PokePiece: A Grand Pirate Kalos Adventure

Chapter 7: A Surprise Capture At The Santalune City Gym

Jessie, James, Meowth, and Wobbuffet were practically frozen in fear. Even after an hour had passed by, they couldn't move a muscle. James was also cradling a frightened blue, squid-like Pokemon in his arms. He had a transparent mantle with a rounded, pink body inside that had several yellow, circular spots that can glow brightly. There were four of these luminescent spots on the front, and two on the back. Attached to his mantle were two transparent tentacles. His remaining tentacles were part of his main body, eight in total. He had round black eyes and a pink beak-like mouth.

"Now, hold on! The twerp isn't supposed to have Charizard in his party! He's supposed to have Pikachu, Froakie, and Fletchling right now. I call foul play!" Jessie shouted angrily. James put his hand on his chin, thinking deeply.

"...Hm, maybe someone like Tobias is in this region?" he suggested. Jessie, Wobbuffet, and Meowth flinched upon hearing that name.

"If there is a trainer like him here, then ya can't blame the twerp for bringing HIM along." the Scratch Cat Pokemon responded with a nod. James nodded back in agreement.

"Guys, you're missing the point here! With Charizard there, our chances of capturing Pikachu automatically become zero percent. Zero. Zilch. Nada." Jessie admitted. Her partners all winced.

"...Well then, there goes our promotions..." James and Meowth muttered sadly, with Wobbuffet and Inkay nodding.

"HEY! I sure did not team up with a bunch of quitters who have no spines!" Jessie snapped at them. James, Inkay, Meowth, and Wobbuffet's bodies shook, clearly afraid of that side of her.

"W-W-Well, then what do you suggest? I know Inkay probably can't take on Charizard right now." the man inquired. Inkay shivered at the mere thought of going up against such a powerful Pokemon.

"Yeah, Wobbuffet is our best shot against him, and even then, I don't like those odds." Meowth added. Despite how powerful Wobbuffet had become since he got traded to Jessie, he couldn't help but agree with his fellow Pokemon partner. Jessie frowned upon realizing that Meowth had a point there.

"Then what do YOU suppose we do?!" she asked sternly. Her companions just sat there in deep thought.

"....Why not a Gym raid? Who knows, the local Gym Leader could specialize in the Rock type." James questioned them. Jessie perked up, and an evil smile crossed her face.

"Bingo! That's it!" she exclaimed in an excited tone. Jessie was about to rush over to the Gym, but James's shout of her name made her turn to him, somewhat irritated.

"We can't all go. News of our attempted capture of Garchomp probably made headlines. Not to mention that if the twerp recognizes us, we're screwed either way." he stated.

"Hm...true...then let's send in Meowth alone. He can act as a stray. Surely no one would notice a stray Meowth, let alone try to capture him!" Jessie shouted with a smirk.

"...Um, Jess, did ya forget what almost happened last time I acted as a stray Pokemon? I almost got captured by the Unova twerpette!" Meowth reminded her skeptically.

"That time, it was way before the Gym when the twerps were traveling. Here, they'll be focused on the actual Gym." Jessie responded nonchalantly.

"Good point! Last time, they had situations that you helped out with. Now, we're already in the city with no traveling involved. So really, there's no issue." James added. Meowth looked like he wanted to protest some more, but he couldn't find any counterarguments to what those two said.

He sighed in defeat before saying, "Fine, I'll go. But if anything happens to me, it's ya own fault." Meowth then ditched his disguise, got down on all fours, and walked over to the Gym.

Once he was out of their sight, James whispered to Jessie, "Of course, nothing is gonna happen to him! He's basically our mascot! Right?"

"Right!" she concurred with a nod.

"Wobbuffet/Inkay! (Oh yeah!)" Wobbuffet and Inkay shouted at the same time.

Meanwhile, after Brock and Sanji had recovered from the kick and Poison Jab, respectively, the gang was on their way to the Gym.

"...So Alexa, not only did you travel with Ash through the Decolore Islands, but you also met all of his Pokemon, including Chuchu?" Serena inquired curiously.

Alexa hummed while replying, "Right. And I was the one who told Ash about Kalos."

"According to Professor Oak, this is one of four known regions I had not traveled to yet. So I had a one-in-four shot of finding you, Rena." Ash replied, clearly thankful that he found his old friend when he did. Serena gave him a warm smile.

"Better late than never. Plus, if THAT exists, it's better for me to be traveling so that they can't find me while I was stuck at home." she responded gratefully.

"Good point." Nami said as Chuchu rubbed her trainer's cheek affectionately. In response, she scratched under her chin, causing her to coo happily.

"So...as for the order for the first gym, Ash will go first so he can show us what to expect. Serena is next since she needs to gain strength. Then we go in crew order, that being Luffy next and me last." Zoro stated. Everyone nodded in agreement with the idea. Soon, they reached the Gym.

"Well, here we are! The Santalune City Gym!" Alexa exclaimed.

Ash and both Pikachus smiled determinedly as he muttered to himself, "Here we go. I have a bigger reason than ever to win here." Serena looked nervous, but she knew that he would help her every step of the way. Nami, Usopp, Eevee, and Sanji were curious about what kinds of Pokemon they would encounter here. Luffy and Zoro had determined looks on their faces.

Showtime. they thought. Brock was eager to see Ash in action again after a year away. And while Bonnie wanted to see some cute Pokemon, Clemont had been deep in his thoughts since this morning's revelation on Lusamine. However, just as they were about to go inside, Nami noticed gold sparkling in a nearby bush. She had berry signs in her eyes, and before anybody could ask what she was doing, she grabbed a spare Pokeball, enlarged it, and, without warning, threw it. It hit the unsuspecting target right in the gold spot. The Pokeball opened, and red energy got sucked inside. It then closed and landed near the bush.

The Pokeball shook once...

Twice...

Three times...

DING!

Nami had a huge smile on her face as she ran over and, while holding the clueless Psyduck in one arm, picked up the Pokeball.

She held it high in the air while shouting, "Yes! I caught some gold!"

"...Duck?" Psyduck asked as he tilted his head in confusion.

"Oooooooooo, nice eye." Ash and Brock complimented Nami, with both Pikachus nodding.

"Yep, that's Nami for ya." Sanji stated, clearly happy for her.

"True. And now Sanji is the only one who doesn't have a second team member." Luffy responded knowingly. Sanji groaned while Zoro laughed hysterically.

Bonnie voiced what everybody else was thinking, "So...who did you catch, Nami? Hopefully, something cute."

"Well, let's see. Come on out!" Nami called out as she threw the Pokeball forward. It opened, revealing an utterly dismayed Pokemon that was all too familiar to Ash, both Pikachus, Brock, Clemont, Bonnie, and Dedenne.

"...Huh?! WHAT?! SOMEONE ACTUALLY CAUGHT ME?!" Meowth yelped in pure terror. 

Ash, both Pikachus, and Brock's eyes widened in shock for a few minutes before they burst out laughing and fell over.

Once they managed to calm down and get back on their feet, the boy and the two Mouse Pokemon sniggered before he stated sassily, "Well...Meowth, how do you like the taste of your own medicine? I bet Iris would be jealous if she finds out you picked Nami over her." Meowth's face turned red from embarrassment.

"Hey! I didn't ask for this, twerp!" he shouted furiously. Nami, having caught the gist of what was going on, snickered before bending down and petting Meowth's head, startling him.

"Aw, don't be like that, Meowth. If you didn't wanna be my Pokemon, you should have just kicked out of the Pokeball and ran back to your Team Rocket buddies. But since you didn't, it's too late. Now you'll only answer...to me...or else..." she declared in a sadistic tone. Meowth shivered upon hearing that.

"Or else what?! I'll have ya know that I'm not afraid of ya!" he exclaimed defiantly. At that, Nami suddenly chuckled nervously.

"Oh, trust me, I'm not the one you should be afraid of, bud." she admitted, almost sounding timid. Meowth narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

Just as he was about to ask Nami what she meant by that, Serena yelled out in a very pissed-off voice, "MEOWTH!!!" They all flinched and meekly turned to see her storming over to Meowth. Even Chuchu was looking afraid. Everyone backed away from Serena and Meowth, knowing what was coming.

He gulped before uttering, "...Um...Yes?" Serena's hat was covering her eyes, which somehow made her even more terrifying to Meowth. She suddenly raised her hand...and bitch slapped the taste out of his mouth.

"THAT WAS FOR GIVING ASH SO MUCH TROUBLE!" Serena exclaimed. She then put up her other hand.

"AND..." Serena whapped the other cheek so hard that Meowth fell down on his butt, looking like he was about to lose one of his lives.

"THIS WAS FOR ALMOST KILLING HIM WITH THE GARCHOMP INCIDENT, BASTARD!" she hollered. Everyone was shaking in pure horror, none more so than Meowth, who actually rushed over and grabbed Nami's leg unexpectedly.

"Ok, fine. I'll only listen to ya from now on. It's certainly much better than getting murdered by this twerpette...Nami." he uttered. Nami let out a nervous giggle.

"Now that is a wise choice, Meowth." she replied with a nod.

Serena shot Meowth a deadly glare while saying, "You better hope I don't meet the other two idiots in your group either. Or else they'll get way more than just a slap in the face."

"...Sorry, Jessie, this twerpette has ya beat over who terrifies me more." he mumbled under his breath, clearly scared.

...Yeah, Misty may have nothing on Serena after all. Yeesh, she slapped Meowth into agreeing to be Nami's partner, for Arceus's sake! Now THAT is terrifying! Brock thought while grimacing.

Ash, who had been watching the entire scene in total awe along with the Pikachus, said breathlessly, "...Wow. You handled Meowth perfectly, Serena." Serena blushed scarlet upon hearing that, which made Meowth very curious.

Bonnie smiled before saying, "Yep, these two are definitely made for each other." Clemont placed his hand over his face.

"WHY, BONNIE?! HOW DID YOU GET LIKE THIS?!" he groaned. While the rest of the Straw Hats were momentarily speechless from the outrage, Meowth looked up at Nami.

"Now I see what's going on. We have a romance brewing between Serena and the twerp, huh?" he muttered to her.

Nami sniggered while mouthing back, "Yep." A mischievous smirk crossed Meowth's face as he glanced over to Serena.

"Yo, Serena, if ya want my honest opinion, I think ya more of a fit for the twerp than the water twerpette!" he stated teasingly. Serena's face became even redder while a pink twinge formed across Ash's nose. Bonnie had stars in her eyes. Everybody else chuckled before Luffy turned to Meowth seriously.

"Hey Meowth, since you were a part of Team Rocket, do the names 'Guzma', 'Lusamine', or 'Jason Silva' ring a bell?" he asked. The Straw Hats froze at Luffy's intelligent question.

Usopp, in particular, was freaking out as he looked up to the sky and shouted, "Are pigs gonna fly?! Luffy is being smart!" Meowth tilted his head in confusion, then shook it.

"Nope. Sorry, kid. Why do ya ask?" he inquired curiously.

"I'll explain after the Gym battles." Luffy replied. Meowth nodded before turning to Chuchu.

"...Hm, ya look really familiar somehow. Have we met before?" he questioned her. As a response, Chuchu fired a pink Thunderbolt straight ahead, zapping the unsuspecting and screaming Meowth. Soon, he was covered in black soot with his eyes wide.

"YOU?!" Meowth yelped, totally surprised. Chuchu giggled and jumped up to be on Serena's shoulder.

"Pi. Pi Kachu pikachu. (Yep. And Serena is my trainer.)" she responded confidently. Meowth wiped the soot off himself, thought back to the first encounter with Chuchu, and sniggered as he turned toward Ash.

"Well, that solves the 'old friend's soulmate' thing I've been wondering about for so long...ya sly twerp." he said with a teasing smile. Ash and Serena blushed while everyone else laughed. As Alexa and Helioptle led the group inside the gym, Meowth quickly caught up to him.

"So...why is Charizard here? Does this correlate to what the straw hat kid was asking about?" he queried seriously. Ash and Pikachu scowled and gazed down at Meowth.

"Originally, no. But if THAT exists, I might just have him as a permanent team member. As for why I brought him here in the first place...J." He spat out J's name like a curse while his starter's cheeks sparked. Meowth's eyes widened in terror.

"J?! YA KIDDING ME?! SHE'S ALIVE?!" he exclaimed, visibly shaken.

"Yep." Ash replied, with Pikachu nodding.

"GREAT! Never a dull moment with you, huh?" Meowth groaned. Once they all entered the Gym, the first thing they noticed was a collection of framed pictures of Bug type Pokemon hanging on a wall.

Meowth winced while mumbling to himself, "Great. Bug types. Go figure. Well, that was a total waste of time...AND I got captured."

"Hey, sis! You have four challengers!" Alexa called out. That piqued Meowth's interest as he looked up toward Nami.

"Four?" he wondered out loud. Nami nodded.

"Ash. Serena. Luffy. And Zoro." she replied while pointing at each one. Meowth narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

"I understand the guys wanting to battle, but Serena too? She didn't seem like a battling type. She seems more like...I dunno, a Coordinator." he admitted.

"She is trying to gain strength for the three Luffy mentioned. Plus, with J around, we're concerned that Team Galactic could be back too." Nami replied.

Meowth's eyes widened while he muttered, "Smart move."

"Geez, Alexa, here I was expecting only Ash, not Ash and three additional challengers. Oh well, more pictures for me!" a woman's voice shot back. Suddenly, a shutter went off, and there was a flash of white light. Once they adjusted to the light and saw the woman, Nami instinctively put Psyduck down and grabbed Brock and Sanji by the ears.

"You two are coming with me. Come on, Psyduck, Meowth." she stated sternly as she dragged the two struggling men over to the sidelines. Ash and Luffy gave Nami a nod while Psyduck and Meowth followed her, with the Scratch Cat Pokemon chuckling upon being reminded of the times Misty and Max did that. Clemont, deciding to follow her example, used his Aipom Arm to pick up the shocked Bonnie and carry her over there.

"WHAT?! I haven't done anything yet, Clemont!" she whined.

"And there's the keyword. Yet. Busted." Clemont retorted. Bonnie pouted and crossed her arms.

"Meanie." she mumbled under her breath while Dedenne chuckled nervously. Serena also let out a nervous chuckle as Ash and the Pikachus shook their heads exasperatedly.

Yeesh, not even a badge, and this is already the craziest start to a journey yet. the boy thought. Usopp and Eevee, who were also heading over to the sidelines with Alexa and Helioptle, were holding back laughter and wishing things could stay like this instead of potentially facing J or the nightmare. Luffy and Zoro smirked as they, along with Ash, Serena, and the Pikachus, faced the Gym Leader. This slim young woman of medium height had blonde hair cut in a chin-length bob which curled under with two slightly longer, thin locks which handed in front of her ears, green eyes, and a pale complexion and wore a white vest, grayish-green cropped pants with lots of pockets and a white belt, brown ankle boots with laces that matched her trousers, and a matching sweatband on her left wrist. She also carried her trusty camera over her neck.

"So...you're Viola, huh?" Ash inquired.

"Yep. And I'm facing you four, I take it. Very well, then. Now..." Viola snapped a picture of her four challengers.

"Gotta love the determination on each of your faces! Especially yours, Ash. So...who goes first?" she asked in a challenging tone. At that, Ash and Pikachu stepped up.

"I'm first, Viola." he declared.

"Pikachu. (Let's do this.)" Pikachu added while sparking his cheeks. Viola nodded before taking another photo, this time of just the duo. Serena smiled at Ash's determination and confidence, which didn't go unnoticed.

