"So," Ash said as he looked up at Wyndon Stadium, "we're finally here."

Pikachu nodded from his place on Ash's shoulder. Ash looked at Goh who smiled as they walked towards the stadium. People were milling about, a few pointing and whispering as they recognised Ash.

"Hold it!"

Both boys jumped as another boy darted in front of them. A Wooloo was by his side.

"You're Ash Ketchum right?" The boy said, "First ever champion of the Alola Region?"

"Yeah, that's me," Ash said, a little taken aback.

"I'm Hop. I'm Leon's brother and I wanna see what you're made of."

"Seriously?" said Goh.

"Seriously," Hop said, grinning while Wooloo snorted. Ash and Pikachu both shrugged.

"Sure, we'll battle you," Ash said and Pikachu jumped off his shoulder while Wooloo stepped forwards.

"Wooloo, Tackle!" ordered Hop and Wooloo charged.

"Pikachu, Iron Tail!" Ash countered. Pikachu's tail turned to steel and he slammed it into Wooloo, knocking it out in one hit. Ash, Goh and Pikachu were all stunned, as were the spectators around them.

"That's it?" Goh said, bewildered.

"You okay Wooloo?" Asked Hop as he picked up his Pokemon. Wooloo nodded and Hop looked up at Ash, "Well, I guess you are a champ. But you don't stand a chance against my big brother!"

Pikachu was walking by Ash's side as they headed to the locker room, having left Goh to find a seat with Hop. Pikachu was the first to notice the voluminous purple hair. He rushed towards Iris who caught him and swung him around as he leapt into her arms.

"Hi there, Pikachu!" Iris said as Pikachu nuzzled her. She beamed at Ash, "So you made it!"

"Sure did!" Ash said, "Who else is here?"

"Cynthia and Leon, obviously," Iris said as they headed for the locker room together, "They swept through their last Ultra Class opponents with only Garchomp and Charizard. Diantha, Steven and Lance are here too."

"And trainer 8?" Ash asked as Pikachu hopped out of Iris' arms and accompanied them on foot.

"That would be me," said a voice behind them and the two youngest competitors turned to see an older boy approaching them. He had a serious face but his smile was genuine, "Long time no see, Ash."

"Alain!" Ash said, "Man, I still need to pay you back for the Kalos League."

"Well, I'm sure Greninja's even stronger now," Alain asked as he fell in step with them.

Ash thought back to the when he'd found Greninja during Lucario's training. Thankfully, Zygarde no longer needed the Ninja Pokemon's help so he had rejoined Ash but stayed at Professor Oaks lab. Lucario still looked up to him as a mentor.

"Way stronger," Ash said, "and we don't have to use just 1 team, right?"

"No," Alain said. "This tournament loves Pokemon variety. You should have seen my last Ultra Class opponent. He came at me with Darkrai and Mega Latios."

The trio entered the locker room while Ash was processing the fact that Alain had managed to defeat the seemingly invincible Tobias. If Alain's presence had caused a shift in the atmosphere, now it was almost foreboding. Even Cynthia's warm smile didn't distract Ash or Iris from the fact that they were in the same room as the most powerful trainers on the planet.

Pikachu wasn't unsettled though. He made a beeline for Cynthia who chuckled as he jumped onto her shoulder. Pikachu then waved at Diantha, who smiled and tilted her head, silently inviting Ash, Iris and Alain to join them. Alain strode into the room and sat down while Ash and Iris stayed by the door, still uncertain of how they should handle themselves in the presence of the more experienced Champions.

"Glad you two made it," Cynthia said, breaking the tension as she petted Pikachu's head, "I look forward to seeing how much you've both grown."

With that warm welcome, Ash and Iris finally felt like they could relax. Iris hopped onto the arm of a sofa while Ash approached Cynthia so that he was within jumping distance for Pikachu to return to his shoulder.

"Thanks Cynthia," Ash said, "Iris said you beat your last opponent with only Garchomp."

"I got lucky," Cynthia said humbly, "her Mawile lacked Intimidate."

"Give yourself more credit!" boomed Leon from behind them, "You're the second strongest trainer in the world. After me of course."

"Well, this tournament could change that," Diantha said. She spoke lightly but there was a competitive glint in her blue eyes.

Lance and Steven quietly observed the interactions. While Steven was simply relaxing, Lance was eager for the Tournament to start. He was the first to rise when an attendee arrived to tell them that the opening ceremony was beginning.

