, he still couldn't accept the fact that they were in a completely different dimension, even though it had been over a month.

Getting caught up in all of this craziness…well, it was hard to imagine it not being tough on his partner.

Ash and decided that, just this once, he'd sleep in and wake up with his partner. He didn't want to wake him, he'd feel pretty awful if he did. The aspiring raven-haired trainer stroked the head of his buddy as the sounds of the morning began to echo around the area.

With slowly drooping eyes, Ash began to fall back to sleep. Mornings just couldn't get any more peaceful...

Suddenly, the door to their room burst open, making Ash jump up in surprise and waking Pikachu up too.

For goodness sake…why did he have to jinx it?

"Rise and shine, a new day of training awaits us!" An all too familiar voice spoke.

Goku was stood in the doorway, already dressed in his gi and looking pumped. Since when was he up this early?

Ash and Pikachu looked at Goku for a few seconds before both stifled a yawn.

"Man Goku, would you mind toning down the wake up call next time?" Ash said in a sleepy voice as he stretched. Pikachu brought a paw up to his eyes and rubbed the sleep out of them.

Goku chuckled a little. "Ehehe, sorry guys, I just can't wait to get to training!" After the fight yesterday, Goku was really looking forward to seeing just how far Ash would be able to go.

Looking at him now had Goku really impressed. At first, he thought that simply training an ordinary human would take some time, but quite surprisingly, it wasn't. Ash's combat skills were obviously on his level, but it was surprising to think that there were some of his friends that Ash actually would stand a chance against in a fistfight. Ash was already on par, if not better than most of the humans he knew.

He was sure that in terms of simple fighting, if Ash was scaled up to the strength and speed of his allies, or if they were scaled down, Ash could take on Videl or Hercule almost effortlessly. (But in regards to the latter, who couldn't take on Hercule effortlessly?) Yamcha would be a bit harder, but still easy.

With Krillin, he was about medium difficulty, and he was pretty sure that Ash wouldn't get out unscathed.

At this point in time, Ash was probably about equal to Tien, who was probably the strongest human on earth right now, though if Ash kept up with his frighteningly fast improvement speed, that could definitely change.

Truth be told, Ash was doing extremely well for someone who had been training for less than half a year, and it wasn't just in terms of combat. He had gained enough strength to lift rocks over ten times his size and could even sever waterfalls with a single chop of his hand.

He had also grown fast enough to a point where the normal human eye couldn't track him. In Goku's view, Ash was good enough to move onto the next stage: Ki Manipulation.

The concept of ki had really gotten Ash excited. He was fascinated with the idea of flying without wings or shooting energy orbs from his hands. So when he was told they would start working on it, he was ecstatic.

Ash slowly got out of his bed and put on his shoes, ready for his first step into training with ki.

"Alright Goku, what do we do first?" Ash asked as he placed his cap on his head.

With a smile that could only belong to the Earth raised saiyan, Goku beckoned Ash to follow him as he left the room. Knowing that they were going to go outside for this, Ash followed, Pikachu, hopping on his shoulder.

Ash and Goku went outside, the chilly morning air hitting them both, but only Goku shivered slightly as Ash and Pikachu had dealt with far colder temperatures, due to their time on Mt Corenet.

They walked quite a distance from the Son residence, eventually coming to a familiar hill.

Seeing this made Ash turn to his mentor in slight confusion.

"Uh, Goku, why are we here?" Ash asked as he looked up at where he first agreed to receive Goku's training. Goku replied by scratching the side of his face with a single finger and looking up at the top.

"Well, ya see, ki is easier to awaken when you're in a peaceful place. I was living on my own when I unlocked my ki, but my friend Krillin unlocked it later since he was training in a temple with other people and that was less peaceful...uh, you see where I'm going with this?" Goku asked, his explanation becoming a question.

Ash nodded. "Yeah, basically, it means that if I find a place where I'm at peace then I'll awaken my ki faster, right?" Ash replied.

Goku nodded at the summary. "That's right." He replied.

The duo then began to walk up the hill. It was early morning, and the sun was just starting to rise. It was always nice to see that, despite the dimensions differing, some things just never changed

Goku smiled as he looked at the duo taking in the sights. He had to admit, until, Ash came along, he never bothered with taking in the beauty of the environment before, preferring to train or fight strong opponents.

But, for some reason, ever since Ash arrived in their world, he had learned that wasn't something that you needed to put all your time in. There were views to warm hearts and people that would make you smile and laugh. Goku hadn't really appreciated those kinds of things all that much.

