The Johto Region.
Gender: Male. Default Pokémon: Murkrow.
Is there a character like this in Team Rocket? Kashiwagi mused. Executive Ariana has a Murkrow, but she's female...
He stared at the five talents offered for this simulation.
...
Fixed Talent:
- [Greenhorn]: Slow progress in training Pokémon.
Selectable Talents:
- [Clumsy]: Poor health management for Pokémon.
- [Blooming Peach Blossoms]: High probability of dating several members of the opposite sex.
- [Villainous Character]: Joining an evil organization.
- [Frail Health]: Your own health is not looking good.
...
To be honest, other than [Villainous Character] being somewhat interesting, the other four were garbage. No matter what he picked, it didn't look like there was a happy ending in sight.
But since this was just a standard simulation—and he had never even made it past the preliminary rounds into the victory tournament—he decided to pick whatever caught his eye.
"I choose you! [Blooming Peach Blossoms]!"
A greenhorn villain who's also a total player!
He pressed the start button.
...
[Simulation Start]
On the pixelated screen, a brightly lit office appeared. Sitting in the boss's chair was a red-haired female sprite. She looked remarkably like Ariana, but with slight differences.
Wait, why is she the first person to show up?
Is the simulation guy her son?
He remembered that in the game lore, Ariana had been working with Giovanni for a long time. Though she never appeared in the anime, like Courtney, she might still exist. At that age...
Kashiwagi watched as a male sprite in a Team Rocket uniform suddenly appeared, walked up to the red-haired woman, and... they started kissing.
Kashiwagi: "???"
Hold on! Why are they kissing! Ariana's husband? Is she married?
Before he could look closer, the screen went completely black, only lighting up again after a few seconds. In the frame, the two sprites were standing on opposite sides, straightening their clothes.
"..."
Kashiwagi didn't know what to say. For the first time in a long simulation, he had seen such "vigorous" suggestive imagery. This was supposed to be a 6+ rated game.
Wouldn't this corrupt the children?
Well, at least the only "child" watching was a sixteen-year-old (physically).
The simulator's suggestive intro gave him a very bad feeling about where this was going.
[At eighteen, your promotion prospects within Team Rocket are still non-existent. In your frustration, your girlfriend shares a secret plan with you: Project Infiltrator.]
"Girlfriend."
Those characters in the text were like flashing gold signs, nearly blinding him.
[You learn that Team Rocket has struggled with recruitment lately. To secure the organization's future, Boss Giovanni has decided to let select elite members enter the League Conference. By gaining fame and personal charisma, they will secretly recruit new followers.]
Whoa, that's some top-tier intel!
Kashiwagi's playfulness vanished. He leaned in, watching seriously.
Although he had never seen the characters in the simulator, and had only searched for them online, without confirming whether the simulated content was their real past experiences, it was highly likely that those weren't fake.
If this reflected actual Team Rocket lore in this parallel world, he could really mess up Giovanni's long-term plans.
On the screen…
The Rockets member left his girlfriend's office, looking like a gigolo who has just delivered his salary's worth.
[You realize that completing this mission would bring you prestige both inside and outside Team Rocket. However, the selection criteria are strict. Even your girlfriend refuses to ask her mother to pull strings for you. You must find another way.]
"Girlfriend... mother..."
Ah! It's Ariana's daughter! No wonder the hair was slightly different.
Kashiwagi finally understood the true identity of that red-haired figure, but didn't know what to say.
He remembered many people guessing Ariana might have a certain daughter, based on hair color and hairstyle, and he had once had his doubts, but this simulation told him that at least in this parallel world, Ariana had her own daughter.
Suddenly, the screen showed the Rocket grunt in a small room with another female grunt, kissing. The screen went black, then brightened again after a few seconds.
God, he's a total scumbag!
[Through much effort, you obtain the details of the selection process from Girlfriend #2. You are very happy.]
Girlfriend No. 2...
"..."
