Ash, with his invincible physical body, wants to become a Pokémon Master...

He carefully checked that no one else was around before removing some of his disguise, revealing his handsome face underneath.

"I was just about to leave, but I suddenly remembered something important, so I came back to find you."

As he spoke, he happily gave Xiaoyao a thumbs up.

"Haruka, you did a fantastic job at the Grand Contest! All your hard work these past few days has paid off. I'm so proud of you."

"Thank you, Mr. Michael, this is all thanks to your guidance."

"But what exactly do you want with us?"

Well...

Suddenly, Mikuri looked at Ash.

"Ash, you once caught a black Rayquaza, but now you can't find it, right?"

That's right.

After Ash parted ways with Sisley, he went to great lengths to try and summon his NecroKing back.

After all, it's for the future of the Hoenn League and the world. If Rayquaza can be found, then the subsequent resolution of the meteor crisis can be done in the most orthodox and risk-free way.

Although Ash thought that having him directly smash the meteorite was a good idea, he couldn't resist the fact that others were afraid, so he had to compromise a little.

Unfortunately, no matter what Ash does to the Tri-Orifice, he can't summon back the Nugget he loves so much.

This made Ash quite sad.

However, at this moment, Mikuri suddenly smiled and said to Ash.

"Do you want to get it back? If so, I have a way."

Chapter 430 is probably setting the stage for Niko's return.

At the foot of Mt. Chimney, near LavaCity, Ash and his friends are riding the famous sightseeing cable car, methodically traversing the hill.

Once Ash crosses Mt. Chimney, he'll reach Lavatree Town, the location of his next gym challenge.

Now they can simply enjoy their trip to this tourist destination and wait for the cable car to stop.

However, along their journey, there was always a hint of unease amidst the calm.

Sure enough, while Xiaozhi was still admiring the scenery outside the window, the carriage became noisy again.

"Oh no, sister, you need to put the Skitty away! It's dangerous for it to be using its skills like that in the carriage. What if the cable car accidentally falls off?"

"Of course I know, don't rush me, Skitty can't use its assist move anymore."

"Meow?"

The kitten tilted its head, ignoring Xiaoyao's words, and continued wagging its cute big tail.

Torchic used the assist move it had recently learned during its daily practice to unleash its Spark ability.

The fire instantly turned Xiaoyao and Xiaosheng's faces black.

"Seriously, they only let you out because you haven't been out for a while..."

"How could it be so naughty?" May sighed as she recalled Skitty into its Poké Ball.

Faced with Xiangwei Miao's adorable and affectionate appearance, she really couldn't bear to say anything harsh and punish her severely.

"Sayonara, are we really going this way? Shouldn't the other route be faster to get to LavaCitadel?"

"There's nothing I can do about it." Xiao Zhi smiled as he looked at the two siblings, who were as noisy as ever, and casually took out a handkerchief to wipe the dust off Xiao Yao's face.

“Mikeli said that Dr. Solans is conducting research on the top of Chimney Mountain. If we want to get the meteorite from him, we can only go this way.”

This is the message that Michael told Ash a few days ago in Autumn Leaf City.

As Xiao Zhi recalled the situation, he fell into deep thought.

"Fragments of a meteorite left over from the meteorite crisis a thousand years ago..."

He truly hadn't expected that Mikuri, a trainer who rarely used Dragon Pokémon, would have such a hidden identity as a member of the Sooty Citizens.

Like Higana, a descendant of the Meteor People, Mikuri is a descendant of those who experienced the Great Crisis and is one of the Glass People who have been responsible for protecting the Sky Pillar of Glass City for generations.

Therefore, it is known how attractive meteorites containing enormous natural energy are to Rayquaza.

Just recently, the Alliance received a report from Dr. Solans that he had found fragments of a meteorite near the crater at the top of Chimney Mountain.

Generally speaking, after a thousand years, the remains of that time should have disappeared for various reasons, but unexpectedly there are still remnants.

That's why Michael came specifically to inform Ash.

They hoped he would help Dr. Solans with his research on the ancient meteorite fragments, and that the meteorite would be given to him as a reward once the research was completed.

This allows Ash to try using the meteorite to lure his Rayquaza down.

"Meteorites containing natural energy have a fatal attraction for Rayquaza. I believe you can definitely do something with that meteorite, Ash."

