"What?!"
Jessie stared at her unconscious Ekans, refusing to believe that she and James had been wiped out so easily. Two of Team Rocket's elite operatives, defeated by a child in less than a minute.
"Exeggutor, don't let them escape," Gary ordered calmly. "Tie them up with Confusion."
"Exeggutor!"
A faint psychic glow flared once more, and the three members of Team Rocket suddenly found themselves frozen in place, unable to move a muscle.
"Damn it, you little brat! Let us go!"
"We're Team Rocket! Mess with us, and you'll be in serious trouble!"
"That's right—meowth!"
Even immobilized, the trio remained as theatrical as ever, throwing out threats as though their organization's name alone would intimidate a ten-year-old.
Gary almost laughed.
Do you three idiots have any idea what you're doing?
Viridian City was Team Rocket's most important stronghold in the Kanto Region. Giovanni himself was based here, and he had explicit standing orders forbidding any operations within city limits. The whole point was to keep the city clean—untraceable—so the Rocket Boss could maintain his cover as both Gym Leader and respected businessman.
And now these three clowns had not only operated here against direct policy—they had failed publicly, on top of it.
If they had succeeded, the League would have launched a full investigation into Viridian City. Giovanni would have been forced to spend months covering his tracks.
Gary couldn't even imagine how furious the Rocket Boss must have been right now.
He ignored their threats completely.
"Exeggutor. Leech Seed."
Three more emerald seeds shot from Exeggutor's heads, embedding themselves into the Rocket trio's clothing. Almost instantly, vines erupted outward, coiling tightly around their arms, legs, and torsos.
The vines began to glow faintly, draining their stamina.
Within seconds, all three slumped, eyes fluttering closed as they collapsed into unconsciousness.
"There. Quiet at last." Gary brushed off his hands.
By now, Nurse Joy had emerged from behind the counter, the immediate danger clearly passed. She hurried over with the others, gratitude written across her face.
"Thank you so much. You really saved us. If those Pokémon had been stolen, I wouldn't have known how to face the Trainers who entrusted them to us…"
"It's fine," Gary said with a polite smile. "As a League Trainer, this is my responsibility. Speaking of which—you should call Officer Jenny right away."
"There's no need. The alarm already went out. She should be here any moment."
"Don't move! Police!"
The familiar voice barked from outside almost on cue. Officer Jenny stormed into the lobby, weapon drawn, eyes scanning the room.
She paused, momentarily uncertain. Two Trainers were standing among the staff—neither of them looked particularly threatening. She had even seen Ash earlier that morning. As for Gary, standing calmly beside Nurse Joy, he didn't fit the profile of an intruder at all.
Nurse Joy quickly stepped forward and explained everything.
The moment Officer Jenny realized the unconscious trio on the floor were the Team Rocket criminals listed in her recent reports, she immediately cuffed them, ordered her subordinates to haul them away, and turned to Gary with sincere thanks.
Gary accepted the thanks politely.
But internally, he already knew the truth: the Viridian City police would never be able to hold the Rocket trio. They'd be loose again before the week was over.
Whether his actions tonight would change their fate at all—Gary didn't really care.
Earlier, before this confrontation, he had been worried Team Rocket might be genuinely powerful. To prepare, he had used eight of his ten Low-level Rare Candies on Exeggutor, raising it from Level 10 to Level 18.
In hindsight, that had been a massive overinvestment.
[Koffing ♂ — Level 9 — Elite-tier]
[Ekans ♂ — Level 10 — Elite-tier]
That was what Jessie and James had been working with.
Gary nearly groaned out loud. If I had known how weak you idiots were, I wouldn't have wasted half my candies.
"Gary, you already have two Pokémon."
Ash had wandered over, looking impressed despite himself.
"Yeah," Gary said, his tone deliberately casual. "What about you?"
"Ah… I haven't caught one yet…" Ash mumbled, scratching the back of his head.
