Beep beep beep… Beep beep beep…
"Hello?"
"It's already done on my end. How's yours? If you can't make it, I'll go ahead and take action first," came Lance's cheerful voice through the phone.
Sato glanced at the unconscious Kalo and Alva lying on the ground and replied, "Give me two minutes. Be sure to save a tough one for me."
"Don't worry. The three 'Seven-Star' are all left for your Gym to handle. I've got a different opponent."
"Ariana? Are you sure you can handle her?" Although Sato was asking, his tone was quite confident.
"How do you know that? …Never mind. I'm your captain. You scared her off once, how could I not be able to beat her?" Lance was briefly surprised but quickly regained his confidence.
"Defeating her isn't hard. The real skill is capturing her, 'Captain'," Sato teased while opening the door to let Sina and Sia in.
"Ahem, get over here quick or we're not waiting for you!" said Lance before hanging up the phone.
Sato smiled and gave a nod to Sina and Sia. The next moment, Kirlia appeared beside him, and the two vanished in a flash.
Sina and Sia stared for two seconds at the spot where Sato had disappeared, then entered the room with eyes full of envy.
When they walked in and saw the battlefield in ruins, along with the enemies collapsed all over the floor, shock flashed across their eyes.
"…Did the Leader do all this alone?" Sina muttered to herself.
"Who else? What's even more incredible to me is, judging by the destruction here, the noise must have been huge, but the surrounding residents didn't notice a thing," Sia said in awe.
"Yeah…"
---
Meanwhile, after two successive Teleports, Kirlia had already brought Sato to a forest on the outskirts of Shadownight Town.
"You're here?"
Inside the camouflage tent, Lance didn't even blink as he stared at the monitor, spotting Sato's arrival instantly.
"Yeah, I'm ready on my side. We can begin anytime," Sato nodded, cutting straight to the point.
"Then one last check… everyone understands their tasks, right? If you have questions, now's the time to speak up." Lance looked around at the people in the tent and asked routinely, not expecting someone to quietly raise a hand.
"Uh… I might… get lost and not find my assigned opponent," Mark, clearly aware of his own shortcomings.
"…"
"…Sato, are you really sure Mark can handle Voya?" Lance asked skeptically.
"No problem. I'll have Kirlia drop him right in front of her."
"Heh, that's exactly what I meant, boss! Lance, let's get started~ I've been dying to go!" Mark said excitedly, acting like the earlier awkwardness hadn't happened.
"…Alright then. Begin the operation!"
"AYE!"
Everyone responded in unison and began moving. Joseph and Lance called Gogoat and Charizard, charging directly into the forest.
Behind them were many Trainers sent by the League to support the Shadownight Gym, tasked specifically with dealing with ordinary Team Rocket members.
Sato kept it simple, he grabbed Mark and vanished from the tent with a single Teleport.
---
While everyone was in motion, inside Team Rocket's temporary base, Ariana suddenly opened her eyes wide. Clearly, she was already aware of the League's movements.
What made Team Rocket difficult was the depth of their infiltration into the League. So deep that nine out of ten ambush operations like this ended in failure.
This time, Ariana clearly knew that Lance had arrived, and Lance had no intention of sneaking around.
He chose to face her head-on.
"Voya, Froston, Mika… the opponents are already in place. Lead your teams and intercept them."
"Yes, Lady Ariana!" the three responded in unison.
"Remember, staying alive is your top priority. This time is just about making that brat uncomfortable," Ariana narrowed her eyes, a cold glint flashing within them.
As she finished speaking, an Alakazam appeared at her side. A flash of white light, and both she and Alakazam disappeared using Teleport.
Voya and the other two weren't surprised. They turned and walked out of the secret base, splitting up into three groups to intercept the League's forces.
---
Deep in the lush, shadowy forest, another direct clash between Team Rocket and the League erupted.
Joseph, following Lance forward, was the first to encounter his opponent: Mika, the Rock-Star Hunter.
Whip~ Whip~
Two strong, thick Vine Whips slammed onto the Golem in front of Mika, halting its advance.
Although Mika was a demolition maniac, he looked like a neighborhood big brother when not speaking.
But judging by the four Pokémon he had already sent out: Golem, Electrode, Weezing, and Forretress… there was one thing they all had in common: they could all use Explosion.
"Joseph of Kalos, Breeder of Shadownight Gym… do you really think you can stop me?" Mika adjusted his black-rimmed glasses and said calmly.
"Take a guess," Joseph replied with a smile and didn't say more. He threw out two more Poké Balls, Florges and Gallade to each side of Gogoat.
"Gogoat, Horn Leech. Florges, Grassy Terrain. Gallade, use Psycho Cut!"
"Too bad I have to deal with pests before every blast. Electrode and Forretress, double Gyro Ball. Golem, Rock Blast. Weezing, fill the area with Poison Gas!"
----
While Joseph and Mika were locked in an intense battle, Sato had just brought Mark to face Voya.
The moment Voya saw Sato, memories of what he had done to her the first time came flooding back, and her blood pressure instantly spiked.
Last time she failed to defend the base and even allowed the Potential Enhancement Serum data to leak to the Joy family, letting them reap massive profits.
As the base's head of defense, she bore the greatest responsibility and should have faced a severe punishment, possibly being completely demoted. Fortunately, Ariana had stepped in and protected her.
Both women had been played by Sato before, so they developed a "revolutionary bond". This operation was one Ariana had volunteered for herself.
"…YOU BRAT!" Voya growled through clenched teeth as she glared at Sato's calm face.
"Yo, long time no see~ But I'm a bit busy today… let's chat another time," Sato greeted her and turned to leave.
"Showed up and think you can just walk away? Behind you are a hundred Pokémon ready to support me!" Voya's gaze turned cold as she flung out three Poké Balls. Ninetales, Rapidash, and Charizard charged at Sato with fierce roars.
"You're not worthy to fight the boss! Arbok, Glare! Lapras, Surf! Togetic, Metronome!"
Six Pokémon clashed in an instant. Sato glanced at the excited Mark and, after a moment's thought, secretly left Gengar behind.
Voya was too cunning, Sato was worried she might trick Mark.
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150pw=ExtraChap
pat/Romeloff