They then went over to the S.S. Anne to get Misty and Violet.
"Misty, Misty it's time for my battle, come on!" Ash called out anxiously.
"Ash, what happened to your face, you don't look so good?" Misty exclaimed, shocked and troubled by the huge black and blue mark on Ash's cheek.
"Don't worry about it, I'm fine, come on get your sister and let's go!" Ash hollered, impatiently.
"Um...I don't think Violet's coming..." Misty said with a sweat drop going down the back of her head. Then Ash glanced over at Violet to see her flirting with a couple o sailor boys.
"Ha-ha, whatever, let's go without her I don't think she'll mind." Ash said.
"Ha, yeah, okay." Misty responded as they marched to the infamous Duel Square. Duel Square was empty except for one, lonely, bench with Red on it. His head hung low and he was burying his face in his hands, presumably sobbing. Ash and co. slowly approached him.
"Dad." Ash muttered nervously, with all seriousness.
"Ash, my boy, you feeling alright, son, I was worried about you?" He said, looking up slowly, his face pink and blotchy from apparent weeping.
"You know why I'm here; it isn't for a social call." Ash said sternly.
"I get it your mother sent you here for some answers well, I want some answers too." Red replied shifting his eyes swiftly and directly at Delia.
"No, I want a battle then some answers."
"What!"
"You heard me, I challenge you!" Ash said becoming angry and perturbed.
"I don't want to hurt your Pokemon, son." Red said laughing.
"… Knock it off! You battle me and battle me now! I didn't take this ferry over to Orre just to have you reject my challenge!" Ash yelled as Delia and Misty watched Ash take things impromptu into his own hands.
"Fine, fine but, don't say I didn't warn ya!" Red surrendered.
"I'll ref." Misty volunteered.
"Aw, and who's this, your girlfriend?" Red teased.
"Ew, gross!" Ash and Misty exclaimed simultaneously blushing like crazy.
"That's what I said about your mother awhile back too." Red said smiling at Delia with guilt in his eyes, she stuck her nose at him begrudgingly.
"Don't be ridiculous Ash is much too young to be in a relationship, unlike you I actually am concerned about my son." Delia threw in.
"Delia, now you know that's a foolish thing to say if he's old enough to be a Pokemon trainer and travel the world I think he's old enough to have a girlfriend!" Red replied.
"Stop changing the subject!" Ash announced become very intolerant.
"Calm down son, I'm coming." Red ensured.
"Don't call me that… only Mom can call me that, you never even treated me like I was your son." Ash muttered, cutting Red deeply in the heart, he was silent for a moment, due to Ash's hurtful words, before snapping back to reality.
"It's just an expression…" Red said stammering on words, hardly able to speak.
"6-on-6." Ash said in demand.
"Fine, but you'll be spending a lot of time in the Pokemon Center that way." He said mockingly.
"We'll see who'll be the one at the Pokemon Center." Ash responded as Misty picked up the flags about to proclaim the battle of the century, the battles fans have been awaiting since episode one.
"The 6-on-6 battle between Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town and Red Ketchum the Champion from Pallet Town will now begin!" Misty exclaimed waving the referee flags signifying the battles initiate.
"You, can have the honors, son." Red offered.
"I told you not to call me that and I will have the honor!" Ash said "Infernape, I choose you!" Ash said summoning the third-stage evolution, fire-type Pokemon into combat.
"An Infernape, eh? In that case, Blastoise, I choose you, go!" Rd said calling forth the powerful turtle-like water Pokemon.
"Ash you can do it, I know you can, sweetie!" Delia encouraged.
"Right, Alright, Infernape this one's for my mom!" Ash called out.
"Why are they here? For some sort of revenge? Well it isn't like I don't deserve it… I'm just glad to see them, alive and well, no matter how much they absolutely hate me, that doesn't change the fact that I love them, as long as they're safe, that was the plan remember, Red? And that Ash, he's all a parent could ask for and then some he's really grown up into a fine young man, what else did I expect, I mean Delia did raise him after all. The least I can do for him is give it my best shot, if I beat him, I know it will hurt him immensely but, I have to or they'll never leave and I just can't go home no matter how much I want to." Red thought silently to himself.
