Chapter seventeen (AKPKMN)

Review Responses:

Lezaroth: I actually thought hard about doing that, but decided that would be hypocritical of Ash. Ash's Arceus won't appear in this chapter. I'm glad that you like that Alt Legendaries are being awarded to Ash, it was a tough choice for me since that universes legends needed to be preserved as much as possible. I felt that Paul was deeply flawed and cruel, but not beyond redemption or incapable of adapting his training style. Manaphy got away on its own. The Pokemon Rangers exist, but they're relatively useless good guys. The Jewel of Life thing was something that I had forgotten, but Arceus learned the truth and undid his negative actions.

The reaper of death445: Thanks and I generally try too update everyday.

Yaw6113, Dylan-A-Friend, buterflypuss: Thanks.

Phenomenal Ultra Instinct: Glad you like the story.

The screening rounds of the Lily of the Valley Conference thankfully didn't take very long... Ash just had his Pokemon sweep his opponents teams.

Ash, Conway, Nando, and Paul had all made it to the preliminaries... so did Tobias, the one who exploited Legendary Pokemon. The lighting of the flame was just performed and the announcer began speaking...

"And with the lighting of the Sinnoh League flame, the Lily of the Valley Sinnoh League is officially under way! And now its time to announce the Sinnoh League first round match ups... so here they are!" The announcer said.

"Conway, Nando, do you both see the guy in the red coat and grey-ish hair?" Ash asked from between his two acquaintances.

"Yeah..." Conway replied.

"He has a Darkrai, Latios, Latias, Entei, Raikou, all three Legendary Birds, and a Cresselia... So try to plan ahead for that." Ash said.

Both nodded gratefully and agreed to plan ahead.

**Later...**

Ash defeated Nando using only his Infernape and his next opponent, advancing to the Top 16.

In the Top 16 Paul defeated some annoying kid named Barry, advancing to the Top 8, and Ash harshly dealt Conway a shocking and humbling defeat after Conway showed some arrogance.

Ash would battle Paul tomorrow, but Ash was relaxing until then. He was soon joined by Cynthia.

"Have you already chosen your Pokemon for tomorrow's battle?" Cynthia asked.

"Yeah. I'll have to be extra thorough to show Paul how flawed his training methods are by dealing him a very humiliating defeat. He should only need one last push to abandon his abusive and ineffective methods..."

"Yeah. I heard about the trouble he was in. How is Chimchar doing?"

"He's an Infernape now," Ash replied. "I was able to build him up into a major powerhouse after helping him past some of his mental blocks."

"That's good," Cynthia agreed. "What about Tobias? I saw the look of disdain that you gave him."

"I'll crush him like the bug he is," Ash replied coldly.

"Why do you dislike him so much?" Cynthia asked in interest and mild concern.

"Tobias exploits the powers of Legendaries to win badges, money, and tournaments... I suspect that at least one of them is a primary with duties that it is unable to fulfill. I have Legendaries too, don't misunderstand, but I don't use them for personal gain. I train them mostly, but I have a breeding pair of Legendary Birds. The Legendaries that I've caught can request or demand their freedom at any time. I intend to defeat Tobias and possibly campaign to outlaw all Legendary Pokemon from competitive battling. So far all Tobias has done is exploit the power of Legendary Pokemon to defeat children and destroy their dreams. It's all Darkrai doing the work so far. The Legendary Pokemon, several of which endangered species, all deserve better than to be exploited for Gym Badges and money... if enough of them die then those species will be extinct or it will become a mere matter of time until they do. All trainers have a responsibility to look out for Pokemon and to treat them well."

"You're right. I suppose most people just take the Legendary Pokemon for granted and assume that they will always be there or they just consider them Pokemon to be caught." Cynthia replied. "I'm sure the Pokemon League will listen to such a logical and wise argument."

"I hope so," Ash replied.

"What will you do after this conference?" Cynthia asked.

