Wow. It's really been a long time, has it? About 8 months or so? All I can say is I'm sorry, and not even that can truly show my sincere apologies for keeping you all waiting that long.
Let's just say things were very hectic at college. The work just got more and more and I could barely keep up! But my hard work paid off and I received six distinctions this year.
I mean, by the beginning of this week, this chapter only had about 1 500 words. And to make things worse, I recently discovered Bleach, which caused me to read a lot of Bleach Fan fiction, which also took up a lot of my time. I truly apologize.
I am by no means abandoning this story, that I assure you! I have mind maps up until chapter 28, and I also have a rough map of where this story is going. And it is by no means over yet!
So, without further distractions, I will be posting chapters 24 and 25 simultaneously, only because chapter 25 is significantly shorter than the last few chapters, so once again, I apologize.
Anyway, enjoy!
I do not own any characters or events related to Pokemon, this story is solely fan made.
Changing Ways: Chapter 24: A couple of old faces. One good, one, maybe not so good…:
The sun was shining bright. A cool sea breeze was blowing over the ocean and all in all, it was just a perfect, beautiful day. The Orange Archipelago was well-known for having the outmost perfect weather conditions, most of the time that is…
But, Ash, Misty and Pikachu have only enjoyed perfect weather so far on their way to Mandarin Island. The ship they were on had been sailing for about five days now through the relatively calm ocean, without any troublesome-trio disturbances or vicious, life-threatening storms. So, they could simply relax and enjoy their little sea-bound vacation until they got to Mandarin Island, which should be within the next six to seven hours, seeing as it took about five to six days to get to Mandarin Island from Pallet Town via sea. And enjoying themselves they were…
"WOOHOOOOO!" Ash yelled out as he jumped through the air, jumping into the water, resulting in a big splash.
"PIKA!" Pikachu yelled as he too jumped through the air into the water, mirroring his Master's actions with a much smaller splash.
The duo consisting out of Ash and Pikachu were currently splashing about in the pool on the ship's deck, while Misty was busy working on her tan on a chair not too far away from the pool.
"Ah, yeah!" Ash exclaimed as he surfaced from under the water. "Feels great, doesn't it, Pikachu?" he asked as he wiped his face to remove some excess water.
"Chaaa!" Pikachu squealed as he floated by Ash on his back, clearly relaxed and enjoying this little mini-vacation on the sea.
"Oops…" Ash exclaimed as he gave Pikachu a little nudge, resulting in the yellow mouse losing his balance and sinking into the water.
Pikachu resurfaced shortly after, however, and had an irritated look on his face which was directed at his Master.
"Hehe, come now, Pikachu…" Ash nervously started as he carefully watched the yellow mouse. "It was just a little fun, right?" he tried bargaining himself out of an electrical shock in the swimming pool.
Pikachu, however, didn't look happy at all. "Pika…" he threatened as he glared at his Master, seemingly ready to unleash his wrath on the swimming pool.
"P-Pikachu?" Ash again uncertainly asked as he slowly started moving backwards away from Pikachu.
"Pika!" Pikachu suddenly exclaimed as he jumped out of the water, causing Ash to cover up in fear of being electrocuted.
He covered his face with his arms and curled himself up, waiting for the pain to hit him. But there was now seizuring pain that followed. What instead followed was a Pikachu colliding with his head, sending him plunging underwater in surprise.
Ash resurfaced followed by Pikachu. They looked at each other before bursting out in laughter.
"Wow, Pikachu." Ash stuttered out between laughs. "You really had me going there, buddy." He exclaimed.
"Pika Pika, Pikapi." Pikachu replied before he splashed some water in Ash's direction.
"Oh, you want to play like that, eh, Pikachu?" Ash exclaimed as he covered his face with his arms to avoid getting splashed with water. "Okay, WATER WAR!" he yelled before he started splashing back, causing a mini-water fight to break out between the two of them, which Ash was winning, of course, because of the fact that his arms and hands were much bigger than the yellow mouse's.
Misty, who was still enjoying the sun on her chair, turned her head slightly towards the swimming pool, where Ash and Pikachu were in the middle of their little game. "Hmph." She exclaimed as she turned her head back and looked up into the sky. "Children: So easily amused." She remarked, which caused Ash to stop playing and turn to her, ready to yell out an insult to the red head.
However, before he could yell something back; he was distracted by the red head settling back down in her chair and continuing her tanning. This scene caused him to freeze up and gawk at the red head with wide eyes and his mouth hanging open. 'Wow,' he exclaimed in his mind. 'Is it just me, or is Misty…SEXY?' he contemplated in his thoughts as he stared at the red head from head to toe.
"Pika?" Pikachu asked himself in confusion as he stared at Ash in front of him, where a small red streak was starting to form over his cheeks.
"Hmm…" Ash exclaimed in thought as he cocked his head to the side while staring at Misty. 'Misty's really, really pretty!' he thought as his eyes stretched wider in realization. 'How come I've only noticed it now, after all those years of travelling around with her?' he asked himself mentally. 'Maybe I'm only starting to realize it now, because I like her?' he asked himself before he quickly covered his mouth, afraid that someone heard him say that. It took him a few seconds to remember that he was actually thinking it, and not saying it, which caused him to sweat drop embarrassingly.