"Of course, you're cheering for your future husband, Serena. Like I even need to ask." Bonnie stated teasingly. Serena blushed crimson while Chuchu, Dedenne, the Straw Hats minus a fuming Sanji, Eevee, Meowth, and Brock laughed. Clemont just groaned in annoyance. Soon, Ash and Pikachu took up the challenger's box on one side of the field while Viola occupied the other side. A referee stood in the middle of it all as everybody else watched from the sidelines.

"The Gym Battle between Ash, the challenger, and Viola, the Santalune City Gym Leader, will now begin. Each side will have the use of two Pokemon, and the battle will be over when either trainer's Pokemon are unable to continue. Only the challenger may substitute Pokemon." she announced.

"Okay, so we can substitute freely as long as it's within the number of Pokemon we can use." Luffy pointed out.

"Good to know for the future." Zoro concurred with a nod. Nami, Usopp, and Sanji were curious about how this will go.

"First time seeing a Gym battle?" Meowth inquired curiously. Brock nodded as he, Serena, Clemont, Bonnie, and Dedenne eagerly awaited the battle.

"My lens is always focused on victory no matter what. Surskit, go!" Voila exclaimed while throwing an enlarged Pokeball forward. It opened, revealing a blue insectoid Pokemon. There were semicircular pink markings under her dark, circular eyes. She had a round body with four long, skinny legs extending from it. On top of her head was a yellow cap with a single antenna.

"Surskit! (Okay!)" Surskit called out determinedly.

"A Surskit, huh?" Serena mused as she pulled out her Pokedex.

"Surskit, the Pond Skater Pokemon. Surskit can walk on water as if it was skating. It attracts prey with a sweet scent it produces." it spoke. Brock chuckled upon remembering how Max's doppelganger had a Surskit as his starter.

"Surskit is a Bug and Water type, so Fire type moves only do normal damage." Clemont stated.

Serena and Zoro nodded before she uttered quietly, "Then Chuchu would be perfect for the first one." Chuchu hummed in agreement.

"So would Scyther." Zoro added, also in a quiet tone.

"Smart move to cover one of her weaknesses." Nami replied. Meowth, Usopp, Sanji, and Bonnie had to agree with that idea.

"Pikachu! (Oh, pick me!)" Pikachu exclaimed excitedly. Ash thought about it before remembering how Drew's Butterfree and other Bug types can use Solar Beam. He silently shook his head, which Pikachu pouted at, before grabbing and enlarging one of his Pokeballs.

"Fletchling, I choose you!" he exclaimed as he threw it. The Pokeball opened, revealing Fletchling.

"Fletchling. (Here we go.)" he squawked determinedly once he spotted Surskit.

"...Huh. I'm surprised the twerp isn't using Pikachu first." Meowth admitted to Brock.

"Same here." he responded, wondering what Ash had planned. Serena, Chuchu, Eevee, and the Straw Hats were watching carefully to either prepare for their Gym battles or see how battles work in general. While Bonnie and Dedenne cheered for Fletchling, Clemont was curious to see how Viola handles each battle.

The referee put her hand up in the air while shouting, "Now...battle begin!"

"Fletchling, let's start this off with Peck!" Ash called out. Fletchling flew up and came down on Surskit with his beak glowing white.

Viola, who was alarmed by his speed, exclaimed, "Protect...quick!" However, Fletchling proved to be the quicker one among them and slammed the beak down on the unsuspecting Surskit, landing a critical blow that sent her screaming, flying back, and crashing on the ground.

"Surskit!" Viola hollered worriedly.

"Damn, and here I thought the twerp's Swellow had speed!" Meowth yelped in surprise. Eevee and the Straw Hats' jaws were on the ground, while even Psyduck looked stunned.

"SO FAST!" they gasped.

Serena and Chuchu grinned widely as she cheered, "WAY TO GO, ASH AND FLETCHLING!"

"...Tell us how you really feel...future Mrs. Ketchum." Bonnie replied while she and Dedenne wriggled their eyebrows. Serena blushed crimson upon hearing that.

"B-B-BONNIE!" she stammered. Chuchu snickered at her trainer's misfortune, which earned her a look that clearly said, "Shut up." Clemont was in awe from witnessing Fletchling's speed.

Brock smiled as he uttered, "Ash's Flying types never disappoint."

"Surskit, you okay?" Viola inquired, still a bit worried. Surskit struggled to get back up...and managed to do so, despite breathing shallowly.

"...Surskit... (...Yeah...)" she muttered, clearly in pain.

Viola nodded before saying, "Okay, we NEED to slow down that Fletchling. Use Sticky Web!" Surskit shot out several globs of sticky material from her antenna. However, Ash was one step ahead.

"Deflect it with Razor Wind!" he shouted. Fletchling's wings glowed bright white as he repeatedly waved them, causing bright white, crescent-shaped energy waves to be fired. They hit the globs, sending them right back at the shocked Surskit. She didn't have time to even move as both the globs and the Razor Wind hit her head-on, causing an explosion.

"SURSKIT!" Viola called out in great worry. Brock and Meowth's eyes widened in shock.

"Holy smokes, this might be the third fastest one-on-one battle Ash had ever won." the Pokemon Doctor in training stated, sounding a bit nervous. That piqued the interest of everyone on the sidelines as they turned to him.

"Hold on, third? Did I miss something?" Meowth inquired with curiosity evident in his voice. At that, Brock pointed his thumb toward Sanji, who was sweating buckets. Meowth instantly connected the dots and sniggered.

"I'm gonna take a wild guess and say he flirted with the future Mrs. Ketchum here." he stated teasingly. Serena's face went beet red.

Why must everyone keep teasing me like that?! Ugh, am I really that obvious?! she brooded while pouting. Everybody else except for Sanji, who was still fuming about his first two very quick losses, had a good laugh out of that.

"...So then...what was the other one?" Zoro asked curiously once they calmed down.

"A petty argument with a girl obsessed with baseball." Meowth answered.

"How petty?" Serena inquired warily.

"He used Charizard against a brand spanking new Chikorita she had just received." Meowth responded while shaking his head exasperatedly.

"Oh boy, you should have heard Misty scolding him after that one." Brock added with sweat falling down the back of their heads.

"...There, he had no excuses. Here...given the fact that Sanji was being a creep earlier and...well, THAT, it makes sense why he's like that." Nami replied seriously. Everybody had to agree with that logic, although Meowth was wondering what THAT was while Sanji groaned in annoyance. Once the dust settled, it became clear that Surskit was not getting back up anytime soon.

"Surskit is unable to battle. Fletchling wins!" the referee announced.

"All right, you did it, Fletchling!" Ash cheered happily.

"Fletchling! (Yeah!)" Fletchling added as he flew around the battlefield, having not even a scratch on him. Everybody else on Ash's side joined in on the cheering. Though, Pikachu was looking at him warily since he had never seen him do this before. Alexa and Helioptle had been speechless throughout the battle and were stunned now, considering her sister had only found herself in such a situation once before.

Viola was sweating profusely as she muttered, "Dang, I couldn't even use my strategy against him. Just like what happened with my last challenger." She returned Surskit back to her Pokeball with thanks before recomposing herself, grabbing her second one, and enlarging it.

"Well, Ash, this is the second time I have not been able to set up my strategy. But I'm not giving up! Vivillion, go!" Viola exclaimed while throwing it. This Pokeball opened, revealing a butterfly-like Pokemon with primarily light pink wings that had black edges, dark pink trims right In-between, three light blue squares, and two white stripes on each wing. She had a round, grayish head with large, black, pixelated eyes and a pair of skinny antennae. The tips of the antennae each had an ovoid scale that was dark gray on the upper half and beige on the lower half. Her thorax was an ovoid and divided into three segments; each segment was a different shade of gray. Her legs were also ovoid and were dark gray on the lower half, beige on the upper half, and had a black band in the middle. She had two black, circular hands and no visible arms.

"Vivillion... (Dang, he's good...)" Vivillion uttered before flying up to face Fletchling.

"Who's that Pokemon?" Ash inquired curiously as he took out his Pokedex while also wondering who the first trainer that stopped Viola from setting up her strategy was alongside Pikachu and Fletchling.

"Vivillion, the Scale Pokemon. Vivillion are skillfully able to find a source of water. It has been said that you'll find a spring if you follow a Vivillion." it spoke.

"Now that's a Bug and Flying type if I ever saw one." Usopp commented, very interested in seeing a Pokemon with the same type combination as Butterfree in action.

"Pretty." Serena stated, admiring Vivillion's beauty. Chuchu couldn't help but agree with her there.

"Actually, there are multiple patterns of Vivillions, depending on where you find one. Here in Kalos, the Meadow Pattern you see Viola with is the most common." Alexa explained. Needless to say, Serena, Chuchu, Luffy, Nami, Usopp, and Eevee were curious to know what each pattern looks like.

Can Ash/the twerp win this without Pikachu even entering the field? Brock and Meowth thought at the same time. Zoro and Sanji were kind of disappointed in this one-sided match, even if they weren't about to admit that to Ash. Clemont, Bonnie, and Dedenne were stunned by the boy's strength, especially since the inventor knew how cunning Viola can be.

"Was Ash always this strong, Brock? I mean, when we battled, he didn't seem like it. No offense to him." he asked.

"You might have caught him off guard when you battled." Brock responded with a shrug.

"Yeah, a lot of the time, we had to use machines to even try and keep up with the twerp and his team. Especially his powerhouses." Meowth added. Clemont instantly became curious.

"...I really need to talk to those idiots." Serena muttered to herself.

"Without my strategy, I really need to put Fletchling to sleep, like, now. Vivillion, Sleep Powder!" Viola exclaimed. Vivillion released a blanket of light-green spores from her wings.

"Double Team to avoid it!" Ash retaliated. Fletchling's body glowed white as he created multiple copies of himself. The Sleep Powder went right through an illusion, to Viola's chagrin.

"Gust! Blow them all away!" she shouted.

"Razor Wind!" Ash countered. Vivillion's wings glowed light blue as she flapped them, releasing a powerful gust of wind. However, the multiple Fletchlings' wings glowed bright white as they repeatedly waved them, causing bright white, crescent-shaped energy waves to be fired from all sides. The multiple Razor Winds easily overpowered the single Gust and hit Vivillion squarely in the chest, causing her to drop to the ground.

"Oh no, Vivillion!" Viola yelped, completely shook by this point.

"...Ok, I don't think I've ever seen the twerp just flat-out dominate. WITHOUT PIKACHU, NO LESS! Did something happen while we weren't looking?!" Meowth screeched out, legitimately terrified. Brock and Chuchu were just as stunned, although they could guess the reason for this change. While Serena cheered, Clemont, Bonnie, Alexa, and the other Pokemon were just speechless.

"Wow. I guess that's a veteran trainer for ya." Usopp commented, clearly impressed.

"Hm...is that really it, Usopp? Personally, I think THAT gave Ash and his team more motivation than they ever had before." Nami responded.

"Now I can believe that. Especially after that ass whipping I got from him over freaking flirting with Serena." Sanji stated. Luffy and Zoro nodded in agreement.

"...Ya know, Nami, if ya gonna have me as a permanent team member, we gotta learn to trust each other. That means telling me what THAT is!" Meowth admitted, sounding a little ticked off. Serena and the Straw Hats each scoffed apprehensively.

"First of all, who caused the Garchomp incident that almost resulted in Ash and Pikachu falling to their deaths? You guys. Now unless you give me a good reason to tell you about THAT, I don't wanna tell you." Nami replied angrily. Serena and the rest of the Straw Hats agreed with that comment while sweat fell down the back of Meowth's head.

"...I ain't gonna hear the end of that, am I?" he asked in a defeated tone.

"NOPE!" they all answered.

Meowth sighed before saying, "What if I tell ya I have actually helped the twerp many times before? The incident in the Orange Islands. The incident in Greenfield. Heck, the twerp probably wouldn't have taken down Team Galactic and Team Plasma without my help. You can ask the love doctor twerp about those except the Team Plasma stuff, which he wasn't there for." Serena and the Straw Hats instantly focused their attention on Brock, who chuckled nervously and proceeded to explain each incident in detail. While that was going on, Vivillion managed to fly back up. Though, she was staggering, which led to Viola thinking there was only one way to win.

"SOLAR BEAM!" she yelled out. Ash raised an eyebrow and looked up to see that the sun was not even out.

"WOW! Is she desperate or what?!" Meowth yelped with surprise evident on his face.

"Clearly so." Brock concurred with a nod. He then noticed the confusion on the Straw Hats' faces.

"Solar Beam is a very powerful move. However, this move uses sunlight as a power source. So if the sun isn't out, it takes an incredibly long time to charge up." Brock explained. Sanji's eyebrow twitched as he took a puff from his cigarette.

"Oh, she's desperate, all right." he replied.

Serena clasped her hands together while thinking to herself, Come on, Ash, you got this.

Deciding to take a page from Brandon's playbook, Ash reminded Viola, "You do know that you need it to be sunny for Solar Beam to charge quickly, right, Viola?" She gasped in horror at her mistake.

Ash smiled before saying confidently, "Your mistake means that this is checkmate. Fletchling, finish this with Steel Wing!" Fletchling flew toward Vivillion, whose wings were glowing yellow, with his own wings glowing a metal-gray color. He nailed her dead-on, and she plummeted to the ground with swirls in her eyes as she lost the glow.

"VIVILLION, NO!" Viola exclaimed, completely stunned.

"Vivillion is unable to battle! Fletchling wins, which means the winner of the match is Ash!" the referee announced.

"YEAH, WE WON!" Ash exclaimed happily.

"FLETCHLING! (ALL RIGHT!)" Fletchling added as he landed on his trainer's hat.

"YES, YES, YES! You did it, you two!" Serena cheered as she ran over to Ash. Chuchu and Fletchling wisely decided to get off their trainers before she tackled him into a hug. Ash almost lost his balance but managed to keep himself upright and returned the embrace. Chuchu chuckled and turned to see Pikachu, who was a little upset that he didn't get to battle.

"Pika. Pika pikachu. Pi pikachu pika pikachu. Pikachu pika Pi PIKACHU chu. (Relax. There are still seven Gyms. Plus, the newbies need the experience too. Especially with J and potentially THAT around.)" she reassured him. Pikachu smiled and nodded in thanks.

Brock whistled while stating, "Dang, I don't remember Ash ever decisively sweeping an entire Gym battle with just one Pokemon. Wattson from the Hoenn region doesn't count as Pikachu was overcharged during that one." The Straw Hats looked down at Meowth suspiciously.

"Ya barking up the wrong tree. That wasn't us that time." he rebutted with sweat falling down the back of his head.

"He's right. Wattson had a robot that Pikachu destroyed. That's what overcharged him." Brock added. Usopp and Clemont hummed in understanding.

"So...hopefully, the next battle is more even. Considering who Viola is facing next, I fully expect it to be." Sanji admitted. Nami had to agree with him there. She then turned to Luffy and Zoro and whispered something to them that made them narrow their eyes and nod.

While Bonnie ran to give Fletchling an Oran Berry as a reward, Clemont thought, When I face Ash, I need to be careful. That's not taking into consideration Luffy and Zoro's potential either. Maybe even Serena too.

"...Ahem. Are you two lovebirds done yet?" Viola inquired teasingly while returning Vivillion back inside her Pokeball. Everyone laughed as Ash and Serena blushed heavily and hurriedly separated from each other.

"V-V-VIOLA!" they spluttered in shock. Once everybody calmed down, Alexa and Helioptle walked over to Viola.

"Damn, I knew Ash was good, but to just sweep you like that with just one Pokemon?! I was not expecting that!" the reporter admitted to her sister with her Pokemon nodding. Viola laughed as she headed across the field with them by her side.

