Pokémon, Ash is going to become a perfect man from now on.

"Roar..." The circled bear below immediately froze.

The thought of having to travel across half the city as a land vehicle filled Circle Bear with a sense of utter despair...

If I could do it all over again, I... might still make the same choice.

After all, Ursaring discovered in a very short time that Ash was the human who could make it so powerful that it would be reborn!

...

Along the way, the journey and hard work continued. After countless drops of sweat and effort, Circle Bear finally carried the group to Enoki City.

This city, known as the oldest in the Johto region, is steeped in legends about Ho-Oh and Lugia, and Ash has long yearned to visit it…

"I've heard that the kimono-clad girls at the Enju Dance Hall will give an exceptionally wonderful performance. Those ladies are all beauties worth spending the rest of your life with~"

Well, Uncle Gang has been longing to come here for a long time.

However, when Ash mentioned kimono girls, he immediately thought of Mashu, who seemed to be a dancer from Ecruteak City and had even danced a ritual dance for Ash.

Could the kimono-clad girls at the Enoki Dance Hall also have some connection to Ho-Oh?

There are also trainers from the Enchantment Dojo…

"Hmm?" Just as he was pondering, Ash suddenly noticed the unusual movement of the Rainbow Wing, and a wisp of white mist quietly drifted into the air.

"Suicune has come to Etude City, let's go check it out." Knowing that Suicune was reminding him, Ash immediately had Ursaring follow the white mist.

They traveled along the edge of the city and soon arrived at the eastern outskirts of Edo City, where there stood a nine-story bell tower with transparent bells hanging all around the top, said to be where Ho-Oh once stayed.

However, Ho-Oh is no longer here, and in the guidebook, this place is called 'New Bell Tower'.

"Woo!" At this moment, in front of the Bell Tower, the sacred beast that was the North Wind grew impatiently and roared the Alakazam that was entangled with it back into the ball.

There were two humans in front of it. One of them, a blond youth, did not move, but just stood there with a conflicted expression.

Another man in a flashy purple cape was incredibly excited, constantly directing his Pokémon to attack Suicune.

However, his skill level was ultimately limited, and all he relied on was perseverance... In short, he shamelessly kept grinding battles.

Psychic, Energy Ball, Thunder Punch... his Alakazam used almost every move it was good at, but it still couldn't do anything to Suicune, and it had to return to its ball every time it was roared.

Suicune is actually quite annoyed right now. If it weren't for having to wait for Ash here, it would have gotten far away from this fanatic long ago.

"Wait a moment, are you two fighting Suicune?" Fortunately, Ash finally appeared in the mist.

"You are... I know you, but do you have to bother me? I'm going to capture Suicune today no matter what!"

Ash appeared first, but the caped man merely glanced at him and ignored him, then impatiently sent out Alakazam again…

"What did you say?" "Hooray!"

Ash's expression changed slightly, and when Ursaring appeared carrying its companion, the caped man's hand, which was about to throw the ball, froze in mid-air.

"Mr. Ash, is this your Pokémon? This is truly an amazing training method." Seeing his friend was stunned, the blond youth quickly stepped forward to smooth things over.

Of course he knows Ash, and Ash knows him too.

"Gym Leader Komatsu of Ecruteak Gym, nice to meet you." Ash greeted him expressionlessly, but his gaze never left the other caped man. "Could you ask your friend to stop? If you're not strong enough, don't keep pestering him."

"This... Mina-kun, let's stop here, don't be so stubborn." Komatsu quickly advised.

But the latter not only didn't stop, but also argued vehemently: "What a joke! Pine, do you know how long I've been chasing Suicune? Now that it's right in front of me, how could I give up on catching it just because of a stranger's words?!"

“First of all, you can’t capture Suicune.” Ash shook his head slightly. “Secondly, you interrupted my meeting with Suicune.”

"What did you say?!"

Seeing Suicune not only approach Ash but also nuzzle its head against his hand, Mina froze on the spot…

Chapter 529 Enju Dojo and Enju Dance Hall: A Historical Conflict

(How are you feeling? Are you feeling any better?)

Upon reuniting with Suicune, Ash didn't rush to discuss serious matters with her; instead, he started chatting about trivial matters.

(Lord Ho-Oh apologized to me...)

Sui-kun's voice trembled slightly, clearly carrying a sense of being flattered...

And then you happily came to run errands, right?

Xiao Zhi muttered to himself, somewhat speechless.

Whether Ho-Oh's apology was sincere or merely a tactic to control its subordinates, only Ho-Oh itself knows.

However, it must be said that those in positions of power do have an inherent advantage in inspiring people to "die for those who understand them."

A word of concern or an apology is enough to make subordinates work themselves to the bone for you.

(Let's get down to business. What instructions does Ho-Oh have?)

