Ash had often wondered: aside from Rayquaza, which other Pokémon might possess the potential to reach the same level as Arceus?
Could it be Xerneas, the God of Life? Yveltal, the God of Death?
Kyogre, the Ruler of the Seas? Groudon, the Ruler of the Land?
Or perhaps Ho-Oh—or even Kyurem, the legendary Pokémon said to possess the combined powers of multiple Divine Beasts?
Yet, Champion Ash revealed to him that the other Pokémon—the one Arceus deemed capable of potentially reaching its own level—was none other than...
Pikachu!
This Pikachu was, without a doubt, the very same Pikachu he knew.
Ash had always known that Pikachu possessed unfathomable potential; he was convinced that even the "Divine Realm" tier was well within its reach—it was merely a matter of time. That peculiar power of "reincarnation"—a power that even the Divine Beasts themselves did not possess...
Among the countless Divine Beasts with their myriad, bizarre abilities, was there a single one that could match Pikachu—constantly expanding its own upper limits simply by traveling through more and more regions?
If the Divine Beasts possessed such an ability, their power ceilings would likely have reached Arceus's level long ago.
Then again, perhaps it was precisely because it was Pikachu that it was able to wield such power. After all, Pikachu started from a very humble beginning.
Had such a power been bestowed upon Pokémon that already started from a high baseline—not even mentioning the Divine Beasts, but rather "Pseudo-Legendaries" like Salamence, or Pokémon with exceptional growth potential like Charizard—they would have skyrocketed to unimaginable heights after visiting just a handful of regions.
Now that Pikachu had undergone two "reincarnations," its growth ceiling likely hovered near the Champion level. Had that same unique ability been granted to his Charizard instead, Charizard's growth ceiling would likely have already skyrocketed to the very pinnacle of the Divine Realm.
The world operates on a principle of balance; such a heaven-defying power could not possibly be entrusted to a Pokémon that was already heaven-defying in its own right.
Nevertheless—even with such a miraculous ability at its disposal—Ash had never truly imagined that Pikachu would one day grow powerful enough to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Arceus.
Or rather, ever since he first learned of Arceus's existence, Ash had never truly believed that any Pokémon could ever reach the same transcendent heights as the Alpha Pokémon.
Therefore, when he first heard that some of the "big shots" in the group were actually attempting to challenge Arceus, he was utterly shocked. That could actually be challenged? Wasn't that just a guaranteed defeat?
As it turned out, his own experience was simply too limited. Arceus was not, in fact, invincible. Provided one could reach the same power tier as Arceus—and then battle Arceus while the deity had temporarily divested itself of its Plates—there was indeed a chance to win!
It sounded like there were quite a few prerequisites involved, but what could you do? That was Arceus, after all! The mere fact that one could even have a chance to defeat the deity was already an incredible feat; a few extra conditions were only to be expected.
[Champion Ash: At this moment, I stand as the strongest Trainer in the entire Pokémon world. Yet, when facing Arceus, I still feel a sense of powerlessness. However, I am still young, and there are still boundless possibilities ahead of me. Currently, Pikachu and I are working as teachers in the Paldea region—partly to experience the fulfillment of guiding and educating others, and partly to explore every facet of the Paldea region itself.]
[Champion Ash: Once I have fully explored every corner of Paldea, and once Pikachu has ascended to the next tier of power, that will be the moment I attempt my second challenge against Arceus.]
A second challenge against Arceus...
How magnificent. That was the true confidence of the world's strongest Trainer. When would he finally possess that kind of power?
Ash thought to himself with a touch of envy, while simultaneously feeling a surge of renewed fighting spirit. Even after participating in a battle at the very pinnacle of the "Divine Realm," the situation as he now understood it made it clear that he was still a long way from reaching the end of his journey. Even "Champion Ash" had not yet reached the absolute finish line of his own quest; he would have to work harder than ever before!
[Champion Ash: Keep at it, rookie! I look forward to the day you ascend to our tier of existence. When that time comes, I hope we can exchange notes on our experiences battling Arceus.]
[Ascender Ash: You got it, Big Bro! That day will come! Well then, I'm heading back to Pallet Town for now!]
[Champion Ash: Alright. Go on ahead.]
...
The day after the events in the Orange Islands, Lorelei and Cynthia bade farewell to Ash. Lorelei had to return to the Pokémon League headquarters to file her report, while Cynthia was tasked with escorting the numerous members—including the high-ranking executives—of Team Galactic back into custody.
After all, Team Galactic was an organization native to their Sinnoh region; therefore, its members needed to be transported back to Sinnoh to be detained and interrogated there.
Before departing, the two young women also asked Ash about Mewtwo. They were already somewhat familiar with Mewtwo's power, but the strength displayed during this battle far exceeded their wildest imaginations.
