"Darkrai, how do you feel?" Aoki saw Darkrai calm down, and the aura around him stabilized.
"dark…dark…" Darkrai hunched over, panting heavily, and slowly exhaled two words, appearing very tired.
Fortunately, after panting for a while, he gradually regained his composure.
Through telepathy, Aoki also understood what Darkrai wanted to convey.
"Just a little bit off?" Aoki murmured.
What was just a little bit off? Undoubtedly, it was just a little bit short of the divine position, which was why Darkrai looked so exhausted at the end.
With a thought, Aoki directly activated the chip to scan Darkrai's current data.
Pokémon: Darkrai (Purple)
Gender: Male
Level: 94
Attribute: Dark
Ability: Bad Dreams
Held Item: Nightmare God Stone, Qualification Aura
Egg Moves: None
Basic Moves: Ominous Wind, Disable, Quick Attack, Hypnosis, Feint Attack, Nightmare, Double Team, Haze, Dark Void, Nasty Plot, Dream Eater, Dark Pulse
Learnt Moves: Foul Play, Snatch, Grudge, Wonder Room, Knock Off, Snore, Drain Punch, Trick, Last Resort, Focus Punch, Throat Chop, Shock Wave, Icy Wind
TM Moves: Calm Mind, Taunt, Ice Beam, Protect, Thunderbolt, Psychic, Shadow Ball, Rock Tomb, Aerial Ace, Will-O-Wisp, Parting Shot, Confide
The corrupted state that had plagued Darkrai was finally gone, and everything had returned to normal.
Not only that, after clearing the Ghost-type energy from his body, his level actually soared to 94, just one step away from the true Champion level!
Previously, Grandma had briefly communicated with Aoki, stating that a legendary Pokémon like Darkrai, if it wanted to receive a divine position, would most likely need to reach this level, which is the legendary Champion level.
Before the battle with Giratina, Darkrai's level, according to Aoki's estimation, was around 93. At that time, he was already almost qualified to receive a divine position.
It was just that he was targeted by Giratina at that time, so he couldn't succeed.
After eliminating Giratina's stubborn Ghost-type energy, Darkrai not only recovered to his peak strength but even advanced a step further.
Whether this was truly due to the effect of the Nightmare God Stone, as defined by Aoki himself, or due to the accumulation of these years, is unknown.
But Darkrai once again possessed the qualification aura of a legendary Pokémon. Aoki believed that as long as he could break through to the Champion level in one go, he would successfully receive the true divine position of the Nightmare God!
At that time, in addition to the Champion-level base combat power, he would also gain the amplification of the divine position. Darkrai would possess the power to look down upon 99.9% of the Pokémon in the Pokémon world!
Gently patting Darkrai's shoulder, Aoki didn't force anything regarding this failure.
It was an unexpected gain to begin with; it would be best if it could be obtained, but if not, keeping it for later might not be a bad thing either.
"Congratulations, Master!" Bai Ling's clear voice rang out as she bowed respectfully to Aoki.
"Congratulations, Master!!" The members of the cult standing behind her also expressed their respect.
Aoki waved his right hand lightly in the air, "Where have you hidden the residents of Mossdeep City and those Alliance Gym members?"
"In a different dimension not far from Mossdeep City. As long as Master senses it slightly, you will find it. The people inside have not been harmed; they are just in a hypnotic coma."
Hearing this, Aoki nodded, "I have unlocked the spatial seal here. Five hours later, you are to quietly leave this place with your people, undetected. Someone will come to pick you up then."
"Yes!"
After speaking, Aoki turned and left this alternate dimension without looking back.
Stepping out of the alternate dimension, Steven and the others, who had been waiting anxiously outside, immediately surrounded him.
They were forcibly expelled from the alternate dimension, not even having time to summon their Pokémon, otherwise they wouldn't have been so defenselessly driven out.
Seeing Aoki reappear before them unharmed, Steven and the others let out a long sigh of relief.
If Aoki, as a regional champion, had been trapped here due to a conspiracy and siege by the remnants of the cult, it would have truly been a huge joke.
