Chapter Summaries

Eichi and the exchange students said goodbye after their year together, while Eichi reflected on how far he had come and traveled back toward Hoenn. Back at Silver Academy, Tetsu and Xiao Ye anticipated Eichi’s return, and Mr. Yoshino learned that a loved one would be home in about a month.

• Around the campfire, A Yao thanked Eichi for pushing him to grow stronger, and Xiao He and the other students shared their thoughts and sang.
• Eichi watched the night sky with his Pokémon and reflected on becoming twelve and on his changed life.
• The exchange students packed up and left, saying goodbye to their friends before traveling back toward their academies.
• At Silver Academy, Tetsu comforted Xiao Ye after the students departed, and she perked up at the thought of seeing Eichi again next semester.
• Director Liu and the Vice Principal wondered how much Eichi, Sato, Kona, and the others had improved and noted that their return was timely.
• Mr. Yoshino spoke by phone with someone returning from Hoenn in about a month and said Xiao Yu was eager to see them.

Eichi returned to Kanto with Sato after traveling home aboard Sato’s private plane, then reunited with his father, Mr. Yoshino. Mr. Yoshino showed him a Pokémon, leaving Eichi surprised by its appearance.

• Eichi rode with Sato’s family from the harbor to their villa, where he stayed the night before flying to Kanto.
• Sato introduced Eichi to his mother, Madam Glan, who thanked and praised him over dinner.
• Eichi said goodbye to Sato and rode his bicycle home to Tokiwa City, where Mr. Yoshino greeted him.
• Eichi told Mr. Yoshino about flying and promised to take him on a plane ride someday.
• Mr. Yoshino brought out a Poké Ball and released a Pokémon, prompting Eichi to ask what it was.

Eichi learned how Mr. Yoshino had rescued an injured, homeless Growlithe and welcomed it as a new member of the family. After Growlithe befriended Eichi’s Pokémon and the family prepared dinner, a rapid knock sounded at the door.

• Mr. Yoshino told Eichi how he and Xiao Yu found an injured Growlithe in Viridian Forest, nursed it back to health, and took it in.
• Eichi introduced Growlithe to his Pokémon, and they welcomed it as they played together in the front yard.
• Eichi and Mr. Yoshino talked about life at Sinnoh Academy while the Pokémon spent the afternoon together.
• Eichi napped, then helped Mr. Yoshino prepare dinner and gathered the Pokémon to eat.
• A rapid knock sounded at the door as the Pokémon returned inside.

Eichi reunited with Aunt Keiko and Xiao Yu in Tokiwa Town, then visited Sister Amelie at the Beautiful Nursery after a year away. He told Amelie about his experiences in Hoenn Region and asked how her year had gone.

• Eichi welcomed Aunt Keiko and Xiao Yu home, promised to spend time with Xiao Yu, and shared dinner with them.
• Eichi took his Pokémon for morning training, then rode to the Beautiful Nursery in Tokiwa City.
• The nursery’s veteran employees welcomed Eichi back while newer staff discussed his admission to Silver Academy as Tokiwa City’s 1st Place.
• Amelie embraced Eichi when he arrived, then let go after he said the embrace felt strange.
• Eichi spent two hours telling Amelie about his studies, battles, and breeding in Hoenn Region, then asked about her year.

Eichi returned to Tokiwa City and learned that Teacher Arno had left on a trip, then spent time reflecting on his old friends and life. The next morning, Xiao Yu took Eichi to Viridian Forest and revealed four valuable Pokémon she had caught there, leaving him astonished.

• Amelie told Eichi about her busy year running her Breeding House, and Eichi offered to help when he had time.
• Eichi visited Teacher Arno but could not reach him, then learned from Teacher Da Wu that Arno had taken leave to travel.
• Eichi wandered into Viridian Forest, watched Bug Catchers train, and thought about Takahashi, his former friends, and Aji.
• Xiao Yu visited Eichi the next morning, ate breakfast with him, and took him to the outskirts of Viridian Forest.
• Xiao Yu released Vulpix, Kadabra, Farfetch'd, and Cubone, then told Eichi she had caught all four in the forest.

