Hoooo-!
A long, resonant whistle echoed through Littleroot Town's harbor. As the cruise ship docked after crossing the ocean, Xia You and Erika followed the crowd down the gangway and stepped onto a continent neither had ever visited.
Hoenn Region, here we come!
This was Littleroot Town, which could be called the starting town for novice Pokémon Trainers in the Hoenn Region. After parting with Ash and the others in Johto a few days earlier, Xia You and Erika had headed to the nearest harbor and boarded this cruise ship to come here.
True to its name, Littleroot Town was a country town uncolored by anything, surrounded by fresh, natural scenery.
Yet despite being a country town, it also had a small harbor, with some tall buildings nearby, making it a model of urban and rural integration.
At the other end of Littleroot Town stood Professor Birch's home and laboratory. Like Professor Oak in Kanto and Professor Elm in Johto, Professor Birch was the Hoenn Region's authoritative professor responsible for giving novice Pokémon Trainers their Starter Pokémon!
As a bona fide "newcomer" to the Hoenn Region, Xia You naturally intended to begin his brand-new journey here.
However, the two did not presume to disturb Professor Birch. After all, they had no particular reason to visit, had never met him, and had no one to introduce them, so it really would not have been appropriate to turn up at his door.
They would wait for a chance to get acquainted in the future.
The first thing to do upon arriving in Hoenn was register for the Hoenn League. Only then could he challenge the Gyms here. However, after asking some passersby, they learned that there was no Pokémon Center here. To register, they would have to go to nearby Gumei Town.