Moreover, as Aoki's close friends, Steven and the others could not accept such a thing.
Fortunately, Aoki was unharmed and reappeared before everyone.
"Aoki, those cult remnants…" Steven asked.
Aoki's expression seemed a bit solemn. "They set a trap beforehand, wanting to trap me inside, but they didn't expect my strength to have exceeded their imagination. Although I was helpless, and my psychic abilities were suppressed, I couldn't keep them, so… they still escaped."
Hearing Aoki say this, Steven understood the seriousness of the cult remnants escaping, but at least the immediate problem was solved.
"What about… the residents of Mossdeep City?"
"I slightly sensed the spatial fluctuations here; they should be confined in another alternate dimension."
Soon, with Aoki's "efforts," the location of that alternate dimension was quickly found, and a large number of people were discovered lying inside. Fortunately, these people were only asleep and had not caused a scene of bloodshed.
Under the efforts of over a thousand search officers, the residents of Mossdeep City were all rescued one by one.
However, upon seeing these people rescued, Aoki's expression was not very good, and even Steven and Flannery's expressions were not very good either.
"Too weak," Aoki couldn't help but say.
Steven and the others beside him nodded, and even Phoebe and Sidney expressed their agreement.
Mossdeep City, although a relatively small town in the Hoenn region, is nonetheless a very important town in the Hoenn region, with a population of tens of thousands.
They were actually taken down by these cult members without any resistance.
"It seems that after returning this time, it will be necessary to start reforms from the local level," Aoki mused, as if talking to himself, and yet also as if speaking to Steven and the others.
But Steven nodded in agreement.
The matter of Mossdeep City was concluded.
...
For a long time afterward, the entire Pokémon world slowly became chaotic.
Only a small number of people clearly saw that the origin of all this chaos came from the Kanto and Johto regions, which used to be the greater Kanto region.
On it, Team Rocket officially began to challenge the authority of the Alliance.
Suddenly, the Kanto and Johto regions, which were originally the most prosperous and economically developed areas under the Alliance's jurisdiction, became the most chaotic points in the entire Pokémon world.
Almost every town saw daily conflicts and battles between the Alliance and Team Rocket.
The only fortunate thing was that, under the intentional restraint of the Alliance, most of the skirmishes did not occur in the bustling urban areas, so they did not cause too much damage. However, it is uncertain whether the Alliance will still be able to maintain this restraint after some time.
The residents of the entire Kanto and Johto regions also felt increasingly uneasy.
Not only the Johto region, but other regions also became less safe due to this great turmoil affecting the entire Pokémon world.
Among these regions, the Hoenn region was considered a relatively peaceful and safe area, which could be said to be a blessing for its residents.
And for all of this, the residents of the Hoenn region attributed the credit to their Hoenn Region Champion, Aoki!
After the Mossdeep City incident ended.
Aoki immediately convened the highest-level meeting of the Hoenn Alliance, which was also his first time holding such an important meeting.
The content of this meeting was simple: through investigation, quantify the Alliance's defensive forces in various towns throughout the Hoenn region, as well as the strength of the Gym Leaders and Gyms within those towns, and present it to the various high-ranking officials of the Alliance.
In some larger cities, those well-known towns in the Hoenn region, the strength of the Gym Leaders was quite good, with Norman of Petalburg City leading the way.
However, there were still some deficiencies, including a few major cities, but mainly some small towns, where the Gym Leaders' strength was still lacking. In fact, after investigation, it was even discovered that some individual town Gym Leaders only had Elite-level strength.
At other times, it would have been fine, but in such a period, it would definitely become a breakthrough point for underground forces!
Although the identities of these Gym Leaders were relatively legitimate, more or less they had come through some family connections.
Therefore, under Aoki's leadership, a large-scale personnel reassignment for these Gyms was prepared.
At the same time, in order to promote the overall strength development of the entire Hoenn region and to cope with the current major environment, Aoki decided to hold a grand Alliance competition throughout the Hoenn region.
Different from the competitions previously held by the Hoenn Alliance.
