"Celebi—" Celebi's voice clearly reached Aokis's ears.
Slowly opening his eyes, he saw the petite Pokémon he hadn't seen in a long time appear before him again.
"Celebi, it's been a long time," Aoki said to Celebi with a smile.
Hearing this, Celebi's big eyes immediately narrowed, and she nodded repeatedly, "Yes! Yes!"
Looking at Celebi's happy expression, Aoki instinctively reached out and patted her small head, gently rubbing it, feeling the natural aura emanating from her.
"Celebi, I stayed in that time period for over three months. How many days have passed in this time period?"
Listening to Aoki's question, Celebi opened her eyes and looked at her hand.
One, two, three… one hand was full, Celebi looked at her other hand, one, two…
After counting, Celebi held up all five of her fingers in front of Aoki.
With only six fingers in total, she had finally managed to count to five within her capabilities, having exerted all her effort.
"Pfft—hahahahaha!"
Seeing Celebi's actions and behavior, Aoki couldn't help but burst into laughter. However, there was no mockery or sarcasm in this laughter, no ill intent, it was purely a genuine laugh, amused by Celebi.
And Celebi, looking at the laughing Aoki, was a bit confused as to why he was laughing so happily, when there was nothing funny.
Celebi tilted her head curiously, her two big eyes blinking innocently.
Seeing this, Aoki laughed even harder.
He laughed for a long time before finally recovering, taking a long breath, rubbing his stomach which ached from laughter, and finally stopping the endless laughter.
However, the smile on his face had not disappeared.
"It seems that although I stayed in the past for over three months, only five days have passed in this time period.
Even Celebi's power can't smooth out this wrinkled time?" Aoki thought to himself.
But on second thought, it was actually reasonable.
After all, Celebi is not the God of Time. As a Mythical Pokémon, her ability to control time and space is already an extraordinary feat.
If such an ability were to be controlled by someone, it could change the entire Pokémon world, and even influence its direction.
Once an undesirable situation arose, they could use Celebi to go back to the past, directly erase those unfavorable things, and change the present or even the future.
However, doing so would likely cause significant harm to Celebi.
Changing time and the course of history requires a great price, and even Celebi cannot endlessly and without cost use her power to alter history and its direction.
Moreover, if she were to truly do so, Dialga and Palkia would likely come knocking at her door immediately, not to mention Arceus, the creator god, who constantly guards the Pokémon world!
"Celebi, how did you know I was looking for you to go back to the past? To that time period?" Aoki asked Celebi.
Listening to Aoki's question, Celebi placed a small hand on her mouth, thought about Aoki's question for a moment, and then said as a matter of course, "Aoki just needs to go back to that time. If Aoki doesn't go back, the impact would be huge, and Celebi doesn't have the ability to do that!
Besides, Celebi first met Aoki at that time, and when Celebi sensed Aoki back then, she knew her responsibility and Aoki's responsibility!"
Celebi's expression, as if everything was supposed to be this way, left Aoki with an indescribable feeling.
"Then… Celebi, do you know when this time loop actually began? Or rather, which version of me was the first to ask to go back to the past?" Aoki's words were a bit convoluted.
But this was his most perplexing question right now. Since this time paradox loop had already appeared decades ago, who was the first person or Pokémon to send himself back, creating this time paradox? What was their purpose?
But this was already a circle, a dead loop. Without a past, there would be no present and future, but without a present, there would be no past. Which node was the insertion point, the cause of this change?
Aoki felt as if he had grasped something that might be related to the ultimate secret of this world.
The flow of time is like a long river of time, with many branches. Every second, a tributary branches off from the river of time. Every action of every person affects the flow of this river, just as an irrelevant person sneezing or eating a piece of bread will have an impact.
The only difference is whether this impact is big or small.
But around Aoki, a circle had appeared, the only branch among all the branches of the long river of time that actually went backward.
Therefore, the reason for the appearance of this branch became very important to Aoki.
However, listening to Aoki's question, Celebi stared blankly at Aoki, completely unable to understand what he was saying.
