Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon or Street Fighter
Summary: In a struggling slump, Ash receives a flier to participate in a martial arts tournament. Despite having little training, if at all, he enters and battles against some of the toughest fighters from all over the world to get his motivation back in gear.

Street Fighter IV: Pallet's Pantheon

Chapter 1: The Losing Streak

"Pikachu, no!" a raven-haired teen male cried out as his mouse was crushed with a massive punch. The yellow mouse with the lightning bolt for a tail fell hard onto the dirt, out for the count and eyes knocked silly. The opponent, a giant blue horned beetle, stood confidently with a chestnut brunette male in green. A tanned brunette in mostly brown rose his arm on the side of the beetle.

"Pikachu is unable to battle," he announced. "Heracross wins and the victory goes to Chase." Chase grinned at his victory.

"Ash, don't tell me that's your best," he sneered. "Sneasel and Alakazam were hardly scratched. Maybe you should retire and get yourself a new finding." He snorted a laugh and walked off. Ash crumpled to his knees in failure. Pikachu stirred and came over to Ash who wasn't feeling chipper. The brunette knelt down and placed a hand on his shoulder, worried about his good friend. If it was one loss, no problem. Just bounce right back. Unfortunately...

"That's your fifth loss in a row." It turned out that Ash was in a funk of struggles. Five losses seemed to be huge on him. Pikachu was even more bothered with Ash's troubles. "What wrong, Ash?" Ash wasn't wanting to admit a problem. Probably because he didn't know why he was in this struggling streak.

"I...I don't know," whimpered Ash. He sat on the grass, contemplating what to do. He was in heavy thinking. He was 0-5 in his last five battles. Was he ready for any future battles? His friend didn't think he had it in him to continue his quest at the moment.

"Look, maybe what you need is to spend a few days to relax and study up on your losses. The last two badges can wait." Ash could go after the last badges now but with the slump, it's probably not a good idea. He rose to his feet, an idea at least on his mind.

"I need to be alone for a little while." He started to walk off with Pikachu on his shoulder. Then he stopped for a second. "Brock, could you inform May and Max not to pursue me for sometime? I want to do some soul searching." Brock nodded, feeling that pressure with others would not benefit his well being.

"Just be careful." Ash resumed his stroll. Ten minutes of walking and Ash and Pikachu were out of sight. Opening the balls he had, he released a tortoise in a charcoal shell, a large black bird with some red feathers around the eyes, a tall green gecko with leaves on arms and a red crustacean with rather large pincers. They all seemed to be okay.

"I'm sorry, everyone. I let you all down." The tortoise and the bird were pretty surprised with Ash's admittance. The bird flapped its wing softly on Ash's back.

("Back you, always,") the tortoise croaked. Nice to know one of them would stick by him.

("Always tough, always right!") the crustacean cheered for the confidence.

("You'll rebound quickly, partner,") the gecko promised. Ash's creatures sure were supportive of him.

"Thanks, you guys," he smiled. Pikachu was there to ease some of the heartbreak Ash felt. As they helped their master, a piece of paper wafted in the soft breeze. The winds died down and the paper fell onto the crustacean who felt it. Using the pincer, the crustacean pulled off the paper and noticed words and pictures on it. The pictures had men fighting. "Hey, Corphish, watch ya got there?" Corphish handed the paper to Ash who studied it. Pikachu climbed up and saw what was on it.

("Well, Ash?") Pikachu wondered. Ash realized that this paper was a ticket.

"It's an invitation to a tournament." What was the tournament? Let's look at it.

BY READING THIS PAMPHLET, YOU HAVE BEEN INVITED TO THE WORLD'S LARGEST MARTIAL ARTS TOURNAMENT, STRETCHING FROM TOKYO TO SAN FRANCISCO AND FROM SIBERIA TO RIO DE JANERIO. ALL MARTIAL ARTISTS AND ALL FIGHTING STYLES ARE ACCEPTED. THERE'S NO AGE REQUIREMENT AND NO FEE TO ENTER. THE GRAND PRIZE IS A LARGE CASH PAYOUT AS WELL AS IMMORTALITY IN THE HALLS OF THE STREET FIGHTER HALL OF FAME.

A martial arts tournament?This could be the ticket for Ash to be back on top of his game. Hold on...did Ash have a fighting style? He started to shake his head, thinking that this wasn't for him. "Me? A street fighter? Please~!" He tossed the pamphlet to the side...only to have it come back at him and slap his face. Peeling off the pamphlet, Ash was getting annoyed. He turned to the tortoise. "Torkoal, use Flamethrower." Torkoal fired flames and struck the paper. It was on fire, but it didn't burn like normal paper. When the fire was extinguished, the paper was intact.

("What's that paper made out of?") Pikachu gasped. No one had an idea about this indestructible paper. They had no idea about who came by.

"Excuse me," a man called out. Ash and the creatures turned to a tall, muscular blond man. His hair bowed out like an upside-down umbrella with a flat top. He wore a green tank top, camouflaged pants and a tattoo of the USA flag. "It seems you've been invited to the Street Fighter tournament." Ash? Really?

"I...didn't really ask for it. I think this is yours." The blond shook with a smile.

"There's a reason you've been given a special invite. Let's start off with your name, soldier." Easy enough for Ash, just introduce yourself.

"M-My name?"

