บท 108: Team Rocket Proton
"I gave you the money just to buy this Pokemon?"
Hisoka said, a little amused seeing the Little Bear Pokemon rushing up to Buneary for stealing his food.
There was a forest in Johto where Ursaring would come together every year to mate. During that time, the forest would become their breeding ground and be off-limits to the masses.
Still, many poachers tried to sneak into the forest. They would then steal the Teddiursa cubs and eggs, provided they could escape the encirclement of angry Ursaring.
Ursaring was a very powerful Pokemon. Its size and power allowed it to deal devastating blows. The females especially were more aggressive while protecting their young.
Few people had survived under their claws for trying to steal the eggs or cubs. Despite the warnings, people would still go into the forest each year. Yet, no one listened.
Teddiursa was quite popular in Johto due to their adorable appearance. Due to the high risk, Teddiursa eggs or cubs remained at a high price.
The League tried to protect the Ursaring but was driven back by the Ursaring with dozens of Hyper Beam. Seeing that, the League decided to leave the Ursaring alone and just set up a couple of warning signs around the forest.
Clearly, they didn't need protection at all.
Teddiursa: o(｀ω´*)o
Teddiursa tried to look fierce, but his cute face somewhat failed him.
He trotted across to Buneary and tried to punch her. Sensing the attack, Buneary dodged the punch and thrust her leg into Teddiursa's face.
Bang!
He rolled over on the floor several times. Once he stopped, there was a large, dark circle on his eye.
"Teddy!"
Ran ran to him and quickly picked him up.
"Rar!"
Instead of crying, the little bear bit her hand in anger.
"Ouch!"
She yelped in pain and released him from her hold. He then rushed past her, heading for Buneary again.
Seeing that, Hisoka frowned. He felt something was off with this Teddiursa. He stepped forward and quickly grabbed his leg, turning him upside down.
"Rar!"
Teddiursa struggled desperately, waving his claws at Hisoka. Unfortunately, his arms were too short of reaching his assailant.
Ran clutched her bleeding hand and slowly walked to Hisoka.
"Hisoka, I'm fine. Don't hurt him," she said worriedly.
'Stupid girl,' Hisoka smiled helplessly at her.
He dangled the little bear in front of her and said, "Do you even know what kind of Pokemon Teddiursa is?"
Ran pondered for a moment and shook her head. Teddiursa couldn't be seen in Kanto. They mainly lived in the mountainous forest in Johto.
"Teddiursa is a timid Pokemon. Although some of them can be quite cunning, it is rare. Look at the Teddiursa you bought. It is too aggressive and grumpy. If it isn't for its appearance, I might even mistake it for a Ursaring," Hisoka explained solemnly.
"I think he might just be scared after leaving his old home. When I bought him earlier, he was very well behaved," she babbled.
"Oh, really?" he drawled, looking at the Teddiursa in his grasp.
"Rar!"
A silver aura surrounded Teddiursa's claws as he tried to slash at his hand.
But before he could, he slammed him on the ground hard.
Bang!
Teddiursa teetered around the room with swirly eyes just like a Spinda before coming to his senses. He looked at Hisoka in fear and quickly hid behind Ran's leg.
"There, there, Teddy. You'll be fine," Ran rubbed his head, trying to comfort him.
Apparently, she had already forgotten how Teddiursa bit her before.
'Looks like she had already regarded the little bear as her own Pokemon. She'll have a hard time with him,' Hisoka shook his head at that.
He was sure that the Teddiursa she bought was much more cunning than he looked. Clearly, he knew how to use his cute appearance to fool other people. Not only was he smart, but he also had a bad temper. A truly bad combination, in his opinion.
When determining a Pokemon's aptitude and potential, each trainer had their own criteria.
However, many trainers ignored the character of the Pokemon itself, only focusing on their talents and potential.
Even if a Pokemon had great talents, it would be useless if it was afraid of fighting. A trainer could guide them, but this took a lot of time and energy.
***
The next day.
There were many people in Central Park today. After two knockout rounds, there were only sixteen teams left in the tournament.
The organizer had arranged two helicopters for a live broadcast. The teams, who successfully entered the top 16, walked into the front stage one by one.
Then, a woman in a pink blouse and skirt walked into the stage holding a mic. Wearing white gloves and red high heels, she had wavy, brown hair that reached her shoulders.
"Hey! That's Miss Vivian," Morrison whispered.
"Yeah, I didn't expect her to be here," Harrison nodded.
Vivian was not well-known in Kanto or Johto, but she was very popular back in their hometown, Hoenn.
The dream lover of many men, Vivian was the resident host of the Pokemon Contest in Hoenn. Her popularity had even surpassed of that Officer Jenny and Nurse Joy.
Vivian raised her mic and said, "Hello, everyone! I am Vivan Meridian from Hoenn. I will be your host for today."
She finished with a wave of her hands, followed by cheers and applause from the crowd.
After the crowd settled down, she instructed the staff to place a large glass box filled with many papers at the center of the stage.
"We'll be drawing lots soon. When I call your name, please step forward to draw your lots," she smiled at them.
The drawing session lasted for about ten minutes. Sixteen teams had drawn their lots in turn. Hisoka and Ran had drawn No. 3, which meant they would fight in the second match later.
The venue for the tournament had been changed to a large stadium right at the center of Central Park. The field could be switched into four types of terrains: grassland, rocky, water, and icy terrain.
