Azalea Town, Slowpoke Café.
Sato took a small sip of the coffee that was said to taste like Slowpoke tail, but his attention was already fixed on the illusion created by Gengar.
Within the illusion, a red-purple figure darted rapidly through a remote alleyway.
It was moving so fast that even after watching for a while, Sato still couldn't identify what Pokémon it was.
"…This was Sosuke's latest discovery?" Sato asked softly, pointing at the illusion that was about to vanish.
"Gen~"
Gengar nodded, then silently melted into the ground again as if it had never appeared.
Sato didn't mind. To an outsider, it just looked like a handsome guy talking to himself.
A moment later, Sina hurriedly entered the café. Upon spotting Sato, he jogged over.
"…Leader, we found something!" Sina lowered his voice, trying to appear calm.
"You found the base?"
"Uh…" Sina paused, then shook his head awkwardly. "We've narrowed down the general area and are tracking an elite member. If we keep following the trail, we'll definitely find the base."
Sato nodded and said nothing more. Instead, he ordered another cup of Slowpoke tail-flavored coffee for Sina.
The two quietly sipped their drinks. Ten minutes later, Sosuke rushed in as well.
"…Leader! I found the target Team Rocket has been looking for!"
Sosuke lowered his voice but sounded extremely excited.
Sato perked up, paused for a second, and then followed up, "What's the target?"
"An Ariados, no bigger than a Spinarak!"
Sosuke's tone was firm; it was clearly more than just a simple discovery.
"Have you confirmed the location?"
"Yes. My Ariados is with it, but it's very wary of humans."
Sato raised his eyebrows, surprised as he looked at Sosuke. He hadn't expected Sosuke to be doing this well, and to have raised an Ariados on his own.
"Hnn~ My Ariados is amazing! I caught one just a while back."
Sosuke explained with a goofy grin. There weren't many Dark-type species to begin with, and emulating Sato had long been a popular trend among Shadownight Gym members.
"Good. When there's time, let your Ariados spend some time with mine," Sato said with a smile.
"Y-Yes, thank you, Leader!"
Sosuke was overjoyed, while Sina, standing off to the side, looked on enviously, filled with regret.
Ever since Sato's Pokémon had begun reaching Elite Four level one after another, Amber had gone out of his way to allocate a mountain behind the Shadownight Gym for Sato to house his Pokémon.
Only Sato, Mark, and Joseph were allowed to keep their Pokémon in that area. No one else was permitted to enter.
Fortunately, they had purchased a lot of land back then, and Shadownight Gym was never short on money, which made this grand setup possible…
The main purpose was to prevent the pressure emitted by high-level Pokémon from affecting lower-level ones.
And of course, it allowed Zoroark and the others to live much more comfortably.
But because of that, it had become increasingly difficult for the Gym Trainers and trainees to see Sato's Pokémon, let alone seek advice from them.
And when the Leader Sato said "let them spend some time," he definitely didn't mean the two Ariados would just chat about food, games, or bedtime routines…
There was no doubt that some real skills would be passed on!
'If only I had performed a bit better…'
"Next, Sina, keep narrowing down the base's exact location. I want a breakthrough point confirmed before sunset.
Sosuke, take me to see that Ariados. Let's try to rescue it first."
"Yes!" x2
This time, the already diligent pair became even more enthusiastic. Sato's decisiveness in handing out rewards left them no room to resist.
Sosuke, determined to succeed, set out ahead of time, while Sato stopped by the Pokémon Center to switch out his Ariados before following him toward a secluded corner in the western part of the city.
They turned left, turned right, looped and twisted… Sato had a good memory, but even he nearly got lost in this urban maze.
Fortunately, Sosuke had already released his Houndoom. As a Pokémon that spent every day with it, Houndoom was more than familiar with the scent of Ariados.
After rounding another small corner, Sosuke suddenly whispered, "…Leader, we're almost there. I recognize this place!"
"Mm, take it slow."
Sato nodded. Beneath him, Gengar had already transformed into a faint shadow and silently floated ahead.
And just like that, the two Trainers and one Pokémon advanced quietly, step by step.
After a few more minutes of hugging the walls, Houndoom up front suddenly let out a low growl. Its fur stood on end, ready for battle at any moment.
Sosuke immediately braced himself for danger. Not long after, they saw a small, agile Ariados dart past with a "whoosh~".
"Gardevoir, Gengar, block it."
"Gen!"
"Little bug, you're not getting away," Gardevoir transmitted through Telepathy.
"Dosssss!"
The cry rang out, and only then did Sosuke's Ariados finally leap forward!
…But its speed was clearly lacking.
"Leader, we-"
Sosuke started to panic, but before he could finish, Gardevoir and Gengar had already floated over.
Under Gardevoir's seemingly effortless control, the little Ariados -Team Rocket's Test Subject K9- was still thrashing wildly.
The moment it saw Sato and Sosuke, its struggle grew even more frenzied. It didn't care if it nearly tore off its own leg; it just wanted to escape!
Sato frowned, realizing that it was impossible to communicate in this state.
"Gengar, Hypnosis! Gardevoir, Heal Bell!"
The hypnotic glow quickly shone into Ariados's eyes, while Gardevoir's soothing Heal Bell began to echo in tandem.
After struggling violently for another two seconds, the little Ariados finally couldn't hold on anymore. It tilted its head and fell into a deep sleep, the expression on its face no longer twisted with pain.
When it awoke again, it was startled to find that it had recovered quite a lot. Since the day it became a test subject, it had never felt so relaxed.
"Dosss?"
"Dos-Dos!"
The little Ariados jolted up, suddenly realizing that the deceptive fellow Ariados was still here.
'Wait...'
The two terrifying Pokémon were still here too!
Gardevoir sat while Gengar stood. Both pairs of eyes studied the little Ariados with mild curiosity.
"Dosssssssss!"
Without hesitation, the little Ariados immediately launched a Venoshock at the uglier one -Gengar- then turned and tried to flee.
But before it could even gather strength for a jump, an overwhelming gravitational force pressed down on it.
It couldn't move!
Panicked, the little Ariados thrashed desperately, even to the point of injuring itself, just to attempt escape. Its resolve was so intense that it left both observers shocked and moved.
What kind of torment had it endured to become this defiant, this determined to escape at all costs?
"Ding-ling-ling~ Ding-ling-ling~"
Gardevoir's Heal Bell rang out again, sending waves of calming energy to soothe its mind.
A full ten seconds passed before the redness in the little Ariados's eyes began to fade.
Now that it had calmed a little… it just looked a bit dazed.