[Ash the Aura Guardian: Pokemon of the Riolu kind have a much higher reception to Aura than other Pokemon. In fact, if you encountered a different Pokemon today, besides watching it die, you would only be able to try using the Rainbow Wing. But this Pokemon is Riolu, so you can use your Aura to revive it.]
[Ash the Aura Guardian: Similarly, because this Pokemon is Riolu, you can also use your Aura to reactivate Riolu's lost essence. You just need to replace Riolu's lost energy with your Aura.]
[Newbie Ash: How should I do it? Transfer all my Aura to Riolu?]
[Ash the Aura Guardian: You idiot, if you do that, Riolu will explode! And you'd die too! Use your brain, will you.]
[Newbie Ash: ...]
[Ash the Aura Guardian: You just need to transfer a certain amount of Aura to Riolu each day. Within a week, you should see results. With your Aura quality, it's definitely possible to restore Riolu's peak potential, or maybe even get a pleasant surprise.]
[Newbie Ash: I see... Thanks for the guidance, Master. I'll be off then.]
[Ash the Aura Guardian: Make sure to train Riolu well. You inherited my legacy; don't come to see me unless you've trained Lucario to the Divine Domain Level.]
[Newbie Ash: Divine Domain Level...]
Ash's virtual image twitched at the corner of his mouth, then silently exited the chat group.
What Ash the Aura Guardian said sounded as simple as having meat for lunch today, but that reaching the Divine Domain Level, what a joke...
However, if Riolu truly manages to return to top-tier potential, achieving the Divine Domain Level isn't impossible.
...
In reality, Ash opened his eyes and saw Misty and the others staring at him with wide eyes, which gave Ash quite a start. Had they discovered he was in the chat group?
It shouldn't be, they don't have the ability to observe his mind; they just thought his actions earlier were somewhat strange.
"Ash, is there still something wrong with Riolu? Were you using Aura to examine Riolu's condition just now?" Misty was the first to speak.
Hearing this, Ash relaxed immediately. It had to be Misty; she's the ultimate teammate!
"Yeah, I was examining Riolu's condition. Although Riolu has already hatched, it's still not in great shape. Let's put it in a Pokeball first, then take it to the Pokemon Center for a checkup." Ash followed Misty's lead.
The master in the group had already provided a solution for Riolu, but Ash decided to take Riolu to the Pokemon Center first. Even if he didn't do that, Professor Cerise would.
Even if Ash said Riolu was fine, Professor Cerise would still choose to take Riolu for a checkup, since nowhere is more reassuring for diagnostics than the Pokemon Center.
In that case, let's send Riolu to the Pokemon Center for a checkup, and see if they have any better methods to help Riolu recover.
Professor Cerise nodded in agreement, then took out a red and white ball from his pocket, preparing to tap it on Riolu. But he paused and put the ball back.
"Ash, you should be the one to capture Riolu. You gave it a second chance at life. I believe once Riolu wakes up and learns of your efforts, it will definitely want to stay with you." Professor Cerise said seriously to Ash.
After a moment of silence, Ash nodded.
He didn't refuse, or to put it another way, he had originally wanted to suggest this to Professor Cerise, but Professor Cerise brought it up first.
Because Riolu can only be with him. Unless the Pokemon Center finds a solution, Riolu has no choice but to stay with him, or else Riolu would be completely useless.
A Pokemon with all E-level potential equals having the lowest stats in almost every category, just look at Lt. Surge's Raichu.
It wouldn't stand a chance against Pokemon of the same level, and even against Pikachu, whose stats are all A-level, it would get beaten like a dead mouse.
If the ability values don't improve, there's no future, and potential ability values can indirectly affect the speed of leveling up.
If the Pokemon Center can't cure Riolu, then Riolu has to stay with him until it's back to normal.
That would be no different than becoming his Pokemon.
Ash took out a Pokeball, gently tapped it on the unconscious Riolu, and Riolu transformed into light and entered the Pokeball.
There was no shaking, and the Pokeball made a crisp sound.
Then Ash took out his Pokedex and canceled the impending transfer of the Pokeball.
Typically, a Trainer with more than six Pokemon will have them automatically transferred to the designated logistics.
But you can cancel this transfer through the Pokedex, temporarily allowing more than six Pokemon on hand.
However, this cancellation is temporary. If it lasts more than a day, the Pokemon will still be transferred back.
To carry more than six Pokeballs permanently, one way is to remove the authentication restriction on the Pokeballs, so they won't automatically transfer back, but the Pokeballs will also lack Trainer authentication, which is slightly inconvenient for the Trainer.
The best method, though, is to apply to the League to expand the number of Pokemon slots you can carry.
Ash thought about whether he should tell Professor Oak to expand his slots to seven.
If Riolu stays with him, he'll have one less Pokemon to train, and who knows how long Riolu will take to recover, so expanding the slots seems necessary.
But that can be discussed with Professor Oak later; the priority now is to get Riolu to the Pokemon Center.
...
Ten minutes later, Ash and the others arrived at the Pokemon Center and handed Riolu's Pokeball to Miss Joy. It was almost evening, so the examination and recovery results would only be ready by tomorrow.
Thus, they returned to the Cerise Research Institute, deciding to stay there for the night instead of continuing on their journey today.
As they returned, Ash was about to ask Professor Cerise about Riolu, only to meet a familiar yet strange girl at the institute's entrance.
She was a youthful girl.
With a flawless white face, hair like mahogany tied into a braid with a petal hairband, and emerald-like shiny eyes, she wore a sailor suit and carried a small backpack, looking like a student.
The girl seemed to be waiting for someone to open the door. Upon hearing noises from behind, she turned around and locked eyes with Ash.
The next moment, the girl's face showed a hint of surprise: "Ash? What are you doing here?!"
"Are you... Chloe? Long time no see, Chloe!" Ash was initially uncertain, but recognized her from familiar features.
Professor Cerise's daughter, Chloe, who was still in school.
"What brings you to Vermilion City? Oh, right, it's travel time for you this year. I was just thinking about it..."
Even after years, Chloe talked to Ash as if they'd never been apart, friends from their shared adventures.
"Yeah, just got out of class?"
"Yes, I'm here to get my dad for dinner. Who are these two?" Chloe curiously eyed Brock and the somewhat embarrassed Misty...