Chapter 37
Ash walked back into the league building a few hours later from the field as he'd spent the time since the lighting of the flame answering questions from some of the participants, wanting tips on training, breeding, food etc and Ash patiently answered as many as he could but as he said to Gary a few days ago he doubted any of them would understand half of what he was talking about. So when the news filtered over the tannoy that the drawing system was to take place in fifteen minutes there was suddenly a mad rush to get back to the lobby. Ash couldn't help but chuckle at the faces on those he could tell were rookies, he remembered his own rookie year and remembered when he was drawn against the other three he wondered how he would do. He was still the first rookie in history, in any league, to sweep his opponents in the preliminary rounds without losing a Pokémon, something which brought him great pride to this day. It was hard to believe that was over three years ago now.
Standing near the back he could still get a very clear view of the way the draw was being made. Apparently there was a top eight of seeded trainers that were all from Johto who would be the 'favourites' to go through, though everyone knew being seeded didn't mean shit, especially when you had the Kanto and newly crowned Orange League Champion in the draw. Ash had heard from Danny a month ago that the man who won the Orange League had also decided to then immediately do the Johto Challenge as it was the league that was closest to him. His Pokémon were supposedly extremely strong which was something that excited Ash, he just hoped this Harrison wasn't in his group because Harrison would be going home.
Looking around he saw that Vincent was leaning up against a wall looking intently at the screen, a further scan showed him the three trainers he had given the starters too were all standing off to the side which made him smile. Wandering over to them he stood behind them as they whispered nervously to see who they would get. Hearing the bleeps he watched as the eight seeds were drawn into their groups and then faces appeared one by one before they were placed in their respective group. Ash smiled when he saw that he would miss the three starters, Vincent and Harrison. Sadly for Casey she drew Harrison in her group which made him wince slightly as he knew second was the best she could achieve in that group.
"Well" Ash said, making them all jump and turn around in surprise "Looks like you all have your work cut out for you."
"I'm not worried," Grace said, nodding determinedly.
"You're not wrong Ash" Ethan groused, disagreeing with her "I got one of the favourites in my group."
"As did Casey" Ash said, nodding to her. Seeing he confused look he pointed back up to the groups which were cycling through on the big screen and when hers came up Ash continued "Harrison won the Orange League in March, he finished runner up in the Hoenn League two years ago and had he taken part in this last year he would have faced Gary in the final or if they had faced each other in an earlier round and won he would have won this tournament last year too."
"Oh goody" Casey said sulking "so the best I can do is second in my group. I may as well go home now."
"Hey don't be like that" a voice said from the side as the very man himself walked over. He was around six feet tall, had Brown hair and blue eyes, wearing a blue and red shirt, grey pants. Smiling as he walked forwards he stopped in front of Casey and looked down at her. "Your Pokémon worked hard to get you here, don't give up on them before you've even started. Doing that is a disservice to them. Good luck to all of you. Ketchum, I suspect I'll see you at some point, bring your best because I won't be backing down."
Ash just chuckled and nodded at him as he bowed and left. "I like him," Ash said to their surprise "he understands the golden rule and for that he has earned my respect. Now, good luck to you all. I hope to see you across the battlefield at some point. If you need anything I'm in Chalet eight, ok."
Leaving them he looked for Vincenzo but saw he had already left so he decided to follow suit. Walking back into his chalet he saw Gary was packing his bag getting ready to leave.
"Well it was nice Ashy boy" Gary said slinging his backpack over his shoulder "thanks for the invite. I likely won't see you again for a few years but good luck in the next few tournaments."
"Cheers Gary" Ash said giving him a brief hug "good luck on Saydar Island, should you need anything, whether that be research papers, advice or whatever from my home then I'll let Zoe know you have clearance to use them. Have fun."
Nodding Gary left and Ash sighed before he sat down on the couch and flicked on the TV and watched the commentary on the league and who the hosts thought would win. It was a strange restless day for Ash because he knew tomorrow was the start of phase two of his career. He needed to win this.
The next day Ash wandered outside to where the battlefields were. It wasn't like the Indigo Plateau where there were six stadiums, purposefully built for the tournament. No, there were only two stadiums at Silver Town that were for the knockout rounds and the final itself. The preliminaries were held on a huge field, surrounded on all sides by bleachers, that had eight small battlefields on it, side by side with only iron netting preventing access to your neighbours' battle. At any one time the whole field could be in use which meant everyone could watch literally every match at once. Ash didn't think this was a good idea because it meant the audiences were split trying to decide on who to watch and could easily miss a spectacular battle in the middle, watching the outside battle. It wasn't anything to do with Ash though and he supposed when he thought about it the truly spectacular battles usually only took place in the knockouts. Sitting down behind where he saw he'd be battling he watched with interest as the other two people fought before him. Macey and Jackson seemed to be pretty good and had seemingly taken good care of their Pokémon. Ash watched as they both shouted an attack at the same time which earned a wince from those watching when they collided and knocked each other out. Ash had also noticed something very strange about the battles but didn't comment on that.
"Interesting" Ash said to Pikachu "whoever wins between Salvador and myself automatically only needs a draw from our final two matches to progress."
"Who are you using?" Pikachu yawned.
"Depends on who he sends out" Ash said as he received the signal from the referee and walked into the small field and waited while his opponent followed him to the referee.