Thanks to Ash however, he had learned to open his eyes to things outside of combat, and what he found made him happy. A world of beauty and filled with people, some bad, but at the same time, some good. His heart swelled with pride as he truly realised just what he fought to protect.

The trio marveled at the sunrise a little while longer, before Goku turned to Ash. "Ready to learn how to use ki?" He asked.

In reply, Ash turned his head to Goku and nodded excitedly. With a chuckle at the boy's enthusiasm, Goku put two fingers to his forehead. "Sit tight for a moment." He said before blurring away.

Ash and Pikachu looked confusedly to each other at Goku's disappearance. Where did Goku go? Ash and Pikachu simply shrugged and sat at the peak of the hill.

They didn't need to wait too long however as Goku suddenly reappeared three minutes later, with someone in tow as well. He had spiky hair, just like Goku and wore a purple gi similar to Goku's but with no undershirt and a red belt and wristbands rather than blue ones.

Another difference was that this person appeared very sleepy. Letting out a big yawn and stretching his arms to the sky, he looked at Goku. "Ugh, yeesh, dad, why'd you need to wake me up so early?" Gohan muttered as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

At this, Goku chuckled and pat his eldest son on the back. "Aw, come on Gohan, don't tell me you forgot about the promise you made Ash. You said you'd help me teach him how to use ki." He said in his cheery attitude.

"Well, sure, but couldn't it have waited a few hours? I'm not awake enough yet." Gohan complained, a frown on his face.

However, he was stopped in his complaining as he looked at Ash and saw the undying fire in his eyes. His enthusiasm and dedication making themselves very clearly known. Gohan sighed and gave the boy a warm smile. He figured further sleep could wait.

Gohan then sat cross legged on the grass and motioned for Ash to do the same. Pikachu jumped off Ash's shoulders and watched in fascination as the lesson began.

"Now, before we get started, Ash, you know what ki is, right?" Gohan asked.

Ash nodded.

"Yeah, ki is a hidden energy inside your body, but it's supposed to be pretty hard to control when your first starting out, but it gets easier when you practice." Ash answered, remembering the very few0 lessons Goku had given him.

Gohan gave Ash a satisfied nod. "Good, that makes it less tedious to teach." He thought as he then brought his hands out in front of him.

"Ready Ash? The first step to awakening your ki is to be still and relax." Gohan then focused in between his hands.

"And then..."

Ash watched in awe as a small golden orb materialized into existence between the teen's palms.

"...draw out the power within you." Gohan finished, making the orb slowly fade from view.

After the demonstration, Gohan looked up at Ash. "Alright, you try it now." He said, standing up, ready to watch Ash make his very first attempt to harness his ki.

However, he was a little surprised when Ash looked at his hands, then back to Gohan.

"I don't understand. Draw out the power from within me? How do I do that?" He asked, lowering his hands. In response to this, Gohan looked up and cupped his chin in thought. That was a hard question to make a response to.

"Ah, how to explain it...oh! Ash, close your eyes for me." Gohan instructed.

Ash nodded and shut his eyes.

"Now, Ash, I want you to visualise a great ball of energy in the core of your body. Do you see it?" Gohan asked.

Listening to Gohan's advice, Ash closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He figured that the core of his body would be somewhere in his chest, so he focused on finding the light there.

He imagined a burning, blazing light within his body, a core of raw power…

He gasped as he felt himself falling. But it was only the sensation. There was no drag on his clothes, no wind rushing by his ears. If Ash didn't know better…he could almost say that dying could feel like this…

He opened his eyes...

His breathing stilled and his blood ran cold. He wasn't on the hill anymore…

Instead, he found himself…floating in the middle of what seemed to be emptiness, nothing but complete darkness…However, that was nothing compared to what the darkness around him surrounded.

He looked around…and felt his eyes and jaw open wide.

There, burning even brighter than even the sun, was the most amazing and beautiful thing he had ever seen. It shone with a light like no other and pulsed with an almost melodic thrum.

What was really shocking was its size…

If it was normal for anyone who awakened their ki to have a cosmic-like ball of blindingly white energy that was almost as big as the damn moon, then he shouldn't have had much to worry about. But this whole thing was too much to grasp. He'd have to walk for, in his best estimate over a hundred days to circle it

He felt tiny and really, in the presence of this thing, he was. Nothing that he had ever come across in his travels made him feel this small. Team Rocket's machinations, legendary pokemon, nothing.

