Continuing the journey to Veilstone City, Ash and the others are at a Pokémon Center watching a contest on TV (and to give time for Ash and Pikachu to rest after eating too much), where they see Kenny win his second ribbon, which upsets Dawn. They then reveal that the next contest will be held in Solaceon Town, and Dawn decides to start training for that contest. Ash also starts to train for his next gym battle. Zoey arrives at the center and decides to help Dawn train. During the training, Ash's Aipom and Dawn's Buizel are distracted by the other's training, and so Zoey suggests that they trade them. Meanwhile, James is depressed about leaving Cacnea to Gardenia.
A young boy named Ash Ketchum embarks on a journey to become a "Pokemon Master" with his first Pokemon, Pikachu. Joining him on his travels are Brock, a girl-obsessed Rock Pokemon Trainer, and Misty, a tomboyish Water Pokemon Trainer who may have a crush on him. Ash and Co. end up traveling through various regions, including Kanto, the Orange Islands, and Johto, and then enter the Pokemon League competitions there.
Along the way, they run into many confrontations with Jessie, James, and Meowth, a trio of Pokemon thieves who are apart of an evil organization called "Team Rocket". But every time Team Rocket try to do their evil deeds, they fail thanks to Ash and his Pokemon.