Kashiwagi watched as hearts popped up over the heads of the grunt and the female grunt. After a seemingly reluctant farewell, he quickly moved to the side of another female grunt with different colored hair.
Familiar routine, familiar content.
[Through much effort, you obtain the name of the examiner from Girlfriend #3. You are very happy.]
Girlfriend No. 3.
Kashiwagi's attempt at being serious shattered by this "prodigal son". In just a few minutes of simulation time, this guy had met with three different women!
But soon, he realized he had still underestimated his subject, the "Casanova" of Team Rocket wasn't done. He found a #4, a #5, a #6...
Is this guy an inexhaustible Tauros?
Kashiwagi marveled at the sheer energy of youth. Who knew Team Rocket had such a world-class "Sea King" (player) in their ranks?
Truly, Team Rocket was a place of many talents.
Speaking of Team Rocket, they usually operate in pairs with one Pokémon per team, right? Is this guy a little different? Or maybe it's a characteristic of the Johto branch...
Anyway,
Through a series of... "negotiations," the grunt successfully cleared all the hurdles and joined Project Infiltrator.
Behind this success was the hard work of his countless girlfriends.
On the day of his departure,
this guy demonstrated to Kashiwagi what it meant to be a top-tier player and a master of time management, successfully appeasing numerous girlfriends, none of whom were dissatisfied with him.
This skill of walking a tightrope left Kashiwagi in awe.
As a participant, the grunt received his "Starter Pokémon"—Murkrow. It was given to him by Girlfriend No. 1 (Ariana's daughter), likely related to Ariana's own Murkrow.
[You receive your first Pokémon, Murkrow, but you are not particularly satisfied.]
Huh?
This was the first time Kashiwagi had seen such a narration. After a moment, he understood the grunt's logic: the guy thought Murkrow was too weak.
Most Rocket members used Pokémon as tools; people like James and Jessie were the outliers.
To this grunt, Murkrow was just an inefficient "tool".
In fact, Team Rocket wasn't short on powerful Pokémon. Later on, they could give the trio a Pokemon vending machine, which even contained Tyranitar..
Even earlier, when Brock was guarding his Gym, Team Rocket had supported the trio with Aggron and Charizard.
Giving him a Murkrow was indeed stingy.
In the pixelated scene, the grunt left the Johto branch base and arrived at the nearest city, Ecruteak.
Giving up on the Mahogany Town base?
That makes sense; Lance had most likely already scouted that place, so why would they still leave it?
However, the grunt who arrived at the Ecruteak Gym did not enter. After observing, he took a train to Azalea Town.
[You understand that you are in competition with the other infiltrators. Only by being the first to get a badge will you receive further support. Those without results get nothing.]
I see, so there's an internal competition mechanism?
Kashiwagi wasn't surprised. An organization like Team Rocket being harmonious was unrealistic. Plus, Giovanni was a boss focused on big profits; he wouldn't tolerate someone taking up space without contributing.
Even if the trio was kicked out, the reason they could return was officially that Giovanni felt they owed the organization too much money.
Upon arriving in Azalea Town,
the grunt decisively started his first Gym challenge.
Clearly, he knew to pick the "soft persimmon." Among all Johto Gym Leaders, Bug-type specialist Bugsy was the best target for someone starting with a Murkrow.
The grunt's logic proved correct.
Facing a challenger with zero badges, Bugsy used Metapod and Spinarak.
Although their webbing caused Murkrow some trouble, its superior foundation allowed it to win two-on-one easily.
It cleared the Azalea Gym on its first try.
This performance made the grunt quickly change his view of this Pokémon.
[You defeated Gym Leader Bugsy and obtained the Hive Badge.]
[Looking at your victorious Murkrow, you feel for the first time that having it as a partner might not be so bad.]
How pragmatic, Kashiwagi thought.
But strictly speaking, there were many trainers with this mindset. The fact that Ash could always find Pokémon abandoned by others was a solid proof.
While many loved their Pokémon, many trainers constantly exhausted their Pokémon's spirits in pursuit of power.