Although the Hoenn Alliance held one to two competitions almost every year to promote the motivation for trainers in the entire Hoenn region to improve their strength, and after these competitions ended, as long as they achieved good rankings, they could receive some very good prizes.
Only this time it was different.
The threshold for this competition, insisted upon by Aoki, was very high, and most trainers were not qualified to participate because the requirements for strength were very high.
However, in contrast, the rewards for this competition were also very special.
The winner would be able to establish their own Gym in any town in the entire Hoenn region that did not yet have one.
All resources required for building the Gym would be fully covered by the Alliance, and they would also unconditionally provide the operating funds for the Gym for the first three years, until the Gym could operate stably and independently!
In addition to the champion, the runner-up and third-place winners would each have one opportunity to challenge an existing Gym Leader. As long as they successfully challenged under the Alliance's notarization, they would be qualified to directly replace the original Gym Leader of that Gym and become the new Gym Leader certified by the Alliance in that region!
When this information was just released from the Hoenn Alliance, trainers throughout the Hoenn region felt that the Hoenn Alliance had gone crazy.
Because in this information, the only requirement for participants was strength, and nothing else.
In other words, as long as your strength met the standard, even if you came from a common background, you still had the right to participate!
Even many frustrated trainers could seize this opportunity to soar.
Gym Leader!
What kind of concept is that?!
To a certain extent, this could already be considered an existence like a feudal lord!
A genuine direct member of the Alliance, and able to come into contact with the true high-ranking officials of the Alliance.
Now, to establish a Gym in the Hoenn region, it's not just about strength; it also requires support and assistance from high-ranking officials within the Hoenn Alliance. Aoki, back then, relied on his teacher Go Yagyu's influence within the Alliance to establish a Gym in a remote small town like Verdanturf Town.
It's basically impossible for anyone else!
So, it's imaginable what a huge sensation the introduction of this policy would cause.
At the same time, the existing Gym Leaders were also panicked, especially those who became Gym Leaders by relying on their families' patronage.
They all voiced their concerns to the Alliance's high command.
However, at this moment, all these voices were rejected and ignored.
It's very simple to hold on to a gym: as long as the Gym Leader can win when a challenger comes, that's enough!
So, if you want to protect your status as a Gym Leader, just work hard to improve your strength and don't lose.
They are all human, but these Gym Leaders have access to more resources. Compared to the challengers, they have an advantage in terms of resources. If they really lose, wouldn't that be a bit unreasonable?
Initially, when they heard Aoki was going to implement such a policy, most people, including Adams, immediately opposed it.
Steven was the only one who supported it.
After the two of them argued logically and explained all the reasons, Adams and the others finally accepted it.
Life in the Hoenn region was too comfortable, and it needed some internal stimulation to drive the overall development of the Hoenn region's strength.
Thus, a new League tournament, lasting for half a year, began at this moment.
Not prohibiting commoners from participating doesn't mean that trainers from other League direct lines are not qualified to participate; everyone can participate, which is why those Gym Leaders are so nervous.
And what did Aoki do after implementing this policy?
Every day, he spent two hours in the morning handling political affairs, and then he completely disappeared.
He hid in the Sky Fortress, which was currently hovering over the Hoenn region, to train his Pokémon.
Team Rocket's increasingly large actions indicated Giovanni's growing determination. Currently, they could still fight in non-downtown areas under the League's restraint, but when things truly escalated, it would be uncertain.
Aoki didn't particularly care about other regions, but the Hoenn region had to be under his control, whether it was the League or the Sky Team.
This tournament seemed like a way to boost the Hoenn League's strength, but it was also an opportunity for Aoki to infiltrate Sky Team members into the League!
And as long as their strength was sufficient, they might even become a Gym Leader in the Hoenn region in one fell swoop, a starting point much higher than his own back then.
Furthermore, with him as the Champion covering their identities within the League, there would be no problems.
Under Aoki's manipulation, the entire Hoenn region slowly fell into his hands!
...
In the blink of an eye, a year passed in a highly regular routine!
During this year, the entire Pokémon world was in turmoil, and the Hoenn region was no exception, though it was much better off than other regions.
