Hearing Grey's calm answer, The Masked Royal thought back to the strength he had shown and immediately smiled in relief.
He reached out and shook Grey's hand, his hearty invitation coming from behind the mask. "Come visit the Alola region when you get the chance. The blue sea and bright sunshine there are sure to make you never want to leave."
"I will."
Grey took his hand, a smile rising in his eyes. "Alola's exotic charm really does sound tempting. Once I have my current matters arranged, I'll definitely pay it a visit and experience its unique island atmosphere."
Come to think of it, he had been wondering where he should take everyone to relax for a while now.
If it was the Alola region, it actually would be perfect for a vacation.
When the time came, he could bring Sabrina, Caitlin, and the others along and enjoy a proper trip. It would count as a nice chance to unwind.
With that, the match came to an end.
Lance slowly stepped down from the judging platform and looked at Grey with a sharp gaze. "Gym Leader Grey, are you interested in launching an Elite Four Challenge?"
"I'll pass for now."
Grey gave a modest nod as he answered. "An Elite Four Challenge requires a great deal of time and preparation. Right now, I still have some personal matters waiting to be handled, so I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to devote myself fully to such an important event."
"Mm, that's fine. Once you have time and want to challenge the Elite Four, just let me know."
Lance was only following procedure.
Since Grey did not want to challenge them, they could simply wait until he changed his mind later.
The Indigo Plateau Conference ended here.
That same night.
Steven Stone: Congratulations to Gym Leader Grey on winning the Gym Leader Tournament.
Steven Stone: Cash gift.
Late at night, Grey's phone suddenly rang with Steven's personal message alert.
He opened the chat and saw that it was actually a gift transfer.
That startled Grey so much that he subconsciously rubbed his eyes.
Sending over a cash gift in the middle of the night really gave him a clear sense of what true generosity looked like.
Steven Stone: Don't worry and accept it, Gym Leader Grey. Consider it a personal congratulatory gift from me. It's nothing much, just for fun, a little extra celebration.
Dojo Annihilape: Since you put it that way, I'll gladly accept it.
Grey accepted the gift.
Then he saw it was twenty thousand.
For Steven, that really was not much.
Dojo Annihilape: Thanks for the gift, Steven. It just so happens that I'm heading to the Hoenn region in a couple of days. We can talk properly then.
Steven Stone: No problem. Do you need me to send a private jet to pick you up?
Dojo Annihilape: It's fine. A private jet would draw too much attention, and that would go against our purpose.
Steven Stone: True. Gym Leader Grey really does think things through.
Dojo Annihilape: I'll log off for now. I'm going to take a shower and get some rest.
Steven Stone: OK. Then I won't disturb you any longer, Gym Leader Grey. I'll look forward to your arrival.
Their conversation remained brief and to the point, as usual.
After turning off his phone, Grey stretched lazily. His arm suddenly brushed against something soft and warm, startling him so much that he whipped his head around.
"You scared me half to death. Why do you always show up without making a sound?"
After seeing clearly that it was Sabrina, Grey finally let out a breath of relief.
She was wearing a black lace nightdress, the delicate hollow patterns trailing along the curve of her shoulders and neck, while the silk hem lightly brushed her fair ankles.
"How long do you plan to be gone on this trip to the Hoenn region?"
Sabrina only asked softly, paying no attention to Grey's startled reaction.
"Hmm…"
Grey thought for a moment before answering, "About half a month."
Before his voice had even faded, Sabrina's slender hand had already settled gently on his thigh.
Through the fabric, the warmth of her fingertips was faint but unmistakable.
Then, Sabrina's other hand lightly caressed Grey's cheek.
A pale blue glow spread over her fingertips, and a gentle psychic force guided him into turning his head, making him meet Sabrina's deep eyes from barely any distance at all.
"Ahem, uh, about that…"
Sabrina's actions were basically announcing what was about to happen next.
Grey was very helpless about it and could only say, "How about you let me get a proper rest tonight?"
"Half a month. Fifteen days."
Sabrina gently shook her head, her hair trembling slightly with the motion, while the blue light around her fingertips grew even brighter. "Based on how we calculated it before, pay half in advance first."
"???"
Grey turned pale with shock.
Even if he was an Aura Guardian, he could not withstand this kind of special training…
But judging from Sabrina's expression, there was no way he was getting out of tonight's special training.
Two days later, Grey was glowing with energy.
"The rest can wait until you come back."
Inside Saffron Airport, Sabrina came to see Grey off.
"Sure."