"Train, plan, and acquire my Pokemon in advance for the Unova League," Ash replied. "I'm only getting four Pokemon from Unova at present. I'm just not very impressed by the potential of most of the regions native Pokemon."

"And you'll train them to a high level very fast as a side-effect," Cynthia pointed out.

"Yes and I'll be training my older Pokemon too. After Kalos I'm going to settle down and challenge Arius for his title... maybe Lance too if he just wants to free up his schedule." Ash replied.

Cynthia excused herself to retire early.

It was time for Ash and Paul's battle, and Ash was eager to crush him but he was also exercising caution... overconfidence could end Ash's winning streak.

For his first Pokemon Paul sent out his Aggron and Ash sent out Infernape who glared angrily at Paul. Paul returned Aggron and sent out his Gastrodon.

Ash concealed the smirk and had Infernape use Solar Beam, blasting Gastrodon back and leaving it unable to battle... Paul was shocked, but Ash just smiled. That Gastrodon just wasn't quite strong enough for the big leagues.

Paul's Ninjask was beaten next with Ash predicting where it would be and having Infernape attack there and then Infernape used Stealth Rock to weaken Paul's next Pokemon.

Paul sent out his Drapion next, taking damage from Stealth Rock, Paul had Drapion use Toxic Spikes... but Ash merely rolled his eyes before having Infernape use Stone Edge to brutally beat down Drapion.

"Drapion is unable to battle! Since Paul has lost three Pokemon we will take a short break!" The referee announced.

After a short break, Ash and Paul's battle continued with Electivire being sent out...

Electivire took damage from Stealth Rock and was hit with Gunk Shot and Will-O-Wisp before being blasted back by Stone Edge.

"Use Thunder!" Paul ordered. Electivire quickly obeyed and damaged Infernape quite badly.

"Rock Tomb!" Ash ordered calmly and had it followed up by another Stone Edge which was then combined with Blast Burn... Electivire was hit with Stone Edge and Blast Burn at the same time and not even Protect could withstand such overwhelming power and force.

"Electivire is unable to battle! Paul send out your next Pokemon!" The referee said.

Paul's Froslass and Aggron were both easily beaten and the battle ended with whimper and Paul saw and knew right then that his harsh methods weren't actually working.

Ash's next opponent was no challenge for him and was quickly beaten with Ash having no Pokemon faint... Ash's final obstacle for the championship was Tobias himself, but Ash would defeat Tobias. The large level disparity between his and Tobias' Pokemon would enable Ash to put them into the Pokemon Center for a few days or even weeks... It was unsavory, but necessary. It was time for the weak to grow stronger within safely structured limits... and not by exploiting the power of legendary Pokemon to pretend to be stronger. Besides... Tobias needed to learn some humility and be put in his proper place.

Now, it was time for the final battle of the Lily of the Valley Conference.

"This will be a full six-on-six battle with substitutions allowed and will have no time limit. The winner will leave here the winner of the Sinnoh League, win one million Poke dollars and other prizes, and will gain the right to challenge the Elite Four and the reigning Champion, Cynthia." The announcer said.

"This battle is between Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town, former champion of the Kanto, Johto, and Hoenn leagues, and a world record holder for having won three league conferences in a row, three time national record holder for having one Pokemon fainting during Indigo Plateau Conference, and no Pokemon fainting during Silver conference... He's currently nationally ranked in the Top 20 trainers for his defeats of Steven Stone and recently Cynthia herself in a friendly battle, which she forfeited." The announcer paused for the applause and shock. "And his opponent, Tobias from our very own Sinnoh region, who won all eight badges and most of his matches with his Darkrai."

The referee took over from there. "This battle will be a full on six-on-six battle, with both trainers allowed unlimited substitutions and the battle will have no time limit. Furthermore, when one or both trainers lose three Pokemon, there will be a short intermission." The referee said and Ash and Tobias both nodded in understanding.

"Trainers send out your first Pokemon!" The referee said. Tobias sent out his Darkrai and Ash sent out his Blaziken.