Misty didn't even notice Ash's antics, seeing as she was way too relaxed while she tanned, and only wiggled herself a bit to get even more comfortable before giving off a loud, content sigh.
Ash kept staring at the red head, the blush on his cheeks still very much evident. 'Misty…' he thought as a small smile started forming on his lips as he contently watched Misty enjoying her fun in the sun.
"Pikapi!" Pikachu exclaimed as he jumped out of the water and lodged onto the side of Ash's face, becoming fairly annoyed because of his Master's statue-like stance in the pool disrupting their water fight, which he feels he was winning.
"AH!" Ash yelled out in pain, snapping out of his staring state, as Pikachu's paws dug into his face. "Pikachu!" he yelled as he turned his attention to the yellow mouse. "What're you doing?" he asked as he tried shaking Pikachu off of his face by shaking his head back and forth. But it proved to be in vain as the yellow mouse kept hanging on.
"Pika Pika, Pikachu!" Pikachu exclaimed with a slight laugh as he hung on, determined to continue their little game.
"Pikachu! Get off!" Ash yelled, with laughter evident in his voice, as he started swinging his upper body around and round in order to swing Pikachu into the air and free himself from the yellow mouse's grip.
"Pika Pika!" Pikachu yelled back as he shook his head in a defiant NO, determined not to be tossed aside by his Master.
"Oh, so that's how you want to play, eh, Pikachu?" Ash asked with a menacing smirk on his face as he suddenly stopped swinging his body around.
"Pika…Pikapi…" Pikachu fearfully exclaimed as nervous sweat started appearing on his face, dreading what was about to follow if his assumptions were correct…
"Okay then, let's do it your way!" Ash shouted before he took a deep breath. He then suddenly crouched down, causing him to sink underneath the water, with Pikachu in tow.
And there was silence on the surface, something which Misty enjoyed to the fullest from where she was tanning. "Finally, those two shut up." She exclaimed. "Now I can relax in peace…" she exclaimed before stretching her limbs and shifting a bit on the chair to get more comfortable, not even bothering to open her eyes to see where her two traveling companions went…
Meanwhile, underneath the water, Ash and Pikachu were floating in the middle of the pool.
"Hm?" Pikachu mumbled with a closed mouth as he looked around under the water, still clasping tightly to the side of Ash's head. He then turned his attention to his Master, whom he found staring back at him with a mischievous smirk on his face, which caused the yellow mouse to stare at him in confusion.
Ash replied to Pikachu's confused look by suddenly grinning triumphantly, which confused the yellow mouse even more.
Was his Master not aware of the fact that he, as a Pikachu, had a far better ability of holding his breath for longer periods of time than Ash himself? His expression changed to one of surprise however, as he felt his Master place his hands on his sides.
Ash, after having placed his hands on Pikachu's sides, started pulling on the yellow mouse. But Pikachu stubbornly held on to his Master's face, refusing to let go now. Ash had gotten Pikachu onto the front of his head, with the yellow mouse now covering Ash's entire face.
The pokemon Trainer saw this as his opportunity to finally get Pikachu off, so he closed his eyes, and started blowing air out through his mouth.
Ash's blowing caused a stream of bubbles to form right outside his mouth, and straight into Pikachu's face.
This caused Pikachu to jerk his head from side to side to evade the bubbles, but it was in vain as Ash simply turned his head as Pikachu turned. The yellow mouse decided that he finally had enough, and dislodged himself from his Master's face.
Ash triumphantly grinned as he showed a peace sign with his right index and middle fingers, before he realised, that he was out of air…
"GAH!" he exclaimed as the last remaining air exited his mouth, before he hastily started paddling with his limbs up towards the surface for some much needed oxygen. He finally surfaced out of the water and gawked in the fresh air, slowly filling his lungs again. He then took a look around and found Pikachu sitting on the edge of the pool, shaking his head to get the water out of his fur and eyes.
"See, Pikachu?" Ash yelled from where he was floating in the pool.
"Pika?" Pikachu exclaimed as he looked up from where he was sitting on the edge of the pool towards Ash.
"That's what happens when you mess with Ash Ketchum, soon-to-be Pokemon Master!" Ash yelled at Pikachu, doing a muscular pose in the water to emphasize his excellence.
Pikachu, on the other hand, didn't see this as the time for Ash to gloat, however. He instead saw this as the opportunity to exact revenge on his Master for his previous underwater attack on the yellow mouse. Taking a few steps back; Pikachu then proceeded to jump through the air, falling into the water right in front of Ash's face, causing water to invade the pokemon Trainer's mouth, ears and nose.
Ash then violently started coughing the water out as he rubbed his eyes with the back of his hands in an effort to get the water and sting out of them. He then turned his attention to Pikachu, who was floating in front of him. They stared at each other for a moment, before they both burst out laughing. "Good move, buddy." He finally managed to get out after he stopped laughing. "That'll teach me to mess with you." He added.
"Pika Pika, Pikapi." Pikachu replied before they both started laughing at each other again.
