Chapter 1281: Time Reversal

The Sinnoh region.

The origin of all things, the only continent leading to the resting place of the Creator.

If not for the sake of resolving this incident,

All Baimu would truly have liked to wander around and explore.

"So you called Ash too?"

"Yeah."

Dawn nodded hesitantly, then forced a faint smile, "I really couldn't find Piplup, and Officer Jenny didn't have any leads either."

This was Twinleaf Town, a small town in western Sinnoh, and also her hometown.

Nearly ten hours had passed since Piplup was inexplicably taken away, and Dawn's anxiety was completely understandable.

If it were Aggron or his other Pokémon who had been taken, her reaction would likely have been even more extreme.

"Don't worry, I know where Piplup is."

All Baimu's expression was calm and composed, giving Dawn, who had tears in her eyes, a strong sense of reassurance.

Upon hearing his words clearly, Dawn stood up abruptly, surprised and delighted, "You found Piplup? Thank you so much!"

The reason Dawn traveled so far to seek All Baimu's help was precisely because she trusted his consistent maturity, reliability, and extraordinary capabilities.

She hadn't expected him to actually have a way!

"Don't panic, I just know where it is."

All Baimu pressed down on Dawn's shoulder to steady her, not continuing to keep her in suspense, and said directly, "If I'm not mistaken, it should have been taken by the 'you' from a parallel world."

Parallel... world?

Dawn was stunned, her face full of confusion and bewilderment, like a cat with a rainbow blooming behind it.

—Strange knowledge has increased. jpg!

She suddenly remembered that when she went to Officer Jenny for help, the officer mentioned that similar situations had been occurring frequently lately.

"Holes" appearing out of nowhere, people coming out of them and taking away residents' Pokémon, and those people looking exactly like the reporters.

Connecting all these dots, Dawn, who had seen countless grand scenes while traveling with Ash, suddenly realized, "So it was the 'me' from a parallel world who took Piplup!"

"Exactly."

All Baimu nodded, just as the voices of Ash and Pikachu came from afar.

"Dawn!"

"Pika!"

They shouted loudly, accompanied by the two companions from the *Journeys* arc, "Sorry to keep you waiting."

Knowing Piplup's whereabouts restored Dawn's energy, and she smiled and said her catchphrase, "No worries~ No worries~"

Seeing her tone completely devoid of the hesitation from when she called, Ash looked at All Baimu, who nodded at him, and guessed, "Found Piplup?"

"We have a lead!"

Dawn said with a smile.

Although she hadn't reunited with Piplup yet, at least she wasn't like a headless chicken fumbling around everywhere.

She explained the situation briefly.

"Parallel world?"

Chloe, the female supporting character from the *Journeys* arc, was completely bewildered.

Unlike the female companions who traveled with Ash in previous generations, she appeared in very few episodes and basically had no presence.

Ash carried a paper bag containing steaming croquettes and said in surprise, "Parallel world, huh? It feels a lot like the world inside the Ultra Wormhole I saw before!"

He had once been transported by Tapu Koko to the "Alola region" destroyed by Guzzlord, where he met Dia of the Ultra Guardians and Zeraora.

Dawn asked excitedly, "Ash, do you have a way to get there?"

"Of course I do!"

Ash patted his chest and said confidently, "Leave it to me!"

He then lifted the paper bag in his hand and said with a warm smile, "Anyway, let's fill our stomachs first, right? I'm sure you must be hungry!"

Smelling the rich aroma wafting from inside, Dawn subconsciously clutched her stomach.

She hadn't eaten much since Piplup went missing, and now that she felt reassured, she could truly feel the hunger in her belly.

"Thank you!"

She wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes, clenched her fist confidently, and said, "Let's share it with everyone! Everything will be fine now!"

The group moved to a nearby public rest area to share the croquettes.

All Baimu asked Ash in a low voice, "Can you notify Solgaleo?"

Without a doubt.

Ash was counting on Solgaleo, his first Legendary Pokémon in the true sense.

After the *Sun & Moon* arc ended, Solgaleo had even taken him and Pikachu on adventures inside Ultra Wormholes, though there were no side stories about it, which All Baimu found a pity.

"Ahaha, I guess we'll only know if we try, right?"

Ash laughed awkwardly; he certainly couldn't be sure, but having a way was better than having none.

All Baimu smiled, "Leave it to me."

"All Baimu, you have a way?"

Ash suddenly remembered something and his eyes lit up, "Right! Maybe we can ask Hoopa!"

Hoopa, the greatest little helper for finding people and objects.

