*Note: Sorry for not uploading a chapter yesterday, but I simply couldn't do it. I went on vacation and didn't arrive at the hotel until late at night, so as you can understand, it was impossible for me to write anything. My vacation lasts 15 days and during these days I will try to upload chapters every day. However, it's possible that I might miss a day for obvious reasons, so don't be surprised if that happens. With that said, everything will return to normal after my vacation. Thank you for your understanding.
...
The battle against Gary had ended with Ash's victory and constant praise from Molly, Celeste, and the others, who were extremely proud of him. They wouldn't stop complimenting him, to the point that Ash started feeling uncomfortable from so much flattery.
"Grandpa, I lost," Gary said.
Professor Oak congratulated Ash as well, but quickly went over to his grandson to offer him comfort.
"Gary. Did you have fun?" Professor Oak asked.
"Huh?" Gary asked, confused.
"I mean, did you enjoy the battle? Was it exciting?" the professor asked again.
"Yes, it was an incredible battle. The most exciting one I've had so far," Gary nodded.
"Then why are you apologizing? You did great. You gave it your all alongside your Pokémon and you had fun. There's nothing you need to apologize for. You're a good trainer and I hope you don't get discouraged just because you lost this time. Learn from this defeat and keep moving forward. Ash beating you this time doesn't mean he'll do it next time. Keep traveling around the world, keep improving and building a strong Pokémon team, and one day you might beat Ash. But for now… just learn from this loss," Professor Oak said.
Gary reflected for a moment on his grandfather's words. It was true. He still had so much to experience. He had only traveled through Kanto; there were still many regions out there waiting to be explored. He couldn't get discouraged!
"Thanks, Grandpa. I think I've already decided on the next region I'll travel to," Gary said.
"Oh? Can I know which one?" Professor Oak asked.
"I think I'll go to Hoenn. It's always been a region I wanted to explore," Gary said.
"I understand and support your decision. Hoenn is a beautiful region with extremely strong Pokémon," Professor Oak said.
"I know. But first I'll stay to watch the final. I want to see who wins this year's Pokémon League. Watching the final will help me improve," Gary said.
"I wouldn't expect anything less from you," Professor Oak nodded.
…
While Ash and the girls celebrated and waited for Leaf's battle against Giselle, we have to go back one day.
Yesterday was the day of the battle against Verity and Mew's first debut in the Pokémon League — a Mythical Pokémon loved not only by many collectors but also by certain evil organizations, one of which was Team Rocket.
In a luxurious lounge, a middle-aged man in a suit sat on his comfortable sofa while a Persian slept soundly at his feet. He was watching a huge television broadcasting Ash vs Verity live. At that moment, Ash had used Mew, surprising even him. He never expected the Pokémon he had been desperately searching for years to suddenly appear in the hands of a Pokémon Trainer.
This man was Giovanni, leader of Team Rocket and one of the creators of the Mewtwo Project.
"Interesting… I never thought I'd come across such a pleasant surprise during my rest time," Giovanni smiled.
Mew was the Pokémon he had been looking for for a long time. Even when he came up with the idea of creating a clone, the only thing they could find of Mew was a single hair — not the Pokémon itself.
Giovanni was about to say something else when suddenly someone entered the lounge. It was a middle-aged man wearing a white suit with a large "R" on the left side of his chest. He had short light-blue hair and a serious expression.
"Is something wrong, Atlas? It must be very important for you to interrupt my rest time," Giovanni said without taking his eyes off the television.
"Boss, you're already watching it. A Pokémon Trainer with a Mew has appeared, and you know what that means," Atlas said.
"I know perfectly well," Giovanni nodded.
"Should we immediately send our best agents and executives to besiege the Pokémon League?" Atlas asked.
Possessing Mew was one of Team Rocket's objectives, necessary to create another Mewtwo.
"No. We won't touch that trainer," Giovanni said.
"What?" Atlas said, confused.
Atlas couldn't believe what he was hearing. They had been searching for Mew for a long time, and now that they finally knew who had it and where it came from… his boss just wanted to let it go?
"But sir…" Atlas tried to argue.
"Atlas, think carefully. Didn't you hear the boy's name?" Giovanni asked.
"…I think it was Ash… I don't remember the rest. What does that have to do with your decision?" Atlas asked, not understanding.
"His name is Ash, indeed. Now look closely at his face and tell me who he looks like," Giovanni said.
Confused, Atlas approached and looked at the screen more closely, focusing on Ash's face that occasionally appeared.
At first Atlas didn't notice anything strange, but the more he looked at the boy, the more he realized that face was familiar, until…
"Impossible, he looks exactly like him!" Atlas said, surprised.
"It's his son," Giovanni said.
"His son?!" Atlas exclaimed in shock.