But, little did they know that their silly little game had splashed a good amount of water on a certain redhead, who was tanning nearby, although Ash and Pikachu didn't even notice her or the fact that they got her wet…
The two of them were still laughing away, when, all of a sudden, a big Masterball-like beach ball landed squarely on Ash's head, plunging him back underwater…
Ash, in the meantime, was sitting at the bottom of the pool, clutching his head while yelling all his air out, causing a load of air bubbles to float around him. Quickly realising that he's out of breath and won't make it back to the top in time to take in fresh air; he resorted to grabbing some of the air bubbles and shoving them back into his mouth. He then remembered the unpleasant bang on his head, and started swimming back up to the surface with a glare on his face, ready to exact revenge on the poor soul who threw that ball at him. Ash he surfaced, he noticed Misty standing in front of him on the edge of the pool, glaring down at him with her arms crossed.
"Pika Pika…" Pikachu mumbled as he stealthily swam out from under Misty's glare to somewhere a bit safer…
"Who threw me with that ball!?" Ash called out as he glared around him as he floated in the water.
"I did!" Misty yelled back from where she was standing.
"Misty?" Ash asked as he turned his attention to the red head. "What'd you do that for?" he then angrily added as he glared at her.
"I did it because I'm soaking wet, Ash!" Misty angrily responded as she pointed to herself, and she was indeed dripping wet. "And it's all YOUR fault!" she added as she pointed her finger straight into Ash's face.
"How's that my fault?" Ash asked as he frowned up at Misty in confusion.
"The reason I'm wet," Misty started as she placed her hands on her hips. "Is because of YOUR stupid little water game!" she informed Ash.
Ash was about to retort, but a yellow ball of fur behind Misty's legs, slowly approaching the red head. He locked eyes with Pikachu for a moment, before a smirk appeared on both of their faces.
"You know, Misty," the pokemon Trainer started with singing-like voice. "It sounds to me like you want to join in!" he informed the red head with an evil smirk plastered on his face.
"What?" Misty asked as she tilted her head to the side in confusion. "What even makes you remotely think that?" she asked the pokemon Trainer as she frowned at him.
"Oh, Misty," Ash started. "I don't think you have much of a choice…" he informed Misty as he swam closer to the edge of the pool where the red head was standing.
"Of course I have a choice!" Misty retorted, albeit with a bit of uneasiness in her voice. She then tried moving a bit away from the edge of the pool to avoid Ash dragging her into the pool by any chance. But it proved to be futile, however, because she felt something clamping on to her ankles, prohibiting her from moving anywhere. Looking down, the red head saw that her ankles were being held by none other than Ash.
"No, Misty," Ash started as he looked up at Misty with a devilish smirk on his face. "The thing is, you don't have a choice." He informed the red head. "Just ask Pikachu." He added as he nodded past her, motioning for her to take a look for herself.
Quickly turning around; Misty quickly caught sight of the little yellow ball of fur known as Pikachu, standing behind her on all four legs, looking ready to charge at her any second. "Oh boy…" she muttered under her breath, foreseeing that this will not end well for her. "Now, Pikachu," she shakily started with a big smile on her face. "There's no need to do anything we'll all regret later, right?" she tried negotiating with the yellow mouse. "Ash, tell him!" she pleaded with Ash as she turned back around to face him.
"Nope, sorry, Misty." Ash casually replied as he shook his head from side to side. "Ready when you are, buddy!" he yelled, shifting his attention from Misty to Pikachu.
"Pika Pika!" Pikachu yelled back at his Master, before he came charging towards Misty.
"Great…" Misty muttered, right before she flew through the air as Pikachu connected with her back, with Ash simultaneously letting go of her ankles, sending her flying into the pool with a big splash.
"Good job, Pikachu!" Ash praised Pikachu as they both laughed at Misty, who was still underwater.
Their laughing immediately stopped, however, as they noticed red hair appearing out of the water, followed by Misty, who had an extreme, murderous glare on her face directed straight at the two of them.
"Ash Ketchum!" Misty yelled out, her eyes now replaced with two balls of red hot flames. "You will pay." She stated in a venomous tone. She then proceeded to slowly make her way through the water towards the poor Ash, preparing to exact her revenge on the pokemon Trainer.
"Hehe…" Ash nervously laughed as Misty came closer and closer. "Come now, Misty," he started in an over-friendly tone. "It was just a joke, right? No harm done?" he negotiated, trying to choose his words very carefully in an attempt to not upset the red head further.
Misty, however, paid no mind to Ash's pleads, and was getting ever closer to the pokemon Trainer, who was now slowly starting to back away from her in an attempt to escape.
Unfortunately for Ash though, his space was quickly running out, and he soon found himself right up in the corner of the pool, trapped and with nowhere else to run to.
"Uh – oh…" Ash exclaimed after he noticed that there was no escape from Misty anymore. "Come on, Misty," he started pleading again. "Please, just let me go?" he tried negotiating once more. He was all too aware of Misty's fluctuating temper and really didn't want to be on the receiving end right now.
Misty, however, paid no mind to Ash's pleas and still made her way through the water towards him. She eventually stopped right in front of the pokemon Trainer, who tried to get himself as tight against the corner as possible to get away. She then stuck her face right in front of his and gave him a hard glare, under which Ash visibly gulped.
She glared at Ash for a few moments longer, before a grin made its way onto her face, which left Ash looking at her in confusion.
"Uh…" Ash exclaimed as he tilted his head to the side while frowning at Misty. "Why are yo-"was all he could get out, before the red head put her hands on his head and pushed all her weight down on them, sending the pokemon Trainer plunging down under the water. Of all the things she could have done, she dunked him.
