It has now been close to a month since Ash has joined Team Rocket and he is beginning to gain quite a reputation. The police of the Kanto Region are on constant watch for Ash along with his partner Ritchie. This young Team Rocket duo have gone along all of Kanto, as well as the Orange Islands stealing Pokémon. Many trainers fear that soon their Pokémon will be snatched by them, so all trainers keep an eye over their shoulders. Although the tides may turn as a young man walks into town wearing a coat and wearing sun glasses. It's Gary Oak himself who has come to town and intends to meet with Officer Jenny and her police force. Gary wants to put Ash away for a long time for all the crimes he has committed for Team Rocket. It seems that everyone in Pallet Town are ashamed of this, as one of its residents is the one doing this all. With no one more determined to bring Ash to justice than his old childhood rival Gary Oak.

Gary can remember the day Ash went of on his adventure and still remembers that arrogant smirk Ash had. Gary knew right from the start that Ash was trouble, but had no idea he could be like this. Gary also remembers a promise he made to someone which turns out to be Ash's mother Delia. Gary promises that he will find Ash and bring him to justice with hopes of reforming Ash and making him a good and upstart person and trainer. Delia while she still loves her son finds that futile as she believes Ash cannot be saved. Gary on the other hand isn't going to give up hope and plans to stop Ash and Ritchie at all cost.

Who as of now are at Team Rocket HQ at this moment getting their next mission from Giovanni himself. Giovanni tells his two agents on how the Kanto Region is no longer a very profitable region for Team Rocket to benefit. The Pokémon have been picked pretty clean so Giovanni believes it is time to move on. He tells them how he began construction of a new base in the Johto Region. So far all is going to plan, but the region police are beginning to interfere with its construction. Giovanni mentions how he has two Team Rocket agents over seeing the construction. However they have not made any scheduled reports on how far it has gotten. So then Ash and Ritchie are ordered to go there and survey the ongoing construction and to make a full report to Giovanni at once. Both obey without question and plan to go to the Johto Region ASAP. Also before they leave Giovanni gives them a report on some of the different kind of Pokémon they can find there.

Both Ash and Ritchie are excited at what kind of Pokémon this Johto Region is going to have. Which then Ash says, "Don't worry sir, Ritchie and I will bring the most powerful Pokémon the Johto Region can offer. If anyone gets in our way, well then we're going to be the most inhospitable guests around. HAHAHAHA." Now then the pair make way to a Team Rocket jet where they will fly strait to the Johto Region. On the jet both Ash and Ritchie go over the files of some of the reported Pokémon in that area. All are very impressive in stats as well as advantages and disadvantages. Ash although is anxious to meet the Team Rocket agents so he can hear their excuse as to why they haven't filed their reports. However the pair are mainly excited on the Pokémon of this region and which ones they intend to capture. Their pilot is telling them the platform for the Johto Region Team Rocket base is now in view.

So then Ash has the pilot land but not too close to the base, as he would like to keep their visit a secret from the authorities. However unknown to the however is Gary who is here in the Johto Region. He managed to get a view of the jet coming in and plans to tell Officer Jenny at once. Gary tries to quickly make his way toward police headquarters as soon as possible. Which he does make it, but short on breath, however it does not stop him from telling Officer Jenny. He tells her about the Team Rocket jet and where it is heading, which then makes her summon her police force strait away. Jenny knows the location of what Gary was speaking of, as some of her cops have told her Team Rocket is building a base out there. So with no time to lose the who police squad get in their cars with Gary as well. They all intend to find Team Rocket, bring them to justice, and stop the building of their base.

Ash and Ritchie have now made it to the still under construction base and soon meet the agents called Butch and Cassidy. They knew that a team was coming to check on their progress, but never thought in a million years it was a couple of kids. Well Ritchie has to say, "Well these kids happen to be Giovanni's top Junior Team Rocket duo. So now show us a little respect and give us a status report. The boss is angry that you haven't been reporting in on your designated schedule." Both Butch and Cassidy know and figured this, but so far they can't make any more reports because of Officer Jenny and her police force. Her patrols are interfering with construction and because of it have lost a lot of men. So then it is obvious at what needs to be done and that is to keep Jenny and her people away from here. Which Ash admits he and Ritchie can do that while they are here. However now he asks since they have been here if they have captured any Pokémon.

They have indeed, so then Butch and Cassidy show Ash and Ritchie all the Pokémon they obtained here in Johto. The selection is quite large and very impressive in scale and diversity in the amount here. There are Ursaring, Tyranitar, Skarmory, some Voltorb, Gloom, Paras, Blissey, Poliwhirl, and so on and so forth. All of these are quite impressive and so Ash decrees, "Good job the two of you. I want these Pokémon sent to Giovanni within the hour on the dot. However to reward yourself, you each can choose two Pokémon from your capture and keep for yourself." Both Butch and Cassidy find that very generous and know who to choose from their captured prey. Ritchie is tempted to take some for himself, but Ash denies him that luxury. As Ash figures since Ritchie did not catch any of these himself, then he should not have the privilege in taking any. That puts Ritchie on edge, but Ash does not seem to care as Ash's logic is indeed sound.