"This match will be a two on two singles match with substitutions allowed, the four move rule is still in place and any infractions will mean a disqualification. Moves like Earthquake and Magnitude that affect everyone else's battle on this field are prohibited until you reach the knockout stages and OHKO moves are banned for the tournament, you have been warned. Take your places and upon my signal send out your first Pokémon."
"Let's go Furret" Salvador said, looking nervous.
Ash paused when he realised the Pokémon he wanted to use was no longer on his belt. Sighing, he plucked another and released Flaaffy.
"Flaaffy vs Furret. Begin" the referee shouted.
"Discharge" Ash said as Flaaffy sent a wave of electricity at the Furret who dodged by using Dig. The electricity however continued onwards and hit the fence.
"Aaarrgh" a voice shouted from a few fields down "who the hell electrified the fence?"
"Mr Ketchum" the referee said sternly as the whole field grew silent wondering who had done so "I have literally just said that area effect moves are prohibited until the knockout rounds."
"Wait," Ash said incredulously, interrupting him "so are you telling me that the only moves any of us can use are close combat moves because of the poorly designed battlefield? Are all elemental moves banned then?"
"Not all but most" the referee said "now can we continue?"
"What a shitshow this is" Ash said "so the majority of trainers whose Pokémon have defensive frailties due to their abilities are automatically put at a disadvantage when they enter these fields. How is that fair to those who worked hard to get here?"
"It is not my place to question the rules" the referee said "I simply enforce them."
"This is ridiculous," Ash said, turning back to "No wonder the Johto League has been a joke for the last few years. Flaaffy we've been banned from using your electricity, do what you can but we only have three moves left."
"That doesn't leave us with much then does it?" Flaaffy said sarcastically.
"No," Ash said, shaking his head. "Furret is still underground so just wait for it to surface and use Thunderpunch."
"Be careful Furret" Salvador shouted down the hole. A few seconds later Ash noticed that Furret was going to surface just to the left and watched as the two clashed with Iron Tail and Thunderpunch as it broke through the ground. Flaaffy though quickly spun causing Furret to fall forwards and take a Thunderpunch to the back of the head sending it sprawling. Quickly it rose and used Dig again to escape.
"Cottonguard" Ash shouted as his sheep puffed up again, increasing his defensive capabilities. "One move left" Ash muttered to himself not liking this situation. He knew from his research on Salvador that he favoured ground type Pokémon, or those that didn't leave the ground so sending out Flaaffy probably wasn't the best idea. As it surfaced and used Dig again it also combined it with Swift causing some damage to his sheep.
"Dazzling Gleam" Ash said as the field lit up pink, sending Furret flying into the fence knocked out.
"Disqualification!" the referee shouted "I warned you Mr Ketchum about moves that are banned."
"Is it any wonder people think this league is a joke?" Ash asked "when it limits what moves a trainer can do. Utterly ridiculous." Calling back Flaaffy he walked out of the gate that led to the bleachers where he saw both Macey and Jackson were standing watching him warily. Walking up to them he said "don't take the next two battles personally but they won't be long battles. This league is a farce."
Walking off angrily muttering to himself everyone moved out of his way as he was leaking aura.
Storming into his Chalet he flopped down on the couch and closed his eyes trying to regain his grip on his aura. It took him a few minutes but he finally reigned it in and getting a bottle of water from his fridge he drained it in one. He couldn't believe he had lost an official battle at the League because he had been hampered by no ranged moves. Who the hell thought that was a great idea?
"The best we can do is finish runner up now Pi" Ash said shaking his head "I'm using you, and only you."
Pikachu nodded from his seat before he curled up and went to sleep.
The debate that night between Joanne and Ash wasn't one for sensitive ears as Mr Suzuki had bent her ear for how he behaved while representing Silph. Ash though didn't care as he felt cheated by the League. He had deliberately not put the TV on either as he had no interest in other people's opinions on the matter.
"It's happened Joanne." Ash said leaving the dining table "and be glad I did miss my press conference afterwards because believe me Silph would have definitely had something to say then."
"Ash" Joanne began to say but he cut her off by walking into his room and shutting the door. Sighing she sent an email to Mr Suzuki and hoped he'd accept she tried her best.
Ash woke up the next day to a raft of messages, most of which he ignored but it was the one from Gary that tickled him the most. 'Told you that league is a joke. I was lucky my Umbreon knew Toxic or I'd have lost my first match too.'
For the next few hours they went back and forth comparing the two leagues they'd participated in. Ash found that once Gary had got past the dickhead phase he was actually an intelligent bloke to chat to and a good person to bounce ideas off.
The day after Ash ventured outside for the first time since he lost in the first round and strode to the battlefield with Joanne behind him trying to keep up. As he sat in the bleachers he ignored the stares of everyone around him. He supposed there had been many people commenting on his first round and how he exited it but he didn't care. As long as he won the next two he would still go through. He watched, with little emotion as Salvador beat Jackson and secured his way to the knockout round. He knew if he lost this he was out as Macey would be on four points while he was on zero. Hearing his name he ignored the whispers and walked into the battlefield very aware he was being watched by others. Barely acknowledging the referee's instructions he nodded at Macey before walking to his spot.
"Trainers please send out your first Pokémon." the referee said.
"Let's go Electabuzz" Macey said, releasing her electric type.
"Pi" Ash simply said as his starter jumped from his shoulder and set himself. He saw Jackson look very nervous as everyone knew how powerful Ash's starter was.
"Electabuzz vs Pikachu, begin" the referee shouted.