There were a few moments of almost complete silence in the pool, with only bubbles appearing and bursting on the spot where Ash was dunked. He did resurface again after 30 seconds, however.
Spitting some water out of his mouth, Ash then angrily looked towards Misty, who was standing on the shallow side of the pool with her hands on her hips in a victorious pose, with a glare of pure irritation on his face. "You're gonna pay, Misty!" he angrily spat towards the red head while swinging his fist through the air to emphasize his anger.
"Ooh, I'm shaking!" Misty retorted as she made a frightened face and held her hands in front of her in mock defense, a smirk on her face the whole time.
"You should be!" Ash yelled as he lunged at Misty, but the red head simply moved to her right, avoiding the pokemon Trainer completely.
"Too slooooooow." Misty exclaimed as she stuck her tongue out mockingly towards Ash.
This was a big mistake, however, because it was just the opening that Ash needed. As the red head stood there with her tongue stuck out; Ash quickly took action and dragged his arms through the water, sending a wave straight into Misty's face and mouth.
She immediately started spitting water out of her mouth and as well as wiping her eyes to rid herself of the salty taste and sting in her eyes. As she glared through her half-open right eye, she saw Ash in front of her, sporting a victorious grin on his face and his right hand in a peace sign signifying his victory.
"You lose, Misty!" Ash declared with the stupid victory grin still plastered on his face. He then quickly ducked underwater as a wave of water splashed where his head was located moments ago, courtesy of Misty. He resurfaced soon after that and splashed some water back at her, thus commencing a competitive water fight between the two of them, with each of them getting a few good shots in on the other. This competition went on for a little while, until Misty jumped forward and dunked Ash once more.
Ash emerged out of the water shortly afterwards and shook his head to get the water off. "Now it's my turn!" he yelled as he turned his glare on Misty. "You haven't been dunked yet! So, now it's time I return the favour!" he declared before jumping through the air towards the red head.
"IT'S YOU! TRAINER FROM PALLET!" he heard someone yell out, which caused him to lose his concentration and fall right down into the water.
Misty turned towards the source of the yell and her eyes immediately widened at seeing who it was.
Ash resurfaced next to her and spit out a mouthful of water. "What gives!? Why are you yelling like tha-"he started scolding as he turned to face whoever just yelled at him, but froze mid-sentence as he realised who it was. "It's you! Samurai!" he yelled out as he pointed towards their guest.
Yes, standing on the edge of the pool in front of Ash and Misty, was Samurai, the Bug-type Trainer they had met in Viridian Forest almost right after Ash had started his Pokemon journey. He was clad in his usual attire, consisting out of Samurai armour that covered his entire midsection and chest areas, a white vest underneath it and a large Samurai helmet on top of his head. He also sported a sword in his right hand and a bug-catching net was hanging on his back.
"Yes, it is I: The Samurai from Viridian Forest!" Samurai declared to the occupants in the pool. "And you are Ash Ketchum! Pokemon Trainer from the town of Pallet!" he added as he pointed towards Ash. "And you are his friend," he continued as he turned his gaze towards Misty. "The red headed girl!" he concluded.
"My name is Misty. MISTY!" Misty angrily informed the armour-clad Trainer.
"Yes, well," Samurai started, changing the subject. "I must say that I am surprised to find the two of you on this vessel. What a coincidence that we are travelling on the same ship!" he remarked. "Although I must say that I am surprised to see that you still look so weak, Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town." He remarked with a smirk.
"WHAT!?" Ash suddenly yelled out, his face red out of anger. Yes, this was one of the fastest ways to rile the almost never calm and collected Ash Ketchum up. "Did you just say that I look weak?" he asked as he sneered at Samurai.
"You heard me." Samurai replied nonchalantly.
"Grrrr!" Ash growled as he started pulling his hair in aggravation. "I'll have you know that I'm plenty strong!" he shot back. "In fact, I challenge you to a Pokemon battle!" he yelled as he pointed towards Samurai.
"Very well!" Samurai exclaimed. "I accept your challenge!" he added as he pointed back at Ash.
15 minutes later…
Ash, with Pikachu next to him, and Samurai were standing at opposite ends of the swimming pool on deck, Ash in his normal clothing again, with Misty standing on the side of the pool. It turns out that Pokemon battles were a common occurrence on the ship, so the deck was able to transform into a battle field of sorts. The swimming pool now had various circular blocks standing out of the water to enable the Pokemon to move about more efficiently.
"Alright!" Misty yelled out from where she stood. "This will be a…uh…" she stopped and turned to Samurai. "Uh, how many Pokemon are you two going to use?" she sheepishly asked, cursing herself for forgetting to ask that question beforehand.
"Uh…" Samurai exclaimed as he gave the situation some thought. "How about three-on-three?" he proposed.
"Alright then." Misty said before turning to the middle once more. "This will be a three-on-thr-"
"WAIT!" Ash suddenly yelled out in horror.
"WHAT!?" Misty yelled in shock as she turned to face Ash. "What's the matter?" she irritatedly asked.
"Uh, I don't have three Pokemon with me." He exclaimed as he scratched his cheek in embarrassment. "I only brought Pikachu along, remember?" he declared as he pointed down to Pikachu standing next to him.