Grey gently pulled Sabrina into his arms and indulgently rubbed her soft hair. Only after the tips of her ears turned red did he let go, then turned and walked into the VIP lounge.
Under the soft lighting, a man in a suit sat in the leather sofa area, quietly tasting his coffee.
When the man raised his face, Grey froze in place.
There was no mistaking that dignified face and the faint smile on it.
It was absolutely Giovanni!
As if noticing Grey walking in, Giovanni's hand paused slightly around his coffee cup.
But immediately after, he rose calmly and came forward to greet him.
"Gym Leader Grey."
A perfectly measured smile appeared on Giovanni's lips. "I didn't expect to meet you at the airport. What a pleasant coincidence."
"It really is a coincidence."
Grey gave a slight nod. His gaze passed over Giovanni's shoulder and looked out the waiting lounge window, where a flight from Tropius Air was slowly taxiing onto the runway.
For a moment, things became rather quiet.
"Where is Mr. Giovanni headed?" Grey broke the silence first.
"The Hoenn region," Giovanni answered calmly, tapping his fingers lightly against the handle of his suitcase. "There are some business matters I need to handle."
Hearing that destination, Grey's brow shifted slightly. "What a coincidence. I'm heading to Hoenn too."
As soon as those words fell, both of them sank into a brief silence, with only the airport announcements softly echoing through the terminal.
Giovanni rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "May I ask what brings Gym Leader Grey to Hoenn?"
"I'm going to meet an old friend and catch up," Grey answered calmly.
Of course, the truth was exactly as Grey said.
He really was going to meet an "old" friend and catch up.
That answer made Giovanni think of Brawly, the Fighting-type Gym Leader in Dewford Town, and he nodded in understanding.
He picked up his coffee and took a small sip, no longer pressing the question, then turned his gaze toward the flights taking off and landing outside the window.
The little interlude came to an end.
Giovanni felt that he and Grey were not necessarily on the same flight.
After all, the place he was going to was Lilycove City, which was still some distance from Dewford Town.
If Grey really wanted to go to Dewford Town, then normally speaking, he should be heading to Rustboro City.
Until the boarding announcement sounded.
When the two met again in the first-class boarding lane, they both could not help but freeze.
Giovanni glanced at the boarding pass in Grey's hand and curled his lips with deeper meaning. "I didn't expect us to be on the same flight. It seems Gym Leader Grey has had quite a lucky streak lately."
"Thanks to Team Rocket."
Grey lightly waved his boarding pass, the edge of the paper drawing a pale golden arc beneath the lights. "After arresting several high-ranking executives a while back, I still had a bit of spare money left even after expanding the dojo. It was just enough for me to experience what first class feels like."
Giovanni: "…"
No, no. Don't get angry…
Giovanni maintained the curve of his smile, though a faint, almost imperceptible cold light flashed through his eyes. "The Kanto League truly shines brighter with a Trainer like Gym Leader Grey."
"Nothing special. Third-best in Kanto."
Grey cupped his fist in reply.
After that, the two sat down in first class.
And then…
The two of them were actually seated right next to each other.
Grey, Giovanni: "…"
They really were fated to meet, huh? Look away.
"Rio." Sigh, Grey, maybe you should just expose Giovanni outright sometime. With your current strength, dragging this out doesn't seem to have much benefit.
Little Riolu felt that if it made a move right now, it might be able to slam Giovanni straight into the floor and make sure he had no strength to fight back at all.
Grey: ?
"Then let me ask you, where would the evidence come from?"
Grey used his Aura to communicate with Little Riolu.
"With Giovanni's current reputation on the League side, he's the leader of the anti-Team Rocket effort. And last time, Team Rocket launched a large-scale invasion of Viridian City's Pokémon Center, then the very next day, the surface-level Team Rocket forces in Viridian City were completely uprooted. In other words, he pushed himself out into the open."
Grey explained things to Little Riolu.
"Rio." So that's how it is… Then when is this Giovanni guy finally going to clash openly with the League? Watching him keep pretending while only the two of us know his true identity is making me itch.
Little Riolu really wanted to hit Giovanni with an elbow strike.
If only they could find a chance to arrest Giovanni directly.
"I want to as well, but his disguise is far too perfect. Even if he has no choice but to show up personally, he'll disguise himself as someone else."
Thinking about that, Grey was reminded of a certain kind of masked-villain trope from another franchise.
Grow a foot taller, put on a Darth Vader voice, wrap yourself up like a mummy, then act offended when your old teacher doesn't recognize you.