He had already been mocked by Professor Oak earlier today over the phone. He hadn't expected Gary to twist the knife further.
"You said you wanted to be my rival," Gary continued mercilessly, "but you couldn't even handle two Team Rocket grunts. At this rate, collecting all eight Badges might be too much for you. You should give up the unrealistic dream of becoming a Pokémon Master while you still can."
"I won't give up!" Ash snapped back instantly. "Pikachu's just hurt right now. If it wasn't injured, I would've definitely beaten Team Rocket myself!"
"Really?"
Gary glanced over at Pikachu, who lay weakly across Misty's lap, still attached to the recovery batteries. The little Electric-type looked utterly drained—barely able to keep its eyes open.
[Pikachu ♂ — Level 15 — Champion-tier]
Gary's brow lifted slightly.
Champion potential?
That was unexpected.
By all logic, Pikachu shouldn't have such high potential. Wild Pikachu were generally common Pokémon with average stats. There was no reason this particular one should rank so high.
Then a thought struck him.
Could it be that being struck by powerful lightning enhances an Electric-type's potential?
In the original timeline, Ash's Pikachu had been struck not just by an ordinary thunderstorm—but by Raikou's and Zekrom's lightning as well. And every time, Pikachu had emerged stronger. Its stored electricity grew more potent, more refined, as though it had absorbed the lightning of Legendary Pokémon and added it to its own internal reserves.
If that was true—if Electric-types could be strengthened by external lightning of sufficient power—it was a strategy worth investigating.
Once I capture an Electric-type myself, I'll need to test this.
Ash, meanwhile, had glanced down at Pikachu's miserable state. Suddenly his earlier bravado seemed to falter, and he looked considerably less confident than he had a moment ago.
"You take care of Pikachu," Gary said, turning to leave. "I'm heading out."
"Heading out? It's already this late, where are you going, Gary?" Ash asked, confused.
"Where do you think? The hotel, of course," Gary answered flatly. "The Pokémon Center is sealed off as a crime scene tonight. They obviously can't accommodate anyone."
He shook his head as he walked toward the door.
This Ash really has zero common sense.
Couldn't Ash see the cordons being set up around the building? The Pokémon Center wouldn't be accepting overnight guests until at least tomorrow afternoon.
As for Ash—he wouldn't be leaving anyway. He'd undoubtedly stay right where he was until Pikachu fully recovered.
Gary checked into a high-end hotel a few blocks away.
After settling into his room, he frowned at the system panel.
Strange. The mission still isn't complete.
Ever since defeating Team Rocket, he had been waiting for the system's confirmation chime. But hours had passed, and there had been nothing.
The reason Pikachu had originally destroyed the Pokémon Center—at least according to the timeline—was because of the Rocket trio's invasion. Pikachu itself had no innate desire to demolish the place.
Now that Gary had already neutralized the threat, Pikachu obviously wouldn't unleash its electricity on the building.
So why hadn't the mission cleared?
Maybe because Pikachu is still inside the Pokémon Center?
The mission specifically required preventing Pikachu from destroying the Viridian Pokémon Center. As long as Pikachu remained physically inside the danger zone, the mission's conditions could technically still be considered "in progress."
Perhaps the mission would only complete once Pikachu actually left the building.
"Then I guess I'll just have to wait until tomorrow."
Gary shrugged and put it out of his mind. It was only ten Low-level Rare Candies. Annoying to lose, but hardly catastrophic.
Below Gym-tier, a Pokémon's level was easy to raise anyway. As long as the potential was there, levelling was just a matter of time and consistent training.
The next day.
The first thing Gary did upon waking was check his space backpack.
[Low-level Rare Candy ×10]
Still ten. The mission remained incomplete.
Slightly concerned, Gary walked over to the window and looked out across the city.
The Pokémon Center was still standing—untouched, intact, exactly as he had left it last night.
Apparently, Ash and his friends still hadn't left Viridian City.