The craziest part…?

Ash could tell, he just somehow could tell that the massive sphere…that wasn't even his true power…

Yeah…the one thing that he needed was for this thing to get bigger. He didn't know how vast the recesses of his soul were, but he hoped that it was big enough to contain this massive thing.

Suddenly, Ash found himself back on the hill, Goku, Gohan and Pikachu giving him concerned looks.

"Are you alright, Ash?" Goku asked.

After several moments, Ash replied. "I…I saw it…it's incredible…" Ash responded.

Not picking up at the massive energy cluster that Ash must have seen to get this shaken up, Gohan continued.

"Good, it's power is immense, it's blinding isn't it?"

Ash nodded, accepting the fact that no one had any idea of his power…

Come to think of it, maybe it was a result of his—

"No…don't think of that. Leave that behind and accept this new power…"

"You can finally be strong again…" Ash thought.

"Now, Ash, reach out and touch that energy, feel it flowing through your body, feel the power."

This part was easier. Ash could easily picture himself reaching out to touch the colossal orb that shone like the sun.

"I-I...I feel it..." Ash muttered, his hand growing warmer.

"Now...bring it out!"

Ash snapped his eyes open and raised his hands, concentrating on them; on that inescapable, incomprehensible unimaginable energy.

A very translucent aura then began to appear around his body, more of a distortion in the air than anything, with just the tiniest tinge of aquamarine.

However, this was prodigal to Gohan and Goku, who knew that it took at least a few months to even make ki visible! The only one other exception to this was Videl, who had been able to make that happen within a few hours.

Ash had only just unlocked his ki and yet his body was already giving off visible power. But if that shocked them, they were definitely not ready for what happened next.

Ash's transparent flare of ki suddenly spiked and soon covered the entirety of his body in a bright blue. The power radiating off Ash's body soon began to push back the blades of grass and even sent Pikachu flying, before Goku luckily caught the pokemon.

Said pokemon gazed at Ash in complete awe. Pikachu didn't know anything about ki, but he was pretty sure most first attempts didn't go like this.

Gohan and Goku's thoughts confirmed Pikachu's musings. This was Ash's first time learning how to use his ki, they were expecting something a little more...small scale at least.

But no, this kind of ki was equal…no…it even surpassed Vegeta when he first came to Earth, whose power level, might they add was 21,000 at the time!

Ash had just awoken his ki! He was already a quick growing fighter, but this was quickly going past insane and into absurdity! Just what kind of powerhouse could Ash become?

Goku, as well as Vegeta had already gauged him at having as much, if not more ki than Majin Buu, but to show this power on his first try, showed that Ash would become a force to be reckoned with, and soon too.

They then drew their attention to the space in between Ash's palms and were shocked to find that the space was now occupied. A buzzing sound emanated from the bright blue orb that was now held in Ash's hands. It wasn't small either, it looked about the size that could be used in combat.

Ash was a little detached from his surroundings as he looked at the orb in his hands. It was beautiful, mesmerising, and he had created it. He felt a sense of pride as he looked up and finally severed his focus. The energy disappeared into nothingness and the aura around him slowly began to fade.

Ash then looked at his observers and found them gaping at his power. "S-So, is that good?" Ash asked as he scratched the back of his head, waiting for their feedback.

Goku was the first who spoke. "Good!? Ash, that was amazing. That ki was monstrous for your first time using it." Goku said.

Gohan shared Goku's astonishment. "Yeah, that kind of power this early on isn't only incredible, it's legendary!" Gohan exclaimed.

Ash blushed at the praise he was receiving and chuckled happily. "So, uh, what now?" Ash asked.

The father and son duo looked at Ash, who was eager to learn more. "Well...uh, unlocking your ki usually takes a few weeks at most, but since you unlocked in in a matter of minutes, I guess we should teach you how to control it." Gohan replied.

Goku nodded at Gohan's reasoning. "Yeah, now we can-"

Goku's comment was suddenly cut off as they noticed an approaching figure flying towards them. Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be Goten. As the eight-year old grew closer, they noticed that he had an anxious look on his face.

As Goten landed, Gohan addressed him. "Hey, what's up, squirt?" He asked. To their surprise, Goten looked panicked.

"G-Guys! Mom's super mad that you snuck out again and she's heading over here right now!" He cried.