"Alright, Infernape, fire blitz, go!" Ash ordered as the sparks flew in the air directly penetrating Blastoise but, due to the type advantage hardly any damage was done.
"Blastoise, hydro-cannon!" Red commanded.
"Dodge, than use focus punch!" Ash responded but, surprisingly Blastoise's speed surpassed Infernape's was targeted with a direct strike, it was out.
"Infernape is unable to battle!" Misty confirmed raising the flag to the left side affirming Red's triumph.
"I was expecting a bit more excitement there, not much pizzazz." Red sneered.
"Grr, Infernape, return. You gave it your all out there, you take a good rest!" Ash said recalling the injured Pokemon. "Okay, Pikachu, you're up, I choose you!" Ash ordered as Pikachu entered the stadium.
"A Pikachu, eh, don't get to cocky just cause of the advantage you got." Red stated.
"Never in a million years! Alright, Pikachu, volt tackle!" Pikachu then sprung into action against Blastoise.
"No, Blastoise… Dodge then use hyper beam!" Red called. Then as the volt tackle came through Blastoise evaded it and blasted Pikachu with hyper-beam.
"Oh no, Pikachu, hang in there, buddy!" Ash cried as Pikachu slowly limped up, the last attack doing severe damage. "Alright, nice work Pikachu, let's try volt tackle one more time!" Then Pikachu swiftly went at Blastoise intensely thumping it with 20,000 watts of electricity zooming towards it at the speed of light. "Okay, let's finish it off with thunder, go!" Ash commanded as then the bolt of thunder thrashed down upon Blastoise sending it pitifully spiraling to the ground, pulverized, and therefore drawing a conclusion to Blastoise for this battle. Misty, again raised the flag only this time towards Ash's side.
"Alright, way to go Pikachu!" Ash exclaimed as he felt a tremendous sense of contentment for taking down just a single one of his father's Pokemon.
"Good job, honey one down five to go, I'm routing for you Ash!" Delia called to Ash.
"Yeah way to go, Ash you're doing great, especially under these circumstances!" Misty praised.
"Oh, don't feel too proud just yet, you just got lucky that time, I'm just getting warmed up and don't think I'll reveal what trick I've got up my sleeve this time." Red beckoned.
"I'm sure you won't… Considering your reputation for leaving things unexplained, don't you, Red." Ash chimed, disrespectfully.
"What did you say? What did you just call me, mister? How dare you! How dare you address your father like that, young man I am your father and you will treat me with some dignity! How dare you call me by my first name!" Red scolded his son as his fatherly instinct stepped in despite the fact he hadn't spoken to Ash in years, there was still some sense of parenthood that remained in his heart, perhaps parental natural instinct.
"I'll call you my father when you start acting like one." Ash slurred. That simple insult felt as if Ash had taken a knife and pierced it through Red's heart. Red was so utterly shattered and hurt by Ash's simple phrase he had to turn and face away and use his hat to cover his face full of shame and remorse.
"Look, Ash, Delia… I-I- I am so, so, so, so sorry." Red apologized whole heatedly accidently allowing a few tears to escape as he had the last couple of days although usually he was the type of man who hid all his tears, believing they were an utter sign of absolute weakness.
"Sorry can't fix what you did! My whole life I had no dad and what you did to Mom, tore her apart, that's unforgivable!" Ash yelled.
"Please, Ash you've got to listen to me. You, you and your mother mean everything to me." Red cried for mercy as Delia clenched her fists.
"…If we mean so much to you why'd you leave in the first place! Why, why why, why?" Delia broke out stumbling on words as she chocked on tears. "You gave no reason at all whatsoever to this day I don't know, do you have any idea what the last years have been like for me, every single night lying awake till midnight wondering where you've been and what I did to make you so angry and run off on us like that? All you said is that I wouldn't understand, you had to be the best? What on earth did I do to you Red, why won't you say, and what was it little five-year-old Ash is that it? Is it his fault, is that what you think who, why!" Delia screamed in frustration off the side lines, overcome by bitterness, disregarding Red's apology.
"Of course it wasn't his fault it wasn't yours either…it was nobody's fault." Red said.
"Not even, yours?" Ash remarked.