"Life is full of surprises, you know? Anyway, hey Ash!" she called out.

"Yeah, Viola?" Ash asked back. The referee walked over to him while holding a wooden box containing a badge that looked like a bug.

"Congratulations, this is to prove you won your Gym battle against me. The Bug Badge!" Viola proclaimed.

"Thanks so much!" Ash responded happily. With Pikachu back on his shoulder, he grabbed the Bug Badge.

Ash held it up in the air as he shouted, "All right! I just got the Bug Badge!"

"Pi-Pikachu! (We got the badge!)" Pikachu cheered.

"Fletchling! (Yeah!)" Fletchling added. Ash took out his badge case, opened it up, put the Bug Badge in there, and placed it back in his pocket. Everyone smiled at that. Serena giggled sweetly before becoming serious and turning to Viola.

"I'm next, Viola." she declared. Viola gave Serena a nod.

"Then I need you to wait forty-five minutes. I need to heal up my team." she responded. Serena nodded back before Viola, Alexa, and Helioptle headed over to the Pokemon Center. With the distractions out of the way, for now, Nami turned to face Meowth.

"Now then...while we wait, Meowth, you wanna know about THAT, right?" she inquired. Meowth gave Nami a nod to confirm that.

"Well, I have three conditions for you to agree to before I tell you." she stated seriously. Needless to say, everybody except for Luffy and Zoro was interested.

Meowth sighed before saying, "Course ya do, Nami. Lemme guess, one of those conditions is for me to learn Pay Day?"

Nami smiled as she replied, "Yep."

"Figured as much." Zoro uttered.

"Saw that coming a mile away." Luffy muttered.

"Pretty obvious." Usopp murmured.

"Well, if we're gonna be traveling together as a group, we would need a lot of money for supplies." Brock stated.

"Good point." Sanji replied. Ash, Serena, both Pikachus, and Fletchling were curious about Nami's other two conditions. Meowth took a deep breath.

"Great. Hopefully, this training won't be as painful as that day on the Orange Islands. So...what are the other two conditions?" he asked. Nami held up a finger.

"Don't squeal about THAT to anyone else. And..." She put up another finger.

"Tell us about every member you know from Team Rocket." Nami stated. Everybody's jaws dropped on the floor.

BRILLIANT! they all thought. Sanji started dancing around Nami with a heart in his eye.

"Gotta love our smart Cat Burglar here! Or do we call her a Meowth Burglar now? Whatever! Nami, you're too smart!" he swooned.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Now...SHUT UP!" Nami snapped before drilling Sanji's head into the floor. Sweat fell down the back of everyone else's heads.

"Geez, Nami is literally Misty but smarter." Brock admitted. Ash, Serena, and the Pikachus nodded in agreement with that comparison.

"Now I'm upset that she actually said no to being your keeper, Big Brother. She's perfect for ya." Bonnie muttered to Clemont. He groaned in annoyance. Meowth was extremely nervous about betraying Team Rocket, but at the same time, he knew that if J was indeed still alive, then there was a good chance Team Galactic was back, and they are too dangerous to just ignore. With his mind made up, albeit still a bit apprehensive, he took a deep breath before nodding.

"Fine. I accept your conditions, Nami. So...shall I start, or will you talk about THAT?" he inquired.

"I'd say start with Team Rocket." Ash replied seriously. The rest of the group agreed with that idea, especially Luffy, as, to him, taking down Team Rocket would be like taking down Arlong.

"Ok. I'm gonna start with the boss of Team Rocket." Meowth started.

"You mean Giovanni, right?" Ash asked. Meowth, however, shook his head, to the boy, Brock, and the Pikachus' shock.

"For all intents and purposes, Giovanni is the boss of Team Rocket by name only. Even he answers to someone very important." the Scratch Cat Pokemon admitted. Ash, Brock, and the Pikachus' eyes grew wide while the Straw Hats exchanged looks.

"So...if Team Rocket was a pirate crew, Giovanni would be the first mate while this person who he answers to is the true captain." Zoro responded. Almost everyone not in the Straw Hats was confused as they were not familiar with the concept of pirate crews or, in the Kalosians' cases, Team Rocket. However, Ash and Meowth both understood the comparison.

"So...who's really in charge?" Serena wondered out loud.

"Good question. Who is in charge, Meowth?" Ash questioned Meowth.

"Well, almost no one knows her real identity, but we always refer to her as Madame Boss." the Scratch Cat Pokemon answered honestly. Needless to say, the group was nervous.

She keeps her identity a secret. That's a problem, all right. they thought.

"Then what about the high-ranking officers like the one scientist I saw in Unova?" Ash queried.

"Right, so I'm gonna put each member of Team Rocket in their respective categories, starting with the Elite Officers. In the Elite Officer category, we have Jessie's mom, Miyamoto, who mysteriously disappeared a long time ago while she was searching for Mew. And we have Domino and the Iron Masked Marauder, who are arguably the two most dangerous members of the team." Meowth stated.

"Wait, didn't they fire the Iron Masked Marauder after he tried to catch Celebi?! After all, I did hear him say he could take out the 'boss' with Celebi's powers." Ash inquired, genuinely confused and nervous alongside Brock and the Pikachus. Meowth shook his head.

"Nope. He's still there." he confirmed.

Brock whistled while saying, "Wow. Makes you wonder just how much power Madame Boss has over Giovanni. I'm sure he would have fired the Iron Masked Marauder immediately after that incident!" Ash, Serena, both Pikachus, Fletchling, Bonnie, Dedenne, Psyduck, Meowth, Eevee, and the Straw Hats had to agree with him there. Clemont's face had become pale once he heard Celebi's name.

"He went after CELEBI?!" he gasped in pure horror. Ash, both Pikachus, Brock, and Meowth gave Clemont a nod to confirm that.

Noticing everyone else's confusion, the inventor explained, "Celebi has the power of time travel. So I bet you can imagine the chaos that would cause if that power falls into the wrong hands." Serena, Bonnie, Dedenne, Nami, Psyduck, Usopp, and Eevee shuddered at the thought of what could have happened had the Iron Masked Marauder succeeded. Ash placed a reassuring hand on the honey-blonde girl's shoulder. She smiled as she thanked him gratefully. Luffy and Zoro growled angrily.

"This Madame Boss is FAR more dangerous than Don Krieg and Arlong if she is keeping this Iron Mask guy around." the captain stated.

Zoro nodded while replying, "I agree."

Sanji took a puff from his cigarette before asking, "And this Domino?"

"Don't let her childish appearance fool ya. There is a reason why she's currently third in command behind Giovanni and Madame Boss." Meowth admitted.

"Just how bad is she?" Serena inquired, almost sounding scared.

"REALLY bad." Ash, Brock, and Meowth answered at the same time, with both Pikachus nodding. The trainer told them about the events in Mount Quena when Team Rocket tried to retake Mewtwo. By the end, everybody else was horrified by just how far they were willing to go to achieve their goals.

"...Okay, those guys need to be stopped as soon as possible." Luffy declared. Serena, Clemont, Bonnie, Dedenne, Psyduck, Eevee, and the rest of the Straw Hats agreed with him there.

"Geez, that's just the Top 4?! Are the rest of Team Rocket like this?!" Usopp yelped as he and the Evolution Pokemon shivered.

"Oh, ya have no idea, Long Nose. In fact, moving on to the Spy category, we have Annie and Oakley, the two sisters who ACTUALLY KILLED A LEGENDARY POKEMON!" Meowth exclaimed. The entire group, besides Ash, Brock, and the Pikachus, who were shivering in a mixture of anger and sadness, flinched.

"WHAT?!" they screamed.

"EXCUSE ME?! HOW?!" Clemont yelped as he held a shaken-up Bonnie close to him. Ash proceeded to tell them about the incident in Alto Mare. Right at the end, he and Luffy heard angry growling that made them look up.

"...Wait, is she what I have been sensing all this time?!" the captain yelped, totally surprised.

"You can actually sense her too?!" Ash and Brock gasped in shock. The Pikachus and Meowth were just as stunned.

Ok, who is this kid? On closer examination, he bears an uncanny resemblance to the twerp. Interesting... the Scratch Cat Pokemon mused.

Luffy nodded before smiling kindly and saying, "I know how you feel, Latias. It hurts to lose a brother, does it?"

"BROTHER?!" the rest of the Straw Hats yelped, shocked by the revelation. Luffy gave them a nod while taking a deep breath.

"Growing up, I had two brothers. Though, we weren't related by blood. Ace is the son of Gold Roger." Luffy started.

"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?! YOU KNOW THE SON OF THE KING OF THE PIRATES?!" each Straw Hat screeched out. Everybody else was speechless, although Meowth looked befuddled.

"Hold up. Before ya continue, what's this about pirates?" he asked curiously. Nami quickly got Meowth up to speed on the situation.

"...Ya know, with all the things the twerps have done with Legendaries, this is different yet totally understandable. And now I feel better about getting captured by a pirate who has a fondness for treasure." he admitted. Everyone was stumped by how well Meowth took that. He then turned to Luffy as if telling him to continue.

"Sabo was a noble, but he despised that life and wanted to become a pirate instead. When he was ten, he decided that enough was enough and took to the seas. But...Sabo didn't get very far before a Celestial Dragon shot down his ship." he explained sadly. Needless to say, the entire group was horrified.

Ash snorted while saying, "Wow, this Celestial Dragon sounds like an asshole." They all nodded in agreement.

"Yeah. You have my sympathy, Luffy." Serena stated warmly. She then looked up.

"And Latias, since you're listening to this, you, too, have my sympathy." Serena added. Everybody else smiled at her kindness.

"Thanks, Serena...Oh, but we're gonna have to continue our conversation after your Gym battle. Viola is back." Luffy replied. They turned to see Viola, Alexa, and Helioptle enter the Gym.

"I hope I haven't kept you waiting long, Serena. You ready?" the Gym Leader asked determinedly. Serena still looked a little nervous, so Ash placed his hand on her shoulder.

"You got this, Rena. If you look like you're in any kind of trouble, always remember the old saying..." he began.

"Don't give up until it's over!" Ash and Serena finished at the same time. Nami, Bonnie, and Dedenne gushed at this shared moment while Usopp and Eevee smiled. Serena grinned confidently before looking down at an equally determined Chuchu.

"Right. Let's do this." she declared.

"Pikachu Chu. (Right behind you, Rena.)" Chuchu responded. The duo took up the challenger's box while Viola occupied the other side. Everyone else returned to the sidelines. Brock and Meowth were curious about how this will go. Luffy and Zoro had their focus set on this battle since they believed they'll see Viola's true strategy. Sanji was focused too.

Viola will be looking to redeem herself after that last match. Clemont thought.

"The Gym Battle between Serena, the challenger, and Viola, the Santalune City Gym Leader, will now begin. Each side will have the use of two Pokemon, and the battle will be over when either trainer's Pokemon are unable to continue. Only the challenger may substitute Pokemon." the referee announced.

"I hope you're ready for your first Gym battle, Serena. But don't take me lightly just because your boyfriend swept me." Viola stated teasingly. Serena and Ash blushed crimson. The rest of the group laughed except for Clemont, who placed his hand over his face.

"Oi. Come on, Viola, please don't encourage Bonnie..." he mumbled under his breath.

"Surskit, go!" Viola shouted as she threw her first enlarged Pokeball forward. It opened, revealing Surskit, who looked poised to redeem herself.

"Surskit! (Let's try this again!)" she exclaimed with determination evident in her voice.

"...You know, I wonder what Viola's normal strategy is." Brock stated as he stroked his chin thoughtfully. Ash and Fletchling chuckled nervously and rubbed the back of their heads.

"Oops. Sorry, I won so fast that we didn't even get to see it." he responded apologetically. Zoro waved his hand around nonchalantly.

"Don't worry about it, Ash. You were just too strong. Plus, you had the extra motivation to win." he pointed out.

"Zoro has a point. All we can do now is believe in Serena." Nami replied. The rest of the group nodded in agreement. Serena took a deep breath before looking down at Chuchu.

"Okay, we can do this. You ready?" she asked.

"Pi. (Yep.)" Chuchu answered while pumping her fist. A smile crossed Serena's face as she gazed upon the battlefield.

"Then Chuchu, I choose you!" she exclaimed while pointing at it. Chuchu ran on the battlefield and stood on all fours in a battle stance as her cheeks sparked pink electricity. Viola and Surskit squinted their eyes.

"Pink electricity? Interesting..." the Gym Leader muttered.

"Of course, she uses the same line as her future boyfriend. Like I wasn't expecting anything different from her." Nami stated teasingly. Ash's face became beet red while everybody else except for an annoyed Clemont laughed.

"Oh, why must they keep encouraging Bonnie?" he uttered exasperatedly.

The referee put her hand up in the air while shouting, "Now...battle begin!"

"Chuchu, let's start this with Quick Attack!" Serena called out. A white outline surrounded Chuchu's body as she ran toward Surskit with a trail being formed behind her. However, this time, Viola was ready.

"Quick, Surskit, use Protect!" she retaliated. Surskit formed a turquoise force field in front of her. Chuchu crashed headfirst into it and yelped as she got bounced back.

"Go around Surskit and use Iron Tail!" Serena exclaimed. Chuchu landed on her feet and took off.

"Surskit, dodge it!" Viola commanded Surskit. Chuchu went around the Pond Skater Pokemon and jumped up into the air with her tail glowing white. However, she effortlessly moved out of the way, causing her opponent to hit the ground instead. Surskit skated around a surprised Chuchu with such ease.

"Focus, Chuchu. Use Grass Knot to trip Surskit up." Serena muttered quietly for only her partner to hear. Chuchu nodded and began to close her eyes and listen for Surskit's footsteps. Viola narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

"Okay, this Pikachu is way too well-trained for Serena to be a fresh new trainer." she mumbled under her breath. Pikachu was cheering for Chuchu, which stunned Meowth.

Is Pikachu in love with the twerp's girlfriend's Pikachu? he mused. Unknown to Meowth, Bonnie and Dedenne were thinking the same thing.

"I can see how well Chuchu had been training with Ash's Pokemon." Nami commented. The rest of the Straw Hats, Eevee, Clemont, Alexa, and Helioptle nodded in agreement. Brock was genuinely impressed with Serena's skills. Before Viola could try to counter, Chuchu's eyes snapped open to reveal that they were glowing light green. Two blades of grass suddenly popped up near the skating Surskit's legs and tied themselves into a knot. She stumbled over it and fell on her face.

"...Oh no." Viola uttered nervously. Serena wasn't about to let this opportunity slip away.

"Chuchu...Thunderbolt." she said in the same tone Ash had used the move against Sanji.

"...Well, this might be it. Also, I feel bad for that Surskit." the cook admitted. Luffy and Zoro nodded in agreement.

"Man, Bugs are nothing to these two." Usopp stated, with Eevee nodding. Even Meowth was inclined to agree.

Even these two are making this Gym look like a joke! Geez, it's probably a good thing we didn't raid it after all. he thought. Clemont, Bonnie, and Dedenne were stunned by Chuchu's skills as she sparked her cheeks with pink electricity.

"...Given who Chuchu trains with, I'm not surprised." Alexa uttered. Helioptle and Brock chuckled nervously. Chuchu jumped up into the air.

"PIKA- CHUUUUUU!" she shouted as she shot out a bolt of pink electricity from her body. Despite Viola's calls to dodge, Surskit wasn't even able to get up as she got zapped. She screamed for a few seconds before collapsing with swirls in her eyes.

"SURSKIT!" Viola yelled out worriedly.

