Chapter 83: Learning the Truth
"Hey, hey—no way, that's got to be fake!"
"How did the battle turn around so suddenly?"
The shocking reversal by Pikachu left the surrounding crowd staring in disbelief.
It wasn't that they were inexperienced or easily impressed—it was that the contrast was just too dramatic.
Moments ago, Pikachu had been on the verge of losing to Growlithe. Then, as if suddenly supercharged, it launched a dazzling counterattack, stringing together one brilliant move after another until Growlithe went down—without Ash even giving a single command.
"Hey, Ash, when did you get this strong?!"
Before anyone else could speak, Misty—who'd been traveling with Ash day and night—was the first to ask, eyeing him suspiciously.
"Huh? I dunno either."
Ash scratched his head, looking as puzzled as everyone else. But being his usual carefree self, he didn't think too hard about it. He'd beaten that smug Gary—and that alone was enough.
Across the field, Gary stared at Ash, visibly shaken.
Surrounded by his cheering squad, he muttered to himself:"This doesn't make sense… how could Ash beat me…?"
His cheerleaders exchanged worried looks as he continued mumbling in disbelief.
The place was a noisy mess.
Watching from the side, Nozomi smiled faintly, adjusted his collar, and quietly slipped away—leaving the glory to others.
He arrived at the deck, at the meeting point he'd arranged with Lorelei.She was already there waiting for him.
"How's the situation inside the hall?"
Before Nozomi could even open his mouth, Lorelei spoke first.
"Team Rocket members are disguised as waiters scattered throughout the hall. A smaller group's posing as trainers. Altogether, I counted about fifty of them."
Nozomi reported the results of his reconnaissance succinctly.
"That many…" Lorelei frowned.
Fifty Team Rocket grunts wouldn't normally be a concern. In another setting, she could wipe them out with a single Pokémon.
But with so many civilians mixed into the crowd, one wrong move could turn this into a hostage crisis—and that was the last thing they could afford.
Their mission was to stop Team Rocket's plot, not to get drawn into a standoff.
"We need a plan," Lorelei said, brows furrowed in thought.
The S.S. Anne had already set sail, and the time for Team Rocket's move was drawing near.Every minute counted—they had to act fast.
"I have an idea," Nozomi said after a moment's consideration.
"Go on," Lorelei's eyes lit up.
After working together for a while now, she'd come to respect Nozomi's strength, his calm, and the sharp logic behind every move he made.
If he had a plan, she was all ears.
"First off, we already know Team Rocket's target is that unknown device," Nozomi began. "That means their main objective isn't the trainers in the hall—or at least, not primarily."
"Hmm… makes sense."
"So the reason they've deployed so many operatives inside the hall could be a smokescreen—to mislead us into thinking they're after the trainers' Pokémon, while their real goal is actually the equipment in the cargo hold."
Lorelei thought it over. "So you're saying…"
"We ignore the grunts in the hall and strike from the other side. If we hit the cargo hold hard enough, Team Rocket will have no choice but to divert reinforcements there. That'll naturally ease the situation in the hall."
Nozomi's voice was calm, but his logic was airtight.
It wasn't a flawless plan—if things went wrong, it could still lead to chaos.But given the circumstances, they had no better option.
Lorelei nodded decisively. "We'll do it your way."
She showed the bold, commanding side of an Elite Four member, finalizing the battle plan on the spot.
"By the way," Nozomi asked, "what exactly is Team Rocket after this time?"
Lorelei had been investigating for quite a while. Surely she'd uncovered something.
"A Poké Ball production line—leaked out from the Kalos region's Poké Ball Factory."
Her expression darkened as she continued. "Team Rocket agents have already secured it. This isn't a heist—they bought the entire production line."
Nozomi's eyes widened.
Poké Ball manufacturing equipment was strictly controlled by the League. Though Poké Balls were sold everywhere, the production and wholesale of them were under tight regulation, to prevent criminal organizations like Team Rocket from mass-producing Poké Balls and capturing wild Pokémon illegally.
Controlling Poké Balls meant controlling expansion. That was why the League guarded such assets so fiercely.
And yet Team Rocket had nearly managed to buy an entire line.
"Tch… these people will buy anything."
Even Nozomi couldn't help but whistle in disbelief.
What did this mean?It meant that as long as they had materials, Team Rocket could produce unlimited Poké Balls—free from League restrictions.
Of course, Nozomi didn't believe Team Rocket lacked such facilities entirely.This line was probably meant to expand their current operations.
"We absolutely can't let them succeed," Nozomi said coldly.
His hatred for Team Rocket ran too deep to ever fade. Letting them grow stronger was the same as making his own life harder.
"I've already contacted Chairman Goodshow. I've been granted full authority—if necessary, I can sink the S.S. Anne, provided all passengers are safely evacuated first."
When Lorelei spoke of sinking the ship, her tone was calm and steady—but her eyes burned with resolve.
From that expression alone, Nozomi could tell she meant it.
"I doubt it'll come to that," he said with a smile. "With an Elite Four like you here, and me backing you up, a few Team Rocket grunts shouldn't be a problem."
He was trying to lighten the mood—and in the process, accidentally raised a pretty dangerous flag.
"Let's hope it doesn't come to that," Lorelei said dryly, clearly not trusting his luck.
Nozomi gave her a wry smile.
Turning to look at the ship, he sighed."Emmm… hang in there, S.S. Anne."
He offered a silent prayer for the ship's safety.
"Oh, right—one more thing."
"What is it?"
"This is for you. I bought it earlier in the hall."
Nozomi reached into his bag and pulled out a Marshtomp plush, handing it to her.
Lorelei blinked, then looked at the doll curiously."One of Hoenn's starters—
Marshtomp
. It's adorable… but how did you know I like plushies?"