Team Rocket's Second-in-Command!

Shhh—!

"Look, I think I've found something!"

A lone, injured Eevee had appeared nearby. Moving quietly to avoid alarming it, Luo Yan crept closer.

Then, with a swift motion, he reached out and caught it.

"Eevee!"

In a small, startled cry, the brown-furred Eevee found itself lifted by the scruff, suspended in Luo Yan's grasp. Its tiny paws flailed, but it couldn't escape his grip.

"Well, what do you think?" Luo Yan asked Sabrina.

"..."

Sabrina rolled her eyes, unable to comprehend Luo Yan's strange amusement. Surely he could've just used a Poké Ball?

But Luo Yan only chuckled, enjoying the simple fun of it.

Turning his attention back to the trembling Eevee, he released a warm green energy from his hand, running it over the injury on Eevee's leg.

Eevee felt a light tingling sensation as it watched its wound miraculously heal, quickly forgetting to struggle.

When he set it down, the Eevee didn't run but instead looked up at him with wide eyes.

Realizing he meant no harm, it cautiously nudged him with its head in thanks.

Then, just as it did so, a low rumble came from Eevee's stomach.

"Eevee..." Its ears drooped with embarrassment.

"Here you go~"

Luo Yan handed it an energy cube.

Eevee's eyes lit up as it took a tentative nibble, quickly breaking into a smile and finishing the treat in a flash.

"Eevee!"

It licked his palm eagerly, savoring every last taste.

Luo Yan patted the Eevee's fluffy head. "How would you like to come with me?"

Using his powers, he conveyed his thoughts to the Eevee.

"Eevee..."

After a moment's hesitation, it gave a small shake of its head, darting off into the nearby bushes.

Watching it disappear, Sabrina chuckled. "Looks like you've failed, Luo Yan."

"I wouldn't say that."

He smirked and cast a glance at the bushes.

Not long after, there was a rustling sound, and the same Eevee reemerged... with another Eevee at its side. Aside from the heart-shaped pattern on its tail, the new Eevee looked nearly identical.

"Eevee! Eevee!"

The two Eevee ran up and started rubbing against Luo Yan's legs.

"..."

Is that even possible?

In all her years as a trainer, Sabrina had never seen a Pokémon bring along a friend to be captured.

"What can I say? I'm just too popular," Luo Yan shrugged, handing each Eevee another energy cube.

In truth, the Eevee had shared that they'd been on the run from an Arbok. The first Eevee had been injured in an attack, and the forest was no longer safe for them. So it had returned with its friend, hoping Luo Yan would take them both in.

After they finished eating, Luo Yan knelt down, speaking softly to the heart-tailed Eevee with his powers.

It glanced up at him, then at its friend, and finally nodded.

Taking a small hop, it landed in Sabrina's arms.

Sabrina instinctively caught the Eevee, blinking as she registered the weight in her hands.

She looked to Luo Yan, who smiled.

"I told it that I couldn't take care of both, but that it could stay with the pretty lady nearby," he explained.

Whether from receiving an Eevee or hearing Luo Yan call her "pretty," Sabrina's cheeks turned slightly pink.

"Besides, don't you think we look like a couple now?"

With a grin, Luo Yan placed the other Eevee on his shoulder.

Sabrina followed suit, settling her Eevee on her shoulder as well. Side by side, the two looked remarkably in sync.

Luo Yan pulled out his phone and selfie stick.

"Let's take a picture!"

Snap!

BOOM! 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

As the camera clicked, an explosive sound echoed from somewhere in the distance.

Startled by the noise, the Eevees trembled, their tiny paws slipping. Clearly unused to being on a person's shoulder, they would've fallen if Luo Yan and Sabrina hadn't caught them with psychic energy.

"What was that?" Sabrina frowned in the direction of the sound, feeling annoyed that her rare moment with Luo Yan was interrupted. "Do we have any Team Rocket operations in the Safari Zone lately?"

Judging from the sound, it seemed like an explosion—a real one, not just a Pokémon attack. That raised questions.

"Not that I know of," Luo Yan replied.

Matori had personally accompanied him to Fuchsia City, so if Team Rocket had any operations here, she would've briefed him.

"Either way, let's go check it out. Whoever it is, they're causing trouble on our territory."

He was curious—who would dare to stir things up on Team Rocket's turf?

---

Pokémon Hunters had been an illegal profession for as long as Pokémon trainers had existed.

The history of Pokémon Hunters could be traced all the way back to the League's founding.

Pokémon Hunters worked for the wealthy, helping them capture rare Pokémon.

Today, with the League actively promoting the profession, the trainer community had grown tremendously. Where there were people, there was demand, and that demand drove change.

As it stood, elite hunters like Hunter J still worked exclusively for the rich, but more and more hunters had expanded their business to include the general public.

Capturing wild Pokémon in bulk and selling them to young trainers who couldn't afford their own Pokémon had become a profitable trade for lower-tier Pokémon Hunters.

Luo Yan and Sabrina lay hidden on a cliff overlooking a group of hunters below, who were herding a cluster of Kangaskhan into a trap.

"Seriously? Has Team Rocket's reputation dropped this low?" Luo Yan muttered in irritation. "These small-time thugs actually think they can hunt on our turf?"

After all, they'd recently captured Akebi, an executive of Team Flare. She'd come to Kanto fully aware of how dangerous Team Rocket was and had planned to proceed with caution.

Now these hunters were brazenly poaching in the Safari Zone?

Clearly, they'd never experienced Team Rocket's wrath.

Sabrina, being one of the three Kanto Executives, had a better understanding of Team Rocket's operations here.

"This happens every year," she explained. "Even though Team Rocket's network covers Kanto, we can't be everywhere at once. These hunters usually work quietly, but now they're using explosives."

She frowned slightly. "Did the Sevii Islands incident not intimidate them?"

By now, everyone in Kanto knew that Team Rocket had repelled Lorelei and Lance with the help of the Tech Hunter. Yet these poachers didn't seem the least bit afraid.

"Maybe they think it was a one-off," Luo Yan speculated. "The Tech Hunter and Team Rocket may seem like they're cooperating, but Team Rocket stirred up a lot of trouble on the Sevii Islands. They probably assume we're too preoccupied to deal with them."

---

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