Pokémon: Ash's Sinnoh Reset

As the aircraft touched down smoothly on the Sinnoh continent, Ash, with Aipom and Pikachu in tow, strode confidently out of the cabin, officially setting foot on familiar soil.

"Ahhh!"

Ash inhaled deeply, almost greedily, taking in the air, before spreading his arms wide and exclaiming, "Sinnoh region! I'm here!!"

"Pika~!"

"Aipom!"

Onlookers at the airport gazed at Ash with an expression that conveyed, "Ah, youth." Aipom and Pikachu responded to Ash's enthusiasm with equal excitement. To venture into a brand new, unknown land was naturally thrilling, and to express such sentiments so openly was something to be envied.

"Let's go! Let's become the strongest together!"

"Pika~!"

"Aipom!"

Pikachu and Aipom didn't dwell on the deeper implications of Ash's words. They seemed to take it as a simple declaration of his dream. However, how far away he was from that dream remained to be seen, depending on what he found on this continent.

Standing on Ash's shoulder, Pikachu noticed a subtle difference in Ash's expression compared to his journeys to Johto and Hoenn. His demeanor seemed to have shifted... more mature and composed, perhaps?

While Ash's words conveyed confidence, which he always had, his unwavering belief in his dream to become a Pokémon Master hadn't changed. Thus, Pikachu didn't overthink it.

"But before that..."

Ash turned to Aipom, and seeing the trepidation in its eyes, he snatched it up, reclaiming his hat from its head and placing it back on his own.

"I need to deal with you first. When did you sneak into my backpack? And how did you go unnoticed by me and Pikachu? Wait a minute?! Does that mean everything in my backpack..."

Ash suddenly realized that things weren't quite as he had imagined, and he immediately put Aipom and Pikachu down, unzipping his backpack.

Sure enough, due to Aipom's intrusion, his clothes and some food had been displaced. He wondered when it had done all this – probably before boarding the plane. But why hadn't Aipom been detected during security? Did the security staff simply find it unremarkable to have a Pokémon in a backpack?

"Thanks to you, now I have to buy all the essentials again... Seriously, if you wanted to come along so badly, why didn't you just say so? Why all the sneaking around?"

Ash grumbled, but Aipom's expression suggested it felt no remorse, embodying an attitude of "Sorry, not sorry, I'll do it again." Ash was at a loss for words in response to this defiant attitude and decided to let it go.

"Aipom!"

Seeing that Ash wasn't scolding it, Aipom perked up again, and after Ash gathered his things and stood up, it jumped back onto his head, again swiping his signature hat and putting it on.

Seriously, why does Aipom like this hat so much?

Ash felt a bit helpless at Aipom's actions, but given it had been "so long," he wouldn't hold it against Aipom, so long as it was happy... just like its decision back then...

Thinking of this, Ash still felt a pang of regret. Not just for Aipom, but for Pidgeot, Primeape, Butterfree, Tyranitar, and Lapras... If he could, Ash would have loved for them to always be by his side, advancing towards the top together.

But the world was full of such unavoidable situations. Butterfree had found its true love, Lapras had returned to its pod, and Tyranitar had rejoined its mother... Ash was somewhat relieved that they had found their place and returned to their own kind, but he still felt a sense of longing for Aipom and Primeape...

And Pidgeot's situation was unique. He hoped that when he returned next time, it and its Pidgey and Pidgeotto had found a new leader.

"Speaking of which, is there a Pokémon Center nearby...? I need to get your Poké Ball first, you can't both be on my shoulders all the time."

"Aipom!"

Aipom still showed no remorse, seemingly confident that it could stay outside indefinitely. Perhaps he should teach it about the harsh realities of the world once he retrieved its Poké Ball.

Ash sighed softly, then, without lingering any further, walked toward the area with a map of the airport. After this period of adjustment, Ash's mindset had changed.

He didn't know why he had traveled back in time, or if he would suddenly be transported back to the future, but now that he was back in the past, his mission was simple, and still just one thing –

To become a Pokémon Master!

Compared to the potential regrets of the future, Ash was more concerned with the regrets of the past... This time, he didn't intend to lose to Paul and the others, nor did he plan to end his Sinnoh journey with a loss in the semifinals.

Having been granted this rare opportunity to start over, he was determined to make the most of it... The most valuable things he had from this second chance were his memories and experiences. Compared to the cultivation plans from when he was fully mature, the current Ash still had many shortcomings in training Pokémon. If he could just identify and address these areas, he believed he could draw out and defeat all of his opponent's Pokémon, not just face Darkrai and Latios.

Speaking of which, were that guy's other Pokémon all Legendary Pokémon too? Or were only the first two Legendary Pokémon? That would be disappointing...

With all sorts of expectations for the future, Ash finally embarked on his new journey.

Lost in his fantasies, he didn't notice a Meowth-shaped hot air balloon slowly trailing behind him in the distant sky.

...