***
"Miloctic! Use Ice Beam," Hisoka shouted.
Milotic, who was swimming in the water, formed a light blue ball in her mouth. She then fired a light blue beam at the Gyarados opposite her.
The beam traveled across the water, freezing the water below into thick ice.
The Gyarados was instantly hit by the icy cold beam and became trapped in a layer of ice, unable to move.
Outside the venue, Vivian stood on a high platform, watching the battle excitedly.
"Unbelievable, I didn't expect that I would see Milotic in Kanto. To those who don't know, Milotic is known as the most beautiful Pokemon in the world. Only a few trainers own this kind of Pokemon. Wallace, champion of Hoenn, is one of them," she explained.
After she said that, there was an uproar in the audience. They had never expected this kind of beautiful Pokemon was so rare that only a few people owned them.
'He's strong!'
Reggie leaned against a wall while watching the battle from afar.
He had full confidence to make it to the finals. Besides Hisoka, there was also a trainer from Hoenn that he focused on. The rest was ignored by him.
Paul looked at the Milotic in the field admiringly.
"Brother Reggie, doesn't Cynthia also own a Milotic?" he asked.
"Yep," Reggie nodded.
Cynthia was the trainer that they respected the most. Strong, kind, and humble, Cynthia became the role model for many trainers in Sinnoh.
Hearing that, Paul clenched his fist and made a promise in his heart, 'I must capture a Milotic too!'
***
Trapped inside the ice, the Gyarados tried to break free.
Crack!
The ice on his body began to slowly crack.
"Lanturn, protect Gyarados!" The person on the other side quickly shouted after seeing Milotic rushing toward Gyrados.
Lanturn was a Water/Electric-type Pokemon from Johto that resembled anglerfish. Nicknamed the "The Deep-Sea Star," Lanturn could be found deep in the ocean.
Recalling what the Hisoka had told her before, Ran looked at her Beedrill and said, "Beedrill! Use Toxic Spikes on Lanturn!"
Beedrill closed her stingers together and fired a large purple ball at Lanturn. Midway, the ball exploded into several pieces of balls that surrounded it.
As Lanturn moved toward Gyarados, it accidentally struck one of the balls in the water. Then, a small explosion occurred under its feet, bringing forth a purple gas surrounding it.
"Great job, Ran!" Hisoka shouted after seeing Beedrill trapping Lanturn with Toxic Spikes.
"Go Milotic! Ice Beam once more!"
"Mee!"
Milotic fired another blue beam at the frozen Gyrados.
Bang!
The Gyrados fell into the water with a splash.
(AN: Sorry for the short battle. I want to speed up the pace a little.)
***
Celadon Game Corner's basement, Team Rocket's secret hideout.
"Proton, are you out of your mind?"
Petrel exclaimed, looking at his long-time friend as if he had gone crazy.
"Boss Giovannie is watching this tournament. You also know this is one of Ariana's plans. This had nothing to do with us," he continued.
Petrel, one of Team Rocket's executives. He was in charge of the group intelligence. As a master of disguise, no one had seen his true face except for a few people.
Proton, the man Petrel was talking to, was also one of Team Rocket's executives. Despite being the scariest and cruelest of Team Rocket, he remained one of the popular executives.
The four executives were divided into two factions. Ariana and Archer belonged to the same faction. They were in charge of Team Rocket's personnel and had great financial power.
Proton and Petrel belonged to another faction. While Petrel was in charge of the group security, Proton led the Beast Squad, the most elite squad in Team Rocket, which had existed since Team Rocket's founding.
The Beast Squad only answered to two people, Giovanni first, followed by Proton. No one in Team Rocket could compete with Giovannie's majesty and power.
***
Proton pricked his ears lazily and turned his eyes toward Petrel.
"That woman is wasting her time. Do you think those trainers will join team rocket?"
Petrel suddenly remembered the top trainers in the League Conference they had contacted before. Only seven of them joined Team Rocket over the years. None of them was worth anything. Heck, they were even more stupid than the other people they recruited outside.
Most of the trainers who could make it to the top 32 in the League Conference generally had good backgrounds. As long as they worked hard, there was no need for them to join Team Rocket.
In contrast, joining a notorious dark organization like Team Rocket would affect their reputation as well as their friends and family if they were caught.
Hence, Team Rocket members were usually recruited from the orphanages in various cities.
"You have a point there," he admitted.
Then, Proton got up from his chair and pointed to several Pokemon on the screen.
"Look at their Pokemon. Isn't it better if we took them for ourselves? Why should we invite them into Team Rocket?"
Petrel fell silent at that. Giovanni didn't say they couldn't attack trainers. And if this seemingly crazy idea succeeded, even Ariana and Archer couldn't say anything.
"We must start before Ariana sends people to contact them," Petrel thought for a moment before replying.
"So you're in? Great! I'll contact the Three Beasts to help us," Proton laughed, patting his shoulder.
"Yeah, yeah. I'll prepare my men. You should too," he said with a heavy sigh.
'I hope the boss doesn't get mad at us,' thought Petrel with his fingers crossed.
***
After Petrel left the room, Proton returned his attention back to the screen. In particular, Harrison from Hoenn, Reggie from Sinnoh, and Hisoka from Kanto were the three people he focused on.
"Blaziken, Drapion, Gardevoir... They all will be mine soon. Muahaha!"
(AN: Evil laugh cringe?)
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