As we continue in the Petalburg Forest, we find a scientist who seems to be from the Devon Corp. He seems to be looking for something.

"I wonder what he's doing..." I say as we approach him. "Excuse me, is there a problem?"

The scientist says, "Hello, have you seen any Pokemon called Shroomish around here?"

Mark says, "Yes. I have the data in the Pokedex." Mark shows him.

"Oh, thank you for your help. I really love that Pokemon, so I am wondering if you can find one so I can research it?"

Max says, "Cool, can we help?"

We decide to help him and find the habitats of Shroomish, and we manage to befriend some of them with ease. Mark and I also capture one because we want them, and Max also manages to befriend one of them.

Shroomish: The Mushroom Pokemon: Grass Type. Shroomish live in damp soil in the dark depths of forests. They are often found keeping still under fallen leaves. This Pokémon feeds on compost that is made up of fallen, rotted leaves.

"I was going to ambush you, but you had to dawdle in Petalburg Woods forever, didn't you?" When we turn around, we can't believe what we're seeing. It is a man in a blue and white-stripe outfit.

"I got sick of waiting, so here I am. You! Devon Researcher! Hand over those papers!" The man says.

"Hey! Who are you to demand him to hand over the papers?" May yells.

The scientist hides behind me and says, "You're Pokemon Trainers, aren't you? You've got to help me, please!"

The man turns to me and says, "Hunh? What do you think you're doing? What, you're going to protect him? No one who crosses Team Aqua gets any mercy, not even a kid!"

So they are Team Aqua, and he challenges us to a battle. He uses only a Poochyena, which is not that hard to beat.

"Grr... You've got some nerve meddling with Team Aqua! Come on and battle me again! I wish I could say that, but I'm out of Pokemon..." The grunt is trying to flee, but I say, "What are you trying to get here?"

"We of Team Aqua are also after something in Rustboro. I'll let you go for today!" Just then, he runs away as fast as he can. Alice yells, "Get back here!"

"It's fine, he didn't steal anything." Mark says.

"Whew... That was awfully close! Thanks to you, he didn't rob me of these important papers." The scientist says, but then he flinches, "Ah! Didn't that Team Aqua thug say they were after something in Rustboro, too? Uh-oh! It's a crisis! I can't be wasting time!"

Then he runs off, and Minami says, "If they're trying to do something to the Devon Corp, I wouldn't be so surprised about that."

"Our mother has warned us about the two evil groups in the Hoenn Region, but I didn't think we would be seeing one of the two here..." I say.

Before we leave the cave, we also find a Pokemon that I'm looking for. Max says, "Dad also has a Slakoth, but there are wild ones here!"

"Yeah, and I think Slaking is a powerful Pokemon, the only downside is the Truant ability." Then I decide to throw the Pokeball and the Slakoth who is resting on the tree, and it is captured.

Slakoth: The Slacker Pokemon: Normal Type. Slakoth lolls around for over twenty hours every day. Because it moves so little, it does not need much food. This Pokémon's sole daily meal consists of just three leaves.

"Didn't you have to weaken the Pokemon first before capturing it?" May asks me.

"Doing something like this usually takes less time, but less accurate as well." I say back.

Minami says, "I have to agree with that. But check out, guys!"

I am surprised to see that Minami manages to capture more Pokemon without my noticing. I ask, "When did you get those Pokemon?"

"I used Double Team." Minami says as she shows me the Zigzagoon, Taillow, Ralts, and Slakoth that she captured. Mark says, "She's not the only one."

He also shows that he captured a Wingull and a Surskit. I say, "I can't believe you..."

"Wait, so if you can use Double Team... that means you can go anywhere without being suspicious?" Max asks.

I sigh, "But using Double Team decreases our energy deeply. I only use a maximum of three at the same time." I say. "And one of them is already out there."

"Interesting..." May says.

Before we leave, I also hear something behind the tree. But I didn't think much about it. "... This is the Petalburg recon team checking in. I'm afraid I have to begin with an apology. Mr. Matt... It's not good news... The mission is a no-go... A little something cropped up and got in the way... Roger that... Got it. Will do. I'll continue investigating that energy we detected."

Then she says, "Phew! But those kids had some promise as trainers, I'd say."

"Ash? Is there something wrong?" When Alice asks me, I turn to say, "Nothing. Just my imagination. Let's get out of the forest."

And when we are on the other side of Route 104, we find a shop called Pretty Petal Flower Shop. We talk to the younger sister and she gives us an item known as the Wailmer Pail, which enables us to plant berries after we harvest and plant more.

When we arrive at Rustboro City, we arrive at a Contest Hall as we see the workers preparing for the upcoming contest.

"Check it out! There is a Pokemon Contest starting there!" Max says.

"A Pokemon Contest?" May asks.

Before we can say anything, a Beautifly lands on May's face before re-positioning itself on her head.

"I'm so sorry!" "Are you okay?" We turn to see two trainers running towards us. I ask, "Sorry, is this Beautifly your Pokemon that you're training with the Contests?"

"As a matter of fact, I was. But unfortunately, some of the attacks were a little bit wrong." The woman says.

"That's probably my fault. Venomoth's Whirlwind attack is far too strong, it was a hopeless failure." Then the two of them introduce themselves as Janet and Chaz.

May says, "There's something I don't understand... how can a powerful attack be a failure?"

"Contest Battle differs from a regular battle, it is not the raw power that matters, but the beauty of the attack. As Pokémon Coordinators they train Pokémon to execute an attack in such a way that it increases its visual appeal." I say.

"Not to mention that the winner of the contests is awarded with a Ribbon, right?" Max asks.

Then Janet and Chaz show us their ribbons, Chaz has one and Janet has two. Mark says, "No way, you've already got two of them?"

