"I lost. Mr. Aomori, you're really amazing." As expected, the rookie Ash lost the battle.
"Yes, Ash. You and Pikachu were great, too. It was your first somewhat formal battle, conducted in front of so many people, and you showed no fear."
"Maybe it's because we knew we were going to lose, so there was no psychological pressure. But when we meet again, I'll challenge you again, Mr. Aomori! And next time, I won't give up easily!" Ash clenched his fist and said, his fighting spirit soaring.
"Good. I look forward to your growth." Aomori extended his right hand and briefly shook Ash's.
Suddenly, with a loud "BOOM," the ground beneath them collapsed. Aomori, Ash, Absol, and Pikachu all fell through.
Aomori landed safely, gently brushing the dust from his expensive coat.
Ash landed on his backside, yelping in surprise, "What happened?"
"Since you ask so earnestly," a woman's voice echoed from a tunnel connected to the pit they had fallen into.
"I'll tell you out of the goodness of my heart." A plume of thick smoke billowed out of the dark tunnel, obscuring Aomori and Ash's vision.
"To protect the world from devastation," two mechanical arms shot out of the smoke, grabbed Absol and Pikachu, and quickly retracted.
"Cough, cough! Pikachu!" Ash cried out in alarm.
"To unite all peoples within our nation," the voices grew fainter. Even Ash's quick wit understood they were trying to escape after grabbing Pikachu and Absol.
"Hurry, let's go!" Aomori and Ash immediately scrambled into the tunnel to chase after them.
They ran for over a hundred meters until they reached the end, which opened into another three-meter-high pit.
'Who knows how they dug a tunnel this long in such a short time,' Aomori mused.
A mere three meters was no obstacle for Aomori or the rookie Ash. The two easily climbed out of the hole and were just in time to see the familiar Meowth balloon ascending.
In the basket, Pikachu and Absol were tightly clamped in the mechanical arms, unable to break free. The two members of Team Rocket struck their iconic poses, continuing their unfinished motto.
"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"
"To extend our reach to the stars above!"
"Jessie!"
"James!"
"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!"
"Surrender now, or prepare for a fight!"
"Meowth, that's right!"
Finally, once they finished their famous lines, Ash suddenly realized, "It's you again, Team Rocket! Give me back Pikachu!"
"Nyahahaha! No way! If you want them, come and get them!"
"Hohohoho~"
"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"
"Pika… CHU!"
"It's no use! We used insulated material this time!"
"Darn it!" Ash only had Pikachu with him and was helpless against Team Rocket in the air.
"Let me handle this," Aomori said, his look of nostalgia gone. He was finally back to business.
"Pidgeotto, rip that balloon with Scratch." Aomori released his reliable mainstay, the common bird Pokémon, and gave a direct command.
"Pidgeotto!" Pidgeotto soared skyward, quickly catching up to the Meowth balloon. As the two Team Rocket members and Meowth watched in terror, Pidgeotto used its claws to tear open the balloon.
The hot air balloon plummeted to the ground. Pikachu and Absol broke free of their constraints and reunited with the rushing Aomori and Ash.
"You wretched twerps!" Team Rocket refused to give up, releasing Arbok and Weezing, ready to try and grab the Pokémon by force.
"Absol, use Razor Wind! Pidgeotto, use Gust!"
"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"
The three attacks sent Team Rocket flying back toward their broken balloon. The familiar explosion followed, along with the familiar cry of, "Looks like Team Rocket's blasting off again!" as they disappeared into the sky like a shooting star.
'It really is the anime version of Pokémon. The level of danger has dropped sharply. A true novice dungeon,' Aomori thought.
"Ash, Mr. Aomori, are you two alright?" Officer Jenny and Misty arrived late from a distance.
After waving goodbye to Ash and Misty, the episode's plot came to an end.
Aomori was curious if his figure would show up on a TV set in some other world.
The next day, back at the usual spot.
A large number of Trainers were waiting for Aomori early in the morning. Those who came to challenge him after witnessing his record yesterday, aside from battle maniacs like Ash, were Trainers who were confident in their own abilities.
Today was sure to be tougher than yesterday.
The Evolution Stone didn't matter to Aomori; he just didn't want to lose, even in these casual battles.
He planted his flag, and Aomori began accepting challengers.
The first challenger sent out a purple, ghostly Pokémon with hands separate from its body.
"It's the Ghost-type Haunter!"
"I see, he's using the type advantage?"
"Is he stupid? Ghost-type attacks don't affect Normal-type Pokémon." Absol was being mistaken for a Normal-type Pokémon, as the Dark type had apparently not yet been publicly revealed to the masses.
"Hmph, they must have learned some other move. To use type advantages like that to win, what a waste of a Trainer."
"The champion will probably switch Pokémon then, right? Based on yesterday, Absol seemed to only use Normal-type moves."
The onlookers debated amongst themselves. The Challenger was secretly smug. The Haunter he caught already knew Toxic. As long as Toxic landed, he could use the Ghost-type's ability to hide and easily win the battle.
He had won countless battles using this strategy, thinking triumphantly, 'The Fire Stone is mine! Switching Pokémon won't help.'
'Haunter, huh? One of the Pokémon high on my wanted list,' Aomori thought with a light smile. He had expected a Fighting-type Pokémon, in which case he would have had to switch in Pidgeotto. But as it was, Absol was more than enough.
"Absol, this match is yours."
"What? He's still sending out Absol?"
"Is the champion being stubborn?"
"Maybe Absol has other moves hidden."
'Whatever moves it has won't matter,' the Challenger thought, gritting his teeth. He commanded, "Haunter, hide and look for an opening."
Aomori slowly said, "Stay put, and wait for it to come out."
With that, he stood with his arms crossed, appearing calm and idle. In reality, Aomori was concentrating fully on sensing Haunter's presence; his Spirit attribute was far beyond that of an average person.
After a few seconds, Aomori detected a faint shadow hovering above and behind Absol.
'Got you.'
At that moment, the Challenger yelled, "Haunter, use Toxic!"
In the same instant, Aomori commanded, "Jump forward! Use Thunderbolt on the area behind and above you!"
The now-visible Haunter swung its little claw and missed, only to be struck squarely by a flash of light—Thunderbolt!
Fearing that one attack might not be enough to finish the opponent, the exemplary student Absol, without waiting for Aomori's command, followed up with another Thunderbolt of its own.
Haunter, hit twice by Thunderbolt, spun into 'Dizzy Eyes' without even a whimper.
"How did you know where Haunter was?" The Challenger knelt and pounded the ground, completely distraught. "My Fire Stone!"
"I guessed. Next."
"Guessed?" The Challenger recalled his Haunter and walked away dejectedly.
In the subsequent battles, Aomori used every trick in his book, winning every match without serious incident. Pidgeotto also came out to gain a few rounds of experience.
The dungeon quest was now fully complete. With only a few days of dungeon time remaining, Aomori decided to return to Viridian Forest to grind for experience.
He could worry about the main storyline after his strength improved.
A few days later, Aomori's first dungeon experience came to an end.