The man at the head of the group sported a mohawk and swaggered forward with a crab-like gait.

  Anyone who saw him for the first time would immediately think he was just another small-time thug commonly seen on the streets.

  But the rge "R" embzoned on his uniform ensured that no one would dare mistake him for an ordinary troublemaker.

  "Team Rocket!"

  Lusamine cried out, unable to contain her surprise as she identified the intruders.

  Even though Alo was far from Kanto, the infamous reputation of Team Rocket had managed to cross the seas and reach Lusamine's ears.

  "Heh heh~ Who would've thought that in a small pce like Alo, we could strike such a big haul."

  The man with the mohawk smirked. Judging by his position at the forefront, he was likely the leader of this small Team Rocket squad.

  Stephen recognized him.

  It was Petrel, one of the future Four Executives of Team Rocket.

  He wasn't sure if Petrel had already attained that rank at this point, but at the very least, he was likely a squad leader.

  "Why is Team Rocket here? And… why didn't the security system…"

  Wicke's face was pale with fear.

  She couldn't comprehend why Team Rocket had gone to such lengths to cross the ocean and unch an attack on the Aether Foundation in Alo.

  And why had they managed to infiltrate the president's vil so silently? Where were the security guards? The arms?

  Why had there been no warnings at all!?

  "That's because we have an inside man, of course."

  At that moment, another figure stepped out from behind Petrel.

  Compared to Petrel, whose demeanor screamed street thug, this man was noticeably more refined—his looks would certainly appeal to younger girls.

  However, the malicious smile on his face was no less threatening than Petrel's.

  Stephen recognized him, too. Like Petrel, he would also become one of Team Rocket's Four Executives in the future—Proton.

  "An inside man?"

  Lusamine frowned, her brows furrowing deeply.

  "I'm sorry, President."

  Another person stepped forward, and both Lusamine and Wicke turned to him with expressions of utter disbelief.

  The one who spoke was none other than Faba, who held the position of Deputy Chief and Research Director within the Aether Foundation—second in rank only to Lusamine herself.

  Faba stroked his mustache as he walked over to stand beside Petrel and Proton, smiling as he expined:

  "They approached me yesterday, saying that Team Rocket is pnning to establish a branch in the Alo region. For this, they've set their sights on the Aether Foundation."

  "President, I hope you can understand my reasoning. With the Aether Foundation's current strength, there's no way we could fend off Team Rocket. Instead of fighting a pointless and unwinnable battle, why not do as I did and pledge allegiance early?"

  There was one thing Faba didn't say: Team Rocket had promised him that once the Alo branch was established, he would be appointed as its Deputy Chief.

  Though Faba was already a Deputy Chief in the Aether Foundation, everyone knew the difference between being a Deputy Chief in the Aether Foundation and holding the same rank in Team Rocket.

  Lusamine's face turned a ghastly shade of blue from anger.

  "Faba, you—!"

  Petrel chuckled sinisterly and interjected:

  "Our good pal Faba even told us there's an important trade happening today. Heh heh~ TM disks—our boss is very interested in them."

  As he spoke, Petrel pointed his index finger at Lusamine—or more precisely, at the USB drive in her hand.

  "Raticate, go!"

  A Raticate at Petrel's feet suddenly lunged forward, its sharp and prominent teeth aimed directly at the USB drive in Lusamine's hand.

  Before the Raticate could reach its target, a shadow leaped from the Poké Ball at Karen's waist.

  A pair of strong, muscur cws smmed down onto the Raticate's back with force.

  It was Karen's Houndoom!

  "Do you thugs think you can just ignore us?"

  Even though most of Karen's face was obscured by her sungsses, her icy expression could still be felt.

  Karen had no idea about Stepen's connection to Team Rocket.

  To her, Team Rocket was nothing more than a group of meddlesome intruders.

  And since that was the case… she would take them all down!

  "Fmethrower!"

  At Karen's command, Houndoom pnted its left paw on Raticate's back, lowered its head, and unleashed a stream of fmes from its mouth.

  "Golbat!"

  Petrel quickly ordered the Golbat perched above him to counter.

  Air Ssh flew out from Golbat's wings, intercepting the Fmethrower.

  The collision of Air Ssh and Fmethrower was a csh between fire and wind. What happens next goes without saying.

