Ash has sent out Starly to find Pikachu. Ash and Brock notice an electric shock coming from the forest. Ash thinks that it may be Pikachu. The electrick attack scares away a flock of Starly. The attack is actually coming from an Elekid. Elekid's trainer throws a Pokéball at one of the Starly. However, the ball doesn't capture Starly since it is Ash's Starly he threw the ball to. Ash catches up to Starly. Starly flies down onto Ash's shoulder. The trainer tells Ash to stay out of his way. Ash apologizes to the trainer. Then Ash asks the trainer if he saw a girl with a Pikachu. The trainer tells Ash that he hasn't. He asks Ash if he thinks Starly is good enough to find Pikachu. The trainer says that he can tell which Starly is the strongest. To prove his point, the trainer sends out three Starly. He explains that you can check out what moves your Pokémon know with your Pokédex. He scans each Starly to see which Pokémon knows Aerial Ace. He keeps the Starly that knows Aerial Ace and releases the other two. Ash and the trainer begin to get into a fight. The trainer thinks that Ash should battle him. He calls a 3-on-3 battle, but Ash only has two Pokémon. The trainer is disgusted with Ash, and he walks away.

Suddenly, Ash and Brock hear a Volt Tackle coming from a different part of the forest. They quickly run to the source of the attack. Pikachu is using Volt Tackle on Team Rocket's mechanical robot. Team Rocket laughs since Pikachu's attack had no effect on them. James explains that there new robot can't be hurt. Dawn asks Team Rocket why they want Pikachu so badly. Team Rocket tells her that they've been trying to capture Pikachu forever now. Meowth then sends out a bunch of mechanical arms. The mechanical arms head straight for Pikachu. Piplup uses Bubblebeam, but the attack has no effect on the arms. The arms grab Pikachu and hoist it up into the air.

Piplup uses Bubblebeam on the robot. James tells Piplup that it's just wasting its energy, since the attack won't do anything. Jessie is getting frustrated with Piplup. She uses the mechanical arms to knock Piplup to the ground. Dawn runs to Piplup's side. Team Rocket is then about to attack Dawn and Piplup when Starly uses Whirlwind, and Aipom uses Swift. The attacks hit Team Rocket's robot. Ash and Brock run up to Dawn to make sure she's okay. Team Rocket is surprised to see Ash and Brock here. They use a mechanical arm to knock Ash off his feet. Ash recovers quickly and runs to save Pikachu. Brock tells Ash to be careful.

Team Rocket stands up, and they recite a brand new motto. When they are done, they use a mechanical arm on Ash. Ash dodges it, and jumps on top of the arm. He begins to climb the arm to reach Pikachu. James presses a switch, and the mechanical arms reach for Ash. Ash is able to dodge them all. Suddenly, one of the mechanical arms crashes into the robot. Electrical sparks light up from the hole. Ash reaches Pikachu, and he pulls on the mechanical arm that is trapping Pikachu. More electrical sparks surround the robot. It is about to blow up! Brock and Dawn get down to the ground as the robot blows up. Team Rocket blasts off in the sky.

On the ground is the leftovers from the robot. Brock calls out for Ash and Pikachu. Ash and Pikachu emerge from the bottom of the scrap metal. Aipom and Starly run to Ash. Ash introduces Starly to Pikachu. Then Ash gets up and thanks Dawn for helping him out. Ash and Brock introduce themselves to Dawn. Dawn introduces herself and Piplup. Ash looks up Piplup in his Pokédex. Ash hopes that Piplup is alright. Dawn reassures Ash that Piplup will be fine. Suddenly, Piplup faints. Brock suspects that something is wrong. Brock takes out a Potion from his backpack and sprays it on Piplup. Brock then takes a look at Pikachu, and he heals Pikachu too.

Later that day, Ash and co. give Professor Rowan a call. The Professor is glad that everyone is safe. He then tells Ash that he received a package from Ash's mother, and that Ash needs to pick it up. Meanwhile, the same trainer that Ash met before is looking at the leftovers from Team Rocket's robot.

On their way to the Professor's lab, Dawn finds out that Brock is a Pokémon Breeder. She thinks it's really cool to be a breeder. Officer Jenny drives up to Ash and co. She is glad that Ash and Pikachu are okay. Brock immediately falls in love with Officer Jenny. When they arrive at the lab, Ash opens up the package his mother sent him. Inside the box are brand new clothes for him to wear. Ash calls his mother to thank her for the clothes. Ash's mom is glad that everything is okay. When Ash is through with talking to his mother, he calls Professor Oak to let him know that Pikachu is safe. Ash then introduces Dawn to Professor Oak. Dawn knows that Professor Oak reads Pokémon poetry on TV. Professor Rowan walks up to Professor Oak, and the both of them have a chat.

