Team Rocket's Second-in-Command!-Chapter 359: Team Rocket’s Second-in-Command! [] [100 PS]

Night had fallen over Hau'oli City, and the streets were unusually quiet.

As Luo Yuan walked through the city, he noticed that the few Skull grunts who normally loitered around had completely vanished.

"Sabrina, take Lillie back to the hotel," Luo Yuan said.

Sabrina nodded without question, while Lillie, though curious about what Luo Yuan planned to do, didn't press for details.

After parting ways, Luo Yuan carefully avoided security cameras and used Ditto's transformations to alter his appearance multiple times. Eventually, he arrived at the location Matori had sent him—a former Team Skull hideout.

As he entered, the disguised Rocket members dressed as Skull grunts saluted him, making Luo Yuan feel like he was the real leader of Team Skull.

Smiling wryly at the thought, he made his way to the base's innermost room, where Matori was waiting.

Matori, now dressed in Team Skull attire, looked much livelier than her usual stern self.

"You look like a rebellious delinquent in that outfit," Luo Yuan teased.

Matori rolled her eyes but didn't dignify the comment with a response.

With the pleasantries out of the way, Luo Yuan asked, "Have you caught Guzma?"

"As expected, yes," Matori replied, though she sounded exasperated. "Ever since he woke up, he's been screaming and making a scene. I'm beginning to think he has anger issues."

As if on cue, loud banging and Guzma's muffled shouts echoed from a nearby room.

Curious, Luo Yuan followed Matori to the back room.

When they opened the door, they found Guzma, hands bound, repeatedly banging his head against the wall.

Luo Yuan couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. Did this guy learn Iron Head or something?

The sight was so absurd that even Luo Yuan felt a twinge of secondhand pain.

Hearing the door open, Guzma stopped his self-inflicted battering and turned around, ready to hurl a fresh wave of insults.

But when he saw Luo Yuan standing before him, his eyes widened in shock, and his face twisted into an expression of disbelief.

"You..."

"Me?" Luo Yuan replied, smiling.

Guzma didn't continue.

In that moment, everything clicked into place.

He had been wondering why Team Rocket had suddenly shown up in Alola, why they had timed their strike perfectly after his defeat, and how they knew he was vulnerable.

If Luo Yuan himself was part of Team Rocket, it all made sense.

Luo Yuan had brought Team Rocket to Alola.

Luo Yuan had informed them of his Pokémon being incapacitated.

He had been completely blindsided.

Never in his wildest dreams had Guzma imagined that a Johto Elite Four member would also be a high-ranking Rocket operative.

And yet, Luo Yuan had even managed to fool him with his authoritative "Elite Four" act on the beach.

"It seems you've figured it out," Luo Yuan said, his voice calm but firm. "But now that you know, you should also understand that you won't be leaving here so easily."

"What do you want?" Guzma asked, his voice hoarse.

He had nothing left to lose.

"Join Team Rocket," Luo Yuan offered, his tone leaving no room for negotiation.

The proposal caught Guzma off guard.

After their high-profile success in Hoenn, Team Rocket's reputation as a global organization had skyrocketed. Many of Guzma's own grunts idolized Team Rocket, and even Guzma himself couldn't deny the allure of joining such a powerful group.

But he doubted their goals stopped at taking over Team Skull.

Team Rocket's true target must be the Aether Foundation, Guzma thought.

The idea that his recruitment was part of a larger plan to deal with Lusamine crossed his mind.

Guzma's eyes flickered with uncertainty.

Though tempted by the offer, Guzma wasn't one to betray Lusamine so easily. After all, she was the only person who had ever acknowledged his strength.

As he schemed about feigning loyalty to Team Rocket and secretly feeding information back to Lusamine, Luo Yuan's calm voice interrupted his thoughts.

"If you're thinking of pretending to join us, don't bother. Your thoughts are an open book to me."

The words reverberated in Guzma's mind like a thunderclap.

Recalling the fear he'd felt during their earlier encounter, Guzma's heart sank, and he abandoned the idea of deception.

"You don't really have a choice," Luo Yuan said. "Joining Team Rocket is your only option."

Guzma fell silent, grappling with the reality of his situation.

Deep down, he knew Luo Yuan was right.

Knowing Luo Yuan's dual identities as both a Johto Elite Four member and a Rocket executive left him with two paths: join Team Rocket or spend the rest of his life locked away.

Guzma's loyalty to Lusamine was the only thing holding him back. She had given him a sense of purpose, a place where his strength was valued.

But the prospect of freedom loomed large.

Watching Guzma wrestle with his inner conflict, Luo Yuan smiled. There was no need to rush; Guzma would come around eventually.

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Leaving the room, Luo Yuan turned to Matori.

"How's the operation progressing?"

"We've secured all of Team Skull's assets on Melemele Island," Matori reported. "But the grunts are more scattered across the other islands, and our forces are stretched thin. It'll take some time to clean up."

"Time," she added, "is a conservative estimate."

With all the major hideouts under Rocket control, only a few stragglers remained. By stationing operatives at key locations, they could easily pick off the remaining Skull members as they surfaced.

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oh yeah powerstone rewards are back

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