Everyone, literally everyone, was surprised when Arceus appeared.

"The loser of this battle, who is so outclassed that it is quite pathetic will die for his crimes. The Legendary Pokemon that I've created are not for trainers to use in battles for money, badges, or in tournaments. They have duties that interrupting is unforgivable. Legendary Pokemon will no longer be used for competition... if this practice continues then Pokemon will be removed from this world entirely." Having made this grand announcement, Arceus bathed Ash and Tobias in a light and commanded that the battle begin before vanishing.

"Battle begin!" The referee said nervously.

"Dark Void!" Tobias ordered and Ash let it hit...

Blaziken was unaffected, much to the shock of most watching.

"Nice try, amateur hour!" Ash replied mockingly. "Brick Break!"

"Dar-" Tobias tried speaking, but Darkrai was quickly punched into a wall... unable to battle. Almost everyone was shocked by how easily Darkrai was beaten... but none more than Tobias.

"H-how?!"

"There called levels, Toby! Well, that, and exploiting the power of legendaries isn't a viable substitute for actual skill." Ash said, to Tobias' anger and a lot of peoples amusement.

"Go Cresselia!"

"Return Blaziken," Ash replied. "Go Absol! Use Mean Look!"

With his prey trapped, Ash had Absol go on the attack and even added Perish Song to be redundant... it wasn't necessary.

"Cresselia is unable to battle! Tobias, send out your next Pokemon!"

"Go Heatran! Use Stone Edge!"

"Counter!" Ash replied and Heatran took immense damage from that. "Water Pulse!"

Heatran countered with Magma Storm, which was evaded with Detect and followed up with Water Pulse and Dark Pulse... defeating Heatran.

"Heatran is unable to battle. Since Tobias has lost three Pokemon we will take a short break." The referee said.

"What is your problem with me?" Tobias asked, deciding to be mature and work this out.

"You're a thirty something man using Legendary Pokemon, endangered species, too destroy the dreams of ten and eleven year old children... You aren't even using any normal Pokemon. You're using all legendaries, exploiting their power that has little to do with you, and you're encouraging others to take a short cut just like you have. You're a symptom of a problem and you can't even say that your wins are truly a team effort. Your strategies are all basic and uninspired, and are consistent with those of experienced wild Pokemon. It's not just you. I encountered another trainer who exploited the power of legendaries and people mocked him to his face."

Tobias realized from Ash's tone that people were mocking him behind his back and sighed before walking away, knowing that there was no way to change their opinions about him. Tobias cared for his Pokemon and only caught the ones that he found impressive, but his dream of using Legendary Pokemon to achieve his dream of becoming champion wasn't appreciated or respected by others... Oh Tobias understood their feelings, but this was his dream. He was always fascinated by Legendary Pokemon and their powers and he empathized with those who had their own dreams ruined, but he had invested over twenty of his thirty-two years of life in this and he wasn't giving up. He would fight for his dream just as his opponents fought for theirs... and if he could find a way to survive this battle then he would add Arceus to his collection too.

The break ended and the battle continued...

And then Tobias made a colossal mistake... he sent out a Legendary Bird, Zapdos.

"Go Charizard!" Ash said.

Tobias ordered Zapdos to use Thunder, but was surprised that it had no effect. Charizard used Hyper Beam and followed it up with Giga Impact... and with Charizard being the equivalent of a level 217 Pokemon and having over 130 levels on Zapdos it wasn't a surprise to Ash that Zapdos was defeated.

"Zapdos is unable to battle! Tobias, send out your next Pokemon!"

Tobias was visibly shocked, but he only had his Legendary Birds left.

Moltres was defeated next, with its Ancient Power attack easily countered with Dragon Claw.

Tobias sent out his Articuno and had it use Blizzard, Hail, and Reflect in an attempt to prolong the battle and wear Charizard down, but he knew that his chances of victory were almost non-existent.