Dawn asks Ash and Brock what they are doing in the Sinnoh Region. Ash tells her that he wants to enter in the Sinnoh League. Brock takes out his handbook and finds out that Oreburgh City is the closest place with a gym. They will also have to travel through Jubilife City. Dawn asks them if she can travel with them. Her goal is to become a great Pokémon coordinator, and the closest Pokémon contest is in Jubilife City. Ash and Brock agree that Dawn can travel with them. Ash and Dawn return their Pokémon back into their Pokéballs. Dawn notices that Pikachu isn't in a Pokéball. Ash tells her that Pikachu hates traveling in a Pokéball. Ash thanks Professor Rowan for everything he's done, and they begin to walk outisde. When they get there, they see the same trainer that Ash met before.

The trainer introduces himself as Paul. Now that Ash has three Pokémon, he challenges Ash to a battle. Ash accepts Paul's challenge. Dawn is excited since she has never seen a real trainer battle before. Paul says that they will have a 3-on-3 battle with no substitutions. Ash sends out Starly, and Paul sends out his Starly. Ash's Starly starts off with Quick Attack. Ash's Starly hits Paul's Starly, but the attack doesn't do much damage. Paul's Starly strikes Ash's Starly with Aerial Ace. Ash's Starly recovers from the attack, and it uses Wing Attack. Before Ash's Starly can hit Paul's Starly, Paul's Starly dodges with Double Team. Ash sees Paul's Starly in back. Paul's Starly uses Aerial Ace, striking Ash's Starly. Ash's Starly is knocked out.

Ash's next Pokémon is Aipom. Paul returns his Starly and sends out Chimchar. Ash looks up Chimchar in his Pokédex. Aipom starts off with Swift, and Chimchar attacks with Ember. Both attacks collide into each other. Aipom then uses Focus Punch, and Chimchar uses Flame Wheel. Chimchar, having the advantage, strikes Aipom first with Flame Wheel. Professor Rowan explains that Aipom can't complete its Focus Punch attack if it's hit before launching the attack. Aipom uses Double Team, and Chimchar attacks with Ember. The Ember attacks are slowly destroying the copies. Then Aipom is hit with Chimchar's Scratch attack. Ash tells Aipom to use Focus Punch again. Chimchar uses Flame Wheel again, too. Just before Chimchar can hit Aipom, Aipom jumps and dodges Chimchar's attack. Then Aipom comes back down and hits Chimchar with Focus Punch. Chimchar faints, and Ash wins that round.

Ash's last Pokémon is Pikachu. Paul sends out Elekid. Dawn looks up Elekid in her Pokédex. Pikachu starts off with Thunderbolt. The attack hits Elekid, but Elekid just absorbs the electricity. Professor Rowan explains that Elekid won't receive much damage since it was attacked by an attack with the same type as it. Elekid uses Thunder. The attack is much more powerful than Pikachu's attack. It hits Pikachu. Paul explains that Elekid used the electricity from Pikachu's Thunderbolt to supercharge its Thunder attack. Ash tells Pikachu to use Volt Tackle. Pikachu comes running towards Elekid. Elekid uses Protect, and the Volt Tackle has no effect on Elekid. Paul wants Ash to give up. Ash refuses to give up. He orders Pikachu to use Iron Tail. Elekid uses Brick Break, and both Pokémon collide into each other. Pikachu is able to hit Elekid with Iron Tail, but Elekid counters with Brick Break again and hits Pikachu to the ground. Both Pokémon faint at the same time, and the result is a tie.

Paul then releases his Starly. Ash wonders why Paul did that. Paul tells Ash that there are many Starly out there that are as strong as the one he released. Paul will capture another one as soon as he finds a stronger Starly. Paul then thanks the Professor for the use of the battlefield, and he walks away.