All Baimu smiled without saying a word, then suddenly tilted his head to look at the sky, spotting the Meowth-shaped hot air balloon slowly approaching.

The three people sneaking around in the basket were none other than James, Jessie, and Meowth.

Four pairs of eyes met, immediately sparking panic.

The Team Rocket trio retreated into the basket and argued in hushed voices.

"Why is All Baimu here?"

"The little girl from Sinnoh is with Ash, and she seems to know All Baimu!"

"What should we do now, Meowth..."

They had previously been assigned an infiltration mission by Giovanni, but they hadn't been able to carry it out at all, and they were worried that if they explained why they couldn't infiltrate, Giovanni would doubt their loyalty.

They could only keep dragging it out.

They never expected to run into All Baimu just a few days later!

What to do now?

Retreat?

As the Team Rocket trio discussed a plan, Porygon2 appeared out of nowhere and said coldly, "All Baimu says for you to find a place and wait."

"Eek!?"

The three were startled, and upon recognizing Porygon2 as All Baimu's Pokémon, they replied with tear-streaked faces.

They had a long history with All Baimu, so they certainly didn't think they could escape his grasp.

The hot air balloon drifted away shakily.

Ash and the others hadn't noticed Team Rocket at all, as they were heatedly discussing the parallel universe.

All Baimu wiped his mouth, thinking the second wave should be coming soon.

Sure enough.

Less than two minutes later, in front of a flower field in the distance, strange fluctuations appeared hazily.

He tilted his head slightly to look, and was surprised to see a purple-red ring emitting black mist, with four figures—two tall and two short—standing inside.

Thump, thump.

All Baimu tapped the table, interrupting their discussion, and said, "Everyone, we have guests."

"Guests?"

The others were bewildered, and as All Baimu stood up slowly, he threw a Poké Ball.

*Bang! *

White light flashed.

Regieleki appeared, "Beep-beep-beep—le-gi-e-le-ki!"

The figures in the ring rose into the air, flickering like projections before revealing their true forms.

It was the "Team Rocket trio."

Only, compared to the miserable wretches from just a moment ago, these Team Rocket members appeared extremely confident, their eyes sharper, like an elite special forces squad that had won every battle.

Moreover, they wore strange exoskeleton armor and hovered using jet devices on their waists, giving them an overall futuristic, sci-fi feel.

Ash exclaimed, "Team Rocket!"

Dawn was more concerned about the hole, "That's it! Piplup disappeared into that!"

The alternate Team Rocket trio locked their gazes on Regieleki, a look of surprise flashing across their brows.

"An unexpected target... but it doesn't matter, prepare for battle!" Jessie sneered.

James waved his hand, "Attack authorized, commence operation!"

"Dark—Pulse!!"

Meowth said in a raspy voice, quickly raising both claws.

Their movements were fast and decisive, not intending to give the group any time to react.

Just as Ash shouted, "Watch out!"

In an instant.

Countless black-purple ring-shaped beams shot out, heading straight for the electric pillar jumping in place!

*Boom—!! *

Billowing white smoke rose!

"Pika!?"

Pikachu was shocked; since when could Team Rocket's Meowth use moves?

This script was all wrong!

Ash and the others also revealed expressions of astonishment.

The alternate Jessie smiled triumphantly, "Capture."

"Wobbuffet!"

The alternate Wobbuffet responded, suddenly shooting out steel cable-like ropes, its head piercing through the smoke and releasing an energy capture net.

However, there was nothing beneath the smoke.

The previously calm alternate Team Rocket trio felt a chill run down their spines.

No!

They were truly feeling a chill!

Regieleki had long since silently darted above their heads, its speed simply too fast for the naked eye to track.

All Baimu smiled, "Behave and come down!"

"Beep-beep-beep—le-gi-e-le-ki!"

Regieleki released electricity from its legs, instantly enveloping the Team Rocket trio!

*Zzzzt!! *

Powerful currents pierced through the armor suits they were wearing, causing them to short-circuit and explode!

*Bang, bang, bang! *

Dust and smoke covered everything.

"Hmm?"

All Baimu raised an eyebrow, keenly noticing that the alternate Team Rocket trio hadn't lost their ability to fight, but were landing safely on the ground and preparing to sneak away.

As expected of the physical constitution that could land safely from high altitudes time and time again...

But.

He suddenly rushed into the smoke and said to Ash and the others, "You all come over!"

"Okay!"

"Pika!"

Ash and Pikachu responded first, followed by Dawn and the others.

