The next morning, Ash instantly headed out of his house. Pallet Town had never been busier, with many people from all over the world, Hoenn to Johto, even Kalos and Unova, every region across the world had become unpopulated for the upcoming battle tournament and the excitement in the air made everyone happy. Ash's first thought was to go and see Professor Oak in his lab because he had not spoken to him since his arrival back in Kanto.

"It's so nice to see you, Ash. And Pikachu too" Prof. Oak commented on Ash's arrival. Gary was stood just behind the professor and Tracey was in the corner, working on something important. Rotom started buzzing around the lab, with a big grin on his face.

"It's great to see everyone" Ash nodded, with a smile breaking across his face. 

"Pika Pi!" Pikachu seemed to agree, sitting on Ash's shoulder.

"Oh look at Pikachu, haven't you grown a bunch?" Professor Oak asked with an uncertain level of interest, picking up Pikachu from Ash's shoulder. Pikachu frowned heavily and then charged up the electricity around his body. He zapped Professor Oak with a huge amount of electricity, making him drop to the floor and drop Pikachu. Pikachu then casually hopped back onto the now nervous looking Ash, who laughed weakly and scratched his head.

"Your electric power is as strong as ever I see" Professor Oak got up and straightened his lab coat. "Anyway, what can I do for you, Ash?"

"I came to pick some Pokemon for the tournament, so I can train" Ash explained to the Professor, who scratched his chin.

"That's right, you have Pokemon from every region, it could be a tough choice. Come right this way, in fact, Gary was coming to pick up his Pokemon too" they both followed the Professor into the gardens, where Gary's and Ash's Pokemon were running around, relaxing and having a good time. 

"Well, I know who I am taking Gramps, we already discussed this, right?" Gary asked, holding out his hands impatiently.

"Yes we did, I almost forgot" Oak scratched his head with slight embarrassment, before holding out six Pokeballs. "Here they are, Gary"

"Thanks, Gramps!" Gary turned to Ash after depositing the poke balls into the bag on his back. "Once I have done some training, you owe me a battle"

"You bet, Gary" Ash waved as Gary raced off to go and train his Pokemon. "I wonder who he chose.."

"Pika Pi.." Pikachu agreed, wondering what his choices were.

"He said it's a secret, so I am afraid I can not tell you. Now Ash lets pick your team" Oak moved to the side and gestured for Ash to go and look around at all of his older Pokemon for the right choice.

"I was thinking of choosing a Pokemon from each region I have been too, it seems fitting don't ya think Professor?" Ash turned to the Professor for advice, but he just shook his head.

"Don't ask me, it's up to you" he advised Ash, before taking a step back.

"Ok then, it's settled. Now who to choose.." Ash scratched his head and then he felt like his brain was melting "Oh man, this will be harder than I thought!"

"Try choosing Pokemon of different types" Oak suggested, making Ash think harder. Pikachu had the same look of concentration on his face, being unsure of what to do.

"Ok, so let's pick our Kalos Pokemon first!" Ash suddenly announced. His caught Pokemon suddenly looked at him and then raced over. "This is still so hard, ugh" 

"Pika!" Pikachu advised Ash, who looked at Pikachu and then thought for another moment.

"Ok, Hawlucha, I choose you!" Ash pointed to Hawlucha, who folded his arms and puffed out his chest, showing himself off because he was glad. He then threw his fists to his side.

"Cha!" he said, thanking Ash.

"Now, one from Unova..." Ash scratched his chin and wandered around, studying his Pokemon. "Ok Snivy, I choose you!" 

Snivy suddenly looked up in a confused state and hopped over to Ash. "Vy?" it asked.

"We are entering the battle tournament and I need your help," Ash asked. "Can you help us?"

"Vy" Snivy nodded, with a lot of confidence. Snivy still hadn't changed a bit since Ash caught it, still being quite a self-dependent Pokemon with confidence oozing out of every move.

"Ok, now for a Johto Pokemon" Ash sat down now, finding it hard to think of a Pokemon. "Ok then, Quilava, you're my next choice!" Ash announced and the Quilava under the tree instantly snapped its head up and looked around, seeing Ash with a smile on his face.

