The underground passage was pitch dark. There was no light at all — for an ordinary person, walking in such an environment would be difficult, even terrifying.
But for Nozomi, who possessed psychic powers, and his partner Gastly, who thrived in the shadows, the dimness made little difference.
"We're here."
After advancing underground for about four or five minutes, Nozomi's telepathy detected that the exit was just ahead.
The tunnel's end led directly beneath the battle arena where the fight had taken place earlier.
Cautiously, Nozomi extended his psychic sense outward. He sensed only two people above — both dressed as Gym staff.
"Just our luck," one of them grumbled in a hoarse voice. "Why do we have to clean up the battlefield?"
"Quit whining," the other replied impatiently. "This is an order from Lt. Surge himself. If you don't do it, do you still plan to stay in Team Rocket?"
Just those few words carried an alarming amount of information.
"Lt. Surge… Team Rocket?!" Nozomi's heart skipped a beat. So Lt. Surge really is one of them?
He had suspected some connection between the Vermilion Gym Leader and Team Rocket before — mostly because of the Pokémon Adventures manga he had read in his previous life.
In that version of the story, aside from Giovanni of Viridian Gym, the Gym Leaders of Vermilion (Lt. Surge), Saffron (Sabrina), and Fuchsia (Koga) were all high-ranking Team Rocket officers. Even Blaine of Cinnabar Gym had participated in the creation of Mewtwo.
But he never expected that, in this world, Lt. Surge really was a member of Team Rocket.
"Could it be… this isn't the anime world I thought I crossed into, but a fusion of the anime and the Pokémon Adventures universe?"
His mind raced as he continued to listen.
"Hey, that guy Nozomi's something else, huh? Took down so many of our Team Rocket officers in a row." The hoarse voice spoke again.
"Yeah, he's strong," the other man agreed. "You can tell how dangerous he is just from the reports we got. That Steelix of his, and he's got a Metagross too! That's a Pseudo-Legendary, man!" His tone was thick with envy.
"So what if he's got a Pseudo-Legendary?" the hoarse one scoffed bitterly. "Doesn't matter. This time, he's done for!"
"Oh? You heard something?"
"Heh, my cousin's with the Special Operations Unit in Viridian City. He told me this Vermilion operation is a big deal."
"What's that got to do with Nozomi?"
"How's it not related? I heard Boss Giovanni himself sent in Executive-class officers this time!"
"Executives!?"
"Yeah. Personal orders. The Boss must've had enough of that guy wrecking our plans again and again. He's sending multiple Executives this time. Nozomi's finished!"
"So that's it, huh? Guess he's finally gonna get what's coming to him."
"About time too," the hoarse man sneered. "If not for him, Lt. Surge wouldn't be this pissed. We wouldn't be stuck here cleaning up his mess!"
Clearly, he blamed Nozomi for his own miserable assignment.
After that, their conversation drifted into trivial complaints — about Team Rocket's cutbacks at the Vermilion Branch, about the League's recent crackdowns — nothing of real value.
Their voices gradually faded as they walked away.
Down below, Nozomi frowned.
"Team Rocket's operation in Vermilion… could it be related to the S.S. Anne?"
The moment he thought of Vermilion City, that sunken luxury cruise ship came to mind.
As far as he knew, that was the only major incident ever tied to Vermilion.
"But if they're deploying Executives…" he muttered.
He hadn't expected that he'd ended up on Giovanni's personal hit list — important enough for multiple Executives to be dispatched against him.
Maybe it was just coincidence — they might take him out while on another mission — but Nozomi couldn't afford to take chances.
He might make short work of ordinary Rocket officers, but Executives were a different breed entirely.
The Four Generals, the Three Beasts — every one of them was infamous throughout the League. Even Elite Four members took them seriously.
And him?
If he wasn't careful, he'd pay for it in blood.
The weight of it all hit him hard.
But along with the pressure came a sense of relief.
If he hadn't impulsively used his Steelix to dig this tunnel and sneak into the Vermilion Gym, he never would have overheard this information — that multiple Executives were being mobilized.
"At least now I know," he thought grimly. "I've got to act fast. Can't just sit here and wait for death."
He considered his options. Maybe he should reach out to the League once he got out.
After all, Team Rocket's plans targeted the League itself — it wasn't something he could handle alone.
That thought settled his nerves a little.
Still, he needed more evidence.
To convince the League to send an Elite Four member, he'd need hard proof — not just his word.
After confirming through telepathy that the area above was clear, Nozomi levitated himself silently upward and slipped out of the tunnel.