Sure enough, when they directed their attention to the ground below, the occupiers of the hill saw a cloud of dust streaking to their location. Ash and the others gulped nervously as they recognised that cloud of dust was Chi-Chi sprinting towards them.

Quickly, Goku, Gohan and Goten took off into the air and Ash cupped his hands around his mouth.

"Nimbus!" He called out.

Within a few moments, the flying yellow cloud became visible on the horizon. Ash took a moment to place Pikachu on his shoulders and then hopped on the cloud that had arrived by then.

In his time of training, Ash had gotten used to the sensations of flight, thanks to the cloud. Goku would get Nimbus to follow him and Ash tried to stay on.

In a short amount of time, Ash was able to stand up on Nimbus, just like Goku could. He hadn't quite managed to withstand Nimbus' full speed yet, but he was nearing it.

The group then took off to the skies and flew away from the angry wife of Goku, who let out a scream at them as they vanished into the distance.

"Hell hath no fury?" Ash asked his companion. Pikachu giggled in reply as they continued to fly away.

A week later...

Ash was pretty pumped. He had spent a whole week training his ki control, trying to get it to a point where he could move it all around his body. Of course, since Ash daily practised martial arts with Goku, his control of ki had vastly improved.

Ash had even figured out that if he let ki flow stronger than normal into his arms or legs, he found he could hit harder and move faster. This took Goku by shock as in one of their daily spars, Ash had been able to hit the saiyan so hard, he went flying through a tree.

After making sure his teacher was ok, Ash explained the methods behind his now increased power. Goku was definitely impressed but requested that Ash not use it too much while he was training, as that wouldn't benefit his own physical strength.

After Goku and Ash finished their three hours of sparring, Ash then trained with Gohan to master his ki control. Although he had a lot of ki, it didn't mean he completely knew how to control it. But soon, Ash had managed to get the hang of it. Then it was back and forth from Goku and Gohan until the end of the day.

Well, now it was time to see if his ki training had paid off.

Goku, Gohan, Goten and Pikachu stood aside as Ash prepared to fire his first ever blast of ki.

"Now remember Ash, keep calm so you can shoot the orb out effectively and hold yourself steady in case you get knocked back." Gohan told Ash, who nodded in reply.

Ash then held his hand in front of his body, closing his eyes as he did so, and everyone watched in awe as a blue sphere emanated to life in front of his palm.

Ash then opened his palm and gazed at the perfectly formed ki sphere.

"Heh!" Ash chuckled a little as he then drew his arm back and shot the ball of ki at a tree. With great speed, the orb sped to the tree that would be hard pressed to track with the naked eye.

If he had to do it again, he probably would've put less power into it…

The attack hit the tree and it effortlessly cleaved right through, causing it to collapse to the side. The sphere then proceeded to barge through three more trees, one after other, bringing each one of them crashing down.

The orb finally stopped after it hit a cliff face over a hundred meters away, but it still left a decent sized crater in its wake.

Ash looked wide eyed in shock as the destructive capabilities of his ki as did his spectators. Sure, any day of the week, any three could shoot a blast that could do even more damage than that, but Ash was a newcomer for crying out loud! This was getting ridiculous.

Ash was wondering the same thing as he slowly retracted his arm. "Wow, th-that felt awesome." He thought. Soon, he had a grin grow on his face and he raised his fist skyward.

"That was totally awesome!" He called out, his exclamation echoing off the cliffs around him. Goku and his sons chuckled at Ash's enthusiasm and went over to congratulate him on his mastery with ki control.

Pikachu also dashed over happily, to praise his trainer also. With Ash's increasing power, it was safe to say that Pikachu would have the coolest trainer ever.

Three days later…

Ash took a deep breath, he had been anxiously waiting for this day ever since Goku had started to train him. The day where he would be able to learn to fly.

He had been so excited, he could barely get any sleep the previous night. Just the idea of being able to fly wherever he wanted, whenever he wanted, as fast as he wanted, it made him feel giddy.

Of course, with this particular stage in Ash's training, they had taken precaution.

Ash had released all flying pokemon that were capable of carrying him in case something went wrong. Ash wasn't interested in becoming a stain on the ground, thank you very much.

They all gazed at their trainer in both anxiousness and excitement as they thought of both the positive and negative outcomes of this training.

Goku and his family stood to the side, including Chi-Chi, who had been intrigued enough to watch. Gohan and Goku then stepped forward.

