After restoring the restaurant's furnishings to their original state and cleaning up, Luther and his group returned to the courtyard.
Wakaba washed the Pokémon they had brought back, then had Roselia lead the new companions in a brisk trot to catch up with Luther's group.
Though it was already past bedtime, Kihara didn't stop Wakaba.
After some thought, he had a vague realization.
Luther, Etorre, Dakota, and Ash hadn't exaggerated or inflated their abilities, nor were they simply engaging in mutual flattery.
They genuinely believed that reaching the top sixteen, top eight, or even the top four wouldn't be too difficult for them. Unlike other Pokémon Trainers who were just hoping for a spot in the main tournament, their goal was victory.
There might be some bumps along the way, but it wouldn't be a struggle.
Kihara had a strong premonition, though he couldn't explain why he felt this way.
Perhaps it was their unwavering confidence, their spirited expressions, or their passionate, energetic conversation that had infected him.
The feeling reminded him of his younger self during his travels—just standing near them made his weary heart, once heavy with age, rekindle with vitality.
"Maybe Wakaba can learn something from them," Kihara mused, glancing at the aquarium. After closing the shop, Huntail had retreated to its favorite spot. This time, Kihara turned off the light for Huntail. After all, it wasn't just Luther who had been startled awake; he had been too...
While Ash and Etorre were examining each other's Pokémon, Luther and Dakota discussed the recent events involving the Hodgepodge organization.
Upon hearing that Aaron had single-handedly wiped out the Hodgepodge organization, including their enhanced devices, Dakota couldn't help but sneer.
However, he greatly admired Luther's plan to set fire to the Hodgepodge organization's ruins and launch fireworks. Dakota promised to bring his own fireworks to the celebration, adding to the festivities.
"Can your Corsola control her Talent now?" Luther asked, watching Cursola and Milcery playing together.
"She managed to do it shortly after we parted ways. Thinking back, I suspect the experience of being with you all triggered her outburst."
Encounters between Pokémon often lead to strange and wonderful things. It seemed the disappointed looks on Milcery and Chikorita's faces that day had truly motivated Cursola.
Just watching her play so happily with Chikorita and the others made it clear she'd been waiting for this reunion for a long time.
Of course... Cursola's smile was crooked and a bit eerie. But there was nothing to be done about it; this was her most earnest attempt to express her joy.
"Ah, Infernape... it feels so nostalgic," Ash said, his voice thick with sentimentality.
Luther turned around, his gaze fixed on Ash's hands.
'You lost your mind in the Black and White Saga, using Arbok and Weezing to fill your Pokédex. But you can't possibly be trying to do that with Infernape too, can you?'
"You have an Infernape, don't you?"
Not wanting to disappoint Luther, Ash cupped Infernape's face in his hands, instead of scanning its information. When Dawn heard Ash also had an Infernape, she quickly scanned it.
'It's easy to bully Infernape since it has an owner and can't retaliate. If he tried this with a wild Infernape, he'd definitely get a beating for rubbing its face like a dog's.'
Wakaba's eyes widened as she entered the courtyard. The usually empty space was filled with all sorts of Pokémon.
Cursola, Milcery, and Pikachu were bouncing on the soft, gelatinous body of a Jellicent, using it as a trampoline. Jellicent didn't seem to mind; he was used to being used as a pillow by Etorre.
Brock's Happiny stared in awe at Luther's Chansey. Its eyes lit up as it gazed at the much larger evolved form, and it immediately rushed over for a hug.
Perhaps because they were both Electric-type Pokémon, Eelektross and Magnezone stayed close together, discharging electricity at each other. This seemed to be one of their ways of communicating.
Froslass sat on a branch of Trevenant, while on the other side, Chikorita swung back and forth on a vine whip tied to the tree.
Perched on Chikorita's head was Jumpluff, who had abandoned her usual dignified demeanor to share in the joy of swinging.
Etorre's assessment of Chikorita was that she had been raised by Luther to be utterly carefree.
Luther considered this a high compliment. After the events in Featherfall Town, he had decided to let Pokémon grow according to their own desires.
Since Chikorita had never shown any interest in battling, Luther had done his best to provide her with a gentle and carefree environment for her growth.
In Luther's eyes, the Chikorita who had followed his trail all the way to Featherfall Town out of gratitude was the most adorable. He hoped she would always retain that innocence.
Dakota stared blankly at his Metagross. He scanned it with his Pokédex, which claimed Metagross possessed the intelligence of a supercomputer.
He already knew the Pokédex's data was often just for fun, but Metagross's intelligence was undeniable.
But why would it do this...?
Shuckle curled into a ball inside its shell and began Rapid Spinning in place.
Marill tucked its tail behind its rear, pretending to be a ball, and spun itself like a top, using its tail to propel itself.
Forretress joined in, and Dakota even felt like spikes might sprout from the ground beneath his feet any second.
He could understand them spinning, but after watching for a while, Metagross finally retracted its legs and joined the spinning frenzy.
Croagunk crouched majestically on the ground, his orange poison sacs on his cheeks swelling and contracting as he surveyed the scene with a completely impassive expression.
Beside Croagunk, the Round Penguin, once again bitten on the head by Gible, had started running around in circles again.
As Wakaba and her Spoink companions curiously examined Pokémon from various regions, and Luther and his friends were happily petting other people's Pokémon, an explosion erupted.
Pikachu, Milcery, Cursola, and Jellicent, who had been enjoying themselves playing on Jellicent, were suddenly trapped inside a massive glass sphere.
Pikachu instinctively reached for Thunderbolt, but Jellicent cautiously reminded him that he was a Water-type, and Milcery was still a child...
"What... exactly is going on here?" Dakota frantically scanned the surroundings, watching his own Cursola trapped inside the sphere.
"I heard someone ask 'What exactly is going on here?'"
"We'll be there in a flash!"
Luther and Ash had already started covering their heads. "Not you again!"
"Prepare for trouble," Jessie appeared on a Meowth-shaped balloon.
"And make it double" James made his entrance.
"To protect the world from devastation."
"To unite all peoples within our nation."
"To denounce the evils of truth and love."
"To extend our reach to the stars above."
"Jessie!"
"James!"
"Team Rocket, blasting off at the speed of light!"
"Surrender now, or prepare to fight!"
"Meowth, that's right!" Meowth peered over the edge of the hot-air balloon.
Having learned from Luther's previous unconventional interruption, Team Rocket recited their opening lines at lightning speed this time, even releasing their Pokémon in advance to guard against another surprise attack.
They were clearly determined to finish their introduction.
Of course, the price for such rapid recitation was that Jessie, James, and Meowth were left gasping for breath, looking utterly exhausted.
"Team Rocket again! Don't you ever get tired of this?" Ash shouted.
"To recite an opening line, you didn't have to rush through it so fast," Luther sighed.
Jessie pointed at Luther and yelled, "Who do you think forced us to do this? It's all your fault! Last time was a complete disgrace!"
"That's right! No sense of decorum at all!" James roared. "This time, our trap is waterproof, shockproof, heatproof, and impact-resistant—perfect! You won't stop me from getting Pikachu!"
Meowth glanced at the Pokémon in the courtyard: Metagross, Salamence, Magnezone, Eelektross, and Trevenant. A chill ran down his spine.
"James... look down there," Meowth nudged James with his paw.
"Down there? What's wrong?" James looked down and exclaimed excitedly, "So many Pokémon! We can catch a whole bunch this time!"
"No... I think we should run. Something feels off."
(End Of This Chapter)
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