"That's right. Identify yourself." Ash took a deep breath before introducing himself.

"Ash Ketchum, sir." The man looked a little satisfied with the name.

"Occupation?" Sir, take a look at his creatures. Obviously, he has one going.

"Pokémon trainer." That took a bit of effort. The blond observed the creatures again, believing that these were Pokémon.

"Are these all your...Pokémon? These five?" Ash glanced at his team, signifying that these were indeed Pokémon.

"They're my current lineup." The man was being more informed each line Ash spoke about.

"Okay, then. Fighting style?" This was the moment Ash began to trip up on. Did he have a style? He thought about it. Something to defend himself.

"I..." A lost for words, Ash was. "I can't say for sure." This left the blond scratching his head. "Trainers go by a law forbidding aggressive behavior among other trainers." With that extra tidbit, the blond understood where Ash stood.

"This could be a problem. Perhaps my men could give you some training." His men? "I go by Colonel Guile. I'm a member of the United States Special Forces on a mission involving a couple criminal organizations. I may need your help in this." Ash's help. This was a military man. "Come. My jet's idling." He's got a jet? Before Ash decided to follow Guile, he recalled his Pokémon except for Pikachu. That ran up onto his shoulder. A little stroll later and the man and boy came across a giant silver fighter jet. Reaching in the cockpit, Guile tossed a helmet to Ash. What, none for Pikachu? Ash gave Pikachu his cap as he fit the helmet. "Take the front seat. The controls are in the back." Ash and Pikachu hopped onto the front seat in the cockpit as Guile grabbed the stick in back. That's when Ash realized that there wasn't any room for the jet to properly take off.

"How are we suppose to fly without a proper runway?" Guile smiled, knowing more than Ash figured.

"You're talking about state-of-the-art technology with these jets. The boosters will lift us off without a problem." The boosters twisted with the exhaust facing the ground. Blasts of fire rocked the jet and rattled Pikachu a bit. The boosters lifted the jet above the tree lines and turned back over to it's original positions. Finally the engines kicked in and sent the jet away in a flash. This may have been the last time Ash would be with friends. The jet flew over the ocean, destination only Guile knew. Suddenly, the jet flew into a cloud. It began to shake rather violently.

"Oh boy!"

"Relax, kid!" How? Finally, they exited the cloud and the shaking had ceased. That's when Gulie spotted their stop. "Up ahead, Ash! The USS Charlotte!" Ash and Pikachu looked ahead and saw a massive carrier battleship. One man wearing camouflaged as well was waving bright orange flags. The jet dipped, aiming at the runway of the floating vessel. "Hang on!" The jet's tiny wheels popped out along with a hook underneath the underbelly. The wheels touched down and the hook snagged a rope which pulled on the jet. The G-forces jerked Ash and Pikachu forward violently, the seat belt helping little to restrain the two. Finally, the jet stopped. Several military men came to the jet to make sure Guile was alright.

"Col. Guile, are you okay, sir?" one navy man wondered. Guile removed his helmet and grabbed a comb, swiping his hair to stay upright.

"At ease, soldier." Both saluted each other with open hands to the forehead sideways with the thumb adjacent to the eye. "Men, it is a great honor to bring over a new fighter. This is Ash Ketchum, a Pokémon trainer from Pallet Town. He'll be training here for a month en route to the Street Fighter circuit. Help him out when need be."

"Yes, sir!" the group saluted. Guile didn't look but seemed satisfied with what could be a great deal. He looked up to the sky.

'Charlie, I may need my new partner but I will stop Shadaloo. I will take Bison down!' A revenge? Led inside, the men escorted Ash and Pikachu to a gym. The gym was filled with stationary bikes, barbells, dumbbells, punching bags, speed bags, you name it. They awed the workout equipment. There was so much to do.

"Okay, let's see what I can do," Ash grinned as he approached the giant punching bag. He swung a punch, striking the bag with plenty of force. His training began...

(One month later/Exciting Street Scene in India)

The form had been filled out for Guile to turn in, wherever it had to go. This is what the form read:

Name: Ash Ketchum
Home: Pallet Town, ?
Occupation: Pokémon Trainer
Fighting Style: Freestyle Kickboxing
Height: 4' 6"
Weight: 100 lbs.
Special Moves: Call for Pokémon, Focus Fury
Likes: Pokémon, Spicy foods, thrill of battle
Notes: High vitality and endurance. He seeks motivation after losing his last 5 Pokémon battles. Punches and kick weak but powerful if in a combination.

Freestyle kickboxing? Ash being added to the tournament meant this was his moment to shine better. He didn't change his wardrobe but he was a bit more muscular. We found Ash sampling a spicy soup in a rather crowded place with Pikachu. "Man, I heard India was packed in population but I didn't think it was this bad," he stuttered. He paid for his meal after the two scarfed the soup like it was cereal. A bit of walking later...

"So, you're the new addition that's been rumored," a male voice echoed. What stood in his way?

TO BE CONTINUED...

(So, who's the first opponent for Ash? It'll be a choice of Dan, Rufus or Dhalsim. Winner will fight Ash in his first bout since converting momentarily to Street Fighting. Second, sorry about the sudden delay but another family issue rose, but it's good news. My new cousin was entered to the world, Mindy Rae. Lastly, a shout out to my team in the NFC Championship game on Sunday. GO PACK GO!)