Lance sat at the long mahogany table in the newly established Johto League Headquarters in Blackthorn City, his expression grim and unwavering. What he was about to do was something a Champion rarely dared—borderline shameless, even. But the urgency of the situation left no room for pride.
To his right sat Steven, the stoic Champion of Hoenn.
To his left, Professor Kukui—representative of Alola, which still lacked an official Champion.
Directly across from him was a striking blonde woman: Cynthia, the newly crowned Champion of Sinnoh.
Four of the most powerful figures in the Pokémon world, gathered in a single room. It was an extraordinary assembly—one Lance had pulled every string to make happen.
"I'm grateful that all of you made the journey to Johto," Lance said with a respectful nod. "Let me begin by welcoming you properly. The reason I've called you here concerns our neighboring region—Kanto."
"Kanto?" Steven asked, brows furrowing. "What's going on over there, Lance?"
"You were all informed that I no longer hold power over both regions," Lance began, voice low. "I… was defeated. The new Champion chose to claim Kanto alone and left Johto to me."
The words were hard to say—and even harder to accept. But they were true. Lance had lost.
"Well, isn't that interesting," Cynthia remarked with a wry smile. "We all know it was Blue Oak who took your title. While Kanto is usually overlooked aside from the work of Professor Oak, we do keep our eyes on what happens in other regions."
"Do you, really?" Lance said dryly, sliding a thick envelope of photographs across the table. "Take a look at these."
The others leaned forward as Cynthia lifted the photos and passed them around. Every image showed Pokémon roaming through the fields, forests, and towns of Kanto. The problem? None of them were native to Kanto.
"These species are from your regions—Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, Alola, and even further beyond," Lance said, voice hardening. "These photos were all taken in Kanto. And these Pokémon aren't appearing in small numbers. They're showing up everywhere. Now, tell me—what does that mean?"
To say the other Champions were stunned would be an understatement.
"Every region takes pride in its native Pokémon," Steven said carefully. "We protect them because they define our cultural and ecological identity. It's why regional migration is tightly controlled—and why rare trades are done only under the strictest conditions."
"You think he stole them?" Cynthia raised an eyebrow, scoffing. "Don't be ridiculous. If this many of our regional Pokémon had been stolen, we'd know. There hasn't been a single report of theft in Sinnoh. That alone makes this deeply suspicious."
"There haven't been any thefts in Alola either," Kukui added, folding his arms.
"No criminal activity reported in Hoenn," Steven confirmed.
"And the same is true for Johto," Lance concluded with a weary sigh. "So, if there's no smuggling, no theft, no migration… then where are these Pokémon coming from?"
The room fell silent. Each of them already knew the answer.
They all spoke at once.
"Oak Hatchery."
"There has to be a limit to how many Pokémon the Oak Hatchery can breed in such a short amount of time!" Lance slammed his fist on the table, frustration boiling over.
"It's rumored they've revolutionized the entire breeding process," Cynthia replied, intrigued. "It all started when Oak Hatchery—just a startup back then—began recruiting staff from Pokémon Day Cares across the regions. They poached every breeder we had in Sinnoh, offering salaries so outrageous we couldn't possibly match them."
"Pokémon Day Cares?" Professor Kukui blinked in surprise. "They're known for caring for Pokémon, sure, but they're not exactly elite breeding experts, right?"
"That's the strange part," Steven said, picking up the thread. "Somehow, they've found a way to mass-produce eggs on a scale we've never seen before. Even more alarming—there's no restriction. They're producing huge numbers of eggs, even for species notoriously difficult to breed. Oak Hatchery can churn out Dragon-types with the same ease as Rattata."
"We all do business with them," Cynthia admitted. "And not just Sinnoh. The Chansey alone they provide completely transformed our healthcare system. I don't need to tell you how rare and difficult Chansey are to obtain."
"Same in Alola," Kukui nodded. "And it's not just Chansey. We rely on their supply for several species."
"I've even bought an egg from them myself," Steven added, thoughtfully rubbing his chin. "The Pokémon they raise… they're just different. Stronger. Smarter. More in tune."
"No one's ever questioned how they're doing it?" Lance asked, exasperated. He, too, had accepted a Pokémon from Blue—reluctantly at first. But after training his Bagon, there was no going back. That little dragon was a future ace if he'd ever seen one.
"He is an Oak," Kukui said, as if that alone was explanation enough. "If he's anything like his grandfather, then yeah—he's a genius. Maybe breeding's just... his thing."
"That's just one of the many problems happening in Kanto," Lance said grimly.
He took a deep breath, his eyes locking with each of his guests in turn.
"Blue Oak," he continued, voice heavy. "Is absurdly powerful. His ace — Blastoise, the Titan — could wipe out your entire team. Singlehandedly."
A beat of silence.