Seeing Celebi's expression, Aoki felt a wave of dejection. He knew that this matter actually had little to do with Celebi, and Celebi might not even know why she was doing it, but simply did it naturally!
Standing from Aoki's perspective now, the only conclusion he could draw was that the emergence of this time paradox was very likely closely related to his ability to be reborn into this world and live again!
"What is Aoki saying? Celebi doesn't understand," Celebi's soft voice echoed in Aoki's ears again. That innocence was so pure, perhaps the purest he had ever encountered in his life.
"..."
"It's nothing," Aoki reached out again and gently patted Celebi's head.
"Mm!!" Celebi softly hummed in response.
The human and the Pokémon played for a while in this emerald green space, and Celebi's bell-like laughter filled the entire space, echoing continuously.
Celebi is a very special kind of Pokémon in the entire Pokémon world, because she is almost an omniscient and omnipotent Pokémon in the Pokémon world, existing in various time periods, which is her special ability.
But sometimes, knowing too much is not necessarily a good thing.
So Celebi is very smart; she automatically filters out things that are not related to her, allowing her to live each day innocently.
Aoki and Celebi played for a while, and then he knew it was time to go back. After all, he had been gone for five days, and there were probably many important matters in the Alliance waiting for his decision, and the Sky Team should also have some things that required Aoki's orders.
Now was a critical moment for Sakaki's Team Rainbow Rocket alliance, and the Sky Team also played a crucial role in it. Some matters could not be decided by Brad and Catherine; only Aoki was qualified.
Upon learning that Aoki was leaving, Celebi was naturally very reluctant, but she also knew that it was unavoidable.
"Aoki, when you have time, you can come and play with me again," Celebi said playfully to Aoki.
"Okay!" Aoki nodded, accepting the promise.
Then he was directly thrown out by Celebi, back into the tunnel where he had entered.
He watched as she, despite her reluctant expression, sent him off without any hesitation.
However, as soon as Aoki returned to the Pokémon world, his communicator began ringing incessantly. Without even looking, he knew it was various messages from the Alliance.
He didn't take it out to look, but directly used Teleport to rush towards the Hoenn Alliance headquarters.
Actually, there wouldn't be anything major. After all, before entering Celebi's space, Aoki had told Brad and the others not to take any action in the Hoenn region for the time being, and to wait until he returned to act.
Upon returning to the Hoenn Alliance headquarters building, Steven immediately came to him.
With Aoki absent, all management orders for the armed forces of the entire Hoenn region came from their hands.
So, in the end, Steven was still the one responsible.
However, Steven was not only one of the Elite Four of the Alliance, but also the young master of the Stone family and one of the persons in charge of the Devon Corporation, so he had a lot of things on his hands.
In the few days Aoki was absent, he was the busiest.
Fortunately, Aoki had only been gone for five days, so he could still hold on. If Aoki had left for five months, or even just one month, he would have been exhausted to death.
Originally, to make things easier for himself, Aoki had delegated most of the less impactful powers. As the most capable one, Steven was also specially "taken care of" by Aoki. Adding Aoki's tasks, it was the last straw that broke the camel's back.
"Ahem, do you two… have anything particularly important?" Aoki didn't dare to look directly into Steven and Phoebe's eyes, especially Steven's!
Aoki was also somewhat glad that his absence wasn't long, otherwise, he would probably have been thoroughly exploited by Steven and Phoebe today.
Bang—
A thick stack of documents was thrown directly onto Aoki's desk by the two of them. On top of this stack of documents was a deep red folder.
Seeing the color of this folder, Aoki's expression instantly turned serious, knowing the gravity of the situation.
A red folder represented an S-rank incident. Only the true high-ranking officials of the Hoenn Alliance could classify an incident as S-rank.
And generally, except for Aoki and Adams, the others would need at least three people together to classify an S-rank incident. The appearance of such an incident meant it was a major event affecting the entire Hoenn Alliance.
He immediately opened the folder and read its contents with a grim face.
Clap—
After reading, Aoki immediately closed the folder.
Noticing the change in Aoki's expression, Steven and Phoebe no longer bothered him about the minor matter of him skipping work for five days.
