Ghost Pokémon? Now that's manga material!

Meanwhile, at Saffron City's central commercial plaza.

The promotional event for the new release of "Pokémon Adventures" was finally nearing its end.

"Thank you all for your support today!"

Shiraishi Ritsu stood in front of the booth, waving goodbye to the last group of readers.

Smeargle also raised a little paw and happily greeted the crowd.

"Smear!"

Only when the staff began packing up the booth did Shiraishi Ritsu stretch at length.

"Phew! Finally over!"

Kikkawa Maho walked over with the event statistics sheet.

"Mr. Masuda, thank you for your hard work today."

"Miss Maho, we must have sold quite a few copies today, right?"

"Of course."

Kikkawa Maho smiled and said, "Sales of the collected volumes were quite good, and quite a few readers specifically asked about the upcoming story."

Shiraishi Ritsu immediately perked up.

"That's great!"

News that his manga was selling well was what he liked hearing most.

After all, he had already paid the deposit on his new home, and he was preparing to expand the studio. There were still plenty of things he would need money for.

But Shiraishi Ritsu soon remembered something else.

"Have Ash and the others not come back yet?"

Kikkawa Maho paused.

"You mean those young Trainers from this morning?"

"Yes, the boy with the Pikachu."

Shiraishi Ritsu glanced toward the exhibition hall entrance.

When Ash had left that afternoon, he had solemnly promised that he would come back to discuss manga with him after winning the Gold Badge.

Yet now the event was almost over, and he still hadn't shown up.

"Maybe the battle isn't over yet?"

Kikkawa Maho remarked casually.

Shiraishi Ritsu, however, seemed a little distracted.

The battle wasn't over?

Not likely.

He had known since last night that Sabrina was ready to accept Ash's challenge.

And then there was that hair-raising line: "How did you know I would do that?"...

At that thought, Shiraishi Ritsu suddenly felt that things weren't looking good.

"Don't tell me it really..."

He hurriedly took out his communicator and checked it.

Sabrina hadn't sent any new messages.

"Smeargle."

"Smear?"

"Did we forget something today?"

Smeargle tilted its head in thought, then took the four-panel comic it had finished last night out of its art bag.

In the drawing, Ash had turned into a palm-sized doll, still holding a miniature Pikachu and shouting that he would become a Pokémon Master.

As Shiraishi Ritsu looked at the drawing, the corner of his mouth slowly began to twitch.

"Why do I get the feeling this thing might have already come true?"

"Smear?"

Smeargle blinked.

Then it actually started laughing again.

"You're still laughing!"

Shiraishi Ritsu rubbed its head in exasperation.

While the two were talking, the staff on the other side of the exhibition hall had begun tidying the display cases.

A sudden evening breeze blew in and flipped open a copy of the first volume of "Pokémon Adventures" sitting by the window.

Rustle, rustle.

The pages kept turning before finally stopping on a page near the beginning.

In the panel, a tiny pink Pokémon hovered in the air.

It had large, round eyes and a long, slender tail.

It was none other than the mysterious Pokémon that had left such an impression on Red and Green in the first chapter of "Pokémon Adventures."

The staff were busy moving display boards, and no one noticed the manga that the wind had blown open.

Nor did anyone notice.

Outside the glass window, a tiny pale pink figure suddenly paused for a moment.

As though something in the drawing had caught its attention, it peered through the glass at the page.

Only when the sound of staff moving boxes came from nearby did the figure give a slight flicker and vanish into the evening sky.

The manga, meanwhile, remained quietly open on the windowsill.

"Mr. Masuda!"

Just as Shiraishi Ritsu was getting ready to pack up and leave, a familiar shout suddenly came from the exhibition hall entrance.

He instinctively turned his head.

"Ash?"

Ash was walking into the exhibition hall with Pikachu in his arms, accompanied by Misty and Brock.

Compared with their cheerful appearance that morning, however, the three of them looked rather worse for wear.

Ash's cap was crooked.

Misty's hair was a mess, and she still looked somewhat shaken.

As for Brock, although he was trying hard to remain calm, his clothes were visibly covered in dust.

Shiraishi Ritsu stared in surprise.

"What happened to you..."

Ash scratched his head awkwardly.

"Um, Mr. Masuda, we didn't win."

"You didn't win?"

"Yeah."

Ash lowered his head to glance at Pikachu in his arms.

"Miss Sabrina's Kadabra was too strong. I couldn't find any chance to fight back."

Shiraishi Ritsu wasn't particularly surprised by that.

