"The Gym Leader Tournament is held every year to select strong Gym Leaders as part of the future Elite Four training program."
"This year's Gym Leader Tournament is much earlier than usual."
"However, only Akiko is among the Elite Four members present!"
The muscular man stared at Akiko. At this moment, only Akiko was present for the tournament; the other three Elite Four members were nowhere to be seen on the resort island. Based on his understanding of the League, all four Elite Four members would be present for such an important competition.
The fact that only Akiko was present inevitably aroused suspicion.
"Lance was in Johto recently; even if he returned to Kanto, it would take some time."
"As for Lorelei and Shiva, their whereabouts..."
The middle-aged man's expression was grave. These two were usually in Kanto.
They wouldn't be absent from such an important competition.
At this time, Kikuko had already arrived, but these two were still nowhere to be seen…
"Do you think it might be about the unmanned power plant?"
The muscular man thought to himself, feeling that something was off, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.
"The League's intelligence network is always very efficient, you know that,"
the middle-aged man said calmly.
Not only did he know, but all the Team Rocket executives were well aware that no matter what Team Rocket did, the League would appear in a short time.
With a Pokémon of that caliber appearing in the Kanto Region, the League naturally wouldn't let it pass.
No trainer would refuse to capture a legendary Pokémon.
Even an Elite Four member wouldn't be an exaggeration!
Back when they were operating in Martha City, Lorelei, the Ice-type Elite Four member, appeared within an hour, resolving part of the crisis in Martha City.
Team Rocket's actions were always accompanied by the League.
It was as if someone was hiding within Team Rocket, constantly passing intelligence to the League.
"The Gym Leader Tournament might just be a smokescreen."
"Now I'm afraid that the Pokémon at the power plant is also a smokescreen!"
The middle-aged man frowned.
Team Rocket was able to obtain information about the power plant at this time
, coincidentally around the time of the Gym Leader Tournament. It was
too coincidental; it was as if someone was manipulating something, planning to lure Team Rocket in.
"You mean, there's no Pokémon in the power plant?"
The muscular man's face hardened. If things were really as the other party said,
this operation would be very dangerous. Apollo had already set off for the power plant,
and he didn't know how many Team Rocket members he had taken with him.
The middle-aged man's expression was grave. After a long silence, he slowly said, "No~"
"That Pokémon definitely appeared!"
"It's precisely because that Pokémon appeared that the League took action."
The middle-aged man slowly shook his head.
If he wasn't mistaken,
either Sylvanas or Lorelei was on their way to the power plant.
The worst-case scenario was that two of the former Elite Four members were gone.
As for Lance!
The middle-aged man had also considered that, but he had been in Kaji Town recently.
Given Lance's personality, upon learning of Team Rocket's presence at the power plant, he would undoubtedly ride his Dragonite there.
The League was gambling!
Betting that Team Rocket would appear at the power plant and
send someone to capture that Pokémon.
Moreover, that person's status within Team Rocket was definitely that of a high-ranking executive.
Clearly, the League's gamble paid off.
And it was a very successful gamble, successfully luring two of Team Rocket's executives to the power plant.
By using the Gym Leader competition, they managed to relocate trainers from around the power plant to the resort island,
saving them a lot of trouble!
"This is bad."
The muscular man wasn't stupid; he realized the situation.
If what the middle-aged man said was true, Apollo would be in considerable danger.
He alone would have to contend with at least two Elite Four trainers.
Even Apollo, hailed as the strongest after Giovanni, would find it difficult to achieve this.
"I have to go there."
The muscular man's face darkened; he had no choice but to leave the resort island.
His hidden identity in the League might be exposed because of his departure.
However, he had no other options.
"Don't reveal your identity unless absolutely necessary." The middle-aged man finished speaking and ignored the other man.
This operation was specifically designed to target Team Rocket.
From the beginning, Lt. Surge had already fallen into their trap, and as for Apollo?
A pleasant surprise!
...
"Bai Yu, I knew you'd come to the resort island!"
"You got me!"
A slightly flamboyant-looking young man approached.
He had learned from the Pokédex that all the famous Gym Leaders in the Kanto Region would be on the resort island, which was why he chose to travel on the Saint-Tiannu to challenge Bai Yu!
He was determined to defeat this guy, and his rigorous training of his Pokémon was all for this day.
"Oh? Isn't this Young Master Gary from Pallet Town?"
"So many days have passed, you shouldn't make that kind of silly mistake again, right?"
Bai Yu looked at Gary in front of him. He knew he would run into Gary sooner or later.
As long as they were on the resort island, Gary would definitely come up and challenge him to a battle.
Bai Yu had already made the necessary preparations.
"Hmph!"
"Arrogant fellow, I'll show you what a real Pokémon battle is like!"
In the past, it was just a moment of carelessness on his part. He
was hit by this guy's Stealth Rock and then completely outmaneuvered by that Seed Bomb.
Now, he had found a way to break Stealth Rock.
In addition, all the Pokémon in his hands had evolved to their best state, and he was determined to win this battle.
"As the Gym Leader, I naturally cannot refuse a challenger's request." After Bai Yu finished speaking, he walked towards the open area.
This battle also caused quite a stir.
"Have you heard? The Martha City Gym Leader got challenged!"
"Really? Is it the one from Martha City who likes to use those Sun-type Pokémon?"
"Sun-type Pokémon? Is his Pokémon Fire-type?"
Many trainers surrounded the arena, discussing the strength of the Gym Leader before them.
Many trainers hadn't even looked at the Pokédex, and even those who had only focused on the eight major gyms.
Few would actively seek out lesser-known gyms.
Martha City Gym was once known as the weakest gym, but only a portion of trainers knew this.
Most trainers didn't have a deep understanding of Martha City Gym's strength and
could only rely on their Pokédex readings.
This battle finally caught Akiko's attention.
"The Martha City Gym Leader."
"I've heard Lorelei mention him."
"And that one… isn't he Snow City's grandson?"
"I didn't realize he'd grown so much."
Akiko gazed at Gary's figure, the image of Professor Oak appearing in her mind.
So many years had passed; Professor Oak had gone from champion to research doctor.
He abandoned the path of Pokémon he had previously steadfastly chosen.
He wondered how much of his talent his grandson would inherit.
Kikuko's feelings towards Professor Oak were complex.
She wanted to see Gary fail, yet she couldn't accept his defeat!
All because his grandfather was named Oak Yukishiro!
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(End of Chapter)