At the same time, a year had finally allowed Team Rocket and the forces from several other regions to truly complete their integration.
Giovanni, in the most recent meeting of the seven, proposed the concept of creating the Rainbow Rocket League, which also made the leaders of other regional forces feel Giovanni's desire for power.
But they did not refute Giovanni's proposal.
During this period, Giovanni came to understand them better, and they also came to understand Giovanni better.
Moreover, the birth of this alliance brought more benefits than drawbacks for them.
Anyway, they had already been cooperating for a year, and with Team Rocket leading the way, it naturally reduced the League's focus on them, alleviating some of the pressure.
So, after they stated they needed some time to think, the meeting concluded.
Aoki was the only one among them who knew Giovanni's plan.
And today was the day they were discussing Giovanni's current tournament.
Aoki directly constructed a conference room inside the Sky Fortress that was identical to Team Rocket's conference room in their Viridian City base.
Seven chairs were arranged inside.
Except for the first time, Aoki had always attended subsequent meetings here, and today was no exception.
Soon, six holographic images appeared on the chairs, and at the same time, Aoki's image was projected into the special conference rooms of the others.
It was a holographic conference.
"Alright, the week-long deliberation period is over. What kind of answer do you all have for me?" Giovanni was still wearing his usual clothes, a highly confident smile on his face, as he scanned the room.
Basically, every time he attended such meetings, Aoki chose to cross his arms and remain silent.
He would brief Brad on everything that needed to be conveyed before the meeting began.
"Hoenn region, Sky Team, agree to cooperate." As Team Rocket's most loyal supporters, the Sky Team basically fully supported any plan Giovanni proposed.
The other faction leaders had more or less figured this out.
"Alola region, Aether Foundation, agree to cooperate!" The second to speak was Lusamine, the president of the Aether Foundation.
"Kalos region, Team Flare, agree to cooperate!" Then came Lysandre, who had been instructed by Aoki.
"Sinnoh region, Team Galactic, agree to cooperate!"
"Unova region, Team Plasma, agree to cooperate!"
Everyone uniformly chose to cooperate, not because Giovanni had enough deterrent power over them, but because, from a Benefit standpoint, it was greatly beneficial to all parties involved.
The meeting started on time and ended quickly.
Everyone had their own little schemes, but Giovanni had more or less grasped some of them.
When all the holographic images dispersed and everyone went to prepare for this major event, only Giovanni and Aoki remained.
They both sat in their seats for a long time without speaking.
"What do you think?" After a long while, Giovanni finally spoke.
Aoki pondered for a moment, "They appear united but are not. These people all have their own agendas, more or less. They only agreed due to your leader's prestige, military deterrence, and the substantial benefits they genuinely receive."
Hearing Aoki's words, Giovanni curved his lips, appearing very casual.
"I've said it before, everyone here has their own agenda; the only difference is that some people have big agendas, while others have relatively small ones."
Upon hearing this, Aoki also smiled.
It was an old topic, often discussed.
Indeed, as long as a person is sensible and begins to have desires, they will inevitably have their own little schemes in their hearts. However, the size of these schemes varies, and due to experience and effort, some people's schemes can be realized, while others cannot.
Suddenly, Giovanni spoke again, "However, the existence of these people is ultimately just external force. To achieve success, one must rely on oneself; relying on others is not enough.
They are intimidated by my strength and will not put up a fierce resistance to certain interests that do not fundamentally harm them. But when their fundamental interests are truly touched, these people might go crazy in ways they themselves wouldn't expect.
So, to accomplish this matter, it ultimately still depends on oneself."
"Oh? Is the leader planning to take action?" Aoki was a little surprised.
"Ah, huff—" Giovanni stretched luxuriously. It was the first time Aoki had seen Giovanni so relaxed.
"Almost. Mewtwo's strength has pretty much reached its peak; even if we wait longer, there won't be any further improvement. And my other Pokémon have also reached their limits. Now is a good time to sound a warning to those with not-so-small schemes in their hearts.
Let them know who holds the initiative now." After stretching, Giovanni seemed very comfortable, as if he hadn't been this comfortable in a long time.