"Surskit is unable to battle. Pikachu wins!" the referee announced.­

"YEAH! You did it, Chuchu!" Serena cheered.

"PIKA! (YEAH!)" Chuchu added.

"ALL RIGHT! LET'S GO, RENA!" Ash exclaimed happily.

"PIKA CHUCHU! (LET'S GO, CHUCHU!)" Pikachu continued.

"FLETCHLING! (GOOD GOING!)" Fletchling squawked.

Sanji took a puff from his cigarette before saying,"...Called it."

"Yep." the rest of the Straw Hats replied with a nod. Brock looked stunned.

"I know Chuchu had been training at the ranch, but damn, Serena deserves credit for coming up with the strategy to stop Surskit's momentum with Grass Knot. Even with a powerhouse like her, I guarantee that any other newbie wouldn't be able to come up with such a cunning plan on the fly." he stated.

"...So Serena is a born strategist. That was well thought out. She'd be perfect for the crew if she were to join. Though, if she does join, Ash would probably wanna join too." Nami replied, mumbling the last two sentences under her breath.

"WOW, THAT WAS AWESOME!" Luffy hollered loudly. Zoro, Psyduck, Usopp, Eevee, Sanji, Bonnie, Dedenne, Alexa, and Helioptle were speechless.

Clever. Not only did Serena stop Surskit with such an amazing tactic, but she also threw Viola off her game...again. She could really be a challenging opponent. Clemont thought.

Meowth whistled while saying in a very impressed and scared tone, "Dang, ya know, maybe it's a good thing I got captured and separated from Jessie and James if the newest companion can think like this."

Ash smiled as he muttered to himself, "Way to go, Rena."

Viola had just returned Surskit back inside her Pokeball and was about to comment when she heard Serena say something that befuddled everybody except for Chuchu: "Chuchu, return." The Mouse Pokemon ran back to her trainer, who knelt down and scratched her ear affectionately.

"You were awesome, girl! Take a break for now. There's a chance I may need you later." Serena complimented her partner. Chuchu smiled and nodded before the girl straightened herself out.

"She's switching?" Brock asked, confused.

"Doesn't Chuchu have the type advantage on Viola's final Pokemon?" Bonnie questioned Clemont.

"Yes, but so does Fennekin. So Serena plans to show off her training." he answered. As if they heard Clemont, Froakie and Charizard popped out of their Pokeballs, surprising everybody on the sidelines.

"You wanna see the results of their training, you two?" Ash inquired once he calmed down. The two Pokemon nodded before Charizard noticed Meowth trembling. As a small hello, the Lizard Pokemon got in his face and shot a Flamethrower at him, leaving his whole head blackened and charred.

"...Hello to you too, Charizard..." Meowth uttered as he collapsed on his back.

"Saw that coming." Brock stated with a chuckle. The Straw Hats chuckled as well. Viola was thankful that Ash didn't use Charizard against her. Serena grabbed a Pokeball and pressed on the white button to enlarge it.

She threw it forward while shouting, "Fennekin, I choose you!" The Pokeball opened, revealing Fennekin.

"Fennekin. (My turn.)" she declared determinedly. Fennekin then noticed Froakie and Charizard watching her. She blushed upon seeing the Bubble Frog Pokemon.

He gave Fennekin a warm smile before saying, "Froak Froakie. Froakie. (Good luck, Fennekin. You got this.)" Charizard held a thumbs up. Fennekin smiled back and barked thankfully as she got into a battle stance.

"Interesting. Not only did you stop me from using my strategy AGAIN, but you also came prepared for me, type-wise. Just like they did. I've underestimated you, Serena. But I won't make the same mistake again. Vivillion, go!" Viola exclaimed as she tossed her second enlarged Pokeball ahead. It opened, revealing Vivillion.

"...Vivillion... (...Okay, this is getting ridiculous...)" she uttered as she flew up.

"I'm glad Serena is doing well, but man, it's getting a tad bit annoying not knowing what Viola is actually capable of." Zoro stated, sounding annoyed.

Luffy hummed before saying, "Yeah, not getting a good read here either." Even Usopp and Eevee were inclined to agree.

"Yeah, I'm not even battling, and I'm disappointed." he admitted, with his starter nodding. Brock had to nod too.

"These two battles so far might legitimately be the two quickest Gym battles I have ever seen, depending on how Serena handles Vivillion. With Wattson, there was a reason why that match was so quick. Here, not so much. Heck, even Bugsy from Johto gave Ash a tough challenge, and he used a Metapod!" he stated. Nami and Usopp did a double take.

"Wait, WHAT?!" they yelped in shock.

"Seriously?!" Sanji exclaimed, just as surprised.

"Yeah, that Metapod beat Ash's Bayleef when she was still a Chikorita. Granted, that was back in the early days of him being a trainer." Brock responded.

Meowth, who had gotten the soot off him, whistled while saying, "Damn, that's one tough cocoon." Hearing that made Clemont, Bonnie, Dedenne, Alexa, and Helioptle even more impressed with how well Serena was doing.

"Okay...Fennekin, use Psybeam!" the honey-blonde girl called out.

"Wait, Psybeam?! That's a Psychic type move!" Brock exclaimed, totally stunned.

"Well, considering that Delphox, Fennekin's final form, is part Psychic, it's not that surprising." Clemont replied knowingly. Fennekin fired a streaky blue beam with pink circles inside it from her mouth at Vivillion.

"Blow it and Fennekin away with Gust!" Viola countered. However, that just caused Serena to smirk a little bit, which alarmed the Gym Leader.

What's with that smirk? everyone thought. Vivillion's wings glowed light blue as she flapped them, releasing a powerful gust of wind. While it successfully blew the Psybeam away, Fennekin was a completely different issue altogether. Serena did look a little impressed, though.

"Nice move, Viola. But now it's time for my counter to yours...or, shall I say, Counter...Shield." she declared with a wink.

"Counter...Shield...Wait..." Ash uttered as his, Pikachu, Charizard, and Brock's eyes grew wide.

Meowth's eyes had widened too while he mumbled under his breath, "Don't tell me..." Fennekin spun around on her back while using Flamethrower to create flame whips that prevented the Gust attack from coming any closer.

"WHAT?!" Viola yelped, completely flabbergasted.

"THAT'S THE TWERP'S MOVE! HOW IN THE WORLD?!" Meowth screeched out in total shock. Everyone not in the know heard him and was immediately intrigued.

"PIKA! (NO WAY!)" Pikachu gasped, also stumped.

"GRAWR! (YOU HAVE GOTTA BE KIDDING ME!)" Charizard roared, very surprised.

"...Well, this is a surprise. She had clearly been studying your matches, huh?" Brock asked, just as dumbfounded.

"...Wow..." was all Ash could say. He didn't know why, but he felt...mesmerized from watching Serena pull off a move he himself had used in his battles during the Sinnoh League.

"SO COOL!" Luffy and Usopp exclaimed with stars in their eyes.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT?!" Zoro, Nami, and Sanji shouted, shocked. Fletchling, Eevee, Bonnie, Dedenne, Alexa, Helioptle, and Psyduck had their jaws dropped on the floor. Froakie looked to be in awe from watching Fennekin execute the move.

"Don't tell me Serena baited Viola into using Gust, knowing she had the perfect counter for it..." Clemont uttered in a stunned tone.

"...Maybe Nami catching me turned out to be a blessing in disguise. After all, not only is Serena terrifying, she got the skills to prove it in battle too." Meowth muttered to himself, clearly relieved. Ash noticed the Gust attack getting overheated and smiled as he got reminded of the time Quilava, as a Cyndaquil, used the same strategy against Jasmine's Steelix.

"Way to go, Rena! Now finish it!" he called out. Serena gave Ash a smile and nodded in acknowledgment before looking at Viola, who looked out-strategized for the third time.

"Well, Viola, it's been fun. But I think it's time we end it." she declared. As if on cue, the fire whips that had been getting closer and closer hit their marks as they struck Vivillion down, stopping the Gust attack completely. She hit the ground hard and was clearly not getting up anytime soon.

"VIVILLION, NO!" Viola exclaimed.

"Vivillion is unable to battle! Fennekin wins, which means the winner of the match is Serena!" the referee announced.

"ALL RIGHT! YOU DID IT, RENA!" Ash cheered as he ran over to Serena. She didn't have time to even react before she got picked up over the shoulder and twirled around a few times.

"AH! ASH!" Serena yelped in surprise with a massive blush on her face. And yet she couldn't help but laugh as she enjoyed the moment.

"Totally a couple. Change our minds." Nami and Bonnie stated teasingly at the same time. Both Pikachus, Froakie, Fennekin, Fletchling, and even Charizard couldn't help but snigger a little bit. That comment and reaction made Ash's face the same color as Serena's, and he stopped what he was doing. The rest of the Straw Hats, Eevee, Psyduck, and Dedenne were still reeling in shock from the finisher.

"Hot damn, I still can't believe Serena pulled off the Counter Shield." Meowth uttered. Brock chuckled at the scene unfolding before him while Froakie and Pikachu went to congratulate Fennekin and Chuchu, respectively. The Fox Pokemon blushed as they both thanked them. Charizard smiled, clearly glad the training paid off. Viola returned Vivillion back into her Pokeball before Alexa and Helioptle came up to her.

"...Not gonna lie, those two would make a fine Grand Duke and Grand Duchess team." the reporter stated with a nod toward Ash and Serena.

Viola chuckled while saying, "You know, I was just thinking the same thing." She glanced over to Clemont, who nodded to confirm that he, too, was thinking the same thing. Viola then walked over to Ash and Serena, who was feeding an Oran Berry to Chuchu and Fennekin and also a twig for the Fox Pokemon, who munched on it happily.

"Hey, you two! I have an opportunity for you and your friends here. But first things first..." Viola began. The referee came over with another Bug Badge on the same wooden box.

"Serena, here's your Bug Badge to show that you beat me. I'm gonna be honest here. Baiting me into using Gust and countering it with Counter Shield might be one of the best strategies I've seen in a while." Viola admitted. Serena smiled thankfully before taking the Bug Badge.

She held it out in both hands while exclaiming, "Tada! I got the Bug Badge too!"

"Pi-Pikachu! (We got the badge!)" Chuchu cheered from her favorite spot.

"Fennekin! (All right!)" Fennekin added. Nami, Bonnie, and Dedenne couldn't help but giggle at how similar that sounded to Ash's victory phrase while everybody else smiled. Once Serena placed the badge inside her newly acquired badge case and put it away, she turned to Viola.

"And thank you for the compliment, but I can't take all the credit. After all, it was Ash who came up with the idea for Counter Shield." she admitted with a bow. Everyone not in the know curiously turned to Ash, who chuckled.

"I needed to figure out a strategy to beat Fantina, the Ghost type Gym Leader in Sinnoh. My former Aipom, who had evolved, gave me the idea." he explained.

"While under the Attract status, may I add." Brock added.

"True. From there, I made up the move for Pikachu, Infernape when he was still a Chimchar, and Buizel." Ash finished.

"...Wait, former Aipom?" Luffy asked in a confused tone. Ash told them about how he caught Aipom and eventually traded her to Dawn for Buizel.

"...Okay, so you can trade Pokemon?" Nami inquired, genuinely curious.

"Yep. And some Pokemon can only evolve via trading too. In fact, Jessie accidentally traded one of her Pokemon for Wobbuffet." Meowth replied with a snigger.

"Oh? Who did she trade?" Bonnie wondered out loud.

"Lickitung." Meowth, Ash, and Brock responded at the same time, with both Pikachus and Charizard nodding. Needless to say, Zoro, Nami, Usopp, and Sanji were intrigued by the idea of trading. Ash then turned to Viola.

"So what's this opportunity?" he questioned her.

"Right. So on your way to the next Gym, you'll find a two-story building called the Battle Chateau. There, a boy pairs up with a girl and engages in double battles. Whoever you battle will depend on the noble rank. There are six ranks in total: the Baron and Baroness, the Viscount and Viscountess, the Earl and Countess, the Marquis and Marchioness, the Duke and Duchess, and the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess. Winning a battle in the Chateau automatically grants you the rank of Baron and Baroness. However, after that, you'll need a certain number of victories to go up one rank. And it differs per rank." Viola explained. Everybody was very interested in the suggestion. Though, Zoro was eyeing Clemont suspiciously after having seen him nod at Viola.

Okay, he clearly knows what the Battle Chateau is, even though it sounded very prestigious. He is no ordinary kid, after all. Just who is he? he thought.

"...Well, now that sounds like a lot of fun. Though, if I have to pair up with a girl..." Ash trailed off before looking at Serena. Her face instantly went red.

Oh, my Arceus! Me and Ash as a tag team?! Serena squealed inside her mind.

Everyone except for Ash and Luffy, who had been thinking about something, mumbled under their breaths, "Saw that coming." The boy then fully turned to face Serena and held out his fist.

"How about it, Rena? Wanna team up with me?" he asked confidently.

Serena smiled brightly before bumping Ash's fist with her own and saying, "Yes, I would absolutely love to!" The Pikachus slapped their tails together while Froakie and Fennekin repeated their trainers' actions. Charizard just grunted in approval as Fletchling squawked happily.

"Lucky." Brock muttered with a chuckle.

"That tag team will work better than any of the other twerpettes. Especially since Serena was clearly studying the twerp's battling style." Meowth commented. Sanji noticed his captain looking lost in thought.

"What's up, Luffy?" he inquired.

"Hm...I'll tell you in a minute. Hey Viola, why don't you go heal up your team? I'm ready to battle!" Luffy exclaimed. Viola blinked and nodded in understanding.

"I'll go do just that then." she responded. Once Viola, Alexa, and Helioptle left the gym, Luffy turned to everybody else, who was eyeing him curiously.

"Okay, so I've been thinking about that cursed musician J's goons mentioned. If this cursed musician is who I suspect it is, then I want her as my partner for the Battle Chateau." he stated.

"YOU WHAT?!" the Straw Hats yelped in surprise.

"Luffy, you know a musician?!" Nami questioned Luffy.

He nodded before replying, "Yep. And she was the reason why I wanted a musician above all else in the first place. Plus, it also helped that she's Shanks's daughter."

"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?! SHANKS HAS A DAUGHTER?!" each Straw Hat screeched out.

"Yeah. I met Uta when Shanks's crew visited Windmill Village for the first time. This was before I met Ace and Sabo, so I guess you could say she was my first real friend. We were always in competition with each other. And she always won by distracting me. I vowed to beat her one day. But...that day never came, as during Shanks's next voyage, Uta just...disappeared without a trace." Luffy explained, sounding really sad at the end. The rest of the Straw Hats' jaws dropped on the floor, not even believing what they just heard.

Our captain actually has a crush on a girl?! they thought. Usopp was worried that he'll start seeing pigs fly once they leave the Gym.

"Hm, now I'm hoping we run into this girl so I can play matchmaker." Bonnie muttered to herself mischievously. Clemont noticed the look on his sister's face and groaned.

"Why, oh, why are you like this, Bonnie? It's embarrassing..." he mumbled under his breath.

"...Well, this sounds familiar." Brock uttered with a glance toward Ash and Serena.

Meowth shook his head while grumbling to himself, "Oh boy, what did we get involved with this time? Pirates from another dimension?! Never a dull moment following the twerps..."

"...If Luffy teams up with Uta, then...Zoro, let's team up too." Nami suggested. Zoro raised an eyebrow as Sanji looked like he was going to pass out in horror.

"O...kay...why?" he asked.

"Usopp isn't gonna be much of a battler." Nami started.

"Unless Kaya somehow shows up." she whispered to Zoro, who had to nod.