"That's right. Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town is Axel Ketchum's son. Are you sure you want to go after him?" Giovanni asked again.
This time his face showed clear anger.
"I would never dare try to harm Axel's son!" Atlas denied.
Giovanni nodded. That was the answer he expected.
"Order the entire organization that under no circumstances should anyone pursue Ash, and also prevent any theft attempts by those fools who will surely try to steal from him. Although I'm sure that Oak has already pulled some strings, we must make sure no one tries to harm him. It's the least I can do for him," Giovanni said.
"Of course. I'll get right on it! But what about Jessie, James, and that Meowth? I understand they've been chasing him for a while with the intention of stealing his Pokémon," Atlas said.
"Those three wouldn't be able to steal anything. Besides, they're useful to me for keeping an eye on Ash in case something happens to him. Don't tell them anything," Giovanni said.
Those three wouldn't be able to steal anything from anyone and Giovanni knew it. That's why, after discovering on their first contact that they were chasing Ash, he let them do whatever they wanted. This way he could have him monitored in case anyone tried to do something bad to Ash. Yes, Giovanni had been watching over Ash since the beginning of his journey, ever since the first time he encountered Jessie and the other two. Even though it was pure coincidence that those three met Ash, he decided not to waste the opportunity and keep him under surveillance just in case.
Then Atlas bowed respectfully and left to carry out his boss's orders.
"Axel, my friend, the least I can do for you is protect your son. Don't worry. As long as I'm alive, I'll never let him come to harm. That's my promise to you, old friend," Giovanni said in a firm tone.
At his feet, Persian looked at him intently and closed its eyes again, as if hearing Axel's name had brought back some memories.
After that, Giovanni went to one of the cabinets, took out a bottle of wine and a glass, and poured it himself. Then he raised the glass slightly and looked toward the ceiling… no, toward the sky.
"A toast to you, old friend. Thank you for everything," Giovanni said.
Then he drank the entire contents in one gulp.
…
Back with Ash.
After a short celebration, it was time for the next battle: Giselle vs Leaf. A match many had been waiting for — a battle between two rivals, both as trainers and in love. Luckily, both were already Ash's women, something he was quite proud of. But the question was… who should he root for? Logically it would be Giselle, but ever since he remembered everything about Leaf, he realized that Leaf had been his friend and girlfriend for years… Besides, both were his women. Wouldn't it be wrong to favor one? In the end, he decided to root for both, without a clear favorite.
The battle began and at first it seemed quite even. Both trainers showed impressive skill in battle, but in the end Leaf began to gain ground. Giselle was impressive, but her lack of experience in real battles compared to Leaf started to show. Leaf wasn't like Giselle. She had traveled all over Kanto with Misty and Brock, living adventures day after day, while Giselle, despite studying hard and doing practice battles, had never been subjected to real pressure or situations that helped her improve. That's why she was losing to Leaf.
Don't get the wrong idea — it's not that Giselle was a bad trainer. In fact, reaching this point on her own with what she had achieved was proof of her enormous skill and talent as a Pokémon Trainer. But Leaf had the same or even more talent, and combined with all the experience she had gained during her adventures… it made her superior to Giselle.
After defeating only two of her Pokémon, Giselle fell in battle and Leaf was the winner. It wasn't a humiliating defeat by any means, but it also wasn't a very even battle. Still, both showed incredible sportsmanship when they congratulated each other. Giselle without resentment or anger, and Leaf without arrogance. They were like friends, and although they didn't get along extremely well yet, they were women of the same man and therefore had to get along. Besides, in the little time they had spent together they had gotten to know each other better and realized that both were genuinely good women and had no reason to show hostility.
After a good battle, the day finally ended and our heroes went to celebrate. Giselle was a bit depressed, which was normal for someone who had just lost, but after being pampered by Ash for a few hours — which caused envy from Leaf and the others — she managed to cheer up. After all, even though she had lost, she could still finish in third place.
Since Gary and Giselle had lost, tomorrow a match would be held to determine who would finish in fourth and third place — two very good positions.
Later that night…
The party had ended and it was time to rest. Although Ash and Leaf could rest tomorrow before the final, Giselle needed to rest well for her match tomorrow, so everyone went to sleep relatively early. Everyone except Ash, who had just remembered that he still hadn't claimed the rewards for defeating Richie, Verity, and Gary.
"Before going to sleep, let's check the rewards," Ash whispered in the darkness of the night.
Beside him, Molly and Pikachu were sleeping deeply, so he didn't dare wake them. That's why he spoke quietly.
[Wow, it looks like you finally remember you have a system.]
The system's voice sounded somewhat… disdainful, mixed with clear signs of envy and jealousy.
"Why does it sound like you're angry with me?" Ash asked, somewhat confused.
[Hmph, I'm not angry!]
It didn't sound like it…