"Curse that wretched twerp!"
"He's looking down on us!"
"You'll see the might of Team Rocket, meow!"
"Solance!"
Ash's smile was, as expected, completely misinterpreted by Team Rocket.
Seeing the trio, who had been on the verge of losing their fighting spirit, suddenly reignite with fervor, Ash just scratched his cheek apologetically, smiling as he said:
"So, before we battle, can I ask you a question? Have you seen my Aipom?"
"?"
Each member of the trio had a giant question mark practically hovering over their heads.
What's that supposed to mean? Your Pokémon's missing—why are you asking us?
As Team Rocket was still puzzling over this, a sudden rustling came from above them.
As they all looked up, a purple figure leaped down from a tree, its tail gleaming with a brilliant white light.
"Trap~ Trap~ Trap!"
"It's a trap, meow!"
"Hey, Wobbuffet!"
"Solance!"
In a frantic shuffle of positions, Team Rocket managed to maneuver Wobbuffet under Aipom just before it could strike, setting it up to face the attack.
"Hurry, use Counter!"
Jessie didn't care about the details and barked the order, though it wouldn't have mattered if she hadn't.
After all, Wobbuffet had matured. Through countless battles, it had grown capable of acting on its own.
A mere Focus Punch? Bouncing it back would be child's play.
"So~~~lance!!"
Wobbuffet stood tall, its body glowing with a white sheen, ready to reflect the incoming Focus Punch as it was about to hit—when suddenly—
Aipom started snickering, looking as if its plan had succeeded, and hopped to the side.
"Huh?"
Aipom's abrupt halt left Team Rocket dumbfounded once again.
They hadn't even processed what was happening when that tingling, electric sensation began coursing through their bodies once more.
Struggling to look toward Ash—
They realized that while Aipom had drawn their attention, Pikachu had seized the moment to gather energy, unleashing a second Thunderbolt at them.
"Tch-tch-tch…"
"Twerp!!!"
"You're too sneaky!!"
"So-so-so~~lance!"
This time, Pikachu's Thunderbolt was a fully charged, all-out strike, not something that would end easily.
Noticing that the white glow on Wobbuffet's body had faded, Ash waved his hand and commanded Aipom: "Aipom, Focus Punch!"
With Counter no longer a threat, nothing could stop Aipom's attack.
With Aipom's heavy punch, amplified by the power of Thunderbolt, a deafening explosion echoed through the forest. Then, several figures were sent soaring into the sky.
It was the same old ending. Team Rocket was blasted off by Ash once again, turning into twinkling stars on the horizon.
"Why does it always end like this?!"
"Meow, human growth is terrifying. Who'd have thought even the twerp would start using such cunning tricks?"
"I told you our preperation this time was too sloppy! If you'd listened to me earlier…"
"Shut up!" ×2
"Solance!!"
"What a terrible feeling!!!" ×N
…
Watching Team Rocket turn into distant specks, Ash clapped his hands with satisfaction and said:
"Nice work, you two did great~ I really didn't expect to run into Team Rocket like that… They sure don't give up, huh."
"Pika…"
"OKI!"
Pikachu seemed a bit weary of Team Rocket. After all, it was their constant target, and being hounded day and night was exhausting, to say the least.
In contrast, Aipom was far more excited, still caught up in the thrill of that Focus Punch that had sent the trio skyward, repeatedly waving its clenched, fist-like tail.
It kept swinging its fists forward, and though it was small in stature, it had the air of a boxer.
Ash noticed both Pikachu's fatigue and Aipom's post-excitement calm.
Though they'd rested for a long time on the plane, somehow, unless it was sleeping in a proper bed, dozing on a long bus ride or plane never felt like true rest—just enough to keep you from feeling too sleepy.
The exhaustion from a long journey meant they needed to find a place to rest properly.
"For now, let's put Team Rocket aside. Let's head to the first city. Hold on… let me check."
Ash said, pulling out a Sinnoh region map from his backpack under Pikachu and Aipom's curious gazes, checking the marked locations.
Then he put it away and continued:
"Twinleaf Town doesn't seem far from here. It should take about half an hour to walk there. Once we get to Twinleaf Town, we'll have a big meal and rest up."
"Pika!"
"OKI!"
Hearing that a big meal was coming soon, Pikachu and Aipom were visibly thrilled, but they weren't the only ones—Ash felt just as excited.
Of course, the meal was only part of it. The bigger reason, perhaps, was something only Ash himself knew.
Twinleaf Town, how nostalgic.
Walking slowly down the slope toward the hill below, a breeze swept across the road, bringing a touch of coolness to the hot summer day. Ash's thoughts drifted with the wind, back to the memory of meeting her.
Would she be in Twinleaf Town? Or had she already set out?
The person Ash was reminiscing about was likely the girl he had the best chemistry with on his many journeys, someone with a personality so similar to his own—Dawn.
Speaking of regrets, his journey with Dawn had ended on a bittersweet note, hadn't it?
They had all agreed to travel together for a bit longer, but in the end, Dawn had to leave due to personal matters, and it never happened.
But since it was about Dawn's future, he and Brock hadn't said much. They had simply parted with their sincerest blessings.
Memories are pearls; friendship is a diamond.
Even if the final moments were tinged with regret, they had each moved toward their dreams.
Unlike him, though, Dawn had achieved her dream, winning the grand championship at a major festival years later.
His own dream, however, had been paused and rewound on that stage.
Whether he could travel with Dawn again on this journey remained a mystery.
The events of the past had already changed because of his involvement. Would his reunion with Dawn, or meeting Brock again, change as well?
Ash had no idea, but the journey had to go on.
You never know what tomorrow holds until you reach it—that's the beauty of traveling.