May says, "That's cool! I want to win one too!"

"You really need to be great with Pokemon to win, May." Max says.

"I'm natural with Pokemon." May says back.

"How about we all enter the Contest?" I suggest.

"I know the entry is limited, I wonder if it's too late at this point?" Janet says.

"Nah, but they should probably hurry." Then much to our surprise, there is only one spot left in the Contest. Alice, Mark, and Minami are fine to sit this one out, and May doesn't have a Contest Pass, so I am the one entering this contest.

In the backstage, I am now already changing into a Contest outfit. I can see that Alice is blushing at seeing me, and Mark says, "Nice look as always, brother."

"Thanks." I say. "Although outfits don't really matter with the Contests, but I need to look good after all."

The Rustboro City Pokémon Contest gets underway as an unnamed announcer introduces the panel of judges, Mr. Contesta, Mr. Sukizo, and Nurse Joy. Just like in Johto. He also displays the prize that will be given to the winning Coordinator, the Rustboro Ribbon, and states that any Coordinator who wins five Contest Ribbons may enter the Grand Festival.

Janet approaches me and says, "It seems you're experienced with this?"

I say, "You'll know about it for sure."

At the backstage, May is amazed by the environment, and she sees how the Pokemon are having a show. Minami says, "That's how the Appeal Round works. The first impressions are really important and the judges will use criteria such as the level of cooperation between Coordinator and Pokémon to evaluate each performance and assign points to the contestants."

"Amazing..." May is very impressed by everything she is learning and realizes how fascinating Pokémon truly are.

At the appealing round, Chaz commanded his Venomoth to use Confusion to psychically pour tea from a teapot, earning 29.5 from the judges. Janet begins with Beautifly using Flash. Beautifly then uses String Shot to shatter some plates that were thrown by May and Max and the presentation ends with the Butterfly Pokémon using Hidden Power as Janet earns a perfect 30.0 score.

"Now for our final contestant for today, we have an outstanding guest for the Contest in Hoenn! It's our Top Coordinator Ash Ketchum who won the Johto Grand Festival for the first time last year!"

When I step onto the field, I can see that May and Max are shocked about this.

"Ash is a Top Coordinator?" May gasps.

"Of course he is." Mark says. "Although we weren't able to see it live... our Mom and some of our siblings managed to watch it."

Minami says, "Our mother is the one who found the Contests, and she was also a tough rival with Uncle Wallace, which is why we were trained to coordinate with our Pokemon."

"Wow..." Max says.

I used Butterfree to perform a Powder Rain, and in the end, I got a 30-point score as well.

"What an amazing performance. Butterfree's powder is like a rainbow-colored rain! It is beautiful!" The MC says.

Once my performance was done, I went backstage and Max said, "That was really awesome! As expected from a Top Coordinator like you!"

"Thanks, all that hard work really paid off." I say.

Then the 4 contestants who are going to the second round appear, Janet, Chaz, and I are on the screen. Chaz and Janet are battling each other.

The battle begins with Venomoth using Stun Spore, which Beautifly counters with Gust. Both Coordinators lose points, but Chaz loses a little bit more than Janet.

"Well, although Stun Spore works first, it is then blown back by Beautifly's Gust. So the Gust was worth more points because the judges evaluate more than just the attack, they also take into account the way a Pokémon defends itself." Alice says.

"In a Contest Battle, both sides must work to reduce each other's points and then the one with the most points left at the end of the five-minute time limit wins. This variation of Pokémon battling is something you have never seen before." Mark says.

Beautifly eventually takes the upper hand despite Venomoth's Psybeam dealing more damage compared to Beautifly's Hidden Power, thanks to a Morning Sun that went unopposed. Chaz loses a significant amount of points and Max comments on Janet's skills. When time runs out, the announcer calls attention to the scoreboard, which shows Janet to be ahead of Chaz on points.

I also go into the next round using Butterfree's moves, and I win and I'm going to face Janet in the finals.

As the final round begins, Beautifly and Butterfree both use Quiver Dance. Since Butterfree is prettier, Janet loses more points than me. Then Beautifly uses Gust, while Butterfree converts it into a silver rain. But Janet didn't get easy on me as her Silver Wind hit Butterfree. But after a series of attacks, I have Butterfree use Psychic with Solar Beam to make like a Blade and hit Beautifly.

"Wow, I didn't know Ash could perform so well..." May says.

"During years of acting and also training with Mother, he learns a lot of fancy moves." Mark says.

"Well, I decided. I am going to participate in the contest, too." May says as Alice smiles, "Good for you."

In the end, I got 5 points higher than Janet, and I was going to be the winner, but just before we could leave, a certain group of idiots come to ruin everything once more. Team Rocket is trying to steal the Ribbon and capture Beautifly. Then we send them flying with the help of Chaz and Janet.

Back outside, Janet says, "You really are a strong Coordinator. We are excited to meet you again when we battle."

"Sure. I will be waiting." I say as we shake hands.

Here is a new chapter, and in this chapter, Ash has managed to get his first ribbon. I wonder what will happen next and I hope you like this chapter.

Ash + Alice's Pokemon:

Butterfree x2 (One Pink), Pikachu, Lapras, Meganium, Espeon, Steelix (Crystal), Mantine, Treecko, Torchic, Poochyena, Zigzagoon, Wurmple x2, Lotad, Seedot, Taillow, Wingull, Ralts x2 (One Shiny), Surskit, Shroomish, Slakoth

May's Pokemon:

Torchic, Wurmple

Mark's Pokemon:

Blaziken, Ludicolo, Wingull, Surskit, Shroomish, Hariyama

Minami's Pokemon:

Zigzagoon, Taillow, Ralts, Slakoth, Delcatty, Mawile, Lunatone