In the forest, Ash stood with Pikachu in front of a young boy, gazing unfavorably at the giant robot ahead.
It seemed like Team Rocket's usual antics; though Ash found them somewhat annoying, he had never truly been angry.
Initially, he might have minded the actions of those three people, but eventually, he got used to it. Those three guys, although constantly targeting his Pikachu, had never done anything that truly endangered their lives.
That is why Ash could maintain a calm attitude toward those three and had never been harsh with them.
But this guy was different.
The burly man in front of him, not only exuded an unpleasant aura from his body, but he also targeted the young boy behind Ash with lethal intent, aiming to kill him completely!
If Ash had been any slower, the boy might have already been dead.
"Who are you?" The burly man looked at Ash, clearly displeased even through the mask he wore.
He had almost managed to get rid of the meddlesome kid and capture Celebi.
Then another meddlesome little punk showed up... no, calling this person a little punk was a bit off, given that he had smashed the robot with his bare hands!
One must know, this robot was built with Team Rocket's top technology. A single kick from it was over ten tons of force, enough to make even Gym Level Pokémon consider stepping back, yet it was sent flying effortlessly by a human?
Is this guy human, or a Pokemon disguised in human skin?
"Who are you?" Usually, when meeting someone, Ash would first introduce himself, but for this guy in front of him, Ash couldn't bring himself to be polite and didn't want to give his name.
"Hmph, don't wet your pants when I say this. I am the Iron-Masked Marauder, the current leader of Team Rocket! That's right, the largest crime organization in Kanto, an international criminal syndicate, Team Rocket!" The Iron-Masked Marauder reported his name with arms folded and a face full of arrogance.
However, the anticipated scene of fear didn't appear. Instead, the expression on Ash's face was oddly strange: "Are you saying... you are now the leader of Team Rocket?"
"Indeed, and now that you know, move aside and let me capture Celebi; I might credit you and let you become a high-ranking member of Team Rocket!" The Iron-Masked Marauder didn't overthink Ash's odd tone, assuming he was familiar with Team Rocket.
Knowing was good!
The saying goes, a dying camel is still bigger than a horse, and though Team Rocket may be crumbling, it still matches some top-tier organizations, as the original Team Rocket overshadowed all other crime organizations, even superior to Team Galactic.
There's only one crime syndicate as vast as Team Rocket in the world, and if not for the former leader suddenly deciding to disband the organization, Team Rocket would still be thriving, potentially replacing the League someday!
"Where's Giovanni?"
Ash's question visibly startled the Iron-Masked Marauder: "How do you know Giovanni!"
"I am Ash from Pallet Town, have you heard of this name?" Ash adjusted his cap and loudly announced his name.
Pikachu chimed in in agreement.
And upon hearing this name, the Iron-Masked Marauder displayed a spectrum of expressions—shock, realization, disbelief...
These various expressions blended on his face, making him look rather comical.
He still wore a mask, revealing only half of his face's expressions, making it even more amusing.
"With a Pikachu... incredible strength... yes, it's Ash. So it was you who caused Team Rocket to disband!" Clearly, the Iron-Masked Marauder had heard of Ash's name but hadn't seen his appearance.
This was rare; typically, those familiar with Ash's name also recognized his appearance.
Ash's look had spread with his fame far and wide, so usually, knowing one meant knowing the other.
The reason the Iron-Masked Marauder knew the name but not the appearance was because he never had time for news.
"Though I don't know what method you used to make Giovanni disband half of Team Rocket's members, it allowed me to rise up!" declared the Iron-Masked Marauder, with a touch of arrogance: "Now I am the leader of Team Rocket, Giovanni is a thing of the past!"
Disbanding half of Team Rocket's members would not only diminish Giovanni's authority, but with reduced control, many would start to rebel, internally collapsing Team Rocket!
Now Team Rocket is actually scattered into several factions; some still follow Giovanni, others have high-ranking officers as leaders, and the Iron-Masked Marauder is one of them.
He had initially been rebellious, but Giovanni's original power was too strong, holding core technologies and incredible strength, which made him never dare to resist.
But one day, he received news about the Phantom Pokemon Celebi; though Celebi looked cute, it governs the Time Law and Space Law!