"That's 3 Pokemon Ash, so you need one from Hoenn, Sinnoh, and Kanto, right?" Professor Oak, who had been watching from the door asked. Ash turned and then nodded, before sitting back down in a confused state. Quilava, Snivy, and Hawlucha were with Pikachu, having a conversation on the tournament. It was exciting for them all to meet Pokemon from different regions and it was logical to assume they were also reminiscing about their battles with Ash.

"For my Sinnoh Pokemon, I choose you, Buizel!" Ash looked at the swimming Buizel, who immediately flipped out of the water and landed, placing his hands on his hips.

"Bui!" it said with as much confidence as Snivy. Buizel was a Pokemon that relished in battle and was very strong, a good choice for Ash. There seemed to be a pattern with the determination in his Pokemon.

"My Hoenn Pokemon is an easy one," Ash said, placing a hand over his eyes to block the sun from his eyes. He turned to Oak after searching around. "Where is Sceptile?" He wondered.

"Oh, yes. Tracey was conducting research on the possibility of mega evolution with Sceptile, so it's inside" Oak explained. Ash's eyes lit up with excitement, he could possibly get a mega evolved Pokemon. It was a chance worth taking.

"Ok then, Sceptile is my fifth Pokemon!" Ash got up and then scratched his head one last time. "I still need one more"

"One from Kanto it seems" Professor Oak stood next to Ash and he had his eyes on the sky. Up above them, Charizard was flying around in circles. A big grin broke across Ash's face as he pointed to the sky.

"Charizard is my final pick!"

"Ok, then Ash, let me go and grab their Pokeball's. You can go train right away" Professor Oak went inside as Charizard landed in front of Ash.

"Hey buddy, we are entering the very first Pokemon battle tournament and I will need your help. These are my Pokemon from the other regions" Ash gestured to the group assembled and Charizard looked left and right.

"Vy!"

"Cha!"

"Sceptile!"

"Qui!"

"Pika!"

 Charizard seemed to agree with Ash's choices and he dropped his head down. Ash rubbed under Charizard's chin while they waited for the Pokeball's.

"I am glad you are happy, so will you help us?" Ash asked Charizard, who nodded in reply. "Great!"

"Here they are Ash, your Pokeball's" The Professor came out with five Pokeball's and handed them to Ash.

"Thanks, professor" Ash thanked him and then turned to his Pokemon. "Everyone, return," he said, just managing to open up the five balls. Each one emitted a red light as the Pokemon were sent inside. He placed them all in his bag and then threw it back on his back.

"Goodluck in training Ash, I will be sure to keep you updated on the mega evolution research we have gathered from Professor Sycamore"

"Ok, see you, Professor!" Ash waved and then hurried out of the lab. His first thought was to go and find some of his friends, but he didn't know where to go. "Cilan headed into Viridian City, so I will look for him there!"

After a few moments, Ash found himself in front of a hotel. He stepped inside and Cilan was just about to walk out. They coincidently bumped into each other.

"Pika!" Pikachu said in excitement, a big smile breaking across his face.

"Ash! I was just coming to see you actually" Cilan and Ash took a few steps outside and headed down the path.

"I have a lot of people to see today, so can we go and gather everyone?" Ash asked Cilan. He had to get everyone together so they could all be properly acquainted.

"That's fine by me, I will contact Iris" Cilan stepped to one side and Ash waited for him when he noticed a girl with honey blonde hair across the road.

"Serena!" Ash waved and Serena turned, before rushing across the road.

"Hi Ash, it's great to see you!" she said with a huge smile on her face.

"You too. Say, where are Clemont and Bonnie?" he wondered, not seeing the two anywhere.

"They stayed at the lodge we are at, want to come with me to see them?" Serena asked Ash, who shook his head.

"I need you guys to meet me at the Pokemon Center in this city, ok?" it was Ash's turn to ask. Serena frowned, slightly puzzled.

"Why?" She asked, out of curiosity.

"I am gathering all of my friends, so you can all meet and then we can train for the tournament" Ash explained to Serena, who then nodded after understanding fully.

