Chapter 227
"Lance, did you receive some kind of intel?"
When Lance had asked for Asahi's help earlier, he hadn't explained the reason, so Asahi hadn't pressed him about it.
Now, being specifically assigned to watch over the finals, Asahi couldn't help but wonder—did Lance hear about some plan, like Team Rocket plotting to cause trouble during the championship match?
Lance shook his head. "Team Rocket has taken too many hits from you lately—they don't have the strength to stir up anything right now."
"Then why…?"
"It's not about Team Rocket. I asked for your help because we're expecting a special guest at the Indigo League this time…"
"A special guest?"
"That's right. And you asked me to help you find a Togepi egg, remember?" Lance smiled. "Well, this guest happens to be the owner of that Togepi egg. She also wanted to meet you during her visit."
A special guest at the Indigo League, someone important enough to be invited as a guest of honor, and someone in possession of a Togepi egg…
Asahi had a guess, but he still asked for confirmation: "Is it…?"
Lance's smile widened. "The Sinnoh Champion—Cynthia."
…
Even though Asahi had more or less guessed it, hearing Cynthia's name still caught him off guard.
Shouldn't Cynthia be busy dealing with Team Galactic in Sinnoh? How did she have time to come to Kanto?
Did that mean the situation in Sinnoh was already under control?
He hadn't heard anything like that.
Asahi voiced his confusion, and Lance explained, "She's here mainly to discuss a potential collaboration between Sinnoh and Kanto."
Lance's expression turned a bit helpless as he spoke.
After Team Rocket suffered a heavy blow, the pressure on the Kanto League eased significantly.
Meanwhile, the Sinnoh region, still bearing the immense pressure from Team Galactic, began to eye Kanto for reinforcements.
Asahi: "..."
Good grief, so now both of them are looking to Kanto for help, huh?
He needed to assist the Hoenn region, while Lance had to liaise with Sinnoh… not a single moment of rest.
But at the end of the day, it all boiled down to one thing — there were just too many lunatics in this world.
Asahi sometimes struggled to understand — what had this world ever done to them that made these people so obsessed with world destruction?
"So… this time, the ones we need to be wary of aren't Team Rocket but Team Galactic, who might tail Cynthia here and try to sabotage the cooperation between Sinnoh and Kanto?" Asahi summarized Lance's point.
It was obvious — Team Galactic would never sit idly by and watch the Sinnoh and Kanto Leagues join forces.
"The mission is tough — I'm counting on you!" Lance added, "Also, I'll be pretty busy these next few days, so I'll have to trouble you with the airport pickup as well."
Saying that, Lance handed over a slip of paper with the flight's arrival time written on it.
...
There were still a few days until the plane arrived.
Leaving Lance's office, Asahi headed straight for the League's cafeteria.
Inside, Salamence was there, along with Eevee, vacuuming up food like a storm.
Since Asahi had brought Salamence here to eat several times before, the cafeteria staff were already familiar with this surprisingly voracious Pokémon.
Without Asahi having to say a word, they had prepared an entire table full of dishes for Salamence.
As for Eevee, whose appetite was small but had a tendency to want to taste everything, it simply tagged along and reaped the benefits.
If there was something it liked, it took a nibble — whatever was left went straight to Salamence, who accepted it all without hesitation.
The moment Salamence saw Asahi enter, it picked up speed, devouring the food even faster.
By the time Asahi sat down in front of it, Salamence had just stuffed the last piece of cake into its mouth.
The table was spotless — aside from the empty plates.
"You really have perfect timing…" Asahi muttered, recalling Salamence into its Poké Ball and grabbing Eevee to leave the cafeteria.
The cafeteria staff, who had been busy for hours dealing with Salamence's rampage, finally breathed a sigh of relief. At last, the ordeal was over.
...
At the Kanto division's office within the League headquarters.
This place had temporarily become the resting area for Gary and the others before their tournament matches. Ethan and Silver were currently squeezing in some last-minute training.
"How did the draw go this morning?" Asahi asked Gary, who was leisurely watching from the sidelines.
