Pokemon: A New Path

"Everyone, come on out!"

Ash grinned as he looked at the feast laid out before them. Without wasting a second, he reached into his pocket, grabbed several Poké Balls, and tossed them into the air.

With flashes of bright white light, his Pokémon emerged one by one in the living room.

Pikachu, Swellow, Corphish, and Treecko.

May and Max, who had been on the road for days, hadn’t had such a proper meal in a long time. The delicious aroma filled the air, making their stomachs growl.

May swallowed hard before exclaiming, "Mr. Naoki, your cooking smells amazing!"

Brock, ever the food connoisseur, picked up a piece of Poffin and a Poke block, inspecting them closely.

"This rich aroma… this glossy texture… These could only be made by someone with top-tier Pokémon Breeder skills!" Brock said in awe. "Mr. Naoki, are you a Pokémon Breeder too?"

Naoki chuckled, shaking his head modestly. "It’s nothing that fancy. I’ve just had a lot of practice."

He gestured toward the ranch. "There are a lot of Pokémon here, so I make Poffins and Poke blocks for them every day. Over time, I just got better at it."

"Pikapi…!"

Hearing this, Pikachu grabbed a Poffin, and took a bite—And its face instantly lit up with delight.

"Pikachuuu~!"

"It looks like Pikachu loves it!" Ash laughed.

Naoki smiled. "If you like it, feel free to eat as much as you want."

Turning toward the open fields, he let out a sharp whistle that echoed across the pasture.

Within moments, Pokémon came rushing over from all directions.

Dragonite, Alcremie, Pawmot, Ogerpon.

Meanwhile, Koraidon and Cyclizar were already waiting inside, and the Eeveelutions were off playing near the World Tree.

Even though they had toured the ranch earlier, Ash and his friends were once again amazed at the variety of Pokémon.

"This place is incredible!" May gasped.

Max, scanning the area, suddenly noticed something missing.

"Wait… Where are Jirachi and Mew?"

Naoki chuckled. "They probably went off to their secret base with Teddiursa."

Seeing the group’s curious expressions, he explained, "It’s a hidden place that Mew created using its psychic abilities. Even I don’t know exactly where it is!"

Ash was about to respond—But before he could say anything, a strange Pokémon suddenly appeared in the living room.

With its large crown-like head and regal presence, it stood there, radiating an air of mystery and authority.

Pikachu and the others, who were happily eating, were startled and let out yelps of surprise.

Brock’s eyes widened in shock.

"What Pokémon is that?!"

Ash quickly pulled out his Rotom Phone and pointed it at the newcomer.

A robotic voice rang out:

[Calyrex, the King Pokémon. It is said to possess the power to heal and bless others. This Pokémon is known for its boundless wisdom and a heart full of compassion.]

"Calyrex?!" May gasped. "Could it be…?"

She immediately thought of the legend that had been spreading across the internet.

Brock, still in shock, pulled out his Pokémon forum app and scrolled through his followed researchers. It didn’t take long before he found a post by Professor Oak.

"It’s the legendary Pokémon… It really exists!" Brock muttered.

Then he turned to Naoki, recalling what Professor Oak had mentioned earlier.

An idea suddenly formed in his mind.

'No wonder Professor Oak had published a research paper on the King of Bountiful Harvests when he was in Paldea.

Was the Trainer who had captured Calyrex… Naoki?!

But before Brock could voice his thoughts, Naoki smiled gently.

"No need to be so surprised." He gestured to Calyrex. "Just treat it like any other Pokémon."

Calyrex approached the table, standing tall and dignified. It observed the group with calm, intelligent eyes before speaking in a soft yet commanding tone:

"Do not be alarmed. I am no longer a king. I am simply a humble farmer now."

The room fell into stunned silence. Ash and his friends stared with wide eyes, too shocked to speak.

Naoki, sensing the awkwardness, clapped his hands. "Alright, let’s eat!"

The group slowly snapped out of their daze and began enjoying their meal, but they couldn’t help but steal glances at Calyrex from time to time.

This was the first time they had ever dined alongside a Legendary Pokémon. And it felt unbelievable.

Ash, however, had something else on his mind. His gaze drifted toward Calyrex, a spark of excitement flashing in his eyes.

"Mr. Naoki!" he blurted out. "Can I battle Calyrex later?"

