Chapter 318 – Giovanni! You’re not in the Sevii Islands at all! Where did you go!?

Chapter 318 – Giovanni! You're not in the Sevii Islands at all! Where did you go!?

As soon as Asahi stepped into the entrance hall, the thick iron door behind him slammed shut with a loud bang.

Immediately after, a pack of Houndour led by a Houndoom emerged from all directions, surrounding the three of them.

"This is your welcoming ceremony?"

Asahi glanced around with interest. "Doesn't look that impressive…"

Compared to the enemies he had faced in the past, this little trick from Chakra was hardly worth mentioning. If this was the grand trap Chakra had prepared, Asahi could only say he was very disappointed.

However, Psyduck, seeing so many Houndoom, was trembling in fear, clinging tightly to Asahi's leg. Its tiny tail wagged frantically in distress.

At that moment, Chakra's voice came over the loudspeakers:

"Sird, you actually dared to come… So you really have become the League's lapdog?"

"Heh…" Sird simply smiled and didn't respond.

"You can still laugh? Houndoom, attack!"

At Chakra's command, Houndoom let out a long howl, and the pack of Houndour lunged toward Asahi and the others.

Asahi took a step back, positioning Lorelei in front of him.

Lorelei: "?"

But as an Elite Four member, her reaction was lightning-fast. She swiftly raised her hand.

"Jynx, Blizzard!"

The enclosed room was instantly filled with the howling of icy winds…

In just a minute, the entire hall was covered in ice sculptures. Every Houndour, along with Houndoom, had been frozen solid.

At that moment, Asahi stepped forward again and looked up.

"Well? Do you understand Lorelei's strength now? If you've got any other tricks, go ahead and use them."

Lorelei: "??"

Sure, Team Rocket was the enemy, but did he really have to stir up even more hatred toward her?

"Hmph… This is far from over!"

As Chakra's voice rang out, Team Rocket grunts emerged from all directions—including the ones who had 'fled in panic' earlier.

Now, they each had a Team Rocket signature Pokémon at their side, all wearing fierce, menacing expressions.

They might as well have had 'We're not to be messed with' written on their faces.

"We're surrounded…" Lorelei turned to Asahi, subtly signaling him.

Stop just watching the show—do something!

Even for her, dealing with this many Rocket members would take considerable effort…

Seeing Lorelei's signal, Asahi decided to act.

So…

"Uh, everyone, wait a moment…"

He raised his hand and gestured toward Team Rocket.

The Rocket trainers, who were just about to attack, froze.

We're enemies! Why should we stop just because you said so? Who do you think you are?!

One of them stepped forward. "Who the hell do you—"

Before he could finish, a series of loud crashes echoed from the speakers. The sounds of intense battle, Chakra's frantic shouting, and violent explosions filled the air.

Boom!

A wall exploded.

A soot-covered Chakra appeared, looking utterly disheveled as he rode atop a Steelix.

Seeing his stunned subordinates staring at him, Chakra immediately flew into a rage and was about to order them to assist him.

However, before he could even speak, Gardevoir's eyes flashed blue.

With a howl of pain, Steelix's massive form shuddered.

Chakra, thrown off balance, tumbled down.

Just as he was about to hit the ground, Gardevoir caught him midair with Psychic.

Steelix let out a furious roar, trying to come to Chakra's rescue.

But Lorelei acted swiftly.

A beam of Ice Beam shot from Jynx's hands, freezing several of Steelix's joints.

Gardevoir's eyes flashed once more, and Steelix's gaze went hazy before…

Boom!

The massive body crashed to the ground—Steelix had been put to sleep by Hypnosis.

[Gardevoir: Got him. A slight miscalculation—I didn't expect Steelix to always be by his side.]

"You've been a great help, Gardevoir," Asahi said, then turned to look at the still-struggling Chakra with a smile.

"Just now, didn't you say you wanted to teach me a lesson?"

Chakra's body stiffened.

Asahi continued, "Seeing Gardevoir, you should know who I am by now… right?"