The Indigo League tournament used a strict knockout system — four rounds of preliminaries, and a single loss meant immediate elimination.
So the biggest concern for Gary and the others was whether they'd end up facing each other too soon in the preliminaries.
"With my luck, how could anything go wrong?" Gary handed Asahi a tournament bracket.
Asahi glanced over it — their luck was indeed pretty good. Everyone was placed in different groups, so the earliest they'd face each other would be in the Top 16.
"Just don't mess up in the preliminaries," Asahi teased.
"Mess up? Impossible!" Gary waved his hand dismissively.
What a joke — after serving as the Viridian Gym Leader, studying Giovanni's Secrets of the Earth, and enduring Asahi's brutal training, if he still flopped in the preliminaries, he might as well write his name backward!
"Oh? Is that so?"
Seeing Gary's smug look, Asahi raised an eyebrow.
Gary instantly became alert. "Asahi… you're not planning something evil again, are you…?"
Every time Asahi had that expression, Gary ended up in trouble.
Asahi looked speechless. "Do I really seem like that kind of person to you…?"
"Isn't that exactly what you are?" Gary blurted out.
"...Sigh."
He was deeply misunderstood.
So Asahi decided — after the Indigo League tournament, Gary was coming to Hoenn with him, whether he liked it or not.
The moment those words left Gary's mouth, he regretted them. Why did he have to provoke Asahi for no reason…
Just as Gary braced himself for the storm to come, all Asahi did was pat his shoulder.
But that only made Gary even more nervous.
Ignoring him, Asahi went into his old office.
This office used to be the International Police headquarters. Though some of the equipment had been moved to his estate in Saffron City, the office still retained enough facilities to remind Asahi of those carefree days when he first joined the International Police — days spent slacking off without a care.
Inside, Green was busy sorting through information, but Asahi didn't see Sabrina anywhere.
"Where's Sabrina?" Asahi asked.
He'd planned to discuss security arrangements with her — her psychic abilities were undeniably useful for this kind of work.
"She's attending a meeting at the Kanto Psychic Association," Green replied.
Asahi leaned over.
Green was gathering intel on Team Magma and Team Aqua.
"Any valuable information?" Asahi asked.
Even though he knew the general plot, his actions in Kanto and Johto had caused so many ripples that the storyline was now a tangled mess.
Green: "Based on all known information… it seems that in the ongoing clash between Team Magma and Team Aqua, Team Aqua currently holds the upper hand."
"About a week ago, their spy within Devon Corporation stole partial data on the submarine Abyssal One. Their target was the core components, but Steven arrived in time, so they only got away with some documents."
Asahi knew what Team Aqua wanted the Abyssal One for — to reach the Seafloor Cavern where Groudon and Kyogre slept.
Since Team Aqua hadn't succeeded yet, there was still time.
"I'll leave the intel gathering to you, Green," Asahi said.
Just as he was about to slack off, Blue suddenly spoke up.
"Asahi, there's an unconfirmed report…"
"What's the intel?" Asahi asked.
"Someone in Johto spotted Team Rocket's combat airship taking off. Its destination is unknown."
Asahi: "…"
Team Rocket just never quit, huh?
As for where the airship was going and who was aboard… that was anyone's guess.
After all, Team Rocket had business all over the world.
After some thought, Asahi told Blue to keep monitoring the situation, then pulled out his tablet and sent a quick email to Giovanni.
[Giovanni, you're not in Johto. Where did you go? Did you abandon your son? — Asahi]
On the airship —
Having entrusted Johto to Archer and Orm, Kanto to Sird, and the Sevii Islands to Carr, Giovanni was reviewing reports on Team Magma and Team Aqua when the email notification popped up.
The moment he saw the sender's name, he nearly smashed the tablet.
But remembering that his "weak spot" was still in Asahi's hands, Giovanni had no choice but to grit his teeth and open the email.
Reading the contents…
Snap!
He still couldn't hold back — the tablet broke in two.
...
Trying to steady his anger, Giovanni took a new tablet from Athena and replied:
[I'm in Johto. Aren't you worried that, as an International Police officer, your private communication with Team Rocket's boss might raise suspicions? — Giovanni]
Giovanni countered, implying that Asahi's actions could attract the League's scrutiny.
