Gabite was evolving again!
Though Crunch only dealt normal damage to Flygon, Gabite still had Dragon Claw in its arsenal.
Its Dragon Claw tore straight through Flygon's abdomen.
At that moment,
the white light surrounding Gabite grew even brighter.
Yes—
Gabite was about to evolve again after only two rounds of battle!
From Gabite…
to the true Sinnoh pseudo-legendary—
the unstoppable Garchomp!
"Amazing!"
Chloe stared wide-eyed at the dazzling light.
Could Dragon-types grow this fast?
She had no idea.
Everything happening before her contradicted what she'd learned.
Everyone knew Dragon-types were symbols of power.
Power that always came with a price—
their extremely long development cycle.
And Gabite wasn't just any Dragon-type.
It was a pseudo-legendary.
Could a pseudo-legendary really complete two full evolutions in less than half a day?
And not just for show—
Gabite had evolved from Gible and immediately fought a fully evolved Dragon-type.
Flygon had shown massive power.
It nearly one-shot Gabite.
This… was talent.
The white light cracked apart.
Garchomp's figure emerged.
But unlike normal Garchomps,
Ash's shiny Garchomp was colored in deeper, darker shades.
Even freshly evolved,
it radiated a suffocating brutality—
no weaker than Ash's own desert tyrant, Tyranitar.
After evolving—
"LIEEEEEE!!!"
Garchomp spat out the unconscious Flygon
and howled skyward—
the roar alone kicking up a violent gust.
[Cynthia: Incredible talent. Ash's Garchomp… not bad at all.]
[Brock: Woah—Tyranitar plus Garchomp? That's a monster lineup! Turns out Ash isn't just a Fire-type prodigy—he's got Ground-type talent too!]
[Bruno: You don't get it. Genius is universal. Like Lance—he's the Dragon-type Champion, but everyone knows his real specialty is Flying-types!]
[Lance: Don't talk nonsense! I am absolutely a Dragon-type Master! The Flying-type thing is slander.]
[Sabrina: I can confirm—he flies incredibly steadily.]
[Flint: Another episode of bullying Lance, I see~]
Lance: ?
Are you… helping me?
Please—if you can't talk properly, don't talk at all!
[Bertha (Sinnoh Ground-type Elite Four): Ash's Ground lineup is top tier. Weather setter Tyranitar, main sweeper Garchomp, and he's catching Flygon too… that Sandstorm team is terrifying!]
Recognition from an Elite Four.
[Ash: Actually I prefer straightforward battles~ Weather teams are too complicated!]
…Yeah, that tracks.
Ash always preferred aggressive play.
He rarely used weather tactics.
A pity, really—
(Ash's Ground-types are seriously strong. His Unova Sandile line was crazy too. If he actually built a Sandstorm team, he'd be terrifying.)
On-screen——
"Garchomp, great job!"
This time, Ash wisely did not run up for a hug.
Gible's nibbling—he could handle.
Gabite hurt already, even for Ash's steel-reinforced body.
And Garchomp?
Yeah, better not.
After congratulating Garchomp,
Ash pulled out a Poké Ball
and captured the unconscious Flygon.
Then he turned to Chloe.
"Chloe, that Vibrava is pretty strong. You should catch it."
He knew Chloe wanted to become stronger.
That's why he said this.
"O-okay…"
She hesitated, then agreed.
If Ash approved it, the Vibrava must be special.
She threw her Poké Ball—
click!
Vibrava was caught.
Ash and Chloe picked up the Poké Balls together.
Chloe was just about to store hers
when a familiar, embarrassing voice rang out beside her:
"I caught Flygon!"
Ash shouted it with fiery passion.
Chloe instantly flushed red.
She already knew what Ash was going to ask next—
"Chloe! Why aren't you shouting!?"
Right on cue.
Exactly what she feared.
Blushing furiously,
Chloe clenched her fist and shouted:
"I… I caught Vibrava!"
"Good! Nice spirit!"
Chloe raised the ball high like Ash would.
Her eyes squeezed shut in embarrassment.
Ahh!! This is so embarrassing! And Ash saw it! My face is on fire!
[Chloe's Mom: So cute! Chloe's already becoming Ash-shaped!]
[Professor Cerise: Every time I see Chloe like this, my heart clenches… in pain!]
[Gary: Ash, after all these years you still love this ritual.]
[Ash: What do you mean "ritual"!? It's cool! Who can resist shouting after catching a Pokémon they like!?]
[Lance: A bit embarrassing, but if I were ten again… I'd probably shout too.]
[Lorelei: Oh? Did you shout the first time you caught a Dratini~?]
Crap!
How did this old woman know!?
It's over! His life on thin ice—he'll never cross to the other side now!
No wait—
his Pokémon are weak to Ice.
Better not walk on thin ice at all…
On-screen——
With Flygon and Vibrava caught,
Ash had Tyranitar clear all the sand off the highway.
Officer Jenny in Vermilion City thanked him endlessly
before Ash and Chloe left.
Was something forgotten?
(Trapinch: ?)
Back at Cerise Laboratory,
Ash rested for a few days—rare for him.
Of course, he couldn't sit still.
