Pokemon Academy, Komoda City.
"Do we know each other? I don't think we have met before."
Hisoka asked with a doubtful look.
"Hmmph!"
Brad snorted coldly.
"I heard you defeated Koga in a tournament last year."
"Yes. Can you just get straight to the point?"
He said with a frown. He hated people who beat around the bush.
"I know you're lying!"
Brad roared, spit flying out of his mouth.
"You must have cheated in the battle. There's no way the likes of you could win against Koga. Impossible!"
Hisoka:???
Jimmy:???
'What's going on in this guy's head?'
They both thought at the same time.
After calming down, Brad turned on his heels.
"I hope we can meet in the next round. That way, I can prove to everyone that you are nothing but a cheater."
Said Brad before walking away, leaving Hisoka and Jimmy in a daze.
Jimmy quickly snapped out of his thoughts and turned to Hisoka.
"Did you really cheat in the battle against Koga?"
He asked hesitantly, feeling sceptical about the man's claim.
"Well, do you really think I can cheat in front of the League?"
Hisoka asked a question instead.
"No, I don't think so."
Jimmy shook his head after giving it some thought.
Hisoka smiled in relief at that. He didn't want others to think that he was a cheater.
"Everyone who watched the battle knows that Koga wasn't really trying his best."
He explained.
"But why did he accuse you of cheating?"
Jimmy asked in a puzzled manner.
"If I remember correctly, Koga had taken in a disciple a few years ago. His name was Brad, if I'm not mistaken. I think that guy must be the rumoured Koga's disciple. You can tell he was angry at me for defeating his teacher."
He said with a wry smile.
They both talked about what had just happened as they made their way to the cafeteria. After having their lunch, Jimmy returned to their room to rest while he went to take a stroll in the park.
He came to the large lake in the centre of the park and sat down at a nearby tree. He stretched his back and took a deep breath, enjoying the breeze flowing through his hair.
Every so often, several Goldeen would jump out of the water and fall back in with a splash, a few Horsea racing across the lake and a lot of Magikarp hiding under the water surface. He also found a dozen of Slowpoke lazing around on the other side of the lake.
Suddenly, the surrounding wind began to pick up, and soon, two figures appeared in front of him out of thin air. They were Gardevoir and Ralts that she brought back last night.
He waved to the small Ralts, who was clinging to Gardevoir's legs, to come over.
"Ralts, I have something to give you."
He said with a smile while taking out a few Pokeblocks that he personally made.
Ralts leaned over to look at his hand, revealing a pair of bright red eyes like rubies that were usually hidden behind his bangs.
"Go on. It's okay. Hisoka won't hurt you."
Garedevoir encouraged him.
After hesitating for a while, Ralts finally gathered up the courage to approach Hisoka for the first time. As soon as he was close, he took a peek at Hisoka and quickly stole a Pokeblock from his hand.
Curiously, he threw it into his mouth. As the flavours burst in his mouth, he couldn't help but squeal in delight.
"Is it delicious?"
Hisoka asked softly.
"Ra-lts!"
Ralts happily replied with a nod of his head as he took another Pokeblock from him.
During this time, a man in a black suit was hiding behind a tree not far away from them. He was watching their every move while talking with someone on the phone.
"Sir, I found the mission target."
"Are you sure?"
On the other side of the call was a man in his early forties. He was tall and had short black hair with a beard.
"Yes. I'm seeing a shiny Ralts right now."
"Okay, good. Keep watching. I will send someone over to you immediately. Remember, stay out of sight. Don't let them see you."
The man nodded in satisfaction.
"Yes, sir."
"Father, is there any news about Ralts?"
As soon as the man hung up the phone, the listless Giselle looked up at him with expectant eyes.
"Yes, my dear."
The man smiled.
"We have found your Ralts. He is near the lake in the park."
When Hisoka was enjoying a leisurely afternoon with his Pokemon, a sudden shout broke the peaceful silence.
"Grab him, and don't let him run away."
He looked up and saw a dozen men in black suits walking towards him in a circle along with a few Alakazam, causing him to frown. Then, the men parted as a middle-aged man, and a familiar-looking girl came up to him.
"It's you?"
Giselle yelled.
"Are you stealing my Pokemon?"
She pointed at Ralts, who was hiding behind Gardevoir nervously.
"Give him back, or I'll tell-"
"Wait a second."
Hisoka stood up and raised his hand to interrupt her.
"Please don't accuse me of stealing, okay? One more thing, I didn't steal your Pokemon."
He retorted.
"You're lying! Give me back my Pokemon!"
But before she could continue with her tirade, the middle-aged man beside her put his hand on her shoulder to calm her down. Then, the man walked up to him and held out his hand.
"Hello, I'm the girl's father, Richard. You are Hisoka, right? The gym leader of Dark City."
The man said amiably.
"Hello, Mister Richard. Yes, I'm Hisoka."
He shook his hand politely.
"Can you explain where you got this, Ralts?"
The man inquired while pointing at Ralts.
He nodded, "Sure, but just to let you know, I didn't steal your Pokemon. This Ralts was found by my Gardevoir in the park last night. I'm not sure if you know this, but Gardevoir is the final evolution of Ralts. They are a Pokemon species born with the ability to sense the emotion of other creatures. That's why it's very rare to find them in the wild. Your daughter might have scared it yesterday and caused it to run away. This has nothing to do with me."