Pokémon: I have no choice but to do this old thing?

Chapter 115 Choosing from the Heart

Amidst the changing lights and rousing music on the runway, Xiaojuer completed her final pose and gracefully exited the stage amidst thunderous applause.

But for Zhang Jianying, those last few minutes of the show were nothing short of torture.

For the first time, he regretted learning waveguide technology.

Through the waveguide, he could clearly feel the amused gaze behind him, which seemed to be physically present on the back of his neck, making him feel like he was sitting on pins and needles, and his back was soaked with cold sweat.

Zhang Jianying didn't even dare to turn his head too much. He could only catch a glimpse of a few strands of golden hair hanging down in the corner of his eye, swaying slightly in the dim light. Every sway seemed to remind him of the "socially dead" moment he had just experienced.

Xiao Gang and Xiao Guang's gazes would occasionally drift over, filled with a complex mix of gossip, curiosity, and sympathy.

Ash, as always, didn't notice anything unusual and was still discussing with Pikachu on his shoulder the Electabuzz-shaped accessory that had appeared in the show earlier.

Finally, all the lights came back on, the host went on stage to express his gratitude, and the audience began to leave one after another.

Zhang Jianying sat stiffly on the spot, his brain racing, trying to find a reasonable explanation that could save his life, but even with his CPU almost overheating, he couldn't come up with anything.

Forget it, let's just destroy it.

He gave up, his face regaining a kind of world-weary numbness. He stood up and said to Ash and his two friends, "Um—I have something to do, I'll be leaving for a bit. You guys go back to the hotel first, I'll contact you later."

His tone seemed calm and even, but if you listened carefully, you would find that it carried a kind of inexplicable tragic grandeur.

Xiao Zhi was stunned for a moment: "? Brother A-Jian, you're not coming with us—"

Before he could finish speaking, Xiao Guang, who looked speechless, covered his mouth.

"Okay, Brother Jian! You go ahead with your work! See you tomorrow!"

Xiao Guang nodded with a smile, while forcefully pulling Xiao Zhi back, his eyes frantically signaling him not to ask any more questions.

Xiao Gang, standing to the side, gave Zhang Jianying a look that said "take care" with his squinty eyes.

Zhang Jianying nodded expressionlessly, turned around, and like a soldier going to his death, followed with heavy steps behind the figure in the beige trench coat who had already stood up and was gracefully walking towards the exit.

Cynthia walked slowly, even leisurely.

She didn't seem to be in a hurry to "judge" the situation. Instead, she slowly walked with the departing crowd toward the VIP entrance on the side of the venue, where staff guarded the entrance and ordinary audience members were not allowed to enter.

She didn't turn around to check if Zhang Jianying had followed, as if she was certain he would come.

Zhang Jianying followed silently behind her, a few steps away, like a tail.

The surrounding noise seemed to be separated by a layer, and his world consisted only of the tall, elegant figure in front of him and the thought of how to survive.

The two walked one after the other through the noise of the regular audience seats to the relatively quiet entrance to the VIP passage.

Cynthia nodded slightly to the staff member guarding the entrance and showed him an inconspicuous card. The staff member immediately and respectfully stepped aside.

Zhang Jianying gritted his teeth and followed her inside.

The corridor was covered with thick carpets, the lighting was soft, and the soundproofing was excellent, completely blocking out the noise from outside, leaving only the sound of their footsteps.

Cynthia, who was walking ahead, suddenly stopped.

Zhang Jianying's heart skipped a beat, and he almost crashed into it, so he quickly braked.

Cynthia slowly turned around. She was still wearing her hood, but in this relatively brighter passage, Zhang Jianying could see more clearly the gray eyes under the hood, filled with a mocking smile, staring at him without blinking.

She tilted her head slightly, the curve of her lips deepened, and suddenly took another step closer to him.

They are very close.

Up close, I could see her long eyelashes and the undisguised mischievous glint in her eyes.

Cynthia tiptoed closer to his ear. This time, her voice was even lower, warm, as she gently brushed against his earlobe: "You didn't finish answering earlier."

"

"Me and Xiaoju'er————"

"Whose legs are longer?"

"???"

Zhang Jianying shuddered. Before his mind could process what was happening, his mouth instinctively uttered, "Your length!"

His voice was firm and resolute, without hesitation, and filled with certainty.

He was stunned after he finished speaking.

Cynthia clearly hadn't expected him to answer so readily, even a little obsequiously.

She paused for a moment, then a blush crept onto her cheeks, and the playful smile in her eyes deepened.

