Ash's Precious Little Girl - CH XXIII: One Last Challenge! Part I
A/N: Ash and Co. is heading back to Pallet Town for a little visit. I know that Dawn decided to stay at home since I watched the final episode of Diamond and Pearl. However, I decided to change some things around and let her go with Ash and Brock for a little bit before she heads back. There will be a two-part thing since Nathan Pierce (EternalHero01's OC) will challenge Ash to a battle when the group is on a ship that is heading to Pallet Town. This will be the final battle in the story, so you better sit back and enjoy!
Ash's Precious Little Girl - CH XXIII: One Last Challenge! Part I
(A few days later)
We find Ash and Co. onboard a ferry that was heading to Pallet Town. This was going to be an interesting and yet strange visit to Ash's hometown. The group knows that Ash's mom is unaware about Homura's sudden growth spurt. Let's just hope it does not cause any issue when they arrive there. It was nice that Dawn decided to tag along with since she had nothing else better to do. So why not tag along with her friends for a little bit longer. It would be nice to visit a different region other than Sinnoh once in awhile.
The group was enjoying the clear and peaceful ocean scenery. The body of water was calm, the rays of sunshine was shining brightly as always, the ocean blue sky was clear with no sight of any rain clouds, and to make this day more perfect…the gentle breeze. "Today is a really nice day, don't you think?" Dawn broke the peaceful silence first.
"Uh huh…" The blonde teenager totally agreed. "Wish everyday could be like this!"
"It's always is…" Brock joked. "Just as long as Team Rocket doesn't show up and ruin this moment." The group shared a laugh.
"Yeah, those three always show up." The young coordinator added. "It doesn't matter where we go or head to, Team Rocket somewhat magically shows up."
"Hmm…" Ash hummed, which caught everyone's attention. Was there something on Ash's mind?
"Is something the matter, Daddy?"
"Well…speaking of Team Rocket…don't you think it's kinda weird that they haven't shown up recently?" The group blinked in confusion. What did he mean by that? "You know…like they usual do. Always come up with devious plots on capturing Pikachu." Ash did make a good point. Where was Team Rocket?
"You know, Ash…you make a good point. We haven't seen them for awhile." Brock said, pondering on this strange inconvenience. The future Pokemon doctor massaged his chin.
"Let's not worry about that too much." Dawn spoke up. She did not want her friends to jinx this relaxing moment. They should just enjoy this moment while they can. "We all know that those three will bound to show up eventually, so let's just enjoy this quiet moment while we can before they do show up."
"Good idea, Dawn."
"Thanks, Ash." The blue-haired coordinator gave her crush a wink, which made Ash blushed slightly.
As the group enjoys their peaceful scenery, they were being eavesdropped by the same trio they were talking about earlier. Jessie, James, and Meowth were dressed in tourist disguises. "Hehe…did you heard that? The twerps miss us." Meowth informed his partners-in-crime.
"Let's not disappoint the twerps." The redheaded woman offered. "Let's go capture the twerp's Pikachu." A mischievous grin appeared on Jessie's face.
"With what?" James blurted out, which made Jessie frowned.
"What do you mean 'With what?'" The redheaded mocked. "Use your head, James!" She scolded at her male counterpart. "Like we always do. The old…"
"I afraid that I have to agree with James-boy here." The talking cat interrupted. "Didn't you forget, Jess? We're out of dough…"
An anime vein popped on Jessie's forehead. Why her lame brain teammates did not mentioned this beforehand? "And you mentioned this now?" Her temper was getting the best of her.
"Sorry Jess…" Meowth apologized nervously. "It didn't come to my mind that you wanted us to come up with a plan when the twerps shown up."
Before Jessie could pound the group's brain in operations to the ground, James spoke up when he noticed something strange about the twerps. "Hey guys?"
"What, James?" The redheaded was starting to get annoyed by her teammates.
"Didn't the twerps have a small twerp with them? I don't see her anywhere…" He pointed out. True to his words, Jessie and Meowth did not see the chibi version of Homura anywhere, only the more matured and tall version of her.
"You know what, you're right." The talking cat agreed.
"What gives? Did the twerps trade the little brat for a different twerp? That's irresponsible!"
"No…" James' teammates glanced at him. Did he figure something out? He studied the young blonde woman carefully and took notice of the familiar features. "G-Guys…" The blue-haired man looks awestruck. This could not be true, can't it? "I'm think that…is the little twerp!" He almost shouted.
"WHAT?"
"WOBBUFFETT!"
The loudness from the group made Ash and Co. to glance over to Team Rocket's direction. The foursome quickly turns away nervously, avoiding eye contact. The heroes blinked confusedly before shrugging off the weirdness. Jessie can hear Homura make a comment about them, which struck a nerve.
Once the coast was clear, Team Rocket gave each other a glance. "It's definitely the little brat…" Jessie grumbled. "But how is that possible?"