He spent the time battling nonstop with Pikachu
and climbed back to Ultra Ball Rank 901.
Battling was his best form of relaxation.
But the peaceful days didn't last long.
One day, in the Cerise backyard—
Yamper found a Leaf Stone.
Chloe examined it uncertainly.
She couldn't use it.
Professor Cerise saw this
and helped her pass it along—
it just so happened someone's Exeggcute needed a Leaf Stone to evolve.
Exeggutor evolved,
which reminded Chloe of the Alolan form from her textbooks.
She suddenly wanted to see one in person.
Ash immediately agreed.
He hadn't visited his Alolan partners in a long time.
"Pikachu, let's go to Alola."
"Pika!"
"You miss Incineroar too, right? I do!"
"Pika!"
"Let's go then! I miss Professor Kukui, and Lana, and Lillie… everyone! Rowlet, Incineroar—they've all been waiting!"
"Kukui… Professor?"
Chloe instantly recognized the name.
As Cerise's daughter, she knew him well.
"Yeah! Aside from Mom and Professor Oak, Professor Kukui treats me the best!"
Ash said emotionally.
Pikachu nodded vigorously.
That must be someone very important.
"Then let's go together," Chloe said softly. "I want to meet your friends too."
A big step forward in her relationship with Ash.
They bought tickets immediately.
That very day,
they landed on Melemele Island.
[Professor Kukui: Didn't expect to meet my future self so soon! Can't wait to see what I become in five years!]
[Professor Burnet: Narcissist.]
[Kukui: Hey, back in the day, I was the most handsome guy for miles. Everyone said so.]
[Professor Birch: Didn't think you'd be so shameless in private. Never judge a book by its cover.]
[Lillie: From what Ash said, future me becomes his partner… I wonder if I'll overcome my condition. Can I touch Pokémon by then?]
[Lusamine: Don't worry, dear. You absolutely will.]
Everyone watching was curious—
Alola was where Ash won his first championship.
What kind of journey gave him such a strong team
he even defeated a god?
One year—was that really enough?
If so,
Ash wasn't just a great trainer—
he was an extraordinary Pokémon caretaker.
On-screen——
Thanks for the invitation.
We're in Alola.
Just got off the plane.
Breathing the familiar salty sea breeze,
Ash's entire body relaxed.
Pikachu stretched its arms wide, inhaling nostalgia.
They were home.
Chloe, meanwhile, was nervous and shy.
She was about to meet Ash's important people.
Especially Professor Kukui—
Ash held him in extremely high regard.
And then there was fear—
fear of meeting other girls who once traveled with Ash.
Ash had mentioned many,
all of whom sounded cute.
Throughout the flight he'd talked endlessly about Alolan adventures—
but mostly the dangerous or funny parts,
not the people.
Still, the Island Challenge sounded exciting enough
to ease Chloe's anxiety.
She timidly asked Ash
which girls were closest to him.
After thinking a long time,
Ash answered:
"Professor Burnet."
Honestly?
That made perfect sense.
Lana and Lillie were dear friends,
but when thinking of the closest…
Burnet was like a mother,
just as Kukui was like a father.
When they exited the airport,
Kukui was already waiting.
"Long time no see, Ash."
Hearing that familiar voice,
Ash's head snapped up.
There he was—
white baseball cap, warm smile.
Ash froze for a heartbeat,
then instinctively grabbed Chloe's hand
and ran toward him.
He had so many things he wanted to say—
but when he arrived,
he could only stand there, red-faced, speechless.
Kukui saw right through him.
He reached out and ruffled Ash's hair,
just like Cynthia would,
and laughed.
"Welcome home, Ash."
That single sentence—
and Ash's eyes filled instantly.
He thought he'd have countless things to say.
But that simple "welcome home"
brought every Alolan memory flooding back.
Ash broke.
Tears streamed down his face.
Right there at the airport entrance,
he shouted with all his heart:
"Professor Kukui—I'm back!!"
"Pikaaaa!!"
Pikachu shouted with him.
So many memories were born here.
Kukui smiled helplessly
and gave Chloe an apologetic glance
before looking at Ash again.
"Kiawe, Lana, everyone—they're waiting at the Pokémon School."
"Mm!"
Ash wiped his tears and nodded.
Kukui drove them to the Pokémon School.
Chloe was surprised.
She didn't expect Ash not to travel in Alola—
but attend school instead.
On the way,
Ash excitedly retold countless stories:
How Lana fished him up on his very first day.
How Mallow was an amazing cook.
How Sophocles was a little inventor.
How Lillie was terrified of touching Pokémon yet stubbornly proud.
How Kiawe was his rival since day one.
Chloe smiled unconsciously.
Listening to Ash talk about school life,
she imagined herself in that picture—
going to school with Ash.
No wonder he was popular everywhere he went.
[Kiawe: I was Ash's rival in Alola? Great! When you get here, Ash, let's have a real battle!]
Being the rival of the Alola Champion himself—
Kiawe was thrilled.
[Lillie: I—I wasn't stubborn! I just really didn't want to touch Pokémon!]
Confirmed.
Lillie was still being stubborn.
[Professor Kukui: So many fun memories… Ash, I can't wait to see the future!]
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