Chapter 58: Learning from the Master

Not too far from the beach stood a well known dojo. Inside, the students and their Pokemon were sparring against the others, awaiting further instruction. The head of the dojo, an older man with white hair, nodded in approval of their progress.

"We have a good crop of students this year. I can't wait to meet the last two."

Just then, there was a knock at the door.

"Ah, that must be Avery with the last of the new students! Honey, do you think you can go greet them?"

"Of course."

Mustard went back to overseeing his pupils when, out of the corner of his eye, he spotted two janitors and their Pokemon, a Meowth and a Wobbufet, trying to sneak away.

"Oi, you three!"

The janitors stopped, worried that they had been caught.

"Y-Yes?"

"Go and prepare the battle court. After that, you may have the rest of the day off."

"Yes sir!"

Mustard nodded, and walked away. Once he was out of earshot, the rocket trio breathed a sigh of relief.

"That was too close for comfort!"

"Remind me again why we're doing this? I thought being Admins meant we could just order the grunts to do this for us."

"Because this island is home to powerful Pokemon, and I refuse to let Cassidy or Bill gain the credit for bringing them all to the boss!"

(Meanwhile, in the Kanto Region)

"IT'S NOT BILL, ITS BUTCH!"

"Can it, Butch! No one cares!"

Butch grumbled, but got back to work digging fossils out of Mt. Moon with his partner.

"How come no one ever messes up your name?"

"Besides, how tough can one old man be?"

James and Meowth shrugged, not really having a good counterpoint to Jesse's argument, and thus got on with their work.

It didn't take long for our quartet of heroes to find the Master Dojo, as it wasn't too far into the forest. The building itself was fairly large, with the symbol above the door bearing a Pokemon none of them had ever seen before, though Goh thought it looked vaguely familiar. Out front they found Avery speaking to an older woman.

"So the last two students never showed up? Are you sure?"

"Positive, Miss Honey. I waited on the beach for over an hour, yet they never showed up."

Honey shook her head sadly.

"Such a shame. Ah well, it can't be helped, I suppose."

Just then, Ash and his friends reached them.

"Excuse me, is this The Master Dojo?"

"Why, yes it is! I guess you gave up too soon, Avery."

Avery spluttered in disbelief, but recovered quickly.

"Yes, well, if they're this late, then they hardly seem worthy of Master Mustard's time."

"Nonsense! I'm sure they have a perfectly good reason for being late. Come on, let's get you inside. I'm sure you can't wait to get started!"

"But, we're not-"

"Oh, don't worry about being late! We haven't even started, really."

And before they could protest, Honey had already ushered them into the building. Avery just shook his head crossly.

"Curses. I'll have to get rid of them some other way."

Mustard was pleased to see them, and vigorously shook their hands.

"Ah, the last students! Perfect, now we can begin!"

"Uh, actually, sir, there's a mistake. We're not your new students, we're just here to study the Slowpoke variant native to here."

Mustard blinked, trying to process this information.

"Don't you have an Armor Pass?"

"Well, yes, but it was a gift from someone else."
"Who? Only a select number of people are allowed to give them out."

"Bea, the gym leader of Stow-on-Side."

Mustard smiled, and gave a hearty laugh.

"Ah, Bea, one of my brightest pupils! Trust me lads, she wouldn't want you wasting her gift just for some silly research."

He then turned his attention to Ash.

"Tell me, is your name Ash Ketchum by any chance?"

"Yes, why?"

"Bea spoke highly of your last battle, and told me to look out for a boy with a Pikachuu. Please, would you honor with me a battle?"

Ash grinned maniacally. Research task or no research task, he never turned down a battle.

"The honor would be all mine!"

After a minute of preparation, Ash and Mustard stood in the center of the dojo, ready for battle. All of the students who had previously been using that space for training had happily moved off to the sides, eager for a demonstration of their teacher's power. Honey stood just off to the side, acting as the referee.

"This will be a 2-on-2 battle between Mustard of the Master Dojo and Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town. No switching will be allowed, and the battle will continue until both Pokemon on either side are unable to battle. Are both trainers ready? Begin!"

"Go, Thwackey!"

"Mienfoo, go!"

"Thwackey, use Branch Poke!"

"Fake Out, Mienfoo!"

Thwackey ran forward, single drum stick in hand, only to recieve a hard chop to the eyes for his trouble, stopping him in his tracks as he chattered in pain.

"Force Palm!"

By the time he had recovered, Mienfoo had already dealt another punch to his face, sending him flying into a wall. When the dust had cleared, he was out cold, much to his friend's shock.

"He knocked Thwackey out in two hits?"

"With only a single stage Pokemon?"

"He truly is a powerful trainer."

Avery watched these events with a smug grin of satisfaction.

"That shall teach him to make a mockery of me," he mused, but he said this only to himself.

"Thwackey, return! You did good, buddy. Get some rest."

He was about to send Pikachu out when Riolu, having sensed how strong Mienfoo was, let himself out of his Pokeball, eager for a chance at it.

"You want to battle too, huh?"

"Riolu!"

"Alright then, Riolu will be my next Pokemon!"

"Very well then. Mienfoo, use Force Palm!"

"Dodge it with Vacuum Wave, Riolu!"

Before Mienfoo could land its attack, Riolu used a Vacuum Wave to propel himself into the air, safely avoiding the attack and hitting his opponent in the process.

"Force Palm, Riolu!"

"Bounce, Mienfoo!"

As Riolu made his descent, he stretched his palm out to strike Mienfoo, only for his opponent to bounce up and kick him, their attacks colliding in mid-air as they were forced apart from each other. At first glance, the two seemed even, but Ash could tell Riolu was on the edge of falling unconscious.

"Alright Riolu, use Aura Sphere!"

"Focus Blast, Mienfoo!"

The two fighting types charged up their energy attacks and fired, creating a huge cloud of smoke. When it settled, the two Pokemon were heavily damaged, but still standing. However, this lasted no longer than a few seconds, for Riolu prompt fainted.

"Riolu!"

"Riolu is unable to battle, Mienfoo and Mustard wins!"

Despite the loss, Ash took it in stride, picking Riolu up gently.

"Great job, Riolu. Get a good rest."

"Riolu."

Mustard laughed and clapped his hands, excited by the battle.

"Whew! Bea wasn't lying, you have some skill!"

Ash smiled, and shook Mustard's hand.

"Man, that was awesome! I could barely get any hits in."

"Still want to turn down this opportunity? Or are you willing to hear what an old man has to teach you?"

Ash thought for a moment, before giving an answer.

"You want to stay there for an extended period of time? Really?"
Ash and Goh nodded.

"The island has a dojo ran by this really powerful trainer, and I want to get stronger if I'm going to beat Leon. He's already agreed to it, too."

"And Cinderace and I need some serious training if we're going to pass Project Mew's trial missions."

Professor Cerise thought for a minute, before agreeing.

"Alright, but I do expect some report on those Slowpoke when you get back."

"Great, thanks professor!"

Their arrangements with their employer handled, Ash ended the phone call, ready for the first lesson.
"This is going to be awesome! Are you ready for some intense training, buddy?"

"Pika Pika!"

"Same here! Let's give it our all, right Cinderace?"

"Cinderace!"