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From Professor Oak's words, Ash could understand that Team Rocket had truly disbanded, though not entirely.
To put it simply, not everyone under Giovanni wanted the organization to disband, so they had split into several different factions.
The most radical members, unwilling to accept the disbandment, had surrendered to the authorities. Others had seized this opportunity to leave the organization entirely, while a small loyal group remained with Giovanni in Viridian City.
However, after hearing Professor Oak mention that Viridian City was under surveillance, Ash frowned slightly.
"Are they planning to arrest him?"
"No, based on the current situation, the risks of arresting him far outweigh the benefits of leaving him alone. For now, they're just keeping him under watch."
Professor Oak shook his head. Although Giovanni had announced Team Rocket's disbandment, the organization's influence ran deep. Even with the announcement, it couldn't simply be uprooted overnight.
The Alliance feared him, yet they didn't dare move against him carelessly. If they pushed too hard and caused a backlash, he might stage a comeback, which would be far more troublesome.
The surveillance was merely to ensure Giovanni no longer posed an active threat. Ash nodded in understanding, then decided to put these matters out of his mind.
As they talked, the group quickly reached the Laboratory's exit. Professor Oak opened the door, and Brock and Misty's eyes lit up instantly.
Before them stretched an endless grassland, with mountain peaks visible as silhouettes in the distance. Several street lights illuminated the area near the back door, though the farther reaches remained unlit.
Despite the lack of artificial lighting at night, the entire grassland wasn't dim at all.
Above them, moonlight and starlight shone brilliantly. Looking up, they could see a gorgeous band of stars stretching across the sky—the Milky Way itself—casting its glow upon the earth below.
At night, the sky's beauty revealed itself clearly, and the view above Professor Oak's Laboratory seemed especially magnificent and breathtaking.
Before his journey began, Ash would often come here at night, lying on the grass to gaze at the sky above.
"Wow!" Even Misty, despite being a Gym Leader, had never witnessed such a spectacular sight.
The scene resembled the Safari Zone and the wildlife preserves they'd visited during their travels. The nighttime beauty here was extraordinary—scenery rarely glimpsed in major cities.
"It really is Professor Oak's Laboratory! There are so many different kinds of Pokémon!" Despite the late hour, they could still see numerous Pokémon moving about in the darkness.
"Haha! These are all Pokémon entrusted here by Trainers. Thanks to them, I'm never lonely!" Professor Oak responded with a warm smile.
After so many years, he had shifted his focus from battling to research, but it was still his connection to Pokémon that kept him going.
"All right, Ash, feel free to look around! I still have work to finish." After this brief reflection, Professor Oak addressed Ash.
"Okay, thank you!" Ash replied.
With that, Professor Oak returned to the Laboratory. Ash prepared to search for his Pokémon.
"Let's go!"
As they began walking, no one noticed that behind Ash, a pair of red lights suddenly flickered within his elongated shadow cast by the moonlight.
The lights glowed as though Ash's shadow had grown eyes, watching him intently. At that moment, the Jigglypuff perched on Ash's head seemed to sense something unusual.
Instinctively turning around, it spotted the glowing red eyes in Ash's shadow on the ground and froze in terror.
"Polly~~~!"
Jigglypuff pulled at its ears nervously, leaped off Ash's head in fright, and dove straight into his arms. Ash blinked in surprise at the sudden reaction.
"What's wrong?"
Jigglypuff squeaked frantically and turned slightly. Following its gaze, Ash saw the shadow behind him sporting a pair of glowing eyes. Then, those eyes slowly began rising from the ground.
Seeing this, Jigglypuff buried itself deeper into Ash's arms in fear. Ash, however, paused for a moment before breaking into a smile.
A dark shape emerged from Ash's shadow and lunged toward him. Brock and Misty jumped slightly in alarm.
As the black figure rushed past, Ash felt a gust of air sweep by him. The shadow snatched Pikachu from his shoulder and sent both tumbling onto the grass behind them. The two figures rolled across the ground several times.
"Pika!"
"Ui!"
Ash turned around with a grin, watching as Pikachu and the dark shape playfully wrestled on the ground.
"It's Devileon! You scared me!" Misty exclaimed, recognizing the Pokémon playing with Pikachu. She let out a relieved breath. For a moment, she'd genuinely thought she'd seen a ghost—though considering Water-type trainers' relationship with Ghost-types, perhaps Devileon could be considered ghostly in its own way!
Indeed, it was Devileon—the Dark-type Pokémon that had nearly frightened Jigglypuff out of its wits. Ash and Devileon had been separated for some time now.
Unlike other Pokémon, Devileon was naturally more active at night. It had gone out wandering and happened to spot Ash and the others arriving.
Immediately, it had rushed over and hidden within Ash's shadow, planning to startle them as a playful prank.
"Long time no see, Devileon!" Ash stepped forward and patted Devileon's head affectionately.
"Ui!"
Devileon responded happily. Life here at the ranch was comfortable—no constant battles, but plenty of space to roam and many other Pokémon companions to keep it from getting bored.
"Free~~~!"
At that moment, a soft, gentle sound echoed through the night sky. A figure appeared, gliding gracefully with delicate wings beating the air. Its wings were thin as gossamer, reflecting the moonlight and starlight beautifully.
"Butterfree!" It was Ash's Butterfree—the very first Pokémon Ash had caught on his journey.
During his travels, because he hadn't gotten lost as frequently as he might have otherwise and had taken different routes, Butterfree—who by this point might have been released in another timeline—was still with him.
Despite their long separation, Butterfree flew happily to Ash, nuzzling its head against his hand affectionately before fluttering over to Misty. It still clearly liked her very much.
Misty was no longer afraid of Bug-types like Butterfree, and she reached out to gently stroke its head with a smile.