"Ooooh, that's right!" Misty exclaimed as she snapped her fingers in realisation. "I forgot about that!" she said as she turned to Samurai. "So, uh, are you willing to make it a one-on-one battle then?" she politely asked.
"Uh, I guess?" Samurai replied awkwardly.
"Alright!" Misty yelled as she turned back to the middle once more. "This will be a one-on-one battle between Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town, and Samurai from Viridian Forest!" she declared. "Send out your Pokemon and begin the match!" she announced.
"Alright, Pikachu! Let's do this!" Ash yelled as he pointed to the battle field.
"Pika!" Pikachu exclaimed as he jumped forward and landed on one of the blocks in the pool on all fours.
"Alright then! I choose you: Shedinja!" Samurai yelled as he threw a pokeball towards the swimming pool.
The pokeball opened and a white light emerged, which started morphing into some form. The light faded and revealed an exoskeleton-like Pokemon with two wings and three tips on each. It had a hole in between the wings and narrow, slit-like eyes. Almost its entire body was light brown, except for its abdomen, which was gray.
"She – Dinja!" the Pokemon called out as it hovered in front of Samurai.
"What kind of Pokemon is that?" Ash curiously asked as he pulled out his Pokedex and pointed it to Shedinja.
"Shedinja, the Shed Pokemon." The Pokedex's metallic voice started. "Shedinja's hard body doesn't move - not even a twitch. In fact, its body appears to be merely a hollow shell. It is believed that this Pokémon will steal the spirit of anyone peering into its hollow body from its back." It explained.
"Wow," Ash exclaimed as he put his Pokedex back into his pocket. "First time I've heard of a Shedinja." He admitted. "But it doesn't matter! Pikachu: Use Thunderbolt!" he ordered as he pointed towards Shedinja.
"Pika!" Pikachu complied as he jumped into the air. "Pi – Ka – CHUUU!" he exclaimed as he unleashed his Thunderbolt attack on Shedinja, whi didn't even try to dodge the oncoming attack.
The Thunderbolt looked as if it was going to hit Shedinja head-on, but instead of shocking the Shed Pokemon; it simply just bounced harmlessly off its body.
"What the heck?" Ash asked in shocked, which was mirrored by Pikachu exclaiming a 'Pika?' as he landed on the block again.
"That attack won't work on my Shedinja, Ash." Samurai exclaimed with crossed arms as he smirked at Ash across the pool. "You see; Shedinja has a special ability called Wonder Guard." He declared.
"Wonder Guard?" Ash repeated in confusion.
"Yes, Wonder Guard. This ability stops attacks that aren't super effective from damaging Shedinja." Samurai explained. "So, that means unless your Pikachu knows Flying-, Rock-, Ghost-, Fire- or Dark-type attacks; he will not be able to injure my Shedinja!" he concluded with a confident smirk.
Ash's eyes widened in shock after Samurai's explanation. "But…Pikachu only knows Electric- and Normal-type attacks!" he realised.
"Now, it's my turn." Samurai exclaimed from the other side of the pool. "Shedinja: Shadow Ball!" he ordered.
"She – Dinja!" Shedinja exclaimed as a black ball of energy started forming in front of the middle of its abdomen. It released the Shadow Ball and sent it soaring over the pool right towards Pikachu.
"Pikachu, dodge it!" Ash quickly ordered.
"Pika!" Pikachu complied and jumped to his left, but he got caught in the explosion as the Shadow Ball connected with the block he was previously standing on, sending him flying along the water and coming to a halt against the edge of the pool.
"Pikachu!" Ash called out in worry, but relaxed after he saw Pikachu jump back onto one of the blocks, a couple of burn marks on his body, but ready to continue nevertheless. "Alright, Pikachu! Let's try Thunderbolt again!" he ordered.
"Pi – Ka – CHUUU!" Pikachu exclaimed as he fired off another Thunderbolt, only for the attack to bounce off Shedinja's body again.
"Darn it…" Ash mumbled as he grit his teeth in anger. 'None of Pikachu's attacks will do any damage. I'm only going to wear Pikachu out if it keeps going on like this.' He thought. 'Hmm, maybe if I try wearing his Shedinja out…' he contemplated mentally. "Alright Pikachu: Use your Agility!" he ordered.
"Pika!" Pikachu exclaimed before disappearing from the spot. He then appeared as multiple blurs around the spot where Shedinja was hovering.
"Shedinja: Use Shadow Ball!" Samurai ordered.
"She – Dinja!" Shedinja exclaimed before it started firing off multiple Shadow Balls at the blurry forms of Pikachu.
Sadly for Shedinja and Samurai, the Shadow Ball attacks didn't connect, and instead just flew harmlessly through the air before exploding a distance away from the ship.
Ash smirked at this. 'It's working!' he thought confidently as he saw Shedinja slowly but surely tiring out. "Keep it up, Pikachu! Just a little longer!" he encouraged from his side.
Samurai had by now caught on to what Ash was trying to do and was busy formulating a plan to both stop Pikachu's attack, and keep his Shedinja from exhausting itself. "Shedinja!" he finally yelled. "I want you to fire you Shadow Ball attack into the water instead!" he ordered.
