Ash was incredibly bored on his journey. Aside from the captain, who had some strength, the elites on other levels were no match for him. Ash had already reached floor 29. The captain of floor 20 was named Proton, a middle-aged man with blue hair, but his Pokémon weren't as strong as Annie's from floor 10. This frustrated Ash; weren't the higher the floor, the stronger they became?
How come you're weaker?
Ash pushed open the door to floor 30 and went inside.
"I didn't expect to run into you again!"
Two voices rang out as Ash entered, a man and a woman.
Ash looked up and immediately recognized them: Cassidy and Butch.
"Yo, it's been a long time! I've missed you two terribly." Ash smiled at the two, but his eyes were fixed on Cassidy's chest. Cassidy's chest was noticeably larger than before; it seemed she had developed quite well.
"Hmph! Ever since you defeated us last time, we've been training our Pokémon like crazy. This time, we're determined to defeat you!" Cassidy noticed Ash staring at her chest, his expression was lewd. She covered her chest with her hand, but Cassidy's gesture of pressing her chest was equally alluring, making Ash look at it even more lewdly.
"You bastard! Where are you looking! You think I won't take your eyes out?!" Butch also noticed Ash staring at his partner's chest and instantly flew into a rage. "You bastard! Don't you know Cassidy is my…?
Although I haven't won her over yet, she's my partner, and it's only a matter of time before I do. She's not for you, little brat, to lewdly observe."
"Oh, sorry, sorry. I didn't expect that after so long, Cassidy's breasts would become so round and full. I accidentally fantasized about them just now. They're really huge breasts. It would be so enjoyable to pin them down on the bed and fuck them hard." Ash said with a warm smile, deliberately trying to provoke Butch.
"Trying to take my eyes out? Stop joking! I'm already being lenient by not taking your eye out, and you still want to gouge mine? You're really asking for trouble. When I get your boss position, I'll see how I destroy you."
"Damn it!" Butch was clearly trembling with anger after hearing Ash's words.
"Alright, don't be impulsive. This guy's no pushover. Let's both attack together." Cassidy was clearly angry at Ash's words, but she managed to remain calm and didn't immediately attack. Ash admired this. He no longer considered Team Rocket enemies, but rather his subordinates. After all, once he killed their leader, with his abilities, he could easily subdue the entire Team Rocket and make them his followers.
"In that case, both of you come at me together. Let me see how much you've improved in all this time. I hope you can defeat me. If you can, you can do whatever you want with me." Ash said casually to Cassidy and Butch.
Defeat him?
What a joke! When Ash was still a rookie, these two were already beaten like dogs by him. Now, although Ash is still a rookie, do you think these two can improve faster than him?
"Since you said that, you can't regret it!" Hearing Ash's words, Cassidy and Butch each pulled a Poké Ball from their clothes.
"Go, Umbreon! Go, Rhydon!"
The two threw out their Pokémon. Ash raised an eyebrow; the Umbreon wasn't from the Kanto region, and the Rhydon was probably the one Ash had defeated before.
"In that case, go, Venusaur!"
Ash threw out the Pokémon that had defeated them.
"It's evolved into Venusaur already..."
Cassidy and Butch knew how powerful his Bulbasaur was back then. Seeing that it had fully evolved into Venusaur made them feel a little pressured, but they weren't afraid.
"You're only using one?"
Cassidy asked, surprised that Ash hadn't released a second Pokémon for a while.
"One is enough."
Ash smiled.
"Damn it, they underestimated us! Rhydon, use Horn attack!" Butch was clearly fed up with Ash's attitude and immediately sent his Rhydon charging towards Venusaur.
"Such an impatient fellow." Ash saw Rhydon charging at Venusaur. With Venusaur's current size, dodging was impossible. However, Ash wasn't worried at all. Venusaur was Ash's longest-serving Pokémon and had undergone the most upgrades. Its strength had reached a level comparable to the ace Pokémon of a Regional Champion, making overpowering the two of them no problem.
The two Pokémon were indeed much stronger than before. If it were the old Ash, he would probably only have been able to run away from these two. However, Ash hadn't stopped developing. The two Pokémon coordinated very well, but Ash's Venusaur was like a fortress, extremely difficult to breach. After dozens of exchanges, Ash's Venusaur was already somewhat injured and the opposing Rhydon was already knocked out. Only Umbreon remained, also heavily wounded.
"Venusaur, give him the final blow! Power Whip!" Ash immediately unleashed Venusaur's ultimate move.
Venusaur slammed its two front paws on the ground, instantly unleashing a torrent of thorns that lashed out at Umbreon. Umbreon tried to dodge, but the Power Whip's speed far exceeded its own. If it weren't injured, it wouldn't have been so bad, but now, injured, Umbreon's speed was reduced by more than half, and it was sent flying by the devastating attack.