Chakra slowly muttered the name that every member of Team Rocket knew:

"Asahi…"

How could he not know Asahi?

Giovanni mentioned this name every day. Even if he knew nothing about Asahi's past deeds, just the way Giovanni gritted his teeth whenever he said the name was enough to show how much he hated him!

This was the man who had single-handedly knocked Team Rocket off its pedestal—the one enemy that every Rocket member despised!

"Sird follows you?" Chakra asked, now calmer.

He turned to look at Sird, who at this moment had an almost… humble expression—something Chakra had only ever seen her display before Giovanni.

Asahi smiled faintly. "Take a guess."

Chakra's expression twisted with anger. Then, suddenly, he smirked cunningly.

"You've fallen into my trap! Forretress, Explosion!"

At his command, holes opened in the ceiling, and dozens of Forretress rained down. As soon as they landed, their bodies started glowing with blinding light.

"Haha! If I capture you, I'll be Giovanni's rightful successor!" Chakra laughed.

And then…

Nothing happened.

Under Chakra's bewildered gaze, a dazed-looking Psyduck stepped out from behind Asahi, scratching its head.

"…What were you saying just now?" Asahi asked, smiling.

Chakra's body trembled as he realized something. "This is…?"

"Damp ability."

"Even a weak little Psyduck can prevent all these Forretress from self-destructing."

"Pokémon… are quite fascinating, aren't they?"

As he spoke, Asahi ruffled the three tufts of hair on Psyduck's head.

"Psy-duck!"

Realizing it had just saved the day, Psyduck put its hands on its hips and puffed up proudly. Even Lorelei couldn't resist patting its head.

"Well, you've used all your tricks, and I've given you all the explanations you need," Asahi said. "Now, tell me—where is Giovanni?"

But what Asahi hadn't expected was…

"Giovanni isn't in the Sevii Islands?"

Asahi frowned at Chakra's words.

Before coming here, he had considered various possibilities—perhaps Giovanni had successfully created Deoxys and was using the Sevii Islands as bait to lure him in.

Or maybe something had gone wrong with Deoxys, like in the original timeline, and it had gone rogue, forcing Giovanni to send people to track it down.

But the one thing Asahi hadn't considered… was that Giovanni wasn't even here.

Giovanni… where the hell did you go?!

Chakra, seeing the disappointment on Asahi's face, was indignant.

"Hey! What's with that disappointed look?! Are you saying capturing me isn't worth celebrating?!"

"Well, if I'm being honest…" Asahi nodded seriously. "Yeah."

"…So, Giovanni left you behind in the Sevii Islands. Could it be that he abandoned you as a decoy to keep my attention on this place?"

"Otherwise, why were you the only executive left here?"

Chakra's mind immediately flashed to Giovanni's actions before leaving—moving research equipment, redeploying elite trainers…

At the time, he had thought it was just routine.

But now, hearing Asahi's words, a truth he had refused to accept finally hit him.

He had been abandoned.

"Ha! Chakra, you really haven't changed after all these years," Sird sneered behind her hand.

"You shut up, you damn woman!" Chakra snapped.

But even as he cursed Sird, he had already accepted the truth.

Giovanni had discarded him.

A deep resentment toward Giovanni began to grow in his heart.

Asahi's lips curled into a smirk. "Then… do you know where Giovanni went?"

Chakra frowned, trying to recall… but in the end, he slumped.

"…I don't know. Giovanni really did abandon me."

"Then you're useless."

Before Chakra could say another word, his head throbbed, and everything went black.

Jynx had knocked him out and tossed him to Lorelei.

Asahi glanced around at the surrounding Rocket members in surprise.

"Huh? You guys didn't run?"

The grunts: "…"

Do you think we're stupid?!

Even Chakra was dealt with so easily—where the hell could they run?!

At best, they'd just get beaten up before getting captured anyway…

Sigh… what a boring day.

"Lorelei, I'll leave the rest to you."

Stretching lazily, Asahi lost all interest in the fight.

