Jhoto

Ash, "Come on! We have to go before it gets dark. We are not to stay in the red zones after dark."

Gou, "Only in the blue zones which is half an hour trek from here."

Brock, "Only the Larvitars left."

Casey, "According to this map there is a Tyranitar clutch a few miles from here. I think we will have to camp out first."

Max, "I want to see the Tyranitars. But if they are as angry as the Ursarings were, that might be suicide."

Gou, "Understatement. We were lucky we were down wind. Imagine if they realized we were there."

Ash gave a wry smile at that, they would have to run to survive if that happened as there was no Pokemon center close by. As strong as they were they could not battle a whole pack of angry Ursarings all of a sudden even in a raid battle. At least not without spilling blood on one side or another, it would be impossible to win without losing a limb and Ash does not want that. The best strategy would be to act smart and move around while keeping an eye on their surroundings. They were in a wild area with high level Pokemon and it was not just any high level Pokemon but the protected kind do if anything happened it would be the trainer's responsibility.

Casey muttered looking at the grey sky, "It's getting late."

Brock looked at the Larvitars, "We should camp for tonight."

Max giggled, "At least they are having fun."

Gou, "Yeah, come on we are close to a blue area. We can camp out there."

Ash, "Agreed! As much as I adore watching powerful Pokemon beat up Team Rocket and poachers, I do not want to be caught up in between them."

Casey huffed in amusement while pulling Larvitar on to her back as she started to trek towards the blue area. She had to agree with Ash, it was satisfying to watch wild Pokemon fight back and defeat poachers and Team Rocket she would not want to be caught dealing with them. Dealing with the wild Pokemon in the normal forests was one thing but facing the ones in red zone was another story in it's entirety. Even the Champions do not try to catch a red zone Pokemon as part of their team. The last time someone tried that was fifty years ago a powerful trainer who defeated all the shadow gyms in Kanto and Jhoto. She had trained only five Pokemon to become Alphas saving the sixth spot for the Pokemon from a red zone area.

She had succeeded in capturing a very short tempered Altaria and made him a part of her group but it was impossible for her to let Altaria out in a crowded city. The male would try challenge and fight literally everyone in the City and caused a lot of structural damage to the area. The lady had to issue an official apology to the ones who were affected because of her short tempered and arrogant Pokemon. After a few weeks she had made the decision to settle down near one of the red zones closer to an ice cold mountain range. It gave Altaria a challenge and gave them a chance to work together and become stronger and that was almost half a decade ago.

Brock, "Dinner!"

Ash, "Thank you."

Larvitar sat next to Ash, "Arrrr."

Ash, "Here you go. This one is yours."

Casey smiled, "They are so cute."

Max, "I hope they have a happy reunion too."

Gou, "Me too."

They spent the rest of the evening after dinner doing a quick training session with their Pokemon. They would be heading towards Altomare one month later following the river that headed down East to the port City. The City was known for being a very popular historical site and it's fisheries which provides around ten percent of the fish around the world. Ash was training his Pokemon to control their moves, Meganium, Quilava and Croconaw were training to make their elemental moves flashier and powerful. Lapras and Noctowl were training their psychic moves together with Abra joining them from time to time.

Magmar, Chimchar, Tyrantrum, Shuckle and Omastar were training together to the side working together on their own moves and attacks. On the opposite side of where Ash and his Pokemon were training Casey was training with her Pokemon focusing on the more stealthy moves and attacks. Most of her opponents would be focused on trying to overpower each other but Casey was taking a leaf from Ash's books and using moves that look simple but are very effective when used properly. She would be going for a quick knock out hits instead, knock her opponents out then move forward.

Max and Gou were discussing some of the moves that Casey and Ash had used during their battles and it's different effects. The very first thing they discussed was the effects those powerful moves had on the Pokemon. Both Casey and Ash's Pokemon were stubborn and would always refuse to show any weaknesses in the battle field only to crash at the Pokemon center. It had been a very common sight to the point Ash made the rule every Pokemon would get one fight each. The next fight would be for the next Pokemon with a promise to call the previous Pokemon if anyone lost and they needed to be called again.

Brock was next to them, "Ash was not amused when he learned about his Pokemon hiding the side effects of those attacks."

Max, "How did he react?"

Gou, "Angry at himself and blamed himself for failing his Pokemon."

Brock chuckled, "His Pokemon protested it vehemently of course. But Ash understood their pride as strong Pokemon kept them from showing weakness in battle. So, that particular rule came out."

Gou, "Some of the Pokemon were not happy with it but understood everyone that others deserved a chance to battle to."

Brock, "That and they all adore Ash and would do anything to make him happy."

Max, "That too."

Kirlia, -We would do the same for you Max.-

Max, "I know Kirlia. Thank you."

