Ash and co. continue their way towards Pastoria City where Ash will battle for his fourth gym badge. Outside the Pokémon Center, Ash and his Pokémon do some special training for their upcoming match. Dawn notices Ash's incredible strength, so she does some training on her own. As soon as Zoey's words come into Dawn's head, she realizes that she needs to focus more on her Pokémon and not on their attacks.

Their special training is interrupted when Rhonda and her crew approaches them. She mentions about Wallace and how he is going to be hosting a contest on Lake Valor. Dawn gets excited and plans on entering it. Rhonda also tells Ash and co. that Wallace has a day off, so he is lurking around nearby. Dawn wants to meet Wallace, so the group decides to look for him together.

After a few moments of searching for him in the forest, Ash and co. see a mist coming from the river. Inside the river is a Milotic, the same Milotic that belongs to Wallace. Wallace spots Ash and co. and greets them. Ash tells Wallace that Dawn is a Contest Coordinator, and Wallace is interested in seeing some of Dawn's moves. Knowing that it's a perfect opportunity to prepare for the contest, Dawn accepts Ash's challenge for a battle.

A battle between Buizel and Piplup commences. Both Pokémon battle it out until Wallace stops them. He congratulates both Pokémon for an excellent performance. Wallace thinks that Ash should enter the competition, and he gives Dawn some tips on how she can improve her performance. Jessie, who is a big fan of Wallace, appears along with James and Meowth. She is crazy over Wallace and even has her Seviper look like a Milotic.

An excellent performance from Milotic concludes Wallace's visit. Ash and co. heads back to the Pokémon Center for the night, where a call from May awaits them.