(Next, we will face Raikou's trial. I will continue to guide the hero along the way... This trial will also involve Zapdos.)

(Zetzart?) Ash frowned.

When it first saw Articuno, it suspected that Zapdos had gone missing, and now it seems that something had indeed happened.

However, considering the paving the way nature of Ho-Oh's trial, there shouldn't be any major problems.

Having roughly learned about the upcoming trial missions, Xiao Zhi had a general idea of ​​what to expect, but he was still a little curious.

(I don't understand, the subsequent trials are clearly for Lei Gong and Yan Di, so why are you still running errands?)

(Lei Gong needs to act as bait; he himself is also part of the trial. As for Yan Di, he is monitoring the movements of the Ruins of Aluf.)

(There?!)

(The situation at the Ruins of Aluf is quite complicated, so it is not advisable for you, hero, to venture there rashly... Lord Ho-Oh has given a special assurance that this will be a close call.)

(knew.)

Well, Phoenix King is completely making no attempt to hide it; he's clearly going to guarantee my passage through the trial.

It should all be arranged, so there's no need to worry too much. Just step in when it matters and continue traveling and collecting badges the rest of the time.

(That's how it is, I'll take my leave now...)

(Suicune, wait a minute.) Seeing that Suicune was about to leave, Ash called it back at the last minute. (I have a question... Do you Ho-Oh's guards mind being captured by someone?)

(If they are humans recognized by Lord Ho-Oh, we certainly wouldn't mind... like the Hero and your companions.)

The first part is a formulaic answer, while the last part is unclear whether it reflects Suicune's personal thoughts or is a paraphrase of Ho-Oh's meaning...

(Understood, then goodbye for now.) Ash nodded knowingly and waved goodbye to Suicune.

Seeing Suicune leave, Mina-kun was naturally unwilling to let the matter rest, but when he saw Bear holding an enormous raft and wearing a ferocious expression, he did feel a little resigned.

Of course, what he didn't know was that the circly bear wasn't threatening him, but was just grimacing from exhaustion after being lifted for so long.

"Burst, put it down." After ending his conversation with Suicune, Ash remembered that a certain bear hadn't finished its training.

Boom!

The ground was instantly smashed open with huge cracks, which made Mina-kun and Komatsu realize the weight of the wooden raft in Quan Quan Xiong's hands.

"Your name is Mina-kun, right?" Ash asked, helping Ursaring recover its strength while turning to the caped man. "I know you want to catch Suicune, but this one from Johto won't do."

"On what grounds?" Mina-kun immediately glared, his expression somewhat arrogant. "Is it because of your status as a second-generation official in Kanto, or because of your contact with Sui-kun just now?"

"No reason why, I say no and that's final." Ash shook his head calmly. "And I'm warning you, if you continue to be relentless towards Suicune or any of the Legendary Beasts, they will launch a... real attack on you!"

"Are you... threatening me?!" Mina-kun demanded sharply.

He was actually a bit ignorant and fearless. Even though Ash had that kind of interaction with Suicune just now, he believed that he knew more about Suicune and Ho-Oh's guard than Ash did.

After all, it's been a long-held ideal, so it's bound to hold firm.

But Ash didn't intend to get entangled with him any further, and simply passed the question to Ecruteak, who was standing to the side.

"Mr. Komatsu, could you please take care of this?"

"Mina-kun, tone it down!" Xiaosong knew that if this continued, things would get out of hand, so he gave his friend a long and earnest plea, which finally managed to persuade him to stay calm for the time being.

However, Mina-kun didn't give him a friendly look, snorted coldly, and left on his own.

"Sigh..." Judging from his helpless sigh, this must have happened more than once.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Ash, Mina-kun is too obsessed with Suicune." After composing himself, Matsu had to come back and shamelessly apologize to Ash.

"It's nothing. His persistence is quite admirable," Ash said nonchalantly. "However, even if he is an expert on Ho-Oh's guard and Suicune, he shouldn't be so arrogant and think that no one else is as qualified as him to have contact with Ho-Oh's guard."

"I will definitely warn him later," Xiaosong hurriedly assured.

At the same time, his gaze toward Ash became more inquisitive.

"Mr. Ash, did you activate Ho-Oh's power in Vermilion Harbor before?"

"Indeed, I am the Rainbow Hero chosen by Ho-Oh, and I am currently participating in the trials presided over by Ho-Oh's Guard."

Ash's identity as a hero is now public knowledge, so there's no need to hide it anymore.

Moreover, Xiaosong is also a cultivator who possesses an ability called 'clairvoyance,' so he must have seen a lot of information.

"The hero of Ho-Oh... That's wonderful!" Komatsu became incredibly excited. "You may not know, but my clan has always been priests who worship Ho-Oh!"

"So, Mr. Komatsu, what advice do you have for me?"