"Sanji would be a bad idea in a tag team, especially with the girls on each team. You're the best choice for me. Plus, you're competing in the League too. So every bit of experience would help." Nami finished. Zoro nodded in agreement with that logic.

"Then, in that case, why not." he responded. Bonnie was upset that Nami rejected her proposal to be Clemont's keeper but understood and hoped to find someone as smart as her.

"...Okay, Moss Head, if you and Nami don't become Grand Duke and Grand Duchess by the end of the League, I will personally kick you all over Kalos. Got that?" Sanji inquired, sounding jealous. Zoro couldn't help but snort.

"I don't need to hear that from the 0-2 Crap Cook." he retorted.

"Enough with the arguing, you two! Don't we have something more important to talk about?!" Ash exclaimed sternly. Zoro and Sanji blinked before a realization dawned on them.

"...Oh, right." they muttered. The entire group turned to Meowth, who took that as a cue to continue the discussion from earlier.

"Right, then let's continue on to the Scientist category. Obviously, the most important scientist in Team Rocket was Dr. Fuji. After all, he's the one who created the first Mewtwo from Mew's DNA." he stated.

"You mean the Mewtwo Giovanni and Domino went after in Mount Quena?" Nami asked curiously.

"Yep, the exact same one. Though, before that, Mewtwo tried to dominate the world. But the reckless actions of the twerp made him change his mind." Meowth admitted. Ash, both Pikachus, and Charizard gulped and turned to an anxious Serena.

"...I...uh...ran straight into a collision between Mew and Mewtwo...that turned me into stone." he uttered nervously. Tears started falling down Serena's cheeks, which instantly pained Ash.

"YOU DUMMY! I COULD HAVE LOST YOU TO THAT!" she cried as she flicked him on the forehead. Bonnie looked like she wanted to order Dedenne to Nuzzle Ash for making Serena cry, but Clemont stopped her.

"Let Ash comfort Serena." he stated firmly. Ash sighed while wrapping Serena up into a hug.

"I meant what I said yesterday, Rena. I'll be more careful from now on. After all, tears don't suit your cute face." he reassured her. Serena blushed bright red but nonetheless returned the embrace.

"...Yep, those two are definitely soulmates, all right." Brock and Meowth mumbled under their breaths. Every one of Ash and Serena's Pokemon nodded in agreement with that statement. While he was calming her down, Luffy pulled his crew aside.

"So...sixth and seventh crew members, should we go back? If they wanna join, that is." Luffy inquired with a nod toward Ash and Serena.

"Yep." Zoro concurred.

"Totally. We can't have one without the other." Nami stated.

"No argument from me." Usopp added. Sanji couldn't help but nod. With that settled, the crew went back to the rest of the group, where Serena was wiping off her tears but otherwise calm.

Zoro turned to Meowth before asking, "So what became of this Fuji guy? After all, it sounds like there's more than one Mewtwo around."

"...Wait, wait, you're not implying..." Serena and Brock trailed off as they looked at Ash.

"Yeah, I did run into another Mewtwo that can transform into a more powerful form in Unova." the boy admitted. Serena, Clemont, and the Straw Hats narrowed their eyes.

Sounds like Mega Evolution. they all thought.

"But a second Mewtwo shouldn't be possible. Fuji is dead. The original Mewtwo killed him." Meowth responded with confusion evident in his voice. The entire group flinched.

"Then how is there another Mewtwo?" Nami wondered out loud.

"Now, that is a very good question." Zoro replied.

"...Then how about the other scientists? Maybe they made the second one." Luffy questioned Meowth. The Scratch Cat Pokemon shook his head.

"I seriously doubt that. The second Mewtwo was way too good-natured, which is something I can't say for the other scientists aside from Fuji. If Dr. Zager had his way, there would be an army of evil Mewtwo clones right about now." he answered with a shudder. Everybody else shuddered in fear at the thought.

"...Wait, Dr. Zager is the one I saw in Unova when Giovanni tried to take over the world with Tornadus, Thundurus, and Landorus, right?" Ash queried.

"Yep, that's the guy." Meowth confirmed.

Geez...WHAT IS IT WITH ASH AND LEGENDARY POKEMON?! Clemont screamed inside his mind.

"Was he in charge of the operation at the Lake of Rage in Johto?" Brock asked.

"Nope, that's a different scientist." Meowth responded.

"Who was that scientist, and what was the Lake of Rage operation?" Luffy inquired.

"That would be Professor Sebastian. He and Tyson, who falls into the regular Officer category, forced a Magikarp to evolve into a red Gyarados." Meowth stated. Nami checked out Gyarados's Pokedex data and looked very confused.

"Isn't Gyarados blue?" she inquired.

"Normally, yes, but some Pokemon can be a different color than normal. Take my Noctowl, for instance." Ash answered. The Straw Hats nodded in understanding as Nami looked very intrigued.

Interesting. I wonder if we'll run into one of these Pokemon. she thought.

"Now...since I talked about Tyson, I'll mention the other two regular Officers: Attila and Hun." Meowth stated.

"...Who?" Ash wondered out loud, very confused alongside Brock, both Pikachus, and Charizard.

"Never met them?" Serena asked. The duo and the three Pokemon shook their heads.

"Never even heard of them. What did they do, Meowth?" Ash questioned Meowth.

"They went after Raikou in Johto but were stopped by three twerps I don't even know about." the Scratch Cat Pokemon admitted. Clemont placed his hand over his face.

"Of course, there's another Legendary involved." he mumbled under his breath exasperatedly.

"High-rank officers going after Legendaries seem to be a common factor." Bonnie stated, sounding annoyed.

Zoro sighed before saying in an irritated tone, "And here I thought dealing with random Navy officers was bad." Sanji had to nod in agreement for once as he took a puff from his cigarette.

"These guys seem much worse." he added.

"Gee, ya think?!" Usopp yelped, with Eevee shivering.

"...So then what about the group you were with?" Serena queried.

"Yes, yes, I'm getting to them. After all, the Agent category is the last category in Team Rocket. Now there are simply too many to name here, so I'll just mention the four agents the twerp is most familiar with: Jessie, James, Cassidy, and Buff." Meowth explained.

Ash raised an eyebrow while asking, "Isn't his name Bitch?" Both Pikachus, Charizard, and even Meowth cracked up laughing so hard.

"...Honestly, twerp, that's the best name for that guy I've ever heard." the Scratch Cat Pokemon responded, still sniggering.

"...No one gets his name right." Brock uttered with a sigh and a shake of the head.

"He's evil." Ash said nonchalantly.

"Yeah, so who cares." Bonnie added. Serena couldn't help but giggle. Luffy turned to his crew with a serious look on his face.

"We have to take down Team Rocket. They're much worse than all the others we've defeated." he declared.

"Understood, Captain." came Zoro's instant response.

"I may like girls, but for the ladies in Team Rocket, I can make an exception." Sanji stated. Usopp jumped back in shock.

"SANJI IS WILLING TO FIGHT THE LADIES IN TEAM ROCKET?! ARE PIGS SERIOUSLY GONNA START FLYING WHEN WE LEAVE THE GYM?! Though...I do agree." he admitted reluctantly, with Eevee nodding.

Nami sighed before saying, "Yeah, but those guys are way too dangerous to leave unchecked."

"...You know, these guys coming through the portals might be the best possible outcome." Serena whispered to Ash. He smirked and nodded in agreement.

"This is just what we need to finally end Team Rocket." Ash proclaimed. Meowth took a deep breath before turning to face Nami.

"...Well, I'm officially a traitor to Team Rocket now. Don't make me regret it, Nami. And I'll see if I can have Pay Day learned by the time we get to the Battle Chateau. After all, these kinds of facilities usually attract big-shot trainers with a lot of money on them." he stated, sounding a little nervous about the entire situation.

Nami gave Meowth a warm smile while replying, "That's fine. In return, we'll tell you about THAT after Luffy's battle, as Viola should be back any minute now. Also, we'll protect you should Team Rocket try getting rid of you." Meowth felt touched by the last sentence as he nodded in understanding. A smirk crossed Zoro's face.

"So...minus having Pokemon, it's business as usual." he said coolly.

Sanji smiled as he replied, "Seems that way."

"Really?" Serena inquired curiously. Even Usopp had to chuckle a little bit.

"Yeah, sooner or later, we would go head-to-head against an enemy pirate crew. Which is what Team Rocket sounds like." he answered. Luffy banged his fists together.

"I'm ready to battle!" he exclaimed excitedly.

"Good to hear!" Viola called out from the entrance. Everybody turned to see her, Alexa, and Helioptle. Luffy gave his crew a nod and stepped up to the challenger's box as Viola took the other side, determined not to underestimate him as she did with Ash, Serena, and the other challenger who had beaten her badly. While everyone else went back to the sidelines, most of them were still wondering what the Gym Leader was really capable of.

"Time for Match 3." Zoro muttered.

"The Gym Battle between Luffy, the challenger, and Viola, the Santalune City Gym Leader, will now begin. Each side will have the use of two Pokemon, and the battle will be over when either trainer's Pokemon are unable to continue. Only the challenger may substitute Pokemon." the referee announced.

"I was caught off guard by your friends earlier. So prepare yourself! I plan to show you what I am really capable of! Surskit, go!" Viola shouted as she threw her first enlarged Pokeball forward. It opened, revealing Surskit.

"Surskit! (Fourth time's the charm!)" she exclaimed, still as confident as ever.

"Hopefully, we can see her true strategy." Brock stated.

Ash crossed his arms before admitting, "Yeah, I'm not seeing how she became a Gym Leader." Everyone else except for those in the know nodded in agreement.

Yeesh, these guys are better than I thought... Clemont thought with sweat falling down the back of his, Alexa, and Helioptle's heads. Luffy smiled confidently, grabbed his own Pokeball, and enlarged it. He then swung his arm around.

"Okay, then...Pidgey, I choose you!" Luffy shouted while throwing his Pokeball. It opened, revealing Pidgey.

"Pidgey. (Here goes.)" he squawked from up in the air.

"...Even he uses the same line as me?" Ash asked, totally confused. Pikachu, Chuchu, and Charizard narrowed their eyes suspiciously.

Okay, something is definitely going on here. they mused.

"The same line as Ash? Weird..." Brock uttered, completely lost.

Meowth looked very befuddled while he stated, "Ok, I get why Serena used the twerp's line, but why the straw hat kid too? Curious..." Even Viola, Surskit, Alexa, and Helioptle were looking back and forth between Ash and Luffy, stunned. But the Gym Leader and her partner quickly shook it off.

The referee put her hand up in the air while shouting, "Now...battle begin!"

"...You know, I feel bad for you, Viola. So why don't you take the first move for once?" Luffy inquired. Everybody was stunned by his choice.

"...You're gonna regret that choice. Use Ice Beam on the entire field!" Viola called out. A small light blue ball formed on top of the horn on Surskit's head. She then fired a light blue beam from it up in the air. It split into three separate directions, freezing the entire field.

"...Ah, now I see her strategy. Brandon used this one in our final battle." Ash stated once he recognized Viola's strategy. Pikachu and Brock nodded to confirm that they were thinking the same thing.

"So...what's the strategy?" Serena questioned them.

"Well, Surskit is usually pretty speedy, yeah? Using Ice Beam on the field makes it even harder to catch her. And the opponent usually slips up." Ash explained. Serena, Zoro, Nami, Usopp, and Sanji gave him an understanding nod.

"At the same time, Pidgey can fly. So while Surskit might have the speed advantage, it doesn't affect him." the girl noted.

"Yeah. Hence, why I said usually." Ash concurred. Luffy grinned and smacked his fist on his open palm.

"I get your strategy. You speed yourself up while your opponent is slowed down on the slippery ice." he stated. The Straw Hats' jaws dropped on the floor.

"WHAT THE?! LUFFY UNDERSTANDS HER STRATEGY?!" they yelped in shock.

"Well, dang! The kid's smarter than he looks!" Meowth added.

Viola smiled as she replied, "Yep!"

"Smart plan...except Pidgey flies! Quick Attack!" Luffy shouted. Pidgey dove down toward Surskit at a fast speed.

"Dodge it." Viola said calmly. However, when Surskit slid to the right, Pidgey just redirected himself to keep on top of her.

"...Of course you got Keen Eye...Protect!" Viola exclaimed.

"Sand Attack!" Luffy retaliated. As Pidgey flapped his wings, sand got spewed into Surskit's face, blinding her. Before Viola could comprehend what just happened, the Tiny Bird Pokemon nailed his opponent head-on, sending her crashing on the icy field.

"Surskit!" Viola yelled out worriedly.

"Keen Eye?" Nami asked curiously.

"Pidgey's ability." Clemont responded.

"It prevents other Pokemon from lowering accuracy." Brock explained. The Straw Hats nodded in understanding as Surskit stood up, squinting her eyes.

"Ice Beam!" Viola hollered desperately. Another small light blue ball formed on top of the horn on Surskit's head. She then fired a light blue beam from it. Luffy didn't have to say anything as it completely missed Pidgey and ended up freezing an entire tree instead.

"...Okay, Luffy is toying with her right now..." Nami uttered with a shake of the head.

"Either that or he's testing that Pidgey's speed." Meowth replied.

"I'm with the cat." Usopp concurred. Everybody else had to agree with him there.

"Hey Viola, let me show you how to REALLY blow your opponent away! Use Gust!" Luffy hollered confidently.

"...And I think that's Round 1." Serena declared while Pidgey flapped his wings at a fast speed, creating a powerful gust of wind. Ash, Bonnie, and Dedenne gave her a nod. Clemont looked stunned that, even with her strategy, Viola was still getting beaten fast. Surskit couldn't hold on and got blown away right past the shocked Gym Leader before crashing into the wall.

"SURSKIT!" she shouted worriedly as she turned around. To Viola, Alexa, and Helioptle's great shock, there was a dent in the wall, and Surskit sat there, clearly knocked out cold.

"Surskit is unable to battle. Pidgey wins!" the referee announced.­

"Damn, that Gust was more powerful than I thought! That was awesome, Pidgey!" Luffy complimented Pidgey.

"Pidgey! (Yeah!)" he squawked happily.

"Dang, easiest Gym I have ever seen or heard of. And I have seen quite a few and heard about the rest." Meowth muttered.

Alexa sighed bitterly before saying, "My sister's been on a real losing streak lately. This is her fourth tough opponent in the last week." That piqued everybody's curiosity as they turned to her.

"Viola had a tough opponent less than a week ago. He steamrolled her." Alexa explained. Brock and Clemont shared a look.

"Tough opponent?" they muttered to themselves. Ash and the others were curious as well.

"Wait, are you talking about the first challenger Viola couldn't set up her strategy against?" he wondered out loud. Alexa gave Ash a nod to confirm that, which made them all raise their eyebrows.

"Alexa, what Pokemon did this guy use?" he inquired. Alexa placed a finger on her chin in deep thought.

"Hmmmmmm...Honchkrow and Electivire." she responded. Ash, both Pikachus, Brock, and Meowth's eyes widened in pure shock.

"N-N-No way...He's here in Kalos too?!" the Scratch Cat Pokemon stammered fearfully.

"Pi pika pikachu. (Well, this just got more interesting.)" both Pikachus mumbled under their breaths.

"Oh boy...I might have to call Dawn." Brock uttered. Just from the reactions, Serena became worried.

"Electivire? Is this who I think it is, Ash?" she asked.

Ash took a deep breath before saying, "Yep. Paul."

"WHAT?! THAT GUY IS HERE?!" Nami and Usopp screeched out, with Eevee looking shaken up. Sanji took a puff from his cigarette.