"Has the President seen it?" Aoki asked.
Steven and Phoebe nodded, and Steven said, "President Adams has already seen it, but he said this is your matter, and he hasn't battled in a long time."
Hearing this, Aoki's expression stiffened. Was there such a way to pass the buck?
This might be… sitting at home, and trouble comes from the sky!
But there was nothing he could do; he was the Champion now.
"Call the others here as well, and the three chief investigators of the Investigation Department. This matter really needs to be discussed thoroughly," Aoki said helplessly.
He had only been gone for five days, just five days without keeping an eye on things here, and he had unknowingly taken on such a huge responsibility.
Steven and Phoebe nodded, and the two quickly walked out of Aoki's office.
After they left, Aoki's expression became very grim.
"These guys! They dare to impersonate my people when I'm not around!" Aoki was slightly angry.
At this point in time, an S-rank incident that could be placed before him…
It was clearly written that it was the Sky Team's people causing trouble in the Hoenn region, directly leading to the occurrence of this S-rank incident.
Without his command, even if the Sky Team members had a hundred times the courage, they wouldn't dare to do such a thing.
Because of his Psychic abilities, Aoki trusted Brad and the others one hundred percent; they would absolutely not dare to disobey his orders.
However, this S-rank incident was reported as being caused by the Sky Team, so there was no doubt that someone was impersonating the Sky Team and causing trouble in the Hoenn region.
Using his name to do whatever they pleased in the Hoenn region, they really chose a good time.
"I'd like to see who is impersonating the Sky Team, using my name, Aoki, to stir up trouble in the Hoenn region!"
Aoki's expression returned to calm, but at this moment, no one could fully perceive the rage in his heart.
The quieter Aoki was at this moment, the more he suppressed the anger in his heart, and the more terrifying the power would be when it finally erupted!
Soon, Steven and Phoebe, who had left, returned, bringing with them two Elite Four members, as well as three Chief Investigators.
When they entered and saw Aoki's expression, combined with the recent events in the Hoenn region, they knew that Aoki's mood was probably not very good.
However, their perception of Aoki's mood being not very good differed somewhat from Aoki's actual feelings.
"What the Sky Team did this time was indeed excessive. It seems we really need to show them some color this time, otherwise, they won't know who is truly in charge of the Hoenn region!" Aoki slammed the table.
Everyone agreed wholeheartedly.
"Get ready, we'll go together. Since I became Champion, it seems I haven't properly displayed my strength in front of others!" Aoki suddenly stood up. "Call everyone from the Investigation Department. I want to see who is leading this time!"
"Yes!" Steven and the others stood up and responded in unison.
Aoki's current identity was the Champion of the Hoenn region, and whether they were Elite Four members or Chief Investigators, they were all his subordinates. At such a formal moment, they naturally needed to give Aoki due respect.
Moreover, this time, the "Sky Team" had indeed gone too far, causing the originally most stable Hoenn region to suddenly experience a wave of unrest, just like other regions.
Furthermore, this was Aoki's first expedition since becoming Champion. No matter what, the display had to be grand, the momentum had to be strong, and the blow to the opponent had to be sufficiently devastating. Otherwise, they would truly believe that the Hoenn League was easy to bully and lacked strength.
In short, this time, they must display their power! Display their might! And establish the reputation of their Hoenn region!
While Steven and the others went to prepare, Aoki directly took out his communicator.
"Lord Aoki!" From the other end of the communicator came Brad's voice. "Lord Aoki, our Sky Team has been staying in the base as per your orders and has never gone out. The trouble caused in Mossdeep City was not our people."
Brad spoke immediately before Aoki even asked.
He was also somewhat worried that Aoki would blame them for this matter.
"Hmm—I know. I'm asking you, do you know which faction those people in Mossdeep City belong to? They're causing trouble in Mossdeep City under the guise of the Sky Team, making us take the blame. Don't tell me you know nothing at all." Aoki, of course, knew it couldn't have been Brad and his team.
Upon hearing this, Brad immediately told Aoki all the information he had gathered.
After listening to Brad, Aoki frowned and narrowed his eyes. "I understand. You tell them to be prepared."