However Ritchie must state they both are agents of Team Rocket and playing fair isn't in their vocabulary. That maybe so, but Ash has to assert himself that Ritchie can't have any of these Pokémon what so ever. Ritchie withdrawls his claim on any of them and both Cassidy and Butch seem to like Ash. However they need to find an answer to their problem with Officer Jenny and her police. Ash suggests, "Listen I know you've been working on the base for so long, but you may have to abandon it. With Officer Jenny on our tail we're going to have to destroy this place and find a more secluded location. If we can get twice the men down here at double the shifts, then we might be able to finish the base in about three months. What do you two say to that?" They don't like the idea of having to abandon and destroy their base, but Ash does have logic in his reasoning. It's decided then that the base will be destroyed and both Butch and Cassidy will get the Pokémon out of here and sent to Giovanni at once.

That is put on hold for the moment as Officer Jenny has finally arrived with her squad of cops along with Gary. Who Ash instantly realizes and says, "Gary Oak? What are you doing here in the Johto Region? Could you not make it as a Pokémon Trainer in Kanto so you had to come here? HAHAHAHA." That is not the reason why, as Gary proclaims that he has come to Johto to arrest Ash for his crimes against Pokémon. Plus he promised Ash's mom Delia to help Ash and get him to reform at all costs. Ash only laughs when Gary said reform, as he has no intention of reforming. Ash likes working for Team Rocket and stealing all these rare and very powerful Pokémon. It suits his purposes well and has no intention of leaving or going home to see his heart broken mother. Who he comments as a very weak person, who simply couldn't contain her very high spirited son. So now then Ash commands for Butch and Cassidy to leave with the captured Pokémon in their possession.

Officer Jenny calls forth her Growlithe to try and keep them from escaping and so then Gary calls forth his Umbreon to do the same. That is indeed a bit unfair, so now then Ash and Ritchie summon their Pokémon. However this time it is not Raichu or Vaporeon, for it seems they caught two new ones. Ash summons his ghost Pokémon Gengar while Ritchie summons a very powerful and fierce looking Charizard. Ash proclaims he will fight Gary with his Gengar, so then that must leave Ritchie with Officer Jenny and her rather meek looking Growlithe. Gary commands his Umbreon to use swift attack, while Gengar is ordered to dodge and use shadow ball. Umbreon takes a hit from a very powerful attack, but Umbreon is determined to fight back. Now then later Charizard is ordered to attack Growlithe with a very powerful wing attack. Growlithe is thrown on its back and is hurt really bad and the intense ferocity of the attack takes it out with one blow.

Growlithe is down, so then to keep the other cops from helping Jenny, Ritchie calls forth a Victrebell. He commands it to use sleep powder which puts them all to sleep and now then all that's left is Gary. Umbreon puts up quite a fight against Gengar, but it proves to not be in the same league as this scary ghost Pokémon. Gengar finishes the battle with an all powerful hyper beam attack. The battle is over now with Ash and Ritchie are the victors, so it's time to make their escape. Gary won't allow it and plans to send out another Pokémon, but Gengar is ordered to attack Gary head on. Then Ash summons another Pokémon which so happens to be a Voltorb. He commands it to use its explosion attack on the police and Gary, which it does and makes them all immobilized. Ritchie is ordered to take care of the now abandoned Team Rocket base. He calls forth an Electrode and it too is ordered to use explosion and destroys the base.

Now then with Gary and the others completely helpless, both Ash and Ritchie make their escape at once. Gary tries to get up, but cannot and passes out from exhaustion because of that explosion attack. Back on their jet, Ash and Ritchie contact Giovanni and tells him about their scheduled progress report. Ash tells Giovanni that their base in Johto had to be abandoned as the local authorities were snooping around. However Ash does say they can begin construction on a new base at once. Ash simply tells Giovanni if they can get double the man power and double shifts they should hope to get it up and running in only a few short months. That is indeed good news and Giovanni congratulates his young operatives on keeping the authorities at bay. He is a bit angry at losing that base but with all these new Pokémon in his possession, it is a small consequence. Ash and Ritchie then ask if they should return to Kanto now. Giovanni commands them not to, as he wants them to now over see the new base construction.

Butch and Cassidy are given a new assignment and are ordered to report to Professor Namba. Ash and Ritchie understand their new mission, but Giovanni also gives them more good news for the two young agents. Once the base is up and running, it will be the new Junior Team Rocket facility. Ash and Ritchie are to be in charge of it all and their other half of the mission is to recruit more young trainers into their thrawl. Ash and Ritchie are humbled by this news and will get to work on it strait away and promise not to fail Giovanni. He knows they will not fail him and ends transmission. Now then Ash and Ritchie marvel at their new responsibilities and find them all to exciting. With the new base soon to be theirs though it seems that Ash's partner has some plans of his own and may soon be put into motion.

TO BE CONTINUED...