Unfortunately, the simulation only showed the subject's psychological changes; Kashiwagi really wanted to see Murkrow's expression.
Meanwhile, the grunt arrived at a shop.
[You submitted your Gym challenge results to the secret personnel and learned you were the first to obtain a badge. You happily received cash and a Pokémon as reward.]
[You sent a letter to Girlfriend #3. She helped you swap the originally intended Pokémon. You received a new Pokémon—Electabuzz. The number of tools that could lead you to a bright future has increased.]
Good lord.
Other subjects had "the number of traveling companions increased," but this guy had "tool Pokémon increased".
And after leaving the base, he could still exploit the power of his poor girlfriends to swap for Pokémon advantageous for the next Gym.
Kashiwagi uncomfortably pinched the head of the Zweilous that was leaning in, annoyed.
The grunt chose Electabuzz obviously to take down the Flying-type Violet Gym. Gym Leader Falkner, like Bugsy, belonged to the youngest tier.
In terms of strength, he was easier to overcome than the others.
Taking the train to Violet City, the grunt challenged the Gym without hesitation.
Kashiwagi was curious: didn't he need to bond with the Pokémon? He later realized that most Team Rocket Pokémon were trained to have no independent will of their own.
Whatever the trainer said, Electabuzz did. If no order was given, it wouldn't even counterattack while being hit.
Such Pokémon... really felt like tools.
It fit the Team Rocket philosophy perfectly.
Back then, Giovanni wanted Mewtwo to be his tool for world conquest, but that "tool" had far more independent thought than a normal Pokémon and blew up his headquarters in rebellion.
In the Gym battle, Electabuzz performed excellently. Thunderbolt, Thunder Punch, and Thunder—it could use these high-power moves with ease.
It was clear Team Rocket's breeders were very skilled.
The Violet Gym was also beaten in one attempt.
[You defeated Gym Leader Falkner and obtained the Zephyr Badge.]
With two badges and good momentum, the grunt quickly contacted his girlfriends back at the base to obtain a Hitmonchan, which was stronger than Electabuzz.
He also used a Dusk Stone to evolve Murkrow into Honchkrow.
[Your Murkrow evolved into Honchkrow.]
Kashiwagi was puzzled why he didn't evolve Electabuzz into Electivire. Was the Electirizer out of stock?
In any case, the grunt rushed forward to Goldenrod Gym. He blew through Whitney with the Hitmonchan's Mach Punch. Three badges down, zero effort.
However, after adding a fourth Pokémon, Crobat, he hit a wall at Cianwood Gym.
Even with two Flying-types, Chuck defeated him with his powerful martial arts. This brought the grunt his first psychological shock.
He almost wanted to call his girlfriends for help.
Fortunately, after a second challenge, the grunt successfully passed the "Mountain of Meat" hurdle. This made him realize that Johto Gym Leaders were not all pushovers.
This became even more evident at the Mahogany Gym.
He passed Olivine Gym in three tries and Ecruteak in three tries—the former relying on a new Houndoom, the latter on Honchkrow and Houndoom.
But he hit a wall again at Mahogany.
Despite having the Fire-type Houndoom, Electric-type Electabuzz, and Fighting-type Hitmonchan, his sixth Pokémon, Skarmory, didn't shine. Instead, it was suppressed by Pryce's Dewgong.
Five battles, five losses.
At this point, Kashiwagi made another discovery.
Usually, Pokémon grow as a trainer challenges Gyms, but this grunt's Pokémon had—zero progress!
Except for Honchkrow, the power of the moves the other Pokémon used at the start was the same as at the end.
It seemed [Greenhorn] talent was at work—he simply didn't know how to train them.
[You realize you cannot pass the Mahogany Gym. In your desperation, you call Girlfriend #8 and Girlfriend #11 for help.]
Hmm?
Kashiwagi was slightly taken aback.
He then saw two female Rocket grunts appear beside the subject. Sparks flew between them; they clearly saw each other as enemies.
Is... the boat about to sink? Kashiwagi hoped for a disaster.