She straightened up, put a little distance between them, and looked at him with a leisurely air, drawing out her words: "Oh?"

"It seems you've actually compared them carefully?"

"You were watching very attentively from the audience just now."

She emphasized the words "careful" and "attentive".

"....

This is a disaster, a question that could kill you.

He felt like a pair of mice trapped by Xin Ye Miao, with claws waiting in front of them no matter which way they ran.

Zhang Jianying opened his mouth, trying to explain that it was simply a normal appreciation of beautiful things, an appreciation of art, pure aesthetics—

But looking into Cynthia's eyes, which seemed to see through everything, all the words stuck in his throat.

He slumped his shoulders resignedly, scratched his head, and lowered his voice, filled with genuine regret: "I'm sorry, I was wrong."

"I shouldn't have been so engrossed in watching," he managed to say, his ears burning.

Seeing his sincere apology, his embarrassed and cowardly appearance, Cynthia's little bit of displeasure caused by jealousy had long since vanished.

Ultimately, she wasn't really angry.

More than anything, it's a subtle possessiveness and resentment that arises from having something that belongs to you taken away from you by someone else for a while. After all, what did you do that Xiaoju'er didn't do?

Seeing how nervous he was, clearly more concerned about his own reaction, made her feel exceptionally happy.

She was a little older than him, and seeing that he sincerely admitted his mistake, she decided to stop teasing him.

"alright."

Cynthia's tone softened, returning to her usual gentle voice, "Be more careful next time."

She turned around and continued walking along the corridor, as if the "fatal question and answer" had never happened.

As she turned around, she caught a glimpse of Zhang Jianying letting out a sigh of relief as if he had been granted a pardon, and a look of suspicion and confusion on his face.

Cynthia's lips curved upwards almost imperceptibly.

Silly boy.

Zhang Jianying was indeed a little confused.

Is that all? You calmed down so quickly? He scratched the back of his head and hurried after her, walking side by side.

The passageway was quiet for a moment, with only the sound of their footsteps.

To break the somewhat awkward silence, Zhang Jianying took the initiative to start a conversation: "Um—what are you doing here? Isn't the league busy lately?"

Cynthia glanced at him sideways and replied calmly, "After the incident at Lake of Ambition, Sunfire disappeared. The League and Interpol are conducting a joint investigation, and for the time being, they've only shut down the Team Galactic Tower in Veil City."

She paused, then continued, "After repeated confirmations by the Pokémon Rangers, Mesprit and Uxie are currently safe and sound, and the League has increased protection in the area where they are located. Our main focus now is on tracking down Red Sun and his core members."

Zhang Jianying nodded, but a hint of doubt arose in his heart.

Red Sun—has he disappeared?

According to the original storyline, if Chi Ri had not successfully captured the Three Sacred Mushrooms and created the Red Chains to bind the Time-Space Twin Dragons, his plan would not have been able to proceed.

But how could they have disappeared? Even the joint investigation by the alliance and Interpol has yielded no clues.

He felt something was off, a faint sense of unease lingering in his mind. But he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

Perhaps it's the butterfly effect?

Did my appearance, or some other reason, cause the Red Sun's trajectory to change?

I don't understand.

Zhang Jianying shook his head, temporarily suppressing these doubts.

Regardless, the most important thing right now is to improve our own and our partners' strength. Only by being strong enough can we protect the people and Pokémon we want to protect in the face of any unforeseen events in the future.

He glanced subconsciously at Cynthia's profile beside him, then quickly looked away, his fingers gently tracing the row of Poké Balls at his waist.

Sensing the calm or lively atmosphere among his companions inside, his heart also calmed down.

Become stronger, and then stand beside her.

"What are you thinking about?" Cynthia's voice interrupted his thoughts.

"It's nothing," Zhang Jianying said, pulling himself back to reality. "I was just thinking about Chi Ri. Something about it just feels a bit strange."

Cynthia glanced at him, but didn't delve into it. Instead, she asked, "And you? What brings you to Little Chrysanthemum's show? Are you also interested in fashion?" Her tone carried a hint of teasing.

Zhang Jianying was a little embarrassed and touched his nose: "Actually, it's because the last badge is with the Gym Leader of the Electric City Gym, so I came to challenge him. But the gym was closed for two days for unknown reasons, and it just so happened that it coincided with Xiaoju'er's fashion show. Since I was already here, I just came to take a look."

He emphasized, "I really didn't come here specifically for this!"

