After parting ways with Paul in the Confusing Forest, Ash and Brock, along with a grumbling Dawn, continued their journey to Jubilife City. The trip had been going so smoothly that, naturally, something unexpected was bound to happen.
On the road, they met a beautiful woman with a well-developed figure and a red, bodyguard-like Scizor by her side.
"U-um... excuse me, but... I heard a new gym opened up nearby. Do you... do you know where it is?" The woman seemed a bit socially awkward, and her hesitant tone gave her a delicate air that would easily attract male attention. Ash was fine, in a moment of clarity after his recent battle. But the lovesick Brock was a different story. He charged forward like a hungry wolf.
"My beautiful lady, how may I be of service? I can—"
"Oh no... Ash, what should we do?" Dawn was at a loss, having never seen the usually reliable Brock act this way. She quickly turned to the boy next to her who seemed completely unfazed.
"Uh... I have no idea!" In the past, when Brock got like this, it was up to Misty or Max to stop him. Without them, the only one who could help was a certain Croagunk. But before that, Ash quickly pulled Brock away to prevent him from scaring the woman.
"Alright, Brock, don't scare her!" he said, pulling Brock aside to get back to business.
"Haha!" Dawn chuckled, holding her head. She then turned to the woman. "Is there something we can help you with?"
"Well..." Seeing Dawn, the cheerful and cute girl, the woman immediately relaxed. She introduced herself as Minnie and explained that she had heard from her friend about a new gym in the area.
"I don't think there's a new gym around here," a now-calm Brock said, stroking his chin. As the team's navigator, he knew the map by heart and was sure there wasn't a gym marked here.
"Something's fishy. Let's go check it out with her!" This seemed like something Team Rocket would do, and since Croagunk was now with them, they had to go. Ash wanted to expose their plot and get the "third successor," Croagunk, back.
"Yes! Yes! I'll spend the rest of my life with this beautiful lady!" Hearing that he'd be going with the woman of his dreams, Brock reverted to his lovesick self and tried to get close to her several times. Only the presence of Minnie's "tough guy" Scizor kept Brock from holding her hand. Ash just sighed, silently vowing to find Croagunk as soon as possible.
"It's you guys again! Scyther, X-Scissor!"
Ash's Scyther swung its sharp sickles, combining them into an "X" to attack Jessie's Dustox and James's Cacnea. A single, powerful strike was enough to knock out both of their Pokémon.
"What?! How did the twerp get so strong?!" Jessie and James looked at each other in disbelief, their faces filled with shock. Since when were their Pokémon so easily defeated? Had they gotten weaker? Or had the twerp gotten that much stronger?
"You idiots! What are you waiting for?! Run!" Meowth screamed from the Team Rocket balloon. The moment he saw his teammates lose, he quickly climbed into the hot air balloon. When he saw them just standing there, he started yelling at them.
"Ahhh!" Jessie and James frantically recalled their Pokémon and jumped into the balloon.
"Now, let's go!" Meowth immediately activated the balloon, ready to get away from this terrifyingly powerful twerp.
"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"
But just as the balloon took off, a thick bolt of golden lightning flashed through the air, hitting the balloon's ignition device and causing an explosion. The Team Rocket trio, as expected, flew into the sky like a shooting star.
"Whew~" Ash let out a breath, feeling pleased after sending them flying again. "Good job, Scyther, Pikachu."
"Scyther!"
"Pika Pi!"
Pikachu waved its paw dismissively, while the cooler-headed Scyther simply nodded. Ash didn't mind; that was just Scyther's personality. On the bright side, its strength was increasing, and it was probably time to find a chance for it to evolve. The sooner it evolved into Scizor, the sooner it could get used to its new body.
"Seriously, those guys are so annoying," Dawn muttered, looking up at the sky. In the past few days, she had gotten a taste of the trio's "enthusiasm." They would show up every now and then just to get sent blasting off again, and it was driving her crazy.
Ash could only smile at Dawn's frustration. He then turned to Minnie. "See? This gym was a hoax, so you have to be careful in the future, Miss Minnie." After bringing them to the location, they had indeed found something amiss. The fake gym was nothing more than a poorly constructed shack made of leftover materials. It couldn't compare to an official, magnificent gym. Not to mention, it was run by the Team Rocket trio, who were trying to trick trainers.
"I can't believe they were bad guys in disguise. Thank you so much for coming with me. If I were alone, I'd never have figured out their plan." Minnie bowed her head in thanks.
Before Ash could reply, the "gentleman" Brock charged forward again, knelt on one knee, and took Minnie's hand. "Don't worry, Miss Minnie, all of this—"
But before Brock could finish his heartfelt words, he felt a sharp pain in his side.
"Gah!" Brock instantly gasped, his whole body frozen, and he collapsed to the ground.
"Croak~"
A purple frog had appeared behind Brock at some point, its cheeks filled with strange sacs. The purple tip on its right hand was proof that it was the culprit behind Brock's pain, and it was now dragging the paralyzed Brock away. This Pokémon was Croagunk, the "third successor" who would keep Brock in line and become his longest-serving companion.
"HAHAHA!!!" Everyone laughed uncontrollably at the sight of Brock being betrayed by Croagunk, their laughter mixed with Brock's pleas for help.
"Ash... I need... an Oran Berry..."
And so, Brock's lifelong nemesis, the "third successor" Croagunk, was in place.