After all, Mewtwo had been facing Dark Lugia—a being at the very pinnacle of the Divine Realm. Yet, not only was Mewtwo not suppressed by Lugia, but it actually turned the tables, pinning Lugia down and thoroughly thrashing it across the ocean's surface. Through multiple exchanges, Lugia failed to gain even the slightest advantage.
Later, after shifting forms, Mewtwo—with just a few punches and kicks—completely shattered the darkness enveloping Lugia. It appeared as though Mewtwo had ascended to a level even beyond Lugia; yet, in reality, just over three months ago, Mewtwo's power had barely reached the initial stage of the Divine Realm.
How, then, had it managed to grow so incredibly powerful in such a short span of time?
In response, Mewtwo remained silent. Without uttering a single word, it retreated back into Ash's Poké Ball, effectively dumping the remaining responsibilities squarely onto Ash's shoulders. After all, it had finished its fight—and not only had it finished it, but it had thoroughly enjoyed the brawl.
Although even Mewtwo didn't fully understand the source of its sudden, explosive surge in power, it had known ever since its very first encounter with Ash that he was the sort of person who could conjure up all manner of bizarre and inexplicable phenomena.
Back then, that "blue-skinned dog" Pokémon—which Mewtwo had initially deemed beneath its notice—had, after a single evolution, transformed into a being capable of utterly decimating it. Later, during their battle on New Island, although that "dog" didn't manifest that specific power again, Ash's own inherent strength had still left Mewtwo utterly astonished.
Now, today, it was finally Mewtwo's turn to experience the thrill of such a massive power surge. Not only did this surge allow it to gleefully thrash a foe at the very pinnacle of the Divine Realm, but once the temporary boost subsided, Mewtwo also sensed a permanent increase in its own innate power.
Its strength had already been on the verge of breaking through to the intermediate stage of the Divine Realm—it was just one final step away. The consecutive battles fought today provided the exact push needed to clear that final hurdle, elevating Mewtwo's rank to the intermediate stage of the Divine Realm.
Within the God-tier realm, every minor rank represents a vast chasm of difference. An ordinary God-tier Pokémon might take five or even ten years to advance a single minor rank; yet, by Ash's side, Mewtwo felt the stirrings of a breakthrough after a mere three months.
Now, in the fourth month, she had completely shattered her bottleneck, ascending to a brand-new level of power.
However, today's gains did not end there. After the immense surge of power that had suddenly flooded her body receded, Mewtwo sensed that a residual portion of that energy remained within her.
Once she fully absorbed and assimilated this remaining energy, she might very well ascend yet another step—reaching the High-tier of the God-tier realm!
For someone who had only just leveled up, this was nothing short of miraculous—a miracle, moreover, that Ash had made possible for her.
Although Mewtwo was tempted to ask Ash why her power had suddenly skyrocketed to such heights, the fact that he hadn't volunteered an explanation suggested that this, too, was likely tied to the secret he harbored.
Ash carried a secret—one so profound that even she could not fully fathom it. This secret appeared to be linked to the rapid growth of Ash's Pokémon, as well as to the temporary surge in her own power; furthermore, she recalled that when Ash had commanded her in battle previously, he had seemed like a completely different person.
The secret underlying such a massive surge in power surely could not be simple. Since Ash had not disclosed it to her, the time for such a revelation had likely not yet arrived; given that, she decided not to press the matter further.
As for how Ash would explain all this to Lorelei and Cynthia—well, that was entirely his own problem to handle.
Mewtwo's sudden departure left Ash scrambling somewhat as he faced Lorelei and Cynthia, though he eventually managed to offer a passable, albeit flimsy, explanation.
His excuse was rather far-fetched: he claimed that because Mewtwo was undergoing her first-ever Mega Evolution, the latent power of the Mew genes within her had been triggered.
Consequently, she had temporarily wielded power far exceeding her natural capabilities—a phenomenon, he insisted, that could only be triggered during a Pokémon's very first Mega Evolution.
Once expended, it was gone for good.
When all was said and done, Mewtwo reverted to her previous rank; however, having engaged in several battles against Legendary Pokémon, her overall level had indeed risen, elevating her to the Mid-tier of the God-tier realm.
Lorelei and Cynthia appeared to accept Ash's flimsy explanation at face value; as to whether they truly believed it deep down—well, only they themselves knew the answer to that.
After bidding farewell, Ash and his two companions remained on Shamouti Island for a while, taking the opportunity to experience the local customs and culture. Since the three Legendary Birds had all returned to their rightful places, the weather surrounding Shamouti Island had also returned to normal.