He thought that this scumbag's nature would be exposed, but instead, he successfully managed to mislead the two female Rockets.
The three of them sneaked into the Mahogany Gym. The grunt went to steal the badge, one girlfriend modified the Gym's back-end registration to fake the challenge record, and the other uploaded an edited battle video to the League network.
"Are you freaking kidding me!?"
Kashiwagi was stunned. Was Pryce's account hacked that easily? Was the League's security really that pathetic?
Though the "good guys" in the anime were often incompetent and needed help from minors like Ash, he didn't expect the League system to be cracked so easily by a Rocket grunt.
Team Rocket wouldn't reward him for this, right?
Kashiwagi was proven wrong. The two girlfriends kept it a secret, so the organization gave him rewards without knowing a thing.
Seeing this, Kashiwagi only hoped the guy would be exposed in the preliminaries.
...
Naturally, after tasting this convenience, the grunt refused to challenge Gyms honestly. He specifically chose the most famous Blackthorn Gym to "challenge."
Unexpectedly, Blackthorn's security was much tighter than Mahogany's.
The grunt failed two infiltration attempts.
Kashiwagi suspected it was due to the influence of that Camper boy who had reached the Silver Conference with stolen badges alongside two thieves.
In desperation, the grunt gave up on Blackthorn. Because others had already obtained seven badges, he had to qualify for the Silver Conference as quickly as possible to get Giovanni's attention.
The final Gym, he beat with his own strength—the opponent's skill was truly mediocre.
Having successfully qualified first, he was granted an audience with Giovanni. The boss gave him a large cash prize and his seventh Pokémon.
[You received a new Pokémon—Tyranitar. The number of tools that could lead you to a bright future has increased.]
Whoa, a Tyranitar!
Kashiwagi couldn't help but be shocked. Giovanni really invested heavily in this Infiltrator project, giving out such a Pokémon as a reward.
Even in the anime, Tyranitar was extremely rare and a favorite of top-tier poachers.
Like all previous Pokémon, this Tyranitar was the "pre-tamed" type and would follow any instruction. With a full team, he was about to embark on the Silver Conference journey.
...
Seeing this, Kashiwagi rubbed his eyes.
He didn't expect a Normal Simulation to go this far. With a Tyranitar, maybe this grunt could break the "Normal Simulation curse" of never passing the preliminaries? If he trained his Pokémon a bit, it might be possible.
After all, they were strong!
Unfortunately, no matter how much Kashiwagi hoped, the grunt's "Sea King" nature didn't change.
Instead of training, he spent more time maintaining relationships with his girlfriends, especially Ariana's daughter, who had become very affectionate lately.
Through the simulator, Kashiwagi learned that Ariana's daughter finally told her mother about the grunt. Due to his outstanding performance in the project, he received Ariana's praise.
This made her very happy.
The grunt was also ecstatic.
And then...
somehow,...
he ended up promising to get engaged to Ariana's daughter after the Silver Conference.
Kashiwagi was stunned outside the screen, and the grunt, who had agreed as if possessed, was also stunned. Both felt things were looking bad.
"Well... it seems like the Sea King's fishpond is about to explode?"
Kashiwagi laughed rather unkindly.
After realizing the engagement couldn't be undone, the grunt racked his brain to avoid a "cleaver" (yandere murder) ending.
[You tell your other girlfriends that the higher-ups saw your great future and forced you into an engagement with Ariana's daughter. You promise them that once you reach the top, you will dump her.]
[Your girlfriends believed you.]
T-that actually works!!
Kashiwagi was once again shocked by the grunt's maneuvers.
Little did he know this was just basic Sea King behavior; many more tricks weren't shown because they weren't "important."
Soon, the Silver Conference began.
Curious, Kashiwagi continued watching. He wanted to see how far a "cherry-picker" using Team Rocket's money and strength could go.
The Preliminaries
The opponents weren't particularly strong. Tyranitar and Honchkrow were more than enough.
The grunt passed very smoothly.