"Ladies and gentleman, boys and girls, welcome to this years Masters 8 Tournament! 8 of the worlds finest trainers will be facing off in a series of 6 on 6 battles to decide who is truly the strongest. And ranked in 8th place is our youngest competitor who recently defeated the previous Champion of Unova. Let's give a warm welcome to Iris!"

Goh cheered along with Hop and the rest of the crowd while Team Rocket filmed the ceremony from above. Iris, now wearing her Champion outfit, was trembling with excitement as she rose up on a platform, resisting the urge to leap into the air and throw out her arms to the crowd.

"So the twerp's wannabe Dragon Master friend made it," Jessie said.

"Does she even have any more Dragons?" James wondered.

"Ranked in 7th place is another one of our youngest competitors, the first ever Champion of the Orange Islands and the Alola Region, we have Ash."

Ash rose up on another platform with Pikachu on his shoulder and unlike Iris, he didn't restrain himself from waved with both hands to the crowd. He caught Iris' eye and the mutual fondness between them was clear, especially as Pikachu jumped to the edge of his platform just to wave at Iris.

"So 2 of the twerps are the worst of the best," said Meowth. Jessie and James both nodded while Morpeko stuffed his face behind them.

"Ranked in 7th place is an experienced traveller who's made it his mission to defeat all Mega Evolved Pokemon. Give it up for Alain."

"Now where have I seen him before?" Jessie asked as Alain rose up on a platform and raised a fist to the audience.

"Didn't his Charizard beat the twerp's Greninja twice in Kalos?" James responded.

"3 times actually," Meowth corrected him, "Bet Greninja's been smartin' ever since."

"Ranked in 5th place is the Champion of Hoenn, collector of Fossils and son of the Devon Corporation's esteemed President, Steven Stone."

Steven resisted the urge to roll his eyes at the mention of his family connections and raised his open hand to the crowd.

"Ranked in 3rd place is the Champion of Kanto and Johto who also happens to be a member of the Pokemon G-Men, we have Lance!"

Lance emerged put a hand on his heart and bowed to the crowd.

"I want that cape!" exclaimed Meowth.

"Well, there's be none of it left if we tailored it to fit you," snarked Jessie.

"Ranked in 3rd place is Kalos' most celebrated actress who also happens to be its strongest trainer. Taking the stage is Diantha!"

Along with the cheers there were several hoots and whistles from men and even a couple of women in the audience. Diantha, who was used to that kind of attention, took it in stride and waved with a ravishing smile that had stolen the hearts of many during her acting career.

"Ranked in 2nd place is the legendary Champion of Sinnoh, a woman with extensive historical knowledge, the grace of a queen and the power of an angry Garchomp. We have Cynthia!"

The cheering was loud but although a few hoots and whistles were audible, it seemed that the audience was too frightened to make their lust for Cynthia too obvious. Unlike the others, she didn't wave, she simply flicked her long blonde hair around her beautiful face and glanced at the spectators with a mysterious smile. Diantha felt a pang of jealousy as she watched Cynthia steal the show without even raising her hand.

"And finally, we have the current Monarch of the Masters Tournament, a man who dedicated his entire life to becoming the greatest trainer in the world. Ladies and gentlemen, your World Champion Leon!"

Leon was dressed like a child but carried himself with the confidence of an experienced adult as he grinned at the crowd and struck his signature pose. The audience roared.

"So here they all are. 8 formidable trainers preparing to engage in a series of 6 on 6 battles to decide who is truly the best. If you will please face the screen, we shall see who's battling who momentarily."

The massive screen overlooking the stadium showed all 8 competitors faces. After a random shuffle the first pairing was revealed to be Cynthia and Iris.

"Oh my goodness," squeaked Iris, looking momentarily terrified. She glanced at Cynthia who smiled at her more warmly than she had smiled at the crowd.

The next pairing was Ash and Alain.

"Yes!" Ash clenched his fist and gave Alain a determined look which Alain returned.

Next up was Leon and Steven. Steven gave Leon a simple smile and nod while Leon winked.

Finally it was Diantha and Lance. Just as he had to the crowd, Lance gave Diantha a little bow while Diantha shot him her dazzling smile.

"The first round will begin tomorrow with Leon battling Steven. The following battle will be between Diantha against Lance. We look forward to welcoming you all back to Wyndon Stadium!"