That's what Wallace said to Ash at the time, and Ash naturally agreed immediately.

After all, it was a rare way to get Nigo back from sitting idly, so he had no reason to refuse.

"But Ash, you know that Professor Solans is quite peculiar. He's so fond of meteorites, and he keeps running to dangerous places like volcanoes every day."

"This is the job they love most. It would be a good thing for the world if there were more scholars like them."

Everyone was happily eating lunch and chatting in the cable car while enjoying the surrounding scenery, but then Xiaosheng suddenly spoke up.

"Hey, Sister Ash, don't you guys find it strange? Has the cable car stopped moving since just now?"

"Hey, it seems so!"

Because this area is near a volcano, the scenery is pretty much the same everywhere, and Xiaozhi and Xiaoyao are both busy cooking.

If Xiaosheng hadn't reminded them, they wouldn't have realized that the cable car had been stopped for a long time.

"What on earth is going on?" Xiao Zhi tried dialing the emergency call number inside the carriage, but unfortunately, no one answered.

He immediately realized, "Something must have happened at Yantushan!"

Suddenly, they saw a large armed helicopter taking off from near the top of Yantushan Mountain from the cable car.

This aircraft was definitely not a Union model, and to their surprise, they soon spotted a familiar pattern on the helicopter.

"Team Ocean! What are people from that organization doing here?" Ash was quite puzzled.

Fortunately, he now has an inside contact within the Ocean team, who immediately sent a message to inquire.

Soon, Ash got the information from Ms. Izumi, who had plenty of water.

Upon seeing the message from the other party, Xiao Zhi immediately frowned.

"Oh no! The news that Dr. Solans obtained the ancient meteorite has been leaked!"

"What? So fast?" Xiaoyao and Xiaosheng were also incredulous. "Didn't Mr. Michael say that this was a secret in the League?"

"That's all Dr. Solans's fault," Ash said with a pout.

Dr. Solans has absolutely no sense of precaution.

Because the outer shell of the ancient meteorite was too hard for him to break open for research, he brazenly asked other scholars for help.

This request directly led to the leak of the information.

Anything related to ancient Pokémon would immediately attract the attention of either of those organizations, who would swarm around like wolves smelling meat at the slightest hint of trouble.

The Ocean Team came to Chimney Mountain this time in an attempt to steal the meteorite from Dr. Solans.

"Ash, isn't Professor Zorans in big danger right now?"

"That's right, so we can't waste any more time in the carriage, Pikachu Iron Tail!"

The electric mouse leaped up cleanly, tearing a large hole in the roof of the carriage. Ash, carrying May and Max, jumped out through the hole.

Ash initially intended to chase after Team Aqua's helicopter, but then he noticed the other tourists trapped in cable cars on the other cables.

He decided to head towards the center of the Yantushan scenic area, where the ocean team's helicopter had taken off.

As soon as he arrived, Xiaozhi saw the original staff members tied up and thrown aside.

Surprisingly, the control room was still surrounded by a dense crowd of Team Aqua members.

It seems that the departure of the helicopter did not evacuate many people; the main force of the Ocean Team remains here.

The cable car suddenly stopping was indeed their doing.

Since that's the case, Xiao Zhi won't stand on ceremony.

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt!"

"Pickup!"

"Skitty, assist!"

"Meow!"

The thick lightning bolts, along with the silver whirlwind summoned by the cheetah, bombarded downwards.

The attack caught the unprepared members of the Ocean Team completely off guard, resulting in a significant loss of personnel.

"What's going on? Where did the attack come from?"

Among the Ocean Team, a burly, dark-skinned man was the first to regain his composure and quickly began to check who the intruder was.

After searching for a long time, he finally spotted Ash and his friends, who were calmly gazing into the air.

"Damn it, who are you people?! How dare you stop our Ocean Team's mission? Are you tired of living?"

He pointed at Ash and his friends and angrily started cursing.

Ash simply rubbed his ears.

"Hmm, that sounds familiar. Do people from your evil organization like to say that?"

"What evil organization? We are Team Ocean, fighting for love and peace, and for a future where we can coexist harmoniously with Pokémon!"

"It's all talk and no action! Pikachu, unleash another Thunderbolt!"

"Pickup!"

Ash quickly appeared in the air, disorienting Team Aqua before instantly bringing May and her siblings back to the ground, and immediately launched another attack.