The Best, Like NoOne Ever Was

by Omega-Saber

Ash is feeling down after another defeat and returns home to rest and recuperate. While there he thinks over all his past journeys and what he could have done differently. But this will lead him to a course of action that will throw him into his greatest adventure yet.

4. Chapter 3

'djsj' - Thoughts, "djsj" - Speech

This Story is un-bata'd so please excuse mistakes. Also, And I probably should have put this in earlier chapters, SPOILER ALERT!, for most of the Pokemon films.

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon or any of the related places or characters. No profit is being made from this story.

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Sitting at her desk, scanning through the files she had received from her sources, Cynthia was both impressed and disappointed.

Impressed, firstly because of the content of the files themselves, each telling the story of an extraordinary young man who was willing to put the needs and the desires of others, be they Pokemon or human, before his own. Secondly because of the sheer breadth of the file. She knew that the g-men and Pokemon Rangers were interested in Ash and his story but the lengths they had gone to and the data they had uncovered was staggering.

But on the same topic it was also disappointing. Despite the obvious effort put into it, their were clear gaps where nothing was known. This in itself staggered her, knowing that what she had read didn't even begin to cover what the young hero had went through. It seems she had been right when she thought he had dealt with the likes of the Team Galactic incident, as it was coming to be known, before. What she hadn't known and to a large extent still didn't was how often he had dealt with such things. She had a sneaky suspicion that the only person who could ever really give a full account was Ash himself.

For example, discarding the Team Galactic incident, she had 3 instances where she was relatively certain he had been involved. The first was probably the sketchiest, and she hoped it was the first. It had been that incident 5 years ago in the orange islands, when she had been in Unova training at the dragons village. Despite the fact that their was both a news crew present, and the esteemed Professor Oak being on-site, most of the details were still sketchy at best. What was known was that the legendary kanto birds, alongside Lugia, had fought and the result was the underwater currents that control the worlds climate being thrown into disarray.(at least we know we'll have some common ground to talk about with the further away regions once they open their doors again). This, as well as the involvement of an eccentric billionaire by the name of Lawrence the third, all culminated somehow in Ash saving the world. It wasn't known how he did it, or even why he was specifically targeted(the shamouti islanders are especially protective of the relics on their home that could probably answer some questions, from what they see as mainland meddlers after their encounter with Lawrence) but the upshot of it all was that Ash gained membership into the highly exclusive club of World savers.

Next was that incident about a year later in Altomare. The incident in itself was no where near the scale of the shamouti island incident, but the news that a legendary Pokemon had died was just as earth shaking. Researchers had studied, or at least tried to study, legendary Pokemon and until that event the research world was still split 50/50 on the issue of whether legendaries were immortal or whether they were just very tough and long lived. Ash's name was thankfully kept out of most reports of the incident, else he would have been continuously hounded by researchers, as well as most likely some of the more lethal cells of Team Rocket. She, and by extension the 'Ketchum Files', as her contact had referred to them when she had requested them, only knew of Ash's involvement due to the confidential report on the interrogation by the International Police that they had donated to his files. Very few actually knew that it was because of Ash that it was only one legendary that had died instead of two, not to mention stopping Altomare becoming a new and impenetrable headquarters for Team Rocket.

Finally, and the most extensive file that existed on any of Ash's adventures, was the one given by the Pokemon Ranger organisation on the Sea Temple incident. It was after reading this report that Cynthia decided that despite what some think, Ash was the most humble person she had ever heard of. She had been slightly confused when she had finished the Shamouti file why someone like Ash who, reportedly a lot more in his younger years, liked to proclaim himself as the best (though in his newly emerging maturity he may temporarily concede to being the 'best in the making') would not boast of a title such as the 'Chosen One'. She supposed it may have been due to the belief that no-one would believe him, as the exact details of how and why he received the title were sketchy at best due to the islanders paranoia and his own tight lips, or even the result of some trauma from the incident. That could be a perfectly normal and reasonable(as much as such words apply to that type of situation) reaction. But when he technically had the right to claim the title King of the Sea, she began to see that despite appearances, Ash wasn't big headed and he didn't just want attention, at least not anymore, he just genuinely and whole-heartedly believed that he and his Pokemon had it in them to be the very best there ever was. This didn't mean he degraded others to make himself seem superior, as the arrogant so often do, but that he recognised and appreciated strength in others, simply believing that he was capable of eventually surpassing them.

All of these reports and all she had personally learnt about Ash through meeting and getting to know him led to two conclusions. Firstly that she felt both honoured and very excited that Ash wanted her to teach him, and she would do her very best to push him to his limits and beyond them to prepare him for whatever else the world had to throw his way. And secondly, she thought with an evil smirk, was that Ash Ketchum, world saver and exceptional Pokemon trainer, wouldn't know what hit him once she got through with him.