"Alright Ash. Flying is pretty complicated when you first start out. You have to maintain a constant flux of ki and then...well, put it underneath you, I guess." Goku said.

Ash resisted the urge to roll his eyes at his teacher's…less than stellar advice and nodded.

Calming his nerves, he began to focus. Believe it or not, he did not want to imitate being a skydiver without a parachute.

He closed his eyes and focused on his ki and soon a veil of the energy formed around his body, making his vest and hair sway from the power generated.

"Time to see if my ki training has paid off." Ash thought as he moved the ki in his body under his feet. The grass and other plants swayed in the area and simulated a strong breeze passing over them.

Ash may be inexperienced in the area of flight, but he had been dubbed a prodigy by nearly everyone in this world that he knew well. Even Chi-Chi had been impressed with his growth.

Therefore, no one was surprised when Ash slowly began to rise off the ground, his eyes still closed. It was really awe inspiring to see, as Ash didn't even know what ki was a month ago.

Opening his eyes slowly, he gasped in shock as he found himself a full meter above ground, with nothing supporting him but his ki. He allowed his shocked face to change into a joyous one as he began to figure out his balance.

Ash's pokemon gaped at him, gobsmacked that their trainer was actually hovering in front of their faces. He looked very happy that he had unlocked his ability to fly. His pokemon whispered amongst themselves.

"Star…Staraptor… (No…way…")

"Eee! Eee! Pidgoo! (He's doing it! He's really doing it!")

"Hn, Char Charizard Zard Zard? (Hn, did he even need us?")

"Pika Ka Pikapi Kaka Pikachu! (That's Ash for you!") Pikachu said as he gave Ash a victorious cheer.

Ash chuckled as he heard his pokemon's chatter and noticed that Goku had hovered up to meet his height.

"Great job, Ash!" Goku said as he clapped the boy on the shoulder.

Ash chuckled in reply and smiled. "How about we see how high I can go?" He suggested.

Ash would always look back on what happened next with embarrassment…

Before Goku could react, Ash channeled even more ki and shot off into the sky, making his pokemon cry in worry.

"Wha- oh no! He doesn't know how to control his flight path! Ash!" Goku cried in a worried tone as he shot off into the sky after him.

Ash was realizing just that once he was a few hundred meters off the ground. He gulped as he looked down at the earth below. He didn't know how to get down or steer or do anything but go up. He noticed that Goku was coming up to get him and sighed in relief

"Alright, I admit…might've been a bit too eager there." Ash thought as his savior in the form of Goku showed up to rescue him.

"Oh really?" Goku couldn't help but tease as he helped Ash back down to the ground.

A few days after that little mishap, Ash was flying near perfectly. Goku and surprisingly Goten had helped out by getting Ash to chase him in a game of aerial tag or spar with them in the air. Ash never actually managed to catch Goten, or flawlessly keep a combo going without flipping head over heel but that didn't mean he didn't improve. With a bit more experience, he'd be flying as freely as they did in no time.

And so…another month passed, and Ash's training went up yet another level.

The trainer looked at his hands in anticipation. His nerves jittery as he was about to perform his first ever energy attack.

Goku had been skeptical teaching Ash this particular move, but eventually, his enthusiasm and desperation to learn it eventually swayed Goku over.

Now, they were standing on the bank of an island in the middle of the ocean. On this island, was a small house, simply named 'Kame House.' Goku had taken Ash there for training with this move.

Ash had asked why Goku had brought him here, to which Goku responded that the person he learned this technique from lived here, so it just felt right.

Master Roshi had agreed to let them train there as long as the island wasn't too damaged by the end of the day. Agreeing to not mess things up, the two stood at the edge of the island.

"Ready Ash?" Goku asked, getting into a stance.

Ash took a deep breath, inhaling the salty sea air and smiled, mimicking Goku's stance. "You bet!" He replied.

Pikachu hopped off Ash's shoulder and took a seat on the turtle 'Turtle's' back.

"First Ash, have one arm up high and the other arm low." Goku explained, showing how to do it.

"Ka!" He said in a low voice. Ash mimicked Goku's movements perfectly.

"Now move the upper arm down and the lower arm up until the two arms are spread apart." Goku instructed, getting into the position he described.

"Me!" He continued, Ash not messing a single movement up.

"Now, straighten your arms and bring them in front of you. Place the bottom palm of your hands together."

"Ha!" Goku said, allowing himself to grin as he saw how perfectly Ash copied his movements.

