Chapter 56

Ash: "Actually, it's fine if we can't think of a solution, because we don't even know where Jigglypuff is."

Misty: "That's right, this Jigglypuff is so elusive, no one knows its exact location."

Diantha: "Sigh, what a pity."

A perfectly good opportunity to overtake the competition is gone.

【After spending a day as an intern doctor at the town hospital, Ash and his friends bid farewell to the highly skilled Dr. Proctor and began heading toward the next town.】

【At the town's intersection, Ash and his friends saw a missing person poster.】

【The photo pasted on the wooden board was none other than a younger-looking James.】

【Before they could recover from their surprise, a bald old man dragged them into a stretch limousine.】

【As Ash and his two friends stepped out of the limousine and were just about to enter the room, the butler called out to them.】

【"That over there is the doghouse for Growlithe, James's beloved Pokémon!"】

Lance: "?????????"

Steven: "A doghouse? Are you kidding me? Such a huge villa is just for a Growlithe to live in?"

Steven was shocked.

Just what kind of people are James's family to be able to do something so extravagant?

Roxanne: "I can understand others being surprised, but why are you so surprised, Steven? You're the noble young master of Devon Corporation. Can James's family really be richer than yours?"

Steven: "Wuwuwu, don't say any more; the house I live in isn't even as nice as that Growlithe's doghouse."

Brawly: "Make the old man in your family cough up some gold coins for you, Steven."

Diantha: "Hey, hey, hey, where exactly is your focus? Isn't the most shocking thing that James's family is actually that rich?"

Bruno: "I'm stunned too. I always thought James was born into a poor family like me."

Lorelei: "Can someone tell me what exactly is going on?"

Karen: "Do you think there's a possibility that the person in the photo just looks a bit like James, and isn't actually him?"

Gardenia: "How could there be such a coincidence? Looking the same is one thing, but even the name is the same?"

Bruno: "I'm breaking down, I'm really breaking down. Why would someone so rich go and join Team Rocket?"

Lucian: "I completely don't understand the thinking of rich people. Do they feel like life has no challenges, so they join Team Rocket to find some excitement?"

Amidst the envy of everyone in the chat room, the video continued to play.

【In order to make James inherit the family estate, Jessie and Meowth forced James to return home. They thought they could become rich, but who would have thought that James's parents had actually 'resurrected'.】

【It turned out everything was a setup; the so-called funeral and property were all fake, just a ploy by James's parents to trick him into coming home.】

【Besides having a pair of eccentric parents, James's fiancée, Jessiebelle, is also a heavy-hitter. Her control freak nature is extreme; she even interferes with what Pokémon James raises. It was precisely because he couldn't stand Jessiebelle that James ran away from home.】

Meowth: "Jessiebelle... Meowth has seen a woman even more terrifying than Jessie for the first time. Thinking back on it now still makes my heart race. Meow."

James: "Don't say that name, my head is starting to hurt again."

Jessie: "Hey, what are you all talking about? Is there any woman in the world more gentle and beautiful than me? Absolutely not!"

【After a series of farces, James finally escaped his home with the help of Growlithe.】

【Compared to staying at home and being controlled by his parents and Jessiebelle, James would rather live a life of sleeping in the open with Jessie and Meowth. James truly achieved the ability to give up everything for the sake of freedom.】

After finishing James's story, the audience in the chat room also understood him a little better.

Lance: "So it's said that one should marry a virtuous wife. If you marry a terrifying woman, the rest of your life is ruined."

Steven: "That's right, that's the reason why I've remained single until now."

Wallace: "Heh, you just can't find a partner; it's completely different from James's situation."

Bruno: "But I have to say, James still has a lot of backbone. He abandoned the life of a rich man just like that, preferring to be a small fry in Team Rocket rather than go home. He really has guts."

Alder: "You guys, you're all too young. In childhood, you don't know the value of a rich wife, and mistakenly treat freedom as a treasure. What's wrong with Jessiebelle? She's just a bit controlling. Endure it, take a step back, and the sky will be clear."

Caitlin: "Got it, Alder is an M, which is why he appreciates Jessiebelle, who has S attributes, so much. Tell us, Mr. Alder, do you dream of being disciplined by an S-type beautiful girl like Jessiebelle?"

Alder: "Well, there is a little bit of that."

Everyone: "..."

