“Pikachu?”
“OKI!”
As they ran, Aipom and Pikachu both called out to Xiao Zhi in a strange way.
They didn't understand why Xiao Zhi was running away like this.
The opponents were just the Team Rocket Trio; they had already won against them countless times in past encounters. Logically, there was no need to run; they could just fight directly and win, right?
“Go ahead first, and hide in the woods.” Xiao Zhi knew what Pikachu and Aipom were thinking, but he didn't plan to directly confront the Team Rocket Trio right now.
In his countless encounters with them, Xiao Zhi also understood that the Trio often succeeded in their initial attempts.
Although the outcome was usually good for him, Xiao Zhi didn't plan to spend too much time on Team Rocket right now.
“We don't know what strange things they're hiding, so it's better to hide in the woods first. That way, their hot air balloon won't be able to advance.
If they want to continue chasing us, they'll have to walk, and then the advantage will be on our side. After all, without a Flying-type Pokémon, if they succeed, it will be very troublesome later.”
After hearing Xiao Zhi's explanation, Pikachu and Aipom finally showed a look of sudden realization.
It seemed that they had been too eager to defeat the opponent before. If they calmed down and thought about it, hiding in the woods was indeed a better choice.
In a ground battle, Pikachu didn't believe he would lose to the Team Rocket Trio, but...
“Pika~?!” (When did you get so smart?!)
Xiao Zhi: “【○･｀Д´･ ○】”
What did that mean? Although he didn't understand exactly what Pikachu was saying, it seemed to be a question of his intelligence.
But never mind, it was a rare chance to return to the past, so he shouldn't dwell on this too much right now.
However, he still had to punish Pikachu for its impolite behavior later! He would withhold ketchup for a few days.
Although the Team Rocket Trio was relentlessly chasing them from behind, Xiao Zhi was currently thinking more about how to “punish” Pikachu and completely disregarded the situation of the Team Rocket Trio.
This was understandable; if the Team Rocket Trio had ever succeeded even once, Xiao Zhi wouldn't ignore their existence like this.
The truth was, the Trio had never succeeded in their decade-plus of encounters with him before he transmigrated.
Under these circumstances, he couldn't take them seriously, unless they brought out some cutting-edge technology; then Xiao Zhi might give them some basic respect and attention.
“Jump in!”
As the hot air balloon piloted by Team Rocket caught up behind Xiao Zhi, Xiao Zhi shouted at that moment.
Then, he jumped into the bushes with Pikachu and Aipom, and a missile equipped with an insulated capture net, fired from the hot air balloon, missed its target.
“I told you it wouldn't work even if you tried, Meowth~”
Seeing Musashi's attack miss, Meowth mocked her without reservation.
“Ah! Shut up! Who would have thought they would just run away like that! Don't stand there making sarcastic remarks! Get down there and chase them!”
“Do we really have to chase...?”
“Sonansu~!”
Kojiro and Wobbuffet still couldn't make up their minds, but when they turned around and met Musashi's ghost-like furious expression, they knew they were ready.
Under Musashi's supervision and urging, Kojiro, Meowth, and Wobbuffet dared not complain at all. They swiftly landed the hot air balloon and then leaped down.
With simple understanding, the Team Rocket Trio unanimously pushed Wobbuffet to the very front, letting it deal with Xiao Zhi's potential first round of attacks.
Wobbuffet dared not express its anger, only silently concentrating its spirit, ready to counterattack at any moment.
The rustling of branches and leaves emanated from the forest as the Team Rocket Trio, with Wobbuffet, cautiously advanced through it.
Although Musashi had sounded tough earlier, she had been sent flying by Xiao Zhi countless times. Even an idiot would learn their lesson.
Musashi was naturally afraid that a Ten Thousand Volts would suddenly burst out from the grass and send them all flying.
However, it shouldn't be possible...
Musashi thought to herself.
The Kid's personality shouldn't be that despicable. Even in a situation where he could ambush, he would probably be the first to jump out, point at their noses, and then give Pikachu the command to attack.
Perhaps Musashi felt that she completely understood Xiao Zhi's personality. The timid Musashi suddenly puffed out her chest and walked to the very front, blocking Wobbuffet.
“Hey! Hurry up! What if the Kid escapes if we're this slow? Don't miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!”
Meowth & Kojiro & Wobbuffet: “???”
They didn't know why Musashi suddenly became so tough, but since someone was already blocking the way, there was no reason for them to be afraid.
“Right! Let's go quickly, Meowth! Maybe the Kid has already escaped while we're cautiously advancing here!”
“Hmm, good point.”
“Sonansu!”
Seeing that the team's morale had been so easily boosted by herself, before Musashi could even show a satisfied smile, a sound of intertwined currents suddenly came from the bushes ahead.
This sound, so familiar...
Just as everyone was thinking this, accompanied by a flash of golden light, a strong current had already enveloped all of them. Under the stimulation of the current, the shouts of the Team Rocket members also became strange.
“Ah~&*(@!”
They didn't know what they were shouting, but when the first current ended, the Team Rocket members had already undergone a major image makeover. Musashi's and Kojiro's hair was temporarily ruined, turning into pitch-black afro explosions.
“They really didn't have any defenses at all. I even thought of other methods, but I didn't expect to win with the most ordinary move in the end.”
“Pikachu~”
After the Team Rocket members had turned into “charcoal,” Xiao Zhi slowly emerged from the bushes with Pikachu, looking at the trio, who were emitting black smoke from being electrocuted, with some exasperation, muttering to himself.
“Cough, cough!”
Hearing Xiao Zhi's voice, Musashi and the others quickly got up, as if the electric shock they received a second ago was fake. They stood up and cursed at Xiao Zhi, “Kid, you're dishonorable!”
“Exactly!! How can you ambush?!”
“Meowth! As a Pokémon Trainer, you should be ashamed of such behavior!”
“Sonansu!”
The few of them were furiously enraged by Xiao Zhi's sudden ambush.
This should have been a tense Pokémon battle, but the state and tone of the Team Rocket members made it very difficult to feel tense, like children throwing a tantrum.
Pikachu's face fell as he clutched his ears, seemingly speechless at Team Rocket's shamelessness.
But when Xiao Zhi saw that the Trio were still the same as “before,” he couldn't help but show a nostalgic and relieved smile, though to Musashi and the others, this smile was nothing but a Taunt.