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Samuel Oak, world renowned Researcher and trainer, the man who could sit patiently for days on end in a hide, barely moving, just to glimpse that one event that was crucial to his research, was about two seconds from throttling the young man named Ash Ketchum.

Oh he loved the boy like a son, and held a unique friendship with him that ,due to the use of time travel, stretched right from his own childhood and his original Pokemon journey, all the way to the current day while he was still a good 40 years his senior. He had witnessed the boy save the world with the help of some legendaries, and the only one who knew more on what all had happened during Ash's adventures than he did was Ash himself, due to the complete coincidence of all of Ash's pokedex's having an advanced recording system that fed directly and only to a computer stored in his vault(he really should get around to mentioning that little fact to Ash one of these days).

But for all the good things he could say about the boy, an abundance of patience and the ability to sit still were not among them. It was a certified fact that Ash Ketchum had a horribly bad case of both borderline hyperactivity and wanderlust. This meant that what was now the fourth day since he had contacted Cynthia, the young man was practically bouncing off the walls from excitement and impatience to continue his journey.

The first day or two I hadn't really noticed. But then yesterday, he and Delia came for a 'visit' in which Delia looked about ready to strangle her son herself, and had 'nicely asked' me in private(read threatened to sic her on his records room, a place he had been meaning for twenty or so years to properly clean and organise, and let the clean freak of a Pokemon decide what was and wasn't junk itself, unless he entertained Ash for a while) to let Ash spend some quality time with me and his Pokemon. Probably the worst part of the arrangement was that Ash's bublasaur, usually the peace keeper at my ranch, was just as much of a nuisance as Ash and the rest of his Pokemon now that they were entertaining each other.

It was just as I heard yet another beaker break in one of the labs and Ash's yelled "sorry Professor" for the tenth time today, and I was considering setting my old Dragonite on Ash and his Pokemon that the doorbell rang. I got up and headed to answer it all while quietly muttering to myself "saved be the bell, indeed".

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Ash Ketchum was bored. He loved being home and getting to see his Mum, the Professor and all of his Pokemon family, but he hated not having anything to do. After six years of constant traveling and adventuring, sitting in one place for days on end held no appeal to him unless it was for gym badges or a tournament. His mom seemed to not be feeling all to well, because she had got him to come up to the Professors lab his third day home. He had been impatient for whatever challenges Cynthia would set but he had resolved to spend as much time with his mom as he could now that he knew she was always missing him so much. It had been years since he had the chance to head to work with his mom and he had missed it in a way.

His mother owned a garden centre on the far side of Pallet town that grew and sold plants and gardening supplies of all shapes, sizes and uses. It all also had a cafe inside the greenhouse style building, surrounded by plants and an artificial waterfall, that his mother loved to practice cooking in, successfully combining his mothers two greatest passions, gardening and cooking. One of his first experiences with Pokemon had been there, when he had seen some of the various smaller grass and bug types that his mother 'overlooked' as long as they didn't cause any trouble and only ate the dead leaves off of plants, helping to keep everything look healthy.

But when he had gotten bored and may have arranged an impromptu war game between the various Pokemon living there, Delia had decided that he must be missing his own Pokemon and graciously told him that she didn't mind if he spent the time while she was at work with them. His mother could be really considerate sometimes.

So for the past two days he and his Pokemon had been training. He had the amazing idea(if he says so himself) to train all his Pokemon so they could use his patent pending counter shield in one form or another. They had all taken to it surprisingly well, all being used to his unorthodox methods, and his Sinnoh team helping with the teaching had certainly sped things up. But then he had a great idea, one of his greatest ever. He told all his Pokemon to spread around the ranch and then he would randomly pop out and order them to use counter shield. This would help them to perfect it and also teach them to be able to use it at a moments notice. He had to admit even he was awed at the spectacle of thirty rampaging Tauros suddenly stopping because of a teenage boy shouting and seemingly break dancing while shooting off ice beam's in all directions. Professor Oak was less than amused when he was caught running outside, protectively clutching his favourite coffee maker and his personal stash of beans screaming "run for the hills, the Articuno are attacking" . The fact that a good portion of the ranch was still thawing didn't help his mood, though Glaile was having the time of his life.

I was just considering whether surprising Muk while he was passing through Oak's kitchen was a good idea when the Professor called me into his study saying that the package from Cynthia had finally arrived.