"A growth spurt?" James dumbly suggested.
"That's one major growth spurt…" Meowth did not quite buy into that answer.
"It does NOT matter if it is true. That little twerp can never be more beautiful than me!" Jessie gloated. Her teammates sighed dejectedly.
"Sometimes, you are delusional, Jess…" Meowth made a rude comment. He earned himself a death glare from the redhead.
"What was THAT, MEOWTH?" The angry female hissed venomously.
"Uhhh…nothing…Jess…" The talking cat said nervously.
"Good!" The redhead huffed. "Now then, we will wait for the right moment when the twerps aren't looking, so we can capture the twerp's Pikachu!"
"Good plan, Jess!" James grinned evilly.
"What do you expect James? Not only that I'm beautiful, I'm very smart as well." The young woman informed in a gloating way.
'Speak for yourself…' James and Meowth pondered. They thought it otherwise.
As Ash and the others enjoy their relaxation, Pikachu, Piplup, and Eevee perked up when they sensed someone approaching the group. This alerted Ash, Homura, Dawn, and Brock. "Hey, what's the matter, Pikachu?" Ash asked his best friend in a concern tone.
Before Ash or the others could get an answer, someone spoke up behind the group. "Yo!" A laidback male voice caught the group's attention. Ash and Co. quickly spun around to see a sixteen-year-old male trainer. The mysterious male has a dark blue…maybe black color hair that reaches down to his shoulders. He has a pair of mismatch eyes. The right one was red while the left one was blue. He is dressed in a blood red shade shirt, dark blue pants, black running shoes with a navy stripe along the sides, a black jacket with a special hood attachment, and a Tribal blue design. Along the line, he wears a pair of fingered and fingerless gloves, a black leather clip belt, and a crystal shard earring on his right ear. The spiky-haired trainer gave the group a friendly smile.
"Uh…Hi…" Ash replied awkwardly. "Who are you?" The young trainer did not want to sound rude and all, but he did not know who this person was and what business did he want with the group.
"Oh, my name is Nathan Pierce, but most people like my friends and family call me, Hero." The mysterious trainer replied in a kind manner.
"It's nice to meet you, Hero." Ash greeted in a friendly manner. "My name is Ash Ketchum." Hero's eyes widen in surprise.
"THE ASH KETCHUM!" The spiky-haired trainer chirped in a fan-like tone. The group sweat dropped.
"Uh…yeah…" The young trainer did not know how to react to this. However, Ash decided to move on. "Anyways…" He pointed at his yellow mouse on his right shoulder. "This here is my best friend, Pikachu!"
("Hey there!") Pikachu squeaked. Hero smiled.
"My name is Dawn and this is Piplup!" The blue-haired coordinator greeted Hero with a smile.
("Nice to meet you!") The blue penguin chirped happily. Hero nodded.
"Hey there, Hero! It's nice to meet you!" Brock greeted with an open hand. Hero took the offer as both shook.
"Likewise."
"You can call me…Brock!"
"Well, it's nice to meet you too, Brock!" The spiky-haired trainer replied in a friendly manner. The breeder let out a smile.
Last and not at least, it was Homura's turn. Every head turned to the young blonde woman, who was giving Hero a dark and suspicious glare. The newcomer was a little intimidated by the young woman's gaze. "Um…and you are, miss?"
"Homura…" It was a quick response. There was no tone of emotion within that response. Right off the bat, Homura did not trust Hero one little bit. Sure, he looks friendly, but looks can be deceiving. "…And this is Daddy…" She shrugged up and down her Pokemon within her grasp.
("Hey!') Unlike his trainer, the foxy fur ball gave a friendly bark to the newcomer. Hero gave a weak smile until he saw Homura's dark gaze still on him.
"Uh…it's nice to meet…"
"What do you want with us? And more importantly, what do you want with Daddy?" Hero blinked dumbly.
"Huh…? I don't want nothing from your…"
"Not my EEVEE!" Homura hissed darkly, cutting Hero off before he could finish his sentence. She had a quick feeling that he was going to say her Eevee since his name was Daddy. However, in reality, it was not Eevee that she was referring to…it was her Ash. The young daughter of Ash went over to her daddy's side and wrapped one of her arms around his. "MY DADDY!"
"…"
An awkward silence filled the air for a brief second as Hero's eyes widen in shock. Did he hear correctly? Did Homura call Ash her daddy? What in the world is going on here? Nothing makes sense anymore. To Hero's eyes, this was impossible. To his knowledge and sight, Ash was a few years younger than Homura. There was no way he could have a daughter older than him, it was impossible and most likely…never going to happen. Before Hero could even open his mouth, he can hear Ash scolding at his daddy's rudeness. "HOMURA! Don't be rude to Hero!"
"But DAD!"