"Yes!"
With that, Aoki directly hung up the communicator and strode out of the headquarters building.
Outside, the four Elite Four, and the three Chief Investigators, over a thousand combat personnel from the Investigation Department had already assembled in the plaza.
All the investigators from the Investigation Department were wearing standard uniforms: black jackets and black cloaks, appearing as a vast, dark mass.
"Champion Aoki!!"
Upon seeing Aoki appear, everyone immediately cheered loudly.
This was Aoki's first time leading a large contingent of the League out to battle, so their cheers were enthusiastic, and they seemed somewhat excited.
It had been an unknown amount of time since a Champion had gone into battle in the Hoenn region!
In the hearts of all League trainers, the regional Champion was what they pursued their entire lives, but most people might not even have the chance to come into contact with one. So, even just seeing one was good, let alone fighting alongside the Champion now.
Aoki had risen step by step in everyone's eyes from a position similar to theirs, eventually sitting on the Champion's throne. That sense of identification was even more pronounced, and their respect for Aoki became even more affirmed.
"Depart! Mossdeep City!" Aoki threw out a Poké Ball, summoned his Salamence, and leaped onto it, flying towards Mossdeep City.
Seeing Aoki's actions, Steven and the others also summoned their Pokémon, mimicking Aoki's movements, leaping on, and closely following behind him.
The rest of the investigators, seeing that the leading figures had departed, naturally followed closely behind.
These investigators were usually grouped into several people, and within each group, more or less a few people could summon Pokémon capable of carrying people in flight.
In an instant, a vast swarm of people, riding on their Pokémon, flew towards Mossdeep City, looking like a large moving dark cloud.
The League army is on the march! Wherever they go, not a blade of grass grows! Uh, the enemy army will be wiped out!
...
The distance from the Hoenn League headquarters to Mossdeep City was not very far. At Aoki's speed, it would have been very quick to fly there, but to accommodate the main force, he did not use his full power.
Steven and Phoebe flew on Aoki's left, while the others flew on his right.
The reason for such a large-scale deployment this time was mainly because those impersonating the Sky Team had indeed gone too far, directly occupying the entire Mossdeep City, controlling the Mossdeep City Gym, Pokémon Center, and League Police Station.
All residents of Mossdeep City were also detained.
Because of their speed, the local League forces were unable to react and were directly subdued, without even a chance to send out information.
It wasn't until a few teams from the nearest League Investigation Department, who happened to be on missions around Mossdeep City, intended to enter Mossdeep City for repairs and supplies, that they finally discovered the anomaly in Mossdeep City.
They even fought a battle with the impersonating Sky Team, escaped, and reported back to the League, which then learned of what had happened in Mossdeep City.
However, to confirm, Steven and Phoebe could not simply classify this incident as an S-rank event based on the words of just one ordinary investigator. It was only after several high-ranking investigators were dispatched for investigation that the fall of Mossdeep City was truly confirmed.
Originally, they were going to let Steven make the decision, but who knew that Aoki happened to return at this time? Since that was the case, Steven naturally handed this matter over to Aoki to handle.
After all, strictly speaking, Aoki, as the Champion, was the one truly responsible for all military affairs of the entire Hoenn League. Adams could no longer overstep his bounds now. If Aoki hadn't been present, it would have been fine, but since Aoki was there, it was naturally handed over to him to deal with.
However, from this, it could also be seen how strong the attackers of Mossdeep City truly were, being able to occupy and blockade Mossdeep City without any information being transmitted, and it was even unknown how long Mossdeep City had been blockaded.
The overall strength of the League was indeed very strong, and even the Hoenn League, as a single regional League, was quite excellent in strength. But what was strong was the League as a whole organization. The strength of various cities within the region varied greatly, and there was still a significant disparity.
Just like Rustboro City, where the Stone family was located, because of the Stone family's presence, even if the League's local defense forces were not very strong, this city was not one that ordinary forces dared to challenge. Even the current Sky Team, Aoki had ordered them not to act against Rustboro City.
