Pokémon, Ash is going to become a perfect man from now on.

As they spoke, Ash glanced at Silver. Silver was already a certified trainer; he wouldn't come here to steal badges again.

"You don't need to look at me, my gym battle can be postponed," Silver said coldly. "And Leaf Town, I'm going too! Those Team Rocket guys are all pitifully weak, but they just have to jump out and get in my way. Just looking at them is annoying!"

"That's fine, I'll have the League mail the reward to Leaf Town." Since Silver wanted to help, Ash certainly wouldn't discourage him.

"I told you I don't need any reward!"

"Okay, okay." Ash waved his hand dismissively, completely ignoring the boy's arrogant declaration.

don't want?

Once you get your hands on it, your body will definitely tell a lot.

...

Setting off again, Ash's team had grown considerably, and naturally, it had become much more lively than before.

The group made some gains in Azalea Town. Steel gave them a lot of special Poké Balls. In addition to Ash catching Totodile, Brock also got a Hazelnut Ball.

That was a little guy who got nervous easily, and he would often self-destruct, leaving Xiao Gang covered in dust and dirt.

Fortunately, with Abi, a bug expert, by his side, Xiao Gang quickly figured out Hazelnut's temperament under his guidance, and no longer gets his hair burned so easily.

Although he was going to participate in an operation, Ash did not deliberately speed up the journey. He continued to study and practice diligently on the way.

The four Pokémon I caught after arriving in Johto are all exceptionally talented and must not be wasted.

Their daily hard work and the wide variety of training programs left Abi and Xiaoyin in awe.

Of course, Silver was mostly trying to avoid suspicion. In his view, he was about to have an important battle with Ash, and observing Ash's practice was tantamount to espionage.

Ash didn't really care, but there was no need to force him to be a spectator; as long as Silver was happy, that was all that mattered.

And so, after a fulfilling journey, the group traversed the southern part of the Paulownia Forest and finally arrived at Leaf Town the day before the tournament.

"Hmm...Cities near the sea are definitely the best!" Xiaoxia stretched comfortably, feeling very comfortable in the damp and cool sea breeze.

Previously in the paulownia forest, all sorts of Bug-type Pokémon appeared one after another. In addition, there was also Bi, a boy who always carried a Bug-catching net, in the group. You can imagine what Xiaoxia's travel experience was like.

Now that she's in a seaside town far from the forest, she can't help but feel refreshed and invigorated.

"Let's go to the Pokémon Center first. Let's all get some rest today and conserve our energy for tomorrow's mission."

Ash led his group to the Pokémon Center in Leaf Town. The main character had already arrived and arranged everything for them; all they had to do was move in.

This proves once again... as long as they don't catch Pikachu, the three of them will succeed at whatever they do!

At the front desk of the Pokémon Center, Ash picked up his stored package from Nurse Joy.

This contains many things, including the reward he applied for for Silver, some items he ordered himself, and important items mailed from Alola.

"Here, these are for you." After roughly sorting them, Ash pushed a batch of items to Silver. "You should know exactly how to use them. There's also a monetary reward; I've had someone transfer it directly to your account."

Trainer identification can be used directly as a bank card. Ash personally processed Silver's identification, so of course he remembered his ID.

Those items were all carefully selected by Ash: a Sharp Claw, a high-quality Dark Stone, and a Flame Orb—undoubtedly the most suitable items for Silver.

Of course, whether he uses it or not is his own business.

Ash equipped each of the three starter Pokémon in Johto with a tool. Their levels were all quite high, and the tools would quickly boost their battle power, so there was no need to worry about their foundation being weak.

In addition, there is the Hudi.

"Here, take this. Remember to thank Blue later." Ash placed a gold and red glass bead into Alakazam's hand.

That's a Mega Stone specifically for Alakazam, a treasure that Blue found in Alola. It was sent over along with a sample of the Ultra Ball that the Aether Foundation was testing, so it was a pleasant surprise.

As for the sample Ultra Ball, Ash also examined it and found that apart from its appearance, it seemed no different from a regular Poké Ball.

If he encounters an Ultra Beast, he can try using it, but for now, he can only save it for later.

After distributing the items, Ash and his friends began to rest at the center. Meanwhile, the police and forest rangers had already secretly laid a trap in Leaf Town, all waiting for the exchange tournament to begin tomorrow!

...

The next day, the sun shone brightly, and the entire town of Ye was filled with jubilation.

The so-called Pokémon Trade Show is actually part of the annual grand festival in Leaf Town. Before the show begins, the town holds a Tauros Chase Race, during which groups of Tauros run wildly through the streets, creating a spectacular scene.

The town is also hosting a battle tournament that only Tauros can participate in, but Ash didn't catch Tauros, so he can only watch this time.

The highlight of the celebration was, of course, the Pokémon Exchange Tournament. By the time Ash and his friends arrived, the venue was already bustling with activity.

Trainers placed the Pokémon they wanted to trade outside, letting them perform as best they could while searching for their ideal trading partners; several trading machines were also placed in the venue, allowing for immediate trading once a match was made.

To be honest, Ash's attitude towards Pokémon trading is a bit hypocritical.

He wouldn't trade away the Pokémon he'd painstakingly trained, but if he encountered someone he was interested in, he could temporarily capture a new Pokémon to exchange for it, according to the other person's request.