"Looks like you two still can't beat me." Ash smiled at Cassidy and Butch, seeing that both of their Pokémon were unable to battle.
"Damn it..." Cassidy and Butch visibly gritted their teeth.
"In that case, I'll go upstairs then, bye-bye..." Ash recalled his Pokémon and headed down the next stairs. Cassidy and Butch glared at Ash with vicious eyes, but they didn't stop him. They had already lost; they had no right to hinder Ash's progress.
The journey was easy again. The guardian of the 40th floor was Ariana, truly a legendary woman, sexy figure and possessing a more motherly charm compared to Domino. Ash wondered why someone like her was part of Team Rocket. Ariana wasn't weak either, but she was still no match for Ash, who easily ascended.
The guardian of the 50th floor was a young man. Ash didn't ask his name; being male, he was too lazy to inquire further. He simply defeated him and went up to the 51st floor.
60th floor… "We met again." An old man sat in a chair, smiling at Ash's arrival.
"Oh…it's you." Ash recognized the old man; this was Dr. Steel, the Team Rocket professor who had come with Cassidy and Butch.
"It's been a long time. I didn't expect you to have become so powerful. Hearing Giovanni say you were coming, I've been waiting here." Dr. Steel smiled, revealing many yellow teeth.
"How did you know it would be me?" Ash asked, somewhat puzzled.
"Others might not know, but I'm Team Rocket's chief scientist. Even Giovanni gives me some respect. When he said someone was coming to wipe out Team Rocket, he gave me a photo. I recognized you immediately, so I've been waiting for you. I didn't expect you to make it this far." Dr. Steel leaned back in his chair, a hint of smugness in his expression.
"My photo?" Ash was visibly taken aback. How could his photo be in Giovanni's hands? It seemed that guy had seen his appearance.
"Kid, how about we make a deal?" Dr. Steel leaned forward, smiling at Ash, who was still somewhat stunned.
"What kind of deal?" Ash was puzzled, especially hearing about a deal with an enemy, particularly a key member of their team.
"I can help you become the leader of Team Rocket." Dr. Steel gave a mysterious smile.
"Make me the leader of Team Rocket?" Ash raised an eyebrow. What was this guy up to? Making him the leader of Team Rocket? Was he planning to betray them?
"That's right, the leader of Team Rocket. But in exchange, after you become the leader, you have to get me something from Team Galactic."
"Team Galactic? What's that?" Ash was even more confused. What could be more important than betraying his boss?
"Team Galactic is a criminal organization no weaker than Team Rocket. They weren't originally part of the Kanto region, but recently all the major villains from other regions have gathered there, and Kanto has completely changed. Team Rocket's position is starting to waver, and Boss Giovanni has been playing a safe game. If this continues, our annihilation is only a matter of time. So, I'm asking you to help me get Team Galactic's ancient research report. That way, we'll have some leverage to fight them." Dr. Steel's expression was very serious.
"How can I trust you?" Ash raised an eyebrow. He couldn't bring himself to trust someone without reason.
"If you agree, I'll go downstairs right now and gather people to resist Giovanni. My reputation in Team Rocket is no less than Giovanni's. If I call upon them, four floors of Team Rocket will obey me. If you defeat Giovanni, I can make the entire Team Rocket submit to you. And this is it." Dr. Steel tossed a key, which Ash caught.
"This is the key to that door. The Gym Leader of this city is imprisoned inside." Dr. Steel pointed to a door.
"Ding, Mission Branch 1: Immediately liberate the Gym Leader, then defeat Team Rocket together with her, gaining 1 Timer Ball, 50 Slave Points, and 3 Psychic Boosts;
Branch 2: Avoid rescuing the Gym Leader. After you have saved the Mayor, conceal from him that the Gym Leader remains captive in the Team Rocket building and then take the Gym Leader for your own training. Reward: 100 Slave Points. Upon hearing this, Ash was immediately convinced that Dr. Steel was telling the truth. But could he really let such an easy target slip away?
Releasing the Gym Leader would take time to subdue her; keeping her imprisoned was better.
"Since you've said so, I'll trust you for once. I'm going to the next floor now." Ash put away the key and walked past Dr. Steel.
"Aren't you going to release the Gym Leader?" Dr. Steel asked immediately when Ash ignored the Gym Leader and walked straight past.
"Would you let go of a piece of meat that's already in your mouth?" Ash replied without turning around.
"Then our cooperation."
"Let's do it."
"Haha... I've been waiting for you to say that, Ash, boss." Dr. Steel said.
Dr. Steel immediately stood up and walked downstairs. Team Rocket was doomed this time.