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

Even the sudden burst of flames earlier didn't seem unusual to it.

Infernape always knew that it possessed a special power, but neither it nor Ash ever thought of forcibly developing that power.

'Fire is merely icing on the cake; true strength lies in one's own power.'

'When you truly become strong one day, you'll find that that power is actually quite easy to control.'

I guess I've gotten stronger now...

"Hey, stop spacing out!"

"Waaaaa?" Infernape was startled awake and turned around when it heard Ash's call.

As expected, it saw a thumbs-up and a satisfied smile on the other person's face.

It's always the same; he especially loves to praise himself, even for the smallest improvements.

And I love hearing this kind of praise the most!

"Wow!" Infernape turned around excitedly, picked up Poitomic, who had helped it throughout the game, and the two of them jumped and bounced in front of Ash.

"Great! You won and evolved again. I'm really happy for you guys," Ash said with a smile.

He was indeed very satisfied with today's battle. Poison Baby experienced a high-intensity fight and realized just how much reliable power was hidden within its small body.

As for Infernape... Ash feels a great sense of accomplishment every day he raises it.

Many of Ash's "destined" Pokémon, such as Gengar, Dragonite, and Sceptile from Hoenn, all bear some resemblance to the original works.

The cultivation of these works is more about following their natural development and guiding them to surpass the capabilities of animation.

But Infernape is different; its fate was completely changed by Ash.

It was never abandoned by Shinji or anyone else. Ash first saw it at the Yamanashi Research Institute. It had only just hatched at that time and was not suitable to be given to a new trainer as their first Pokémon!

Xiao Zhi started by raising a baby, laying the foundation for it, nurturing and training it, and guiding it step by step to where it is today.

Starting from scratch, creating a brand new Sinnoh Elite Four member... the gains and satisfaction involved are too numerous to describe in a few words.

"Mr. Ash, congratulations on your victory. I'm completely defeated." Seeing that Ash's interaction with his partner had come to an end, Hills quickly stepped forward and handed the symbol to Ash.

"Please accept this; it's a symbol of our tactics."

"Thank you so much." Xiao Zhi nodded gratefully. "Not only for this badge, but also for everything you and everyone here have done for me today."

Without a doubt, Ash enjoyed the treatment of a top superstar at the Battle Dome, and the audience is still chanting his name to this day.

“It is what we should do,” Hills said with an elegant smile. “Especially me, I have always wanted to thank Mr. Ash in person… I once left my hometown, but because of you, I now have two hometowns.”

Hills is a Hoennian and was once a fairly well-known Coordinator.

His reason for coming to Kanto and becoming the Brain of the Pioneers was the same as that of Ashida, who recruited him, and Ye Yue at the Silver Conference: to find a way out.

However, things didn't go smoothly for them at first. If Ash hadn't suggested to the League leadership that Ashida and the Frontier be incorporated into Kanto, Hills might still be worrying about where to settle down.

Later, it was also Ash who strongly advocated that everyone in the Frontier participate in the Kanto Defense War. They gained a lot of fame in the battle and received many policy benefits from the League, which gradually developed into the current situation.

For this, not only Hills, but many pioneering minds are grateful.

Ash recently defied all odds by clearing the Champion Road and officially becoming the champion of Hoenn!

This news is undoubtedly a huge boost for Hoenn players like Hills!

From then on, Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, and Alola became one family, and they were no longer people who had left their homeland.

...

Even after leaving the Battle Dome, the girls were still reminiscing about their previous experiences.

"The people of Kanto really adore Ash," Rukia exclaimed. "His popularity is almost on par with that of the Champion."

“Actually, he’s most revered in Alola,” May added. “Many islanders don’t even use the title of Champion; they simply call Ash the King of Alola.”

"The King of Alola?" Lucia was startled by this title.

She can certainly tell the difference between a champion and a king.

The former is merely the supreme commander of a region; if the alliance's situation becomes complex, many people will jump out to obstruct it.

This has always been the case in Hoenn; sometimes, even the authority of the council members was less than that of the other council members.

But the king... just look at Queen Irene of the city of Ordron, all the people in the entire Rota Street area must submit to her rule!

"Actually, there's nothing special about it. I'm just lucky to have received everyone's favor." Ash chuckled and shook his head, looking at Serena with gentle eyes. "I've always felt very fortunate about this."

"Me too... It's really a blessing to meet Ash and be together like this." In this rare moment of warmth, Serena didn't care about being reserved and boldly expressed herself while holding Ash's hand.

"They..." "Do they have to be so oblivious to everyone else?!"

Haruka and Rukia exchanged a glance and simultaneously began muttering to themselves.