And for small towns like Mossdeep City, although they had a Gym, a Pokémon Center, and a League Police Station within the town, they were, after all, only small towns, so the League's defense forces were not very strong. In peaceful times, this was sufficient, but in the current turbulent era, it was somewhat insufficient.
It was only because the current League and Sky Team were both under Aoki's control that he deliberately avoided these problems and conflicts. Otherwise, if someone else were in charge, the Sky Team, with its large sea fleet, would not find it troublesome at all to invade Mossdeep City and round them all up.
Therefore, after this incident, Aoki decided to increase the strength of the Hoenn League region. Not just the ordinary defense forces, but even those Gyms, if necessary, must all be completely rebuilt, and no more useless people should be allowed to occupy such critical positions.
The biggest problem for the entire Hoenn League, or rather, the entire League, was, of course, those "broken families" as Aoki called them. But besides these families, the second biggest blight in Aoki's eyes were those who occupied some small and medium-sized cities, relying on the glory of their ancestors, and shamelessly continued to serve as Gym Leaders of a town.
These people, euphemistically called Gym Leaders, were actually a bunch of lazy, unproductive, useless people waiting to die.
If the entire League had always been in a stable period, relying on the protection of these ancestors, supporting them would not have been impossible; at most, it would just consume a little more resources.
But unfortunately, the current environment did not allow them to live like maggots, so changing the rules was imperative, and it would happen right after the battle in Mossdeep City ended!
The group, in a grand and undisguised manner, rushed to Mossdeep City, led by Aoki, the Champion, with the four Elite Four members accompanying him. It could be said to be the strongest lineup the Hoenn region could muster at that time.
For the people in Mossdeep City at this moment to receive such treatment was giving them enough face.
In fact, Aoki's emphasis was also for a reason, because not far from Mossdeep City, on Route 131, there was the Sky Pillar, the legendary place closest to the Sky Dragon Rayquaza.
If those people, having nothing better to do, were to stir up Rayquaza, even if Aoki had already become Champion, he would most likely not be able to stop it.
Boom—
Salamence landed heavily on the ground, kicking up a large cloud of dust.
Immediately after...
Boom—Boom—Boom—
One landing sound after another followed in quick succession.
They landed outside Mossdeep City, looking at the dead silent town. There wasn't a single person on the entire street, and all the houses, as far as the eye could see, had no lights or signs of human presence, as if they had entered a ghost town.
An unknown Psychic fragment, readable only by him, appeared before him.
He casually grabbed it into his hand.
"Hmm?" Aoki frowned tightly.
He led the way into Mossdeep City.
According to the report, the investigators who came to investigate were fiercely attacked just by approaching. If they hadn't reacted quickly enough and been agile enough, they might not have made it back.
But now, as Aoki and his group approached, there was no movement at all.
Aoki closed his eyes and extended his Psychic power.
"Nothing! There's no sign of any living beings around, not even a single Pokémon!" Aoki closed his eyes and felt for a moment, then spoke the information he had perceived.
Steven, standing beside him, also frowned. "Could it be that the other party knew of our arrival in advance, so they evacuated before we arrived?
But what about the residents of Mossdeep City?
Could they have taken all the residents of Mossdeep City with them?"
"That seems a bit unrealistic, doesn't it? And judging by the Sky Team's past behavior and actions, that's clearly not their style."
"Besides, I feel like there's still some unusual aura around here, a bit familiar yet also strange. This aura is very faint, almost imperceptible." Phoebe, standing next to Steven, twitched her nose as if sniffing something, though she was actually using her unique Ghost energy to sense something.
"Indeed, it seems this is not the Sky Team's doing. I've had many contacts with them under the President's orders, and they don't have this kind of ability."
"Seeing this result, it actually reminds me of a few old friends." Aoki nodded in agreement after hearing their words.
"Old friends? You mean…" Steven and Phoebe exchanged glances, seeing the same guess in each other's eyes.
"Who else could make a group of living people disappear into thin air?" Aoki curled his lips, and with a casual swipe of his right hand in mid-air, a spatial rift opened like a mouth, revealing what was inside.
Inside, a person was smiling at him, and behind this person were many others dressed in strange clothing.