"Good, now bring your arms back to the side of your waist leaving the hands opened up and the palms still touching."

"Me!" He called, creating a ball of energy in his hands.

"And here's the last step... charge your ki within the palm of your hands. It's a desperation move, which means it's a powerful move, so when you feel like the battle's not looking good for you, or you want to finish it, charge it up and fire at the opponent. When it's fully charged, force it out!" Goku said.

"Haaaaaa!" He cried and shot out a bright blue beam from his hands. Ash gaped at the massive power and lost his focus on his movement. Pikachu also gazed, slack-jawed at the destructive beam.

Roshi and Turtle simply remained impassive, seeing these kinds of demonstrations many times before. Although it provided entertainment, it wasn't anything new for them.

The energy blast sped along the ocean, parting it so the floor of the sea was visible. Giant towers of water towered over everyone, reaching so high, they blocked out the sun.

Eventually, the beam dissipated over the ocean and the water collapsed back down, causing a wave of water to engulf the banks of the island. Ash and Goku took to the air and hovered above the water and waited until it receded.

While they were waiting, Goku looked to Ash. " So, ready to give it a shot?" He asked, turning to where he presumed Ash would be.

His face shifted to one of surprise when he realised Ash was already on the opposite side of the island, charging up his own Kamehameha. Goku chuckled and landed on the top of the house to watch Ash's attempt, stopping momentarily to pick up Pikachu so he could watch too

Ash repeated the motions that Goku had just displayed to him. He channeled ki into his hands and began to chant the attack name.

"Ka..."

"One above, one below..."

"Me..."

"One down, one up, spread apart..."

"Ha..."

"Straighten arms, bring to front and place bottom palms together..."

"Me..."

"Now, bring it out and shoot it forward...!"

"HAAAA!" Ash let out an almighty cry as the blue ball that had formed in his palms rocketed out and formed a beam that traversed across the ocean. Although it was nowhere close to the size Goku's Kamehameha was, it was still big enough to part the sea so the resulting towers were just a little bit higher then Kame House.

Ash panted as he lowered his hands. That move took a lot more out of him than any of his ki training had done. He fell to his knees, panting as he listened to the ocean settle from his attack.

He gave a slight smile when a glass of water came into his field of vision, held by the hand of his grinning teacher. Ash grabbed the water and greedily gulped it down before he handed the glass back to Goku.

"Th-Thanks..." Ash said while looking over at the ocean. Pikachu hopped onto Ash's shoulder and congratulated him.

"Ash, that was awesome for your first attempt! That was just as good as my first one!" He said with a chuckle.

There wasn't a fleet of battleships to compare the two though…so there was that.

Ash let out a shout of victory as his teacher openly stated that his energy blast was as strong as Goku's when he was a child.

Goku then clapped Ash on the shoulder. "Hey Ash, follow me, I wanna give you something..." Goku said abruptly and mysteriously.

This earned a confused look from both Ash and Pikachu.

"Huh, what is it?" Ash asked. Goku chuckled, and lifted into the sky, beckoning Ash to follow. He then sped away over the ocean.

"Follow me and see!" Goku shouted over the sound of the rushing waves.

Ash, not knowing what his teacher had in store for him, secured Pikachu to his shoulder with his hand and hovered up as well, following Goku. "Thanks for letting us train here Mister Roshi! We'll visit later!" Ash called out to the island's resident old man before he too zoomed across the tides.

The bearded senior let out a chuckle.

"Goku, I look forward to see how far your little protégé can go..." He thought.

Soon, the trio arrived at the Son residence and Goku hurried inside the house, instructing the trainer to stay there. He seemed excited to give what he wanted to Ash.

Goku rushed into his bedroom, and quickly looked under the bed to find a box, four feet in length. Grinning as he pulled that box from under the bed, he got up and took the lid off.

The item inside filled Goku with so many memories of his childhood. He had gone into combat with it so many times, he'd lost count.

Goku then replaced the lid and dashed back outside to where Ash and Pikachu were waiting.

"Hey, Ash!" Goku called, gaining his attention. Ash looked at Goku and noticed a box in his hands. "Hm? Is that what you wanna give me?" Ash asked. In reply, Goku nodded and handed Ash the box.

It felt light almost weightless, Ash almost assumed the box was empty. He looked to Goku again, who looked at him with a face that urged him to open the box.

Ash's gaze dropped to the box again and, with his hands slightly trembling in anticipation, slowly took the lid off the box. He and Pikachu looked inside, while Goku stood off to the side, grinning, waiting for his reaction.

