Elf: Rewriting the script, starting with Black Stocking Hanako

It's chaotic at the dock.

Several police officers dragged a tattered fishing net ashore, in which were two men, soaking wet and bruised, and a cat that had fainted.

At the other end of the net, several agate jellyfish, wounded and groaning weakly, were caught.

"Mayor! We've pulled two strange creatures out of the water, along with a cat, and a fishing net full of injured agate jellyfish."

The officer reported loudly.

The mayor was already feeling down about not being able to keep Jiangchuan, and upon hearing this, his anger flared up immediately.

He walked over quickly and looked down.

Wow.

A red-haired woman, dressed in tattered clothes, with bruises on her face from what looked like an accident.

A blue-haired man, equally disheveled, was trembling and hugging his arms.

And that cat, its tail fur is all bald, and its belly is up.

Looking at the fishing net again, it's clearly a specially made reinforced model. The wounds on the agate jellyfish inside are obviously caused by the rough mesh when they struggled.

"They must have been hired by Granny Jin to catch jellyfish again!"

The mayor gritted his teeth.

Granny Jin has been taken into custody by the authorities in Kuye City, but her residual poison remains!

At a time like this, someone still dares to defy the odds and continue to harm the agate jellyfish; they're practically walking right into his line of fire.

"Wake them up!" the mayor said coldly.

A bucket of seawater was poured on it.

"Wow!"

"Cough cough cough!"

Musashi and Kojiro were suddenly awakened, and Meow Meow also jumped up with a start.

"Who are you? What are you doing here? Were you hired by Granny Jin?" the mayor demanded in a barrage of questions, his tone intimidating.

Just as Musashi was about to habitually shout "We are Team Rocket," Kojiro quickly covered her mouth.

"No, no! We...we were just passing by! We accidentally fell into the sea!" Kojiro said with a forced smile, which looked more like a grimace.

"Just passing by?" The mayor pointed at the specially made fishing net. "Bringing this along? And deliberately dropping it into the habitat of the agate jellyfish?"

"This...this is..." Musashi was speechless.

Meowth's eyes darted around, trying to get away with its cuteness: "Meow~ We're environmentalists who love Water-type Pokémon, meow~ We saw some injured jellyfish and wanted to rescue them and treat them, meow~"

"Treatment?" The mayor laughed in exasperation, pointing to the fresh marks on the jellyfish in the net: "Using this kind of net for 'treatment'?"

He couldn't be bothered to waste any more words on these guys who were just spouting nonsense.

"The evidence is conclusive! Unauthorized capture and harming of protected Pokémon, especially during this special period!" The mayor waved his hand and decisively ordered, "Add them, along with that Meowth, to the labor camp for demolishing Paradise Park!"

"Labor...reform?" Musashi was dumbfounded.

"Demolish?" Kojiro was stunned.

"Paradise Paradise?" Meow Meow was confused.

Weren't they here to make money? How did it turn into them tearing down their money-making target?

Several strong police officers immediately stepped forward and, without saying a word, put specially made bracelets on the trio that restricted their movement but allowed them to perform basic labor.

"Take them away!" the mayor ordered.

"Wait! We're innocent!"

"We were really just passing by!"

"Meow! Let me go, meow!"

The trio's wails and explanations went unheard, and they were dragged directly towards the ruins of "Paradise Paradise".

…………

The open space of Paradise Park.

The once luxurious seaside resort is now nothing but ruins.

Large machinery is operating on the perimeter, making a loud noise.

The internal, more detailed dismantling and waste sorting work was handled by the "labor reform" personnel.

Musashi, Kojiro, and Meowth, all wearing matching orange vests and helmets, were carrying broken bricks, their faces covered in dust.

A dark-skinned, stern-eyed overseer held a small notebook in his hand, keeping a close eye on them.

"Hurry up! Don't slack off!"

"That pile of wood over there, sort it out!"

"I'm talking to you! You redhead! What are you spacing out for!"

Musashi trembled at the reprimand and almost dropped the brick in his hand on his foot.

She gritted her teeth and picked up the bricks, cursing Granny Jin a thousand times in her heart.