Ever since he became the leader of Team Rocket, he had been dedicated to developing Team Rocket and fighting against the League.
But now, almost all of that was about to end.
As long as this final battle was completed, no one in the League could stop him.
The only person in the entire League that Giovanni was wary of was the League's Grand President, the Elder, that old man whose age no one knew.
Giovanni also participated in the battle at Mt. Silver last time.
Part of the reason was to formally announce Team Rocket's emergence and to demonstrate Mewtwo's absolute power, which served as good publicity for Team Rocket. After Team Rocket emerged, the number of people applying to join did not decrease.
The other part was because he wanted to confirm the Elder's current state, to see if the person he feared most was still in good condition.
The result he got was that the Elder's strength had not diminished at all. Because his Pokémon were legendary beasts, with lifespans much longer than his own, even if the Elder lived for many years, his strength would not decline because of it; instead, it would gradually increase.
He saw that the Elder, relying on the ordinary, non-true legendary birds, fought Giratina, a true legendary Pokémon, to a standstill.
It was precisely because of such strength that Giovanni chose to wait, enduring until he had the confidence and strength to defeat the Elder, before he wanted to formally establish the existence of Rainbow Rocket.
Now, the timing was just right.
Aoki nodded, "Understood. I will represent Team Rocket and hold the line for you, Leader."
But Giovanni smiled and shook his head, "No need. You just stay in the Hoenn region. After all, the Hoenn region is at a critical juncture right now. After this year, you should have almost half of the real power in the Hoenn League, right? There's no need for you to appear at such a crucial moment.
Besides, even if you came, you wouldn't be able to exert much of your strength, and apart from you, Team Rocket isn't without other fighting power."
"In that case, it does seem like I'm not really needed." Aoki mused.
When Giovanni was preparing to fully launch his operations, those hidden strengths indeed needed to be brought out and displayed. Otherwise, Cyrus of the Sinnoh region, and the Seven Sages behind N of the Unova region, would probably not remain so docile. Even Lusamine, the president of the Aether Foundation, who initiated cooperation earliest, would not be so compliant.
Giovanni's virtual projection made a patting motion on Aoki's shoulder. Although there was no tactile sensation, Aoki felt the weight of it in his heart.
"Later, I will have someone send you some things. When you receive them, keep them carefully and don't let anyone else know. This item will be of great benefit to you in the future." Giovanni said this, and his image slowly dissipated.
But as he spoke, Aoki saw a meaningful smile on his face, containing too many things. Even Aoki, having grown to his current level, couldn't fully comprehend the meaning intertwined within it for a moment.
Scrutiny, doubt, admiration, expectation...
And so on...
It contained too much.
For a moment, he didn't quite understand why Giovanni would look at him with such an expression.
But Aoki wasn't very worried about whether Giovanni was targeting him or distrusting him.
If Giovanni were truly that kind of person, Aoki should have died long ago, when he hadn't fully grown. There was no need for him to show hostility towards Aoki now that he had fully matured.
Just as Aoki could honestly say he had done nothing to betray the Hoenn League or harm its interests, he was also confident that he had done nothing detrimental to Team Rocket!
It sounds strange, given his dual identity, both dark and light, completely integrated into both. How could he manage to not damage the interests of either side?
But the truth was, Aoki's constant pursuit was simple: to achieve absolute strength. And both Team Rocket and the League were merely two ladders for him in his pursuit of power.
These two ladders intersected and complemented each other, allowing Aoki to leverage his strengths and compensate for his weaknesses, which was a significant reason for his rapid increase in strength.
He sat in the conference room chair for a long time, trying to decipher Giovanni's gaze.
"Gengar, what kind of look was that, do you think?" Aoki said to the air, and a shadowy figure slowly materialized beside him.
"Jie-jie—"
"Hahahaha— You're right. Let's go see what important thing our great leader Giovanni sent me that he'd be so serious about." Aoki patted his backside and stood up.
Teleport!
He instantly appeared in his office at Sky Fortress.
The transfer device had completed its transmission, and an "R" shaped disk appeared in its tray.