"Sounds great! See ya then!" Serena waved and then started to head off in the direction she was going. Cilan came back at just the right moment.

"Iris said she can get Dawn too, so who else is there?" Cilan wondered, not even sure about Ash's friends.

"I will need to contact Brock and Misty from the Pokemon Center, then find May and that should be everyone, right?" Ash looked at Pikachu, who just gave a shrug.

"That's a lot of people, you must have been busy in the other regions" Cilan commented, before moving once more towards the Pokemon Center.

"You bet! I was getting gym badges all over the world" 

They arrived at the Pokemon Center and the others were already there, even May. Ash walked over to the computer screens and attempted to contact Misty. She almost instantly replied, coincidently having Brock behind her.

"Hi, Ash, good to see you again!" Misty smiled up close to the camera and Brock waved from behind her.

"Can you guys get to the Viridian City Pokemon Center?" Ash asked Misty, who said something inaudible to Brock and then turned back to Ash.

"Of course, when?" 

"Now?" Ash replied, wondering if it was too soon.

"That's fine, we will be there in no time!" Misty disabled communications and then Ash headed back to his friends, who had all began conversing to each other. Bonnie was happy to be talking to someone her age, that being May's brother Max and the others were happy to greet each other. Ash stood back and watched as they all talked about their adventures with him, with big smiles on their faces, some expressions turning to shock while sometimes becoming interested faces. At that moment, the doors opened and Brock and Misty came in. Dawn and May both got up after seeing Brock.

"Hey, Dawn, May. It's nice to see you guys here" Brock said with a smile. Both girls nodded and then turned to Misty.

"You must be Misty, huh?" Dawn said with a smile. "Well, I am Dawn"

"And I am May" May greeted Misty with a smile too. Misty smiled back and then turned to Ash.

"You have a lot of friends Ash, hmm?" she asked, studying the Kalos and Unova groups. "Who are those guys?"

"Why don't we let them introduce themselves?" Ash asked, sitting down. Misty and Brock sat beside him and then everyone turned to Misty and Broc

"My names Serena," Serena said, with a greeting smile.

"I am Clemont" Clemont added.

"I am Bonnie" Bonnie then pointed to the Pokemon sat on her head. "And this is my friend, Dedenne" 

As soon as Bonnie pointed this out, Pokedex's flew out of the others pocket's and then they studied the Dedenne. 

"Woah, a Kalos Pokemon!" Dawn said in amazement after checking Dedenne out.

"Denne.." Dedenne ducked under Bonnie, slightly embarrassed by the amount of heads looking his way.

"I am Iris" Iris looked up at Axew with a smile. "This is my buddy and partner, Axew"

"Axew!" Axew said hello, with a big smile.

"My name is Cilan, Striaton Gym leader, and A-class connoisseur"

"Connoisseur?" Almost everyone said, puzzled by this job title.

"It is a popular job in the Unova region. I study the bonds between people and Pokemon" Cilan explained. "Care for a demonstration?"

Everyone nodded and then Cilan clicked his fingers and threw out his arms.

"In that case...It's evaluating time!" 

He looked around and noticed Dedenne. "Bonnie, your Dedenne is a perfect match for you. A truly wondrous mix of delightful flavours and aromas. Dedenne is a very caring Pokemon and one that can get nervous around others as shown when he cowered behind you. You and your Pokemon are like butter on bread, a perfect match!"

"Is this seriously a job title?" Misty's face dropped, she seemed a little freaked out by his evaluating.

"You bet it is, the highest class connoisseur is S-class, so even I am not the best in terms of judgement" 

"Oh boy, what fun" Misty commented with absolute sarcasm. Ash laughed nervously and changed the subject.

"I got you all here so we can train, who is up for a little tournament to get things started?" Ash suggested, jumping onto his feet. Everyone broke into determined smiles and there were murmurs of agreement.

"Ok then, I will draw up a bracket for us and then we can get started" Clemont pushed his glasses up onto the bridge of his nose and then grabbed a piece of paper and a pen. The preparations had begun for the tournament.

