Ash and his buddies are heading toward Pemmelo Island to battle the Orange League Crew Leader. On the way to his battle, he sees a mystical figure flying over the ocean. It appears to be a Dragonite, yet Ash, Tracey, and Misty are too inexperienced to realize this. Ash reaches the island and goes to the Orange League registration. The teller verifies his badges and then tells him that his battle is in the morning tomorrow. He leads them to a dome next to the stadium. In the dome there are Dragonite statues. The teller tells Tracey that the Dragonite statues symbolize the Dragonites that protect the island, but the one that they saw was the Dragonite that Drake, the Orange Crew Leader, has. Also, in the dome there are many photos and foot prints of Pokémon and their trainers. This place is called the hall of heroes. It is where all the victors who beat the Orange League foot prints are stored forever and ever.
Jesse and James appear in the stadium where Drake sits with his Dragonite. Jesse and James want to capture Dragonite, but Dragonite uses a hyper-beam, thus vaporizing them. Ash finds out that he may use all his Pokémon in the battle. He sends them all out to make sure they are in working condition. Snorlax is sleeping and refuses to wake up. Nurse Joy exclaims that Snorlax, since he just ate, will not be waking up any time soon. Ash walks over to the telephone and asks Professor Oak what Pokémon he should exchange for Snorlax. The Professor gives him the choice of Tauros, Muk, or Kingler. Ash picks Tauros because he believes in "Beginners Luck".
A car drives around town exclaiming that Drake will be battling tomorrow and that the admission is free. Team Rocket, being beached out from the hyper-beam, hear of this and make a plan. Of course, no one can here it because they are whispering. The tournament begins with the exchange of handshakes between Ash and Drake. The referee explains that the Gym Leader may not change Pokémon until they are dead, but the Challenger may change his Pokémon at anytime. He also says that there will be a field change sometime during the battle, most likely in the middle.
Drake sends out a Ditto, so Ash sends out Pikachu. Pikachu uses a thunderbolt and so does Ditto. They battle and Pikachu is thrown on the ground. Ash groans in frustration. Ash thinks in his mind that the fake Pikachu is no match for the real thing. Ditto uses a thunder shock but Pikachu diverts that shock by raising his tail as a lighting rod. Ditto uses quick attack and so does Pikachu. They both meet in the battle and Pikachu slams Ditto to the ground. Pikachu uses lighting tail and knocks Ditto out of the match. Being reassured, Ash is determined to win the match.
Drake takes this loss as a minor set back. He sends out Onix. Seeing the advantage, Ash sends out a water-type Pokémon, Squirtle. Drake sees by this and tells Onix to dig into the ground. Ash tells Squirtle to run toward the center of the field, which is a pond of water. Onix pops out of the ground right before Squirtle is able to dive into the water. Onix then binds Squirtle. Squirtle is being squished by the bind, but Ash tells Squirtle to withdrawal. Squirtle then uses hydro-pump and takes Onix out of the match. Squirtle returns to the Pokéball.
The competition is currently being won by Ash. Drake sends out Gengar, a ghost Pokémon. There is no disadvantage Gengar is vulnerable to. Tauros is then sent out to battle this Pokémon. Tauros uses fissure, but Gengar avoids that by flying. Gengar sees how weak Tauros is and he uses confusion. Tauros runs into the rocks and is forced to return to his Pokéball. Lapras flies out of Ash's Pokéball and into the pond. Lapras uses watergun, but it has no effect. Gengar uses hypnosis, but Lapras dives under the water where the psychic waves are impenetrable. Lapras pops back up and Gengar sees this perfect opportunity to attack, so he uses dreameater. Ash tells Lapras to use ice beam to avoid the dreameater. The two attacks collide and a huge explosion occurs.