After all, he knew very well that Sabrina's strength was indeed far beyond Ash's current level.

But before he could offer any comfort, Misty suddenly grew agitated.

"Mr. Masuda! Do you know how terrifying that Gym is?!"

Shiraishi Ritsu's heart skipped a beat.

"What happened?"

"That doll!"

Misty held out both hands, gesturing excitedly.

"The doll Sabrina kept holding! It actually shrank us down this small!"

Shiraishi Ritsu: "..."

Brock added from beside her.

"We were trapped in a giant dollhouse. All the furniture was several times taller than us."

"And that teddy bear!"

Just remembering it frightened Misty.

"It actually moved on its own! It nearly scared me to death!"

Ash was equally indignant.

"That doll even made us play hide-and-seek! No matter where we hid, it could find us!"

"If someone hadn't saved us in the end, we'd probably still be trapped in there!"

Shiraishi Ritsu's expression grew stranger and stranger as he listened.

He lowered his head to look at the four-panel comic in Smeargle's paws.

Then he looked back up at the three people in front of him.

Well, damn.

This little guy really had drawn it right!

That scene from the anime had actually happened!

"Mr. Masuda?"

Noticing that he hadn't spoken for a while, Ash asked curiously, "What's wrong?"

"Ahem!"

Shiraishi Ritsu hurriedly snapped out of it.

"Nothing. I'm just a little surprised."

Misty immediately nodded.

"Right! You think it's ridiculous too!"

"It certainly is."

Shiraishi Ritsu held back his laughter.

"This is the first time I've heard of having to play hide-and-seek with a Gym Leader after losing a Gym challenge."

Brock sighed helplessly.

"Anyway, luckily nothing happened in the end."

Looking at the three of them in their disheveled state, Shiraishi Ritsu finally couldn't help asking a question.

"What about Pikachu? How are its injuries?"

"I already took it to the Pokémon Center for a checkup."

Ash replied.

"Nurse Joy said it wasn't anything serious and that it'd recover after some rest. I only came to see you after picking it up just now."

"That's good."

Shiraishi Ritsu let out a sigh of relief.

He reached out and stroked Pikachu's head.

"Thanks for your hard work."

"Pika..."

Pikachu gave a soft cry.

Shiraishi Ritsu looked at Ash again.

"So, what are you planning to do next?"

"Keep challenging her, of course!"

Ash answered without hesitation.

"I'm definitely getting the Gold Badge!"

Misty's eyes immediately widened.

"What?! You're going back to that place?!"

"Of course!"

Ash said with complete conviction, "I can't just never challenge her again because I lost once!"

"You!"

Seeing that the two were about to start arguing again, Brock hurriedly said a few words to calm them down.

Shiraishi Ritsu folded his arms and looked thoughtfully at Ash.

Just as expected.

He still had the same personality he remembered.

Although he could be recklessly headstrong enough to give people a headache at times, once he set his sights on a goal, he would never give up easily.

Still, Kadabra wasn't an opponent he could defeat through fighting spirit alone.

And besides...

Remembering Sabrina's doll, Shiraishi Ritsu couldn't help rubbing his chin.

The next time they went to the Saffron Gym, they would have to find a reliable approach.

Just then, a familiar voice suddenly rang out from the exhibition hall entrance.

"It seems you haven't given up yet."

Everyone turned toward the voice.

A middle-aged man wearing a hat was standing in the doorway.

Ash immediately recognized him.

"It's you!"

"The person who saved us earlier!"

Brock and Misty hurried over as well.

"Sir, thank you for helping us earlier."

The man nodded slightly, then looked at Ash.

"I heard you. You still want to challenge Sabrina."

"Of course!"

Ash clenched his fists.

"I lost this time, but I'll definitely win next time!"

The man looked at him and fell silent for a moment.

"Determination alone isn't enough. Kadabra's psychic powers are far harder to deal with than you imagine."

"Then what should I do?"

Ash asked urgently.

Shiraishi Ritsu stood nearby, his gaze shifting slightly.

He had already guessed what this mysterious psychic was about to say next.

Sure enough, the man spoke slowly.

"If you want to challenge Sabrina again, perhaps you should go to Lavender Town and look for Ghost Pokémon."

"Ghost Pokémon?"

Ash froze for a moment.

Shiraishi Ritsu, however, suddenly turned to look at Smeargle beside him.

Lavender Town.

Pokémon Tower.

And those Ghost Pokémon that loved playing pranks...

At the thought, his eyes gradually lit up.

This trip to Lavender Town seemed like just the opportunity to find some new painting material for Smeargle.