Shedinja complied and turned its body slightly downwards, before it unleashed a Shadow Ball straight into the water.
The attack caused the water to shoot up into the air and Pikachu, who was still using his Agility in a circular pattern, got hit by the splash, which knocked him out of the attack and up into the air.
"Now, Shedinja: Sunny Day and Solarbeam!" Samurai quickly ordered as he pointed towards Pikachu.
"Shedinja!" Shedinja exclaimed as a white orb started appearing in front of its body. A white beam then shot out of the orb and into the sky before the rays of the Sun suddenly got very brighter. "Shedin – JA!" it exclaimed as the halo-like object above its head started glowing white, signalling that it was gathering energy for its next attack. Since Sunny Day was active, this process took much quicker than usual and soon the halo pointed directly at Pikachu, before it fired a white beam of energy towards the yellow mouse.
The Solarbeam connected with Pikachu in mid-air, causing an explosion and a hefty amount of smoke to cover the yellow mouse from Ash's eyes.
"Pikachu!" Ash worriedly called out, with Misty also bearing a worried expression while they intently watched as the smoke started subsiding.
Once the smoke completely subsided, relief washed over Ash and Misty's faces as Pikachu was revealed standing on one of the blocks. But saying that the yellow mouse was worn out, would have been an understatement. There were burn marks all over his body and the smell of scorched fur hanged in the area. By receiving the Solarbeam head-on, Pikachu had received maximum damage and it was clear to all present that if he was struck with another devastating attack like the last one; this match will be over.
"Pikachu!" Ash yelled. "Do you think you can go on, buddy?" he asked with concern as he watched Pikachu intently.
"Pika Pika!" Pikachu exclaimed as he stood down on all fours, electricity sparkling out from his cheeks, signifying that he's fine.
Ash sighed in relief. He didn't want Pikachu to get hurt just because he wouldn't accept defeat. But he was facing an uphill battle at the moment. Pikachu had certainly lost more than a third of his energy, while Samurai's Shedinja has probably lost a bit of energy after firing those multiple Shadow Balls earlier. But the Shed Pokemon hasn't even taken a significant hit, and it probably won't for a quite a while thanks to its Wonder Guard ability and the fact that Ash hasn't found an opening yet.
"Pikachu: Use you Quick Attack to get in close to Shedinja and then use Thunderbolt!" Ash ordered.
"Pika!" Pikachu exclaimed before disappearing from the spot.
"Shedinja: Use Shadow Ball to stop Pikachu!" Samurai countered.
"She – Dinja!" Shedinja exclaimed as it fired off multiple Shadow Balls at Pikachu, but the yellow mouse's speed was too great for the Shed Pokemon and subsequently every Shadow Ball missed its target.
Pikachu suddenly appeared right in front of Shedinja. "Pi – Ka – CHUUU!" he exclaimed as he released the Thunderbolt at close range. Sadly, the results were the same as last time, as the attack simply bounced off of Shedinja's body.
"Aerial Ace!" Samurai yelled his order to Shedinja.
Shedinja disappeared from the spot, only to bang into Pikachu a moment later, sending the yellow mouse plunging into the water.
Ash and Pikachu were lucky. Since Aerial Ace was executed close range, it didn't have nearly enough power and speed behind it to seriously injure the yellow mouse. But while Pikachu fell into the water, Ash made a discovery of sorts.
As Pikachu fell into the water, some stray droplets splashed up against Shedinja, causing several sparks to emit from the Shed Pokemon while it slightly recoiled from pain.
'That's it!' Ash thought as his eyes widened slightly at the discovery. 'Shedinja is immune to most ATTACKS! But not from the elements around us! So, if I can get it wet and get Pikachu to shock it…!' he concluded as a small smirk appeared on his face.
Pikachu's emergence from the water broke his thoughts. The yellow mouse landed on one of the blocks and shook his body to get some excess water out of his fur.
"Pikachu!" Ash yelled out. "Listen closely, buddy. I think I've got a way to turn this thing around!" he informed Pikachu, who looked slightly over his shoulder at his Master in anticipation of the new plan. He then proceeded to whisper, seemingly to himself. But as soon as he stopped whispering, Pikachu nodded his head in understanding before turning back to Shedinja.
Yes, to the normal eye it looked as if Ash was talking to himself, but with the bond that he and Pikachu share, as well as the yellow mouse's acute sense of hearing; Pikachu could hear every word that his Master whispered, and both understood the new plan of action.
"Alright, let's do it!" Ash exclaimed as he pointed towards Shedinja.
"Pika!" Pikachu exclaimed as he used Quick Attack and darted towards Shedinja. As he ran in a straight line towards the Shed Pokemon, he tilted his tail down, effectively scooping water up and splashing it towards Shedinja.
"Shedinja: Use your Shadow Ball!" Samurai countered.
Shedinja complied and fired off multiple Shadow Balls towards Pikachu but the yellow mouse dodged left and right while still dousing the Shed Pokemon with water.
"Alright, Pikachu. Use Thunderbolt!" Ash ordered when Pikachu was about halfway between him and Shedinja.
"Pi – Ka – CHUU!" Pikachu exclaimed as he unleashed a vicious Thunderbolt on Shedinja.
"Shedinja! Counter with Shadow Ball!" Samurai quickly ordered, which Shedinja complied to as it released a powerful ball of black energy towards the oncoming Thunderbolt attack.