"Damn it, how come there are such big jellyfish in the sea? That annoying old woman didn't tell us!" Musashi complained as he worked, sweat streaming down his face, mixing with dust and leaving streaks.

"Ah! We were so close! We could have been rich!" Kojiro cried, picking up a broken decorative pillar, feeling utterly hopeless. "Now we're stuck doing manual labor! We're Team Rocket, for crying out loud!!"

"Meow~ Why did it turn out like this? Shouldn't we be rich by now, meow~" Meow struggled to push a small cart with a broken wheel with its paws, its tail drooping limply. "It's all that Granny Jin's fault for not giving accurate information, meow!"

The trio became even angrier at the thought of Jiang Chuan and his majestic Pidgeot.

If it weren't for him, they might have already succeeded!

"This feeling is awful!" ×3

The three of them sighed in unison, but dared not stop their work.

...........................

The sun was high in the sky.

The overseer blew his whistle.

"Lunch break! Lunch is ready!"

The Team Rocket trio, who were just moments before on the verge of collapse from exhaustion, suddenly had their eyes light up and, with incredible speed, dropped their tools and rushed towards the lunchbox distribution area.

The speed and agility of their movements stunned even the foreman.

After receiving their boxed meals, the trio found a shady corner and eagerly opened them.

"Wow!"

Musashi's eyes widened.

Inside the lunchbox, white rice was piled high, topped with a thick layer of glistening braised pork, along with vibrant green vegetables and half a braised egg.

The small compartment next to it contained pickles, and even a small individual packet of fried dried anchovies.

This food... is so much better than the food they usually get by going hungry or eating irregularly, often resorting to theft and deception.

"I'm starting!" ×3

The three of them no longer cared about their image and started frantically shoveling rice into their mouths with their chopsticks.

"Mmm...delicious! This meat is stewed until it's so tender!" Musashi's cheeks puffed out like a hamster's.

"Rice! Fragrant white rice! And it's still hot!" Kojiro was so moved he almost cried.

"Meow~ Dried fish! It's crispy dried fish, meow!" Meow held the dried fish in its two paws, crunching happily, its eyes squinting with happiness.

They devoured their boxed lunches in a whirlwind, even mixing the sauce from the pickles with the rice until it was completely clean. The three of them patted their bellies contentedly and leaned against the broken wall.

"Meow~ I have to say, it's tough, but the food here is really good, meow~ and there's even dried fish!" Meow licked the oil stains off its paws, still wanting more.

"Exactly, exactly," Kojiro let out a burp, a goofy grin spreading across his face, "I never imagined that our stable meals would turn out like this!"

Hot meals are served every day, and although the work is tiring, there is no need to live in fear or worry about where the next meal will come from... This kind of "stability" has a strange sense of comfort for the Rockets' lower-level members who are constantly on the move and living hand to mouth.

"You two are utterly useless!"

Musashi slapped Kojiro on the back of the head and glared at Meow Meow.

"Even after this meal, we must still fight with Team Rocket's spirit!" She straightened her back, trying to regain her former momentum. "We're going to be Giovanni's elite right-hand men! How can we be bought off by a meal!"

"Yes, yes, yes..." Kojiro replied, holding his head.

"Musashi is right, meow..." Meow whispered in agreement.

Musashi nodded in satisfaction, and was about to say a few more words of encouragement when his stomach made a loud "rumbling" sound at an inopportune moment.

The atmosphere instantly became awkward.

She looked at the empty lunchbox, savoring the melt-in-your-mouth deliciousness of the braised pork and the crispy texture of the dried fish...

"However..." Musashi's voice trailed off, his eyes darting around, "...this food really is..."

Kojiro and Nyanko licked their lips and joined in unison:

"It tastes so delicious!" ×3!

Despite saying that, all three pairs of eyes involuntarily glanced towards the area where the lunchboxes were being packed, wondering if there would be any dried fish left that evening.

The foreman's cold voice shattered their illusions: "Rest time over! Get up and get back to work!"

"Yes..." the three replied weakly, dragging their bodies, which felt several times heavier, back toward the pile of ruins.