English Official Summary

When last we left our heroes, Ash and Brock were searching for Dawn and Pikachu, unaware that a stranger was spying on Ash's latest Pokémon capture. Now the stranger reveals himself as Paul, a Trainer with a tough Elekid and a surly attitude. Paul catches his own Starly and challenges Ash to a battle—but without Pikachu, Ash doesn't have enough Pokémon for a 3-on-3 battle! Paul leaves, leaving Ash embarrassed. Elsewhere in the forest, Team Rocket swoops in and snatches Pikachu again despite the best efforts of Dawn and her Piplup. Ash shows up just in time to stop the villains, giving all our heroes a chance to finally meet each other. Then it's off to the Pokémon Center, where they find Professor Rowan. They all visit Rowan's lab where there's a package waiting for Ash, but there's another surprise waiting for him as well: Paul! This time, Ash is more than ready for a battle. Both Trainers send out Starly, but Paul's Starly comes out the winner. Then it's Ash's Aipom against Paul's Chimchar, and Ash claims the victory! But in the last round, Elekid and Pikachu's battle is almost too close to call. Neither Ash nor Paul is happy with a draw. Ash sure doesn't appreciate Paul's attitude, either. Paul turns down Ash's request for another battle, but it's a safe bet that their rivalry is far from over!

French Official Summary

Paul capture un Étourmi et défie Sacha en duel, mais sans Pikachu, Sacha n'a pas assez de Pokémon pour combattre à 3 contre 3 !

German Official Summary

Endlich finden Ash und Rocko Lucia und Pikachu wieder. Zur gleichen Zeit fordert ein Trainer namens Paul Ash zum Kampf heraus.

Italian Official Summary

Paul cattura uno Starly e sfida Ash; tuttavia, poiché gli manca Pikachu, Ash non ha abbastanza Pokémon per un incontro 3 contro 3!

Portuguese Official Summary

Quando Ash e Brock finalmente se encontram com Dawn e se reúnem com pikachu, um Treinador chamado Paul desafia Ash para uma batalha.

Finnish Official Summary

Ashin ja Brockin vihdoin tavoitettua Dawnin ja Pikachun, kouluttaja nimeltä Paul haastaa Ashin otteluun.

Spanish Latin America Official Summary

Cuando Ash y Brock finalmente se encuentran con Dawn y se reúnen con Pikachu, un Entrenador llamado Paul reta a Ash a una batalla.

Spanish Official Summary

Polo atrapa a un Starly y reta a Ash a un combate, pero sin Pikachu, ¡Ash no tiene suficientes Pokémon para un combate de 3 contra 3!

English Great Britian Official Summary

When last we left our heroes, Ash and Brock were searching for Dawn and Pikachu, unaware that a stranger was spying on Ash's latest Pokémon capture. Now the stranger reveals himself as Paul, a Trainer with a tough Elekid and a surly attitude. Paul catches his own Starly and challenges Ash to a battle—but without Pikachu, Ash doesn't have enough Pokémon for a 3-on-3 battle! Paul leaves, leaving Ash embarrassed. Elsewhere in the forest, Team Rocket swoops in and snatches Pikachu again despite the best efforts of Dawn and her Piplup. Ash shows up just in time to stop the villains, giving all our heroes a chance to finally meet each other. Then it's off to the Pokémon Center, where they find Professor Rowan. They all visit Rowan's lab where there's a package waiting for Ash, but there's another surprise waiting for him as well: Paul! This time, Ash is more than ready for a battle. Both Trainers send out Starly, but Paul's Starly comes out the winner. Then it's Ash's Aipom against Paul's Chimchar, and Ash claims the victory! But in the last round, Elekid and Pikachu's battle is almost too close to call. Neither Ash nor Paul is happy with a draw. Ash sure doesn't appreciate Paul's attitude, either. Paul turns down Ash's request for another battle, but it's a safe bet that their rivalry is far from over!

Russian Official Summary

Эш и Брок, наконец, встречают Доун. Эш и Пикачу снова вместе! Но тут тренер по имени Пол бросает Эшу вызов.

Dutch Official Summary

Als Ash en Brock eindelijk Dawn ontmoeten en herenigd zijn met Pikachu, daagt een Trainer genaamd Paul Ash uit tot een gevecht.

Norwegian Official Summary

I det Ash og Brock endelig møter Dawn igjen og blir gjenforent med Pikachu, utfordrer en Trener ved navn Paul Ash til en kamp.

Swedish Official Summary

När Ash och Brock äntligen hittar Dawn och återförenas med Pikachu, utmanar en Tränare, som heter Paul, Ash till en strid.

Danish Official Summary

Da As og Brock endelig møder Dawn og genforenes med Pikachu, udfordrer en Træner ved navn Paul Ash til kamp.