Unfortunately for Tobias, Ash simply had Charizard use Flare Blitz to reduce the effects of the Blizzard and Hail, and heavily damage Articuno in the process. But Ash wasn't done yet, he ordered a close ranged Flamethrower, blasting Articuno onto the ground albeit still able to battle.

"Blast Burn," Ash ordered calmly.

Tobias and the audience all watched as Tobias' dreams were destroyed by a single fateful Blast Burn... the last thing that Tobias' saw as he was turned into stone was his Articuno unconscious... The Poke Balls containing Tobias' Legendary Pokemon shattered and his Pokemon were rejuvenated and teleported away.

"Articuno is unable to battle! Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town is the winner!"

"I hate to say something until it gets annoying, but Ash has done it again!" The announcer said. "This is Ash Ketchum's fourth championship win! Not only that, but Ash has also just matched his own previous accomplishment at the Silver Conference and none of his Pokemon have fainted during the entire Lily of the Valley Conference! This is his fourth league win in a row and Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town has become the first in history to achieve this."

"Ash has just set two more national records... No Pokemon fainted during the Lily of the Valley Conference. A national record. No Pokemon fainted during two League Conferences... a national and world record. The young mister Ketchum is a truly exceptional trainer!"

President Goodshow and the Sinnoh Champion Cynthia both came forward to present Ash with his winnings.

"Congratulations on winning the Lily of the Valley Conference, Ash, and on continuing your historical winning streak." President Goodshow said.

"Congratulations, Ash," Cynthia said with a smile.

"I present you with your trophy; proof of your victory, and one million Poke dollars will be transferred into your account. Your winning the Lily of the Valley Conference grants you the right to challenge Sinnoh's Elite Four and Cynthia at any time you desire, and you will bear the title Champion of the Lily of the Valley Conference until next year." President Goodshow said.

After winning the Lily of the Valley Conference Ash was back in Pallet Town a million Poke dollars richer... and was training some more while spending time with his mother and his Pokemon. Ash had acquired a Druddigon, level 66, and freshly caught, an Axew, Deino, and Litwick. All were raised to a minimum of level 25 and evolved appropriately.

Ash's wealth had continued to grow and so had his plans... Legendary Pokemon would all soon be banned from official competitions due to Arceus' decree. The only complication was that 'Pyramid King' Brandon had refused to release his Regi Trio... Ash's Charizard made short work of Brandon's entire team in a six-on-one battle. Brandon was turned to stone by Arceus as punishment.

This also humiliated and discredited the Battle Frontier too.

Now, though, it was time for a party... a party to celebrate Ash's National Pokedex completion. Ash's mother Delia, Lance; the Johto Champion, Kanto and Orre Elite Four, and Dragon Master, Misty, of the Johto and Orre Elite Four, Leaf; Ash's childhood friend, Clair; of the Blackthorn City Gym, Steven Stone, Cynthia, May and Max, and even the legendary Blue Oak; the rival of the legendary Red himself. There was a lot of power contained within Professor Oak's Laboratory right now... and not just from the Legendary Pokemon that Ash had out.

"How did you catch Arceus?" Cynthia asked in surprise.

"He's not a primary so it only took a few days of constant battle," Ash replied, lying.

"And Groudon, Kyogre, and Rayquaza?" Steven asked in awe.

"Resurrected from fossils; they were primaries, but had since been surpassed and replaced. They will be able to reclaim that position when the current strongest of them passes on." Ash said.

"Well, you're certainly a Dragon Master now," Lance added. "All of your dragons are all well trained and very powerful."

"Good. Then I can wear that cape that I got for the event." Ash replied, amusing Clair.

"You don't have to wear a cape just because you're a Dragon Master," Clair pointed out with a smile.

"Don't ruin this for me. It's a life choice and there is nothing wrong with it." Ash replied, amusing everyone listening.

Clair just smiled at Ash's antics.

That group of people broke up and they went to mingle with other people. Ash decided to go talk with May and Max.

"Congratulations on making the Top 4, Max. I was very impressed by you." Ash said.