"Let's get in close with a Thunderpunch" Jackson shouted as her Pokémon beat its chest before running forwards, its fists crackling.
"Agility, Quick Attack and Iron Tail" Ash said quietly.
The crowd honestly thought he'd managed to teach Pikachu Teleport with how quickly it moved. Jackson didn't even know she'd lost until she heard a groan behind her and saw her Electabuzz planted face first into the wire meshing around the entrance door. All she saw was a flash of yellow followed by another flash of yellow which passed her followed by the groan. She looked back at Ash in shock, not hearing the referee say "Electabuzz is unable to battle, Macey please send out your next Pokémon." Vaguely she was aware that she recalled her knocked out Pokémon before looking down at her belt. She didn't have a single Pokémon that could out speed that Pikachu nor one that could outpower it. She only had one that had a super effective move so that was the only one she could go with.
"Quilava, you're up" she said, releasing her fire starter.
Ash for the first time in a few days felt guilty at what Pikachu was going to do to Quilava and he knew instantly why. He couldn't let emotion rule his thoughts so he closed his eyes and waited for the referee to begin the match. As soon as he did Quilava used Dig to escape the incredible combination move that wiped out her first Pokémon but Macey never expected Ash to issue the same command.
"Agility into Dig" Ash said his eyes still closed "bring it up."
Macey could only look on in horror as she heard a squeal followed by the earth trembling as her Pokémon was forcibly ejected out of its own hole by Pikachu who once they were ten feet into the air swung its tail downwards in a forward somersault and used Iron Tail on Quilava smashing it into the ground.
Pikachu trotted back onto Ash's shoulder who had turned around as soon as the move finished and was walking out where he paused to look back at the referee expectantly.
"Quilava is unable to battle, Pikachu and Ash wins" he said, stuttering nervously. Without acknowledging the referee or anyone that was around Ash walked out of the gate but paused at where Jackson was sitting with Salvador who had stayed behind to watch his match. Ash simply looked at Jackson, expressionless before walking onwards to the exit, people moving out of his way as he walked with purpose. He had left before Joanne could even find the words to describe the brutal takedown she had just seen but gradually murmurs broke out and then people started talking to each other. Looking around she saw the reporters were still standing there around his field but Ash was nowhere to be seen. It was only when she saw a big blue Dragon take flight she realised he had gone, once again without talking to the press.
As soon as he had left the field he called out Queenie and asked her to take him to Mt Silver. It was only a very short flight around the mountain and soon he landed atop the ridge that looked down on Johto for miles and miles around. "Go for a flight Queenie" Ash said "I'll call you when I need you."
Elsewhere
Gary was sitting at his mum and dads home aimlessly watching the Johto League and some of the battles when he heard Ash's name be announced. His mum and dad joined him in the living room when he told them Ash was up next.
"Oh dear" Laura said shaking her head when she saw Ash's demeanour "this isn't going to be good for his opponent. Who do we think he'll use? Salamence? Sneasel?"
"It wouldn't surprise me if he used Sneasel given Salamence's best moves require a lot more space," Blue said, nodding.
"Pikachu" Gary said, surprising them "just you watch, he's been angry for two days now since his loss. This is going to be brutal."
"Surely he wouldn't use Pikachu" Laura said before she saw his choice "he's actually using Pikachu. Wow."
"It's not a surprise" Gary said "these stupid rules they have for the preliminaries have seen so many talented trainers go out because they're used to using ranged attacks or area affecting moves so to suddenly be told you cant use them, at the League tournament throws a lot of people off. I nearly lost myself in the group stage because of it. Like I told Ash it was only because my Umbreon knows Toxic that I won my first battle. This is a very weird tournament that needs changes quickly."
"Wow" Laura said when she saw Pikachu beat Electabuzz "I didn't even know a Pokémon could move that fast."
"Pikachu isn't Ash's quickest either" Blue said "That's why I thought Sneasel would be sent out."
"He's securing points because he knows that regardless of how Salvador does in his final match, Salvador will go through as group winner on head to head with Ash as he won." Gary said "He'll likely use Pikachu again in the next match to conserve the condition of his other Pokémon. It's what I'd do in that situation."
"Me too" Blue said, nodding "points on the board means you've always got a chance of advancing."
They had no idea a similar conversation was happening a few doors down from them in the Ketchum household.
"Isn't that a little harsh?" she said as she watched Macey's Quilava be implanted into the ground.
"Yeah" Red said "but Ash needs to win both matches to guarantee he goes through. The Johto League is a weird set up really, I didn't find it difficult to get through because of my ability to utilise the battlefield to my advantage. Ash however relies on speed and power to win him his battles. I think I could beat him, even now because he hasn't learned how to battle without ranged attacks. Don't forget he only really has Machamp and Heracross, possibly his Sneasel who are good in close combat situations. The rest rely on their elements and that is an issue he needs to address if he ever wants to face Cynthia. At the minute I don't think Ash will get past her fourth Pokémon."
"Do you have that little faith in him?" Delia asked, shocked.
"I'm a realist Dee" Red said looking at her "You know this. You've been spoiled for the last few years watching Ash's progress but other than the Elite Four and Blue he has not been challenged. He's very good, but there's a difference between being good, being great and being a Master and at the moment he's hovering between the first two, I have no doubt he will get to the last one eventually but as of right now he's not on Cynthias level. It also doesn't help that his team that has the most powerful Pokémon has been erased by the loss of Blastoise and Charizard so he basically has to start from scratch finding two Elites for his team. I've seen all his Pokémon train and at the minute he only has three, maybe four that you'd call Elite. Pikachu, Salamence, Charizard and Sneasel. And he's lost one of those from his team because it's now the Alpha of the valley. The rest are good, don't get me wrong but he needs at least three more to get to that level before I think he could challenge her on an even footing."