The young Lugia eventually officially became Ash's Pokémon. Team Galactic's intelligence had not been wrong; the young Lugia accompanying Ash was indeed the offspring of Lugia, the Guardian of the Sea.
Upon seeing his child's form tainted black, Lugia...
...did not feel anger; on the contrary, he expressed his gratitude to Ash.
He understood what it felt like to endure that dark power, and he knew just how difficult it was to successfully integrate such power into one's own body. The young Lugia was currently in a completely stable condition, exhibiting no signs of rejection; this was ample proof that the young Lugia had fully assimilated that dark power into its physical form.
This was clearly not something the young Lugia could have achieved on its own; the credit belonged entirely to Ash.
The young Lugia's current state was quite different from his own experience. When he had been invaded by dark forces in the past—though he, too, had outwardly taken on a pitch-black appearance—it was merely because the presence of that dark power had suppressed his own inherent strength, rather than fusing with his physical body.
Had there been no external interference, he would have required only about thirty minutes to return to his normal state.
However, given the methods employed by those humans, there was no telling what atrocities they might have committed within those thirty minutes. It was even conceivable that they might have dragged him back to their base to tighten their control over him.
Thus, had it not been for Ash, both he and his child would have faced unspeakable calamity.
For this reason, Ash was nothing short of a savior to the father and daughter pair. It was precisely for this reason that Lugia chose to entrust the young Lugia to Ash's care—and, furthermore, bestowed upon him his own sacred feather: the Silver Wing.
Before bidding farewell to Lugia, Ash had inquired about the GS Ball. The GS Ball was a unique Poké Ball created by harnessing the combined powers of Ho-Oh and Lugia.
While Ho-Oh's whereabouts remained unknown, Lugia himself stood right before them.
Unfortunately, Lugia was just as clueless about the matter; it appeared the GS Ball had merely been crafted by harnessing the power of two Legendary Pokémon, without the knowledge or consent of the Legendaries themselves.
Ash even took out the GS Ball to show Lugia. Although Lugia still could not open the ball, it did reveal its true purpose to Ash: it was a Poké Ball imbued with the power of space and time—specifically designed to capture Pokémon that possess such powers.
Speaking of the power of space and time, the first Pokémon that naturally come to mind are Dialga and Palkia.
One controls time, and the other controls space; could it be that this specific Poké Ball was created solely to capture them?
Yet, that didn't quite add up. There was only one Poké Ball; surely a single ball couldn't be used to capture two separate Pokémon?
The trail of clues went cold once again, leaving Ash with no choice but to take the GS Ball back to Professor Oak for further analysis.
However, before returning to Pallet Town, Ash had one more destination to visit: Kumquat Island in the Orange Archipelago. He was headed to the Kumquat Colosseum located there to battle Drake—the current Head Trainer of the Orange League.
Strictly speaking, one is supposed to collect a sufficient number of "Southern Cross" badges before being eligible to challenge the Head Trainer. However, Drake had personally extended this challenge invitation to Ash—relaying it through Lorelei.
The whole affair began because Drake seemed to take a keen interest in Ash.
Upon learning that Ash had arrived in the Orange Archipelago, Drake decided he wanted to battle him; the only problem was, he didn't have Ash's contact information.
Consequently, he reached out to a distant relative of his: Lance—a member of the Kanto Elite Four and the reigning Champion of the Johto League.
Upon receiving the news, Lance then contacted Lorelei, knowing that she and Ash were currently traveling together. As luck would have it, the message arrived on the very evening the "Orange Archipelago Incident" had concluded. Thus, the very next morning, Lorelei informed Ash of Drake's desire to challenge him.
And so, Ash—who had originally intended to head straight back to Pallet Town—changed course once again and set off toward Kumquat Island. Ultimately, the group departed from Asia Island on the fourth day following the Legendary Beast conflict.
They had, after all, spent two full days enjoying themselves on the island; with all the pressing matters finally resolved, they at last had some time to relax, so there was no need to rush back onto the road quite so soon.
The journey from Asia Island to Mandarin Island does not take very long; traveling aboard Lapras, they reached their destination in just half a day.
Upon arriving at Mandarin Island, Ash and his companions headed straight for the Mandarin Stadium. After being stopped by the gatekeeper, Ash announced his name and asked the guard to go fetch Drake.
After all, since they did not possess the requisite badges, only Drake himself could authorize the commencement of a battle.
Had they held the badges, the standard procedure would simply have been to register at the Pokémon Center, which would then notify the Mandarin Stadium to make preparations for the match.
Without the badges, however, Ash had no choice but to come in person to seek out Drake himself.
Fortunately, it appeared Drake had left specific instructions with the gatekeeper: should the name "Ash" be mentioned, he was to be notified immediately.
Consequently, it wasn't long before Drake came rushing out to stand before the trio.