PS488

Growing Pains (Japanese: VSシキジカ VS  or 別離 Parting) is the 488th round of the Pokémon Adventures manga.

Plot
In the park outside the Nimbasa City Gear Station, attempts to catch a Pokémon. A wild Summer Form appears, and White quickly throws an empty Poké Ball but is off target by a wide margin. White falls to her knees and complains about the difficulty of her task. She even apologizes to the watching Chris for wasting so many of her Poké Balls, but Chris reassures White and suggests a break for her, and offers her some freshly baked buns. White thanks the Baker for the offer.

White uses the break to catch up with her business contacts, informing each and every one of them via Xtransceiver that she is suspending her business and will return all Pokémon hired by the BW Agency. She also compliments some of the Pokémon involved, and thanks their original owners for showing interest in her agency. After all calls are settled, Chris discusses with White about the advertisement she put out a while ago, which White is surprised that Chris knows about. White eventually states the reason why she decided to suspend her business, although she admits that it has since made her feel empty. Chris responds by voicing encouragement, and suggesting that she find and catch new partners to accompany her on the Battle Subway trial.

watches on from the porch of the Gear Station building, when Marshal approaches. Marshal, thinking Black is upset, points out that Black turned down the offer which White accepted afterwards. Black asks why two people can't trial the Battle Subway together, and Marshal responds with the fact that Black is obtaining Gym Badges for a Pokémon League challenge, and White is only beginning to learn how to battle, meaning the two are clearly on a different level. With that, Marshal picks Black up and tosses him towards the grass where White is, claiming that he should stop complaining and start helping.

Black gets up and doesn't hide his impatience towards White's attempts to catch a Deerling, and even wonders whether she wants it. She admits that she found Deerling adorable, but thinks she provoked it too many times. As soon as she says that, Deerling angrily charges towards her and White screams as Deerling chases her around in circles. She trips on a rock and falls on her face, looking behind just in time to see Deerling about to crush a leg on her. However, just before the leg makes contact, a appears and pushes Deerling away with its vines.

Black, knowing the Servine is the same one that spooked White before, now wonders what it really is there for. After a thought, he tells White that she should be the one who commands Servine. White hesitates, but a serious Black relays the command to tell Servine. Left with no choice, White calls for a as Black requested, and to White's surprise, Servine executes the move and traps Deerling in a swirl of leaves. After initially celebrating, Black assesses the situation and decides to show White what to do next by targeting a stray that he finds next to a nearby stream. He calls Tula out and makes sure White is looking at her target, Deerling, before they together command Tula and Servine their attacks on the target.

After a few attacks, Deerling and Tirtouga are sufficiently weakened, and Black gets White to throw a Poké Ball at the same time that he does. In a flash of light, both Tirtouga and Deerling are captured, and the two Trainers rejoice.

Soon, White is ready to embark on her Battle Subway trial train, and stands at the platform with Black and Marshal. After a brief conversation with White, Black sees that his newly-caught Tirtouga's Poké Ball is rolling towards Marshal. Marshal recognizes the Tirtouga, revealing that he released it only yesterday. Alder, who has by then returned to the platform, then calls out towards Marshal for the city mayor. Marshal says that he left yesterday, and he told the mayor that a normal person would be offered a trial Battle Subway run, which was taken up by White. Alder is surprised that they proposed this.

White gossips about Alder towards Black. Alder hears the gossip but sheepishly admits to it, though with a correction. He claims to be living out a journey of the heart. He then asks why White chose to trial the Battle Subway, and White remarks about the Pokémon that she lost, and the path that it wishes to choose. White concludes her reason for the trial by confidently declaring that she wants to explore the path of battling in order to learn about it and support it. Alder thus admits that he was defeated by White in terms of speeches, causing Black to fall over.

Ingo and Emmet soon help White onto the train and prepare to drive it away from the platform. White takes her seat with Servine and Deerling, then peeks out of the window behind her to say farewell to Black. Black uses the opportunity to pledge his loyalty to the suspended BW Agency, and ask how much debt still needs to be cleared.

The train is eventually out of Black's view, but not before Black throws a Poké Ball into the tunnel. The ball bounces into the carriage where White is, and White sees that Black has loaned Brav to her. Black, still on the platform, admits he didn't tell White earlier, but White needed three Pokémon for the trial. With that, he wishes White good luck.

Major events

 * learns how to battle.
 * The  gave  is revealed to obey White's orders.
 * With the help of, White captures a.
 * Black captures a Tirtouga, which Marshal reveals used to belong to him before he it.
 * Black and White meet Alder, the Unova Champion.
 * White leaves Black to go and train on the Battle Subway.
 * Black lends White Brav so that she will have three Pokémon on her team.

Humans

 * Marshal
 * Alder
 * Chris
 * Alder
 * Chris
 * Chris
 * Chris

Pokémon

 * (Brav; 's; lent to White)
 * (Tula; 's)
 * (Black's; new)
 * ('s)
 * ('s; new)
 * (Gigi; 's; flashback)
 * (Marshal's)
 * (Alder's)
 * (Alder's)
 * ('s)
 * (BW Agency's; flashback)
 * (Charlotte; BW Agency's; flashback)
 * (Puddley; BW Agency's; flashback)
 * (Delise; BW Agency's; flashback)
 * (Pip; BW Agency's; flashback)
 * (BW Agency's; flashback)

Trivia

 * In the Japanese version of, the Pokémon listed on 's laptop are given nicknames.
 * In the VIZ Media mini-volumes of the, this round was collected in.
 * In the Kurokawa translation from, this round was released in.

In other languages
Kapitel 488 (Pocket Monsters SPECIAL) PS488