Alakazam nudged Gou as well nodding at him getting a bright smile from the dark skinned teen. Alakazam still remembers meeting his trainer for the first time, it was back at Kanto region. Alakazam was still a Kadabra back then and he avoided the humans like the plague though the more stubborn ones kept following him. He had seen their thoughts and they were all battle obsessed it annoyed him a lot, he did not want to spend his life battling. Then he found the mind of his trainer, he was not a battler but a research assistant and he only trained for protection. Kadabra had been curious and followed him around for a while before showing himself to the dark skinned teen and did not regret it.

They turned in for the night and the next day did their morning routine before setting out in search of the two Tyranitar clutch that were rumoured to have lost poke eggs. The three Larvitars had to belong to one of those clutches and trying to navigate through a wild area where powerful Pokemon flock under another powerful Pokemon was no laughing matter. They were playing a game of hide and seek the whole week, keeping hidden from the many packs of Pokemon especially the ones in the red zone. It was like one of those games where you cannot attack only hide and bounce from one hiding place to another. It was slow going and frustrating but they kept searching during the daylight before hurrying over to a non red zone area by evening.

Ash, "Finding your mama might take a while buddy."

Larvitar cooed, "Tarrrrrr."

Max, "Is it true Larvitars are considered babies in their first year of birth?"

Casey, "Yes it is. They take a long time to grow compared to other Pokemon. It is the main reason why most trainers prefer catching a Pupitar instead."

Brock muttered darkly, "It does not stop certain people from doing it though."

Ash sighed, "Yes, and unfortunately we have to deal with the fall out of such arrogant decisions this time."

Gou, "It gets frustrating."

Lucario looked up, -Stay alert.-

Ash sat up, "What do you hear?"

Charizard flew down beside them making Max jump in shock, the spectacles boy had forgotten Charizard was tailing them. The fire lizard had a quick word with Lucario before flying off again with his mate towards the direction Lucario had been previously glaring at. Lucario pulled both Ash and Brock aside and had a quick conversation with them, Max wondered what it was about as Ash had paled. Casey and Gou shared another look, Ash only got pale when one of two situations occurred, children were killed or his crazy relative was nearby. They pulled Max aside and gave him one of their emergency contact numbers to call either one of the Gym leaders or Professor.

Max gulped, "It can't be that bad right?"

Casey, "I hope not."

Gou, "Better safe than sorry. Do you have your army knife on you?"

Max nodded, "Yes."

Gou, "Keep it close."

Casey, "We have an enemy nearby most probably."

Kirlia, -But who could it be?-

Brock was speaking quietly, "Are you okay?"

Ash, "I wish I could say yes. I should have known I can't avoid him forever."

Brock, "We did a good job though."

Lucario growled, -He will not touch you Meema. He will have to go through me first.-

Noctowl, -Us too. We are not training for looks after all.-

Ash, "Wahh! Noctowl, you have a beautiful voice. I like it."

Abra was amused, -That's what you focus on Meema?-

Ash laughed, "Sorry but truly, you have a comforting voice."

Noctowl nodded, -The next move I am learning us disarming voice then. It should be the next step.-

Ash, "Of course."

Max, "Ash is everything alright?"

Ash, "I wish I could say everything was alright but I can't."

Brock, "Gonzalez was spotted around the area. This is where he had been hiding."

"And it seems my patience paid off, my little nephew."

Ash froze, "You are crazy."

Gonzalez tsked, "That is not how you talk to your uncle. Didn't my brother teach you anything?"

Ash, "I may be related to Giovanni but I am not related to you."

Gonzalez, "So he disowned me. No matter, we still share blood."

Ash, "Oh sweet Mew! No we don't! I am not related to you at all. I am related to Giov through my aunt. He is my Uncle through marriage. Are you listening?"

Gonzalez, "So, he did disown me and is now spreading such ridiculous lies."

Brock dead panned, "I don't think there is any point trying to reason with him."

Gonzalez, "You are coming with me today."

Gou, "No, I will not let you touch him."

Casey, "You will have to go through us first."

Max was calling the psychic Pokemon together behind them whispering, "Listen guys, we have one shot. You need to pull your abilities together."

Kirlia, -What are you planning?-

Max whispered, "Remember the clearing we were at a few days ago?"

Noctowl, -Yes, I do.-

Lapras, -Me too.-

Alakazam, -I get it. You want us to teleport everyone there.-

Max, "Is it possible?"

Lapras looked around, -We have to deal with the psychic Pokemon they have first.-

Max, "Breloom, Houndour, get ready."

Breloom, "Loom breloom."

Houndour, "Orrrrr."

Ash, "I refuse."

Gonzalez, "Do not be stubborn. I can make you strong. Don't you want to be the strongest?"

Ash, "Uhhh no. I only train to be strongest because it is my Pokemon's dream to become powerful Alpha leaders in the future. As for my dreams it is to.... Well I am already living it. My horror novels are already famous."

Casey, "And there are many directors wishing to turn it into movies."

Ash, "So no, I do not need your false promises."

Gonzalez has a dark expression, "I will make you my heir and eliminate Giovanni no matter what."

Gou, "He does not care."

Brock, "How typical!"

Ash, "Guess we battle."