Eichi learned that Xiao Yu had befriended four rare Pokémon and spent the morning playing with her in Viridian Forest. Meanwhile, Sato defeated Poliwrath in a battle, surprising Madam Glan with how quickly he had improved.

• Xiao Yu explained that Vulpix, Kadabra, Farfetch'd, and Cubone had each joined her without being caught in battle.
• Eichi accompanied Xiao Yu deeper into Viridian Forest, where she played with Sandshrew and Sandslash.
• Eichi learned that Amelie had arranged for a Pokémon to protect Xiao Yu, though it had never needed to emerge from its Poké Ball.
• Eichi noticed that Pokémon were naturally drawn to Xiao Yu and showed her no hostility.
• Sato's Electivire defeated Poliwrath with Thunder and Thunder Punch.
• Madam Glan praised Sato for defeating Poliwrath a year earlier than his father had expected, but Sato did not seem particularly happy.

Sato and Kona each reflected on how far they still had to go to match Eichi, while Kona defeated Uncle Nanjí in a battle. Elsewhere, Ano reached his mission destination in a forest and prepared to retrieve the target.

• Sato told Madam Glan that Eichi had defeated all six of his Pokémon with only three, and Madam Glan considered Eichi's strength and Sato's determination.
• Kona defeated Uncle Nanjí's Hitmonchan with Blaziken and received praise from the trainers gathered at her family's villa.
• Kona explained that she had lost battles against both Sato and Eichi, who had beaten her using only three Pokémon, including a Late Elite Four Flygon.
• Ano reported reaching his forest destination, and the voice over his earpiece reminded him to bring back the mission's target.

Eichi enjoyed his daily routine with Xiao Yu and reflected on the growing Beedrill Colony, while wondering about Ninjask and Shedinja. Deep in the forest, Ninjask and Shedinja fought to save the Ariados Colony from a joint Crobat and Arbok attack, and Ninjask was caught by Arbok’s poison rain.

• Eichi spent his mornings playing with Xiao Yu, helped at Beautiful Nursery in the afternoons, and trained in the Small Woods at night.
• Eichi saw that Black Stripe Beedrill’s colony had grown powerful, though Black Stripe had not reached Elite Class, and he wondered how Ninjask and Shedinja were doing.
• Three youths discovered the Crobat Colony and Arbok Colony attacking the Ariados Colony in the forest.
• Ninjask and Shedinja joined the battle, rescued Ariados, and turned the colony’s morale around by defeating several enemies.
• Ninjask used Agility to evade a powerful Arbok and slash at it, but Arbok sprayed poison through the air and forced Ninjask to appear, wounded.

Ninjask and Shedinja defeated the Crobat and Arbok leaders, securing the Ariados Colony’s position. As the colony prepared to bury its dead, Ninjask and Shedinja missed Eichi and their former companions.

• Ninjask tricked Arbok with a Substitute and defeated it with a cross-shaped slash.
• Shedinja confused Crobat with Quiver Dance, trapped it with its shadow, and finished it with a Shadow Ball.
• A group of human travelers watched the battles and left without trying to capture Ninjask or Shedinja.
• After their leaders fell, the Crobat and Arbok clans fled, and Ninjask finished the leaders and ordered the bodies buried.
• Ninjask and Shedinja gathered with the Ariados Colony and mourned their dead while remembering Eichi and their former companions.

As Eichi prepared to return to Silver Academy, he comforted Xiao Yu and accepted Sato’s offer to travel to school with him. Meanwhile, Jiang Ben’s latest experiment on the stone egg failed, but he continued his research.

• Eichi took the tearful Xiao Yu to the back mountain, told her stories about Legendary Pokémon, and carried her home after she fell asleep.
• Eichi handed Xiao Yu over to Aunt Keiko, then returned home and watched a League Tournament final in which Infernape defeated Abomasnow.
• Sato discussed the Sinnoh Region’s Pokémon with Eichi and accompanied him to dinner after arranging a ride to school with Madam Glan.
• Jiang Ben tested the stone egg again, saw no change in the data, and gathered himself to continue working with Professor Nobu.

