In the dark-screen world—
Ash dove into the lake, cutting through the water at incredible speed.
Very soon, he spotted the time bomb Team Rocket had thrown into the depths.
Without hesitation, he grabbed it and kicked upward, swimming toward the surface.
Here, the difference in the physical abilities of the two Ashes finally became obvious.
White World Ash had barely made it halfway before he ran out of breath and started sinking.
But Black World Ash, even as he neared the surface, still looked perfectly composed.
It wasn't that White Ash's body was weak—
it was that Black Ash's physical condition was simply on another level.
Breaking through the surface in a surge of water, Ash heaved the bomb skyward with all his strength.
The bomb exploded high above, blossoming into a shower of fiery sparks like a distorted firework.
That should've been the end of it.
But then, the lake started to churn.
The calm surface twisted into a gigantic whirlpool.
From the roaring, spiraling water, a royal-blue figure suddenly burst forth—
soaring into the sky.
Its serpentine body splashed droplets of water as it rose, glowing with a mysterious light.
"That's… Dragonair—and Dratini?!"
Misty squinted up at the sky.
Wasn't that the Dragonair, the legendary pseudo-legendary Dragon of Kanto?
And riding on Dragonair's long, elegant body, a tiny Dratini poked out its head,
curiously staring down at them.
"Dragon… air?"
Kaiser stared, dazed.
As far as he knew, there should only be a Dratini living in this lake.
Since when had there been a Dragonair as well?
But when he looked more closely at the scar on Dragonair's horn, he understood.
This Dragonair was the very same Dratini he'd saved all those years ago.
And the Dratini on its back… must be its child.
Over the years, the Dratini had not only evolved into a Dragonair—
it had even managed to have a child.
For Dragon-type Pokémon—well-known for their power—
breeding was notoriously difficult.
For Dragonair to have given birth to a Dratini at all…
it was nothing short of a miracle.
"Wooooo…"
After a brief exchange with Kaiser, Dragonair turned to Ash and let out a soft, melodic cry.
The little Dratini on its back also craned its neck forward, peeking at Ash with wide, curious eyes.
"You're saying… you want to entrust your child to me?"
The others didn't understand Dragonair's words,
but Ash, blessed with Aura, understood perfectly.
Still—this was a lot to process.
They had only just met, and Dragonair was already asking him to take care of its child?
"Wait… Dragonair, do you really want to leave your child in this boy's care?"
When Kaiser heard Ash's translation, his first reaction was suspicion—
Was this teenager just making things up to get his hands on Dratini?
But then he reconsidered.
If Ash really had bad intentions and wanted to trick them,
would he really use such an obvious lie?
Besides, Dragonair was right here.
They might not understand what it said,
but Dragonair could easily indicate yes or no by nodding or shaking its head.
So… did Dragonair truly want to entrust its child to this boy?
Under Kaiser's gaze, Dragonair slowly nodded.
"Wooo~ woo~~ wooo…"
"Dragonair says it feels that staying here is causing you a lot of trouble," Ash translated calmly.
"Even if you do your best to protect it, humans will keep coming to search for it and its child."
Ash paused, then continued, looking slightly embarrassed.
"And, uh… this next part is going to sound a bit like I'm bragging, but I promise I'm just repeating what Dragonair said."
"It says it saw how I protected Dragon Valley and protected them just now. Dragonair feels I'm a caring and responsible Trainer, so it wants to entrust Dratini to me."
"And after that, without Dratini to worry about, it can stay here with you, Mr. Kaiser, without fear of being exposed."
Kaiser stared at Ash as if he were some sort of alien.
"You… can understand what Pokémon are saying?"
Ash scratched his cheek and smiled.
"Heh, it's just a little trick—not really worth mentioning."
Kaiser: …
Learning an entire other language is a "little trick"? Really?
Even if he wasn't a Trainer himself, he understood immediately.
For a Trainer, being able to understand Pokémon speech was unbelievably helpful—for training and for daily care.
It was proof that this boy had incredible potential as a Trainer.
Dragonair's judgment… was far better than that of an old fossil like him.
"I believe you," Kaiser said at last. "Even if I can't understand Dragonair's words, I can feel what it's trying to say. Since it's entrusted its child to you, I'll give you my blessing as well."
He stepped back, leaving Ash standing face-to-face with Dragonair and Dratini.
Dragonair truly wanted to give its heir to Ash.
Kaiser had no right to interfere.
The last question was whether Dratini itself was willing to follow Ash.
Dratini stared at Ash cautiously.
Even at such a young age, it seemed to understand that if it went with this human,
it would be leaving its mother's side.
But in the end, the choice was its own.
If it didn't want to go, its mother would never force it.
Ash didn't move toward it.
He simply watched Dratini quietly with a gentle expression.
To say he didn't want a Dratini would be a lie.