The Pokemon Battle Tournament begins in 5 days!

Meanwhile

Team Shadow. A completely unknown team, with no data on any of the people. 5 teenagers and their leader, a man in a black robe, completely hidden from the outside world. One of the teenagers, who seemed to be their commander, had black hair spiked up, with purple tints around the outside of each spike, like a shadow ball's colour. He had a black headband tied around his head, with the Team Shadow logo, a white circle with a shadow ball in the middle, printed on the front. His black t-shirt had the same logo and it was a t-shirt that didn't fit because it was so big, yet it suited the young boy, due to the tight fit white, long sleeved t-shirt he wore underneath. His hands trailed in his denim shorts, with white sneakers to finish off his look.

 The one next to him had large glasses on with flat, black hair. He had a black and purple jumpsuit on, with the logo printed on the corner. He also had a large backpack, with a similar compartment on the front just like Clemont's backpack. 

The boy beside him had a dark black mop style haircut. His eyes were purple, which matched that of a shadow balls appearance. He had the same t-shirt as their commander, but his was only slightly noticeable due to the leather jacket he wore underneath, the sleeves cutting off between his wrist and elbow and he also had fingerless gloves on. 

The fourth boy was the third's twin and they wore exactly the same. The only difference was his eye colour, as they were a deep red and looked completely evil, although his nervous face made him look scared and worried, a deep contrast to his evil eyes. 

Finally, the last member was female. Her hair was purple in colour, trailing down her back in large bundles. She had a black flower fitted on the side of her hair and also wore a black dress, with the skirt cutting off a few inches above her knees. Her shoes, like everyone else in the group besides the commander, were black in colour.

"Who would've thought that your invention would auto pilot the boat after I inadvertently knocked out the captain, Jeremy," Their commander said, tapping the captain on the floor with his boot.

The boy in the glasses pushed them up his face and then grinned. "The future is now thanks to science, or so they say"

"What's with all this science crap anyway Jeremy?" The Twins spoke in unison, frowning at the same time.

"Now now, Tristan and Jake, I know your brains can not handle my abilities, but there is no need for such language" Jeremy folded his arms and leaned against the wall, with a slight frown. The one with the red eyes, Tristan, let out a little growl in frustration and then turned to face the window, looking out at the sea. Jake, the purple-eyed one, contemplated Jeremy's words and then a grin formed on his face.

"We can say whatever we want, just so you know. There is no need to try and be so formal Jeremy" he said, before sitting on the desk behind him.

"I apologize for being so introvert, I am not accustomed to your baffling swear words, so if you don't mind keeping it down next time" Jeremy's words hurt Jake's brain and he stood there in a really confused state. He felt like his brain might implode.

Jake just shook the thoughts out of his head, still feeling confused. "Whatever" was all he could muster up, feeling defeated.

"Let's calm down boys, we are not here to bicker" The Girl suddenly joined the conversation, heads turning her way.

"Sorry, Liz" Jake snickered. The girl frowned and then slapped him on the head. "Ow!"

"You know I hate being called Liz, it's Elizabeth you fool" she snapped, putting her hands on her hips.

"Ok, I am sorry Elizabeth" 

She then smiled and turned back around, facing the commander who was just watching them as usual. "Parker, how long do you think the captain will be out?"

He scratched his spiky head, before shrugging "Be damned if I know, Umbreon's hypnosis is quite powerful, so he will be asleep for awhile"

"Oh, ok. I just don't trust Jeremy's inventions, they always blow up" she said with concern for the boat they were travelling on.

"I take great offence to your words, Elizabeth. I think my inventions are very capable" Jeremy shifted his glasses once more, his confidence oozing out of his body. 

"I don't trust them either, just so you know" Parker, who still had his hands in his pockets, said to Jeremy. Jeremy's face became nervous suddenly, their commander always made him feel nervous whenever he said anything about other people. Meanwhile, their leader just sat in the corner, almost like a silhouette, watching his children mess around while they waited to get to their destination.

The five children had registered for the Pokemon Battle Tournament, but was they in it to win it, or was there another motive hidden amongst the shadows?