Eichi returned to Silver Academy after a year away, while Professor Jiang Ben discovered that the stone egg briefly showed signs of life. After learning Eichi had returned, Jiang Ben suspected Eichi's presence had triggered the reaction and decided to investigate their connection.

• Eichi arrived at the Sato family villa, then rode his bicycle to Silver Academy.
• Professor Jiang Ben added drops to a test tube near the stone egg, and its readings suddenly fluctuated before returning to normal.
• Two researchers showed Jiang Ben data indicating that faint energy had stirred deep within the stone egg, giving him hope it could still be saved.
• A Yuan told the researchers that Eichi had returned and called him.
• Jiang Ben linked Eichi's return to the stone egg's activity and made up his mind to act.

Eichi returned to school and the research institute, where his Bug Force led him to a stone egg. Professor Jiang Ben revealed that the egg was a Volcarona egg.

• Eichi returned to the dormitory, and his Bug Force surged eastward, signaling that his seventh Pokémon was about to appear.
• Eichi reunited with his classmates, and Teacher Xiao Lin welcomed him and another exchange student back from Hoenn.
• Eichi visited the research institute and followed his Bug Force to a stone egg in the eastern research area.
• Eichi met Professor Jiang Ben, who placed the stone egg in a nutrient chamber and revealed that it was a Volcarona egg.

Teacher Jiang Ben gave Eichi a dormant Volcarona stone egg after believing Eichi's return had awakened the life within it. Eichi discovered his Bug Force could reach the egg and began trying to restore it.

• Teacher Jiang Ben explained that Professor Da Teng had shown him the Volcarona stone egg in Unova and that its life had stirred when Eichi returned to school.
• Teacher Jiang Ben chose Eichi to care for the egg, citing Eichi's unusual success with Beedrill, and Eichi agreed to do everything he could to restore it.
• Eichi carried the incubator back to his dormitory and examined the stone egg.
• Eichi sensed his Bug Force entering the egg and its weak life force absorbing it, confirming that his power could help restore the egg.
• Eichi resolved to spare no cost to revive Volcarona, a Pokémon he had once planned to seek in Unova.

Eichi restored the stone egg’s vitality while Golisopod defeated Tetsu’s Ampharos in a battle. After hearing about a planned Five School League, Eichi considered asking Director Liu to let him compete, and the chapter ended as academy administrators gathered for a meeting.

• Eichi reassured his Pokémon that he would restore the stone egg, which began absorbing Bug Force as he slept.
• Golisopod defeated Ampharos with a swift attack, ending Eichi and Tetsu’s battle.
• Tetsu told Eichi that the Pokémon League planned a Five School League among academies from five regions.
• Tetsu urged Eichi to ask Director Liu to make an exception and let him compete, and Eichi felt confident about the idea.
• People gathered in the administrative building’s conference room to hear the Vice Principal speak.

The academy leaders debated how to choose its participants for the Five School League, settling on preliminary trials in each grade followed by a final selection. Over the following week, Eichi continued monitoring the stone egg as its vitality steadily recovered.

• The Vice Principal announced that the academy needed to choose twenty-six participants, and Director Tong Sheng argued that they should all come from 6th Grade.
• Director Liu and Director Chui Shi opposed choosing by grade and argued that the strongest students should represent the academy.
• The Vice Principal revealed that six spots were reserved for children from reclusive families, leaving twenty spots for academy students.
• Director Liu proposed preliminary selections in each grade followed by a centralized trial, and the leaders agreed to choose candidates within a month.
• Eichi monitored the stone egg for a week as its Bug Force absorption and vitality increased, while he told Teacher Jiang Ben he did not know why keeping it nearby had helped.

Eichi learned that he could compete for a place in the Five School League, whose selection would pit students from all six grades against one another for twenty spots. As students registered and discussed the contest, Director Tong Sheng decided sixth grade did not need a new selection.