Unfortunately, no special Pokémon will appear at the exchange event; there's only one that Ash should pay attention to...

In the end, it was still someone else's destiny.

Chapter 358 Chaos erupts in Leaf Town, Team Rocket announces its resurgence!

Some things may just be destined. No matter how different his previous experiences were from the original story, Musashi managed to subdue a big-tongued creature.

And coincidentally, she bumped into someone at the trade fair, and even more coincidentally, both of her Poké Balls fell into the trade fair at the same time, eventually resulting in her trading for an incredibly powerful Wobbuffet.

Having witnessed the entire scene, Ash couldn't help but marvel at Jessie's incredible luck.

But this is indeed a good thing. Even if they're no longer Team Rocket, the true protagonists are still the true protagonists, and with Kagami included, it's finally complete!

After walking around the venue, Ash didn't find any other Pokémon that caught his attention. Everything seemed normal, and there were no suspicious incidents.

The enemy was cautious, which was exactly what Ash had expected.

Team Rocket's operation in Azalea Town was ultimately a failure. Even though Ash had been impersonating them and maintaining contact with them all these days, it was hard to guarantee that he wouldn't be discovered.

However, Ash believed that the enemy would definitely take action, and even if the Gourd Poaching Group withdrew, Team Rocket would not let this opportunity pass!

While interrogating those grunts, Ash confirmed that this operation in Leaf Town was actually a signal of Team Rocket's resurgence!

The reason they're making such a big move is to demonstrate their power to the alliance... and to show once again the usefulness of this pawn to someone who's been 'missing'!

Therefore, Ash dared not let his guard down at all. In addition to signaling the police and rangers to continue their ambush, he also had his companions split up and disperse to various parts of the venue.

Xiaoxia and Lila went to the beach together. If the enemy really launches an operation, the waterway will be their most likely escape route.

Xiao Gang and A Bi were in a group, patrolling the venue to handle any possible emergencies.

As for Little Silver, if he doesn't want to join the team, then he can go it alone. Anyway, all he has to do later is deal with the bad guys.

The long wait continued, from noon to afternoon. Just as everyone was getting impatient, a small disturbance suddenly broke out in several corners of the venue.

"Strange...why is the Poké Ball empty?" "Where did my Pokémon go? Is the switch malfunctioning?"

The trainers questioned in bewilderment, initially in small whispers, but later more and more people were affected!

Many switches are malfunctioning. When two trainers exchange Poké Balls, all that comes out is an empty Poké Ball, and the Pokémon inside has disappeared!

The conference staff could not explain the reason either, and simply gave the vague answer that it was a system malfunction.

(Someone has tampered with the teleportation system using hacking techniques, and their attack has already begun!) After a quick investigation, the management sprites issued a warning to Ash.

"Everyone, get ready and wait for the signal!" Xiao Zhi immediately took out his phone and whispered the instructions to all his teammates and subordinates.

In an instant, everyone who was planning to clock out suddenly perked up and stood ready at their respective ambush positions!

Shortly after Ash issued the command, a cloud of dust suddenly rose on the main road outside the town. Several large trucks sped toward the Exchange Conference. Before they had even come to a complete stop, Team Rocket members wearing black uniforms with red 'R's on their chests jumped out of the trucks one after another!

"Everyone here, hand over all your Pokémon right now, or we'll get rough!"

"Haha! Tremble, the Rockets are officially back today! This action is our revenge against the league!"

A group of Team Rocket grunts quickly took control of the scene. They carried capture devices that looked like giant vacuum cleaners and used them at maximum power to forcibly suck up the Pokémon of everyone present, locking them in cages connected to the back of the capture devices.

Although the trainers present glared angrily, they dared not make any rash moves because many of the Team Rocket grunts were armed, and a group of enemy Pokémon such as Zubat and Weezing were also eyeing them. They could only watch helplessly as their Pokémon were stolen!

At the same time, some of the venue staff members who had been there earlier also took off their disguises and revealed themselves to be wearing gray hunter uniforms. They were none other than poachers from the Gur poaching group!

While Team Rocket was looting, these guys overturned several tents scattered throughout the venue, revealing huge iron cages hidden inside, along with various Pokémon imprisoned within.

They tampered with the teleporter system before, and all those mysteriously missing Pokémon ended up in their hands!

In less than a few minutes, the entire exchange event turned into a paradise for criminals. Just when these bastards thought they had won a great victory, Ash, who was in the center of the venue, gave an order without any expression!

"action!"

Rumble!

At his command, a series of booming sounds suddenly came from all around the venue, accompanied by billowing smoke, instantly attracting everyone's attention!

Ash took this opportunity to summon Alakazam, whose eyes were gleaming with intelligence.

"Let's try out this new power... Mega Evolution!"

hum!

A dazzling light quickly enveloped Alakazam's entire body. Under the effect of the Mega Stone, Alakazam's armor turned into a purple robe, and its original long yellow beard turned into a huge, thick, pale beard.

It floated in the air with its legs crossed, the ruby ​​on its forehead shimmering with a magical light, controlling five spoons to fly up and down around its body, just like those mysterious wizards in fantasy stories!

"Mental space, mental interference!"

"Huh!" With a low shout from Mega Alakazam, psychic powers spread rapidly across the venue like a tidal wave.