When the committee checked Gym records, there were no issues, which made Kashiwagi feel a little sorry for the defeated trainees.
They had clearly reached this point through their own strength; even without challenging the strongest gyms, they were still trainers with eight badges. Who would have thought such a loser would appear?
The Main Tournament
Advancement became somewhat difficult. The opponents' strength grew visibly.
Top 64... Top 32... Top 16...
The Victory Tournament was within reach!
Kashiwagi grew tense. He really hoped to see a simulation subject break the "law" of Normal Simulations.
Unfortunately, the simulator was too cunning.
In the crucial match to advance from the Top 16 to the Top 8,
The grunt met the protagonist.
Yes.
The opponent was the pixel sprite players controlled in Gold/Silver—Ethan!
Or rather, his name in the anime version, Jimmy!
If Kashiwagi remembered correctly, this guy participated in the Silver Conference one year before Ash and appeared in the special The Legend of Thunder.
Along with him was the anime version of Kris—Marina.
Seeing Jimmy as the opponent, Kashiwagi felt a bad omen.
Sure enough,
the "invincible" Tyranitar lost to Jimmy's Typhlosion as soon as it entered the battle. The combined power boost from bonds and a starter Pokémon was so strong that even a pseudo-legendary became "trash."
Seeing his strongest asset gone, the grunt became anxious.
Unfortunately Jimmy had protagonist luck—the kind that wouldn't be sabotaged by the writer.
So, the grunt's subsequent Pokémon couldn't defeat the "Protagonist Aura" Jimmy. Jimmy's Pokémon utilized the "Three-Word Mantra" to the limit and quickly defeated almost all of his team.
Only Honchkrow held out for a bit.
The fact that someone who only hung out with women and never trained his Pokémon got this far was already extraordinary.
Ultimately, he too was defeated by Jimmy.
More importantly, failing to even reach the finals was certainly not something Giovanni could accept.
The Rocket had absolutely no idea how to explain it to him.
[You lose to Trainer Jimmy, stopping at the Top 16. You are terrified. Soon, Giovanni's punishment arrives: he confiscates all your Pokémon.]
[You return to the branch base dejected, only to find that your "multi-boating" has been exposed. Your girlfriends, wanting to surprise you after your loss, somehow all bumped into each other. After comparing notes, they realized your true nature as a human garbage scumbag.]
[Girlfriend #1, realizing your betrayal, pulls out a cleaver (柴刀)...]
[Your story seems to be coming to an end.]
[Simulation Ended]
...
...
The screen vanished. This greatly displeased the excited Kashiwagi.
Why wasn't he allowed to see the cleaver ending? Could it be too gory and unsuitable for children?
"Hey! That was the most exciting part you know?!"
Tsk.
He pulled out his phone and searched the records of Silver Conference Top 16 of Jimmy's year.
A handsome face popped up.
Hmm... no wonder he could manage a harem. He had the face for it. There was no further reporting on the guy. He was likely... gone.
Tsk, tsk, tsk. Terrifying.
Kashiwagi looked at the rewards that popped up.
...
[Reward 1]: Level up any Pokémon by 4 levels (below lv. 50).
[Reward 2]: Clue for an obtainable Pokémon (Superior).
[Reward 3]: TM (Selectable type).
[Reward 4]: Keep [Blooming Peach Blossoms] talent for the next simulation.
...
"What peach blossoms? More like non-stop cleavers."
He complained inwardly, but he was a bit disappointed that "Villainous Character" didn't appear.
Even though he hated those guys, they were fun to watch as entertainment.
"Pokémon are better. No matter how many partners you have, you never have to worry about a cleaver." Kashiwagi grabbed the passing Mawile and pulled her into his lap, patting her head.
"Maww-ille!" (Mawile protested)
"There's no one here, what's wrong with a few pats?"
"Maw—!!"
Mawile's fist began to glow with Focus Punch.
"Fine, fine! No more pats! I surrender!"
Facing Mawile's glowing fist, Kashiwagi sheepishly raised his hands in surrender.