After Team Rocket was blasted away, the massive cauldron came falling from the sky!
Amid the crowd's gasps, Ash threw out a Poké Ball.
"Bulbasaur, I choose you! Use Vine Whip to catch the cauldron!"
"Bulba!"
With a flash of red light, Bulbasaur appeared.
Two sturdy vines shot out, wrapping around the falling cauldron—
And gently placed it back where it belonged.
Ash wiped the sweat off his forehead.
Thankfully, the opening ceremony ended without disaster.
Clap clap clap clap!!!
Suddenly, a wave of applause erupted around him!
It was the audience—
Even the Elite Four and the Champions had stood up to clap.
"Wooo!! Ash is amazing!!"
"Pikachu may not be as insane as in the Tally, but it's still ridiculously powerful!"
"This is my first time seeing Ash in person—definitely a hot-blooded youth!"
"Ash! Good luck in the Indigo Conference!"
"Ash bro, show them your god-slaying strength!!"
"..."
The crowd had all watched the Heavenly Tally.
After Ash appeared on the leaderboard three times,
Many people became his fans.
And Pikachu… had even more fans.
A worldwide Pikachu-capturing craze had begun.
Of course, not every Pikachu was the Pikachu.
Most were destined to remain… just Pikachu.
"The kid's pretty good. Not quite what I expected."
Lance watched Ash awkwardly scratching his head.
After returning to Kanto yesterday, he'd looked into Ash's background.
According to the intel, over half of Ash's eight badges were basically handed to him.
The rest came from Gym Leaders going easy on him.
But seeing Pikachu now—
even if it wasn't Champion-level—
It could absolutely crush any Gym's secondary team.
"Don't forget, Pikachu received Heavenly Tally rewards. Of course it's stronger."
Lorelei reminded him calmly.
She was currently the one who understood Pikachu's new strength the best—
After all, she was the only one who had actually battled the upgraded Pikachu.
At full power, Pikachu was roughly equivalent to a Gym's main team.
(That is—excluding super-modes and dramatic acting…)
After the brief commotion, the opening ceremony proceeded smoothly.
…
Later, Ash and the others headed to a side hall for opponent selection.
The Indigo Conference had four preliminary fields:
Water, Ice, Rock, and Grass.
Only after clearing all four could a trainer enter the main stadium—
The true Round of Sixteen.
Ash's first draw was the Water Field!
His opponent: a trainer named Moku.
Naive Ash—completely lacking any mindset of "research your opponent"—
decided he'd just show up at 2 PM and battle.
During the wait, he ran into his rival, Gary.
Gary sat under a parasol, surrounded by six cheerleader-girlfriends,
sipping his tea like a celebrity.
"Gary! I've completely changed! When we meet, I'm definitely gonna defeat you!"
Gary glanced at Pikachu by Ash's feet.
It was still a bit chubby—different from the slim, razor-sharp version in the Tally—
but clearly well-trained.
And with all the rewards Pikachu received,
Ash would be one of his strongest opponents in the Conference.
Of course, Gary would never admit that aloud.
He shook his head and said dismissively:
"You? Come back after training for ten more years. Don't think a few rewards will let you beat me, the great Gary Oak!"
"Pokémon battles aren't just about strength.
Switching, strategy, opponent analysis—those matter too!"
"Look at you. You haven't prepared anything, right?
Hmph. You'd better be careful not to lose before reaching the Top 32."
"You—!!"
Ash glared at him but couldn't argue.
Because Gary… wasn't wrong.
Ash really did prepare nothing.
"Let's go, Ash. It's not too late to start preparing."
Misty dragged him away, while Brock bowed respectfully toward Gary.
Gary blinked, confused.
"Thank you for giving Ash advice. We've told him before, but he listens better when it comes from you, his rival."
"A-Advice? I didn't advise him!"
"Yes, yes—you only mocked him."
Brock gave a bright smile and left with the others.
Gary took another sip of tea, a tiny smile appearing.
Ash… you've found good companions.
…
Thanks to Gary's reminder, Ash deflated his swollen ego from Pikachu's new power
and finally began preparing for his first match.
For the Water Field, he recalled Krabby from Professor Oak's lab.
Along with Squirtle and Pikachu, he formed his first-round team.
As for researching his opponent…
There was no time. The match was starting.
…
"The third match of the Water Field is about to begin!"
"In the red corner: magician-trainer Moku!"
"And in the green corner: yesterday's triple-appearance star of the Heavenly Tally, now world-famous—Ash Ketchum!
Additionally, Ash has brought two coaches to assist with the match!"
The camera panned to a bench behind Ash—
Misty and Brock sat there proudly.
Today, they were Ash's tactical support team!
"Let's look forward to this third-round battle!"
In the main stands, Cynthia gave the Kanto Champions and Elite Four a strange look.
"You're… allowed to bring COACHES to a match?"
"Ahem… well… in recent years, most Indigo Conference contestants are rookies,"
Lance said awkwardly.
"To help them gain experience, the rules state that first-time competitors are allowed to bring coaches for guidance."
After all, Kanto's talent pool had dwindled sharply.
The Indigo Conference's prestige dropped year after year.
Many rookies gave up becoming Trainers after losing once.
So to preserve the future of the Kanto League—
Gyms handed out badges generously,
and the Conference even allowed coaching mid-match.
A rather absurd system… but a necessary one.
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