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"Can you tell me what's wrong?" Seeing Green's confused expression, Blaine could tell that Green was feeling uncomfortable about something, but he still asked with genuine concern.
Although Green felt that Blaine was showing her special attention, she didn't understand why. However, she thought that since he was a Gym Leader, he might have better ways to help with her situation.
"Yes! I just received word that a friend who started his journey at the same time as me has been kidnapped by Team Rocket for reasons unknown. His current whereabouts are completely unknown!" Green explained, her voice filled with worry.
"Hmm..." Blaine's expression suddenly shifted dramatically after hearing about Team Rocket. His brow furrowed deeply, and his usual cheerful demeanor became serious. Green noticed the change in Blaine's expression, but she assumed he was simply surprised by the news and didn't think much more of it.
"I've heard of Team Rocket before, but from what I understand, although they frequently steal Pokemon, they don't typically kidnap trainers!" Blaine said after a moment of surprised silence, his voice carrying a note of confusion.
"I'm not entirely sure about the details myself. This information came from Professor Oak's grandson Gary, who reported it to Professor Oak. I only learned about the situation through them, so I'm still waiting for them to call me with more information," Green replied, shaking her head slightly. She didn't know much about Team Rocket's operations and was simply waiting for news.
"I see... I could try to help you investigate this matter," Blaine offered after listening carefully. The situation seemed increasingly strange to him, and after a moment of contemplative silence, he made his decision.
"Really? But won't that cause delays for you?" Green asked, feeling somewhat embarrassed by his generous offer.
"Ha ha ha! Don't worry about it at all! No one's come to challenge my gym recently anyway! Besides, as a Gym Leader, it's my responsibility to help when situations like this arise," Blaine laughed heartily and waved his hand dismissively, indicating that Green shouldn't worry about inconveniencing him.
"Thank you so much!" Green quickly expressed her gratitude.
"You're very welcome. I'll get started on this right away," Blaine responded warmly. However, as he turned to leave, his expression became deadly serious once again.
Meanwhile, Ash—the very person everyone was so worried about—was currently sitting inside a spacecraft that was flying across the vast ocean toward a distant island that continuously sent thick black smoke billowing into the sky.
That direction led directly to Cinnabar Island. Cinnabar Island was a town situated on a volcanic island, with an active volcano at its very center that could potentially erupt at any moment.
At this moment, Ash found himself locked inside a cell-like room. The space was sparse, containing only a simple bed, with sturdy metal bars blocking the front entrance. A circular window was embedded in the rear metal wall, sealed shut with thick, transparent glass. The surrounding walls and floor were all constructed from solid metal. Being imprisoned in such a place, without access to keys or tools, escape seemed virtually impossible.
This dire situation had made Ash unusually calm, and he realized more clearly than ever that his current strength simply wasn't sufficient to handle such dangerous circumstances.
During the earlier confrontation, he hadn't actually lost the battle itself. However, he had failed to anticipate their underhanded tactics when the explosion occurred. After the blast, all of his Pokemon had sustained varying degrees of injury, though admittedly, the opposing side hadn't fared much better.
But at that critical moment, someone had used advanced spacecraft technology to capture Pikachu and his other Pokemon. They had finally succeeded in capturing him, though fighting one against four had indeed proven far more difficult than he had ever imagined.
Looking outside through the sealed window, Ash could make a reasonable guess about their destination. After Moltres had escaped from their previous encounter, it had most likely fled toward the volcano on Cinnabar Island. It was obvious that Team Rocket still planned to continue their pursuit of the legendary Pokemon.
Click!
At that moment, the iron door at the front of his cell opened with a metallic sound, and a figure slowly walked inside. The man kept his hands clasped behind his back and wore a confident smile. It was Archer, one of Team Rocket's high-ranking executives.
"You're much calmer than I expected you to be," Archer observed, looking at Ash's composed demeanor with an amused smile playing across his face.
"If you're hoping to see me beg for mercy, I'm afraid you're going to be disappointed," Ash responded in a steady, calm tone. Although there seemed to be no way to escape his current predicament, and Pikachu along with his other Pokemon were locked up elsewhere, he refused to lose his composure.
"Ha ha! Anyone who dares to oppose us without hesitation wouldn't be easily frightened, I suppose," Archer chuckled, seemingly impressed by Ash's resolve.
"There's nothing about you people that I should be afraid of," Ash replied sarcastically, slowly leaning back against the cold metal wall behind him.
"Our purpose isn't to make people scared, you know. You're still young and can't possibly understand the true philosophy behind Team Rocket's mission!" Archer remained unperturbed by Ash's mockery, his tone remaining conversational.
"Really? Did you come here just to explain your so-called ideals to me? Because I'm not interested in hearing them!" Ash sneered dismissively after hearing this. Team Rocket might have some members with genuine beliefs, but Archer definitely wasn't one of them.
"That's quite unfortunate, but what we're really interested in learning about is the mysterious power you used back at the power plant," Archer said, his eyes narrowing as a more sinister smile crossed his features.
Ash's eyes widened slightly in realization. Now he finally understood their true purpose for keeping him alive. Logically speaking, they could have captured him and eliminated him immediately. There had been no real need to keep him as a prisoner.
"So you've finally revealed your real purpose? But since you already know that I'm not afraid of you, you should also know that I won't tell you anything!" Ash declared firmly.
"You used this mysterious power when you were at the power plant, but you didn't use it during our recent encounter. If you had also used this power this time, we might not have been able to capture you so easily," Archer continued, ignoring Ash's defiant response and speaking as if he were simply thinking aloud.
"So I can reasonably guess that you haven't actually mastered this power yet, and you probably don't even understand what this power truly is, am I right?" Archer's analysis was methodical and calculated.
"So what if that's true?" Ash responded curtly.
"Don't you want to properly develop this power that you possess? As long as you're willing to cooperate, we can help you master this ability completely," Archer proposed. Of course, he had already known that Ash wouldn't willingly reveal information, so he had prepared this alternative approach.
"Help me master it? You want to study this power for yourselves, don't you? Don't try to make it sound so generous and altruistic," Ash responded calmly. He could easily see through the other party's true intentions and motivations.
"This doesn't have to be a conflict of interests. It could be mutually beneficial for both parties involved. You would get what belongs to you, and we would get what we need. Isn't that a perfectly reasonable arrangement?" Archer suggested with false sincerity.
"I'm already in your hands as a prisoner. Do you really need to ask my permission for whatever you plan to do? Don't treat me like a naive child. You won't get anything useful from me unless you're planning to cut me into pieces and study me that way," Ash replied bluntly.
Ash wasn't foolish enough to fall for such obvious manipulation. All this talk about mutual benefit was nothing more than lies designed to deceive children. How could they possibly help him master this power and then just let him go free? That would only create future problems for them. In the end, they simply wanted to steal and master the power of his unique bond with his Pokemon for their own evil purposes.