And then—laughter filled the room.
"I know losing stings, Lance," Steven said through chuckles, "but just because you were defeated doesn't mean we would be. Honestly, how arrogant of you to assume that."
"I have to agree!" Kukui laughed. "Even without an official Champion, and with a totally different League structure — we in Alola are built different, man. You don't know the kind of threats we've had to deal with back home."
Cynthia was the only one who didn't laugh. But she did smile.
Her hand hovered near her belt, where six Poké Balls gleamed softly. She glanced down at them, a quiet smirk tugging at her lips.
You have no idea what that monster is capable of, Lance thought bitterly. You arrogant fools. But I can't blame you. You're Champions—believing you've reached the peak. I thought the same thing... until I met him.
"If you don't believe me," Lance said, trying to control his frustration, "you'll have to see it for yourselves. I hate showing this—honestly, I've thought about deleting it and pretending it never happened. But for this, I'll make an exception. You're the only people I'll ever show this to."
He picked up the remote and turned on the large wall-mounted screen. A battle recording began to play. On the right stood Lance himself. On the left—Blue Oak. Towering before Blue was a massive Blastoise.
Rain poured from a dark, stormy sky, adding a cinematic weight to the scene.
"Oh?" Cynthia leaned forward, her interest piqued. "Is this the battle where Blue took your title?"
Lance gave a slow nod.
"It's raining," Steven observed. "Was that his doing?"
At that moment, Blue's voice crackled through the speakers of the recording, as if answering Steven directly.
"You know, Lance," Blue said casually, hands in his pockets, "I was thinking about running a rain stall team today. Love watching my opponents squirm as they get slowly picked apart... but honestly? I don't even need to stall you."
"Rain stall team?" Cynthia raised an eyebrow, grinning.
Then Lance's full team was released, one by one.
He threw everything at Blue: Hyper Beam, Thunder, Outrage, Blizzard, Fire Blast.
It didn't matter.
The Titan didn't dodge.
Didn't flinch.
Blastoise tanked every devastating hit, its immense shell shrugging off the strongest moves in the world like they were minor annoyances. No damage. Not even a crack.
And when it did respond—it did so with terrifying precision.
With a low rumble, the cannons on its back roared to life, and in each encounter, the result was the same: brutal, merciless knockouts. One after another.
"What the hell…" Steven's mouth fell open.
"There has to be a limit… to how many hits a Blastoise can take!"
"Maybe," Cynthia murmured, her tone shifting. "Maybe you were telling the truth, Lance."
"Now you believe me?" Lance said hoarsely. "It wasn't just a loss. I was obliterated — by one Pokémon. My entire team… gone." He stood abruptly and began pacing the room. "I'm a Champion. How is it possible for a rookie to destroy me with just his Starter Pokémon?"
He spun around, eyes blazing.
"And he didn't do it to me alone. He took down the entire Elite Four — each one of them with a single Pokémon. A different one each time, sure, but still — one per battle. That's the level we're dealing with."
The laughter was gone.
Now, the room was silent once more—but this time, the mood had shifted. The three other leaders finally looked at Lance with the seriousness he had hoped for.
They understood now.
Something was very wrong in Kanto.
"Okay." Steven straightened, his voice calm but firm. "So Kanto has a monstrously powerful Champion. Fine. That much is clear. But the fact that you called all of us here — Champions and representatives from across the world — tells me there's more to this than just a strong trainer. What are you really worried about, Lance?"
Lance's expression darkened.
"Blue Oak is dangerous," he declared, his voice sharp and cold. "I don't know what his ultimate goal is… but I do know this — he tore through Kanto like a storm from another age. A hurricane of force and ambition. Gyms, Leagues, Trainers, traditions — he crushed them all. And now… the people? They follow him. They cheer for him. They play his game, whether they understand it or not."
He rose from his chair, his cape flicking behind him like the wing of a restless dragon.
"Who's to say he won't do the same to our regions next?!"
He extended a hand toward Kukui. "Alola — just across the eastern sea from Kanto."
Then at Cynthia. "Sinnoh — to the north of Kanto."
Then Steven. "Hoenn — directly to the south."
Finally, he pressed a hand to his own chest. "And Johto — bordering Kanto to the west."
He paused, letting the weight of their geography settle over the room.
"We are the four corners surrounding him," Lance said, voice low and deliberate. "If we stand united — if we act now — we can trap Kanto in a vice. Box him in from all sides."
His eyes glinted with fire. "No matter how powerful he is — no matter how absurd his Pokémon are — in the end, he is still one man. One Champion. Six Pokémon."
He took a step forward, the shadows flickering across his face from the light of the video screen still glowing behind him.
"And when a single monster is caged by four regions... by four Champions united..."
A slow, defiant grin curled across his lips.
"Then even Blue Oak can be contained."