Naoki froze for a moment, clearly caught off guard.

Calyrex gazed at the eager young Trainer before him with mild curiosity. "Do you wish to battle me?"

Ash’s expression lit up with determination, his fists clenching in excitement.

"Yes!" he declared. "Because battling every Pokémon in the world and becoming a Pokémon Master has always been my dream!"

Calyrex tilted its head slightly. "And after that?"

Ash paused for a moment, then smiled. "After that… I’ll keep traveling! With Pikachu and my team, I’ll go to every corner of the world and meet even more Pokémon I’ve never seen before!"

May stared at Ash in awe, caught off guard by the sincerity and passion in his words.

Naoki, too, was momentarily speechless.

Even Calyrex seemed moved by Ash’s conviction.

After a brief silence, the Legendary Pokémon gave a small nod. "Very well, I accept your challenge."

"Awesome!" Ash cheered, barely able to contain his excitement.

Naoki, however, couldn't help but feel a little uncertain. His gaze drifted to Ash’s Pokémon.

Pikachu, Treecko, Swellow, Corphish…

Aside from Pikachu, the rest of Ash’s Pokémon were still relatively new to his team. Not to mention—at this point, Pikachu hadn’t even reached its peak strength yet.

And the opponent?

A Legendary Pokémon that had long since surpassed its prime…

No matter how he thought about it, this was a losing battle. But then again… this was Ash.

Watching Ash devour his lunch at lightning speed, May sighed and muttered, "Ash is such a battle junkie…"

Brock, who had traveled with Ash for years, simply crossed his arms and smiled. "That’s just Ash’s style."

After finishing their meal, the group headed to the ranch’s battle arena.

Calyrex floated gracefully to its side of the field, while Ash took his place on the opposite end.

May tilted her head in confusion. "Huh? Mr. Naoki, aren’t you going to give commands?"

Naoki chuckled, shaking his head. "No need. Calyrex knows exactly what to do."

Ash took a deep breath, his excitement reaching its peak.

"Alright! Pikachu, I choose you!"

The Electric-type Pokémon immediately leaped off Ash’s shoulder, landing firmly on the battlefield.

"Pikapi!"

With that, the battle officially began.

Calyrex remained completely still, yet Pikachu could feel the immense psychic pressure radiating from it.

A shiver ran down Pikachu’s spine, but it refused to back down. Instead, it lowered its stance, eyes narrowing with determination.

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" Ash commanded.

"Pika…CHUUU!!"

A massive surge of electricity crackled around Pikachu’s body before bursting forward in a storm of blinding lightning bolts, racing straight for Calyrex.

However—

Calyrex did not move.

Instead, with the slightest flicker of its mind, a transparent barrier of light appeared before it.

The Thunderbolt slammed against the shield—And was completely absorbed.

"Pikapi?!" Pikachu gasped.

The very next moment, Calyrex countered.

With a mere shift of its psychic energy, an invisible force slammed into Pikachu like a shockwave, sending it flying backward.

"Pikachu!!"

Ash’s partner tumbled across the battlefield before skidding to a stop.

For a second, there was silence.

Pikachu gritted its teeth and slowly stood back up, its tiny body covered in dust and bruises.

Seeing this, Ash's mind raced. He needed a new strategy—fast. A flash of inspiration struck, and he made his call.

"Pikachu, use Quick Attack!"

"Pikapi!"

In an instant, Pikachu dashed forward, moving at blinding speed, its small body becoming a streak of white light racing across the battlefield.

However—

Calyrex barely moved. The Legendary Pokémon simply raised a hand, a glow of psychic energy forming at its fingertips.

With a flick of its wrist—

A sphere of concentrated psychic energy shot forward, colliding head-on with Pikachu.

BOOM!

The force of the attack sent Pikachu flying backward, crashing into the ground.

Pikachu tried to stand… but its legs wobbled before it finally collapsed onto the grass.

The battle was over.

"Wow… that was incredible!" Brock muttered, stunned by Calyrex’s sheer power.

May and Max exchanged shocked glances, their eyes wide.

There had been no opening for Pikachu at all—Calyrex’s strength was on an entirely different level.

However, even in defeat, Ash wasn’t discouraged. Instead, he looked up at Calyrex with a grateful smile.

"Thank you for the battle!" he said sincerely.