"Thanks Ash," Max said. "Hestia really showed her strength in beating me though."

"I'm sure that you'll do better in your next conference," Ash said in reassurance, but he was very impressed that Max did so well against a Fire-type specialist being considered for the Elite Four. "I've actually caught some wild Pokemon that were causing trouble in Sinnoh that you can have, if you want."

"What kind of Pokemon?" May asked, hoping that some might appeal to her too.

"A Gyarados, level 55, Aggron, level 63, and a Metagross that's level 60. They were causing a lot of trouble but have all been taught better behavior while with me." May was disappointed, but Max was very interested.

"Can I meet them first?" Max asked.

"Sure," Ash replied.

Getting them from Oak's preserve didn't take more than a minute and the Pokemon were all eager to begin battling again and they happily accepted Max's offer to join his team.

May had befriended Ash's Pachirisu, Roserade, and Lopunny, and Ash asked them if they wanted to go with May and they agreed. Most were surprised that Ash would give away so many Pokemon in a day, but Ash's focus was his Pokemon's well-being after they did all they could together as trainer and Pokemon, and Ash told them that. Besides, May knew Roserade as a Roselia in Hoenn and they both knew each other pretty well.

Ash decided to talk with Leaf next.

"Hey, Leaf," Ash said, having not talked with her in a while.

"Hey, Ash," Leaf returned. "Congratulations."

"Thanks," Ash returned. "How's your journey going?"

"I mostly train in Cerulean Cave nowadays and compete in smaller tournaments. I just don't like the idea of traveling through the other regions... I want to be well-known in Kanto and Johto. I haven't won the Kanto or Johto leagues yet, but I've placed Top 4 and Runner-up most recently. I enjoy training and spending time with my Pokemon the most though, but we need to test ourselves too." Leaf replied.

"All that matters is that you and your Pokemon are all happy with that," Ash said. "Adjusting to new regions and having to plan travel, training and meals, memorize maps, Pokemon locations, migration patterns, and concentrations of trainers can be very exhausting."

"How do you do all that?" Leaf asked, with a raised eyebrow.

"In my spare time while training and spending time with my mom and Pokemon. It's actually not a huge job; just more reviewing pre-existing data and tourist locations. Unova should actually be my easiest and most productive journey... I'll have my four pre-chosen Pokemon and train many of my older ones for when I quit traveling and challenge the Elite Four and Arius. The four Unova Pokemon will be over-powered for league conferences but much closer to my older ones in power."

"How much stronger can you get, Ash?" Leaf asked in shock.

"I intend to find out, Leaf. I intend to become the strongest of them all... so strong that I cannot be beaten at all; not even by groups of truly great trainers. That's my ultimate goal." Ash said, with both his passion and excitement bleeding through.

The party only lasted a few more hours but Ash enjoyed hanging out and talking with the people there... Ash and Blue agreed to battle in the future and Ash heard about how well the Orre League was doing from Misty and Lance, but no one had beaten the Orre Elite Four yet. Cynthia and Steven both wanted a rematch in the future.

The party was fun, but it had to end eventually.

After the private party, where Mew was cuddled with by the women and children of Pallet Town and Ash's most recent accomplishment was celebrated, Ash went to sleep... Most knew better than to wake him up... but there were a few exceptions...

*Pokemon thieves.*

Ash was extremely paranoid and his magic had woken him up due to the alert charms and anti-theft spells placed upon his Pokemon and their Poke Balls. His Pokemon were soon safe and back in the Oak Corral and the thieves were bound, had all useful knowledge ripped from their minds, and then were sent away... where Ash killed them and destroyed the bodies..

It took him two more hours... two hours that were spent brutally murdering low lives in disguise, purging their influence and powerbase, and killing their clients and followers. Any stolen Pokemon were delivered to the nearest Officer Jenny and the poached Pokemon were all set free. It was a very productive two hours, but Ash was soon back to sleep... dreaming of his future adventures in Unova.