The two Pikachu chased each other nearby, having the time of their lives.
Ritchie did not notice anything unusual about their expressions and continued enthusiastically, "Before I came here, I looked into that mysterious Pokémon. Although I still don't know exactly what it is, I compiled a list of places it might appear and where it might be headed based on the news and rumors online. Chong Island was the most likely of them, so I rushed straight here!"
It had to be said that Ritchie was quite impressive. After all, Xia You and the others had come here because of Maya's information, while Ritchie had worked it all out step by step on his own!
Looking at it that way, though, information from two different sources had ultimately pointed here. That undoubtedly meant Lugia was most likely to be near Chong Island, proving that Xia You and the others had come to the right place.
Only then did Ritchie belatedly ask, "By the way, why did you come here?"
Ash was about to answer, but suddenly hesitated. He glanced at Xia You, then swallowed his words.
That alone showed just how much Ash had grown. He actually knew to think things through now!
In the past, he probably would have answered without a second thought!
Fortunately, there was nothing to hide. Seeing Ash look his way, Xia You chose to tell the truth. "Actually, we're here for much the same reason as you."
Ritchie looked at them with some surprise. "So you're here to find that mysterious Pokémon too? I thought I was the only one looking for it."
In fact, upon hearing that, Ritchie instinctively felt his heart tighten. If both sides had the same goal, did that not mean one of them was bound to leave disappointed?