Now, Hero was more confuse than ever. He tried to look for answers as he turned his attention to Dawn and Brock. "Can someone tell me what…"
However, he did not get any. "Don't ask." Dawn and Brock said simultaneously, waving him off.
"But…"
"You wouldn't understand if we told you, so no need to worry…ok?" The blue-haired coordinator said to the dumbfounded trainer. Hero thought for a moment. Maybe it was for the best if he did not know.
"Ok…I suppose I shouldn't, should I?" The group, excluding the father and daughter nodded.
"Yup…but Homura does make a good point…" This caused everyone to glance at Dawn. "I don't want to sound rude like Homura, but what do you want with us?"
"YEAH!" Homura shouted.
All eyes fell on Hero. The young newcomer took notice of glances and smiled. "Oh, nothing too much. I just thought I could ask the runner-up of the Suzuran Conference to a little two-on-two practice battle."
The challenge was set. Will Ash accept it?
"A practice battle, huh? You're on, Hero!" Ash quickly accepted the challenge without hesitation. The young trainer was not the type of person to back down from a challenge, especially from a Pokemon battle. This put a smile on Hero's face. He expected Ash would accept his challenge so quickly. That was so like him to do so.
"I bet my money Ash will definitely win!" Homura chirped happily. It was so typical. No matter what age she is, Homura will always take her daddy's side.
"Don't be overconfident, Homura." Ash assured his daughter, who glanced at him. "We are not sure if I can win."
"I know you can win."
"I appreciate your support, I really do, but I don't want the same event happen twice now." Homura knew what Ash was talking about. Even Dawn and Brock knew what he was talking about. However, Hero did not.
"Happen what twice?"
"NOTHING!" Ash, Homura, Dawn, and Brock said simultaneously. Hero sweat dropped.
"O…kkkkkkkk?"
The group decided not to tell Hero about the whole incident involving Homura going berserk. He would not believe them if they told him. It was best to move on and not mention it. After hearing that Ash would be busy in a battle, Team Rocket believed that this might be their lucky chance to pounce once the battle is over. They know in fact that Ash will be using his Pikachu. He always does. All they have to do now is wait for the perfect opportunity.
Once Ash and Hero got settle in their position, Brock decided to referee the match. "This practice battle is a two-on-two between Ash and Hero. The rules are simple. Both trainers can use up to two Pokemon. Both sides can substitute. There will be no time limit. The match is over whenever one side's both Pokemon are unable to continue. Are both trainers ready?" Brock glanced at the two trainers, who gave him a nod. "Let the match begin!"
"Here we go! Lucario, come forth!" Hero tossed one of his Pokeballs and out came a blue jackal-like Pokemon.
Hero's Lucario stood there calmly with his arms crossed. Hero's opponent looks enthusiastic that he was going up against an aura user Pokemon. "A Lucario, huh? Then I choose Infernape!" Ash tossed out his Pokeball and out came Paul's former Pokemon.
The flaming ape was ready for battle as it glanced at its opponent. Both Pokemon exchanged a glance and smirked. Ash and Hero shared a glance as well. "An Infernape, huh?" The newcomer looks impressed that Ash made a good choice. "Not bad. It is clearly that you have the type advantage, Ash."
"True, but we won't know until the battle starts, right?"
"That's right, Ash. Therefore, you can have the first move. Let's see what your Infernape can do!" Hero was eager to see what Ash's Infernape is capable of.
"Very well. Infernape, let's start off with Mach Punch!" Ash gave his first order to fire-type.
("Suuuuurrrrreeee!") The flaming ape uses its quickness to charge at its waiting opponent with its right fist glowing.
"Quick, defend, Lucario!" Hero issued out a defense maneuver.
("Yes, Master…") The blue jackal crossed his arms together and braced for impact.
BAM!
Infernape collided into Lucario. Hero's Pokemon can feel the force of the Mach Punch. It was pretty strong. However, Lucario was able to maintain his ground after the attack connected. Unfortunately, that did not last too long. Infernape added a little more power into its attack as it sent the blue jackal sliding back a few yards. Hero looks impressed by the display of Ash's Infernape. Its speed and power was pretty impressive. Even Hero's Lucario looks impressed as he recovered from the attack. "Not bad, Ash. Your Infernape was raise by you very well." Hero complimented.
"Thanks."
"However, this battle is far from over. This is just the start."
That was correct. This battle was only the beginning. What lies ahead is the true battle. One thing was for sure and that was…Ash need to be on his guard.
A/N: The battle between Ash and Hero has just begun. Who will win? Ash? Or…Hero? You will find out soon enough. Yup, I brought back Team Rocket. They have been gone for a while now, so why not. Let's hope they do not interrupt the battle. I hope you guys like this chapter. Please R & R! Thank you! Until next time, you guys! ^_^ Peace out!
Johan07