Inside the box was a red four-foot bo staff that was housed a dark brown sheath that had a strap attached, presumably so the one who was in possession of the item could wear it, sort of like a backpack.

Honestly to Ash, it looked quite plain, and at first he couldn't understand what Goku was so excited about. That was until Goku started to explain exactly what it was.

"That's my old Power Pole. When I was a child, I used it a lot in my fights. But ever since I became a teenager, I haven't used it. I guess I felt I had better options, ya know? So now, I'm giving it to you." Goku explained, watching Ash take his old weapon from the box.

"It's kinda light...and…well, no offence, but it doesn't look like much." Ash replied as he took the bo fully out of the sheath and swung it around, to get a feel for it.

Goku chuckled. "Well, for one thing, it's light, but durable, it can block against blades that can cut through rocks, so, it's very strong. And it has magical properties, so it's able to do...this." Goku said as he took hold of Ash's hand that was occupied with the Power Pole and turned it so it was perpendicular to the ground.

"Power Pole extend!" He called out.

Much to Ash and Pikachu's shock, the bo suddenly grew to an enormous length into the sky, at least as tall as an average mountain. Ash staggered as he was shocked by the great length that the previously short weapon had grown to. The funny thing was however, that it still felt as light as it did before it grew. He felt as if he could lift it easily.

"See?" Goku said with a smile. "And since it's magical, it can extend to any distance you want, whether that distance is the length of a normal staff, or if you want to, the length from here to the moon!" Goku explained.

Ash's mouth hung open at that. Suddenly, this weapon seemed a lot more intimidating. And Goku was entrusting it to him?

"Are you sure?" Ash asked, earning a confused look from Goku. "I mean, this could be pretty dangerous for someone like me to have, what if I mess up with it?" He asked.

Goku smiled at him. "Ash, if I didn't believe you could use this, then I wouldn't have given it to you. And I believe you are ready, especially after you fired that Kamehameha. You showed me that you were capable of being able to use this to its full potential, just like I could. So, please Ash..." The staff then shrunk back to its normal length.

"Please accept this..." Goku said as he let go of the pole and stepped back with his 'Goku' grin.

Ash stared in awe at the trust that his teacher placed in him and looked at the bo in his hands, which now seemed to radiate strength. Eventually, he let out a chuckle and slipped the sheath over his shoulder and placed the Power Pole in it.

"I accept..." Ash replied with a smile.

Goku chuckled and then turned back to the house. "Now...get some rest, Ash. There's something very special that I got prepared for you..."

Ash really didn't like the way Goku said "very special..."

The following day confirmed his fears…

Goku had woken Ash up in his usual manner, which had become, barging into his room before sunrise and announcing that it was training time. Ash had adjusted somewhat to these times, but every now and then, he would have his off days when he just wanted to stay in bed.

This was one of those days.

"Nngh, Goku...five more minutes..." Ash moaned sleepily as he rolled over in his bed, slightly tugging at the blankets. Goku sighed at this and just decided that they should get started, whether Ash was ready or not.

He grabbed his student's bag, shoved his discarded clothing like his shoes, cap and vest into it and then placed one hand on Ash's shoulder and the fingers of his other hand on his forehead.

It took a few moments, but Goku finally found the ki signature he was looking for.

A few moments later, Ash, Goku and Pikachu blurred away.

Ash and Pikachu didn't know what had happened. One moment they were in bed, and the next they were sprawled face first on some kind of marble surface. With a groan, Ash and Pikachu pushed themselves up from the surface and looking at the thief that stole their sleep.

"Hey, Goku! What's the big i...dea?" Ash trailed off as he took a look at his surroundings.

They seemed to be in a palace of some sorts. He looked at one spot, which had blue wisps all organised in a line that stretched on and on, the back of the line not even visible. And at the front of the line was a blue skinned man that…actually didn't even look that much like a man, he looked more like an ogre. He wore some casual business clothes and was yelling through a megaphone, ordering the wisps to move along to be judged.

A sudden booming voice sounded around the palace.

"Goku? What are you doing here? And who's the boy with you?"

Ash and Pikachu recoiled at the massive voice and slowly turned around to where it was coming from. Their eyes widened as they saw a red skinned, bushy bearded, but most noticeably, gigantic ogre staring directly at them.

Both Ash and Pikachu were frozen with fear, after all, this guy seemed really intimidating, until a voice that they knew all too well snapped them out of their stupor.