The two attacks' collision caused an explosion and a ball of smoke to appear above the swimming pool, from which both Pikachu as well as Shedinja jumped out of.
Ash saw this as the perfect opening. "Pikachu! Grab Shedinja and dive underwater with it!" he quickly ordered.
Pikachu heard his Master's order seconds before Samurai could counter, and he proceeded in grabbing Shedinja by its wings and stand on its back, effectively riding the Shed Pokemon down until both of them submerged under the water. Both pokemon jumped out moments later, though, and landed on opposite blocks in the pool.
"What's the deal. Ash?" Samurai asked in confusion. "What's the point of soaking our pokemon?" he inquired further.
Ash, on the other hand, was smirking back at Samurai. "Did you notice, Samurai, that Shedinja is soaking wet?" he asked in an innocent voice. His smirk grew even wider when he saw the Bug Trainer nod. "And WATER conducts what, Samurai?" he asked as his smirk radiated confidence.
"What a stupid question." Samurai retorted. "Water conducts…" he started, before his eyes grew comically wide "ELECTRICITY!?" he yelled out in shock.
Ash's smirk quickly turned into a teethy grin as Samurai realised what that meant. "Pikachu: Use Thunder…" he casually ordered.
Pikachu had a smirk on his face as electricity started emitting out of his cheeks, causing Samurai's eyes to widen even more.
"Shedinja: Solarbeam!" he quickly yelled out in retaliation.
"Pikaaaaaaa…"
"Shedinnnn"
"CHUUU!" "JAAAA!"
Since Sunny Day was still active, the Solarbeam and Thunder attacks were released simultaneously and shot forwards to the other. But instead of colliding with each other, they shot past each other, en route to their respective enemies at the moment.
"WATCH OUT!" both Ash and Samurai yelled at their respective pokemon, but it proved in vain, as the attacks collided with the pokemon, resulting in two huge explosions that covered the entire battle field with smoke. Both Pikachu and Shedinja fell out of the cloud moments later and landed in the water with a splash, knocked out.
"This battle is a draw!" Misty announced after closer inspection of Pikachu and Shedinja, thus concluding the battle.
"Pikachu!" Ash yelled out as he skipped from one block in the pool to another until he reached Pikachu. "Are you okay, buddy?" he asked as he gently picked the yellow mouse up into his arms.
"Pika…" Pikachu groggily replied as he looked up at Ash.
"You were awesome out there. I'm very proud of you, Pikachu." Ash said with a sincere smile, cradling the yellow mouse against him. Looking over to the edge if the pool, he saw Samurai recalling his Shedinja back into its pokeball, and hopped from block-to-block over to him.
"Thank you, Shedinja." Samurai said as he looked at Shedinja's pokeball. "That was an awesome battle." He added as he clipped the pokeball back onto his belt. He looked up and saw Ash approaching him. "Hey there, Ash. How's Pikachu doing?" he inquired as Ash stopped in front of him.
"He's gonna be just fine, right Pikachu?" Ash stated as he looked at Pikachu in his arms.
"Pikachu." Pikachu replied with a nod of his head.
"Anyway," Ash started again. "I want to thank you for a great battle, Samurai!" he said as he stuck his right hand out towards Samurai.
Samurai looked at Ash's hand for a moment, before a smile etched its way onto his face. "My real name is Yuchihoshi." He stated. "And ditto here, Ash. Thank you for an awesome battle!" he added as he took Ash's hand and shook it.
Ash smiled warmly. "Thank you, Yuchihoshi." He replied as Misty stepped up next to him.
"But man, I still can't believe you managed to draw with my Shedinja." Yuchihoshi whined as he crossed his arms and put his right hand on his chin in thought. "I mean, it's immune to almost every attack that exists, and here you almost defeat it with an Electric attack…" he mumbled.
"Hehe, well, if there wasn't any water nearby, I think me and Pikachu would have lost for sure…" Ash replied while sheepishly scratching the back of his head.
They then heard clapping and cheering and, upon inspecting what it was, found that the entire pool battle field was surrounded by passengers who had gathered to witness the battle, applauding them. They had been so caught up in the battle that they had failed to notice anything else.
"Come on, you two," Misty suddenly spoke up. "Let's get your pokemon to the Pokemon Center on board to make sure they're fine." She suggested, to which Ash and Yuchihoshi nodded in agreement as the three of them made their way towards the Pokemon Center.
After having both Pikachu and Shedinja checked out by Nurse Joy; Ash, Misty and Yuchihoshi proceeded to the restaurant on the deck, where they ordered some dinner and started catching up.
It turned out that Yuchihoshi followed Ash's progress up until the conclusion of the Indigo League. So, he then learned of Ash's victory in the Orange League, and his Top Eight finish in the Silver Conference, as well as his recently challenged Title of Orange League Champion, which was why he and Misty were currently on this ship.
Yuchihoshi, on the other hand, had travelled through three regions, namely Kanto, Johto and surprisingly Hoenn as well, which is where he caught his Shedinja. This piece of news made Ash whine loudly at the fact that he wanted to go to the Hoenn region as well. He was currently on his way to the Sevi Islands for a little R & R. They also learned that Yuchihoshi didn't compete for Gym Badges like Ash. He instead travelled through regions in search of new Bug- type Pokemon, which led to the latest discussion between the three of them…
"So, you must have caught tons of new Bug-type pokemon then?" Ash asked after taking a sip of his hot chocolate.