Giovanni was basically in that exact situation.
He went from a buzz-cut middle-aged man to the appearance of a greasy, overweight corporate executive. Who in the world could recognize him like that?!
"Tini?!" What, what?! This uncle sitting next to us is actually a bad guy? But I've seen him feed me tasty snacks all the time. I never thought such a nice uncle would secretly be a super bad guy! Wah, I really misjudged him!
Victini, who had been watching the drama unfold, joined the "battlefield."
After hearing the conversation between Grey and Little Riolu, Victini felt as if the sky had collapsed.
During the period when Grey had been away, Giovanni had often visited Silph Co. and helped with its reconstruction along the way.
Because Victini often ate snacks at Silph Co., it had also been fed directly by Giovanni.
At first, Victini had thought Giovanni was a very nice uncle.
After all, he fed it something every few days.
And all of it was expensive snacks in huge amounts.
Under those circumstances, the sheer quantity and fullness had directly captured Victini's heart.
But now…
You're telling me that this uncle who treated it so well was actually an evil villain who committed every kind of crime imaginable?
Victini felt like its entire world had fallen apart.
Sigh…
You really could know someone's face and still never know their heart!
"Tini!" Then is there any way to just catch him and make him tell the truth?
"No. If there were, I would have already caught him directly. But if we arrest him without evidence, and then he admits it, it can easily be treated as a forced confession. Under those circumstances, it would be very hard to convince people."
Grey had no solution to that either.
Giovanni was evil. That was simply the truth.
The rotten nature soaked into that man's bones had never changed.
How could Grey not want to bring him to justice?
But if he used too much violence and it was regarded as torture or coercion, convincing people afterward would become difficult.
When the time came, it would practically amount to truly clearing Giovanni's name, making it even harder to pin the identity of Team Rocket's leader on him.
It might even get pinned on Grey himself…
Tsk. He definitely did not want that!
Still, there was good news.
For example, the public security system in Kanto's mainland had already become complete.
It would now be extremely difficult for Team Rocket to stir up large-scale unrest there again.
If not for that, Grey absolutely would not dare leave the region for a long trip so easily.
It was just that Team Rocket already seemed to have appeared around the Orange Archipelago too.
Whenever he thought about the situation in the Orange Archipelago, Grey felt his head ache.
He rubbed his brow, his thoughts drifting toward the chain of islands south of Kanto.
According to the intelligence provided by Mewtwo Two, Team Rocket's reach had already extended into the Orange Archipelago.
That made him especially worried.
Those waters were not only home to the Legendary birds, but also the first-tier Legendary Pokémon Lugia.
If Team Rocket took this chance to get its hands on Legendary Pokémon, the consequences would be unimaginable.
Never mind the fact that the entire archipelago's ecological balance might be destroyed. What was even more terrifying was that those four birds really could affect the state of the entire world!
When the time came, trying to organize a response would become extremely difficult.
Although Grey had Reshiram and Kyurem on his side, if they wanted to stop Team Rocket completely without damaging the region, the only option would be calling for backup.
After all, this was his Kanto region.
If it got damaged, he would lose out big time!
"Rio?" Wait, what do you mean your Kanto region?
The connection between Grey and Little Riolu had not yet been cut off.
Grey's thoughts went straight into Little Riolu's mind, causing a few black lines to appear across its forehead.
Now it was your Kanto region?
"Ahem, it's just a way of speaking. Haha."
Grey only coughed lightly a few times.
"Rio…" Honestly, I don't know whether having a Trainer like you in the Kanto region is a good thing or a bad thing…
Little Riolu narrowed its eyes. The more it listened, the more it felt that Grey's comments were getting stranger and stranger.
From "my Fighting Dojo," to "my Saffron City," and now all the way to "my Kanto region."
In just three months, he had gone from a landmark, to a city, all the way to an entire region.
What would happen if he were given a full year?
Grey, are you about to turn into some tyrant and ban everyone else from eating beef?
"Tini?" Grey, if you don't eat beef, can I have it?
Victini licked its lips.
Now that beef had been mentioned, it was getting a little hungry.
Little Riolu: "…"
Great. This Mythical Pokémon was unreliable too.
"What are you thinking? In your eyes, am I the kind of Trainer who would commit crimes?"
Grey put on a heartbroken expression. "Little Riolu, I never thought you saw me that way. In that case, you can pay for your own all-you-can-eat barbecue from now on."
Little Riolu: "???"
"Rio!" Nooo!!!
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