When we arrived at the island's eastern side, a glimmering sea stretched out before us. Eric, Caps, and I grinned at one another before tossing up our Pokéballs.

"Jet, let's take flight!" I called out.

"Show yourself, Samurott!" Eric cried.

"Come on out, Magnezone!" Caps said.

At our command, our Pokémon appeared.

"Where to, Georgia?" I asked, climbing on Jet's back.

"We just gotta head northeast from here," Georgia said, "Spotting Fuchsia City shouldn't be too hard to spot."

After mounting our Pokémon, the three of them flew across the sea. When I looked below me, I saw two small islands with caves.

I wonder where those caves lead to.

As we flew across the sea, I watched Dewgong and Seel leaped out of the water with a Gyarados by their side.

Sometimes I gotta remember that many of the Pokémon I see back home originate from this region.

"Hey, is that Fuchsia City up ahead?" Nina questioned, pointing ahead.

When I looked up, I saw buildings piercing the sky.

"That's Fuchsia City, alright," Georgia said, "We can land at the nearby beach."

Listening to the cowgirl, Jet and Magnezone started diving toward the shore of the upcoming city. When the two Pokémon landed on the white sand, Samurott walked onto the shore before letting out a cry and lying in the sand.

"Is he alright?" Caps asked, hopping off his Magnezone.

"He's fine," Eric reassured as he climbed off the Pokémon's back, "Samurott always loved the beach ever since he was an Oshawott."

When Nina hopped off Samurott's back, the Formidable Pokémon rolled around in the sand, acting like Growlithe or Rockruff. The scene before us caused us to laugh.

"Now that we're here at Fuchsia City, what do we have to do now?" Kat asked.

Georgia pulled out the hint and read it aloud.

"Your next location is across the sea; its name is a shade you'd never think," Georgia read, "To find your next clue to fill you with glee, find the ninja whose Gym Badge is pink."

"A ninja?" I parroted.

"That's right," Georgia said, "Here in Fuchsia City, there's a ninja here that's a gym leader. Her gym is outside the city itself."

"If she's a ninja, finding her and the badge we need isn't gonna be easy," I said, "And I highly doubt she'll be waiting in her gym for us to find her."

"I agree," Nina said, "Ninjas are known to hide in plain sight, and they're masters of disguise."

"Maybe that's the challenge," Eric commented, "To get the badge, we have to find the gym leader. It's a game of hide and seek."

"Well, aren't you kids lucky you have someone like me on your team?" Caps questioned, flipping his green bangs.

The others and I glanced at the self-proclaimed champion with confused looks.

"With my powers, I can find that ninja in no time," Caps said, "There's nothing against the rules that says I can't."

"I don't know," Kat said, "Seems a bit risky."

My head whipped around to the sound of splashing. I grimaced when I saw another team coming over with jet skis.

"It's better than nothing," I said, "Come on, let's head into the city."

After we retracted our Pokémon, we bolted into the city. I gasped in awe at the old-fashioned architecture of the metropolis.

It almost resembles Ecruteak City in Johto but without the autumn trees or the two towers.

The city bustled with people and different Poison-type Pokémon around the world.

"Okay, Caps, how can you find this ninja with your powers?" I asked.

"With my psychic powers, I can read auras," Caps said, "I can tell if one's aura is filled with goodness, hatred, malice, and the like. To find this ninja, I need to locate an aura filled with trickery but still good at the same time."

When we arrived in the middle of the city, Caps removed his Clefairy from his shoulder and handed her to Nina. The self-proclaimed champion kneeled before placing his hand on the ground. When Caps' eyes shifted to purple, I felt the ground quake.

"What was that?" Kat asked.

"Compulsion," Caps said, "I can send shock waves or energy pulses to sense people's auras. I haven't used it in a while, so it might take a minute for me to get a lock on who we're looking for."

After a minute, the ground quaked again. Caps' eyes snapped open before scrambling to straighten his posture.

"What happened? Did you find her?" Kat asked.

"No, I didn't, but I did find something else." Caps said coldly.

"What did you find?" Eric asked.

The self-proclaimed champion growled under his breath before taking Clefairy and placing her on his shoulder. He then pointed to a group of five people in the distance. They wore matching blue and black clothes with dark blue ball caps.

"Team Xenon in disguise." Caps said.

Our eyes widened.

"Team Xenon?" I parroted, "You're kidding, right?"

"I wish I were," Caps said, "But their auras have malice, trickery, and the like. Not an ounce of goodness in them."

Not good, not good at all. I'm glad my worry about them being dormant for a while has been validated. What are they up to now?