"Well, looks like the difficulty of this journey just ramped up." he proclaimed. Zoro nodded. Luffy, who had been listening to the conversation while Viola stepped aside to tend to Surskit, grinned.

"Cool. The more powerful the opponents, the better." he declared.

As Serena looked at Ash, she couldn't help but mutter to herself, "Well, looks like I get to actually see Ash use more of his older Pokemon up close." While Bonnie and Dedenne looked speechless, Clemont instantly knew that the next League was going to be intense and silently vowed not to get steamrolled as Viola had been. Even Ash's other Pokemon, particularly Charizard, was getting excited. Viola, who had returned Surskit back inside her Pokeball, came back with her second enlarged one in hand.

"Geez, the power of that Gust was insane! Even that Honchkrow couldn't effortlessly blow her away like that." she admitted. Luffy flashed his grin, happy at his Pokemon's power. Ash and the others were quite curious about how he was going to handle the Vivillion.

What they weren't expecting, however, was for Luffy to hold up Pidgey's Pokeball and say, "Pidgey, return." Pidgey returned into it. Luffy looked at the Pokeball and smiled.

"You were great out there. Rest up for now. I might need you later." he stated.

"Luffy's switching?" Nami asked curiously.

"Kid must have a plan, as his other Pokemon would probably be slowed down via the ice." Meowth stated. Clemont hummed in agreement.

"True. But I do understand wanting to save Pidgey for an emergency, though." he responded. Ash and Serena nodded in unison.

What's your plan, Captain? Zoro thought. Luffy grabbed his second Pokeball and pressed on the white button to enlarge it.

"Time to go ice skating!" he declared. Luffy then swung his arm around.

"Squirtle, I choose you!" he exclaimed as he threw the Pokeball forward. It opened, revealing Squirtle, who started skating around.

"Squirtle! (Ice skating!)" he shouted happily. Squirtle caught Viola looking at him funnily and skidded to a halt before staring her down.

"...Ok, apparently Squirtle likes ice skating." Meowth muttered with sweat falling down the back of his head. Clemont, Alexa, and Helioptle's eyes grew wide.

"Don't tell me he's using the ice field against Viola..." they mumbled under their breaths.

"Grr grawr. (Damn, smart kid.)" Charizard growled, clearly impressed.

"Pika. (Yeah.)" Pikachu concurred. Chuchu gave them a nod.

"...I did not see that coming. Though...hey Brock, does this kind of remind you of my battle against Candice?" Ash inquired.

"Hm...Now that you mention it, yeah." Brock admitted.

"What do you mean?" Serena questioned Ash. He explained how, during his challenge at the Snowpoint City Gym, Candice's Sneasel skated all over the ice field and how he had Chimchar use the same strategy to tire out her Abomasnow.

"...So Luffy's trying to pull off the same idea here." Sanji noted.

"Yep. And the good news is, Viola's ace should tire out quicker." Brock replied.

"Yeah, Abomasnow is tanky." Ash added.

"I still can't believe Luffy is thinking like this. It's like he's a natural at Pokemon battling. And yet this is only his second battle ever." Nami stated, still dumbfounded.

"Yeah, no kidding." Usopp responded.

This adventure might be the best thing that could have happened to us. Zoro thought.

Viola sighed bitterly before saying, "I'm really in a slump here. After today, I might go catch some new team members to diversify my team. But first..." She faced Zoro, then turned back to Luffy.

"Let this be a warning to both of you. If I'm going down, then I'm going down swinging! Vivillion, go!" Viola exclaimed as she threw her second enlarged Pokeball forward. It opened, revealing Vivillion.

"Vivillion! (Let's do this!)" she responded, sounding rejuvenated from the pep talk.

"...Viola's got moxie, I'll give her that." Zoro admitted. Everybody else had to agree with him there as Viola looked up to see the sun shining for once. She smirked before looking back down.

"Vivillion, hold Squirtle still with Psychic." she said calmly. Luffy squinted his eyes.

"I don't like how she said that. Squirtle, get skating!" he called out. Squirtle instantly started skating around the field, which disrupted Vivillion's concentration. Ash and Pikachu, who had seen the smirk on Viola's face earlier, paled once they saw the sun.

"Aw crud...talk about bad timing..." he muttered while his starter placed his paw over his face. Serena looked at Ash curiously.

"Sun's out." he stated. Everybody else's eyes grew wide once they realized what the problem was.

"Oh, so NOW the sun decides to show up. Geez, talk about bad luck for the straw hat kid." Meowth responded nervously.

"Yeah, if Viola pulls off Solar Beam, that could end Squirtle right away." Brock admitted.

"...Crud." each Straw Hat uttered.

"Luffy needs to keep Squirtle mobile...or else..." Serena trailed off worriedly.

"Sleep Powder!" Viola exclaimed. Vivillion released a blanket of light-green spores from her wings. However, to her and Viola's chagrin, Squirtle effortlessly skated out of the way.

"Okay then...Gust!" she commanded Vivillion. That time, it was Luffy who had the smirk.

"Aura Sphere!" he retaliated. While Vivillion's wings glowed light blue as she flapped them, releasing a powerful gust of wind, Squirtle quickly put his hands together and focused his aura into a single point, forming a big blue ball of energy. He fired it at her. The Aura Sphere blasted right through the Gust attack and hit the unsuspecting Vivillion right in the face, causing her to stagger and lose her wind.

"Vivillion!" Viola shouted in a worried tone.

"He has a chance..." Nami and Usopp muttered hopefully.

"Captain, if you can finish the battle, then do it now!" Zoro hollered. Luffy gave him a nod before turning to Viola.

"Sorry, Viola, no Solar Beam for you today. Use Dark Pulse!" he ordered Squirtle. He retreated into his shell and rapidly spun around while firing beams of black and purple rings from his mouth through all the shell's openings. Ash, Serena, both Pikachus, Charizard, Brock, and Meowth's eyes grew wide.

"That's how Squirtle/the twerp's Squirtle uses Hydro Pump!" they yelped in surprise.

"Really?! Your Squirtle attacks like that?!" Bonnie inquired. Not taking his eyes off the battle, Ash just nodded.

"Okay, seriously, why are there so many similarities between Ash and Luffy?" Nami muttered to Zoro, Usopp, and Sanji.

They each gave her a shake of the head before the sniper said, "Yeah, what have we walked into here?" Squirtle then flew like a frisbee and hit the still-dazed Vivillion hard, causing her to flinch.

"...Oh no, here we go again..." Viola uttered.

"This has been fun, Viola. But I...win. End this with Water Pulse!" Luffy declared. Squirtle quickly got his head, arms, and legs out of the shell's openings. He opened his mouth and created a big light blue sphere of energy from it. Squirtle fired it point-blank in Vivillion's face as it exploded into a wave of water. She crashed on the icy field with swirls in her eyes as Squirtle landed on his feet.

Viola just sighed bitterly while the referee announced, "Vivillion is unable to battle! Squirtle wins, which means the winner of the match is Luffy!"

"All right! Way to go, Squirtle!" Luffy cheered while pumping his fist.

"Squirtle! (Yeah!)" Squirtle added as he skated back and tackled his trainer into a hug. Pidgey also popped out of his Pokeball to join in on the celebration. While the other Straw Hats were also cheering, Ash smiled and turned to Serena.

"Hey Rena, remind me that once Zoro is done, I need to call Professor Oak to let Infernape know Paul is around." he stated. Serena nodded as Brock faced Ash.

"Round 3?" the Pokemon Doctor in training asked knowingly.

"Round 3." Ash confirmed. Pikachu sparked his cheeks excitedly while Charizard roared mightily. Even Froakie and Fletchling were getting pumped up. Zoro took his bandanna and tightened it around his head.

"...Well, I'd say Zoro is ready to go." Nami observed.

"That's normal for him?" Meowth inquired curiously.

"Yep." Usopp concurred. Clemont looked very impressed by Luffy's Squirtle since he had never seen anyone use Viola's ice field against her. Alexa thought her sister desperately needed a new Pokemon to help out. And Bonnie was thinking that these trainers can help her brother reclaim his Gym. Viola, who had returned Vivillion back inside her Pokeball, carefully walked through the ice to reach Luffy. While he was feeding Squirtle and Pidgey an Oran Berry each, the referee came over, carrying yet another Bug Badge on the same box.

"...Well, Luffy, I don't remember anyone ever using my ice field strategy against me as effectively as you just did. For that, I commend you. Since you beat me at my own game, you deserve the Bug Badge." Viola admitted, sounding really humbled. Luffy smiled and thanked her before taking the badge.

He held it up in the air while exclaiming, "All right, I got the Bug Badge!"

"Squirtle/Pidgey! (Yeah!)" Squirtle and Pidgey shouted at the same time. Sweat fell down the back of almost everybody else's heads.

Chalk up another similarity between those two... Zoro, Nami, Usopp, and Sanji mused. Viola then turned to the swordsman.

"Hey Zoro, is it okay if the field stays frozen for your battle? I don't have time to unfreeze it." she admitted.

Zoro shrugged it off before saying, "You're just gonna freeze the field again anyway, so why bother." More sweat fell down the back of everyone's heads at the blunt response.

"...I mean, he does have a point." Brock stated.

"True." Nami concurred.

"At least it saves a step for her." Meowth added. Viola nodded before leaving the Gym with Alexa and Helioptle. Once they were gone, Meowth turned to Nami.

"So...what's that 'THAT' ya going on about?" he asked while putting air quotes around THAT. A nervous look crossed everybody's faces as they looked at Ash, who took a deep breath. Serena placed her hand on his shoulder to keep him calm. Ash smiled a little bit before proceeding to explain his nightmare from this morning. By the end, Meowth's jaw had dropped on the floor in pure horror.

"...Well, that explains why Straw Hat asked if Team Rocket knew any of those guys." he uttered. Ash and Luffy both gave Meowth a nod. The Scratch Cat Pokemon thought about something before turning toward Pikachu.

"So...Pikachu, think ya can teach me Thunderbolt and Iron Tail?" he inquired with a knowing smirk. Pikachu looked stunned for a second but eventually smirked back.

"Pikachu! (You got it!)" he answered.

"Thunderbolt and Iron Tail, heh? Any chance you want Slash as your last move?" Ash questioned Meowth knowingly.

"Huh?" Nami muttered.

"HEY! Don't compare me to that Meowth in boots, twerp! There might be a stronger 'Slash' move out there. And I already have it..." Meowth retorted indignantly, mumbling the last sentence to himself.

"Meowth in boots? Sounds adorable!" Bonnie squealed delightfully.

"Now, why would a Meowth be wearing clothes?" Clemont queried, clearly puzzled. Ash told them about the other Tyson's Meowth and their battle in the Hoenn League. Once he finished, everybody else except for those in the know was stunned.

"Yikes! Nami really did strike gold with the cat!" Usopp yelped in surprise.

"Dang, first Usopp catches a Skorupi that can evolve into a Drapion and be a real nuisance if trained properly, and now Nami catches a jack-of-all-trades type of Pokemon in Meowth. Who's next?!" Sanji gasped.

"Yeah, two of our new crewmates have both picked up good members for their teams. Meanwhile, look at you with your lone Bulbasaur, Twirly Brows." Zoro retorted sassily. Sanji looked ready to attack him, but Serena stopped him.

"Zoro's right. If you want him to stop teasing you, you need to catch something. So...endure it until you do." she said sternly. Sanji wisely backed off, knowing that if he flirted, Ash would be on his ass in an instant.

"...Are those two always like that?" Meowth asked nervously.

"You have no idea." Nami answered exasperatedly.

"Yikes. And here I thought Jessie and James had a crazy relationship." Meowth muttered with sweat falling down the back of his head. Serena then turned to Ash.

"So...what's your plan for Paul?" she questioned him in a curious tone.

"...Honestly, it's too early to tell right now. After all, he could very well catch some new Pokemon. BUT Pikachu and Infernape are a given. And if he brings Drapion, I have Muk to remove the Toxic Spikes." Ash responded.

"...Well, well, well, looks like somebody's done his homework." Brock stated, clearly impressed.

"Yeah, I definitely do NOT want that happening again." Ash replied, with Pikachu nodding. Serena couldn't help but smile.

Ash is so smart. she thought.

"...Hm, hey, Brock, I wonder if we'll see one of James's summer estates. I've been thinking about that ever since Luffy told us about Sabo." Ash admitted.

"Summer estates?" nearly everybody else inquired as Luffy became intrigued.

"Oh yeah, now that ya mentioned it, twerp, James and Sabo's backstories do sound really similar, with the exception of how it ended." Meowth concurred. He proceeded to explain how, as an only child of millionaires, James was forced to endure formal society and eventually ran away because he wanted nothing to do with Jessebelle. Luffy instantly understood him, as did everybody else.

"Yeesh, James's parents and Jessebelle are a bunch of evil assholes." Bonnie cursed under her breath.

"B-B-BONNIE! LANGUAGE!" Clemont stammered, completely mortified.

"...Honestly, though? Bonnie has the right idea." Viola called out. The entire group flinched and turned to see her, Alexa, and Helioptle.

"Geez, how long have ya been listening in?!" Meowth queried, sounding nervous.

"Long enough. Also, Meowth, don't think I've forgotten what you did during the Garchomp incident. But...if you're willing to turn over a new leaf, then I'll have the other Gym Leaders, Elite Four, Champion, Officer Jenny, and the Navy overlook your involvement." Viola stated kindly.

"...NAVY?! THE NAVY IS HERE?!" Nami and Usopp screeched out in shock. Luffy had a very serious look on his face.

"Viola, be careful with the Navy. Those guys are bad news." he stated sternly. Viola, Alexa, and Helioptle tilted their heads in confusion. Zoro proceeded to tell them about how corrupted Navy officers took over two towns, which put them, along with Clemont, on edge.

"I...see. Thanks for the fair warning." Viola responded. Ash, who had been deep in thought for a few minutes, turned to Brock and Meowth.

"Brock, Meowth, we hadn't ran into the Navy before now, have we?" the boy inquired seriously. Brock and Meowth narrowed their eyes while both Pikachus and Charizard looked perplexed.

"No. It was only ever Officer Jenny taking care of the law. Why would the Navy only be interested in Kalos?" the man asked back. Luffy's eyes suddenly grew wide.

"Viola, I want you to give me a straight answer. Have you seen a girl with red and white hair around here?" he questioned Viola in a more serious tone than the Straw Hats were used to from him.

"...You don't think..." Nami trailed off warily.

Zoro scowled before saying, "Unfortunately, I do." Sanji took a puff from his cigarette.

"The Navy is after Shanks's daughter..." he started gravely.

"...to force Shanks to surrender." Usopp finished, also in a grave tone.

"...Is that really it, though? Or is there something else going on here?" Serena pondered worriedly.

"Yeah, I don't like this either. It's getting more and more suspicious that it's making my skin crawl." Meowth admitted. All the Pokemon out nodded in agreement. Viola, Alexa, and Helioptle looked very confused, but nonetheless, the Gym Leader shook her head.

"No, I have not seen a girl like that around. But if I do, I promise not to tell the Navy." she said sincerely.

"So will I." Alexa added, with Helioptle nodding. Luffy and the Straw Hats were happy to hear that, which made Ash, his friends, and all the Pokemon glad for them. Viola then turned to Zoro.

"You ready?" she queried, still itching to battle despite the losing streak. Zoro gave Viola a nod before taking up the challenger's box. As she occupied her usual spot, everybody else returned to the sidelines.

"So...what's Zoro's style like?" Ash wondered out loud. Sweat fell down the back of Serena, Fennekin, Clemont, Bonnie, Dedenne, Luffy, Squirtle, Nami, Psyduck, and especially Sanji's heads.

