XY140: Till We Compete Again!

Till We Compete Again! (終わりなきゼロ！ また逢う日まで！！) is the 47th and final episode of Pokémon the Series: XYZ.

Synopsis
With their journey in Kalos finally over, Ash and his friends decide to part ways in order to walk their own respective paths. At the airport, the group promises to meet each other again someday, but when it is almost time to board the plane, Dedenne runs away as he doesn't want to part ways with everyone. Meanwhile, what is Team Rocket up to?

Episode Plot
The heroes are talking to Delia and Professor Oak on the telephone, but Pikachu is making faces against the screen, so Professor Oak can't see what's going on. He leaps onto Ash's shoulder after he is called over. Both Oak and Delia are delighted to hear from him, and Delia then talks with Serena, Bonnie and Clemont, asking how they've been doing. Ash tells them both that he has so much to talk about his journey through Kalos and that he will be flying home later that afternoon. Delia then invites Clemont, Bonnie and Serena to visit Pallet Town sometime soon and promises to make them a big meal. Afterwards, as Ash and the others leave to get packed, Bonnie and Dedenne are left standing, feeling somewhat sad.

Everyone sits down for lunch prepared by Serena, but Bonnie is quietly stirring her soup around. Serena asks if everything is okay, to which Bonnie replies she believes she ate too many sweets and Clemont scolds her for doing so. The doorbell rings, and the gang meets Alain, Mairin, Chespie and Professor Sycamore outside. The Professor thought it would be a good idea to meet one more time before everyone went their separate ways. In an alleyway, Team Rocket and Meowth deliver their final report to Giovanni detailing how they single-handedly eradicated Team Flare and destroyed the Giant Rock. Giovanni is impressed and congratulates them, ordering them to return to base immediately. Jessie, James and Meowth are overjoyed that they finally did something that impressed him (even if Meowth edited out some parts), and they head off towards the airport to catch the next flight back to Kanto.

Meanwhile, Alain and Mairin report that they are off on a journey to Frost Cavern as part of Professor Sycamore's research. The Professor explains how the Anistar Sundial, when bathed in the light of the setting sun, gives off energy similar to that of Mega Stones, and Mairin says that they've found the same kind of energy in other places as well. Ash notices Alain doesn't have his Mega Ring anymore, and Alain explains that he had borrowed it from Lysandre and turned it in to the authorities as evidence. Ash realizes Alain won't be able to Mega Evolve anymore, to which Alain says that he has decided to start over from scratch and find a Mega Stone and Key Stone on his own, thanks to Ash's encouragement. He then offers a proposition to Ash that when the time comes, they should battle again someday, and Ash accepts. Mairin says goodbye to Serena, thanking her for her help during the Lumiose Conference. After they leave, Ash and Serena make their final preparations for their departure. At Lumiose Airport, Serena's flight to Hoenn is scheduled to leave before Ash's, which gives time for everyone's Pokémon to say goodbye to each other.

Bonnie, however, continues being sad. Team Rocket runs, as they run towards Gate 12. Jessie reminds how it was James' fault for spending too much time on buying the gifts, but he and Meowth remind Jessie was the one that bought them. Wobbuffet runs, too, and drops keychains of Solrock and Lunatone. As everyone is saying farewell, Braixen, Sylveon and Pikachu try to comfort a saddened Dedenne. He can't say his farewells and jumps out of Bonnie's arms, running across the terminal and hiding behind a luggage carousel. Ash has Pikachu try to locate him via electricity. When the heroes eventually finds him, Bonnie makes a passionate plea to him, that she knows they're not ready to say goodbye, but everyone has their own dreams that they want to make come true. She tells Dedenne that she'll be a Pokémon Trainer when she's old enough and she wants him as her partner. She wants to be as good a Performer as Serena, to win a Gym battle against her brother, and to beat Ash and Pikachu, saying one day they'll be the top team in Kalos. She asks of Dedenne to help them in achieving this dream, but they have to bid their friends farewell today with smiles on their faces.