Who wouldn't want Kanto's pseudo-legendary Dragon-type?
But for Ash, a Pokémon's will came first.
The two of them silently held each other's gaze.
Ten long seconds passed.
On the sidelines, Misty and Brock were starting to sweat.
Finally, Dratini moved.
It slowly slid from its mother's body and glided across the ground
until it stopped in front of Ash.
Ash crouched down and held out a hand.
Dratini rubbed its smooth head against his palm,
its bright eyes narrowing in contentment.
In that moment, no more words were needed—
Dratini had chosen Ash as its Trainer.
Ash felt joy well up inside him,
but he didn't rush to throw a Poké Ball.
Instead, he continued to gently stroke Dratini's sleek scales,
then took out some Pokémon rations and offered them to it.
Only after Dratini had eaten did Ash finally take out a Poké Ball
and lightly touch it to Dratini's body.
The ball clicked shut without so much as a wobble,
and a clear chime signaled a successful capture.
Ash finally couldn't contain his excitement.
He raised the Poké Ball high over his head and shouted,
"I caught Dratini!"
"Pika–Pikachu!!"
[Ash: …]
What was that?! So that's how you catch a Dratini?!
At first, he had wanted to catch Dratini too,
but in the end he'd chosen to leave Dragonair and Dratini alone in peace.
Now look at Black World Ash—
Dragonair literally asked him to take Dratini.
That was a huge difference in treatment.
It left him completely speechless.
[Misty: Hmph. What do you have to say now?]
[Brock: Even though Black Ash only caught one Tauros and one Dratini here, that single Dratini… is probably more valuable than the twenty-nine extra Tauros you ended up with, Ash.]
[Misty: This isn't just about "value"! Black Ash restrained himself and didn't randomly catch everything he saw. In the end, Dratini was entrusted to him by Dragonair itself.]
[Misty: That's Black Ash's self-control and sense of responsibility. Ash—learn from him.]
[Ash: I am learning! I'm writing notes right now on how to make Dratini throw itself into my arms!]
As much as he envied it, Ash still had to admit that Black Ash had earned it.
That Dratini… he truly couldn't help being jealous.
Once upon a time, he'd had the chance too.
But… well. No use dwelling on regrets.
[Lance: Hahaha! Don't be discouraged, Ash. Maybe you'll get your own Dratini someday. Maybe even a Dragonite!]
[Cynthia: Come to think of it, this is the first time Black Ash has caught a Pokémon that White Ash doesn't have, right?]
[Leon: Yeah. Looks like their teams won't be exactly the same after all… But in pure numbers, White Ash still has more. I mean, those thirty Tauros are going to be hard to beat.]
[Ash: Please, I'm begging you—can we stop talking about the Tauros?! I get it, okay! That was my obsession talking—I never should've tried to use up all thirty Safari Balls in the first place…]
Ash was practically pleading.
Out of those thirty Tauros, he really only used one standout bull.
The rest spent their days joyfully stampeding around Professor Oak's ranch.
All in all, the Tauros themselves definitely hadn't gotten the worse end of the deal.
In the dark-screen world—
After catching Dratini, Ash chose to send Kingler and Tauros back to Professor Oak's lab.
Dratini, he intended to keep at his side and train carefully.
Pseudo-legendary Pokémon always required a long development period.
Feeding, massages, physical care—
Ash wanted to personally handle all of it so Dratini could grow faster and healthier.
As for Kingler, Ash had already taught it a full training regimen,
and there often weren't proper bodies of water available during their travels anyway,
which wasn't ideal for Kingler's growth.
So his choice to send Kingler back wasn't because Dratini was "stealing its slot"—
it was simply better for Kingler.
As for Tauros, there really wasn't much to say.
The best training method for Tauros was constant running,
and Professor Oak's sprawling ranch was a much better environment than any roadside route.
After everything was settled, the trio said their goodbyes to Kaiser
and set off toward their next destination.
Along the way, Ash called Professor Oak to tell him about catching Dratini
and asked him for detailed information on raising Dratini.
Ash was diligent, but he wasn't a perfect all-round scholar.
He didn't know the proper training methods for every species.
Professor Oak, however, was a true all-rounder.
In response to Ash's request, the Professor transmitted detailed data on Dratini, Dragonair, and Dragonite to Ash's Pokédex—
including training plans for all three evolutionary stages.
On the road to the Cinnabar Gym,
Ash read the entries in the Pokédex while letting the rest of his Pokémon continue their training.
Dratini did not participate right away.
First, Ash hadn't finished drafting its personalized training plan yet.
Second, since Dratini had just joined the team,
its priority for now was to get to know everyone and settle in.
There was no rush to start intense training on day one.
It was also worth noting that along the way, Ash's Bulbasaur evolved into Ivysaur,
and Wartortle was on the verge of evolving as well.