However, all these people had a uniformly similar aura—that familiar Psychic energy fluctuation.
"It's really you guys. It's been a long time. I've been looking for you, but I didn't expect you to be hiding here… Itsuki, Lyra!" Aoki's expression became genuinely warm, as if he had seen long-lost old friends, after seeing the faces of the two leaders.
Though it truly had been a long time since they last met.
Upon seeing Aoki, Lyra's expression was cold, only showing two Poké Balls in her hands to indicate her stance. Itsuki, however, revealed an extremely exaggerated smile upon seeing Aoki, making the smile feel somewhat twisted and unsettling.
"Oh, I didn't expect to actually wait for you here, Aoki, the Sandstorm Elite Four of the Hoenn region! Oh, now you should be Champion Aoki! Impressive, truly impressive, to become the Hoenn Champion at such a young age! Truly young and promising!"
"However, the Hoenn Champion is also the leader of the Hoenn region's largest underground force, the Sky Team, and a top executive of the Kanto region's largest underground force, Team Rocket! Hmm—it seems… I remember you also got a promotion, didn't you? Team Rocket's Vice Leader?"
"Tsk tsk tsk—what an incredible person, to be able to climb to the highest position in both the legitimate and underground worlds simultaneously. It seems I am indeed inferior to you!" Itsuki said these words in a sarcastic tone.
Aoki did not immediately interrupt him, only his face darkened, and he narrowed his eyes, staring at the former Black Emissary of the Divine Cult, now a stray dog.
This was not the first time Itsuki had exposed his past in front of Phoebe and the others.
If one time could be dismissed as baseless slander, then when it became two or three times, even with the utmost trust in Aoki, Steven and Phoebe's hearts would inevitably harbor some concerns.
And this concern could very likely become the most fatal factor if a rift ever formed between them and Aoki in the future.
The Divine Cult had specifically investigated Aoki's identity. Aoki originally thought it was due to his significant enmity with the Divine Cult, but after the Celebi incident, Aoki realized that it was likely due to Lance getting his name at the very end.
However, this was no longer important, as it had already become a foregone conclusion without Aoki's knowledge.
Aoki also didn't know if changing past history would bring about or affect things that had already happened in the present.
So, at Lance's final plea, he told him his name.
As for why Itsuki knew so much, even guessing that Aoki had become Team Rocket's Vice Leader, it was actually just a wild guess.
No matter how he guessed, whether he was right or wrong, it was all about slandering Aoki and making him uncomfortable.
"Adams and his side, that was your doing too, wasn't it?" Aoki had his back to Steven and the others, so they couldn't see his grim expression at the moment. Aoki directly questioned Itsuki using telepathy.
In fact, even if Aoki didn't ask, and Itsuki didn't answer, both of them already knew the truth.
"Tsk—still using telepathy on me, is there something you can't say? That's right, I did go and warn your President Adams. It's just that he doesn't seem to trust you a hundred percent like your companions behind you do. I remember very clearly his conflicted expression at the time."
"He only refrained from acting against you because you are too important to the Hoenn League and the Hoenn region, and even within the entire League, you are already a pivotal figure."
"So, you see, the older a person gets, the more concerns they have!" Itsuki continued to mock Aoki.
Steven and Phoebe listened as Itsuki's words became increasingly outlandish, continuously slandering Aoki. They couldn't help but step forward, wanting to attack him.
But Aoki stopped them with a raised hand.
Aoki's expression had now fully recovered, showing no trace of gloominess, though a somewhat angry expression remained on his face.
The two who had stepped forward and were stopped by Aoki subtly glanced at the side of Aoki's face out of the corner of their eyes. Noticing that he showed no other changes besides normal anger, they both let out a long sigh of relief in their hearts.
But in truth, Aoki's heart was far from as calm as he appeared, he just couldn't show it.
However, Aoki wasn't sure if he could endure it if Itsuki continued to speak like this.
Aoki felt bad, but Itsuki on the opposite side felt extremely bad all over.
Every time!
Every time he revealed Aoki's true identity to others, no one believed him!
