Cerulean City Gym.
Misty had become a formidable Gym Leader.
She was renowned throughout the Kanto region. Keep in mind, the original Cerulean Gym, with her three sisters as Gym Leaders,
had been dubbed the weakest gym in Kanto.
At times, one didn't even need to battle.
If you did them a favor, they might bestow upon you a Cerulean Gym badge.
They utterly lacked the responsibility of being Gym Leaders.
Ash and Misty were dining at a restaurant.
They exchanged pleasantries.
Catching up on each other's lives over the years.
Notably, Misty playfully teased Ash:
"Ash, you know, back when we were traveling together, I really had a crush on you. If you hadn't married Serena, it might have been us."
Ash chuckled awkwardly at her words.
His smile held a hint of bitterness, which Misty failed to notice.
"You're returning home this trip, aren't you? You've been away for so long."
Ash nodded. "I do need to go home for a visit."
After their meal, Ash headed back to Pallet Town.
Arriving in the familiar town.
He took a deep breath of the familiar air.
The very scent of the air was sweet.
But as he approached his family's house.
His legs involuntarily wanted to flee.
He reached home; he still had his house key.
Ash entered, and it seemed no one was home.
He didn't see his mother, Delia.
Nor did he see Leaf or Serena.
Exhausted from his travels, Ash felt weary.
He went upstairs to his room, intending to rest.
As he reached for the doorknob, he noticed his room door was slightly ajar, and he could hear sounds from within.
Ash didn't make any sudden moves.
Instead, he cautiously peeked through the crack in the door.
He witnessed a scene he had long suspected but never personally seen.
Inside were Leaf, Delia, Serena, and Serena's mother, Grace.
The four of them were engaged in some activity.
Ash took only a few glances.
Then he quietly went downstairs.
He picked up his backpack from the sofa and left the house.
About three meters from the house, he turned back for a lingering look.
"So the clown was me all along."
Ash had always believed that he was the only one aware of the relationship between Leaf and Serena, and that his mother, Delia, was oblivious.
His years of tolerance were born from the fear of his mother discovering this, which he thought would disrupt her marriage with Leaf.
Who would have thought that his mother, Delia, and even Serena's mother, Grace, were aware of the situation?
And that they had been together for so long.
Ash now felt like the fool.
"I'm never coming back."
"I can see it now; I'm superfluous."
"After being away for so many years, not one of you has called to check on me."
"From beginning to end, I've been the clown."
Ash sighed mournfully.
He had almost lost his temper when he saw what was happening upstairs.
But he restrained himself.
What was the use of a fiery outburst?
It had already happened.
"I'm leaving. This is no longer my home. It's Leaf's home, it's your home."
This time, Ash truly left, never to return to Pallet Town.
He would forever depart this place that had brought him such heartache.
Previously, he had been troubled by the relationship between Leaf and Serena, and his mother's marriage with Leaf.
But now, knowing the truth of it all.
He felt liberated.
Ash cast one last look at Pallet Town, the town where he had grown up.
Outside the town, he waved goodbye:
"Never farewell."
Then, the young man Ash, with his backpack.
Slowly disappeared into the horizon.
No one knew where he was going, nor where his journey would ultimately lead.
...
A new book has been released. You can find it by clicking on my profile page.
It's also a Pokémon fanfiction.