Pokemon: A different Ash

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After leaving the wilderness area and resuming their journey, the three travelers finally arrived at a small town.

Having spent most of their time traveling through nature reserves and wild areas, they rarely had proper accommodations. Now, the trio breathed a collective sigh of relief at the sight of civilization.

"Even though I'm used to sleeping outdoors, it feels so much better to be back in a town!" Misty said with relaxation as she strolled down the street.

"It's still early though. If possible, I'd like to stock up on supplies for our next leg of the journey," Ash commented while examining the travel guide.

"Wow! Look over there!" Misty suddenly exclaimed, pointing toward the distance.

In the distance stood a magnificent bridge spanning across the sea. From where they stood, they couldn't even see where it ended.

"That's this town's landmark—the largest bridge in the Kanto region. It's called the Cycling Road," Brock explained, consulting the guidebook. "If we were to take the detour around the sea to the next city, it would take several days. But crossing this bridge would only take two or three hours!"

Misty looked surprised. "That's amazing! Building this bridge must have taken a really long time, right?" She could only imagine the tremendous effort required to construct such a massive bridge.

"Yeah! They say after this bridge was completed, both cities it connects developed much faster," Brock nodded in agreement.

Ash concurred with this point, thinking of the saying that if you want prosperity, you must first build roads.

"So you're saying if we cross that bridge, we can reach the next town today?" Misty asked. Two or three hours of travel was nothing compared to the days they often spent sleeping in the wilderness.

"Since we're already here, we might as well head straight to the next city," Ash said. "It's still morning. If we hurry, we can reach the next city today without having to camp out."

"Since it's called Cycling Road, we must need bicycles to cross it!" Ash pointed out. He knew bicycles were required on that road, and vehicles weren't permitted.

Hearing this, Misty's expression suddenly turned resentful. "Bicycle... I used to have one of those!" She glared at Ash accusingly.

"Pika..." Pikachu scratched his head in embarrassment while Ash just rolled his eyes. Would they ever get past the bicycle issue?

There were no rental bicycles in this world. Although technology was advanced in many ways, this anime was created years ago, before bike-sharing systems existed. Bicycles in this world were also ridiculously expensive, costing tens of thousands of Pokédollars or more. With the bounty Ash had received earlier and the prize money from the P1 Grand Prix, he could afford one, but it wasn't necessary.

This did give Ash an idea for making money—something that had worked in his previous life and might work in this world too. However, his financial resources weren't sufficient at the moment. Perhaps he could find a business partner in the future.

"Anyway, let's head to the Pokémon Center first," Ash suggested, changing the topic.

Misty sighed in resignation. Even though Ash had destroyed her bike, he had also saved her life that day.

The three quickly made their way to the Pokémon Center, passing a bicycle shop on the way. The prices were indeed outrageously high.

In the games, players would usually be lucky enough to receive a free bicycle from someone, otherwise, they might never afford one even after completing the game.

"Can't we just buy one? What's wrong with buying a bicycle?" Misty complained as they entered the Pokémon Center.

"What good would one bicycle do? There are three of us," Ash replied as they walked in.

Nurse Joy overheard their conversation as they entered, and looked thoughtful. Misty realized Ash had a point—one bicycle wasn't enough; they would need at least two.

"Hello, could you please help restore our Pokémon's strength?" Ash approached the front desk, carefully setting Pikachu down before taking out his other Poké Balls.

"Beautiful Nurse Joy, I wonder how you're related to the Nurse Joy from Star Moon City?" Brock couldn't control his habits, stepping forward to take Nurse Joy's hand.

"Um... she's my cousin," Nurse Joy responded, caught off guard.

"Although you're cousins, you are far more beautiful than her!" Brock said passionately.

"Uh... haha! Thank you... thank you!"

"Come on, you said the exact same thing to Nurse Joy in Star Moon City. Instead of flirting, why don't you think about how we're going to cross that bridge?" Misty couldn't take it anymore and pulled Brock away by his ear.

Ash and Pikachu shook their heads in embarrassment. Meanwhile, Nurse Joy spoke while storing Ash's Poké Balls.

"Are you planning to take the Cycling Road?"

"Yeah, but we don't have bicycles," Ash nodded slightly.

"Well, there's a Shellder receiving treatment at the Pokémon Center in Sunshine Town on the other side of the bridge, but they've just run out of the special medicine it needs," Nurse Joy explained.

"I'm too busy here to deliver the medicine myself. Since you're heading that way, would you mind taking it for me?" Nurse Joy asked with a serious expression.

"Yes, of course, but don't we need bicycles to cross that bridge?" Ash inquired.

"That's no problem—I can lend you my bicycles. Just leave them at the Pokémon Center on the other side." Nurse Joy placed three keys on the counter.

"Perfect! We'll head over as soon as our Pokémon are healed. Please prepare the medicine," Ash agreed readily. With bicycles provided, there was no need to worry about taking the long way around.

"Thank you! Please wait a moment," Nurse Joy responded with relief, taking Ash's Poké Balls to begin the healing process.

Brock and Misty were excited about borrowing the bicycles. This meant they wouldn't need to take the detour, saving them from another night of camping in the wild and conserving their travel supplies.