The Grass Field hosted the last match of the day. It would also decide the final spot in the round of sixteen.
Young Master Mao brought Professor Oak and Aunt Delia to their seats in the front row.
"Oh my, the view here is wonderful. Gary, thank goodness you managed to get front-row tickets." Camera in hand, Aunt Delia covered her mouth and chuckled.
"Ahem... it was nothing. I have a few friends who scalp tickets..." Gary looked up at the sky.
At the entrance to the venue, James wore sunglasses and a leather jacket, jiggling his leg. "Tickets~ Front-row seats for today's last match! Hey, friend~ Need a ticket? Oh, all right, I'll give you a discount..."
Jessie and Meowth crouched on a street corner to keep watch, each holding a cup of juice...
"Thanks to the executive, this batch of insider tickets fetched a great price, meow~" Meowth beckoned greedily. "Meow! Give this cat some coins, meow!"
Eating snacks from James's food stall, Jessie nodded. "Tell him to hurry up. We're heading inside to sell snacks in a bit..."
Brock and Misty weren't acting as coaches today. Instead, they sat in the third and fourth rows.
Because dear little Ash had declared that he wanted to be an independent Pokémon Trainer!
Whoosh~ Amid cheers, drumming, and noise, Ash's final preliminary match officially began.
Young Master Mao sat calmly beside Professor Oak, his legs crossed and sunglasses covering his face.
He had no choice. As his fans grew in number, Gary had to keep a slightly lower profile. Otherwise, if they surrounded him, he could only escape by riding Charizard or Braviary.
"All right, for the final match on the Grass Field, we have Ash from Pallet Town facing off against~" The commentator deliberately drew out the trembling