"But still…to do that to an opponent when they've done nothing wrong to you personally isn't how I raised him" Delia said, biting her lip in worry.
"Delia, how you raised him has nothing to do with this" Red said standing up and hugging her "Ash is growing up and these are life lessons he needs to learn. I have a feeling he's setting himself up for a huge fall if he doesn't sort out these flaws, I just hope he can get his head together before it happens."
Ash had no idea how long he spent sitting on the ledge overlooking Johto but his stomach growling told him he'd missed a meal which meant so had his Pokémon. Standing up he whistled and a few minutes later Queenie landed at his side. Climbing her she flew down and around the mountain where he landed in his Chalets back garden. Walking in through the back door he fixed himself a sandwich while he pulled out all his Pokémon's food too and walked back out into the garden, releasing them and feeding them. He felt a pang of sadness when he realised he had made up a tub for Typhlosion too and reluctantly he placed it in the bin.
"Are you ok?" Joanne asked, shocking him as she sat eating at the kitchen counter.
"No," Ash said, shaking his head.
"You know everybody loses sometimes" she said looking at him.
"That's not the loss that's affecting me" Ash said before taking his food into his room and closing the door.
The next day Ash walked out of his room and headed outside for a walk. He had no idea where he was going to go but decided the department store was as good a place as any. He felt a little guilty for leaving Joanne alone for the last few days and being a shit host so he wandered up to the third floor where the ladies department was and quickly regretted it when he saw lots of women milling around in a section Ash had no business being in. As quickly as he could he headed for the opposite side where the perfumes and jewellery section, sighing in relief when the last of the underwear rails were. He felt much safer around where he was and made the executive decision to go down the stairs when he was leaving.
"Are you ok?" a voice asked. Turning around from the perfumes he saw a young attendant watching him "I saw you rush over here and thought I'd ask. You seem to be in a hurry to get to the perfume aisle."
"Oh no" Ash said shaking his head "I was eager to get away from the section the lift opens up on and this was the safest place I could see."
The young lady didn't know if Ash was being serious or not until she saw his face turn back to its normal colour from red. "Ah right ok, well do you need any help?"
"Please" he said "normally I'm ok at this kind of thing as I just buy them something I overhear they want. But this time I've no idea."
"I'm going to need some kind of context here" she said "first who are you buying for?"
"Oh my P.A Joanne" Ash said "I've been a bit of an arse the last few days and she didn't deserve being left on her own in my Chalet when I should have been a better host."
"Is this P.A pretty?" she asked.
"I suppose so" Ash said "I've never really looked at her in that kind of way but she's not ugly if that's your point?"
"No, no" she replied waving away the "I was just wondering if this Joanne was more than a normal P.A."
"Well, she is to me" Ash said "but I've not had anyone else be my assistant so I suppose I can't judge."
"Did you think of flowers and chocolates?" she asked.
"I did but then dismissed it" Ash said "that seems kind of personal and if I were her boyfriend I'd be a bit wary of hearing another bloke is sending her flowers and chocolates. I suppose I could ring Karl and ask him if it's ok."
"It doesn't matter" she said waving that away "so that eliminates a lot of things. Perfume being one of them. Let's head over to the git sets and see what we can find."
"Ok" he said, nodding grateful for the help. Half an hour later he was leaving the store with a huge bag full of things that the assistant convinced him to buy. He knew he'd likely been conned by her but as she helped him out he could let it slide.
Pushing his way through the reporters that were still camped outside his house he let himself in and dumped the bag on the counter and sighed in relief as he flexed his hand. "Joanne, these are for you."
The noise made Joanne look up from the couch where she was on a call with Silph and her mouth dropped open in shock.
"Ash, are you ok?" she asked, pressing mute on her screen "what's all this?"
"My apology," he said, smiling.
"For what?" she asked, looking at the bag.
"For being an arse with you" he said "I'm sorry. It's not been an easy time but you didn't deserve being left alone for the last few days while I sulked. So I went to get you something to say sorry and the lady said perfume was too personal, I thought chocolates and flowers were a bit relationshippy so we settled on gift boxes. I couldn't decide on what one to get from the four she pulled off the shelf so I just bought them all."
"Ash," she said, pulling them out of the bag and placing them on the counter. "What did you actually buy me?"
"Well…" Ash said "I've actually no idea." he finished cheerfully holding his hands out to them "ta da."
Joanne couldn't do anything but laugh "listen I'll open them in a bit, I'm on a conference call at the moment."
"That's fine," he said, smiling "I'll leave you to it."
Hours later Ash had made them both stir fry while Joanne was still looking through her gift bags. "Ash, how much did this cost?" she asked putting a bath bomb back into the box.
"I'm not sure" he said "I didn't really ask. The assistant seemed happy enough so let's say it wasn't cheap. Do you like them?"
"I love them," she said, hugging him. "I've been needing to restock on my bath care products for months and just never had the chance to do so."
"You see" Ash said dishing up "I'm pretty wisdomous at times."
"That's not even a word," she said, shaking her head.
"And yet you know exactly what it means." Ash said "how long have you and Karl been together now?"