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Ash honestly couldn't wait to see what Cynthia had sent. He was sitting on the couch in Oak's study with a thick envelope sitting on the glass table in front of him, while the Professor tinkered with something that had come in a separate package and apparently required him to make some adjustments before Ash could see what it is. He was just about to burst when the Professor finally finished what he was doing, set the now closed box under the table and sat down opposite me.

"Now Ash," he began "I know that your excited and anxious to see Cynthia's requirements but you need to take this very seriously. Whatever they are will undoubtably push you so be prepared." At this he opened the envelope and pulled out a stack of papers. My jaw almost fell off thinking about how much must be on them when he separated the top page from the rest and put the remaining sheets back on the table.

"Now lets see here. The majority of those papers are forms that will need to be filled out concerning your academic and training career as well as some personal details, legal waivers and some reference forms you'll need to get completed, but don't worry, I'll help you sort all that out. What you really want is this sheet here" at this he waved it in front of my face and my head jerked back and forth following it.

"This is a list of all the tasks that you will have to meet and complete in order to qualify to become Cynthia's apprentice. I can tell at just a glance that you'll have one month to complete them and that they will take you all over the regions you've already visited."
I couldn't help but nervously gulp at that, looks like ill be needing some really fast transport.

He continued " At the end of that month you will be expected to meet with Cynthia at the Sinnoh League main stadium, on Lily of the Valley Island. The tasks that you will have to complete are as follows;

-A minimum of 32 badges from any of the 5 Main Regions

-At least one tournament win, whether it be a minor or major league/ battle frontier

-A recommendation from 3 different regional professors, 2 Regional Champions and 8 Gym leaders from any of the five main regions

-Full academic records showing education of participant, and a minimum maintained grade of 90% over the course of the applicants journey, or an exam provided by a regional professor that is the equivalent.

-Retrieval of any and all Pokemon in the trainers possession, excluding Pokemon that have been traded away/recommendation from a Regional professor to explain exclusion

- Completion of a physical fitness course as put together by Cynthia, with the help of Bruno of the kanto/johto elite four.

- The applicant must acquire a crescent feather personally from Cressalia and present it to the Sinnoh Champion before the final challenge.

- Completion of the Sinnoh Gym Leader Gauntlet. This is an endurance challenge, facing all 8 main gym leaders of the Sinnoh region, one after the other with no break, in 2 on 2 matches, where the challenger may only use 6 Pokemon over the entire challenge. This event will be held as the final requirement for acceptance as an apprentice.

Whew" the professor finally finished, impressed himself at the requirements. He knew that the gauntlet and Cressalia's feather were two traditional requirements that any Sinnoh champion had to give, one of the reasons why their had very rarely been an apprentice to any of the Sinnoh champions. But the recommendations required were steep as well. Every regional professor, as well as every gym leader and elite four member, would have their own task they would likely want completed in return for a recommendation, despite the friendships they may have with Ash.

Ash himself was now very nervous. He had already acquired the needed badges and league wins, though they were minor. And he was incredibly proud of the fact that he had kept an average of 92% while he was traveling. It had been no easy feat, and he was eternally grateful to Brock for helping him, especially because just about when he was entering the first round of the Sinnoh league he had finally finished the 6 years of studying everyone had to do before they could freely travel as a trainer without studying anymore. He would probably keep up his studies, especially as Cynthia would more than likely want him to study something as part of his apprenticeship. But everything else sounded like a real challenge. He would love the opportunity to see all of his old Pokemon again, but they were really spread out and he didn't know where some of them even were.

But what really freaked him out was the last 3. He knew what Bruno was like when it came to fitness and survival, the man was a mountain on legs! He didn't know if he could survive a course even partially designed by him. And he also knew just how hard Cressalia would be to find. He was beyond lucky when he had met her before, and he just hoped he could recreate that feat. The thing that really had him both excited and terrified was the gauntlet. He would facing 8 of the best trainers in all of Sinnoh, while they were using their best, one after the other and they would have 16 Pokemon to use while he would only have 6. He would undoubtably have to be at his very best if he could do it at all. He could understand now why it was so rare for a champion to take an apprentice. For someone to complete the challenges they almost had to already be an elite.

Just as the Professor thought Ash was going to hyperventilate from a mixture of pure excitement of a new challenge and adventure, as well as terror at what he would have to do, and Pikachu was alternating between excitedly sparking his cheeks and curling into a little Pika-ball, he started talking again.