  Boom—!

  The shockwave of wind and fire spread outward in all directions.

  In less than five seconds, the pristine white vil had already turned into a fiery inferno.

  The chandelier on the ceiling, scorched by the fmes, was on the verge of falling.

  "Watch out!"

  Stephen grabbed Karen's wrist and pulled her behind him.

  Crash!

  Barely two seconds after Stephen shielded Karen, the chandelier came crashing down with a thunderous bang.

  "Slowbro!"

  Will released his Slowbro, commanding it to use Water Pulse to extinguish the fmes.

  "Take them down! Psychic!"

  After slightly getting the fire under control, Will turned and pointed at Team Rocket.

  Slowbro spread its arms wide, and tangible psychic energy surged forth, forming a pale purple wave directed at Team Rocket.

  Oh, by the way, while Will knew Giovanni, he had no clue about Giovanni's true identity.

  "Hypno! Psychic!"

  Faba immediately sent out his Hypno and ordered it to use the same move as Slowbro.

  The two waves of energy collided, battling for supremacy.

  It took less than two seconds before Slowbro's Psychic overpowered Hypno's.

  "Weezing!"

  Proton acted decisively, releasing his Weezing to float to the center of the battlefield.

  "Will, defend yourself!"

  Stephen shouted a warning.

  "Huh?"

  Will didn't react in time.

  The next second, Weezing's body began to glow dangerously white from within.

  Now Will understood what was about to happen.

  "Slowbro! Use Protect!"

  BOOM—!

  A massive explosion blew the entire first-floor ceiling of the vil sky-high.

  Crash!

  Debris rained down in torrents.

  Will, protected by Slowbro's Protect barrier, immediately looked toward the colpsed living room behind him.

  "Hey! Are you okay back there?!"

  Bang!

  The next moment, a shockingly powerful punch bsted forth, pulverizing the falling wall of debris into dust.

  But that wasn't the end!

  The sheer force of the punch not only obliterated the colpsing ceiling but also tore straight through the vil's second and third floors, finally breaking through the roof with a resounding crash.

  That was… Mega Punch!

  "Hmm… We're fine."

  Stephen's voice rang out.

  Beside him stood Karen, while Lusamine and Wicke were behind him.

  And in front of him, the one who had just unleashed that Mega Punch was... Stufful!

  Everyone stared at Stufful, who had raised its right forepaw in a punching stance.

  The people present were utterly dumbfounded.

  That devastating Mega Punch just now came from this small Pokemon!?

  "Go, Stufful," Stephen said casually.

  Though he had no idea what Giovanni was pnning, given the current atmosphere, if he didn't act, it would feel like a wasted opportunity.

  "Don-oh!"

  Stufful crouched slightly, its limbs tensed, and it suddenly leaped forward.

  An intense orange glow surged from its right forepaw.

  It was the Fighting-type move, Brick Break!

  "Cydol, use Psychic!"

  Since Hypno had been unable to defend itself earlier, Faba had no choice but to send out his second Pokémon.

  Cydol extended its stubby arms and unleashed a circur psychic ray.

  Seeing this, Stufful swung its paw preemptively.

  Whoosh—Boom!

  The force of the punch created a gust of wind that somehow managed to block the Psychic attack entirely.

  "Impossible!"

  Behind his gsses, Faba's eyes widened like saucers.

  The shockwave from a punch could block his Cydol's Psychic attack?

  How strong was this Stufful!?

  "Thrash."

  Stephen's calm command echoed again.

  Dark energy surged around Stufful's arms. After nding, it accelerated once more, crashing into Cydol's midsection.

  The impact knocked Cydol to the ground, and before it could react, Stufful climbed onto its stomach.

  Like a berserk warrior, Stufful began hammering down on Cydol's face with its fists.

  Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam!

  The relentless barrage of punches struck not only Cydol's face but also the hearts of everyone watching.

  S-Scary... so scary...

  "Is that really a Stufful?"

  Lusamine was completely frozen.

  Are you sure it's not a transformed Kommo-o or Zeraora?

  Even Karen and Will were just as stunned as Lusamine.

  After all, this Stufful had only recently joined Stephen's team!

  "What a lucky guy!"

  Will muttered in amazement.