"My guess is that they're looking for the gym leader," Caps said, "Or to snag whatever Pokémon they can find."

"Remember, Team Xenon doesn't just snag any Pokémon," Nina commented, "They steal Pokémon capable of Mega Evolution. We're always on their list if they don't have a set agenda."

Then, the group of grunts started to walk further into the city.

"We have to stop them." I said.

"I agree," Georgia said, "The scavenger hunt can wait. If we don't do somethin' now, they could ruin the scavenger hunt for everyone."

Agreeing with the cowgirl, we silently followed the grunts further into the city. The grunts looked around before walking out of the city into a nearby forest.

"Where are they going?" I questioned.

"To the gym." said a stray voice behind us.

When we turned around, we saw a girl with light skin, matching purple hair, and eyes. She wore a matching black shirt and jeans, a magenta visor, and white sneakers.

"Out that way is the gym where the gym leader Janinie resides," the girl said.

"Really?" Kat questioned, "We're in search of the gym leader to get her gym badge to get on with this scavenger hunt, but that's gonna have to wait."

"They're probably gonna steal the gym leader's Pokémon," Eric said, "Well, the only ones that can mega evolve."

"I agree. Come on; I know the quickest way to the gym. If we can get there before those guys, we may have a chance to warn Janine before they arrive."

Nodding to the girl, we followed her out of the city and into the forest.

"Oops, with everything going on, I forgot to introduce myself," the girl said, "The name's Janette. I'm a local here in Fuchsia City."

"A pleasure," I said, "I'm Eragona, and these are Eric, Kat, Nina, Caps, and Georgia."

Janette smiled before picking up the pace with us in tow. As we weaved through the many trees, I saw an old-fashioned Eastern mansion in the distance.

"That's the gym?" Nina questioned in awe.

"It sure is," Janette said, "That gym has been in a family of ninjas for generations. It's truly a spectacle."

When Caps kneeled, he placed his hand on the emerald grass, sending another pulse that shook the ground.

"That gym is old," Caps said, "I can sense a lot of different booby traps in this building, but there's something else,"

"What else is there?" Kat asked.

"A tunnel coursing throughout the mansion, but it's not visible. It's hidden,"

"A secret tunnel!" Nina exclaimed, "How cool is that?"

"Then that's our way in to beat Team Xenon," Eric said, "Where is it?"

"This way!"

The self-proclaimed champion stood before running deeper into the forest with the others and me in tow. As we weaved through the trees, Caps came to a halt in front of a large boulder.

"The entrance to the secret tunnel is right here." Caps said.

"Where is here?" Kat questioned.

Caps grinned before raising a hand to the boulder. His hand and the boulder were soon encapsulated in a purple aura. Then, the boulder flipped up like a hatch, revealing a metal ladder leading down.

Whoa. These ninjas were awesome!

"Come on!" Janette said, "I've explored these tunnels before. I know the quickest way to the foyer."

Then, the purple-haired girl jumped down the hole, disregarding the ladder. The others and I glanced at each other in awe.

"She's certainly a thrill seeker." Kat said.

The others and I agreed as we climbed down the ladder. When we reached the bottom, Caps closed the boulder-like hatch, cloaking the small room in darkness. Then, the tunnel became illuminated with light from torches lined along the wall.

"Follow me." Janette said, jogging down the torch-lit tunnel.

The others and I nodded before following the young girl down the tunnel. After making some sharp turns, we arrived at another metal ladder.

"This ladder will take us straight to the foyer." Janette said.

Janette climbed the ladder and pushed open a hatch, allowing a warm light to sink into the tunnel. When we climbed through the hatch, we were in a large foyer with bamboo wooden floors and torches lining the walls. Across the floor were stone statues of Arbok and Seviper.

"Whoa, look at this place," Kat said, "It's beautiful."

"That it is," Janette said, "But we can admire this place later. We've got company."

As if on cue, the Team Xenon grunts burst through the doors.

"What the? Who are you, brats?" one of the grunts asked.

"We're here to stop you from reaching the gym leader and taking her Pokémon!" Nina declared.

"If you want the gym leader, you're gonna have to go through us." Eric said, readying his Pokéball.

The grunts scoffed before tossing their Pokéballs. At their command, three Houndoom and two Mightyena.

"That can be arranged." said a female grunt.

"Leave this to me, guys." Janette said, stepping in front of us.

"Janette?" I questioned.

When Janette clapped her hands, she disappeared into a puff of smoke. The smoke was so potent I had to cover my mouth and wave away the smoke.

Where did she go?