"Well Ash, as you're no doubt aware, this will be extremely difficult to do, especially in one month. But let me just say that I firmly believe that if you put your mind to it your capable of doing this." Ash seemed to perk up a bit at this. " now before we go any farther I want to give you one more chance to back out. No-one will think any less of you if you quit after all you've already accomplished."(Ha! Thought the Professor. That little piece of reverse psychology should get him excited again)

And he didn't have long to wait. At the word 'quit' Ash's head had immediately snapped up. That was something he had never, nor did he ever plan to do. He jumped on his seat, and pumped his fist in the air before loudly proclaiming for the world to hear "Ash Ketchum never quits, no matter how hard the challenge, me and my Pokemon can do it! Isn't that right Pikachu?" At this Pikachu jumped on his shoulder and proclaimed an equally loud "Pi, Pik A chu, Pikapi" while pumping his tiny fist as well.

Oak could only smile at a reaction that was just so Ash.

"Well, now that thats settled, I'll move on to the package that came with this. If you could give me your Pokedex and follow me Ash?" The Professor asked while lifting the box from under the table and heading towards his computer.

Curiously, Ash handed over his Pokedex and followed the Professor where he plugged a cable into his Pokedex. He then proceeded to take another device out of the box that Ash had never seen before. It looked like one of the fore-arm guards his friend samurai used, had been overhauled by a sci-fi movie maker and then had a computer as well as several other things stuck in it. It was very streamlined, a mix between silver and the same red from his original Pokedex and strangely enough it looked like it was tailored for his size. He gave a confused look to the Professor who went on to explain.

"Now Ash, this is a brand new device that I and several other regional Professors and companies have been working on. I don't know how Cynthia got one made for you without me knowing, but these were meant initially to only be released to elites and Champions, as well as a few exceptional gym leaders. Its called the Poketron. It is essentially a Pokedex, laptop computer, poketch, pokemon and item storage system, video phone as well as several other handy functions all in one. And they are genetically locked to one user. They are meant to enable elite trainers to have access to all their Pokemon and a small amount of equipment without constantly being tied to a Pokemon Centre. I don't think they'll ever reach mainstream use like the Pokedex or other devices, their simply to complex and expensive, but their extremely versatile, proofed against water, electricity overloads and any type of weather we could think of, as well as being able to take enough abuse so that they can take everything and much more than you can and even some Pokemon. In short if you lose or break this Ash you had better hope you have somewhere you can hide that I cant find you."

At this and the death glare the Professor was currently giving him Ash stopped trying to drool all over the Poketron and stood up straight again. "Is this really for me Professor? And what do you mean have all my Pokemon with me?"

"Well Ash, your the only person this Poketron will fit once your Pokedex finishes dowloading to it which should be finished... Ah right now" at that the computer made a larger ding! And ejected Ash's Pokedex "And secondly, I know that you have always kept your Pokemon here at my Ranch, but most trainers don't have that privilege. The majority of trainers store their Pokemon, minus the maximum of six they can carry, in the electronic Pokemon storage system run by the league. It does the same as the Pokeball, creating a virtual environment for the Pokemon to exist in, otherwise no-one but someone with a lot of money, or those sponsored by them could own more than six Pokemon. That's the way it used to be when the regions were ruled by Monarchies and Emperors. The Poketron will do the same thing, only the storage unit will be internal on the unit, instead of transporting them to a separate location. Thankfully the genetic lock also means it won't come off your arm unless you want it to and only you can use it, so you don't have to worry about all your Pokemon being stolen. In the case of Champions, where they can forgo completely the six at a time rule if they need to, this device means that in an emergency they could bring every single Pokemon they own to bear at the same time."

"Wow Professor, this is awesome! I can't wait to see Cynthia and thank her for this! Its going to let me keep all my family with me all the time! Wait till I tell everyone."

"Well Ash, before you run off I'll need you to sit down and help with this paperwork" at this Ash adopted a look as if Team Rocket had just stolen Pikachu again, and said Pikachu wisely made a dash for the ranch."But after we've finished you can go and let your Pokemon know the good news and get ready to start your next journey tomorrow."

"And I just know" Ash declared "that its going to be my best one yet!"

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A/N - aaaaaaaaand done. Wow that the longest chapter I've ever written. Hopefully you all enjoy it. I know the last line was a bit cheesy but it works I think. the next few chapters will be Ash completing the tasks, so look forward to that.

I would really appreciate any reviews or PM's they really help motivate me to write, and thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favourited or followed this story, your support really helps. Hopefully this chapter meets expectations. Again its un-bata'd so please excuse any mistakes. Also in response to the guest review, that a great idea for a story and I may publish a series of one shots based off the list called 'The Ketchum Files' later, but if anyone else wants to in the mean time feel free. I would just appreciate it if you would tell me so I can read it lol. The Poketron is something that has been done in a similar way before, but its a concept I've had rattling around in my head for years.

Finally I have another story thats a sword art online/highlander crossover, something not done before, so I would really appreciate if you all could have a look and review.

Goodbye until next time and God Bless.