Pokémon, Ash is going to become a perfect man from now on.

The person in front of it was actually its former trainer.

Gengar used to trust him so much; when he told it to wait in that house, it obediently waited.

From day to night, from winter to spring, a full three years!

Even after the house was emptied out, even after it became the Sakuragi Research Lab, it still never found its trainer…

It was abandoned... and it was also deceived by him!

"Gen...Gengar? Why are you here?!" Upon suddenly seeing the Pokémon he had once abandoned, cold sweat poured down the blond man's forehead.

In response, Gengar unleashed a Shadow Ball in a fit of rage!

Boom!

Dark energy exploded on the ground, startling the blond man and his female companion so much that they both hugged each other and even fell to the ground at the same time.

"Gengar, this is a city, don't go too far." Seeing that things were getting out of hand, Ash quickly stepped between the two and Gengar. "He was your former trainer, right? No matter what he did wrong, you should at least talk things out first."

"Gengar?!" Gengar's anger intensified when it saw that Ash dared to stop it.

It gathered two dark energies again, its red eyes fixed on the blond man behind Ash, making the man tremble with fear.

"Gengar, calm down!" Ash stepped forward, standing firmly in front of Gengar!

"Pikachu!" Pikachu also jumped off Ash's shoulder, releasing a wisp of electricity as a warning.

"I...I can't take it anymore! I can't take it anymore!!" The oppressive atmosphere seemed to be causing the blond-haired man to break down emotionally, pounding his fists on the ground and screaming, "Didn't I tell you to wait there? Why did you show up? Do you know that it's because you're around that bad things keep happening to me?!"

"Gen..." Gengar was stunned when it saw its former trainer acting so hysterically.

"I don't want to see you again... Please, don't let me see you again! Ahhh!!"

While Gengar was distracted, the blond-haired man and his female companion screamed and ran away, not wanting to stay for even a second longer...

"Gen...Gen!!" Gengar, regaining its senses, let out an extremely shrill scream and suddenly pushed the dark energy in its hands into the sky, causing it to explode!

After the smoke cleared, it had vanished in a gust of wind...

"Gengar...sigh." Ash sighed softly; he was starting to regret it.

I wish I hadn't made things so complicated...

Watching anime is one thing, but only by experiencing it firsthand can you truly understand the heartache... It's true for both.

Xiao Zhi wasn't trying to excuse the blond guy, but he wasn't quite the same kind of scum like Da You from the original story.

There are real risks involved in interacting with ghost Pokémon. For example, Cursed Doll is often haunted by resentment, and the Lidgment family will absorb the life force of people and Pokémon nearby.

Without unwavering resolve or special abilities, ordinary trainers might not only fail to reach the end with Ghost Pokémon, but could also lose their lives.

But that blond guy shouldn't have, absolutely shouldn't have, deceived Gengar like that!

They wouldn't even give us a proper breakup, just tricked the Pokémon into staying where they were while they themselves turned around and ran away. This kind of behavior is really despicable.

Right? He said things like, "I'll come back for you after I've finished my business"... Now, more than twenty years have passed in the blink of an eye. Pidgeot's fur must be going moldy from waiting so long!

Of course, that was purely the production team's fault, and had nothing to do with the character...

After searching for a while, Ash quickly found Gengar sitting alone on the steps in front of a building.

"Geng?"

"Have you forgotten I have Aura? I can find you anytime." Ash sat down next to Gengar like an old friend. "What, you still can't get over it?"

Gengar didn't want to talk, so it simply turned its body to the side.

"Honestly, if I had known this would be the outcome, I would have chosen to subdue you directly."

"Gen?" Gengar turned to Ash in surprise.

This guy... just said he wanted to subdue me?

Isn't he afraid of the curse he brought with him?!

"I don't think you need to worry too much about what that guy said. The fact that he can't keep you around means he's not capable of being with you," Ash confidently patted his chest. "But I'm different. I've always been incredibly lucky, so I'm not afraid of any curses!"

"Gen~" Gengar turned around and gave Ash a disdainful red eye.

But what came into view was a Poké Ball in the other person's hand.

"Give me a chance, okay? We worked together so well before, didn't we? Those Pokémon were rescued entirely thanks to you!" Ash pleaded earnestly. "Gengar, I want to continue using your power in the future. Can you try to trust me?"

"Gen!" Gengar didn't respond, it just turned into a black shadow and disappeared... but it took Ash's Poké Ball.

"I'll be waiting for you until we board the ship!"

Chapter Fifty-Five: Classic Bed... Uh, Boat Section~

The next day at the port of Vermilion, while the staff of Saint Anne kept announcing that the ship was about to depart, Ash was still waiting eagerly at the dock.

