"Silver Dragon Hero?! You..." Koga forced down the shock in his heart, but his turbulent breathing revealed his state of mind.
This was because Giovanni's identity had always been Team Rocket's top secret. Not to mention Giovanni, his own identity had never been exposed to the League.
And now, his identity was revealed in a single sentence. Combined with the recent rumors of the Silver Dragon Hero and his transcendent, god-like combat power, Koga's reaction was already quite restrained.
"Since you have some principles, I won't make things difficult for you. Leave the ores you've mined, and you can go."
"You!" Koga clenched his fists, but he was helpless.
After all, the person in front of him was someone even Giovanni was wary of. Although he was confident in his strength, he was still far inferior.
Koga left with a few of his subordinates, leaving behind a large sack of rare ores and fossils.
The process was a little too smooth, which was unsettling...
But Ash didn't overthink it. He looked at the things in the sack and saw that there were several fossils!
Beside him, Ayumi's eyes were sparkling as she looked at him.
"S-Silver Dragon Hero, hello. I'm a big fan of yours!" The little girl seemed a little reserved, even bowing slightly in greeting.
Ash couldn't help but chuckle inwardly. The usually wild Ayumi also had this side to her.
"You should leave quickly. It's not safe to stay here for long..."
When he came in, he had already sensed that the geology here was extremely loose. If it was over-mined, it could easily lead to a collapse.
As the heart of Mt. Moon, a large-scale collapse here could cause a chain reaction, leading to landslides and other problems, and the people in the cave would likely be in danger.
Koga had just mentioned this, and Ash couldn't help but feel a sense of respect for him.
"You should stay here..."
A faint voice suddenly sounded from the cave entrance.
Ash turned around. Koga had returned, and this time he was followed by a group of Team Rocket grunts!
"You don't think a few more grunts will help you beat me, do you?" Ash said calmly. He had a feeling that Koga was holding something back.
"In a normal state, I would admit that I'm not your match... But right now, you should be feeling weak all over, right?"
A sinister smile appeared on Koga's lips.
As he was leaving, he had put his exclusive colorless and odorless poison mist into the sack of ores. After all this time, even the Silver Dragon Hero, who was completely unprepared, would have been affected!
"Hmm?" Ash was slightly stunned. Only now did he realize that his nerves were a little slow to react, and his hands and feet felt a little weak!
"What a clever trick..." Ash praised him and immediately tried to circulate his internal energy to force the poison out.
Koga watched him struggle silently, seemingly confident in his skills as a chemist.
Ash's brow furrowed. The mist quickly entered his meridians and bloodstream, actually increasing his energy a little. However, at the same time, it blocked the control of many of his nerves, making his body feel a little numb and weak. Even the circulation of his internal energy became difficult.
After his internal energy circulated a few times, this state did not lessen. Instead, it worsened... and finally, he couldn't even move his internal energy!
"Don't waste your effort. This isn't poison at all. It's a tonic made from purified essences of various energies!"
"It just... happens to cause a few hours of exhaustion."
Koga slowly approached with his men. "I came here to get some fossils, but I didn't expect to catch a big fish like you... You're a gift from heaven!"
Ash's face turned cold. Koga had just taught him a lesson... Just as he was thinking of a way out, Koga threw three shurikens at him.
As a well-trained ninja, Koga's aim and strength were on point. Ash was quick to swat away the first two, but the third one was headed straight for Ayumi!
But at this point, with the medicine taking effect, Ash was powerless to defend himself again. He had no choice but to shield Ayumi.
"Pfft!" The shuriken, made of a special metal with a sharp edge, immediately plunged into his back!
"Silver Dragon Hero!" Ayumi cried out. She never expected that the idol she had just met would take a hit for her!
Ash frowned, reached back, and pulled out the shuriken. The wound only bled a little before it automatically healed.
Although he couldn't move his internal energy, his physical constitution and the "Super Real Person" passive ability were still active, so it was just a minor injury.
But this scene was a little terrifying in Koga's eyes.
His shurikens could seriously injure even advanced Pokémon, but this man only had it half-plunge into his back?
He had just used all his strength and his ninjutsu to throw it!
Couldn't he give this ninja master some face?
"I advise you to leave. This kind of attack is completely ineffective against me."
Ash pretended to be calm, hoping to scare Koga away.
The geology of this place was special. If he recklessly used his energy, it could cause a mine collapse...
"Clefairy..." Fine beads of sweat appeared on the Clefairy's head in Ayumi's arms. It seemed that the energy required to wave its fingers was immense...
Koga: "If it were before, I would have retreated..."
"However... this little girl seems to have a close relationship with you, doesn't she?" Koga's lips curled up, implying something.
Under the mask, Ash's face was expressionless. "You can try... because no matter what, the result is that you lose."
Koga's eyebrows raised. This was indeed what he was worried about.
Even if he subdued Ash, in the end, Giovanni would treat him like a VIP. So, he didn't want to completely offend Ash.
"Even if your three executives, three beasts, and four generals gather, or even if Giovanni himself comes, I can easily defeat all of them."
Ash once again spoke arrogantly, and the information he revealed made even Koga's pupils shrink.
He had only learned about these top-secret terms after being a part of Team Rocket for many years, but an outsider had just casually said them!
At this, he gave up the idea of subduing Ash.
No matter what, the fact that this person knew this information meant a lot.
For example, he had a huge, powerful force behind him?
Koga didn't dare to think about it. He could only try his best to leave a good impression on this person.
With this in mind, he threw a bottle of medicine. "This is the antidote. I apologize for the offense. I was only following orders. Of course, I, Koga, owe you a favor today. If you have any requests in the future, you can find me anytime."
Ash looked at the medicine in his hand and smiled slightly.
This Koga... It was no wonder he would become a member of the Elite Four in the future. His ability to read the situation was truly not to be underestimated.
Of course, Ash only managed to intimidate him because of his advantage as a transmigrator...
Just as Koga was about to leave with his grunts, the unconscious Team Rocket captain suddenly sprang up, pulled out a dagger from his waist, and stabbed it toward Ayumi!
"Die, you bitch!"
He had actually woken up a while ago. After realizing that Koga had castrated him, he showed no remorse. Instead, he blamed everything on Ayumi.
At this moment, no one expected this unconscious person to suddenly attack, and neither side had time to react...
The cold, gleaming dagger was about to pierce Ayumi's eyes.
"Clefairy... fairy!" The Clefairy in Ayumi's arms let out a cute cry.
A blinding light, accompanied by a terrifying and violent energy, suddenly bloomed in the cave!
At this moment, the Metronome move that the Clefairy had been building up for two full chapters was finally released!
That's right, the random move it released was Metronome... and the terrifying result was...
"What the f*ck, that's Explosion!!" Ash cursed on the spot.
The confrontation takes a dramatic turn with the Clefairy's unexpected use of a powerful, random move. To continue the story and provide the most value, let's focus on the immediate aftermath of this event.