Calyrex observed him for a moment before giving a small nod. With a wave of its hand, a soft golden light surrounded Pikachu, restoring its strength.

Then, without another word, Calyrex vanished, drifting away toward the glass greenhouse—where, apparently, it had some personal time scrolling through its phone.

Naoki watched all of this unfold before turning to Ash. "So, what do you think?"

Ash’s eyes sparkled with excitement.

"Calyrex is amazing!" he exclaimed.

Then—he turned, his gaze shifting toward Naoki’s other Pokémon. With renewed determination, he clenched his fists.

"Mr. Naoki, let’s keep battling! Swellow and Treecko are still ready to go!"

Naoki: “…”

Well… he had promised Ash a battle earlier, so there was no backing out now.

Naoki sighed with a smile and called forth a few random Pokémon to battle against Ash’s team.

One after another, they faced off in friendly matches.

By the time it was all over, the sun was already starting to set.

It was nearly five o’clock in the afternoon.

Naoki returned to work, gathering the day’s harvest.

Meanwhile, Ash and his Pokémon ran off toward the fields, helping Vigoroth burn off its boundless energy.

Naoki watched from a distance, shaking his head with amusement.

"Young people really have endless energy…"

In truth, Ash might have even more energy than Vigoroth itself.

While Ash was busy playing tag with a hyperactive Pokémon, Brock and Max had started observing the Pokémon around the ranch.

Max’s eyes sparkled with excitement as he looked at all the incredible Pokémon in the pastures.

"This ranch is amazing…" he whispered in awe.

Seeing Ash battle earlier only made him want to grow up even faster.

"One day, I’ll have my own Pokémon and go on an adventure too!" he thought to himself.

By the time Naoki returned from finishing his tasks, he found Ash and Vigoroth lying side by side on the grass, completely exhausted.

Both of them were panting heavily, but grinning from ear to ear. For the first time since its evolution, Vigoroth’s eyes softened.

There was something different in its gaze—A kind of affection toward the young Trainer who wasn’t afraid to go wild with it.

Watching Ash and Vigoroth collapse onto the grass, panting from exhaustion, Naoki silently nodded to himself.

He had a general idea of what to do next.

...

After dinner, Mew, Teddiursa, and Jirachi finally returned to the ranch.

It was now the second night since the appearance of the Millennium Comet.

Though Kosaji Town wasn’t in the ideal location to witness the celestial event in full, the night sky over the ranch was still a breathtaking sea of twinkling stars.

As darkness settled in, Naoki led Ash and the others to an open field, where they could admire the sky without obstruction.

Jirachi, Mew, and Teddiursa sat on the soft grass, gazing up at the summer night sky alongside them.

"Wow… it's so beautiful," May murmured in awe.

At that moment, Ash and Max suddenly recalled a legend they had heard about Jirachi. Turning their curious gazes toward the Star Pokémon, they asked excitedly:

"Hey, Jirachi! We heard that if someone makes a wish when you wake up, you can grant it no matter what! Is that true?"

Mew and Teddiursa, sitting beside them, also looked at Jirachi with sparkling eyes, eager to know the answer.

Hearing the conversation revolve around him, Jirachi blinked in confusion.

"Jira" "Wish?" the small Pokémon repeated.

Naoki, leaning back against Koraidon, absentmindedly stroked its large paws while watching the scene with a gentle smile.

He chose not to interfere.

Max eagerly stepped forward, nodding enthusiastically.

"Yeah! A wish! Like… I wish for an endless supply of snacks!"

"Jir..Jira" "Snacks… snacks…?" Jirachi tilted its head, then suddenly spun in the air with excitement.

A soft glow flickered from the wish tag on its forehead, and in the next instant, bags of snacks magically materialized out of nowhere!

Ash and Max’s eyes widened in amazement.

"It actually worked!" Max cheered, grabbing a bag of chips.

Jirachi giggled happily, clearly pleased with itself.

Meanwhile…

At that very moment, in a small convenience store in Kosaji Town

Team Rocket was hard at work… or rather, complaining about their current misfortunes.

Jessie crossed her arms, glaring at James.

"This is all YOUR fault! If those Dragonites hadn’t overheard you, they wouldn’t have destroyed our Meowth Balloon!"

James groaned, throwing his hands up.

