At night, after the rich and businessmen finished their dinner and returned to their cabins, and the sailors were preparing to rest, it was the perfect time to begin investigating the S.S. Anne.
Even though Satoshi and Ash had spent most of the day having fun instead of scouting the ship's layout, neither of them brought it up. There was no point in blaming each other—they both understood that tonight was when the real work began.
Ash was still riding the high from his tournament victory earlier, feeling like a champion. Meanwhile, Satoshi was grinning because he had profited massively from gambling against the rich businessmen who underestimated Ash. What had started as a 10,000 Alliance coin bet had turned into more than 100,000.
But they weren't foolish enough to lose track of their real mission. As soon as night fell, they gathered and began their stealth operation.
"Ash, we can't just wander around aimlessly. That'd be inefficient and would get us caught. Do you have a specific target?"
Ash, despite being hot-blooded, was not reckless. He knew how to stay focused when it counted.
"Of course, I do. If the stolen Pokémon are really on this ship, then they're most likely being held in the lower cargo hold—a place with few people and little oversight."
Satoshi already knew the plot, but even without that knowledge, the logical first step in an investigation like this was to check the cargo hold.
"What a coincidence. I was thinking the same thing! Let's go check it out now!"
With their minds set, the two quickly headed toward the cargo hold.
Satoshi released Riolu, instructing it to use its Aura Sense to track the movement of the patrolling sailors. With this advantage, they managed to easily evade detection and slipped into the cargo hold unnoticed.
Inside, the dimly lit warehouse was eerily quiet. Since turning on the lights was out of the question, Satoshi released Charmeleon to provide a small flame for visibility, while Ash used a compact flashlight to illuminate the way as they searched through the massive stacks of cargo.
After several minutes of searching, Ash finally let out a frustrated sigh.
"This is weird... It's just trade goods, electronics, and raw materials. Not a single Pokémon anywhere."
Satoshi, however, was not surprised.
"Of course. This isn't the ship's lowest level. If the stolen Pokémon were hidden here, it'd be too easy for someone to find them."
Hearing this, Ash immediately furrowed his brow.
"Wait, then why did you say we should check the warehouse first?"
Satoshi didn't answer right away. Instead, he walked over to a far corner of the cargo hold, where a poster was hanging on the wall.
Ash quickly caught on and followed.
"Is there something off about that poster? Looks like a regular advertisement to me."
Satoshi smirked.
"Think about it. Who even comes to the cargo hold? And who would bother posting an ad in a place where no one would see it?"
Without another word, Satoshi ripped the poster away, revealing a hidden button underneath.
"This is somewhat clever, but let's be honest—it's still just a basic disguise. No one normally comes to the warehouse, so they probably didn't think they needed anything more elaborate."
When he pressed the hidden button, a soft mechanical noise echoed through the warehouse.
Ash's ears perked up, and he immediately pressed his ear to the wall to listen more closely. But before he could even react—
A secret door smoothly slid open, revealing a dark passageway leading downward.
However, there was a small problem.
The door had a combination lock requiring a password.
"You've gotta be kidding me..." Ash groaned. "We found the entrance, and now there's a password?"
Satoshi grinned.
"Ash, this is just an electronic lock. Why not let Pikachu fry it and short-circuit the system?"
Ash's eyes lit up with realization.
"Great idea! Pikachu, I'm counting on you!"
"Pika~~~CHU!!!"
With a bright flash of sparks, Pikachu unleashed a powerful jolt of electricity, frying the lock's circuit board. Within seconds, the secret door slowly creaked open.
Ash didn't even hesitate.
"Alright! Let's go!"
Before Satoshi could say anything, Ash rushed down the passageway like a man on a mission.
Satoshi, however, didn't follow right away. Instead, he calmly glanced upward toward the warehouse's ceiling.
A single Magnemite was floating there, silently watching him.
Satoshi chuckled, showing a taunting smirk as he made a mocking throat-slitting gesture toward the surveillance Pokémon.
"Charmeleon," he said casually.
"Flame it."
Without hesitation, Charmeleon spat a burst of Ember, knocking Magnemite out instantly.
Satoshi knew the enemy had already seen them. There was no point in staying hidden now.
"But that's fine," he mused. "We were going to face them head-on anyway, so whether we're discovered now or later doesn't matter."
With that, he calmly descended into the passageway, following after Ash.
Beneath the secret entrance, they found themselves in a sprawling mechanical workshop.
The air was thick with the hum of machinery, and dozens of metal racks filled the space. The clanking of gears echoed through the area, and various machines worked tirelessly to keep the S.S. Anne moving forward.
Above them, Magnemites floated around, patrolling the area like security drones.
Yet despite all this, Ash still tried to be stealthy, sneaking forward cautiously.
Satoshi simply watched, amused.
"You do realize we've already been spotted, right?"
With all the cameras in the area and the Magnemites constantly scanning, there was no way they weren't already being tracked.
But Ash didn't seem to realize that.
He kept moving carefully, as if he were some elite spy on a covert mission.
Satoshi just grinned to himself.
"Who would've thought that the future world champion would start off like this? Sneaking around like an amateur thief..."
To Be Continued…
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