"Is this it? Are there any important files inside?" Aoki picked up the disk. He didn't even need a computer; he could directly read its contents.
But when a long list appeared before Aoki, even his composure was shaken, and the disk he held in his hand dropped directly.
Fortunately, Gengar was still there and caught the disk before it hit the ground.
But Aoki paid no attention, his eyes fixed on the information before him, or rather... a list.
The first line of the list...
Name: Koga; Position: Top Executive; Identity: Johto Poison-type Elite Four; Strength: Newly entered Champion-level...
...
This list, from the top-most executives to all the squad leaders at the bottom, contained several thousand people, with very detailed records of their information.
From their names and strengths to their birthplaces, family members, how they attained their positions, how they started from scratch, and so on.
A series of very complex and detailed data.
Not only that, but there were also many Team Rocket executives Aoki had never heard of, and all of them were exceptionally powerful trainers and Team Rocket members.
These people, without a doubt, were Giovanni's hidden, true strength of Team Rocket!
To put it bluntly, possessing such a list would allow one to firmly grasp the entire Team Rocket in their hands!
Because with such detailed information, one could completely control these individuals through the information revealed in these files.
Moreover, Aoki also learned that at the very bottom of the information on this "R" shaped disk, there was a 26-character password. With this password, one could move freely throughout Team Rocket, whether physically, online, or in their databases!
In other words, with this information, Aoki truly became the legitimate Vice-Leader of Team Rocket!
Furthermore, if the Team Rocket leader were absent, he could exercise authority on their behalf!
"What is this... for?!" After a long period of stunned silence, Aoki finally came back to his senses.
But even after regaining his composure, Aoki couldn't understand Giovanni's intention.
To be honest, the Sky Team also had such a list, but it wasn't in Aoki's hands. It was in the hands of Blada, Catherine, and Rose. With this list, they could better manage the Sky Team.
Aoki could give these to them purely because they had Aoki's psychic seed in their minds, so he could trust them one hundred percent.
But for Giovanni to trust him one hundred percent, Aoki felt it was unrealistic.
"So, what exactly is this for?" For a moment, Aoki was unsure.
But after this murmur, Aoki felt as if he had been struck by lightning.
His eyes gradually widened, and his pupils dilated as he thought of a very plausible but difficult-to-accept answer.
Aoki believed that with Giovanni's prestige and deterrence within Team Rocket, even if Aoki had this information, those Team Rocket executives would not betray him.
But what if Giovanni were gone?
Based on the current situation, in terms of both identity and strength, Aoki was the highest-ranking member of Team Rocket besides Giovanni. However, this alone was not enough for Aoki to take over the true reins of Team Rocket's power. Even if his strength was sufficient, he rarely showed himself, so how could others be convinced?
But with such a list, it would be completely different!
"It seems that even Giovanni, the leader of Team Rocket, isn't absolutely confident he can defeat the Alliance's Elder. What does this mean?
He can't bear to see his hard work, after his defeat, become a tool in the hands of a bunch of good-for-nothings?" Aoki felt a slight shock in his heart; he felt as if he had seen another side of Giovanni!
However, upon further thought, Aoki's expression gradually darkened, "Since he isn't 100% confident, he could clearly spend more time accumulating strength. Even if the Elder's strength won't decline with time, I believe Giovanni definitely still has some room for improvement!
So... is it a problem with Mewtwo?"
For Giovanni to choose to act even without full confidence...
"This means Mewtwo's consciousness has inevitably begun to awaken. If he doesn't act now, his control over Mewtwo will become weaker and weaker..."
Of course, these were all Aoki's conjectures and could not be taken as definite answers.
"Then I must witness the outcome of this world-shaking battle, so I can find my place in the massive changes that are about to come!" A murmur escaped Aoki's lips.
...
Three days later.
Arriving at Mt. Silver again, Aoki's arrival was still as silent as ever.
Just like last time, Aoki first went to the inner area of Mt. Silver, for no other reason than for Moltres.
The last time Aoki drew a tube of blood from Moltres to use as material for his energy cubes was over a year ago, and those precious legendary Pokémon blood samples had long since been consumed.
