Pokémon: My Titles Know No Limits! [197]

Back when August and Blue had grabbed Meowth’s face, they had really squeezed hard. Even now, just thinking about it made Meowth’s cheeks ache.

Hearing Meowth’s reminder, Jessie and James finally remembered.

Right!

It was after running into this guy that the entire S.S. Anne had been surrounded by the League, forcing them to flee. And when they finally made it back, Giovanni had chewed them out for it!

Their eyes flickered to Blue, who was standing nearby.

Perfect. All their enemies were here in one place.

New grudges stacked upon old ones.

Jessie pointed at August. “Perfect timing! Today, we’ll settle the score with you!”

James nodded. “That’s right!”

August tilted his head, amused.

“So you really don’t recognize me?”

Not only had they failed to recognize him, but they hadn’t recognized Mewtwo either.

Do these three even keep up with Rocket intel at all?

Then again, it kind of made sense.

In Mewtwo Strikes Back, Giovanni had already captured Mewtwo before Ash even met it.

And yet these three still knew nothing about it.

“…Are you guys just completely sidelined in Team Rocket?” August suddenly asked, as if coming to a realization.

The trio froze.

“H-Hey! What are you saying?!”

“We’re Elite Agents under Giovanni!”

“We’re going to be executives one day, meow!”

They immediately rushed to defend their honor.

Seeing them panic, August waved his hand dismissively.

“I know, I know. No need to get worked up…”

“I was just speculating, since it seems like most Rocket members these days at least know who I am.”

That jab clearly hit a sore spot.

The trio had no intention of continuing the conversation.

“Who cares who you are?! Hand over the Slowpoke!”

Jessie and James reached for their Poké Balls—

“Tsk.”

August had wanted to chat a little longer, but seeing them about to make a move, he simply shrugged and gestured to Mewtwo.

Mewtwo didn’t even bother making a big motion.

It simply raised its hand and gently pressed downward.

CRACK!

The hot air balloon plummeted like a rock, as if gravity had instantly doubled.

Jessie, James, and Meowth screamed as they crashed into the ground.

BOOM!

The impact left them dazed and sprawled across the dirt.

Meanwhile, Pikachu used the opportunity to wriggle free from the mechanical claw and return to Ash’s shoulder. Sparks crackled from its cheeks as it glared toward Team Rocket.

From the wreckage, the trio groggily pulled themselves up—only to realize something was off.

“…Wait. Something’s here with us.”

They turned their heads in unison.

Sitting right in the middle of their group…

Was Psyduck.

Still clutching its swollen forehead.

The balloon had crashed precisely on the spot where Psyduck had been buried, unintentionally freeing it.

“This dumb duck again, meow?” Meowth muttered.

“Hey! Give me back my Psyduck!” Misty shouted.

She might get annoyed with Psyduck, but she wasn’t about to let Team Rocket steal it.

Jessie, however, scoffed.

“Oh, please. We don’t steal idiot Pokémon.”

She punctuated her words by smacking Psyduck on the head.

Thwack!

The moment her fist connected—

Psyduck froze.

Its three black head feathers shot straight up.

A faint blue glow began to radiate around its body.

“…Huh?”

August had been about to have Mewtwo deal with them—

But the moment he sensed Psyduck’s psychic energy surging, his eyes gleamed with interest.

Now this is getting interesting…

Team Rocket, on the other hand, instantly recognized what was happening.

They had seen this before.

And it never ended well for them.

“…Oh no.”

Jessie and James both reached for Arbok and Weezing’s Poké Balls, but before they could even touch them—

A wave immobilized them on the spot.

“It’s [Disable]!’” Misty exclaimed excitedly.

Finally! Psyduck was actually useful—even if it wasn’t during the Gym assessment.

The trio struggled against the psychic hold—

But at the same time, they saw Pikachu grinning wickedly.

Oh, no.

“No, no, NO—!”

“PIKA-CHUUUU!”

A massive jolt of electricity shot forward.

The explosion launched Team Rocket into the sky, leaving only Psyduck standing in the aftermath.

For the first time, August personally witnessed Team Rocket getting blasted off.

It was… oddly entertaining.

“Why didn’t you just arrest them?” Silver asked, still standing beside August.

August definitely had the chance to take them in.

“Arrest them?” August smirked, spreading his hands. “That would just make things boring.”

Without Team Rocket, Ash’s journey would be so dull.

Besides, why waste League resources feeding these three in prison when they could keep being useless in Team Rocket?

“…?”

Silver did not see the appeal in this at all.

Feeling lost, he turned to Blue for guidance—

Only for Blue to shrug.

She didn’t get it either.

But unlike Silver, she had already accepted that August’s thought process was something she would never fully understand.

...

With Team Rocket gone as quickly as they came, attention returned to Misty’s Gym assessment.

“Investigator August, I…”

Misty started to speak, but August cut her off.

Under her confused gaze, August simply said—

“Congratulations. You passed the assessment.”

Misty’s eyes widened.

She had completely given up hope—

Yet somehow… she had passed?

“Wait… why?”

She had lost every battle.

She knew she didn’t deserve to pass.

“You want the fake reason or the real one?” August asked.

Before Misty could answer, Ash immediately butted in. “What’s the fake reason?”

August smirked.

“The fake reason? Your Starmie performed well, and your Psyduck demonstrated its true strength against Team Rocket, so you passed.”

Misty narrowed her eyes.

“I want the real reason.”

August sighed.

“The League is running out of Gym Leaders. Badly.”

“They’re so desperate that they’re actually considering reinstating Koga and Lt. Surge… Just to fill in the gaps.”

August shrugged.

“Between that and bringing you back? You’re the safer choice.”

Silence.

Everyone exchanged glances, not quite sure what to say.

So that’s what August meant earlier—about how the League would probably reinstate her even without an assessment.

“…If you want my advice, you should actually catch some strong Water Pokémon for the Gym,” August added. “Even if they just look powerful, that’s still better than whatever your sisters had.”

The League wasn’t strict about Gym operations.

After all, they had already arrested Giovanni, Koga, and Lt. Surge—huge achievements.

Whether Kanto’s Gyms were good or not?

The League didn’t really care.

But as someone who had spent months trying to fix them—

August wasn’t about to let all his work go to waste.

---

This is a fan translation of 人在实教，一之濑你会后悔的 by 作者：白良. All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!