Join my p@treon for more chapters
[email protected]/Tempest_29
At their current location, they were very close to Rainbow City. The group had visited Rainbow City before to challenge for the Rainbow Badge, though some unexpected events had occurred during that visit. It was in that same place where Charmander had evolved into Charmeleon. Now, upon their return, Charmeleon had grown even stronger and evolved into Charizard.
After finishing their lunch, Ash recalled all his Pokémon into their Poké Balls. Brock and Misty completed their packing as well, and the three trainers resumed their journey. They needed to pass through the jungle ahead to reach Rainbow City.
Misty, eager to return home, was particularly excited about taking the Rainbow City express train back to Cerulean City as soon as possible. The thought of seeing her sisters again filled her with anticipation.
Swish swish swish!
As the three friends walked along the jungle path, they suddenly heard rapid footsteps echoing through the forest ahead. The sounds came from someone moving quickly through the underbrush, with grass and leaves rustling continuously as a body pushed through the vegetation.
"Hurry up! Don't let that woman escape!" a harsh voice shouted from the direction of the commotion.
The three trainers froze when they heard the aggressive tone. Something was definitely wrong with this situation. Ash quickly gestured with his eyes toward the nearby grass, and the group quietly slipped into the undergrowth. Misty and Brock followed his lead, crouching low as they peered through the foliage toward the disturbance ahead.
A woman in a lavender business suit came running frantically down the path. Sweat beaded on her face and forehead, and she was clearly out of breath. Her high heels made running through the rough terrain even more difficult, causing her to stumble slightly with each step.
It was obvious she was being pursued by someone. When Brock caught his first glimpse of the woman, his face immediately flushed red, and he wore his typical lovestruck expression.
"That woman doesn't look like she's on a Pokémon journey," Misty whispered in confusion. "Why would she be in a place like this? What could have happened to her?"
The woman appeared to be around thirty years old, dressed professionally in a business suit, short skirt, and high heels. She was clearly not equipped for traveling through wilderness areas.
"There's no question about it - she must be in danger, and we have to help her!" Brock declared, clenching his fists with determination.
His protective instincts had kicked in completely. Based on the voice they'd heard earlier, it seemed like someone was definitely trying to capture the woman running toward them.
As she approached their hiding spot in the grass, Ash quickly stood up, reached out from their concealment, grabbed her hand, and pulled her directly into the undergrowth with them.
The woman was startled by the sudden contact. Thinking she had been caught by her pursuers, she instinctively opened her mouth to scream. Misty quickly covered the woman's mouth with her hand to prevent any sound from escaping.
Ash released his grip when he saw Misty's quick thinking, then raised his index finger to his lips, making a quiet shushing gesture to the frightened woman.
The woman was initially terrified, but when she realized that Ash, Misty, and Brock were not the ones chasing her, relief washed over her face. She nodded quickly to show she understood the need for silence.
Ash crouched slightly and carefully looked through the grass toward the path. Soon, several figures came running up the trail in pursuit. When Ash and Brock saw their distinctive clothing, their expressions immediately grew serious, and they moved more grass around to better conceal their hiding position.
The pursuers were all wearing black uniforms with conspicuous red "R" logos prominently displayed on their chests.
"Team Rocket!" Brock couldn't help but whisper under his breath.
The woman looked at the three young trainers with surprise when she heard Brock identify their pursuers. She was shocked that these children actually knew about Team Rocket and what they represented.
However, this wasn't the time for questions or explanations. The Team Rocket members had arrived at their location and could see clear signs that the woman had passed through this area of the jungle. They seemed puzzled that she had suddenly vanished without a trace, so they began searching the surrounding area systematically.
"Did you find anything over there?" one grunt called out.
"Nothing on this side!" another replied.
"I don't see any sign of her here either!" a third voice added.
The Team Rocket members spread out to cover more ground in their search, but they couldn't locate any trace of the woman. Ash, Misty, and Brock remained perfectly still in their hiding spot, ready to battle if they were discovered by the criminal organization.
Fortunately, these particular Team Rocket grunts weren't very thorough in their search methods. After failing to find the woman in the immediate area, they decided to continue looking further ahead down the trail.
Once the Team Rocket members had moved away from their position, both Brock and Misty let out quiet sighs of relief. Misty quickly removed her hand from the woman's mouth.
"I'm so sorry about that!" Misty apologized, realizing she had been covering the woman's mouth the entire time in her nervousness.
"No, no, it's perfectly fine! Thank you so much for helping me!" the woman responded gratefully, her voice filled with genuine appreciation for the three trainers.
"Beautiful lady, you're far too kind! It's absolutely the duty of any decent young man to protect a lovely lady such as yourself!" Brock immediately declared with his characteristic romantic enthusiasm, leaving the woman somewhat stunned by his dramatic response.
"Okay, okay, this really isn't the time for that kind of behavior, Brock!" Misty interrupted, clearly exasperated by his predictable reaction.
"I'm sorry, but I haven't had a chance to ask who you are yet," the woman said, looking at each of them curiously.
"We're Pokémon Trainers on a journey together. My name is Ash," Ash introduced himself first.
"My name is Misty," she added with a friendly smile.
"And this gentleman's name is Brock!" Brock finished with a flourish.
After hearing their introductions, the woman seemed to relax considerably, feeling more at ease with the young trainers.
"Who are you exactly? And why was Team Rocket chasing you through the forest?" Ash asked directly.
It struck him as unusual that Team Rocket wasn't trying to steal Pokémon this time, but instead was pursuing a human target. This made him very curious about the woman's identity and what she might be involved in.
"My name is Kyoko, and I work as the personal secretary to the president of Silph Company in Rainbow City," the woman explained, revealing her professional background.
"Silph Company!" Both Brock and Misty exclaimed in unison, clearly recognizing the significance of that name.
Silph Company was one of the most famous and influential corporations in the Kanto region, with a reputation that extended throughout the entire Pokémon world. They had developed the foundational technology that made modern Poké Balls possible and continued to innovate and expand upon that groundbreaking work.
The company's product line extended far beyond just Poké Balls. They also developed various medicines, healing sprays, evolution items, and specialized equipment like the Light Ball that Pikachu sometimes carried. Silph Co. operated the largest department store in the entire Kanto region and was considered the number one corporation in Kanto, ranking among the top companies across all regions worldwide.
"Yes, that's correct," Kyoko confirmed, noting their surprised reactions.
"But why would Team Rocket be chasing you specifically?" Ash pressed for more details.
"For the Master Ball project," Kyoko revealed reluctantly. This was supposed to be highly classified company information, but after these young trainers had risked themselves to save her, she felt they deserved an honest explanation.
"Master Ball? What exactly is that?" Both Misty and Brock asked, their voices filled with curiosity at hearing this unfamiliar term.
Ash, however, recognized the name immediately. The Master Ball was legendary among Poké Ball technology - it represented the pinnacle of capture device engineering and development.
Since arriving in this world, Ash had researched everything he could find about advanced Poké Ball technology, but he had never encountered any information about Master Balls. Based on this absence of data, he had suspected that Master Ball technology hadn't been successfully developed yet, and Kyoko's presence here seemed to confirm his theory.
The implications were serious. If Team Rocket was specifically targeting Silph Company's Master Ball research, it meant they were planning something much bigger than their usual petty theft schemes. This could be the beginning of a major operation that would threaten not just Rainbow City, but potentially the entire Kanto region's security and stability.