"Uh...it's kind of scary." the honey-blonde girl stated nervously. Those not in the know raised their eyes.

"He set up Dragon Dance and used it to cream Sanji in one move. Kind of like how Pikachu did it, but without the setting up." Clemont explained. Ash, both Pikachus, and Charizard's eyes rose even further.

"Yikes." he uttered.

"Grawr grr grawr. (I know Fire normally beats Grass, but damn, that sounds like overkill.)" Charizard added as both Pikachus nodded.

"That's different from Luffy, for sure." Brock concurred while Meowth gave him a nod.

"I swear, if the swords guy uses the 'I choose you' line, then something is seriously up." the Scratch Cat Pokemon replied.

"...I swear, if Zoro uses that line, I'm calling Delia." Brock muttered to himself.

"No worries. He uses a different line." Nami reassured them.

"The Gym Battle between Zoro, the challenger, and Viola, the Santalune City Gym Leader, will now begin. Each side will have the use of two Pokemon, and the battle will be over when either trainer's Pokemon are unable to continue. Only the challenger may substitute Pokemon." the referee announced.

This time, it was Zoro who threw his first enlarged Pokeball first as he said coolly, "Scyther, stand by for battle." It opened, revealing Scyther, who immediately took a battle stance.

"Scyther! (En garde!)" he replied confidently. Viola, Alexa, Helioptle, Meowth, Brock, both Pikachus, Serena, and especially Ash visibly flinched as they instantly recognized Zoro's line. The Gym Leader, in particular, looked like she had seen a ghost.

"Pi...Ka...Chu... (No...Freaking...Way...)" both Pikachus uttered, eyes wide in pure shock.

"What in tarnation..." Meowth trailed off, very stumped.

"...Welp, if I wasn't calling Dawn already, I'm definitely calling her now." Brock murmured, utterly stunned. Ash just covered his eyes with his hand and shook his head.

"Craziest journey yet...and we're only at the first Gym..." he said in utter disbelief. Pikachu and Brock had to agree with him there. Those not in the know faced Ash.

"...Do I even wanna know?" Bonnie inquired cautiously. Even Dedenne was looking wary.

"The swords guy used the same line as that Paul character." Meowth answered while also shaking his head alongside Chuchu. Serena and Fennekin placed their hand or paw over their faces.

"What have I seriously gotten myself into here?" she asked herself exasperatedly while her partner just sighed.

"...Like I said, welcome to the life of a Straw Hat, Serena." Nami stated with a chuckle.

"This is gonna be so much fun." Bonnie responded, clearly excited about what's to come along with Dedenne.

Clemont put his hand on his chest while uttering, "I don't think my heart can take it." Usopp chuckled.

"Well, we're in it for the long haul." he replied.

"Let's go, Zoro!" Luffy cheered. Sanji took another puff from his cigarette.

"This is gonna be a fun trip." he muttered. Ash placed a reassuring hand on Serena's shoulder.

"It's gonna be okay, Rena." he declared. Serena smiled and nodded. Viola took a deep breath to recompose herself.

"Don't go thinking using that line will throw me off my game now!" she called out determinedly. Zoro actually smirked a little bit.

"I'm guessing a trainer had the same line I just used, and he's the first one who beat you badly. You want my advice? Maybe get something new to shake things up. But more importantly, train and get stronger." he stated firmly. Ash and Brock were impressed with Zoro's logic. Sanji just looked annoyed and angry.

Damn, smart kid. Meowth thought. Nami and Usopp's jaws dropped on the floor.

"Zoro is using tact?!" she yelped in surprise.

"Yeesh, coming to this world is a blessing in disguise. Luffy and Zoro's hidden sides are revealed, and both sides shown are good things." Usopp uttered, also stunned. Viola gave Zoro a smile.

"Thanks, Zoro. I'll take your advice to heart. But we do have a Gym battle to do, and I'm throwing everything I currently have at you! Go, Surskit!" she shouted while throwing her first enlarged Pokeball forward. It opened, revealing Surskit.

"Surskit! (Let's get this W!)" she exclaimed, still confident even after all the losing.

"...Damn that Moss Head..." Sanji mumbled under his breath.

"Looks like my sister's confidence is back." Alexa observed, clearly glad for Viola.

Brock whistled before saying, "Well, dang. Last time Paul broke a Gym Leader, Dawn needed to step in."

"Wait, ya mean the reason the Sinnoh twerpette did that Gym battle was to undo what Chimmy's old trainer did?" Meowth asked curiously. Brock nodded to confirm that.

"Chimmy?" Usopp wondered out loud.

"Yeah, me, Jessie, and James developed a...soft side for the twerp's Infernape." Meowth admitted while mareepishly rubbing the back of his head. Brock actually laughed a little bit.

"You know, I've always thought something was going on whenever Ash uses Chimchar/Monferno/Infernape against you guys. You were holding back somewhat, heh?" he inquired teasingly. As Meowth's face flushed red in embarrassment, Serena narrowed her eyes.

Maybe those three are the outcasts of Team Rocket. Sure, they caused trouble, but to hold back on Ash sounds out of character for this organization. Plus, there's the fact that they helped him out with resolving those incidents and taking out the other evil organizations, which, regardless of the situation, I don't think anybody else in Team Rocket would be willing to do. she thought.

Before Serena could voice any of that to anyone, the referee put her hand up in the air while shouting, "Now...battle begin!"

"I might have given you advice earlier, but I should warn you right now, I don't hold back. I'm in this to win, after all. Swords Dance." Zoro commanded Scyther calmly. As he slashed his arms about, multiple light blue swords circled around him. They stopped and pointed toward Scyther, end first, before disappearing. A yellow aura then went upward along his body. Sanji looked ready to jump at Zoro, but Ash grabbed his shoulder firmly.

"Don't interfere." he uttered sternly, with Pikachu, Charizard, Froakie, and Fletchling ready to pounce if needed.

"Yeah, even Gym Leaders have bad streaks. She needs to deal with this on her own." Brock added.

"They're right, Sanji. Besides, if we weren't here, this battle would still have happened. This is just Zoro being Zoro. There's nothing we can do." Nami stated.

"Good point." Usopp concurred. Serena, Bonnie, and the other Pokemon nodded in agreement. Sanji just sighed bitterly upon realizing that they were right.

"Boosting your attack power, heh? Not bad. However, let's see you try to utilize that without getting stuck. Sticky Web!" Viola called out.

"...I know Viola tried that move against Ash, but...what exactly does Sticky Web do?" Nami asked curiously.

"It slows down a Pokemon. Hence, why I had Fletchling blow it away with Razor Wind." Ash explained.

"Zoro needs to dodge that then." Usopp responded. However, Zoro had a different idea in mind as Surskit shot out several globs of sticky material from her antenna.

"Fury Cutter." he ordered Scyther. Brock and Clemont's eyes widened.

"Oh boy..." they mumbled under their breaths while Scyther began to repeatedly slash each glob.

"What?" Bonnie inquired.

"For each consecutive slash, Fury Cutter's power gets boosted." Clemont answered.

"...And with Swords Dance already boosting Scyther's overall power..." Meowth trailed off.

Serena finished his thought for him: "Oh Arceus, that's dangerous if left unchallenged."

"Yep. Bugsy's Scyther beat Pikachu using Fury Cutter. So we know how deadly it can be." Ash admitted.

A shiver went down Pikachu's spine as he uttered, "Pikachu pika Pika. (Most painful loss in Johto.)"

"Yeah, Zoro isn't one to pull punches." Usopp said.

Nami nodded before saying, "True."

"That's a dangerous and clever strategy." Alexa muttered, clearly worried for Viola. Scyther finished slashing through each glob, flew in, and slashed Surskit too. She got pushed back quite a bit but skidded to a halt.

"She's still in this?!" Ash yelped in surprise.

"Not for much longer." Brock stated once he saw Surskit gasping for air.

Viola, you need to make your move now. Clemont thought.

"It was a good attempt to try to slow down Scyther. But you failed. Wing Attack." Zoro commanded Scyther. He flew toward Surskit with his wings glowing white. However, Viola actually smirked a little bit, which put Zoro and Scyther on edge.

"Protect...no, that's too obvious." he mumbled under his breath warily. Just before Scyther reached Surskit, Viola made her move.

"Ice Beam!" she called out.

"Uh oh! That's super effective!" Brock yelped in surprise.

"And at such close range!" Serena added worriedly.

"ZORO, DON'T LET IT HIT HEAD-ON!" Luffy hollered. Even all the Pokemon out, especially the ones who had battled Surskit earlier, looked stunned by Viola's bold move.

"DODGE IT!" Zoro shouted as a small light blue ball formed on top of the horn on the Pond Skater Pokemon's head. Scyther abruptly swerved to the right. But he couldn't fully dodge the Ice Beam, as it hit his wing and froze it. Despite that, Scyther pushed through and hit Surskit hard. She crashed on the ground with swirls in her eyes and a smile actually on her face while he landed on his feet, shivering.

"Surskit is unable to battle. Scyther wins!" the referee announced.

"Scyther, you okay there?!" Zoro asked with a little worry evident on his face.

"Scy. Scyther scy Scyther. (Fine. Just a bit cold, Master Zoro.)" Scyther answered.

"Ha ha! Scyther's wing is frozen! Whatcha gonna do now, Moss Head?!" Sanji taunted Zoro. In response, the swordsman simply pointed to his Pokeballs, which instantly shut the cook up.

"Forgot Zoro had options, Sanji?" Ash inquired. Nami just sighed and shook her head.

"No, he's making fun of how Scyther took a big hit while you three took very little." she responded in an annoyed tone.

"Meanie./Denne. (Meanie.)" Bonnie and Dedenne uttered. Serena, Fennekin, and Chuchu scoffed.

"Not cool." she said.

"Pika kachu./Fenne nekin. (Yeah, not cool.)" Chuchu and Fennekin added.

"To be fair, at that range, the fact that it was a win instead of a double KO is an accomplishment." Meowth admitted while shaking his head in the same manner as his new trainer. Brock and Clemont also showed their disappointment by doing the same thing. Viola, who had returned Surskit back inside her Pokeball with thanks, turned to face Sanji.

"They're right. If you wanna talk smack to one of my challengers after he took a big hit and still knocked out Surskit, then why don't you face me too, Sanji?!" she called out fiercely. Sanji flinched at the sound of that.

"...Hm, with only Bulbasaur, though?" Usopp wondered out loud.

"Yeah, after the battles I've seen you in, Sanji, you wouldn't stand a chance against Viola." Clemont replied.

"True. And you're sure to hold back just because Viola is a woman." Nami added. Ash gave Sanji a glare.

"They are right, Sanji. If you keep this behavior up, some people WILL take it the wrong way. Now, sit down and watch, or else I will give you a crash course on battling...with Charizard." he proclaimed. Charizard grinned and casually stormed over to a very terrified Sanji. He got in the cook's face and shot a Flamethrower at him, leaving his whole head blackened and charred. He puffed out more smoke than before as he wisely decided to shut up and sit down. Serena, Fennekin, Bonnie, and Dedenne laughed.

The two girls pointed at Sanji while saying, "You deserved that, Sanji!" Even Chuchu couldn't help but giggle a little bit.

"...Glad it ain't me that time." Meowth muttered with a nervous chuckle.

"I should feel sorry, but...I don't." Usopp stated. Eevee, Nami, and even Psyduck nodded in agreement as Clemont also chuckled nervously. Serena turned her head and smiled at Ash.

I know I keep thinking this, but it's true. Ash is so amazing. she thought with a slight blush. Bonnie and Dedenne noticed that and smirked a little bit.

"Yep, she's totally heads over heels for Ash." she whispered to her partner, who had to nod. Zoro let out a chuckle.

"Thanks for taking care of the Crap Cook so that I can fully focus on the battle, guys. Especially you, Ash and Charizard. Way to shut him up." he stated with a smirk aimed at Sanji. He looked like he wanted to say something, but a stern look from Nami made him close his mouth. Ash and Serena could tell that Scyther's time in the match was done. Zoro, seeing that too, took a deep breath and held up his Pokeball.

"Scyther, return." he said calmly. Scyther returned into his Pokeball.

Zoro looked at it and smiled a little bit before stating, "Good going. Keep warm in there and leave the rest to us." He then put the Pokeball away, grabbed the second one, pressed on the white button to enlarge it, and stared back up at Viola. Just as Zoro was about to speak, she beat him to it.

"Just out of curiosity, where did you find the Scyther? They're very rare around these parts." Viola inquired curiously. Zoro explained the situation regarding J's goons while Ash told her his plans for dealing with the Pokemon Hunter. By the end of that, Viola's eyes had widened in total shock.

Oh, dang! They're not messing around! If the Navy's not careful, they could find themselves at war with Kanto and Sinnoh! And THAT will get messy! she brooded. Ash and the Pikachus noticed the look on Viola's face and raised an eye.

"Something wrong, Viola?" he inquired suspiciously. Viola shook her head and smiled.

"Nothing you need to worry about, Ash. Now..." she started. Viola turned back to Zoro with an enlarged Pokeball in hand.

"...we have a battle to continue! Vivillion, go!" she finished while throwing it forward. The Pokeball opened, revealing Vivillion.

"Vivillion! (All right!)" she exclaimed, pumped up to battle.

"...She's clearly hiding something." Serena whispered to Ash warily. He nodded to confirm that he was thinking the same thing.

"I just hope this won't lead to anything bad." Brock admitted, sounding nervous.

"...Like?" Nami asked hesitantly.

"An all-out war between Kanto and Sinnoh against Kalos and the Navy." Meowth responded, clearly terrified at the mere thought of it. Usopp, Eevee, Bonnie, Dedenne, Alexa, Helioptle, and especially Clemont were left stunned.

"What?!" Sanji hissed out.

"Trust me, J caused a lot of trouble in Sinnoh. If we were to find out that the Navy or, even worse, the Kalos government is funding her..." Meowth trailed off.

Clemont completed the sentence for him: "...that could be REALLY bad."

He then gulped while thinking to himself, I really hope the Navy didn't fund J's missions in Sinnoh. If they did, Sinnoh would have every right to declare war. And I have a hunch Serena would side with wherever Ash goes.

"I'm just gonna say this, Viola. You've earned my respect. Charmander, stand by for battle." Zoro stated as he threw the Pokeball. It opened, revealing Charmander.

"Charmander...CHAR! (Let's go...AH!)" he gasped before slipping on the ice. Sanji tried and failed to hold in his laughter, which led to Nami punching him in the face so hard that he went crashing through the wall.

"...You deserved that." everybody else except for Ash uttered.

"Congratulations, idiot. You just earned yourself one hour with Charizard." he added sassily. Charizard grinned, causing Sanji to gulp. Zoro smirked a little bit.

"Hey, 0-2 Cook. I actually meant to do that. Charmander, Dragon Dance. Then run around the entire field with your tail on the ice." he responded. Charmander had the same smirk as he spun around several times with his body becoming surrounded in orange energy. Then before Viola could counter, he ran all over the icy field with his tail on it, effectively melting it. Everybody's jaws dropped, none harder than Sanji.

"Oh shit. Zoro not only maxed out Charmander's attack power, he..." Usopp trailed off, completely dumbfounded alongside Eevee.

Nami and Meowth finished his sentence: "...melted the ice." Even Psyduck looked shocked.

"So COOL!" Bonnie exclaimed with her and Dedenne's eyes sparkling.

...Yep, the Navy is screwed should they try anything because Luffy and Zoro are pulling off these moves as ROOKIES! Heck, that's not taking into account that Serena, who is a ROOKIE too, also has a knack for battling. As those three get stronger...oh boy... Clemont thought with a shudder.