Charmeleon and Infernape (Flame Monkey) were also steadily growing in strength.
Eventually, the group arrived at Pikachu Forest.
With so many Pikachu around, Ash, a long-time Pikachu fan,
felt like he'd stepped into heaven.
His Pikachu happily played with its wild counterparts,
even showing them how it could control lightning with one hand,
using electricity like a toy—
a feat that even most Pikachu around the world could never match.
Its performance left the other Pikachu stunned.
Many of them even piled up berries in front of it as offerings.
During their time in Pikachu Forest, Ash did something rare—
he eased up on training and let most of his Pokémon out just to play.
Even Misty and Brock released their teams to join the fun.
The three of them, along with all their Pokémon,
enjoyed an incredibly peaceful and happy day.
But good times never last forever.
By the next morning, it was time to say goodbye to all the forest Pikachu.
Here, Black Ash felt no inferiority or hesitation about "holding Pikachu back" the way White Ash once had.
First, his mentality was much more mature.
Second, he had spent more time and more intense experiences together with Pikachu.
He was completely confident in their bond.
He believed Pikachu would never leave him—
and he would never abandon Pikachu.
They were each other's irreplaceable partners.
The three humans and one mouse said their slightly reluctant goodbyes
and prepared to head out and continue their journey.
But just then, something strange happened within the Pikachu herd.
Under Ash's puzzled gaze,
a few Pikachu rushed out,
lifted his Pikachu up onto their shoulders,
and ran off with it into the forest.
Ash, Misty, and Brock glanced at one another,
then hurriedly chased after them.
The Pikachu eventually stopped at a massive tree.
The tree was so enormous it dwarfed many tall buildings,
its trunk so thick that it seemed almost ancient.
There was a huge hole at the base of the tree, like a doorway.
The Pikachu gently set Ash's Pikachu down in front of the opening,
and began pushing and shouting for it to go inside.
Pikachu looked confused,
but in the end, it chose to trust its companions
and walked into the hollow.
"So, can I go in with Pikachu?"
Ash could sense a strange, special energy inside the tree with his Aura,
and he was worried about Pikachu going in alone.
The Pikachu tribe nodded simply and didn't try to stop him.
"Misty, Brock, wait for me here. I won't be long."
Without giving them time to protest, Ash dashed into the tree after Pikachu.
"Do you think Ash is going to be okay?" Misty asked anxiously.
"Yeah… he should be fine," Brock replied. "His body can handle pretty much anything. Relax."
Hearing that, Misty felt a bit more at ease.
[Ash: What… What is this? Why didn't we ever see that before?!]
[Professor Oak: For Pikachu Forest to have such a massive ancient tree… Judging by its size, I'd estimate it's at least a thousand years old.]
[Misty: Maybe Pikachu thought Ash was too dense, so it never brought him there?]
[Ash: Hey!! If that were actually the case, fine, but don't slander me just because it's convenient! The Pikachu in the footage clearly brought my Pikachu there on purpose! If there's a gap, it's between Pikachu and Pikachu—not me!]
"Pika…?"
Pikachu sat on the bed, metaphorically speaking,
and took a pot from the sky.
What did I do? Why is this suddenly my fault?
In the dark-screen world—
Following the Pikachu into the tree, Ash found Pikachu standing in front of an altar, staring blankly.
On the altar sat a strange golden orb, glowing softly.
As he stepped closer, Ash could see that there were four smaller, darker beads swirling inside it,
each one releasing faint currents of electricity.
"What… is this?"
"Pika… Pikapi!!"
"You're saying it feels really attractive to you? And if you absorb it, your power will increase?"
"Pikachu!"
"Beads that amplify Pikachu's power, huh… I've never heard of anything like this. But it looks like the Pikachu brought you here specifically for this orb."
"If it really could boost a Pikachu's power, though… why haven't any of them used it?"
Ash frowned, thinking it over, but couldn't find a clear answer.
Still, one thing was obvious:
this orb was a gift—
something the wild Pikachu were offering to his Pikachu.
In that case… there was no point being overly polite.
He would gratefully accept it.
With that in mind, Ash carefully took the golden orb into his hand.
[Ash: Oh my gosh—that's an Electric Bead!!]
Black Ash might not have known what it was called yet,
but White Ash did.
Even if it had never appeared in his original world before,
he recognized it instantly—
the very first reward he'd ever received from the livestream had been an Electric Bead.
PS (Author's Note):
Dragonair is a mystical, serpentine Dragon-type Pokémon known for its elegant appearance and gentle aura. It possesses three crystal orbs on its body and is said to have the ability to control the weather by releasing energy from them.
Don't worry about the Dragonite from the main journey timeline—
as I said before, everything that should appear will appear.
It's not a big deal to have two Dragonite around.
After all, a certain "Flying Master" in another story has three Dragonite and nobody complains.
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