In the pouring rain, a single figure stood out exceptionally.
Winona, the Flying-type Gym Leader of Fortree City.
She had actually come alone, charging all the way to the entrance of the Team Rockets' nest!
Outside the Team Rockets stronghold, Winona's voice echoed clearly through the wind and rain, piercing the curtain of water and stabbing into the ears of every Team Rockets member.
"Listen up, Team Rockets inside!"
"You vermin entrenched in Fortree City, hiding your heads and showing your tails while doing nothing but shady dealings! Today, I, Gym Leader Winona of the Hoenn League's Flying-type Gym, will not let you off again!"
Winona's voice was clear and bright, carrying the unique penetration of a young woman.
Her words were merciless, each word like a slap to the face of Team Rockets.
"If you have the guts to do it, have the guts to stand out! Don't be like rats in a gutter, only daring to hide in dark corners!"
As soon as she finished speaking, a thunderous cheer erupted from the residents of Fortree City gathered below.
"Well said! Gym Leader Winona!"
"Drive this trash out of Fortree City!"
...The people's cries merged into a torrent, which in turn bolstered Winona's momentum.
Her delicate face looked exceptionally resolute in the wind and rain, as if she were a goddess descending upon the world.
But only Winona herself knew that her heart was far from as calm as her appearance suggested.
The ambiguous attitude of the League's top brass was like a thorn stuck in her heart.
As a Gym Leader and the city's guardian deity, she was being asked to turn a blind eye to the evil right under her nose.
What an irony.
Now, the Magma Team had caused a massive disturbance at the Weather Institute on Route 119, leaving the entire Hoenn region on edge.
As one of the top Gym Leaders, she had an inescapable duty.
But once she left Fortree City, what would this scum from Team Rockets do?
She didn't dare to imagine.
Therefore, before rushing to reinforce the Weather Institute, this nail had to be pulled out first!
Even if it meant her relationship with the League's top brass would completely rupture.
As a Gym Leader, this was her responsibility and her resolve!
...Inside the treehouse.
Dead silence.
The faces of all the Team Rockets members were incredibly grim.
It wasn't that they hadn't seen big scenes, but being blocked at their door and scolded to their faces by a Gym Leader of unfathomable strength was a first.
Everyone's eyes converged simultaneously on the masked figure in the corner.
Ariel, code-named 'Ruth,' their nominal commander.
In the face of such a desperate situation, only he might be able to turn the tide.
Ariel met everyone's gaze without moving an inch, merely looking quietly through the crack in the wooden window at the figure suspended in the wind and rain.
Crazy woman.
He evaluated her emotionlessly in his heart.
This woman indeed had some skill and fit the 'partner of justice' persona of a Gym Leader perfectly.
But in his view, this approach was foolish and impulsive.
Coming here alone looked aggressive, but in reality?
Did she really dare to launch an all-out war capable of leveling this forest in the center of Fortree City, under the watch of so many residents?
She didn't dare.
At the very least, she would have reservations.
But the problem was, Team Rockets dared even less.
Information he had previously browsed in the Team Rockets' internal database flashed rapidly through Ariel's mind.
Winona, Gym Leader of Fortree City.
Combat Record: Once independently subjugated and repelled an Elite Four Level wild Charizard that was terrorizing an area.
This single record was enough to say it all.
Her strength was definitely at the Quasi-Elite Four Level, and she might have even touched the threshold of the Elite Four Level.
The position of Gym Leader had a lot of variation.
Theoretically, once a Pokémon's strength reached the Gym Leader Level, one was capable of taking the post.
But the actual situation was different.
Some were family inheritances, like Flannery of Lavaridge Town, whose strength had only just reached Gym Leader Level, but her grandfather was Moore, the former Fire-type Elite Four Member of the League.
But what could be done? Fire-type Gyms were their own family business... Others became Gym Leaders based on pure strength.
The intensity of the competition involved was probably only known to them personally.
So, the strength of this group of people was basically around the Quasi-Elite Four Level!
And Winona was one of them!
Go head-to-head?
With what?
With these team members who couldn't even scrape together a Superior-level?
Or by relying on the few Pokémon in his own hands?
Don't be ridiculous.
That Altaria of hers could level this place with a single 'Dragon Pulse'.
"Going head-to-head is definitely not an option," Ariel's thoughts completed the analysis in a flash.
"If that's the case..."
His gaze swept around the room, looking at those panicked and uneasy faces, and he couldn't help but find it somewhat amusing.
A bunch of rabble.
He waved his hand sharply at the crowd.
The noisy discussions vanished instantly.
Everyone held their breath, looking at Ariel.
He turned around, his gaze sweeping over the excited faces, finally landing on a small team leader.
"This stronghold of ours has a secret passage, right?"
His voice wasn't loud, yet it caused the clamor in the room to come to a standstill instantly.
The team leader jolted and hurriedly replied with a bow and a scrape:
"Yes! Boss, of course there is! We've already hollowed out the center of this giant tree's trunk all the way down. There are several exits leading to the north, south, east, and west of the city. They're absolutely hidden!"
Ariel nodded with satisfaction.
Very good, the conditions for execution were met.
His gaze swept over the crowd again, and he picked two small teams, ten people in total.
"You ten, immediately, right now, change out of your uniforms and put on your own civilian clothes."
"Then, leave through the secret passage and disperse to every corner of Fortree City."
The command was clear and decisive.
The ten people who were called into action immediately moved without the slightest hesitation.
Watching them nimbly take off their uniforms printed with the red 'R', Ariel's next words made everyone's movements freeze in place.
"Set fires."
Two words, said casually, yet they were like two giant boulders crashing into everyone's hearts.
Set fires?
Here?
In Fortree City?!
Everyone was stunned; they subconsciously glanced out the window.
This city was built upon towering giant trees. The houses, the walkways, everything coexisted with the trees.
Setting a fire here was no different from self-destruction!
If it started burning, the entire Fortree City would be finished!
Looking at their dull expressions, Ariel's eyes didn't change in the slightest.
This was exactly the effect he wanted.
His true mission was the Weather Institute.
And this Winona before him was the biggest stumbling block.
Even if he could safely escape from Winona today, as soon as Winona recovered, she would immediately set off for the Weather Institute.
At that time, his mission would still be declared a failure.
Therefore, he had to stall her.
With a big enough trouble, a trouble she couldn't walk away from, he would pin her firmly to Fortree City!