"The others are gonna be kicking themselves for missing this journey." Brock stated while chuckling. Ash, both Pikachus, and Charizard nodded in agreement. Froakie, Fletchling, Serena, and Fennekin were stunned by Zoro's ingenuity.

"...Damn that shitty swordsman. Make a mockery out of me, will you?" Sanji grumbled to himself.

"...Welp, it's over. It was fun while it lasted." Luffy declared. Squirtle and Pidgey had to agree with him there.

Viola, sensing the impending end, called out in a panicked tone, "Vivillion, use Psychic to hold Charmander still and Sleep Powder to put him to sleep NOW!" However, despite Vivillion's best efforts, Charmander's increased speed made it impossible for her to even lock on to him.

"Nice try to immobilize Charmander so that you can force Scyther back into it. But it's futile. End it now with Fire Fang." Zoro stated coolly. Charmander leaped toward Vivillion with his mouth surrounded in red-orange fire.

In a last-ditch effort, Viola exclaimed, "GUST!" However, it was too late as Charmander bit down on Vivillion, releasing sparks of fire. She collapsed on the ground, badly burned and down for the count.

"Vivillion is unable to battle! Charmander wins, which means the winner of the match is Zoro!" the referee announced.

"Good going, Charmander." Zoro said, clearly proud.

"Charmander. (No problem here.)" Charmander replied confidently. Everybody cheered the win...except for two people. Sanji didn't look happy at all while Clemont was still thinking about the J issue. After Viola gave Zoro his credit for coming up with the strategy to melt the ice, he graciously accepted the Bug Badge. Then the entire group left the Gym with Charizard towering over a meek Sanji and Usopp checking to see if any pigs were flying. Once they reached the Pokemon Center and handed the Pokemon that had battled to Nurse Joy, Ash, upon being reminded by Serena, went to call Professor Oak and ask him to tell Infernape that Paul was in Kalos. While he did that, Brock took out his tablet and pulled up a certain group chat.

Traveling Companions...and Oak Tree

------------------------------------------------------

Max: I finally caught the Ralts!

May: Oh, nice! You went back there?!

Max: Yep, I went back.

May: Congrats!

Misty: Congratulations!

Dawn: Congrats!

Gary: Congrats! 

Brock: Guys, I bear some urgent news in Kalos.

Gary: ...Oh boy, that's usually never good.

Misty: UGH! What did Ash do this time?!

Brock: Not much. One shotted a trainer's Bulbasaur with Pikachu. Solo'd a Gym with one of his newest captures. Got a girlfriend. And Ash vs. Paul 3 will be happening.

Misty: WHAT?!

May: WHAT?!

Max: WHAT?!

Dawn: WHAT?!

Gary: ...Whoa, what the heck?! 

Dawn: PAUL IS IN KALOS?!

May: ASH SOLO'D A GYM WITH A NEWLY CAPTURED POKEMON?!

Max: ASH ONE SHOTTED A TRAINER'S BULBASAUR WITH PIKACHU?!

Misty: WHAT DO YOU MEAN ASH GOT A GIRLFRIEND?!

Gary: Serious question, Brock. Was the trainer Ashy Boy one shotted flirting with the girl?

Brock: Yep.

Gary: Then I feel sorry for that guy. After all, I received a black eye from Ashy Boy for being a flirt at that summer camp so long ago.

May: Seriously?!

Gary: Yep.

Dawn: And here I thought Ash was dense.

Brock: He was clearly faking it. Remember Chuchu?

Max: Oh, he found HER.

Misty: HER?!

Gary: About freaking time.

Misty: YOU GUYS KNEW CHUCHU WAS FOR A GIRL?!

Dawn: Misty, I think it's time you forget about your crush on Ash.

May: Totally agree. And we all had a hunch since he usually never catches multiples of the same species.

Gary: The 30 Tauroses are a rare exception to that rule. Then, that was just Ashy Boy being Ashy Boy. Plus, Pikachu is already powerful, so why does he need another one? And a female one at that?

May: Pretty obvious when you put it that way. Besides, Misty, isn't there something going on between you and Tracey?

Brock: Ash seems to think so too.

Misty: NO! His Marill is my Azurill's parent. THERE IS NOTHING GOING ON BETWEEN US!

Gary: Somehow, I don't buy that.

May: Me either.

Max: Ditto.

Misty: HEY!

Dawn: So...anything else going on besides Paul?

Misty: LIKE THIS GIRL?!

Brock: Misty, drop it. You wouldn't stand a chance against her. Not after she: a. bitch slapped Meowth into defecting from Team Rocket, and b. used Counter Shield to win a Gym battle.

Misty: SHE DID WHAT?!

May: SHE DID WHAT?!

Max: SHE DID WHAT?!

Dawn: SHE DID WHAT?!

Gary: *whistles* Dang, she's definitely grown from the meek little girl I once knew.

Max: Seriously?! Meowth defected from Team Rocket because she bitch slapped him?!

May: MAX! LANGUAGE!

Dawn: SHE USED COUNTER SHIELD?!

Brock: Yep. Though, before she bitch slapped him, a Misty lookalike somehow spotted Meowth hiding behind a bush and actually caught him in a Pokeball.

Misty: EXCUSE ME?!

Brock: Yep. Heck, she even has a Psyduck, Misty.

Misty: OK, THIS IS BS! I'M COMING TO KALOS AS SOON AS I GET MY SISTERS TO TAKE OVER THE GYM!

Dawn: Same here! After all, I so wanna meet the girl who stole Ash's heart. Plus, I bet Iris would be disappointed if she finds out someone else caught Meowth when she couldn't.

Misty: ...WHAT HAVE I BEEN MISSING LATELY?!

Max: A lot, apparently. Welp, I was already going to Kalos for my first journey anyway. This is just an added bonus.

May: UGH! WHY DID YOU HAVE TO COME TOO?!

Brock: Trouble, May?

May: I heard there is a female only competition in Kalos, and Drew was gonna come with me to support me. Now we have to have Max come along too.

Brock: *chuckles* Big sister duties?

May: I'M NOT HAPPY ABOUT IT!

Gary: Anything else?

Brock: Actually, yes. J is still alive.

Dawn: THAT'S IT! I'M JUMPING ON THE FIRST PLANE TO KALOS I CAN GET!

Gary: ...Suck my dick...

May: GARY! LANGUAGE! I know she's bad news, but still...

Gary: Sorry. If it weren't for Lillie...

Gary: ...Uh oh.

Dawn: Oh?

Misty: COME ON! EVEN YOU HAVE A GIRLFRIEND, OAK TREE?!

Gary: Crud. 

-Oak Tree has left the chat-

May: DARN! I WAS GONNA PUMP SOME INFO OUTTA HIM!

Dawn: DARN! I WAS GONNA PUMP SOME INFO OUTTA HIM!

Max: You two typed that at the exact same time. It's almost like you share a brain.

Dawn: Quiet, Max.

May: Quiet, Max.

Max: See?! What did I tell you?!

Brock: Fun as it's been, I do need to get going. A trainer's Scyther had one of his wings frozen, and I do wanna look it over.

Dawn: ...Well, I'm glad Iris isn't reading this then. She has a phobia of Ice types.

Brock: Then she might not wanna come to Kalos. I just recently learned that Fairy types, which were discovered here, are immune to Dragon type moves. And Fairy type moves are super effective against Dragon types.

Misty: Yikes.

May: Yikes.

Max: Yikes.

Dawn: Yikes.

Brock: Anyway, TTYL. I'll have Ash know to expect you four soon.

Dawn: Thanks.

May: Thanks.

Max: Thanks.

Misty: Keep that girl off of Ash!

May: GOOD GRIEF!

Dawn: GOOD GRIEF!

Max: *facepalms*

------------------------------------------------------

As Brock logged off, he looked very annoyed from having to deal with Misty. He stood up and went over to Ash, who had gotten Fletchling back a while ago and was talking to Serena, who also received Chuchu and Fennekin. Luffy also had Squirtle and Pidgey, while Zoro was given Charmander and still calmly waiting for Scyther. Charizard still loomed over Sanji.

"Hey, Ash, expect some more company soon. Also, somebody isn't happy." Brock whispered to Ash. The boy looked confused for a second, but then he placed his hand over his face.

"Really? You told them even though Misty was known to be violent to any girl who had shown interest in me in the past?" he hissed back.

Brock nodded as he muttered, "I didn't tell them about THAT or the Straw Hats except for the Misty lookalike. After all, it is your call whether you wanna tell them or not, not mine." Ash scowled.

"I know. But seriously, Brock, tell me these things BEFORE you talk to them next time. I should seriously think about getting a tablet the next time we're in Lumiose City." he responded, mumbling the last sentence to himself. Brock took a deep breath and gave Ash a nod before turning to Zoro.

"I'm gonna go check on Scyther. Be right back." he stated professionally. Zoro simply hummed in understanding. Brock then called out Blissey, put on his white coat, and, after receiving permission from Nurse Joy, walked to the back with them and a Wigglytuff by their side.

"Brock is really gonna be a big help, what with him being a Pokemon Doctor in training and all." Serena admitted, clearly glad to have him on board. Everyone else agreed with her there...except for one. Serena turned to see Ash looking very unhappy.

"Ash? Something wrong?" she inquired worriedly. Ash just sighed apprehensively.

"Some old friends are on their way to Kalos. And one of them apparently still has feelings...for me." he admitted. The Pikachus and Charizard winced before covering their eyes exasperatedly. Serena instantly knew who it was that still harbored feelings for Ash and growled angrily.

Not on my watch, Misty. You want Ash, you're gonna have to go through ME first! she thought.

Upon seeing the fire in Serena's eyes, Nami, Meowth, and Usopp gulped before saying nervously, "Oh boy..."

"Vee-vee... (Uh oh...)" Eevee muttered anxiously.

"...Duck?" Psyduck asked, sounding lost.

"She's gonna fight for love?! AWESOME!" Bonnie exclaimed excitedly as Dedenne just shook his head. Surprisingly, Serena didn't hear her since she was way too riled up at the moment.

"OH ARCEUS, NOT A CATFIGHT!" Clemont groaned. Luffy and Zoro turned to each other and nodded as if agreeing to an unspoken idea. But the one who looked the most stunned was Ash.

She's gonna fight Misty?! For ME?! Does Rena actually LOVE me?! he mused. Ash's heart started fluttering wildly. He was genuinely happy, as he had feelings for Serena for as long as he could remember. But at the same time, with J being alive, Misty's jealousy issues, and especially the nightmare looming over them, Ash was a bit shy to tell her now.

If Rena doesn't confess first, then once all those issues have been resolved, I'll tell her how I feel. he thought. With that in mind, Ash motioned for Charizard to come over and turned to Zoro.

"You said you have something for me, Zoro?" he inquired as they looked at him curiously. Zoro smirked a little bit and took out the Mega Stones. Ash and Charizard's eyes widened as a smirk crossed their faces.

Hello, secret weapon for J. they both thought.

Serena smiled before thinking to herself, There's the key for helping Ash beat J and THAT should it show up.

"I only need one. The other..." Zoro started.

"...can be used for J and THAT." Ash finished. Zoro gave him a nod.

"I've gotten attached to the blue and black one, but if you want that one, then I'll gladly hand it over." he admitted. Ash turned to Charizard, who was eyeing the orange one intensely.

"...I'm gonna assume you want the orange one?" he asked knowingly. Charizard roared in approval. Having made his choice, Ash looked back at Zoro.

"Well, Zoro, you got your choice. We got ours." he declared as he grabbed the orange one.

"...Didn't Professor Sycamore say a trainer needs a Key Stone to Mega Evolve your Pokemon?" Luffy inquired curiously. Everyone else's eyes widened.

"WAIT, YOU WERE ACTUALLY PAYING ATTENTION BACK THEN?!" each Straw Hat yelped in surprise. Ash and Serena both looked impressed. Clemont actually chuckled.

"If it's a Key Stone you need, then I know just the guy to seek. He happens to be an expert on Mega Evolution, and his granddaughter is one of the Gym...Leaders...whoops..." He trailed off once he realized his mistake. Now all eyes were on Clemont, causing him to gulp. Though, Bonnie had her hand placed over her face, clearly embarrassed for her brother.

"...Um, let's just forget I blurted all that out...please?" he muttered hopefully.

"NOPE! WE WANT DETAILS!" almost everyone else replied in unison. While they all started hounding the poor guy with questions, Zoro just looked mighty suspicious.

Okay, he's either the son of a Gym Leader, or he's a Gym Leader himself. he thought.

"Yeesh, what have I done?" Clemont mumbled under his breath in a nervous tone.

"...Nice going, Big Brother." Bonnie uttered sarcastically. Clemont just sighed in defeat.

"FINE! I'LL TELL YOU GUYS WHAT I KNOW!" he exclaimed exasperatedly.

"THANK YOU!" almost the entire group responded. Clemont took a deep breath.

"When we get to Shalour City, seek out a man named Gurkinn. He's the expert on Mega Evolution. Also, not sure you wanna know this yet, but Shalour City does have a Gym. Gurkinn's granddaughter, Korrina, is the Gym Leader there." he explained with a slight blush on his face. Almost no one noticed the blush...except for a perceptive woman and a mischievous little girl.

Nami and Bonnie looked at each other and nodded before muttering to each other, "Bingo. Korrina it is." Serena pulled out her tablet and brought up the Kalos map.

"...Looks like we need to go back to Lumiose City, then trek over to Cyllage City before going to Shalour City. Also, there's the Battle Chateau on the way to Cyllage City. And there are Gyms in Lumiose City and Cyllage City too." she stated.

"Apparently, you need four badges to do the Lumiose City Gym. So...Cyllage City first, then." Ash responded.

"FOUR BADGES?!" Luffy exclaimed in shock.

"Yep. It's the only Gym with a requirement I ever faced." Ash admitted. Serena narrowed her eyes.

"Interesting..." she muttered. Hearing that just made Zoro eye Clemont even more suspiciously, which caused the inventor and Bonnie to sweat buckets. Before the swordsman could speak, Brock and Blissey came back with Scyther's Pokeball.

"Scyther will be fine. The ice is gone." he stated. Zoro thanked Brock before grabbing the Pokeball and putting it away.

"I hope you didn't give Nurse Joy a hard time." Nami said sternly.

"...HEY! Cut me some slack here! When a Pokemon needs help, I am focused." Brock retorted.

"It's true. When there was a major tournament in Sinnoh, Brock helped that Nurse Joy without flirting." Ash added in his defense.

"...OH, THAT TOURNAMENT!" Meowth exclaimed once he realized what they were referring to. Those not in the know looked at him curiously.

Meowth sighed while saying bitterly, "That's the one where Chimmy got abandoned." Everyone who wasn't aware looked stunned but hummed in understanding.

"In any case, do we wanna leave, or do we wanna train first?" Zoro inquired. Meowth actually smirked and turned to Nami.

"I dunno about you, but I wanna see if I can at least learn Thunderbolt before we run into those two." he responded. Nami gave Meowth a smirk back and looked at Ash and Pikachu, who nodded alongside everybody else.

"Well, you heard him. Let's get to training!" she declared.

Meanwhile, Jessie, James, Wobbuffet, and Inkay were still sitting at the exact same spot as before. Only this time, they had all gotten very worried sick.

"...You don't think the police caught him, do you?" Jessie asked nervously.

"...I think they might have." James answered in the same tone.

"Wob wobbuffet. (Houston, we are in major trouble here.)" Wobbuffet uttered.

"...Inkay? (...Houston?)" Inkay wondered out loud.