[So you're definitely not in Johto… Even if I were accused of colluding with Team Rocket, someone would have to believe it first. Your own son, Silver, wouldn't. — Asahi]
"…"
Giovanni clenched his fist.
[Asahi, don't you think your behavior is despicable? — Giovanni]
[Despicable? Being praised by the great Giovanni is an honor. I'll be sure to share this good news with Silver later. — Asahi]
[Heh.]
Snap.
Another tablet broke.
…
On the other side, after waiting a while with no response, Asahi felt a bit disappointed.
Did he push Giovanni too hard this time?
Maybe he shouldn't have provoked him so much.
Still, their exchange revealed some useful information.
First, Green's intel was accurate — Giovanni really wasn't in Johto.
Second, Giovanni seemed confident — even thinking about taking Silver back.
As for Giovanni's current location…
Asahi opened the map, crossed out Kanto and the Sevii Islands, and finally locked his gaze on the Hoenn region.
If anything could boost Giovanni's confidence, it had to be what was still stored at the Mossdeep Space Center — Deoxys' Form One and Form Two.
[I know where you are. I'll bring your son to see you! — Asahi]
After sending the final message, Asahi put his tablet away.
Giovanni, still fuming at Asahi's relentless jabs about Silver, scoffed at the message.
He didn't believe Asahi actually knew his destination.
After all, even within Team Rocket, only a select few senior members were aware of his trip to Hoenn. These were trusted subordinates who would never leak such information.
"When I succeed in creating those two Pokémon… I'll take back everything I've lost."
Clenching his fist, Giovanni closed the email and went back to analyzing Hoenn's intelligence reports.
What he didn't know was that Asahi had already contacted Steven, warning him to stay alert — especially about Team Rocket's potential interest in the Mossdeep Space Center.
…
The Indigo League opening ceremony went off without a hitch.
The sacred flame, said to be lit by Moltres' fire, burned brightly as it was passed along and finally ignited the stadium's torch.
While Gary and the others were busy with their preliminary matches, Asahi and Sabrina stood at the airport, waiting for a plane to land.
"You called me out here… just for this?" Sabrina's temple twitched in annoyance.
She was currently holding an enormous sign with "Cynthia" written on it.
Asahi had told her they were meeting the Sinnoh Champion, Cynthia — something Sabrina had been excited about.
She hadn't expected to be reduced to a human welcome sign.
"Ahem… it's just a small matter, no need to make a fuss," Asahi coughed lightly. "But let's focus on the real point — we're here to pick up Cynthia, aren't we?"
He spoke the second half with such confidence that Sabrina was left momentarily speechless.
Just then, a League staff member hurried over and whispered something into Asahi's ear.
Asahi: "?"
Sabrina, noticing his puzzled expression, grew curious.
"What happened?"
Glancing at the crowd, Asahi shook his head. "Come with me," he said to Sabrina.
Her curiosity only deepened, and she followed Asahi as the staff member led them into the airport's restricted area.
They eventually arrived at the tarmac, where they saw Cynthia standing beneath a plane — dressed in a black coat, her golden hair adorned with matching accessories, and Garchomp by her side.
At her feet was a person tied up tightly with ropes.
When Cynthia noticed Asahi and Sabrina approaching, her gaze met Asahi's.
"Mr. Asahi?"
"Miss Cynthia!"
After a brief exchange of greetings — with Asahi introducing Sabrina — they quickly got down to business.
Asahi's gaze shifted to the bound person at Cynthia's feet. "A Team Galactic member trying to hijack the plane?"
Cynthia nodded.
Asahi wasn't sure whether to commend Team Galactic for their boldness or question their intelligence… trying to hijack a plane with Cynthia on board? That was practically a death wish.
"Miss Cynthia, since you've come all this way, leave this person to us," Asahi said.
Seeing that Cynthia had no objections, Asahi signaled to the League inspectors behind him. They stepped forward and took the unlucky Team Galactic member away.
....
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