When the smoke cleared, another person was present; a young girl was wearing a black ninja-yoroi with a magenta scarf and magenta and purple bands. When she turned around, my eyes widened.

"Janette!?" I asked in surprise.

"Yup," she said, "Well, it's actually Janine."

Janine? As in the gym leader Janine? Well, Nina did say that ninjas were masters of disguise.

The grunts couldn't help but laugh.

"You're telling me that this little girl is Fuchsia City's gym leader?" asked a male grunt, "Oh, please; give me a break."

"If that's the case, this will be a piece of cake." said a female grunt.

Libby, Angel, and Clefairy growled at the grunts, ready to fight. Janine grinned before holding a hand to our Pokémon, stopping them. She then pulled out a Pokéball and tossed it.

"Come on out, Toxicroak!" Janine said.

At her command, the Toxic Mouth Pokémon appeared with a croak.

"Shadow Ball!" the grunts cried.

At once, the Dark-type Pokémon released shadowy blobs.

"Cross Chop!" Janine said.

The Toxicroak crossed its arms as the claws on its knuckles started to glow. When the opposing attacks were close, the Toxic Mouth Pokémon slashed the shadowy blobs away.

Whoa. Talk about strong.

"Sorry, but I don't have any Pokémon for you to steal," Janine said, "None any you would prefer."

When the grunts heard this, they scoffed before retracting their Pokémon.

"Really?" a male grunt questioned.

"Lady Calista really needs to fire that new intel of hers." said a female grunt.

The Toxicroak let out a warning croak before getting into a battle stance. The grunts winced before backing away.

"Whatever!" spat a male grunt, "If you don't have nothing for us, then maybe the other gym leaders of this backwater region do!"

When he tossed up a Pokéball, a Seviper appeared.

"Haze!" a female grunt said.

At her command, the Fang Snake Pokémon released a thick black smoke that covered the foyer.

"Not this old trick again!" Nina coughed.

"Beautifly, get out here and use Gust!" Kat said, throwing a Pokéball.

In that same second, the Butterfly Pokémon appeared and started beating its wings rapidly, clearing away the smoke. When the smoke cleared, Team Xenon was gone.

"Ugh, just great," Nina groaned, "Where could they have gone now?"

"They mentioned something about the other gym leaders," I said, "We just need to get there before them... again."

The others agreed with silent nods. Janine sighed before retracting her Toxicroak.

"This is not how I thought this day would go," Janine said.

"No kidding," Kat said, "If we don't put an end to their shenanigans now, Team Xenon will ruin this scavenger hunt for everyone."

"To do that, we must get them before they reach the next gym leader."

"I think I can help with that."

Janine reached into her pocket and pulled out a pink heart-shaped badge.

"This is the Soul Badge," Janine said, "I take it you need it to progress with the scavenger hunt, right?"

The gym leader then placed the badge in our bag.

"But we didn't find you; you found us." Eric said.

"True, but I'll make this one exception, especially since you guys have a better grasp on the situation than I do. Oh! You're also gonna need this!"

Janine then handed us a folded piece of paper.

"Team Xenon said they were going to the other gym leaders, and the only other city close enough to Fuchsia City is in this clue."

Georgia nodded as she took the clue from the gym leader.

"Thank you, Janine." Caps said.

"My pleasure," Janine said, "Good luck!"

After waving goodbye to the gym leader, we rushed out of the mansion and into the forest.

"So, what does the clue say?" I asked.

Georgia unfolded the paper and read the clue.

"This city's name is a shade of green, but it has more to show. Known as the City of Colorful Dreams, find a Gym Badge that reflects the rainbow."

"I know where that is," Georgia said, "That's Celadon City. It's just to the north of Fuchsia City."

"Then let's get going," I said, "The sooner we get there, the better."

The others agreed, and we sprinted into the city to avoid the forest's canopy. When we were in the city, Caps and I took out our Pokéballs and tossed them in the air.

"Jet, we need you!" I said.

"Time to shine, Magnezone and Beheeyem!" Caps called out.

At our command, the three Pokémon appeared.

"If we head west of the city, we can fly north over the bike path to Celadon City." Georgia said.

"You got that, guys?" I asked.

Jet, Beheeyem, and Magnezone nodded. Georgia and I got on Jet, Kat and Caps got on Magnezone, and Beheeyem used Psychic on Eric and Nina.

"Let's get going." Kat said.

The three Pokémon nodded before taking to the skies and flying west.

Ugh, I cannot stand Team Xenon. They constantly pop up whenever we're doing something fun. I swear, we'll put an end to their reign, no matter what it takes!