"Oh years" she said "I think it'll be eight in January."
"Wedding bells on the horizon?" Ash asked.
"No," she said, "neither of us want to get married, nor do we want children either. We're very happy as we are."
"Oh right," Ash said, surprised "I've never heard of someone not wanting children."
"Really?" she asked "I mean you've met hundreds of people. I guarantee you have."
"More than likely" Ash said agreeing, "I can get that to be honest."
"How so?" she asked.
"Well I'm an aura wielder" he replied "we're wired a little differently. We grow up hoping to find our chosen one but there's also the very real possibility we never will so children will never happen in that situation. I've not really talked to Nia about this but if she doesn't want children then we just won't. She's the one that has to go through all the changes to her body and carry someone for nine months. They have to deal with the aftermath so I can understand when women say they don't want kids."
"That's how I feel" Joanne said nodding "I'm far too happy living the life I am now, we're both far too busy to devote time to raising a child and I'm far too selfish to want to share my life with anyone other than Karl. Not only that but a child is forever, It's not something you decide to do like you're buying cereal. We may change our minds in the future but I'm Twenty-Seven now, Karl is Thirty, I think if I was going to change my mind I would have done so by now."
"Well at least you're honest with yourself" Ash said smiling and nodding "and it's your life to live. For the record, I think you'll be a great mum."
"Thanks," she said "so your last battle in the group stage is tomorrow. Do you have any idea who you're using?"
"Pikachu," Ash said, nodding to his starter who was asleep on the couch. "I'm not taking any chances on not progressing. I should have already secured top spot if this tournament wasn't rigged against trainers who rely on elemental moves so tomorrow I will make sure we get six points from a possible nine and finish as group runner up."
"Is there a way you can go out tomorrow?" she asked.
"Yeah" Ash said "If I get another disqualification and Macey beats Salvador then Salvador will still go through as group winner and Macey and Jackson will go through on four points each, leaving me in last place with three. That's why I need to win."
October 17th
Ash walked out of his chalet leaving everyone of his Pokémon except Pikachu behind so assured was he in the win. He knew he was being cocky but he also knew his team was that good and he had absolute faith in Pikachu to get the job done. Joanne was walking at his side as they calmly walked towards the battlefields and quietly chatted to him about what he needed to say to the reporters after the battle.
"You've skipped two mandatory question and answer sessions after your battles so you can't skip this one." Joanne said.
"How much is the fine if I do?" Ash asked, smirking.
"$20,000 as you very well know" she said playfully, glaring at him. "So you already have paid $40,000 in fines."
"Is that per session?" Ash asked nonchalantly.
"Yes, why?" she asked.
"Can I not just transfer you the remaining $120,000 now and not have to do it for the whole tournament?" Ash .
"No!" she said "don't you dare!"
"I'm joking" Ash said as he watched Salvador lose his battle "I suspect there's some sort of tactical playing going on here."
"What do you mean?" she asked, looking at the tables that were on some screens off to the side and seeing Macey jump above Ash into second on four points.
"Well as i said before if Macey beats Salvador and I lose I'm out." he said shaking his head and chuckling "Salvador made so many errors in that battle it couldn't be anything more than a tactic to see me eliminated."
"Isn't throwing cheating?" she asked.
"No" Ash said "not when you're at the top of the group anyway because it's expected you save your best until the victory tournament by giving them a rest in the final battle. And even if you're not top of the group no one cares about throwing because you only harm yourself. A win is a win in a tournament, it doesn't matter how you get to the pot of gold, all that matters is you beat the leprechauns."
Standing up Ash strode forward and into the battlefield and stopped five feet away from Jackson who for some reason looked assuredly confident. Ash barely paid attention to the referee and would have just walked back to his side until Jackson blurted out "where's your Pokéball belt? Surely you haven't forgotten it?"
"No, I left it in the chalet," Ash said "I only need Pikachu."
"Am I to understand you only have one Pokémon on you Mr Ketchum?" the referee asked "the rules clearly state…"
"That I have to register two Pokémon for the battle, not that I have to use two Pokémon for the battle" Ash said "I read the rules and as you can see on your little screen I have indeed registered a second Pokémon. Them being on hand is irrelevant. What was it you told me in my first match? "It's not my place to question the rules. I simply enforce them." So enforce them like you did in that farce of a battle. If Pikachu loses, so do I."
"That is a warning for unsportsmanlike conduct" the referee said
"To who?" Ash asked "I'm not at fault for you misinterpreting the rules so can we get on with this? I have a dinner reservation to get to." Ash turned to face Jackson ignoring the referee who was looking very unhappy. Ash knew he was treading a fine line here and the referee would likely penalise him for anything he thought was wrong but Ash didn't care. He was here to win, and win he would.
"Trainers send out your first Pokémon" the referee said to them both.
"Pikachu, you're up" Ash said. Pikachu nodded and dropped down to the ground and entered the field.
"Azumarill, You're up" he shouted releasing his blue water rabbit who danced happily at being picked. Again Ash noticed Jackson looked very happy at his choice.
"Why are you so happy?" Ash asked before the referee could say anything.
"You can't use electricity to win" he said before looking at the referee who signalled for them to begin.
"Quick Attack" Ash said as his Pokémon again moved forwards at great speed, only this time everyone could track it as it wasn't supplemented by Agility.
"Iron Tail and Aqua Jet" Jackson shouted as his rabbit deflected the Iron Tail before shooting forwards at great speed at Pikachu catching him in his flank causing him to spin before latching onto the ground with his own tail.
