Leaving the Aether Paradise, Green sat on Lapras's back and asked Ace, "Do we still need to go?"
Ace nodded and said calmly, "We will go, but not now. We'll visit the other three islands first. After all, we're here on vacation, and it's best not to get involved unnecessarily."
Green covered her mouth and giggled, and at this moment, Gengar emerged from Ace's shadow, wearing a sinister smile.
The underground structure had been thoroughly scouted. As long as they found an opportunity to get inside, they could carry out the matter whenever they pleased.
However, for caution's sake, Ace still needed to plot things out. Rushing in would instantly freeze relations with the Aether Foundation.
It's always better to have more friends than more enemies, right?
Lapras slowly swam, carrying Ace and Green back to Akala Island.
To be safe, Ace and Green stayed on Akala Island for three days. It was only on the fourth day that they boarded a cruise ship and headed to Melemele Island with the ship.
It proved that Ace's caution was correct.
After meeting Ace and the others, Lusamine had dispatched Aether Foundation members to keep constant tabs on them.
As the largest organization in the Alola region, Lusamine possessed the capability and means to do this, which was precisely what Ace and Green were wary of.
Three days passed without a single flaw, leading Lusamine to momentarily doubt if she had misjudged them.
However, for the sake of certainty, after learning that Ace and the others were heading to Melemele Island, Lusamine did not relax her vigilance, still sending people to follow and collect as much information on Ace and the others as possible.
Meanwhile, Ace and his companion arrived at Melemele Island. After leaving the pier, the two entered Hau'oli City.
As the largest city on Melemele Island, tourism was highly developed.
There were many tourists everywhere in the city. Ace and Green mingled among them, and after a few turns, the Aether Foundation member sent by Lusamine lost track of the pair.
Having lost them, the Aether Foundation member immediately reported back to Lusamine.
And just as the report was being made, Ace and Green strolled out of a clothing store on the side of the street, laughing, both wearing oversized sun hats they had just bought.
"...President, target sighted. They entered a clothing store to purchase hats."
"Continue tracking."
"Understood."
Hanging up the communication device, the Aether Foundation member continued the tail.
But again, after tracking for a while, he lost them again.
He reported again, then found Ace and the others again, and then continued tracking.
After several repetitions, Lusamine became exasperated and somewhat furious, shouting at the agent, "What are you doing?! Why do you keep losing them!"
The Aether Foundation member sounded helpless as he reported to Lusamine, "President, you really can't blame me. They are clearly here as tourists, so naturally, they go wherever there are crowds, wherever it's lively. With so many people, I really can't track them without exposing myself."
Hearing this, Lusamine rubbed her temples, feeling a headache coming on.
She understood very well that her employee wasn't a professional tracker. The other party was doing his best, but Ace and Green kept heading for crowded areas.
"Forget it, come back."
With no other choice, Lusamine could only tell him to return for now, instructing him to monitor the vicinity of the Tidal Song Hotel instead.
Although she couldn't track them, the Tidal Song Hotel was where they were staying. As long as she guarded that spot, she could still monitor any movements they might make.
Upon receiving Lusamine's instructions, the Aether Foundation member who had been tracking Ace finally sighed in relief and took a boat back to Akala Island.
After the agent left, Ace and Green sat in a restaurant and began ordering. Gengar quietly emerged from Ace's shadow and nodded at Ace.
Ace smiled faintly and said to Gengar, "Thank you for your hard work. The tail has been temporarily shaken off."
That's right, everything that happened earlier was a result of a plan concocted by Ace and Green.
Utilizing Gengar's stealth, Gengar had been hiding in the tracker's shadow the whole time, occasionally returning to Ace's shadow to report the situation.
With Gengar as the prerequisite, Ace and Green successfully played tricks on the tracker, keeping him in a state of intermittent tracking.
The two had calculated that the agent would report to Lusamine the moment he lost sight of them, so they would appear in his line of sight every time he reported, drawing him to continue the pursuit.
Repeating this several times clearly frustrated the agent. Coupled with the fact that Lusamine only harbored suspicion and lacked any solid evidence, she had no choice but to temporarily abandon the pursuit of Ace and the others.
Soon, the dishes Ace and his companion ordered arrived. Ace and Green calmly ate while Green asked Ace where they would go next.
"The main goal is still to collect Z-Crystals, but in the meantime, I want to visit the ruins on Melemele Island."
Ace finished the food in his mouth and explained.
"For the Guardian Deity?"
Green recalled the Tapu Lele that Ace had challenged before.
"Yes, I plan to see the true strength of the Guardian Deities on all four islands."
Ace nodded, finding an excuse for his actions.
After all, some of the title quests he had were incredibly frustrating.
For instance, the Glutton title required Ace to challenge a Snorlax, a Pokémon famous for its appetite, to see who could eat the most food in one minute.
Ace felt his scalp prickle when he saw this quest.
A human competing with a Snorlax, a Pokémon that is inherently a glutton, in an eating contest? Ace felt he couldn't possibly win.
Unless... Ace could find a Snorlax with anorexia, one that absolutely refused to eat. Then he would have a chance of winning.
Besides this title, there were many other titles that seemed somewhat antisocial. Ace felt that if he tried to complete all of them, he would definitely be sent to a mental hospital by the people around him for acting like a madman.
Green, hearing Ace's excuse, naturally couldn't find any fault with it and nodded, "Since we planned to visit all four islands anyway, we might as well challenge them along the way. But these Guardian Deities are quite strong. Don't get careless after beating one; be careful not to fall into a trap."
"Don't worry, I won't be careless,"
Ace said with a grin. He then checked the items required to complete the title quests and couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
"Guardian Deities of Alola, I apologize, but to complete my title quests, I have to trouble you."
The items needed to complete the four Guardian Deity titles were Tapu Lele's Scales, Tapu Koko's Crest Feathers, Tapu Bulu's Hoof Shard, and Tapu Fini's Purifying Water.
[Author's note:] I'm late, sorry. The reason is I ran out of saved chapters and had to write on the spot. What a headache!
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