"Oh, so NOW it’s my fault? If I recall correctly, YOU wanted to capture those Pokémon just as much as I did!"

Meowth, who was stacking boxes on a shelf, let out an exhausted sigh.

"Quit yer yappin'! We gotta earn enough money to fix the Meowth Balloon and get outta this dump!"

Just as Meowth turned around, he froze. His tail stood straight up in alarm.

Because the snacks on the shelves were disappearing.

One by one.

Meowth's fur bristled. "W-wait a minute… where did all the snacks go?!"

Jessie and James, still bickering, finally noticed what was happening. They turned just in time to see another bag of chips vanish into thin air.

The warehouse was completely empty except for the three of them. The store was silent, the sky outside completely dark.

A sudden gust of cold wind blew through the window, making the cardboard boxes rustle eerily.

Jessie swallowed hard.

"J-James… did you… see that?"

James paled, gripping Jessie’s arm.

"I did… I DID!"

Meowth trembled, ears twitching.

"It’s a GHOST!!"

Just then the warehouse door suddenly swung open.

The store owner stepped inside, here to check on the progress of his three new employees.

However, the moment he saw the empty shelves, his expression froze. He turned his gaze toward Team Rocket, eyes narrowing dangerously.

"I told you when you started—NO eating the merchandise!" he bellowed.

"It wasn’t us, meow!" Meowth yelped, shaking his paws frantically.

Unfortunately, there were no other suspects in the warehouse.

The store owner crossed his arms, his expression turning cold.

"Hmph! You’ll work here until you pay off every last Poké dollar!"

He then gestured behind him. "Dodrio, make sure they don’t slack off!"

With that, the store owner stormed out, slamming the door behind him.

Left behind in the warehouse was a Pokémon with three heads, staring them down menacingly.

...

"Jirachi really can grant wishes!"

May beamed excitedly, gazing at the mountain of snacks scattered across the ranch’s field.

Just as the group was about to make another wish, a voice suddenly interrupted.

"Wait a second."

Naoki approached, kneeling down to examine the packaging. He turned the snack bag over—and sure enough, printed on the label was the logo of a convenience store from Kosaji Town.

Ash and the others turned their heads toward him.

Naoki rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "I have a theory… I think these snacks weren’t created from nothing. They were… moved from a store nearby."

"Huh?!"

May hurried over and picked up a bag to check.

Sure enough, she could see the store’s branding right on the wrapper!

Brock furrowed his brows. "Does that mean Jirachi can’t actually create things from thin air?"

Naoki nodded. "Energy in nature is always conserved. These snacks had to come from somewhere."

Ash’s expression shifted. He stared at the pile of snacks, realization sinking in.

If these were taken from a store… wouldn’t that mean the owner is probably really confused right now?

Thinking of this, Ash turned to Jirachi and spoke sincerely.

"Jirachi, can you send these snacks back?"

Jirachi tilted its head.

"Jira" "But… don’t you want them?"

Before Ash could reply, Teddiursa stepped in, explaining with a series of little growls.

"Ursa! Ursa!" (Stealing is wrong, and we shouldn’t take things from others.)

Jirachi’s eyes widened slightly, understanding dawned on its face. Floating up, its Wish Tag began to glow once more.

And just like that, the snacks vanished, one by one, returning to where they came from.

Just as the wish was completed, May suddenly thought of something.

"By the way… what’s Jirachi going to do from now on?"

Now that it didn’t need to sleep for a thousand years, it could go wherever it wanted, right? Hearing the question, the group turned to Jirachi, watching curiously.

Jirachi looked back at Mew and Teddiursa—the two friends it had made since waking up. This morning, they had taken Jirachi to visit the World Tree and the Hero Expedition Team’s secret base.

Mew had even shared all its toys, and they had played together for hours. The tree was filled with mysteries and wonders—it felt like even a thousand years of playing there wouldn’t be enough.

Jirachi loved it.

However, there was another place that needed it.

Forina.

That land, and the Pokémon living there, relied on Jirachi’s power—absorbing energy from the stars to nourish the earth.

Jirachi’s small face twisted in uncertainty. It didn’t know what to do. It wanted to stay and play with its new friends forever.

But it also had a duty to fulfill. Faced with two paths, Jirachi was stuck in a dilemma.

What… should I do?