"Hey King Yemma!" Goku called out to the massive ogre. "I need to ask a favor." He called up.

The cheerful voice slightly relaxed Ash and Pikachu. After all, if Goku was on friendly terms with this Yemma guy, then he couldn't be bad.

Yemma looked down at Goku and furrowed his brow A troubled look seemed to cross his face. "Now Goku, I know you want-" He was suddenly cut off.

"Oh no, I don't want that King Yemma." Goku replied, earning a look of confusion from the ogre.

"Hm? Then what do you want? And please, make it snappy. As you can see, you're holding up the line." He then gestured his pen, which was the size of a tree trunk to Ash, to the line of wisps. Ash looked at the line and then back to Goku.

"Hey Goku, what is this place?" He asked. However, the saiyan didn't need to answer as King Yemma did it for him.

"This is the Check-In Station. It's where deceased souls come to be judged. If they lived a good life, they get sent to Heaven, but people who lived evil lives get sent to H.F.I.L." Yemma explained.

Ash's throat seized up as Yemma said "deceased souls." He turned back to Goku, extreme worry on his face.

"D-Does this mean w-we're dead?" He stammered.

He jumped a little when King Yemma let out a deep chuckle that reverberated around the place.

"No, you're not dead. You see, Goku can come here if he wants to with his Instant Transmission when he's alive, the same goes for anyone who travels with him." Yemma explained.

Suddenly, the conversation was interrupted by Goku.

"Can we get back to the favor? King Yemma, Ash here is my student, and I want him to learn from the same master I learned under, so can you please let him see King Kai for some training?" Goku asked.

This made Yemma's eyes open wide in shock before he regained composure. "But you don't need my permission for Ash to visit him. You can take him there whenever you'd like, unless…you want him to..."

"...to get there the same way I did." Goku finished Yemma's sentence with a grin.

"You want him to travel across Snake Way…but are you sure he's ready? You yourself took 177 days to get to King Kai's while traveling Snake Way." Yemma said. Ash, who had taken the time to put his stuff on, opened his eyes wide. He was kidding, right?

"King Yemma, I know he's ready, remember when you didn't think I could do it? I proved you wrong, right? So, take my word for it and let Ash travel Snake Way." Goku requested.

The massive ogre put on a thinking face and began to tap his cheek with the end of his pen. Finally, after a few moments of pondering, he smiled.

"Fine. if you believe in him, then so do I. I shall let him go to King Kai's via Snake way. A worker will show him the entrance. Will you be accompanying your student Goku?" Yemma asked.

"Well, I want him to go all the way without me, but I guess I can show up once a week." Goku said cheerfully, oblivious to the trainer's dilemma.

Ash looked at Goku in disbelief. Was this the "very special" training Goku was talking about? This seemed a bit excessive.

"Goku, are you sure you want me to do this? I mean, come on, 177 days? I'll starve to death before I get halfway!" Ash commented.

That statement was retorted by Yemma.

"In this plane, you don't get hungry, thirsty, or tired. When people come here, they are simply sustained with nothing and need nothing." The ogre said.

Well, that made Ash feel a little better, but he was still unsure. Pikachu also shared Ash's worry but was glad he was allowed to accompany him He'd worry sick about Ash otherwise.

Goku smiled at his student. "Don't worry Ash, this'll be a big step up from your usual training, but I know you can do it." Goku said.

Ash sighed. Sometimes in life, you need to do things that you don't want to do, and Ash really didn't want to do this. But Ash wasn't about to go against his teacher if it meant he'd get stronger. He gave a small smile and began to follow the worker King Yemma entrusted with him to the intimidating path, Goku watching him with a smile.

Ash just had to know one thing.

He turned to Yemma. "So, uh, how long is Snake Way anyway?" He asked.

Yemma gave a devious grin. "625,000 miles, or a million kilometers, whichever you prefer." He answered.

Ash's small smile disappeared quickly after that.

Dawn was curled up into a ball and sobbing her heart out on one of the plush couches in the Pokemon Center. Her childhood friend Kenny, her rival Zoey, even Barry who was not doing much better was there too. All her pokemon including her travel companion Brock, sat around her, attempting to comfort her.

Why was she crying?

It was because of what the headline was that the Pokemon News Network had broadcasted on the television in the lobby that scared everyone there to their core.

TWINLEAF TOWN WIPED OUT. NO SURVIVORS...