"Excellent" Jackson shouted "Aqua Jet again."
"Iron Tail" Ash shouted using Jacksons strategy against him causing Azumarill to fall across the field as it was parried away "Now, Quick Attack" Pikachu slammed into Azumarill getting a pained cry from the rabbit which wiped the smile from Jackson's face. "Oh Jackson, by the way, we can use electricity. "Pi finish this with Thunderpunch"
Jackson could only look on in horror as his water type was pummelled by Pikachu's little fists and cursed his cockiness at assuming Pikachu only had ranged attacks.
"Azumarill is unable to battle, Jackson send out your second and final Pokémon." The referee said to Ash's opponent.
"Damn," he said, recalling his water type. He had been convinced Ash wouldn't use Pikachu again and was sure that even if he did that he would be limited in move use.
Ash could see the indecision on his opponents face and shook his head "You obviously haven't done your research on Pikachu if you think he's limited to ranged attacks Jackson. Pikachu has taught every single one of my Pokémon how to react in close combat situations as his speed and footwork is impeccable. I have only one Pokémon that is faster than him and that is because Sneasel is naturally fast. So, how would you counter a speedy Pokémon that can attack with speed and power quickly?"
"I'm not sure," Jackson said .
"Think about it" Ash said moving across his little box back and forth "every Pokémon has its natural counter. For attack it's defence, for special attack it's special defence. For speed it's…?"
"Hmmm" Jackson said before picking a ball and releasing a Meganium.
"Good choice" Ash said as the referee called out "Pikachu vs Meganium, begin."
"Pi get close, I want to test something." Ash said as Pikachu sped forwards using Quick Attack.
"Protect" Jackson said as Pikachu bounced off "Razor Leaf" Meganium shook her head and from her petals razor sharp leaves flew from her petals heading to Pikachu who dodged out of the way of each one before doing an about turn as the attack petered off.
"Not bad" Ash said nodding "but now you have two moves left. You still have the advantage though, why?"
"Are you actually giving me a lesson?" Jackson asked, looking confused.
"Yes" Ash said "every battle has its teachable moments. People are under the impression that I am unapproachable because of how I handle myself in the media but I'm really not. I will happily teach what I know if it concerns a battle as it can only make us both stronger and help improve the Pokémon world at large. So, again, why do you have the advantage?"
"I have two move slots left" Jackson said after a minute of thinking "you only have one."
"Very good" Ash said "also Pikachu has been in a battle already where you got a hit off. I don't care what anyone ever tells you, every move that hits always hurts and has an impact on how the battle will go. So, while it was a quick battle Pikachu still took damage. Double Team Pi, then move in with Quick Attack and Iron Tail."
"Razor Leaf" Jackson shouted as Meganium sent leaves at several copies but ultimately failed to get the right Pikachu who slammed into her back where Meganium didn't even send any leaves and bounced on her back, somersaulted over her and slammed his tail into her head causing her to belly flop as her legs splayed out underneath her.
"Back here Pi" Ash said much to their surprise. Everyone expected him to capitalise on Meganiums vulnerability
"Why didn't you press your advantage?" Jackson asked.
"Because I'm still teaching," Ash said as if it were obvious. "What did you do wrong there?"
"I panicked" he said "but that move usually works on Double Team"
"That particular move relies on pure luck to work on Double Team" Ash said shaking his head "It has roughly a 20% chance of hitting your opponent as it completely misses out any Pokémon that's now behind them. The fact you've seemingly done so every time is quite amazing really. No, you panicking, while not helping was not the issue. Your move selection was. Now normally in a proper tournament that lets you use moves without restrictions Double Team is extremely simple to counter as you just send out an area effect move like Earthquake or Stun Spore. However because this tournament actively handicaps every trainer you're limited to either physical moves or moves where your Pokémon can control the opposition Pokémon. You though have another advantage because of the Pokémon you chose. For instance if you'd have chosen Vine Whip and started from behind you, sweeping around Meganium so that the move ends where her head is looking you increase your 20% chance to 90% because the only way the opponent can escape having their copies being broken, and not be hit is to attack full ahead and hope they reach before the Vine Whip hits them. And you would still have the advantage because you have a move slot left whereas I locked in my fourth move and my Pikachu would have taken another hit."
"So what do I do?" Jackson asked quietly, something that was picked up on his microphone. Ash simply waited for his opponent to move. After a minute though Ash decided to take action.
"Same combination Pi" Ash said to his Pokémon who reacted and sped forwards creating copies.
"Vine Whip" Jackson shouted "Do what Ash said to do."
His Meganium nodded and set other vines before sweeping them around. Ash simply smiled as Pikachu allowed the Vine to hit. He had done this enough times with Venusaur over the year they had together to know what Ash wanted to happen next.
"Yes!" Jackson shouted "now wrap it up! And then slam it into the ground, follow it up with Body Slam."
Meganium seeing an opening quickly wrapped Pikachu up in his vines and raised him into the air preparing to slam him when he felt several thousand volts course through his body as Pikachu used Thunderpunch on the vine and sent it directly into his body. Meganium slumped to the ground ten seconds later as he passed out leaving Pikachu to hop out of the vines.
"Meganium is unable to battle. Ash Ketchum wins" the referee shouted to the silent crowd that had formed to watch them,
"But how?" Jackson asked rushing forwards and running his Pokémon's head.
