"Damn it! Dragonite, dodge quickly!" Lance hurriedly ordered when he saw the situation. He was well aware of Giovanni's strength—someone he could not defeat alone. Moreover, the one before him was Giovanni's strongest Pokémon—Beedrill.
Although his movements were affected by Giovanni's Earth Realm, Dragonite still relied on its high speed to evade Beedrill's attack. Before Lance could even react, a barrage of deadly Pin Missile shot forth instantly, leaving no time for either Lance or Dragonite to respond.
"Dragonite, use Dragon Claw!" Lance commanded. Dragonite spread its claws, emerald energy covering them as it flapped its wings and charged toward Giovanni's Beedrill.
Enhanced by the Earth Realm, Giovanni's Beedrill seemed to possess inexhaustible power. It even took the initiative to clash head-on with Dragonite in a contest of strength. Such a scene would surely leave trainers who idolized Lance confused—how could a seemingly 'ordinary' Beedrill fight the Dragon-type Elite Four's proudest Dragonite to a standstill, even gaining the upper hand?
"Dragonite, use Flamethrower!" Lance ordered.
Blazing flames burst from Dragonite's mouth. Instead of using Double Team to evade, Giovanni's Beedrill charged straight through and used Drill Run to shatter the flames.
(Damn it. Not only has this delayed me, but the Pokémon dispatched to me weren't even my main team. What on earth is going on with the League's higher-ups?!)
Lance anxiously looked toward Giovanni, who was about to depart. He longed to rush forward and expose Giovanni's true identity, but under Beedrill's relentless assault, he and Dragonite were unable to break free.
To protect the Pokémon League from infiltration by evil organizations, most trainers at Elite Four level and above would leave their main teams stationed with the League. Yet this indirectly weakened the trainers' personal strength.
Taking advantage of the opening, Giovanni and his assistant boarded the helicopter. The assistant tossed out a Poké Ball and released Weezing, which continuously used Smokescreen to obscure everyone's vision. Soon, waves of thick smoke blanketed the sky. Though quickly dispersed by the air currents, it provided Giovanni ample time to leave.
"President, I hope you're not foolish enough to expose my true identity!" Giovanni threatened softly. At the same time, it served as a warning to Red beside him. The implication was clear—Giovanni did not wish to completely fall out with Red, and he hoped the boy would think carefully.
"One day, I'll catch up to you and defeat you with my own hands!" Red declared loudly.
"Is that so?" Giovanni's lips curled slightly as he smiled faintly. Under his assistant's puzzled gaze, he tossed a gem-like object toward Red.
"This is… a Mega Stone?!"
Red reached out and caught the object. As the leader of Team Rocket, Giovanni would never stoop to underhanded tricks to harm an enemy, so Red did not act overly cautious. Opening his hand, he saw the yellow and black patterns and was certain—it was a Mega Stone that could allow Beedrill to Mega Evolve.
"So you already know about Mega Evolution. No wonder… after all, you're an honorary research doctor of the Pokémon League. Such information can't be hidden from you."
"I just happened to obtain an extra one…" Giovanni said lightly upon seeing Red's puzzled gaze.
Giovanni looked away, avoiding eye contact as he slowly continued,
"I look forward to the day we truly cross paths in battle. I hope our relationship will be nothing more than rivals, not enemies."
"Farewell, boy from Pallet Town!"
A piercing sound rang out as Giovanni departed by helicopter, leaving behind Red, President, and Lance, who had arrived too late with regret written all over his face.
(Giovanni… to you, are Pokémon merely tools for business, or companions? And what exactly have you experienced in your past…?)
Red stared silently in the direction the helicopter had vanished.
After confirming his master had successfully withdrawn, Giovanni's Beedrill used a Cross Chop to forcefully shove Dragonite away and swiftly left the scene.
"Are you alright, Red?" Lance stepped forward with concern.
"I'm fine. Though if you had arrived a bit earlier, maybe it would've been better," Red replied with a displeased frown. For someone like Lance to drop the ball at such a critical moment—it was only natural that Red felt annoyed.
"I'm sorry. This was my negligence," Lance said guiltily. He offered no further explanation. Speaking excessively about the League's internal issues would only disappoint a young trainer like Red, who still held admiration in his heart, possibly pushing him away from the Pokémon League altogether.
"I was at fault too. Sorry about that. Fortunately, the Master Ball didn't fall into Team Rocket's hands."
After calming down, Red apologized as well. He had some idea why Lance had been delayed and didn't want him to drown in self-blame.
"Red, did you get a clear look at the Team Rocket leader's true identity?" Lance asked cautiously. When he saw Red slowly shake his head, he sighed in disappointment. The leader of Team Rocket, who had taken root across two major regions for so long, would never reveal his identity so easily.
The earlier smoke had prevented Lance from seeing the conversation between Red and Giovanni. He had assumed Red was merely condemning Giovanni's cruelty and had no idea that Red had received Beedrill's Mega Stone. Because of this, he did not doubt the truthfulness of Red's words.
"Thank you, young man. If not for you, Silph Co. would never have been rescued from Team Rocket!" President said gratefully, tears in his eyes as he looked at Red. He too had failed to see Giovanni gifting the Mega Stone—clearly, it had all been deliberately arranged by Giovanni.
At that moment, Red's Beedrill returned to his side with a dejected expression after its defeat. Though it had managed to exchange several rounds with Giovanni's Beedrill, it had ultimately not fought at full strength.
...
Meanwhile, on Giovanni's side—
"Giovanni-sama, why give that hard-earned Mega Stone to that boy? The Mega Stone was only recently developed by Professor Hemlock!" the assistant asked in confusion. But upon seeing Giovanni's gradually displeased gaze, he was so frightened that he immediately shut his mouth.
Giovanni admired the night scenery through the window and spoke slowly,
"From beginning to end, I have yearned to meet a worthy opponent. That boy's talent even surpasses my own. At such a young age, he has already reached this level of strength. Compared to him, characters like Lance are nothing but clowns."
"Giovanni-sama, since you admire him so much, why not recruit him into Team Rocket?" the assistant asked.
"Do you think that's possible? An opponent who can continuously stimulate my nerves like that—how could he ever be willing to become my subordinate? In the future, he will surely stand at the very pinnacle as a Pokémon Master!" Giovanni murmured, his eyes gradually revealing excitement as he anticipated his next duel with Red.