“Ash, it’s getting late.
Hurry up and go to sleep.”
A gentle voice came from behind him.
Ash, however, was completely focused on the Pokémon battle program playing on the television.
“Mom, Blastoise and Gengar are about to decide the match!
I’ll sleep after watching for just a little longer,” Ash answered without even lifting his head.
His mother, Delia, raised an eyebrow.
Her face, carrying the mature charm of a middle-aged woman, showed a trace of displeasure.
However, she did not get angry.
Normally, no matter how she tried to persuade him, it would eventually evolve into the use of force before Ash would obediently go to bed.
But today, Delia had another method.
Delia placed her hands on her hips and said with a smile, “Tomorrow is the day you receive your starter Pokémon and become a Pokémon Trainer.
If you end up late, I’m not going to help you.”
“If all the Pokémon are taken by someone else, you’ll have to wait until next year.”
Delia’s eyes curved with amusement as she spoke in a soft, gentle voice.
Ash, who had been staring intently at the television program, suddenly froze.
“I know, Mom.
I’m going to sleep right now.”
Returning to his bedroom, Ash lay on his bed with an excited heart.
He tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep no matter what.
“Tomorrow, I’m going to become a Pokémon Trainer…”
“Should I choose the Fire-type Charmander tomorrow, or the Water-type Squirtle?”
“No, no, the Grass-type Bulbasaur is really cute too.
And Venusaur after it evolves is also very powerful.
Maybe it’s even stronger than the Blastoise on TV.”
Ash could not help fantasizing about which Pokémon he should receive tomorrow.
Because of that, he could not fall asleep at all.
Then, all of a sudden—
Ash, who had still been full of energy, suddenly felt a wave of sleepiness wash over him.
In the blink of an eye, when he regained consciousness again, Ash found himself in a pitch-black space.
Everything around him was dark.
Only an old man stood before him.
“You’re here?” the old man greeted him with a smile.
His eyes carried a deep sense of nostalgia, like an elderly person seeing a photograph taken in his youth.
Looking at something, and thinking of someone.
“Who are you?
And what is this place?” Ash asked with a frown.
The old man answered cheerfully, “There’s no need to be nervous.
This is your dream, and also the depths of your consciousness… As for who I am, perhaps I can change into what I looked like when I was young.”
As soon as he finished speaking, the old man’s figure began to change.
It was like a stone had been thrown into the surface of a calm lake, stirring up ripples.
After the ripples faded, a person who looked exactly like Ash appeared in front of him.
“What?!”
“Who… who exactly are you?”
Ash was shocked and frightened, retreating several steps in a row.
The other Ash answered calmly.
His tone and expression both carried an old-fashioned air that did not match his appearance at all.
“Don’t panic.
I am you.
Or rather, I am the future you.”
Ash looked completely blank.
“The future me?”
Future Ash nodded slightly.
“That’s right.
Stare carefully into my eyes.
You should be able to see the relevant information.”
Ash did as Future Ash said, fixing his gaze firmly on the other person’s eyes.
Sure enough, a string of text appeared before him.
[Name: Ash]
[Age: 87]
[Identity: Pokémon Professor]
[Obtainable Rewards: Professor-level Pokémon knowledge, massive increase in intelligence.]
“You’re actually a Pokémon Professor?
That’s amazing!” After seeing Future Ash’s identity, Ash was stunned.
He had never imagined that his future self could actually become a Pokémon Professor!
“But what does the line below about obtainable rewards mean?” After his shock passed, Ash quickly fell into confusion.
Professor Ash was like a kindly old man as he slowly explained, “This may be our special ability.
When the other party possesses an extremely strong obsession, we can dream of ourselves from parallel times and spaces.”
“By fulfilling the other party’s obsession, we can obtain certain rewards.”
“In the past, I also encountered different versions of us.
For example, the us who became a merchant, or the us who became a teacher.”
“I never expected that this time, I would be the one asking you to fulfill my obsession.”
Professor Ash changed back to his original appearance and cheerfully stroked his gray-white beard.
At eighty-seven years old, he could undoubtedly be considered an elderly man.
Even so, encountering something that was happening for the first time still made this elderly man feel a sense of novelty.
“Then what is your obsession?” Ash asked curiously.
Since this was his future self, Ash was naturally willing to help him fulfill his obsession if he could.
Professor Ash raised his head and looked upward, staring at the pitch-black ceiling.
Before his eyes, it seemed as though the figure he had not seen for many years appeared once more.
“My obsession is that I failed to protect Pikachu.”
Professor Ash completely sank into his memories.
“Many years ago, on the day I was supposed to receive my starter Pokémon, I was late.
Fortunately, Professor Oak had specially kept a Pikachu for me.”
“After that, we set off on our journey.
But I failed to protect it and allowed it to be taken away by bad people…”
When Professor Ash mentioned this matter, his eyes could not help filling with tears.
Wiping away the tears, Professor Ash looked at Ash with an extremely solemn expression.
“You must protect Pikachu properly when you’re in Viridian City!”
…
The next morning, before dawn had even broken.
Ash sat up, his eyes filled with confusion.
“Was that from yesterday a dream?”
“But it felt so real…”
Just as Ash was doubting himself, a line of text appeared before him.
[Name: Ash]
[Age: 10]
[Identity: Resident of Pallet Town]
[Abilities: None]
[Pokémon: None]
[Obsession Carried: Professor Ash’s Obsession]
“Looks like it wasn’t a dream!” Ash widened his eyes, excitement flashing across his face.
He looked up at the clock on the wall.
“It’s only four o’clock now, but today is already the day I receive my Pokémon.” Ash clenched his fist, his whole body brimming with excitement.
He flipped out of bed, changed his clothes, quickly washed up, and then impatiently rushed toward Professor Oak’s Laboratory.
“Ash, it’s only four o’clock.
Why are you up so early?” Professor Oak stood at the entrance of the laboratory, still bleary-eyed from sleep.
His face was filled with helplessness and disbelief.
He had never imagined that Ash would actually come so early to receive his starter Pokémon.
“Professor Oak, today is the first day I become a Trainer.
I’ve already decided that my starter Pokémon will be Pikachu!” Ash shouted loudly.
Professor Oak nodded slightly.
“I understand.
You want Pikachu as your starter Pokémon… Wait, how do you know I have a Pikachu here?”
Professor Oak quickly reacted, staring at Ash with his eyes wide and his mouth agape.
Faced with this question, Ash grinned.
“You don’t need to worry about that.”
Professor Oak looked at Ash strangely and could not help muttering softly, “How strange.
Logically speaking, you should have been late… Forget it.
In any case, it was originally being kept for you.”
“Come with me.”
Hi everyone, starting a new translation.