"Except me and someone else…" Red said.
"Who else, who the… Who else's fault could it possibly be?" Ash said in confusion.
"Um, Ash…. Ash, the battle, 'member?" Misty interrupted as Pikachu and Venusaur began resting.
"Hold on, Misty, this is much more important right now." Ash replied sternly, taking a bit of anger and resentment out on Misty.
"Now is that any way to speak to your girlfriend?" Red said poking fun it Ash.
"For the ten-billionth time she is not my girlfriend! And would you quit trying to change the subject, this isn't funny!" Ash yelled as he blushed along with Misty whom was still on the sidelines with Mrs. Ketchum.
"Oh, not yet." Red said continuing to tease Ash as his face flushed pink in embarrassment.
"He-he, I hope…" Misty whispered to herself beneath her breath, her face, red as a tomato.
"What was that, Misty?" Delia giggled, although she had deciphered quite clearly what Misty said she just wanted to hear it again.
"Oh, nothing, I didn't say anything at all, why would you think I said something!" Misty said defensively as her face flushed to an even deeper red much to her humiliation.
"Enough, back to our battle, now!" Ash shouted becoming very fed up.
"I'm not in the mood anymore…" Red replied.
"…Not in the mood! … …You aren't in the mood… … I don't give a Wormadam if you're in the mood! Do you think I was in the mood to not know what it's like to have a dad? Do you think Mom was in the mood for you to ditch us!" Ash yelled extremely frustrated, going off the wall.
"You keep saying that, you're a total hypocrite." Red stated, bluntly.
"What are you talking about!" Ash shouted back.
"You're no better than me, you left your mother same as I did." Red said.
"Well… well-"Ash started.
"You're a trainer, correct? So didn't you leave her alone too?" Red said.
"Th-that's different, I had to become a trainer like all the other kids!" Ash said feeling culpable.
"That's just an excuse and you know it, you knew she'd be alone if you left you didn't necessarily have to go on a journey just because everybody else does. You left her alone selfishly so you could follow your dream, just like I did but at least I left her with you." Red said attempting, successfully to put Ash through some sort of guilt-trip to hide his own resentment.
"He's right…" Ash said as he stared downward as false guilt consumed his mind.
"Pika-pi?" Pikachu said staring up at Ash compassionately. At this point everyone had come to the realization that the battle wasn't going to conclude.
"Stop it, Red! Stop making my Ash feel guilt about what you did. Leave my little boy alone!" Delia hollered.
"It isn't like I'm lying you tell me you're not lonely without anybody home?" Red said.
"He's right, Mom…I'm the worst kid a parent could ever have." Ash stated shamefully.
"Are you happy now, Red, you just love crushing people, don't you? Stop, you knock it off this instant it is not my little Ash's fault I'm alone, it's yours! Ash just went off to become a trainer like every other ten year old in the world. He went off to be a Pokemon Master in the first place to find YOU! So, don't you dare blame my son! You, you, Red on the other hand were already a Pokemon Master and you were married with children, you had an obligation to stay with me and raise Ash, you were not suppose to go. You still refuse to tell me why you deserted us!" Delia fought in defense of Ash.
"But, Mrs. Ketchum, you're not exactly alone y'know what about Mr. Mime… Great conversationalist, am I right? Ah, ah…sorry, sorry trying to lighten the mood, I know, I know serious situation…my apologies." Misty joked feeling extremely awkward in the middle of one of the worst family feuds in the history of Pokemon universe.
"Ash, come on he won't battle you, honey, he doesn't care how hard you worked or how much you miss him." Delia said guiding Ash away with her hands on his shoulders as Red stared downward aching in pain as he watched his world slip through his fingers.
"Mom, I won't, I won't just give up after all this!" Ash demanded and Pikachu nodded in agreement.
"Venusaur, return." Red recalled his Pokemon therefore capitulating the match. He then walked into the TV studio across the street. Ash fell to his knees and banged his fist on the ground in frustration and anxiety.
"Ash?" Misty said fretfully.
"Oh…Ash, it isn't your fault." Delia said sympathetically knowing how hard her son had worked and how much he longed to know his father.
Ash cried out" He won't tell us anything after all this training, he won't even finish the battle with me!"