Pokemon: With Title System

Chapter 67: Giovanni, Sird, and Chakra

"Ah, Elite Four Hibiki!"

It wasn't until Hibiki spoke that Asahi even noticed him.

Hibiki smiled. "I heard you were the one who found the intel on Rocket's Celadon base. Seriously…"

He wasn't sure whether to praise Asahi or be angry at how utterly incompetent the League's intelligence division was.

Lt. Surge was one thing, but the Celadon base…

Based on the documents they'd retrieved, that Rocket facility had existed for seven years.

And yet, before Asahi's tip, the League had no idea it was even there.

Lance was just as frustrated with the bureaucrats running the League's intelligence unit.

But he held back and changed the subject.

"Asahi, do you need any backup?"

Asahi had been about to ask for help—so he wasted no time.

"Yeah, can you send people over? We've got too many prisoners for just Green and me to handle."

"...How many?"

Lance was confused.

From the video, it didn't seem like that many Rockets had been captured.

But Asahi simply nodded. "A lot."

If Asahi said so, then there must've been a lot.

"Alright, I'll head there myself."

The cleanup in Celadon could be left to Hibiki and Erika, the Celadon Gym Leader.

"Hold tight. I'll be there soon."

After hanging up, Lance gave Hibiki a few instructions, then climbed onto Dragonite and took off toward Vermilion City.

---

Viridian Gym – Underground Base

Having just escaped from Lance and Hibiki, Sird and Chakra now stood in Giovanni's office.

"That's the situation, Boss." Sird bowed. "We only managed to extract some of our people."

Giovanni tapped his fingers on his desk, unfazed.

He wasn't focused on the losses—

Instead, he asked, "How did the League find our Celadon base?"

That was the real issue.

Hearing Surge's comment, Chakra's face immediately turned red.

"S-Surge…!"

She raised her hand to strike him, but due to her shorter stature, her attack only reached his knee.

"Enough." Giovanni's voice cut through their squabble.

At his command, both Chakra and Surge immediately stopped and looked at him respectfully.

Giovanni stood up, his back turned to them.

"Hmph. A setup, huh? Regardless, investigate this 'Masked Corps.'"

"If someone is framing them, it means they have a serious grudge.

"As long as we find some clues, we'll figure out who's targeting us."

His words made the others nod in agreement.

"Let me handle it, Boss!" Chakra volunteered.

But Giovanni ignored her. "Leave it to the executives in Johto. You two return to the Sevii Islands. Orca alone isn't enough to deal with Lorelei."

Hearing this, Chakra wanted to say something, but in the end, she simply bowed along with Surge.

"Yes, Boss!"

Giovanni was about to dismiss them when his assistant, Matori, suddenly received a notification on her tablet.

She glanced down at the screen, her expression shifting.

"Boss, we've lost contact with Lt. Surge. Vermilion Gym is suspected to be under attack. Current status unknown. Witnesses report seeing Lance entering the gym just moments ago."

"…"

The temperature in the office seemed to plummet instantly.

---

A Dragonite can circle the globe in 24 hours, and Lance's champion-tier Dragonite was among the fastest of its kind.

It took only a short time for him to reach Vermilion City.

Landing in front of the gym, Lance felt a wave of nostalgia.

The last time he had visited this place was during last year's routine evaluations of gym trainers across Kanto.

Back then, Lt. Surge's Raichu had put on an impressive performance—one of the best among all Kanto gym leaders. Lance had been left with a positive impression.

But now…

Looking at the handwritten "Closed" sign on the gym's entrance, Lance shook his head and stepped inside.

Unlike most gyms, where staff would be stationed at the entrance to assist new trainers, this one was eerily silent.

Instead, Asahi's Gardevoir stood at the doorway, cradling a stone tablet in her arms.

Scattered across the floor were numerous gym trainers wearing Vermilion Gym uniforms.

Clearly, they were all Team Rocket members.

Lance's estimation of Asahi's strength rose once again.

"Gardevoir, where's Asahi?" Lance asked.

Gardevoir opened her glowing blue eyes and, upon hearing Lance's question, pointed toward the battle arena.

So Asahi was still inside.

"Thanks."

After thanking Gardevoir, Lance walked up to the battle arena doors.

He pushed them open…

And found Asahi engaged in a Pokémon battle with Green.

At first glance, it seemed like a normal match.

But after watching for a moment, Lance realized—this wasn't an ordinary battle. It was a lesson.

Asahi's Pokémon was a nimble Eevee.

Under his command, Eevee effortlessly dodged Clefable's attacks. Whenever Green made a strategic mistake, Asahi had Eevee exploit it with controlled, non-damaging strikes. Each time, he took the opportunity to explain what had gone wrong.

"Professor Oak was right to recommend Asahi as a lecturer at Celadon University."

From what Lance knew, none of the Pokémon battle instructors at Celadon University had this level of teaching ability.

Mid-battle, Asahi noticed Lance's arrival.

He gestured for Green to stop.

"Lance, you're finally here…" Asahi wore an expression of 'I've been waiting for you forever.'

"…?"

Did he really have to look that relieved?

Lance glanced toward the corner of the battle arena, where Lt. Surge and a dozen Team Rocket members were bound. He had already been a little puzzled, but now he was even more confused.

"With all these prisoners—even counting the ones outside—you were more than capable of handling them yourself."

Was Asahi worried about a Team Rocket rescue mission during transport?

"I… Never mind, just come with me and see for yourself."

Rather than explaining, Asahi led Lance to a storage area in the gym's basement.

Creaaaaak.

The door swung open.

Lance's eyes widened in shock.

Inside, nearly a hundred unconscious Team Rocket members were handcuffed and piled together like a school of Wishiwashi, crammed into the small storage room.

And then Asahi, grinning, added, "And this is just some of them. I've got another forty or so locked up in my hotel room…"

"Oh, and the main control room under the gym still has a Team Rocket data server with stored files.

"The data isn't as valuable as what's on their hard drives, but I'm sure there's something useful in there.

"Also, the gym phone has been ringing non-stop since this morning—trainers asking when the gym will reopen, the power plant inquiring why Vermilion Gym's electricity usage is so low today, and the Shipping Association inviting Lt. Surge to a launch ceremony for a new cargo ship.

"Now do you see why I called for backup?"

Lance nodded.

He understood.

Asahi just wanted someone to handle all this bureaucratic nonsense for him.

And that someone…

…was him.

---

As a Champion, Lance obviously didn't need to personally take care of everything. Unlike Asahi, who was a lone International Police agent, he had the authority to mobilize resources.

A few phone calls later…

The Pokémon League issued an official statement:

[Lt. Surge, Vermilion Gym Leader, has been arrested on charges of smuggling and is currently under investigation.]

The gym's phone calls immediately stopped, resolving Asahi's headache in an instant.

"I also contacted Officer Jenny. She'll be here soon to process the prisoners. But I'm not sure if the local police have been compromised by Lt. Surge… You might want to lie low for a bit."

Hearing Lance's suggestion, Asahi considered it.

"Yeah, that makes sense."

He had a mask that could change his appearance, but he was never good at handling cleanup operations.

As for whether Team Rocket would find out what he had done here in Vermilion City… Asahi figured that was inevitable.

---