If someone gives you a dirty look at you without warning, nobody can stand that.

Besides, it's only with Serena. At least pay some attention to me, right? In the current situation, a little flirting isn't out of the question...

Did Ash ever think about giving me a bottle of perfume too? How will Ash react when Eevee hatches?

...

"Hey, what are you doing?"

"Ah?!"*2

Upon hearing Xiaozhi's question, the two girls exclaimed in unison, snapping out of their daze.

Ash and Serena have returned to normal, as if the scene of them showing affection and showering each other with love had never happened.

Furthermore, a ring appeared in front of Ash.

"The locations of the subsequent battle facilities have been updated. There are no cities along the way that host grand tournaments, so I need to speed up my journey," Ash explained to the two girls.

The next two battle facilities are the battle pipe in Fuchsia City and the battle palace on Metal Island.

Ash decides to follow the original route, first conquering the inland areas, and then heading straight out to sea.

"Understood..." *2

Haruka and Rukia responded together, but something still felt off.

Did those two really not openly show affection just now, or... because I've been thinking about these things lately, even normal interactions seem to take on a different meaning in their eyes?

Clearly, the two girls, lost in their own thoughts, were unaware that Serena, who had crossed the circle first, was now trembling with suppressed laughter.

Serena clearly saw the two girls' adoring, starry-eyed expressions.

It's probably about to fall completely...

Chapter 1005 Asakusa City, the Disappearance and Sudden Reappearance of Haruka…

Ash and his friends are currently staying at the Pokémon Center in Fuchsia City in preparation for their challenge against the Battle Pipes.

Of course, there was another reason for this, which was to reunite with Xiaogang, whom I hadn't seen in a long time.

When Ash passed through Pewter City before, he wanted to invite Brock to attend the festival in Lota Town, but Brock was traveling at the time. Now they finally met here.

“I can’t stay stagnant forever. Jiro is becoming more and more mature. He has officially passed the exam to become the head of the first-class dojo. My parents have also settled down. I don’t have to worry about the dojo and the family anymore.” That’s what Gang said during the meeting.

Ash had met Brock's younger brother, Jiro, a few times before. He was a promising young man who could definitely take over the gym.

In addition, Xiao Gang himself receives a special allowance from the league, so he has no worries about the future and can freely go out to pursue his ideals.

His ideal, of course, is to become the world's top Pokémon breeder, and that has never changed.

"By the way, I want to introduce you to two very impressive people." Xiao Gang led everyone to an elderly couple, both wearing white coats and looking quite energetic.

"These two are Mr. Yong and Mrs. Guo. Their pet nursery is very well-known in the Qianhong City area," Xiao Gang solemnly introduced. "They gave me a lot of advice on how to raise my recently captured Hushuo Bonsai Baby.

"Hello, you two." Xiao Zhi quickly stepped forward to greet them.

He actually remembered the elderly couple; not only in the original story of the Frontier District, but their names had also been mentioned repeatedly recently.

In order to target people like Masamune, Ash introduced a mandatory physical examination law after reaching the top of Hoenn, and it is currently being implemented simultaneously in the four leagues he directly and indirectly governs.

Legislation has increased trainers' awareness of the importance of scientific breeding and health management of Pokémon, and has also allowed a large number of capable breeders to gradually emerge.

Among them, the most respected individuals—such as the elderly couple A-Yong and A-Guo's wife—were hired as special honorary advisors by the local Pokémon Center.

As for the bonsai tree that Xiaogang was holding, he had captured it during a day trip to the nearby ninja academy.

However, while he claimed he wanted to learn how ninjas train Pokémon, Ash knew perfectly well that he was simply captivated by the female teacher at the Ninja Academy.

After all, he's Uncle Gang~

With Brock acting as a go-between, the two sides quickly became acquainted, and the two elderly people also thoughtfully helped May and Ryukia check their Pokémon eggs.

As a result, Rukia's egg suddenly emitted a white light and hatched into an exceptionally cute Mare the sheep.

"Great! It really hatched a Mare the sheep!" Looking at the bewildered little sheep and its fluffy wool, Ryuki was immediately captivated and pounced on it, rubbing against it incessantly.

"It's small and fluffy, it looks so cute!"

Just as Rukia was admiring the baby, the two elders also examined the newly hatched Mare and confirmed that the little one was perfectly healthy.

"Has it hatched yet? But why is mine still not moving..." Xiaoyao couldn't help but worry as the egg in her hand remained unmoved.

"Don't worry, just wait a little longer," Ash comforted her. "Different types of Pokémon eggs have different hatching times. Mareep will hatch faster, but yours will take a little longer."