"And now for the final lesson for today." Ash said, walking forwards and picking Pikachu up, placing him on his shoulder. "That final combination of yours would have worked on probably every other type but Electric Pokémon are very different. There isn't a single electric Pokémon that from the smallest Pichu to the largest Zapdos that is not always discharging some level of voltage. Pikachu can regulate his to an incredible degree but even now, with it reigned in I can feel his electricity flicking against me. So, be careful with any contact move you use against them as most of them have the static ability too and paralysis can often be the way you lose a battle. That was a fun battle, should you ever wish for a rematch feel free to ask."
Bowing his head he left through the doorway and motioned to Joanne who was smiling from ear to ear.
"Where are these vultures?" he asked.
"Reporters Ash" she said pulling him along to the press box which was at the end of the huge field.
As he passed Macey and Salvador he paused and said "nice try. Good luck." Before walking onwards.
Heading to the press box Ash stood waiting for the to finish with the other people when he remembered something and he narrowed his eyes. Yeah, that wasn't going to fly with him.
When it was his turn he walked into the box and was immediately flooded with flashes from photographers and questions so much so he couldn't hear them as they melded into one. Raising his hand they quietened and waited for him to choose one.
"First of all is there anyone here from the Johto Reporter?"
"Yes Mr Ketchum" a voice said as a hand raised from near the middle.
"Right, well you can piss off." He said, causing gasps "I will never EVER give anyone from that rag an interview in my life from this day forward and if there's anyone from that company that is around other reporters from other newspapers trying to get around that I will not do any interviews. I will happily pay the fine."
"Why?" The voice asked, sounding quite scared.
"Ash Ketchum the love rat" Ash said glaring at them before leaving the box with Joanne who just shook her head at him.
Picking out his Pokégear he ignored the reporters who started shouting questions at him as Joanne walked behind him. Joanne wondered what he was typing when she received an alert on her own phone. She chuckled when she received an email that she was tagged in to Mr Suzuki with a cheque for $100,000 Pokédollars and an explanation as to why he wouldn't be doing any press until the Reporter was banned from his conferences.
"Well that was quite a painless interview" Ash said as they walked into their Chalet. "I rather enjoyed it."
"Ash, we need to be more diplomatic with these people" she said sitting down and leaning her head back on the couch "it's not good for Silphs image if their star man refuses to do interviews and promote Silph."
"Hmmm" Ash replied looking thoughtful. Walking into his room he grabbed his laptop and set it up on the counter and started typing away. An hour later he nodded and sent it to Mr Suzuki.
Hatori hadn't spoken to Ash directly since his blow-up a few months ago and Hatori seemed to understand that while he was his employer Zoe was pretty much like family so it was a surprise to Hatori when he received two emails within hours of each other from him. The first made him shake his head and pinch his nose at Ash just paying the fine and pretty much exempting him from doing any of his press commitments. He was skating around his breach of contract as it was by not showing up to a signing day at Silph Towers due to him being inside Mt Silver so to see him just pay the fine left him wondering what he could do to press the point of how important they were to Silph. Which is why it was such a shock to get another one a few hours later with a document attached. Opening it he read through what Ash had written and was astounded. Printing it off he rushed upstairs to his fathers office and smiled at the sight of his daughter playing with dolls with him on the floor.
"Hello sweetheart" he said, dropping beside them onto the floor "what are we playing?"
"We're having a tea party" Emily said happily.
"Oh can I join?" he asked his ten year old who nodded.
"What brings you here?" his father asked him. Silently Hatori handed over the paper to his father who quickly skimmed through it, raising his eyebrows in certain places before nodding at the end. "I must say, I didn't expect that. See that it reaches our media arm and set it up, preferably at Silver Town while he's still in the competition. I'm still shocked Ash came up with this."
"Oh I like Ash" Emily said looking up from her playtime "he saved us from that nasty witch."
"He did," Hatori said, nodding.
"Can he come and play too?" she asked, looking at him.
"I'm sure if you ask him nicely he would but he's very busy at the moment" Hatori replied "He'll be home in just over a month so I'll ask him."
"He could meet Hanzo," she said, nodding at her dolls. "He's a trainer too."
"Ash and Hanzo meeting wouldn't be a good idea" his father said from the desk where he was drafting an email.
"Why not pops?" she asked looking up.
"Hanzo hurt one of his friend's sweetheart." Hatori said.
"Why?" she asked, looking confused at the thought of her brother hurting someone. That wasn't her brother, she was sure of it.
"Your brother did something not very nice to his friend and didn't say sorry for what he did" Hatori said looking at his father who looked guilty at mentioning anything. Sighing Hatori picked her up and walked her to his desk where he sat her down. Opening his desk drawer he took out a picture he had secretly had made a year ago and showed her.
"Who's that daddy?" Emily asked.
"This is your niece," Hatori said, "her name is Ava. Ava is Hanzo's daughter, like you are mine only he abandoned her and hurt her mother Zoe and Ava by doing so. Ash met her a few years ago and did what your brother refused to do so they moved to Pallet Town from this city and Zoe now runs Ash's home while he's away."
"Big brother did that?" she asked, looking troubled.
"He did," Hatori said, nodding and stroking her hair, "and Ash found out not long ago and is very angry with your brother."
"Big brother was naughty" she said, getting down from the desk and walking to where she was having her tea party and sat down, playing with her dolls once more, but a lot more subdued.
An hour later Hatori decided to call Ash to make sure he was ok with what they had planned.