After listening, Cynthia glanced at him, neither agreeing nor disagreeing: "Hmm~ You know what's good for you."

Zhang Jianying quietly breathed a sigh of relief, feeling that the crisis seemed to have truly passed.

At this moment, the two had reached the end of the VIP passage, where an elegantly decorated double door stood before them.

Cynthia stopped and turned to Zhang Jianying, saying, "Let's go. Since we've run into each other today, and I don't have anything urgent to do, I'll treat you to a meal and introduce you to a friend."

"Friends?" Zhang Jianying asked curiously.

A warm smile appeared in Cynthia's eyes. "She might be able to offer you some help and inspiration in the future."

Zhang Jianying nodded without asking any further questions: "Okay."

Shirona pushed open the double doors, leading to a more private, carpeted corridor that led upstairs to the VIP rooms. She went in first, followed closely by Zhang Jianying.

Meanwhile, outside the seaside stadium, the heavy rain continued.

Xiao Zhi, Xiao Guang, and Xiao Gang walked out with the crowd.

"Where did Brother Sword go?" Ash asked, his Pikachu still perplexed. "So mysterious."

O

Xiao Guang playfully slapped him: "Xiao Zhi, honestly! Didn't you see the atmosphere was obviously off just now?!"

Xiao Gang, on the other hand, wore a deep, knowing expression as he stroked his chin.

The fire of gossip burned fiercely in his squinting eyes, but then it quickly died down, turning into a deep melancholy.

Xiao Gang gazed at the torrential rain outside the window and sighed deeply and sadly, "Sigh, this kid is about my age, and he already has an older sister he likes. But where am I, my soulmate, my older sister?"

His silhouette looked particularly desolate in the rain, like a mushroom ravaged by wind and rain.

Ash and Dawn exchanged a glance, took a half-step back in unison, and simultaneously wore speechless expressions that said, "Here we go again."

Sure enough, the next second... *plop*.

The familiar, purple-glowing claws stabbed precisely into Xiao Gang's lower back.

"Ugh—!"

Xiao Gang shuddered, his melancholy instantly replaced by pain, a bluish-purple color spread rapidly, his eyes rolled back, and he slumped forward limply.

The freak appeared behind him without warning, withdrew its claws expressionlessly, nodded to Ash and Dawn, then stretched out its arm, skillfully lifted the limp Brock, and dragged him toward the inn.

Ash and Dawn were already used to it and calmly followed behind.

"Pikachu————"

Pikachu perched on Ash's head, watching Brock being dragged away, shaking its head sympathetically, and giving Ash's head a slap in exasperation.

In a secluded rocky area far from the seaside arena and close to the coastline.

The rain poured down, the wind howled, and the waves crashed wildly against the rocks, emitting a deafening roar.

Three soaking wet and disheveled figures were huddled under a huge, sunken rock, barely sheltering from the wind and rain. It was Team Rocket.

In front of them was a makeshift monitoring device cobbled together from various scraps, looking like it might fall apart at any moment. The screen flickered with static, but some intermittent audio signals could be vaguely received.

"—We must catch him—"

"—The most precious—the Pokémon of the sea—"

"This time, we can't afford to fail again."

Intermittent conversations, mixed with the noise of wind, rain, and waves, came from the equipment.

Musashi wiped the rain from her face, her eyes shining: "Did you hear that? The most precious Pokémon from the ocean in the world!"

Kojiro got excited too: "Is it rarer than that brat's Pikachu? If we can catch it, we can present it to Boss Giovanni!"

Meowth, on the other hand, was relatively calm. It fiddled with the broken device, trying to make the signal clearer: "Sounds like an organization hunting down some rare Pokémon, meow. Maybe we can take advantage of the chaos, meow?"

A sly glint flashed in Meow Meow's eyes.

Musashi and Kojiro exchanged a glance and immediately understood what Meow Meow meant.

Abandon the original plan? Sure!

Faced with potential danger? Not afraid!

As long as there's a chance to catch a rare Pokémon, present it to Giovanni, and get a promotion and a raise, our Team Rocket trio will always be full of energy!

"good!"

Musashi tossed his soaking wet hair, his fighting spirit high, "In that case, let's change our target!"

"Set your sights on that most precious Pokémon in the world!" Kojiro continued.

"Then catch it and present it to Boss Sakaki!" Meow Meow concluded.

"That's it, meow/whoosh~ Nasu!"

The three spoke in unison, completely forgetting their disheveled state and the cold, and the flames of "evil" reignited in their eyes.