Chapter 27: The Cute and Charming Villain
(Second Update!! New book seeking collections and flowers!)
After finishing the call with the doctor, Xiao Zhi didn't leave immediately, instead, he made a call home.
“Hmm? Xiao Zhi! You can call, that means you've already arrived in Pallet Town, right?” Huazi picked up the phone, her voice filled with surprise when she saw Xiao Zhi.
Even though it had only been two days, Huazi was still very worried about Xiao Zhi's situation. No matter how mature Xiao Zhi had shown himself to be in the past three years, he would always be her child in her eyes.
“Yes, I've already arrived in Pallet Town. I'm currently at the Pokémon Center.”
“That's great! You're amazing, Xiao Zhi. You're much faster than your grandfather and father! Your father took four days to reach Pallet Town. Seeing you now is like seeing your father again,” Huazi seemed to be lost in her memories.
“But remember to take good care of yourself!”
“Got it, Mom, you too.” Xiao Zhi felt a surge of warmth in his heart upon hearing her words.
At this moment, Xiao Xia behind him was curiously peeking her head towards the phone screen. When she saw Huazi’s gaze sweeping over, she quickly retracted her head in fright.
“Hmm? That is…”
“Could it be our Xiao Zhi’s girlfriend?” Huazi also noticed Xiao Xia at first glance and her eyes lit up.
“Huh? No, we just met.” Xiao Zhi was a little speechless. It seemed like people in this world didn’t have the concept of early dating.
“Well… hello, Auntie. I’m Xia, Xiao Zhi’s friend.” Xia was a little embarrassed as she stood behind Xiao Zhi and bowed slightly. She spoke cautiously.
She felt a little nervous for some reason and secretly glanced at Xiao Zhi. When she saw that he didn’t have much reaction, she finally relaxed. But when she heard him say they were just friends, for some unknown reason, she felt a little disappointed.
“Hello, you’re such a lovely girl. Thank you for taking care of our Xiao Zhi,” Huazi seemed to understand something and said with a smile.
Xiao Zhi understood his mother's personality. No matter what he said, it would be useless, so he didn't say anything more. As for taking care of him, it was just a polite statement.
Even if one wasn't the one being taken care of, they would still say that out of courtesy.
“No… it's Xiao Zhi who's been taking care of me.” Xia became even more embarrassed. One reason was that although she often called herself the "No. 1 beauty in the universe," most people wouldn’t agree with her. Being called cute to her face made her feel a bit shy.
Another reason was that, in truth, she was the one being taken care of since they met.
“Anyway, take care of each other! Xiao Zhi, you can't bully her!”
“I’m not bullying her!” Xiao Zhi was truly speechless. Was this really his own mother?
They chatted for a few more minutes, reported their safety, and then hung up the phone. Xia was still a little embarrassed and didn't know what to say to Xiao Zhi.
“Xiao Zhi's mom is a very gentle person.”
“Yeah, except for being a bit talkative.” Xiao Zhi felt a sense of warmth in his heart. Even just watching the anime, he could already feel it.
“Okay, let’s go eat…”
Bang! Crash!
Just as he was about to say they were going to eat, a sudden commotion startled everyone in the center. The skylight above the center suddenly shattered, and two Poké Balls fell from the air.
Bang!
With a loud bang, the two Poké Balls exploded, releasing blue light as two figures landed. Two Pokémon appeared before everyone.
One Pokémon, with a spherical body, was entirely purple. Its body was covered in bumps, and it had a toothy smile on its face. A white skull was printed below its body. This Pokémon floated in the air.
On the ground was a serpentine Pokémon with a deep purple body and yellow markings.
“Arbok, Koffing?” Xiao Xia looked on in surprise, a little astonished at the sudden appearance of Arbok and Koffing.
Xiao Zhi knew what was going on when he saw this scene. Before he could say anything, the others in the center hadn't even reacted when Koffing started moving.
The bumps on its body instantly released bursts of black smoke, emitting a smell like 100 tires burning at once. The people in the center immediately covered their noses. They were affected by the smoke as well.
“What’s going on?!” At this moment, Nurse Joy emerged from the corridor. Looking at the scene, she instinctively covered her mouth and nose, asking in confusion.
“Humph, humph, humph, humph!! Since you asked.” A laugh echoed from within the smoke.
For some reason, Xiao Zhi felt a little excited upon hearing this voice. It’s coming! It’s coming! The classic scene is about to appear.
“We’ll be generous and tell you.”
“To prevent the destruction of the World Cup!”
“To safeguard the peace of the world!”
“To uphold the evil of love and truth.”
“The cute and charming villain.”
“Musashi!”
“Kojiro!”
“We are Team Rocket, traversing the galaxy!”
“White hole, a white tomorrow awaits us!”
“That’s right, Meow!”
The smoke dispersed, revealing two figures dressed in silver uniforms emblazoned with the letter "R." One male and one female, both appearing to be around 20 years old.
The man had blue, shoulder-length hair and held a megaphone. The woman had long, wine-red hair. Standing between them was a Meowth that walked on two legs and could talk. It was Team Rocket, one of the villainous organizations in the Pokémon series.
To be honest, this scene could be seen almost every episode, but Xiao Zhi never skipped it in his previous life. As the saying goes, the female leads change like running water, but Team Rocket is unyielding, and there's a reason for that.
“After all that talk, what are you trying to do?!” Xia's fiery temper immediately flared up, and she clenched her fists as she asked.
“Humph! Don't you understand after all that? We just want Pokémon!”
“So you're a Pokémon stealing gang!” Hearing this, Xia remembered what Officer Jenny had said earlier and instantly understood their identity.
“We are Team Rocket! Calling us a stealing gang is too insulting. We only collect precious Pokémon.”
PS: As a child, I found Team Rocket annoying, but as I grew older, I realized that while the main character is Xiao Zhi, almost all other characters could be replaced, except for them.