Chapter 248: Giovanni’s Shock
Giovanni stared coldly at Rio. If the masked man had caught Mewtwo, this kid wouldn’t still be grinning like that.
"Congratulations—you got it right."
"Hmph—don’t get too cocky, kid. Even if you’ve caught Mewtwo, it won’t listen to you." Giovanni’s face twisted with a hint of mockery at Rio’s smug expression.
Mewtwo? He knew its temperament all too well. Even if you captured it, making it obey was an incredibly difficult task. Team Rocket had specially designed a set of armor to control it and limit its power before they dared command it. Otherwise, you’d just be bringing a ticking time bomb into your home.
"Sorry—my philosophy is that anything is possible with enough effort. No matter how difficult a Pokémon is, once it meets me, it ends up listening. Mewtwo is no exception," Rio said with a shrug, his expression brimming with confidence.
"Talking is easy. If you’ve got the guts, release Mewtwo right now and let’s see if it listens to you. If you can do that, I’ll truly acknowledge you," Giovanni said, a smirk spreading across his face.
He was certain that if Rio dared to release Mewtwo, it would either run away or—at the very least—destroy the prison. Maybe he could even use the chaos to escape.
"What’s wrong—now you’re scared? Afraid Mewtwo might attack you? Or that you can’t control it? Tsk, it looks like you’re all talk after all," Giovanni taunted when Rio didn’t respond.
Rio knew exactly what Giovanni was trying to do. His hesitation had nothing to do with fear.
"Since you’re so insistent, I’ll show you what true friendship looks like." Rio pulled out the Master Ball.
With a flash of light, Mewtwo appeared—but the scene was so unexpected that Giovanni shot up from his bed and rushed to the cell door.
Mewtwo was lying there peacefully, completely unaware that it had even been released. "It’s... drunk," Giovanni said in disbelief, catching a strong whiff of alcohol. He turned to Rio, utterly baffled.
Rio shrugged. That was exactly why he’d hesitated earlier. They’d spent the past few days either drinking or on their way to buy more alcohol.
Giovanni’s eyes went wide. He couldn’t believe that Rio had actually gotten Mewtwo to drink. Rio nudged the sleeping Mewtwo, and it slowly opened its eyes. The first thing it saw was Rio—and it assumed Rio was thirsty.
"What’s wrong—are you thirsty? Me too. That beer from yesterday was good—I want more."
Hearing the voice in his mind, Giovanni slowly turned to stone. He couldn’t believe those words had come from Mewtwo. It was the perfect description of an alcoholic. Words like "thirsty" were already rolling off its tongue.
Then Mewtwo noticed Giovanni. Its expression darkened, and it was about to use Psychic to teach him a lesson, but Rio stopped it.
"Mewtwo—Giovanni just said that if I released you, you’d beat me to death. Would you really do that?" Rio asked with a smile.
"Why would I beat you? Do I have a death wish? If you die, who’s going to drink with me?" Mewtwo’s gaze turned icy as it locked onto Giovanni. "The one I’d beat is him."
With that, Giovanni was lifted into the air, writhing in pain under Mewtwo’s psychic pressure.
"Go easy on him—as the leader of Team Rocket, he’ll face judgment from the League’s laws. Killing him here would only invite accusations of vigilante justice. That would drag the League into controversy, and if the League gets dragged in, I’ll have to deal with it. That means more work—and less time to drink with you," Rio said calmly.
Two seconds later, Giovanni crashed back to the ground. Coughing, he stared at Rio in shock. He couldn’t fathom what Rio had done to Mewtwo in just a few days to make it so obsessed with alcohol. Every word, every thought, revolved around drinking. Mewtwo was a full-blown alcoholic—and it actually seemed to have a good relationship with Rio. He couldn’t believe that Mewtwo had stopped its attack simply because Rio might have to work more and miss out on drinking with it.
Could Mewtwo have always had a "drunkard gene"? Giovanni wondered. If I’d discovered this method back then, could I have gotten along with it just like Rio? A pang of regret hit him—why hadn’t he thought of this sooner? All he needed to do to win Mewtwo over was take it drinking. If he’d realized that earlier, he might already have conquered the world with Mewtwo by his side.
"Boss Giovanni—do you still think I’m all talk?" Rio smiled.
Giovanni didn’t answer. After a long pause, he finally said four words: "You win this round."
Though he didn’t want to admit it, Rio was indeed better than him. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have become the League Champion in just over a year—and captured Mewtwo on top of that.
Hearing that rare acknowledgment, Rio felt satisfied. Then he revealed the real reason for his visit: "Actually, there’s something even more impressive I’ve got."
"Something more impressive?" Giovanni frowned. "What is it?"
Rio reached into his pocket and pulled out a shimmering crystal—inside it, a yellow-and-black leaf was embedded. Giovanni’s eyes widened as he stared at the crystal.
"Is that... a Beedrill Mega Stone?" He looked at Rio in shock. "How do you have that?"
"What if I said I found it?" Rio shrugged. (Munchlax finding it counted as finding it, right?)
"Do you expect me to believe that?" Giovanni rolled his eyes, but his gaze remained fixed on the Mega Stone, filled with greed. He’d had his men searching for it for years without success—and now, the very thing he’d been dreaming of was right in front of him, in Rio’s hands. If he’d had it during the Mewtwo capture attempt, he was confident he could have turned defeat into victory—beating Rio, the masked man, and even taking on Mewtwo one-on-one with Beedrill.
Seeing the greed in Giovanni’s eyes, Rio smiled: "Want it?"
"Would you really give it to me?" Giovanni was genuinely surprised.
"Of course—as long as you give me what I want in return." Rio shrugged. "Unfortunately, you’re now my prisoner."
He knew Giovanni would likely escape someday—his subordinates would move heaven and earth to break him out. Their loyalty was beyond question. Rio was laying a seed now, so that when Giovanni eventually escaped, he’d know exactly what he needed to trade for the Mega Stone.
"Give you what you want." Giovanni’s eyes narrowed as he tried to figure out what Rio wanted. He was about to ask when Rio’s communicator buzzed. Rio glanced at it—it was one of the League executives calling.
"Boss Giovanni—I won’t keep you. Just stay put and wait for the League’s judgment." Rio answered the call and left with Mewtwo.
Giovanni stared at Rio’s retreating back. "What you want... must be legendary Pokémon, right?" he muttered.
His intuition told him that Rio’s ambitions were no smaller than his own. And at this stage, with Rio’s status, the only thing that could still excite him was legendary Pokémon.
"Just wait—I’ll get out of here. That Beedrill Mega Stone is mine."