"…Why do I feel like you wanted Giovanni to be here?" Lorelei muttered as she contacted her team to collect the prisoners.

Meanwhile, Asahi headed deeper into the base to see if he could find any clues.

---

Aboard Team Rocket's Airship

Athena knocked on the office door before stepping inside.

"Giovanni, just as you predicted—Asahi has arrived in the Sevii Islands."

"Hmph."

Giovanni scoffed.

He knew Asahi too well.

Ever since Asahi had messaged him from Sinnoh, only to be blocked again, Giovanni had known he wouldn't let it go.

As soon as Asahi returned to Kanto, he would come looking for trouble.

That's why Giovanni had moved the Deoxys project onto the airship right away.

And now, everything was unfolding exactly as planned.

Sacrificing Chakra was a small price to pay.

As long as he could shake off Asahi…

It was all worth it.

"How long until we reach our destination?" Giovanni asked.

Athena checked the flight path. "It's estimated to take another two days to arrive."

"Good."

After being forced into hiding in Kanto and Johto due to Asahi's relentless interference—and suffering continued harassment from him—Giovanni decided it was time to broaden his perspective.

Since Asahi had such a strong presence in Kanto and Johto, why not choose a location that was beyond his reach to develop a new power base for Team Rocket?

With that mindset, Alola entered his sights.

A region brimming with raw, untapped potential, devoid of an official Pokémon League, home to Z-Moves, and—most importantly—the intelligence he had gathered regarding the Ultra Beasts… Giovanni felt as if Alola had been tailor-made for him.

His plan was simple:

1. Successfully create Deoxys →

2. Conquer Alola →

3. Return with an army of Ultra Beasts to settle the score with Asahi.

Perfect.

With that thought, Giovanni rose from his seat and headed toward the research facility.

Having learned from his past mistakes with Mewtwo, he resolved not to leave the lab until Deoxys was born!

...

Meanwhile, Asahi found nothing of value in Team Rocket's base.

As expected of an organization capable of infiltrating the Kanto League so thoroughly—just looking at their counter-intelligence skills made it clear how formidable they were.

"You're not staying on the Sevii Islands a little longer?" Lorelei asked.

If not for Asahi's intervention, dealing with just Chakra alone would have been a major headache. She hadn't even had the chance to properly thank him before he was already planning to leave.

Asahi shook his head. "Giovanni isn't here, so I'll pass… Besides, the World Championships are coming up. I need to start training my Pokémon in advance."

Lorelei looked incredulous. Asahi's Pokémon still need training?

Asahi shrugged.

To be fair, "training his Pokémon" was more about getting himself accustomed to the official battle rules of the World Championships.

He was used to letting Legendary Pokémon pave the way, fighting unfair battles with overwhelming numbers, and carrying multiple held items in battle. Adapting to standard battle regulations would take some time.

His battle with Gary had been part of that training—unfortunately, Gary had run off.

That just meant it was time for Sabrina to suffer.

...

Eventually, Asahi left the Sevii Islands with Sird.

Upon returning to his estate, he could already hear the sounds of playful commotion from outside.

Asahi frowned in confusion.

When he stepped inside, he finally saw what was happening.

Leading the charge, Eevee dashed across the yard, followed by Pidgeot, Mareep, and a group of other Pokémon—all while Togepi, blindfolded, tried to catch them.

"..."

Upon spotting Asahi, Eevee immediately froze. Togepi, confused, hesitated before lifting the blindfold to peek.

Seeing their expectant eyes, Asahi sighed. "Fine, go ahead and play. Just don't trample the flowerbeds or make extra work for the housekeepers."

"Vee!"

With Eevee leading the excited cheer, the Pokémon resumed their chaotic game, zooming past Asahi.

Noticing Psyduck standing beside him with a longing expression, Asahi waved it off. "If you want to join, go ahead."

"Quack!"

Psyduck's face lit up with joy before it hurried after Eevee—only to trip over a small rock and faceplant into the ground.

"..."

Unlike Slowbro, which only looked slow but was actually quite clever, this Psyduck… really didn't seem very smart.