Chapter 227: Sakaki's Son

Huo La walked to the window, gazing at the hazy night outlined by the dim streetlights below, and continued in a deep voice to analyze: "One is the 'Sakaki seeking help', who proactively contacts Musashi and the others, sending them to Xindao to cause sabotage; the other is 'Sakaki', who hides in the Viridian City base, turns his back on them, refuses to show his face, and even sends Jia Mu to hunt them."

He tapped the windowsill with his fingertip, his tone firm: "Meowth has followed Sakaki for so long, it wouldn't mistake his aura and scent. So the one who refuses to show his face, is the real Sakaki?"

Huo La suddenly turned to face Gastly, his brows furrowing tighter, his voice full of confusion: "So does that mean the Sakaki who asked for help is a fake?"

"No." The thought had just arisen, but he immediately dismissed it: "If the one seeking help were a fake, given Musashi and the other two's familiarity with Sakaki, especially since the other side even used Meowth's little toy to contact them, they could never miss the flaw."

He paced back and forth two steps, his thoughts becoming clearer: "Moreover, this 'Sakaki seeking help' knows Xindao's secret, deliberately chose Musashi and the other two 'incompetent yet troublesome' fellows, having them come to me to cooperate in sabotage; he knows me, and may even have figured out my background. Someone like that could never be a phantom that appeared out of nowhere."

"You're bound to flip‑flop; do you have a definitive answer or not?" Gastly floated to his front, shaking its round, plump body, its tone carrying a hint of urging.

Huo La rubbed his swollen temples, a wry smile on his face: "I don't know. My mind is full of guesses, but none can be grounded in reality."

"Tell me, I've lived this long; perhaps I can help you sort it out." Gastly patted its non‑existent chest.

Huo La looked at it, eyes brightening, and suddenly asked: "With your deep experience, do you know of any device—or Pokémon—that can perfectly mimic a person's scent as well?"

"Ditto?" Gastly blurted out.

"I thought of that too." Huo La shook his head, "But Ditto can at most copy appearance; scent is something it can't simulate at all—that's common sense. Yet Meowth said explicitly that the scent is fine."

"Heh heh heh, who told you you needed to mimic the scent?" Gastly suddenly let out a sinister laugh.

Huo La was startled, his face full of doubt.

"Just find two pieces of clothing that Sakaki has worn, and that's enough?" Gastly shook its head, "Since he never showed his face from start to finish, what Meowth smelled might just be the lingering scent on the clothes."

"Hm?" Huo La's eyes suddenly lit up, his chin stroked, "Old Ghost, what you said makes sense; the possibility is huge. But …"

"But what?" Gastly pressed.

"To be safe, Old Ghost, would you go yourself to the Rocket Team base at the Viridian Gym in Viridian City and take a look?" Huo La's face showed a sly smile.

"… Damn, you've been waiting for me here!" Gastly instantly floated to his front, sticking out its tongue as if to lick.

Huo La immediately curbed his joking expression, his tone sincere: "I have no choice either, and I have another hypothesis in mind that must be verified by you!"

"Another hypothesis?" Gastly stepped back two paces, curiosity piqued.

"I can't say now; after you return from the investigation we'll talk." Huo La's tone was pleading, "Just help me this once."

"Fine, fine, I'm bored anyway, I'll take a stroll." Gastly shook its head, and as soon as the words fell, its form turned into a wisp of blue smoke, diving into the ground and vanishing.

The room fell silent again, but Huo La still stood where he was, deep in thought.

The events were drifting farther from the plot he remembered; if that unspoken hypothesis of his is true, the depth of this behind‑the‑scenes water is probably far greater than imagined.

"And, to actually sabotage Xindao, you have to get onto the island first." Huo La clicked his tongue, his tone full of helplessness, "But since Sakaki sent Jia Mu to hunt Musashi and the others, it shows he cares deeply about Xindao and Mewtwo. The current Xindao must already be under total martial law; those three idiots are simply stirring up a hornet's nest."

In fact, Huo La had no real objection to destroying Xindao.

After all, Xindao is the Rocket Team's core base for modifying Pokémon; if it can be destroyed, it would be liberation for the Pokémon being experimented on there, and would also cut off one arm of the Rocket Team.

More importantly, this might let Mewtwo break free from control early and gain true freedom.

In his memory, when Ash and the others went to the island, Mewtwo had already awakened, even seized Xindao, and was planning revenge against humanity.

But according to the current timeline, Mewtwo should not have fully awakened yet.

"But to truly face Mewtwo, Natsume's power is crucial." Huo La mused inwardly, unable to suppress a mutter, "If I'd known earlier, I should have had the Rocket Team Trio casually check Natsume's current condition; now, damn it, they're gone."

At that moment, the Rotom Phone in his pocket suddenly chimed: "Ding— Bilan has sent you a picture, please check it~"

"Hm?" Huo La let out a light "eh", instantly pulling out his phone and opening the message.

On the screen popped up a group photo; Bilan smiled brightly, beside her stood a swaggering young man—brown‑red hair, eyebrows and eyes bearing a hint of defiance, a face that seemed reluctant to be photographed.

"Xiaoyin!" Huo La recognized him at a glance, understanding instantly, "Just as I guessed, he's near Chengdu's New Bark Town."

He had originally planned to have Bilan find a way to bring Xiaoyin over, but seeing Xiaoyin's resistant expression in the photo, it seemed unlikely he'd willingly show himself.

Huo La thought briefly, then instructed the Rotom Phone: "Rotom, call Bilan back."

"Received! Calling Bilan now—please hold......"

The moment the call connected, Bilan's light voice came through: "Hey, Huo La? You saw the photo I just sent, right?"

Huo La was silent for a moment, then got straight to the point: "Did you find Xiaoyin?"

"Yeah, otherwise why send you a photo~" Bilan's tone carried a hint of bragging, "It took me a lot of effort to catch up with him!"

"Give the phone to him; I want to say a couple of words to him." Huo La's tone was calm as he spoke.

"Hm?" came Bilan's light "eh" from the other end, sounding a bit surprised, but she quickly followed with a coaxing voice, mixed with Xiaoyin's reluctant muttering.

A moment later, a slightly impatient teenage voice rang out: "I don't know you; why are you looking for me?"

"You don't know me, but I know you." Huo La's tone was firm, without any hesitation, hitting the core directly, "Sakaki's son, Xiaoyin."

The line on the other end fell into dead silence, as if even breathing had vanished.

Huo La waited patiently, his fingertips unconsciously tapping the tabletop.

After a while, Xiaoyin's suppressed voice, tinged with shock and wariness, finally came through, a bit more solemn than before: "How did you know? Only a few people know about this. You're looking for me—what exactly do you want?"