Inside the billowing smoke, All Baimu came face-to-face with the disheveled alternate Team Rocket trio, and without a word, grabbed Jessie and James by the head and slammed them together.

*Clack! *

With the crisp sound, they both passed out cleanly.

The alternate Meowth was shocked, then swiped forward with sharp eyes, "—Slash!"

"Get lost!"

But All Baimu's side-kick was faster.

Without the extra enhancement of the special armor suit, Meowth couldn't possibly fight on par with Cynthia's Garchomp like in the original plot, and was kicked flying on the spot!

Wobbuffet wanted to move, but it had no attacking moves, and Regieleki had already descended, binding it with electric tentacles.

At the same time, the flying Meowth was also caught by the electric pillar.

By the time Ash and the others arrived, All Baimu had already tossed the unconscious alternate James and Jessie into the space-time hole.

"Quick! The hole is about to disappear!"

He shouted repeatedly, and the group scrambled into the hole.

Not far away, the original Team Rocket trio came running back, "Wait for us!"

Although they didn't know exactly what had happened, following them couldn't be wrong.

Unfortunately, they were a step too late.

The space-time hole disappeared far too quickly.

Meowth even tripped and fell flat on his face, crying out in pain, "It hurts, Meowth! What on earth is going on, Meowth?"

—

"Where are we?"

Ash looked around blankly.

Dawn suddenly looked at All Baimu, who was carrying Team Rocket, "Parallel world?"

All Baimu nodded, "Exactly, Team Rocket opened the door for us, we should thank them."

"Beep-beep-beep~"

The electric pillar had Wobbuffet and Meowth bound in its left and right tentacles, the paralyzing current causing both to show expressions of pain.

Chloe, holding Eevee, said, "Parallel world... it feels a bit different from our world."

Colorful auroras swirled in the sky, making the whole world feel somewhat mysterious.

"You all should recall your Pokémon first."

All Baimu reminded them, "Otherwise, they might devolve, or even turn into Pokémon Eggs."

The four were completely baffled.

"Let's go to 'your' house first, I think the other you should be there." He didn't rush to explain.

It wasn't hard to see from the original plot that the strange phenomenon of devolution wasn't fixed; it likely occurred once or twice as Dialga and Palkia clashed.

Dawn, full of thoughts about Piplup, couldn't wait to run toward "home."

All Baimu dragged Team Rocket along behind her, and when Ash tried to help, he was refused.

Chloe, watching this scene, felt a measure of awe.

"The Orre Champion is truly... terrifyingly powerful."

"Thanks for the compliment."

All Baimu smiled at her.

Chloe shuddered and hurriedly chased after Dawn.

A short while later.

The group arrived at Dawn's house in the parallel world.

It was empty inside, but on the shelf where trophies were displayed, one could see a photo of a blue-clad girl who looked identical to her.

"There really is another 'Dawn'!"

Ash exclaimed.

All Baimu tossed Team Rocket aside, and hearing footsteps from outside, he opened the door first.

In an instant, the group saw the "Dawn" from the photo holding Piplup, staring at them in astonishment.

"Pi-plup!"

Seeing its true trainer, Piplup excitedly broke free from the alternate Dawn's arms and lunged forward, "Pi-plup~"

"Piplup!"

Dawn wept with joy, "I'm so glad you're okay!"

The alternate Dawn closed the door, feeling guilty and dejected, but made no move to drive them out.

"So what on earth happened? Why would 'Dawn' steal Dawn's Piplup?"

Ash asked, full of confusion.

The alternate Dawn sat on the edge of the bed with a sigh and explained the sequence of events.

It turned out that not long ago, due to some unknown factor, everyone's Pokémon had devolved, or even turned into Pokémon Eggs without exception.

The alternate Dawn's Piplup hadn't been spared either.

Professor Rowan had conducted research and believed this was caused by the world's time flowing backward.

"Time flowing backward?"

The group felt like they were listening to a myth.

At this moment, the alternate Team Rocket members woke up and looked at the group sitting in the room with hostility.

"You guys—"

"I think they might know better what happened." All Baimu smiled and grabbed the alternate Jessie and James by the head, the sharp pain causing their faces to twist.

He leaned down and said to them, "Wise men submit to circumstances; I don't think you'll be affected if you don't have the armor suits, right?"

The alternate Jessie and James's expressions shifted constantly.

Although their personalities differed somewhat from the original pair, they were identical in their weakness.

Furthermore, without the armor suits, they would also be affected by the time reversal...

They were trembling in fear.