"Misty, Serena, don't leave this place. I'll leave Mewtwo here to protect you in case of any unexpected incidents."
"How could you? If Mewtwo stays here, what about you, Ash?!"
"Exactly, we don't mind. Ash, you should keep Mewtwo by your side!"
Their first reaction when they heard that Ash was leaving Mewtwo behind was to stop him. After traveling with Ash for a while, Ash had shared his journey experiences with Serena, so she knew that Ash had a tremendously powerful Pokemon named Mewtwo by his side.
Its power was such that even today's Champion wouldn't be able to face it. Although Serena was slightly shocked to know that Ash owned such a powerful Pokemon, she instinctively felt that Ash deserved such a Pokemon.
Moreover, Serena also knew the enemy Ash was going to face on this trip and understood why Ash was bringing out Little Lugia to battle.
In the face of such a dangerous enemy, how could she accept Ash's decision to leave Mewtwo here to protect them? That was an enemy even Miss Cynthia might have trouble with!
"Hey, you two, stop worrying. I'm the Hero of Aura. Those kinds of guys aren't my match even if they use both hands. Relax, I'll be right back. I'll leave them to you, Mewtwo."
Ash said, taking the Pokeball from his chest and tossing it onto the floor of the room. Mewtwo floated in the air with its arms crossed, nodding towards Ash.
At this distance, unless Ash encountered instant disaster, Mewtwo could act immediately. With Ash's strength, who could take him down in a second? Not even Mewtwo could do that.
So Misty and Serena's worries were completely unnecessary.
The knocking at the door continued with a slow, steady rhythm. Ash walked towards the door with a serious expression. Aura Power had already scanned the person outside; they appeared to be an average person with nothing remarkable — at least from the outside.
But the few Pokeballs at the person's waist contained immense energy. Judging from the energy fluctuations, they were at least Elite Level!
If this was an ordinary person, he would eat the door!
At such a late hour, knocking on his door with a team of Elite Level Pokemon, claiming they had no ulterior motives was something no one could believe.
"Creak," Ash opened the door, and standing there was a delicate and beautiful woman with fiery red hair, dressed quite ordinarily in a denim skirt and a light white jacket.
The moment she saw Ash, her face turned bashful, a blush rising to her cheeks. She twisted and turned her hands in front of her awkwardly, then stammered, "M…Master Ash, my name is Xiaohong. I'm a fan of yours. I'm sorry to disturb you so late, but I thought this was the only time I wouldn't have competition for you!"
"I've had many questions about Pokemon that I couldn't figure out on my own, so I thought of this last resort. Even though this might disturb your peaceful time, if… if you could spare me just a little of your time, could you please teach me?"
Xiaohong lifted her pale face, her crimson eyes exuding a delicate charm, appearing just like a helpless little girl.
If it weren't for Aura Power, Ash would have definitely been deceived. Even though he knew it wasn't right to come at such an hour, the reason given by this girl was actually quite plausible. Seeing Ash in the morning or afternoon might require luck, so how else could she get guidance from him?
So coming late at night to find Ash, eliminating the luck factor, along with her bold and wise choice, was sure to catch Ash's attention.
All of this assumes Ash hadn't seen through what she was hiding.
Not to mention bringing a team of Elite Level Pokemon, the intent to ask for Pokemon training guidance in the middle of the night was something only a fool would believe!
"I understand. Since it's late, let's talk outside to not disturb my companions," Ash said, suppressing the urge to expose the person, nodding at them.
He needed to change the battlefield to avoid letting the aftermath of any combat affect Misty and the others.
Upon hearing this, a look of joy flashed across Xiaohong's face. She softly covered her red lips, speaking in a voice filled with disbelief and excitement, "Really? Thank you so much, Master Ash, don't worry, I'll finish quickly!"
...
Led by Xiaohong, the two arrived at a clearing a kilometer away. On the way, Xiaohong, like a true newbie Trainer, asked Ash many basic questions, even about attribute advantages.
One could only say that an old hand at acting was indeed an old hand. Carrying a team of Elite Level Pokemon and asking questions a rookie Trainer would know after some time traveling, yet not showing a hint of incongruity on her face.
Ash certainly couldn't do that; he couldn't be so shameless…
Once on the clearing, Xiaohong faced Ash, quietly stepping back two steps and then said with a smile, "Master Ash, next I'm going to show you my Pokemon. If there's anything defective, please point it out."
Ash nodded, signaling her to release her Pokemon.
The next second, a strange smile appeared on Xiaohong's lips, and all six Pokeballs at her waist opened!
In a blink of an eye, six powerful Pokemon appeared in front of Ash: Crobat, Skuntank, Purugly, Bronzong, Electivire, Yanmega.
All six Pokemon unleashed a formidable aura, with every one reaching Elite Level, and the strongest, Crobat, even reaching Elite Advanced Level.
The moment the six Pokemon appeared, they launched a series of attacks toward Ash: Air Cutter, Venoshock, Swift Star…
Six entirely different skills aimed squarely at Ash. For an average person encountering such a scene, they would be dumbfounded.
Why would someone who seemed harmless suddenly unleash all their Pokemon to attack? Moreover, these six Pokemon were nothing like the so-called Newbie Pokemon she described!
With six Elite Level Pokemon targeting the Trainer himself, without any prior defense, even Cynthia and Leon might not react in time.
But Ash wasn't unguarded, nor was he an ordinary, frail Trainer. Faced with the six powerful attacks, he stood still with a slightly cold gaze.
"Couldn't hold back anymore? You really think highly of me, having six Elite Level Pokemon attack me at once." Ash mused while his actions were swift, raising an arm and enveloping himself with a light blue barrier.
"Boom!!"
The deafening sound exploded in the clearing, flattening the surrounding flowers, grass, and trees with the shockwave!
'Xiaohong' had a smug look of success on her face, but as the dust slowly settled, revealing the unscathed Ash, her smile froze.
"Now, can you tell me? Who are you in Team Galactic, and what is the situation with Miss Cynthia?" Ash waved his hand, eyeing her coldly.
"When did you notice?"
"From the beginning. I say, old lady, pretending to be a young girl doesn't really suit you~"
"Who are you calling an old lady!? I'm Huoxing, one of Team Galactic's four commanders!!" Being called an old lady left Huoxing completely rattled.