So... Aoki found Moltres again.
Under its horrified gaze, and with Tyranitar's "friendly" reassurance, Aoki gently drew another tube of blood from Moltres, who looked on the verge of tears.
However, this time was different from the last. Aoki left it some good blood-replenishing potions and pills.
And he gave it a message, "Losing some blood every now and then is a good thing. It can promote blood circulation and flow within your body, and it can also stimulate your hematopoietic stem cells to function. It's a waste to just leave it, so why not let me make use of it?"
Upon hearing this, Moltres, it must be said, nearly peed itself with fright.
From Aoki's tone, it sounded as if he would come to drain some blood from it every now and then.
The thought of facing such a situation in the future made Moltres wish it could die.
Now, just the thought of Tyranitar or Aoki's smiles gave it nightmares when it slept at night.
This one human and one Pokémon had become its nightmare.
Fortunately, Aoki only drew one tube of blood and didn't do anything else to it.
Moltres would only be weak for a few days after having blood drawn, and there wouldn't be any major problems. With Aoki's potions as assistance, it would recover in at most one or two days.
Moreover, it was a dominant presence here, so even if it was weak for a few days, no Pokémon would dare to attack it.
Purely, very purely, it had developed a deep-seated fear of Aoki.
It was just a pity that Aoki now somewhat looked down on it, though it was still quite useful as a mobile blood bank.
Under Moltres's despairing gaze, Aoki left the inner area and directly entered Mt. Silver.
Unlike Mt. Silver during the Divine Cult's invasion, where Lance led the cult members to sneak around, avoiding times when the Alliance's high-ranking officials were absent, Giovanni did not do so. With extreme confidence and a far more powerful Team Rocket than the Divine Cult, a mighty army was directly arrayed at the foot of Mt. Silver.
Tens of thousands of Team Rocket members were gathered here, a force that even the entire Kanto Alliance could not ignore.
No, it couldn't be called ignoring; such a massive force was beyond mere importance as a descriptive embellishment for Team Rocket's strength. This was a power that made the entire Alliance tremble.
Under Giovanni's leadership, along with a host of Team Rocket's top executives and those hidden Team Rocket units, all were brought out this time.
This was a battle where everything was on the line.
It could no longer be called a battle; it should be called... war!
Giovanni stood proudly, looking at the Elder, who was facing him from a distance.
"Last time it was Lance, and this time, is it finally your turn, Giovanni?!" Even in such a situation, the Elder's face still bore a faint smile, showing little pressure.
Giovanni floated in mid-air, with the armored Mewtwo beside him.
Over the past year, the armored Mewtwo had pushed its strength to the extreme. Because it had no thoughts or self-awareness, it did not restrain its aura. Therefore, its powerful aura at this moment almost crushed any Pokémon that tried to float or fly with it in mid-air.
Only the Elder remained unaffected; everyone else was more or less significantly impacted, so the highest altitude they could fly was only below Giovanni.
Even Taishan, the current commander of the Alliance Army, could not be at the same height as Giovanni.
This was why Giovanni could challenge the entire Alliance and the Elder, who had sat in the position of Alliance President for an unknown number of years!
"I can't help it, Elder. Although both Lance and I have benefited greatly from your meticulous guidance, everyone has their own ambition in their hearts. And if the Alliance cannot fulfill my ambition, then I can only take it myself!" Giovanni did not underestimate the Elder despite his nonchalant appearance.
From the moment he met the Elder, he had always felt an inability to see through him. Even now, Giovanni still couldn't understand what kind of person he was.
"Oh?" The Elder smiled.
While everyone was in a standoff, Aoki, who had silently entered the Alliance Headquarters in Mt. Silver, headed straight for the deepest part.
Currently, everyone's attention was drawn to Team Rocket led by Giovanni, and there wasn't much defensive power within the Alliance Headquarters.
Coupled with Aoki's powerful psychic abilities and barrier skills, as long as he was careful enough, no one would discover him.
The first thing he was going to do this time was to see someone!
Lance, who was imprisoned in the deepest cell of the Alliance Headquarters!