【In the subsequent journey, Ash and his friends encountered a boy who used a Farfetch'd to scam people, and it took a lot of effort to get back the stolen Pokémon and luggage.】

【A few days later, the Pokémon egg Ash picked up in Big Rock Valley hatched. The Pokémon that hatched from the egg was a rare Togepi. This should have been a happy event, but the current situation was a bit subtle.】

【The true owner of the egg, Ash; Brock, who had been helping to take care of it; Misty, who was the first thing Togepi saw when it hatched; and Meowth, who claimed to have put in great effort for the hatching—everyone believed Togepi should belong to them.】

【In the end, everyone decided to use a Trainer's method to determine Togepi's ownership.】

【With that, a problem arose: Meowth is not a Trainer, and it doesn't have Pokémon that can help it battle. Meowth originally wanted to borrow Weezing and Arbok from Jessie and James, but was rejected by them. Meowth had just backstabbed them and deprived them of their eligibility to participate, so how could they help Meowth at this time?】

【Helpless, Meowth had to enter the battle itself.】

【After two rounds of competition, Ash and Pikachu ultimately won the match.】

【However, although he won the championship, Ash still didn't get Togepi. Compared to Ash, Togepi liked Misty, whom it saw first. With no other choice, Ash could only hand Togepi over to Misty.】

【After determining Togepi's ownership, the three of them began a new journey.】

【In a battle against a roadside uncle in the wild, Ash's Bulbasaur lost the match due to a suddenly appearing sign of evolution.】

【At the Pokémon Center, Ash was grinning from ear to ear after learning that Bulbasaur was about to evolve into Ivysaur.】

【But the situation seemed a bit different from what Ash thought.】

【At night, when Bulbasaur and Pikachu went out for a walk, they were kidnapped by a group of wild Bulbasaurs. To rescue the kidnapped Bulbasaur, Pikachu returned to the room to wake up Ash and his friends. Through their efforts, they finally arrived at the Mysterious Garden.】

【In the garden, a group of Bulbasaurs were guarding a giant Venusaur like courtiers. Once the time was right, Venusaur began to spread pollen in large quantities. Nourished by Venusaur's pollen, all the Bulbasaurs present began to evolve.】

【A few minutes later, the wild Bulbasaurs had all evolved into Ivysaurs, but Ash's Bulbasaur forcibly suppressed the urge to evolve; it refused to evolve.】

【Venusaur was very unhappy with the Bulbasaur that rejected its kindness. It extended its vines and struck hard at Bulbasaur.】

【At this moment, Ash appeared. He rushed in front of Bulbasaur at top speed and took the whip attack from Venusaur for it.】

Serena: "Ah? Is Ash okay?"

Max: "This is too reckless!!!"

May: "That's right, that's right, that's a Venusaur's attack."

Venusaur was aiming to beat Bulbasaur into submission, so this strike didn't hold back at all.

Bruno: "To take two Vine Whips like that, without even dropping to his knees—is there anyone left who still questions Ash's physical constitution? Honestly, when I was ten, I wasn't even half as monstrous as Ash!"

Bea: "Ash, how about we discuss this? Come to our dojo, and I'll let you be the deputy gym leader."

In order to recruit talent, Bea was going all out.

Brawly: "Ash, you're on the wrong path. Why be a Pokémon Trainer? Listen to your brother's advice and focus on being a martial artist. It's not too late. In less than three years, you'll be able to fight your way to the Elite Four with just your fists."

Misty: "Elite Four? Really?"

Ash could become an Elite Four member? Is this a joke?

Bruno: "What's the Elite Four? Become my apprentice! In three years, I'll make Ash the Kanto Champion."

Lance: "..."

【Having been hit by Venusaur for no reason, Ash wasn't angry; instead, he apologized to Venusaur.】

【"I'm sorry, we shouldn't have broken in, but this Bulbasaur is our friend. Is everyone angry because Bulbasaur doesn't want to evolve?"】

【After receiving an affirmative answer from the Ivysaurs, Ash continued: "If it causes a flaw in the celebration because of him, as his friend, I apologize to everyone on his behalf, but you don't have to force him to evolve right now, do you?"】

【"Everyone, I want to respect Bulbasaur's feelings. How he wants to live is his own freedom."】

Morty: "No wonder Ho-Oh chose this child."

Ash truly treats Pokémon as partners, not tools. He has always respected the Pokémon's thoughts rather than forcing them to live according to his own ideas.

Professor Oak: "Although he has countless flaws, when it comes to his love for Pokémon, Ash won't lose to anyone."

Gary: "This guy, he's still the same as when he was a kid."

Chairman Goodshow: "Well said, Ash. This is what a true Trainer is."

Chairman Goodshow liked Ash more and more.

Sigh, it's just a pity that they have Lance in Kanto; otherwise, it would be quite nice to let Ash be the Champion.

Young, with good talent, and more importantly, a sincere heart for Pokémon—such a person is most suitable to be a Champion.

Actually, it wasn't just Chairman Goodshow who thought this way; Professor Kukui, far away in the Alola region, thought so too.

Letting Ash be the first Champion of Alola would be just perfect.

It doesn't matter that Ash isn't from Alola; Alola has just opened up, and having someone from another region be the Champion of Alola would better reflect Alola's tolerance.

It looks like he must go to Kanto as soon as possible; otherwise, Ash might be snatched away by others.

Such an outstanding young man is definitely a 'first come, first served' situation.

【After defeating Team Rocket and rescuing the Ivysaurs and Venusaur, Ash's Bulbasaur gained the recognition of all its kin, and this Mysterious Garden incident came to a successful conclusion.】

At this moment, the white-bordered screen gradually dimmed, and in its place, the black-bordered screen lit up. ===== CHAPTER 57 =====