Within the curtain of rain, Ariel's voice drifted over leisurely, as calm as if he were stating a fact that had absolutely nothing to do with him.
"Gym Leader Winona, it seems your Fortree City is on fire."
He paused for a moment, appearing to listen to the distant chaos, before slowly continuing:
"As a Gym Leader, aren't you going to go put it out?"
There was no mockery in his words, no triumph—only a pure statement of fact.
Yet it was precisely this detached calmness that was most heart-piercing.
Ariel turned sideways and waved a hand toward the group of Team Rockets members behind him, who were already staring in a daze.
"Putting out fires is something better left to you righteous League Trainers."
"Since we are an evil organization, we won't do something so beneath our status."
He said this as if it were a matter of course, even adding a touch of self-deprecating humor.
"Well then, until we meet again."
With that, he set off, walking straight into the darkness with his people without the slightest hesitation.
His back was straight and his pace was neither fast nor slow; every step seemed to stomp on Winona's frayed nerves.
At this moment, the way all the Team Rockets members looked at Ariel completely changed.
It wasn't fear, nor was it simple obedience.
It was a near-fanatical adoration.
In a desperate situation, this man had not only found the key to breaking the deadlock but had even counterattacked, forcing the high-and-mighty Flying-type Elite into a corner.
This calmness, this decisiveness, and this ruthlessness that treated human life like grass were deeply etched into the hearts of every Team Rockets member.
In this moment.
The codename 'Ruth' was deeply branded into their hearts!
A powerhouse—this was a true powerhouse!
Team Rockets had always been a place that believed only in power and methods.
And Ariel had used a great fire to crown himself... High in the sky, Winona's body trembled slightly from rage and helplessness.
Rainwater slid down her silver-white hair and dripped onto her tightly bitten lower lip, cold as ice.
She could only watch helplessly as that group of black figures melted safely into the city's shadows and disappeared.
Humiliation felt like vines, tightly constricting her heart and making it nearly impossible to breathe.
She had lost.
She had lost utterly.
It wasn't a loss in strength, but a loss in moral bottom lines.
She was a Gym Leader, the guardian of the city; she had too many things she needed to worry about.
The opponent, however, was unburdened, possessing only pure destruction and malice.
In fact, by choosing to battle Team Rockets within the city, Winona had already fallen into a disadvantageous position.
Moreover, her opponent was the unscrupulous Ariel.
Altaria seemed to sense its master's emotions, its broad, cloud-like wings gently stroking Winona.
Feeling the emotions coming from Altaria, Winona murmured,
"Thank you, Altaria."
"Screeeech—"
The piercing sound of tires skidding broke through the chaos as Jenny rushed to the edge of the plaza on her iconic motorcycle, followed by several panting police officers.
She looked up to see Winona hovering in mid-air, the chaotic crowd in the plaza, and the soaring flames in the distance; her expression instantly turned solemn.
"Gym Leader Winona! What on earth happened?"
Winona slowly descended, her toes lightly touching the slick ground.
She didn't look at Jenny; her gaze remained fixed on the direction where Ariel had left, an unprecedented storm surging in her eyes.
"Team Rockets."
She squeezed those two words out from between her teeth.
"Officer Jenny, don't ask."
Winona's voice was hoarse, yet it carried an unquestionable tone of command.
"Immediately mobilize all available Trainers and come with me to fight the fire!"
She took a deep breath; the mixed scent of rain and smoke made her throat tighten.
"The rain is weakening now. If we don't find a way, Fortree City is finished!"
Having said that, she spoke no more and turned to mobilize her pokémon.
Jenny looked at her resolute back, then at the several fires growing increasingly fierce; her heart sank, and she immediately began issuing orders through her walkie-talkie.
In the chaotic plaza, Winona stood at the edge of the crowd and looked toward that street corner one last time.
That masked man—his methods and the composure he showed when leaving—were like a poisonous thorn stuck in her heart.
"Let's go, Altaria!"
Winona flipped onto the back of her ace pokémon and soared into the sky, flying without hesitation toward the direction where the fire was brightest.
Meanwhile, at the exit of Fortree City, within the forest.
Ariel stopped in his tracks.
He looked up at the sky reddened by the fire, his lips twitching slightly, though it couldn't quite be called a smile.
"Boss... you're amazing!"
A Team Rockets lackey spoke up stammeringly, breaking the silence.
"Yeah, Boss! I thought we were dead meat just now! I didn't expect..."
"That woman's face turned green!"
Compliments rose one after another around him, carrying the excitement of surviving a disaster and sincere praise for a powerhouse.
Ariel didn't react much; he simply pulled a small remote control from his pocket and pressed a button on it.
In the distance, at the edge of the largest fire, several inconspicuous fire hydrants suddenly burst open. What sprayed out wasn't water, but a colorless, odorless accelerant.
The flames that had just been suppressed a bit by Water-type pokémon roared back up several meters high with a 'boom,' burning even more fiercely than before.
Looking at the shocked expressions of his subordinates, Ariel finally spoke calmly, as if teaching them, or perhaps talking to himself.
"Always keep a trump card in reserve."
"Setting the fire was only to escape, but if the fire is extinguished too quickly, the League's attention will soon return to us."
He toyed with the remote in his hand, a hint of cold laughter in his voice.
"So, we have to give them something to do to keep them busy all night. That way, we'll have enough time to complete the mission leisurely."
"As for the funds burned this time..."
Ariel looked up at the soaring fire, appearing to be in a good mood.
"Just consider it a firework display gifted to Fortree City."
Ariel waved his hand and led the Team Rockets members toward the Weather Institute.
As for the ten members who set the fires... they had already completed the final mission of their lives. By setting fires everywhere and stalling a Gym Leader, they could be considered to have sacrificed themselves for the organization.