Dedenne jumps back into Bonnie's arms, and Ash tells Dedenne to help make Bonnie's dream come true, as the gang vows that they won't lose to her. Serena's flight is about to depart, so Serena says her final goodbyes to Ash, Clemont and Bonnie. She tells Ash that she is glad she came with him, and that the next time they meet he will like the person she's grown into. Descending down the escalator, she calls out to Ash for one more thing, causing her to run back up the escalator and lean towards him, but the farewell is not directly seen as the escalator takes her back down. Clemont, Bonnie, Pikachu and Dedenne are standing there shocked, but Ash looks on with a smile. They say their goodbyes as Serena waves. As Serena's flight departs, Clemont, Ash and Bonnie watch from the observation deck. Ash says Serena has gotten stronger and will get even stronger in Hoenn. Clemont also promises to become stronger and resolves to become an inventor that makes Pokémon happy.

With still some time before Ash is set to leave, Clemont asks a favor, something that he's wanted to do for some time: he wants to have one last battle with Ash. He and Ash send out Bunnelby and Pikachu, and Bonnie looks on as the two Pokémon battle hard. Pikachu starts with Thunderbolt, which Bunnelby dodges. Bunnelby retaliates with Mud Shot, which Pikachu negates with Iron Tail. Followed up with Quick Attack, Pikachu clashes with Bunnelby's Wild Charge. Pikachu uses Iron Tail and attacks Bunnelby, who uses Double Slap. Pikachu uses Thunderbolt, which Bunnelby avoids, then digs. Pikachu prepares Electro Ball and dodges Bunnelby's Dig, then fires Electro Ball to clash with Bunnelby's Mud Shot. Later, as the sun sets in Kalos, Clemont and Bonnie watch as Ash's flight departs. Serena arrives in Hoenn, and as she takes the next step to her dream of becoming a top Performer, she reflects on her own journey. At Prism Tower, Clemont is working on a new invention while Bonnie watches, both reflecting on their own journeys. The invention blows up, covering the two of them along with Clembot singed.

At his lab, Professor Sycamore is helping a new Trainer choose his starting Pokémon when one of his aides tells him there's a call waiting. Alain is telling him about what he and Mairin have found in Frost Cavern, then the two along with Charizard and Chespie take in the beautiful sights. At the former site of Lysandre Labs, Steven is explaining some research details to Sawyer, who happily records everything in his notebook. In a forest, Tierno, Shauna and Trevor take a break, enjoying meeting all the wild Pokémon that live there. At the wetlands, Goodra helps break up a confrontation between a Wooper and a Lotad, continuing its role as a caregiver. While in another part of Kalos, Greninja destroys another vine of negative energy with its Water Shuriken while Z-2 and Squishy look on.

Meanwhile, Ash and Pikachu look out the window of the plane at the sunset, and together they reflect on their Kalos journey: arriving with Alexa, meeting new friends and Pokémon, defeating the Gym Leaders, deepening his bond with his Froakie, participating in the Lumiose Conference, protecting the world against Team Flare, and saying his goodbye to Greninja. It is late at night when Ash and Pikachu finally arrive at the outskirts of Pallet Town. Rushing down the path towards his house, he sees the lights are still on and that his mom is waiting for him. They take a moment to reflect on their adventure before walking into the house. As they do so, there is one last shot of the starry sky above Pallet Town with the words "And to our own way".

Trivia

 * "Pokémon Quiz:" Pikachu (JP)
 * "Who's That Pokémon?:" Pikachu (US)
 * This episode is the season finale of Pokémon the Series: XYZ and the series finale of Pokémon: XY.
 * This is also the last time the Pokémon Anime is drawn using its original designs. By the Sun and Moon Anime, the show will have a complete makeover.
 * This is the only time Delia appeared in the XY series.
 * While rushing for their flight back to Kanto, Team Rocket drops Solrock and Lunatone keychains from their souvenir bags. This foreshadows the Pokémon Sun & Moon anime series.
 * V (Volt) was used as the ending theme, with scenes of Ash's journey through Kalos. In the dub, instrumentals of Pokémon Theme (XY version) and Be a Hero was used instead.
 * Instead of Next Time... A New Beginning!, the words on the screen say, And to our own way.
 * This is the last episode to be aired on Cartoon Network, which had aired 941 episodes in English before the show's move to Disney XD. This episode would be considered as the series finale on Cartoon Network.