After walking a not-so-short distance, Ash finally arrived at Twinleaf Town, which was closest to the airport.
Also, fortunately, Twinleaf Town's commercial street was on a street not far from the entrance.
"So, there's no Pokémon Center here? What a disappointment..."
At the entrance of Twinleaf Town, there was a map of the town.
The content on the map was very simple, just roughly dividing the areas of Twinleaf Town.
I mean, this is just a simple town, not comparable to Jubilife City, let alone Castelia City in Unova.
If you're not careful while traveling in the latter two cities, you might get lost in a deadlock, but that's because there are too many buildings in the cities, tall buildings, and intricate roads.
But if you get lost in Twinleaf Town, it's probably just because you have the 'always get lost' attribute.
If you were to ask if Ash has the 'always get lost' attribute, he probably does? I mean, the roads he's gotten lost on during his travels are probably more than many veteran trainers have walked.
Ash has even come to regard getting lost as a philosophy of life, which shows that he really has no way to overcome getting lost.
Still, he won't admit that he has the 'always get lost' attribute, getting lost must be because of fate!
"oki!"
Compared to Ash's current troubles, Aipom seems much happier, of course, if Ash retrieves the Poké Ball, it won't be able to stay outside.
Although Aipom isn't as resistant to the Poké Ball as Pikachu is, the outside world is definitely more attractive to it, given its active nature.
"There's no helping it, it seems you'll have to stay outside for a while longer.
Anyway, let's go to the shopping street to buy some necessities first, and have lunch while we're at it, or it'll be troublesome if we forget later."
"pi~ka!"
"oki~"
Pikachu and Aipom both wholeheartedly agree with Ash's plan, but what they agree with isn't the shopping, but the eating.
They spent most of their time sleeping on the plane for so long.
Although there were in-flight meals, that was of course last night, and it had been a day since Aipom last ate.
If it weren't a little oblivious, and hadn't noticed it was still hungry until Ash said they were going to eat, it probably wouldn't have had so much energy, right?
"Let's go then."
Seeing that Pikachu and Aipom looked hungrier than the other, Ash smiled happily
, and without saying anything more, he led them towards the Twinleaf Town shopping street.
Half an hour later.
Inside a certain supermarket.
"So, you already have a lot of Ketchup, right? There's no need to buy more, is there?"
"pi~ka!"
"What kind of necessity is that... You can live without Ketchup, can't you?"
"pi~ka!pi!"
Just as Ash was checking out and was even ready to pay, Pikachu sneaked over with two bottles of Ketchup from who knows where and threw them into the shopping basket without any explanation.
Ash was so angry he could understand what it was saying.
"How is it not the same! If you're going to buy new ones, at least finish the ones in your backpack first, right?"
"pika!"
"oki..."
Aipom, who was usually the loudest, was silent as it watched Ash and Pikachu argue.
It's not that it didn't want to help or mediate, but the concerned looks people were giving it in the mall made it afraid to step forward.
What if it was seen as part of the group?
"Um... excuse me..."
Just as Aipom was about to head out first, the cashier suddenly spoke up and said, "We're currently holding an event where you can draw a prize for every certain amount spent.
If you include these two new bottles of Ketchup... you'll have five chances to draw a prize.
How about it? Would you like to give it a try?"
Well, Ash finally realized he had lost his composure after hearing the cashier's voice.
It wasn't that he was back to his old self, fussing over a bottle or two of Ketchup.
It's just that Pikachu hasn't changed at all from the past until now.
Even before traveling back in time, Pikachu always liked to secretly add a bottle or two of Ketchup when he bought things.
Ash wouldn't say anything if it finished its old stock, but the problem is that Pikachu buys more every time it hasn't finished it.
As a result, Ketchup even filled half of his backpack for a while.
"Then let's do that..."
Under the cashier's gaze, Ash waved his hand and said this, which can be regarded as admitting defeat.
Pikachu, who was standing next to Ash's feet, happily gave a 'yay' to celebrate its victory.
Although
Even Aipom doesn't know what's so good about competing over this.
"For the lottery, you can go to the entrance with your receipt.
Thank you for your patronage."
The cashier smiled and bid farewell to Ash.
Although Ash and Pikachu had staged a small farce here, for the local residents who were accustomed to the unchanging life of the town, Ash and Pikachu's antics added a touch of fun to their peaceful lives.
I mean, they seemed to have a very good relationship, and their argument wasn't a real fight, just playful bickering.
With the receipt handed to him by the cashier, Ash patted his head a little embarrassedly and wandered to the lottery location.
Manning the lottery stall was a stout middle-aged man wearing a white headband.
After seeing Ash's disheveled appearance, he patted Ash on the shoulder generously and said, "Don't mind! Young people should have some hustle! Don't take it to heart, everyone is just watching the fun, no one will laugh at you!"
"...Although I don't know if your words have had a comforting effect, but never mind."
Ash shrugged and handed over the receipt.
After taking it, the middle-aged man glanced at it and made room, saying, "Received, you can draw the lottery 5 times.
Please go ahead~ The prizes are different from before.
Our boss put a lot of effort into thinking about the prizes this time."
Put a lot of effort?
Hearing this, Ash curiously looked up at the prize list posted on the wall.
First Prize - Full Set of Poké Ball Stickers
Second Prize - One Year's Supply of Ketchup
Ash: "???"
Pikachu: "!!!"
Although Ash didn't want to continue looking after seeing the second prize, he continued to browse under the excited gaze of the middle-aged man.
Third Prize - One Month's Worth of Nanab Berry
Ash: "???"
Aipom: "!!!"
Why does it feel like the malice in this world is so great....
Well, the first few prizes are indeed good, except that they are useless to him.
Ash covered his face and finally finished reading the remaining prizes through the gabetween his fingers.
Fourth Prize - Twinleaf Restaurant Invitation Ticket
Fifth Prize - An Exquisite Keychain
Consolation Prize - A Pack of Tissues