"To be honest," Yuchihoshi started as he looked out over the ocean. "Not really. At first, I tried catching every Bug pokemon I came across!" he excitedly stated. "But after a while, I started realising that it isn't just about catching a whole lot of pokemon, it's about raising your pokemon well and working hard to reach your goals." He philosophised with a smile. "So, it's, uh, kind of embarrassing…" he started with an embarrassed chuckle. "But I only have four pokemon." He added as he scratched his cheek.
"That's awesome!" Ash remarked about Yuchihoshi's point of view regarding pokemon. "So…can I see them?" he asked with a childish glint in his eyes.
"Sure!" Yuchihoshi replied as he practically jumped out of his chair. "Alright," he started as he grabbed four pokeballs from his belt. "Come on out, everyone!" he yelled as he threw the pokeballs into the air.
The pokeballs opened in mid-air and, in a bright flash of light, four pokemon emerged and formed completely on the ground next to Yuchihoshi. The first pokemon was one that Ash knew and battled in the past: Pinsir. The second pokemon was Shedinja. The third pokemon was one that Ash had battled twice in his journey through the Johto region: A Scizor. The third and last pokemon in the row was a lot more familiar to Ash; seeing as he had one as well: A Heracross.
"Ash, Misty, Pikachu:" Yuchihoshi started. "I'd like you to meet my other pokemon: Pinsir, Scizor and Heracross!" He introduced the three new pokemon.
The three said pokemon all greeted the gang with their respective cries.
"Hi there!" Ash and Misty simultaneously greeted them with a wave of their hands.
"Pika Pika!" Pikachu also greeted with a wave of his paw.
"Say Yuchihoshi," Ash started as he gave the four pokemon a curious glance. "Didn't you have a Metapod as well?" he inquired as he turned his attention to Yuchihoshi.
"Yeah, I did…" Yuchihoshi started. "But you see, it eventually evolved into a Butterfree and I decided to release it to go find a mate…" he explained with a half-hearted smile. "I mean, what type of Trainer would I be if I kept my pokemon away from happiness and starting a family?" he asked, more to himself than to Ash. He suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder. Looking up, he saw Ash standing in front of him with a smile of understanding on his face.
"You did the right thing." Ash reassured Yuchihoshi as he let go of his shoulder.
"Thanks, Ash." Yuchihoshi replied with a small smile of his own.
The three friends talked a little bit longer into the night, with Ash and Misty telling Yuchihoshi about their journey through the various islands in the Orange Archipelago. Ash also revealed that he too released his Butterfree to be with his mate, and that he also captured a Heracross while he travelled through the Johto region. They hit the sack at around 23:30 that evening, after all three of them talked to their hearts' content…
"Well, this is our stop…" Ash remarked as he, Misty, Pikachu and Yuchihoshi stood in front of the ship's exit.
The ship came to its stop in Mandarin Island Harbour by 18:00 the following evening, which was where Ash and Misty were going to be staying until they attended a special meeting to inform Ash of the arrangements for his big battle.
"So, where are you going from here, Yuchihoshi?" Misty asked.
"Well, like I said last night; I'm actually on my way to the Sevi Islands." Yuchihoshi started. "But, after I heard about your experiences here in the Orange Islands; I've decided to head to Murcott Island first!" he informed them. "You said that there are some rare Bug-type pokemon there, right?" he clarified, to which Ash nodded affirmatively. "Well, after I'm done there, I'll probably make my way towards Valencia Island, which is where I have to board a ship sailing to the Sevi Islands." He concluded.
"Well, good luck, Yuchihoshi." Ash said as he stuck his hand out to Yuchihoshi.
"Thanks, Ash." Yuchihoshi said as he grabbed Ash's hand. "And good luck with your match. I know you'll do great!" he said as the two of them shook hands.
After Ash, Misty and Pikachu finished greeting Yuchihoshi; they got off of the ship and waited as it started its voyage once more before finally waving good bye to him as the ship disappeared on the horizon, en route to its next destination.
The group then started making their way towards the Mandarin Island Pokemon Center, where they were planning on staying for the night.
"You know," Ash started while stretching his arms above his head as they walked. "I'm pretty hungry right about now." He remarked as he looked over to Misty, who was walking next to him.
"Yeah, me too." Misty agreed with a small yawn. "Man, the time we spent on that ship really made me lazy." She remarked as they got closer to the front doors of the Pokemon Center.
"Yeah, you got that right!" Ash agreed before they started laughing as they walked through the Pokemon Center's front doors.
"Misty! Wow, what a pleasant surprise!" they heard a voice say, which ceased their laughing, because that voice sounded very familiar. It sounded like the voice of…
"Rudy?" Ash blurted out in surprise.
Yes, in front of them, stood Rudy, the third crew member of the Orange League, with a smug smirk on his face…
Uh – Oh. What is Rudy doing here? How will this affect Ash and Misty? What lies in store for our couple? Read the next chapter, I guess…
BUT! Before you do that, please review! You have no idea how much your reviews encourage me to keep writing and update faster. So, review!