Our friends are walking through the Ilex Forest. Brock is following the map but Misty thinks they're lost again. Team Rocket is lost too, and very hungry. They see the three friends and immediately want to follow them and steal their food. Ash and company come upon a boy who's trying to get a Farfetch'd to do a Cutting Attack but it refuses. When they say hello, the boy gets embarrassed that he was being watched. Ash tells him that the proper name is Cut Attack, so the boy asks the Farfetch'd again, but it still won't do it. He sits down with them, says his name is Sylvester, and he just started training with his Farfetch'd but keeps forgetting the attack names. He wants to learn how to make purifying charcoal like his father.
Brock says that purifying charcoal can purify water as well as being an excellent fuel, and this forest is famous for it. Sylvester explains that the trees have to be cut perfectly, so he and Farfetch'd were trying to practice, but had a hard time. Ash reassures him, saying he had a hard time with Pikachu at first too. You're only a loser if you're a quitter.
At the local Pokémon Center, Ash calls Professor Oak to tell him that he gave the GS Ball to Kurt and won a Hive badge. Brock looks at the map, the next closest Gym is in Goldenrod City. They start to make plans to leave when Sylvester runs into the center and asks Nurse Joy if she has seen his Farfetch'd. He had been practicing with Farfetch'd but forgot the attack names again, and the Farfetch'd ran away. Joy suggests he go and look at his father's house, but Sylvester is worried that his father will be angry. Ash suggests that they can train together after they find Farfetch'd to see if that will help.
They all go to Sylvester's house, to find his father making charcoal with the help of a Magmar. He tells his father what happened, and his dad gets angry, saying he needs to learn how to handle Farfetch'd and Magmar properly in order to make the charcoal. Ash butts in and introduces himself, and the father says that as a Pokémon trainer, Ash should know that you can't train a Pokémon just by telling them what to do; you have to work as a team. He sends them all out to find Farfetch'd.
Team Rocket is still lost and hungry. Meowth smells food nearby and they find a small shrine where two dumplings have been left. Jessie snatches one, Meowth the other, leaving James empty-handed (and empty-stomached). They spot the Farfetch'd wandering around, and knowing that it's very rare and valuable, plan to catch it and sell it to the highest bidder. They surround the Farfetch'd and surprise it. Everyone is out looking for Farfetch'd. They come to the shrine, and Sylvester says it's a shrine to the spirit that watches over the forest. They let all the Pokémon loose to help look for the Farfetch'd; Brock's Pineco powers up to explode so he returns it to its PokeBall. They all run in different directions, and will meet back at the shrine in an hour.
TR is still trying to catch Farfetch'd but it uses its leek to cut branches down on them and deflect their Pokemon's attacks. Jessie wises up and has Lickitung take its leek away. The surprised Farfetch'd tries to fly away but Meowth captures it with a net. As they carry it away, Heracross sees them and flies back to Ash.
Ash and friends confront TR, and they send out Arbok and Lickitung to provide a distraction so they can escape. Both Bulbasaur and Chikorita use Razor Leaf to get Farfetch'd out of the net, but Lickitung grabs Farfetch'd with its tongue. James lets out his Pokémon now, Victreebel chomps him but Weezing does its Sludge attack to disable everyone. Then Arbok fires its Poison Sting at Ash, but Onix bursts out of the ground and saves him. Brock and Misty come running, Misty has Poliwag do Water Gun to wash them all off. Ash is ready for a fight now! Weezing and Victreebel attack but Squirtle's Hydro Pump takes care of that. Then Ash has all his Pokémon attack together. Sylvester wishes his Farfetch'd would obey him like Ash's Pokémon do, and Misty tells him that Ash and his Pokémon work as a team.
Heracross tackles TR and the leek goes flying. Sylvester beats Jessie in the run to catch it, and he throws it back to Farfetch'd who whacks Lickitung with it. Jessie, James and Meowth all tackle together, but Farfetch'd does Fury Swipes which lays them flat out, and they run away. Not content with this, Farfetch'd does the Cut attack to bring down a tree which blocks their way, and Pikachu sends them blasting off with Thunderbolt. Sylvester has learned a lot about teamwork today, and realizes that he finally got Farfetch'd to do the Cut attack. He asks Farfetch'd to cut the fallen tree into logs and it does, making a perfect stack.
Back at his house, his father is proud of him. He gives Brock a supply of the purifying charcoal as a thank-you gift, and our friends head off for Goldenrod City and the next Gym.