Chapter 69

Just as the glass door of the Vermilion City Pokémon Center closed behind him, Huo La's gaze accurately locked onto the corner of the lounge, where a "family of three" was sitting: the woman had eye-catching magenta long hair, the man had neat navy blue short hair, and the child was reading a newspaper intently.

Huo La rubbed his forehead, no need to think, he knew this was another clumsy disguise by the Team Rocket trio.

He handed the Poké Balls to Nurse Joy familiarly, looked at the prompt "Pokémon stamina recovering" on the screen, opened another lounge room, and turned to walk toward the three.

Xiao Gang had long been attracted by the breeding supplies in the store area, waved his hand and disappeared.

Huo La sat directly opposite the "family of three" and casually snatched the newspaper from Meowth's paw.

The front-page headline was surprisingly a special feature on Dr. Zheng Hui's thesis—"Super-Ancient Pokémon: Visitors from the Other Side of Space-Time", accompanied by a blurry silhouette of Dragonite on the sea.

Huo La's gaze quickly swept over the signature column, and he saw the small print "Assistant: Huo La" below "Lead Author: Zheng Hui", only then did he push the newspaper back with satisfaction.

"Speak, dressing up like this and waiting for me here, what's the matter?" Huo La leaned back in his chair.

Musashi immediately straightened her back, pretending to be mysterious: "Brat Huo La, how did you know we were waiting for you?"

"Oh? Not looking for me then." Huo La made a move to get up, "Then I'm going upstairs to rest."

"Hey! Don't go!" Musashi hurriedly reached out to hold him down, her tone softening instantly, "Just joking, why so serious!"

Huo La retracted his movement, said nothing, just stared at the three with his eyes.

Musashi, Kojiro, and Meowth exchanged glances, and finally, Meowth cleared its throat and spoke first: "Meow~ Ever since Dr. Zheng Hui's thesis was published, the whole Kanto and even other regions have exploded, everyone is looking for super-ancient Pokémon, and we Team Rocket are naturally no exception."

"Expected." Huo La nodded, his fingertips tapping lightly on the tabletop, "Logically speaking, you should know quite a bit, especially Meowth—you went to Mount Podoro too, Team Rocket should now be considered to have mastered the most comprehensive information."

The three were stunned at the same time, then shook their heads repeatedly.

Kojiro adjusted his glasses and explained: "This matter is too big! We originally wanted to discuss it clearly with you the next day before reporting it, but you left early in the morning. Fortunately, we guessed you would definitely come to Vermilion City to challenge the Gym, so we waited for you here in advance."

"Discuss with me?" Huo La raised his eyebrows, his tone carrying a bit of mockery, "Don't you usually fear nothing, just do it first?"

"Brat Huo La! We're looking for you to discuss because we think highly of you!" Musashi slammed the table, her voice suddenly rising.

Kojiro was so scared he hurriedly held her down, bowing repeatedly to the gazes cast from around: "Sorry, sorry, sorry..."

Meowth rolled its eyes and continued: "Meow~ You were the one who discovered the super-ancient Pokémon first, if we reported it directly, wouldn't that be stealing the credit? We wouldn't stoop to doing such a thing. And... we really don't know too much inside information, like the space-time rift Dragonite mentioned, and the specific situation of the Mount Podoro ruins."

"In plain terms, you want first-hand information." Huo La smiled and laid it out.

"Hehe, can you tell us?" Kojiro rubbed his hands, his eyes filled with anticipation, "If we could make a great contribution in front of Boss Sakaki, we might be able to..."

"Can." Huo La's voice paused, his tone changed, "But what are you trading with?"

"Brat Huo La! Don't push your luck!" Musashi was about to explode again, "Don't forget you're also a member of Team Rocket! We'll definitely include your share of this credit!"

Huo La didn't pay attention to her at all, just stared at the three quietly, waiting for the next sentence.

Kojiro gritted his teeth, as if he had made up his mind: "We still have that Water Stone you gave us last time! Is it okay to trade with it?"

"Kojiro! That could be sold for a lot of money!" Musashi tugged at his arm in a hurry.

Huo La was a bit surprised—he thought these three guys had long ago sold the Water Stone for cash, didn't expect they still had it.

But he still shook his head: "One Water Stone, not enough to trade for the development clues of Mount Podoro and the inside story of the super-ancient Pokémon."

Kojiro's face collapsed instantly, he looked at Meowth, and Meowth spread its paws, indicating it only had a few coins on it.

Musashi clenched her fists, just about to flare up, when Huo La's voice sounded first: "How about this, besides the Water Stone, you do one more thing for me."

His eyes darkened, "As an exchange, not only will I tell you the inside story, but I can also explain in detail how to find and enter the Mount Podoro ruins. How about it?"

Musashi's anger was instantly suppressed, the three looked at each other and asked in unison: "What thing?"

"Very simple." Huo La spoke slowly, reporting a string of names, "I want you to help me confirm, Lt. Surge of Vermilion City, Sabrina of Saffron City, Koga of Fuchsia City, these three people have any relationship with Team Rocket, and to what extent."

He had long suspected that these Gym Leaders were entangled with Team Rocket—there were vague clues in his past life's memories, and now that he had joined Team Rocket, he could just use these three to figure out the details, and also pave the way for subsequent Gym challenges.

Musashi was stunned: "Lt. Surge? That guy in Vermilion Gym who uses Electric-types? How do we confirm?"

"You've been in Team Rocket for so long, you must have your own channels, right?" Huo La raised an eyebrow, "Like checking internal files, or asking old members. This matter shouldn't be difficult for you."

Meowth touched its chin, its eyes turning: "Meow~ Could try, we know a few guys responsible for intelligence registration. But this matter will take some time, can't give you an answer immediately."

"I can wait." Huo La stood up, "Keep the Water Stone for now, when you tell me the news, the first-hand information and the clues to Mount Podoro, I will naturally give them to you."

He paused and added: "Remember, don't play any tricks. If you dare to lie to me, don't even think about getting any more news about super-ancient Pokémon from here—if Sakaki knows you missed such an important clue, you should know the consequences better than I do."

Musashi and Kojiro's expressions changed instantly, and they nodded repeatedly: "Got it, got it! We'll definitely check as soon as possible!"

Huo La didn't say anything more, turned and walked toward the stairs.

Just walked two steps, Meowth's voice suddenly came from behind: "Meow~ By the way, Boss Sakaki seems to be paying attention to Vermilion City recently, seems like there's going to be some big move, be careful!"

Huo La paused, looked back at Meowth, nodded slightly, and then disappeared around the corner of the stairs.

In the lounge, Musashi looked at Huo La's back and muttered dissatisfiedly: "What's this, actually daring to order us around..."

"Keep it down!" Kojiro hurriedly covered her mouth, "Huo La now has the clues we want, and Dr. Zager also said after reading the newspaper, let us get along well with him, and cooperate where we can help."

Meowth sighed, its paw patted the newspaper: "Let's figure out how to check the news of those three Gym Leaders first, Meow~ If we can get the clues to Mount Podoro, maybe the Boss will be happy and directly wipe out our debts! Maybe even get a promotion and a raise."

The three looked at each other, instantly reached a consensus, quickly packed their things, and slipped out of the Pokémon Center—after all, this was a big matter concerning a "promotion and a raise".