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The Reverse Dragon Scale was now Sato's most prized possession—its importance had soared to the level of his own Kingrda's Reverse Scale. Faced with Ranka's shameless and unreasonable demand, he naturally scoffed at it in his heart and was utterly furious.
And what exactly was the Reverse Dragon Scale? It was an irreplaceable treasure that could accelerate the growth of Dragon-type Pokémon. Yet Ranka had the audacity to spout such arrogance, attempting to get something for nothing—to snatch this treasure from his hands without paying the price.
Ranka's arrogance and blatant disrespect made Sato feel that he was severely underestimating him. The thought alone made his fury burn even hotter.
"Heh~ You don't need to trouble yourself over that, Brother Ranka. You'd best worry about your own problems first."
Sato, seething, let out a laugh of disbelief. He fixed his cold gaze on Ranka and replied in a voice equally icy.
"So what you're saying is—you don't want to be friends with me, Mr. Sato? I've heard this island is full of dangers. One careless step and you're gone for good. Treasures are nice, sure—but only if you live long enough to keep them. Don't you think so, Mr. Sato?"
Ranka's smile faded slowly after hearing Sato's response. Narrowing his eyes, heavy with purple eyeshadow, he met Sato's gaze with the same frosty gleam. His tone turned unmistakably threatening, no longer bothering to hide it.
Ranka sneered inwardly at Sato's stubbornness. In this tournament, over fifty members of his Athena faction had joined the fray.
And among these more than fifty Rocket members—each at least an early Elite-level Trainer—more than half now followed his lead. With just one command, he could make sure Sato suffered in every round of the tournament.
When that time came, he'd show Sato what it meant to be hopelessly outmatched.
Sato easily heard the threat behind Ranka's words, but he didn't care in the slightest. As far as he was concerned, unless he ran into people like Tomoki or Vanna, the absolute elite prodigies of the new Team Rocket generation, he could hold his own against anyone on this island.
And as for Ranka? This fifth ranked drag queen, gender bending clown? Frankly, Sato didn't even consider him a real threat.
Sato had found that there was actually a slight error with the info he'd received from Nogun on Ranka. He'd overheard some rookies, who likely knew Ranka, discuss how strong Ranka was and how his Zweilous was very powerful and extremely difficult to deal with. They'd said that it was likely close to evolving as well.
Those guys obviously didn't have enough money to buy the info being sold at outrageous prices and had resorted to band together and share whatever little info they had about the contestants and the trial with each other for mutual benefit.
Still, that had unexpectedly ended up benefiting Sato as well. The guy's so-called pseudo-legendary Dragon-type Pokémon was actually still just a Zweilous, and not a fully evolved Hydreigon, like he was thinking.
That alone proved it hadn't yet reached full maturity. A Zweilous that couldn't even fly? Against his Swampert, it would be utterly crushed.
Besides, Sato was no longer some rootless drifter. His current boss was none other than the Rocket leader—Giovanni.
So if Ranka dared to mess with him, Sato had no qualms about killing him right here on the island.
Thanks to a few conversations with Joe Kondo—a trusted confidant of Giovanni—Sato now understood that Team Rocket wasn't nearly as united as it seemed on the surface.
The three major faction leaders were all founding veterans who had built Team Rocket alongside the previous generation's boss. Naturally, they had little respect for Giovanni, who had risen to power largely through connections.
Time had proven that the former Team Rocket boss was a sharp judge of character. Her son wasn't just powerful—he'd become a feared Trainer across Kanto, and under his leadership, Team Rocket had grown into the most powerful underground organization in the region.
Even so, the three major faction leaders still disdained Giovanni, routinely undermining and indirectly ignoring his orders. Although Team Rocket seemed formidable, internal conflicts ran deep.
If tensions continued to escalate, Team Rocket would undoubtedly fracture. Giovanni had been biding his time for years since taking over.
He was a far-sighted man, steadily amassing power and strengthening his inner circle.
Now, with strong lieutenants like Sabrina, Surge, Koga, and the Three Beasts, Giovanni's influence had reached new heights. He was no longer the leader others could afford to underestimate.
Unknowingly, he had become the most dominant force within Team Rocket—and the pressure he exerted on the other three factions was beginning to show.
This so-called Rookie Competition was, in truth, an experiment by Giovanni—meant to promote talented recruits and suppress the influence of entrenched factions.
Although each major faction had snuck in their own handpicked candidates, clean-background Rocket members like Sato still made up more than 70% of the participants.
That meant, no matter the outcome, potential-filled members like Sato—those with no political baggage—would undoubtedly receive Giovanni's support. After all, anyone who had made it this far through sheer ability was already proving their worth.
And for those like Sato, who had already been absorbed into Giovanni's inner circle, there was no question—they were priority targets for grooming.
Which was why Sato believed that even if he killed Ranka on the island and the incident came to light, he'd not only be fine—he might even be rewarded by Giovanni in secret.
"Heh~ Oh, I'm so scared. But let me make it clear—I won't be handing over the Reverse Dragon Scale. If you want it, you'd better come with something of equal value. Or you can try to take it from me yourself. But remember—the island's full of danger. If someone dies here, no one will even blink."
Having worked through the risks and benefits, Sato sneered. With murderous intent in his eyes, he stared straight into Ranka's icy gaze and retorted without flinching.
At the same time, a black badge appeared in Sato's hand. The dark emblem was the ultimate symbol of his status as a core subordinate of Giovanni: a Black-Green Badge.
"You… you're one of the Boss's people?"
Ranka, as a direct subordinate of Athena—one of Rocket's three great faction leaders—was no fool. The moment he saw that black-green badge, all the arrogance drained from his face, replaced by shock.
In that instant, all sense of superiority vanished from Ranka's heart. Even though he believed he was still stronger than Sato, none of that mattered now.
In this tournament, the most powerful faction was clearly the Giovanni-led group. Compared to that, Athena's followers—no matter their numbers or strength—were simply overmatched.
If he so much as tried to kill Sato using underhanded means, Giovanni would have full justification to eliminate him using similar methods.
'Damn it… So this bastard is one of Giovanni's handpicked inner circle? That means I can't touch him quietly after all…'
Ranka's expression darkened as he stared at the conspicuous black badge in Sato's hand. He could hardly believe that Sato had been granted such an honor by Giovanni himself.
In his mind, everyone who held a black badge was a heavyweight within Rocket's upper echelon—each more than capable of crushing him like an insect.
"I'll be waiting for you on the island, Ranka. I'll keep the Reverse Dragon Scale on me—so let's see if you've got the balls to come and take it."
Sato noticed every change in Ranka's expression, and couldn't help but appreciate how great it felt to have real backing. He passed by Ranka without stopping, and left him with one last parting shot.
"Hmph, a backwater nobody dares act so arrogant… Fine. If I can't kill you through trickery, then I'll make sure you die by accident. I'll make you suffer before you die. The Reverse Dragon Scale can stay with you—for now."
Ranka's face turned crimson with rage at Sato's final remark. He spun around, glaring at Sato's back like a venomous serpent, eyes full of murderous intent.