In secret, he had already contacted more than one high-ranking League official. Most of them did not believe what he said, and only a very small number held reservations about his words, but dared not show any overt signs.
One must know that Aoki is currently the Hoenn Champion, theoretically the person with the highest status and power in the Hoenn region. If it weren't for Adams, an elder figure who once single-handedly controlled the Hoenn region's power, Aoki might truly be able to do as he pleased.
Adams's restraint was one part, and of course, the regional Champion and President are not completely unrestrained; the League's main association is responsible for that.
But what about Aoki now?
Adams indeed had some doubts about Aoki's identity, and even Aoki's teacher, Drake, was somewhat unsure.
However, they had no evidence, and Aoki had not done anything to harm the Hoenn League or the Hoenn region. In fact, because of the policies he introduced, the entire League embraced them and planned to expand them throughout the League. At that time, all League events and tasks would be categorized by level.
So, no harm was seen, but a great deal of benefit was observed. Whether it was Mega Evolution or Fairy-type Pokémon, etc., these were all indelible impressions Aoki left on the League.
It was clearly impossible to unseat Aoki based solely on the words of Itsuki, a remnant of the Divine Cult and a former traitor to the League.
If the big shots hadn't spoken, it was even more impossible for those below to dare to start it.
The only person who definitely knew Aoki's identity and could also restrain him was the Grand Elder of the League's main association.
But the problem was, after the Grand Elder learned of Aoki's identity, not only did he not strike Aoki down on the spot, he even congratulated Aoki after he became Champion.
Although the details were still not very clear for now, Aoki's identity was unshakeable at this point; that was certain!
If Aoki could continue to benefit the vast populace of the Hoenn region in this position, it's estimated that even if the League truly confirmed his identity and wanted to remove him, the vast majority of the public would not agree.
This was also the main reason why Aoki was more eager to become Champion after he felt his identity was suspected.
Champion and Elite Four are often respected together, but Champion and Elite Four are completely different in terms of weight!
Why, when Itsuki and Lyra, as Elite Four members, were revealed to be Divine Cult moles, did the residents of the Johto region find it somewhat difficult to accept? But after the Johto League's long period of appeasement, and by "snatching" the popular Champion Lance from the Kanto League, they managed to stabilize the situation.
If the Johto League had a Champion at that time, and the Champion was also a Divine Cult mole, you would see how many people in the entire Johto League would follow that Champion and fall into the embrace of the Divine Cult.
This was completely not an event of the same level.
What's more, if what Itsuki said was true, Aoki was not only the League Champion, but also the leader of the Sky Team! The Vice Leader of Team Rocket! And even had other hidden identities, then it would be even more impossible to move against him, at least not until he himself caused damage to the League or exposed a weakness!
But even so, for his past to be brought up repeatedly and endlessly by such a person, it would be strange if Aoki weren't angry.
He was starting to feel like he couldn't suppress the killing intent in his heart!
Today!
He was going to keep these two here!
Whether it was Itsuki or Lyra, or these remnants of the Divine Cult, their abilities were too special. If they truly wanted to hide, even Aoki would have trouble finding them.
Now that they had delivered themselves, he absolutely had to seize this opportunity to resolve all of them!
"Brother Aoki, this alternate dimension of theirs seems… a bit off!" Phoebe frowned and carefully sensed the aura and energy fluctuations within this space again, then couldn't help but say to Aoki.
Hearing Phoebe's reminder, Aoki finally realized that Itsuki and Lyra, along with these remnants of the Divine Cult, although not weak in strength, were still somewhat lacking in front of his current self, and he believed they understood that too!
But why did they still dare to appear here, as if they were specifically waiting for him!
"Heh! As expected of the Ghost-type Elite Four, your senses are really sharp, but unfortunately, it's too late!"
"Do it!" As Itsuki's words fell, the spatial rift that Aoki had opened suddenly surged and expanded, like a giant mouth, swallowing all the League members, including Aoki, in one gulp!
After being enveloped by the space, Itsuki looked slightly smug. "Welcome to the Nightmare Ghost Realm we meticulously crafted for you!!!"