Early the next morning, after a good night's rest, Itsuki was feeling completely refreshed.
Just as he was about to leave the Pokémon Center, he suddenly noticed a boy accompanied by a Pikachu and an orange-haired girl arguing about something in front of a poster hanging on the lobby wall.
The boy wore a baseball cap, a T-shirt, and a blue jacket.
Although he looked a little goofy, he was bursting with energy, and his expression radiated youthful enthusiasm.
The orange-haired girl had her hair tied into a side ponytail.
She had a pretty face and wore shorts with a tight-fitting yellow tank top.
Her outfit revealed her entire midriff, her fair, slender arms, and a pair of long, beautiful legs.
She looked youthful and lively, possessing just as much energy as the boy beside her.
With just one glance, Itsuki immediately recognized them.
'Wait a minute!'
'Isn't that Ash and Misty?!'
'And that yellow mouse beside Ash...'
'Could it be the legendary Pikachu that can somehow fight anyone on equal terms?!'
'The almighty Pikachu himself?!'
Seeing the backpacks on their shoulders and their travel-worn appearances, Itsuki couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
'I can't believe they've already met each other and made it all the way to Pewter City!'
'That was ridiculously fast...'
At that moment, Misty pointed toward the poster on the wall and said,
"Challenging the Pokémon League isn't nearly as simple as you think! You have to defeat at least eight Gym Leaders and collect their Badges before you're even qualified to enter the League Conference."
"Something that easy won't stop me!"
Ash spoke with absolute confidence, displaying the fearless courage of someone who had only just begun his journey.
"I'm going to challenge Pewter Gym in a little while! Then you'll finally get to see how strong we really are!"
Hearing their conversation, Itsuki couldn't resist approaching them.
"You're Ash, right?"
Ash turned around and discovered that the person speaking was a young man he'd never met before.
"Yeah, I'm Ash! Who are you?"
"My name's Itsuki. I visited Pallet Town a few days ago and happened to hear Professor Oak mention you. I never expected we'd run into each other here today."
"Oh, so you know Professor Oak too?"
Ash grinned.
"This is my partner, Pikachu! And she's..."
Before Ash could finish, Misty interrupted him.
"My name's Misty! And I'm the world's most beautiful girl!"
'The world's most beautiful girl?'
Itsuki's gaze briefly swept across Misty's chest.
'Well, Misty certainly has the makings of a beauty...'
'But her body's still developing.'
'Looks like she's got a long way to go before she can claim the title of the world's most beautiful girl.'
Meanwhile, Misty was also examining Itsuki.
Seeing his handsome appearance and the Kirlia following behind him, she suddenly remembered something.
"Wait a second!"
"You're that trainer who used Kirlia to defeat my sister, aren't you!?"
Itsuki pretended not to know what she was talking about.
"Oh? And who might your sister be?"
However, upon hearing his question, Misty immediately fell silent.
Clearly, she didn't want anyone to know that she came from Cerulean Gym.
Just then, a middle-aged man wearing a tall red hat and sporting a thick beard approached them.
"Are you planning to challenge Brock, the Gym Leader of Pewter Gym?"
Ash nodded.
"Of course! As soon as we leave the Pokémon Center, I'm going straight to Pewter Gym and defeating him!"
Unexpectedly, the middle-aged man burst into laughter.
"Hahahaha! You?"
Before Ash could respond, the man laughed again and walked away.
Watching him leave the Pokémon Center, Itsuki couldn't help but ask,
"Who was that guy? Why does he seem to look down on you so much?"
Misty explained,
"His name's Flint. He's an old guy who sells rocks. We met him when we first arrived here."
'Flint?'
'An old guy who sells rocks?'
Itsuki froze for a moment.
Then, realization struck him.
'Wait! Isn't that Brock's father, the guy who abandoned his family years ago?!'
Watching Flint disappear into the distance, Ash clenched his fists angrily.
"Hmph! That old guy seriously underestimated me!"
"Fine! I'm going to the Gym right now and beat Brock! Then he'll see what I'm capable of!"
"Well, that's quite a coincidence."
Itsuki shrugged and smiled.
"I was planning to challenge Pewter Gym myself. Why don't we go together?"
...
Pewter City.
A city bearing the color of stone.
It was said that Pewter City had been famous for producing stone since ancient times.
However, apart from its stones and fossils, the city had few other distinguishing features.
It was a quiet little city in the northern part of the region.
The entire city was surrounded by mountains and farmland.
A broad river divided it into two halves.
Pewter Gym was located in the northwestern part of the city, directly across the street from another famous landmark—the Pewter Museum of Science.