"Gengar...it might not come, right?" Brock couldn't help but worry.

"No, it will definitely come!" Blue always had complete confidence in Ash.

"They're here!" Suddenly, Xiao Zhi's spirits lifted.

A strange wind suddenly blew up in front of him, and a pale purple figure gradually appeared in the wind, while throwing a Poké Ball at Ash.

"I knew you'd come!" Ash exclaimed happily as he caught the Poké Ball. "Gengar, nice to meet you!"

"Gen!" Gengar sped up and rushed to Ash, activating the switch on the Poké Ball with its purple fist.

This was in response to the unfinished fist bump in the hiding place, and it also marked that it was officially captured by Ash!

"Heh, it seems like it's not the only one that's come over~" Little Blue suddenly smiled inexplicably.

Not far away, a girl with orange braids was rushing toward the dock, racing against time.

"Finally...finally made it!" The girl slammed on the brakes, gasping for breath as she clutched her knees. "At least I got to see it leave the port...uh~"

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that Ash and the other two were all looking at her, and the girl's cheeks flushed instantly.

"Hey, how did your gym challenge go?" Blue asked with a smile. "Did you get humiliated again without using my Nidoran?"

"No way!" Xiaoxia retorted, showing off her newly acquired badge. "Of course I succeeded! Even though Water is weak against Electric, I would never lose!"

"Oh, that's really something to celebrate~" Xiao Lan continued to probe the other person's words, "But... what did you mean by 'seeing them off'? You don't mean you don't have money for a ticket, do you?"

"I…"

Well, that attack was indeed very effective.

Xiaoxia really didn't have the money to buy a ticket, and when Team Rocket gave out invitations, she hadn't even arrived in Vermilion City yet, so she naturally missed it.

"Here, you can use this if you want to board the ship." Xiao Zhi suddenly took out a ship ticket and handed it to Xiao Xia.

"A ticket to St. Anne's?" A longing flashed across Xiaoxia's face, but she didn't take it. "This must be very expensive, why are you giving it to me?"

"This one is extra," Xiao Zhi explained. "We helped Saint Anne solve some problems, and she gave us a few boat tickets, but because a friend of ours doesn't plan to leave, we got an extra one."

The extra boat ticket was of course Jasmine's. Ash thought she would want to travel around the world by boat and then return to Alola, but it seems she didn't want to stay in Vermilion Harbor long enough.

"Hey sis, this kind of agonizing is so boring," Xiao Lan suddenly said, reaching out as if to snatch it away. "If you keep dawdling, I might as well just throw it away."

"No way! It would be such a waste to lose it!" Xiaoxia panicked as soon as she heard this, and without caring about her composure, she grabbed the ticket in her hand.

"Let me make this clear first, you guys offered to give this to me!" She managed to maintain her haughty demeanor as she hurriedly went to board the ship.

But as she passed by Ash, she couldn't hide the gratitude in her eyes...

"Let's go, don't just stand there." Xiao Lan gave Xiao Zhi a disapproving look, "Look at you, all you do is make me worry about this every day~"

Xiao Zhi: ...

Now, Ash must declare... if he ever becomes a womanizer and a pervert, neither Blue nor Brock will be innocent!

And Xiao Zhi really wants to ask, just how big is Xiao Lan's heart?

What good will it do you to push me down the path of a sea king?

...

As expected of the most luxurious sightseeing cruise ship, Ash and his friends soon felt that they couldn't take it all in after boarding.

The opulent decorations, the dazzling array of banquet arrangements, and the diverse array of wealthy merchants and beautiful women... without a doubt, this is a paradise for the rich.

Xiaoxia, who had boarded the boat first, had already disappeared. Xiaogang was also quickly attracted by the pretty older women. After wandering around for a while, Xiaozhi was left with only…

"Oh no, where's Blue?" When Ash came to his senses, he realized that only Pikachu was left beside him!

"Is it on the deck?" Following the guidance of the wave guide, Ash found Blue on the top deck of the cruise ship.

Xiao Lan was all alone here, and she was leaning against the railing of the boat, enjoying the sea breeze.

The girl's eyes were dreamy, and her beautiful hair flowed behind her, making Xiao Zhi glance at her a few more times...

"Don't just look, come and help me up." Xiao Lan tossed her hair and waved to Xiao Zhi.

"Help...get down here right now!" Just as Xiao Zhi was about to step forward, he found that Xiao Lan had both feet on the railing, and her whole body looked like it was hanging outside the bow of the ship.

Friendly reminder: Children, please do not imitate this dangerous action...

"No way, this feels great!" Xiao Lan not only ignored her, but also opened her arms and looked blissfully intoxicated.

"Feeling the sea breeze blowing in my face makes me feel like I'm flying. Come over here soon!"