• Tetsu told Eichi that the Five School League would now include students from every grade, and Eichi resolved to participate.
• Teacher Xiao Lin explained that each grade would select competitors, that their class had three confirmed students including Eichi and Tetsu, and that the remaining two class slots were open for registration.
• Tetsu described how crowded and difficult the selection would be, then explained that six of the League’s twenty spots had likely gone to reclusive great families.
• Eichi thought of Dragon Village, Charizard Valley, and Meteor Falls as possible homes of such clans and grew more interested in the competition.
• A red-haired woman showed Director Tong Sheng the sixth-grade top thirty list and asked whether to hold a selection, but Tong Sheng said he knew the students’ strengths and saw no need.

Tong Sheng warned the 6th Graders that they would have to compete with younger students for places in the Five School League, but most dismissed the threat until A Yuan named several formidable juniors. Tong Sheng dismissed the meeting, worried about the 6th Graders’ arrogance, and the chapter ended with a young man watching a movie in a lavish dormitory.

• Tong Sheng gathered the 6th Graders and announced that they would compete for twenty Five School League slots against students from other grades.
• Several 6th Graders complained about competing with younger students and claimed they could take all the slots.
• Tong Sheng warned them that at least five would fail to qualify and scolded them for underestimating their opponents.
• A Yuan named Ying Ci Lang, Eichi, Sato, and Kona as strong younger students, and said Eichi had reached the League Tournament’s top four as a 2nd Grader.
• The gray-haired student insulted A Yuan, while Tong Sheng rebuked the group and then dismissed the meeting.
• A young man sat in a luxurious dormitory living room, drinking cola and watching a blockbuster movie.

Kong Fei dismissed warnings about the Selection Match, while Director Liu told Eichi that the academy expected him to reach the top twenty in the Five School League. Eichi challenged that limit by asking about the top five, but Director Liu argued that older competitors had greater training time and resources.

• Kong Fei skipped a meeting and rejected his subordinate's warnings about the Selection Match, confident that he could beat the junior students.
• Kong Fei's subordinate worried that his arrogance and the students' poor preparation could hurt their chances in the Five School League.
• Director Liu welcomed Eichi and said the academy expected him to place in the top twenty at the Five School League.
• Eichi asked Director Liu whether he could reach the top five, prompting Director Liu to explain the advantages older competitors had in time, resources, and training.
• Director Liu cited Charizard Valley as an example of the powerful training and support some competitors received, and Eichi fell silent.

Eichi learned that the Five School League would bring formidable opponents, including Sato’s talented older sister, while his class finalized its team slots. He left the chapter feeling pressured but eager to face the challenge.

• Director Liu encouraged Eichi to recognize his shortcomings while reminding him that he could compete for the top three in a year or two.
• Tetsu told Eichi that two promising junior students were competing in the Newcomer Cup, and Teacher Xiao Lin announced the class selection for the Five School League.
• The class held battles to decide its remaining two slots, and A Hong secured one of them as all five slots were filled.
• Eichi met Sato and Kona in the library and said he hoped to place higher than the school's top-twenty target.
• Sato warned Eichi that his sister would compete as Indigo Academy's Seed Player and described her as a 5th Grade version of himself.

The 3rd Grade spot selection matches began, and Ramo surprised the crowd by defeating a favored opponent. Eichi then entered his own match with Armaldo, drawing the attention of students scouting him as the battle began.

• Eichi arrived at the Battle Hall with Tetsu, Xiao Ye, and Teacher Xiao Lin, while students from other grades watched to assess potential opponents.
• Ramo overcame his nerves and defeated his opponent, surprising the spectators and catching Eichi's attention.
• After the first round, Tetsu won his match, and Eichi was called to Battle Field 4.
• A Gray-haired boy and a Round-faced boy recorded Eichi's match as he sent out Armaldo against his opponent's Vileplume.
• Eichi identified Vileplume's level with Bug King Eye, then ordered Armaldo to use Harden against Razor Leaf.