"Hello?" Ash said as his face appeared on their big conference screen. "Oh hello both Mr Suzuki's. Hello to you too, Emily isn't it?"
"It is Mr Ash" she said, coming to sit by her father "Mr Ash, can you come and play with me and my dolls?"
Ash chuckled at the innocence of such a request. "I'll tell you what, after I'm done here I will be coming home. How do you and your dad and your grandfather fancy coming to my home so I can show you all the Pokémon that live on the land next to my home? You can even bring your dolls."
"For reals" she asked wide eyed.
"For absolute reals" Ash said nodding eliciting a "yay!" as she jumped down and began playing with her dolls again.
"Thank you Ash," Hatori said, genuinely touched by the offer.
"I meant it" Ash said "you should see in person what you've helped me achieve. Anyway, what's up?"
"It's a call to hash out a few details concerning your letter" Hatori said "Now, firstly we need to know what your thinking is behind it."
"Oh it's quite simple" Ash said "I'm aware that I'm not exactly making you two jump for joy at being associated with me at the minute and I'm also aware I'm making Joannes job a lot harder than it needs to be because she has all these plans for me on a daily basis and I just ignore them because I can. So, to make up for it I thought I'd at least try and keep the peace between us before I get done for something like a breach of contract by not doing interviews."
"I'll admit Ash," Hirohito said, sounding stern. "We were very close to that point. We gave you lee-way for missing the Silph conference as you were covering Blues duties as Champion and then training for the tournament but refusing interviews after your matches wasn't something we are particularly happy with. Paying the fine in advance smacked of cheekiness too, something I wasn't pleased to see."
"I meant it though" Ash said "I won't do an interview with anyone from the Reporter."
"Ash" Hatori said "do you think we enjoy having to work with reporters that have a go at us on an almost daily basis? No, we don't but we understand that having a good media presence regardless of what is said about us."
"It's a bit different having a go at a product you've made than be accused of having an affair with every woman I see and putting my relationship with Nia in jeopardy" Ash said "It's only because she knows as an aura user that she's the only one I can be with that has stopped any arguments so far. No, I understand your point but I won't entertain that paper so if it means boycotting them all over here I'm ok with that."
"We are not though," Hirohito said. "We do not have as strong a presence in Johto but what little we do have we would like to keep. You as Kanto Champion need to hold yourself to a higher standard than most because you do not just represent yourself, you represent your family, your workplace and all those who work hard to have things put in place to make your life easier. Now, I understand that you have been personally slighted but do you plan on doing this to every news outlet that questions your integrity?"
"Yes" Ash said "at some point I need to draw a line in the sand with them. I plan on being a Champion for a long time so I'm making sure they know from the word go that questioning my personal relationships is not something I'll put up with. Nia is the one person I would give up all of this for Mr Suzuki so I'm not doing anything that can jeopardise that which is why I sent you the letter that I did."
"That brings us on to the next point" Hatori said looking at his father whose face was unreadable "did you mean everything you said on this?"
"Yes," Ash said, nodding "everything."
"So if we can set up an interview in the next few weeks in Silver Town somewhere you'll do it?" Hatori asked.
"I will" Ash said "I was thinking about that. Why not do it in this Chalet, that way it's contained and more importantly secure from outside interference."
"We'll have to speak to the owners of the housing association but we had more of a chat show type of interview in mind" Hirohito said "or you and an interviewer sat on a stage while the audience asks you questions."
"Either is fine with me" Ash said after a few seconds of thinking "just no one from the Reporter. That's all I ask."
Hirohito knew it would be a lost cause with that one but one less media outlet wouldn't be too bad. "Ok. Well, we'll see if we can get it sorted for the week after next. We'll be in touch."
"Alright, see you later," Ash said, waving goodbye.
As the screen went blank father and son looked at each other and shook their heads as one.
"He's going to end up with no media to talk to if he's this sensitive everytime someone says something to him." Hirohito said to his son.
"Well what can we do?" Hatori asked "If we keep caving in like this then you're right."
"We should have sneaked some more appearances into his contract when we had the chance" Hirohito said "as it is all we can do is impress upon him that he can't keep deciding to not do something just because he can pay the penalty fine. It'll end up where he sends us a check every January 1st covering the whole year for fines and not doing any media appearances whatsoever."
"Perhaps it's time we looked at getting him a new P.A then" Hatori said "one who is more strong willed and won't let him shirk his duties. We could sell it as we're promoting Joanne."
"That won't work," Hirohito said, "he'd just buy out her contract and employ her himself. He bought her a holiday on a cruise as a Christmas present a few years ago after only knowing her for a short time. Do you really think he'll let her disappear just like that? No, we must impress on Joanne how important it is that he attends these press conferences, possibly dropping hints that she may be replaced even if we have no intention of doing so."
"After the interview though" Hatori said "we cannot waste an opportunity like this one. I think we must be the ones to supply the questions submitted to the host and maybe have a few plants in the audience who will ask certain questions too."
"Will he see through that?" his father asked him.
"Doubtful" came the reply "he's not met many people from here so I don't see how he would know. Come, let us draw up the questions and get in touch with whoever owns the Silver Town auditorium. We'll also have to check it doesn't clash with any of his battles too, so I'll get us a schedule for the tournament."
Hirohito nodded as he watched his son leave to go and speak to the companies in Johto and wondered, not for the first time if they'd done too much for Ash and made a rod for their own back.