Rosita/Johto

In the outskirts of Cherrygrove City, Professor Oak is trying to capture a Slugma. He fails and laments that he cannot find a Trainer who is willing to capture all of the Pokémon and complete the Pokédex. Later, Bill calls Professor Oak at his second research center in Cherrygrove City and tells him that he has found someone who is willing to help complete the Pokédex on one request. Bill sends Professor Oak the information to find them. Professor Oak then finds out that the Trainer has to be at Violet City at 3:00 PM and then leaves.

Meanwhile, Rosita explains to a girl that Pokémon can heal themselves by eating Berries. Earl Dervish then arrives and thanks Rosita for working at the Pokémon academy. Suddenly, a part of the academy falls down and nearly hits a child. Earl then laments that he is not an enterprising business man and cannot pay for a new academy. The children call Rosita to play with them, when suddenly the Slugma from before attacks the academy.

Professor Oak arrives and exclaims loudly that he is looking for the person who wants to help him. Rosita then releases all her Pokémon and weakens the Slugma. She then captures Slugma using a Level Ball. Afterwards, Rosita tells Professor Oak that she is the one who wants to help him complete the Pokédex. A few days later, the Pokémon academy is rebuilt and Earl is grateful, but wonders who is the benefactor.

At Professor Oak's second research center, Professor Oak gives Rosita her Pokédex and reveals that he paid for Earl's Pokémon Academy to be rebuilt. Meanwhile, three beams of light leave the Burned Tower. Professor Oak suggests that Rosita begin catching the Pokémon in the area. However, to his surprise, Rosita has already caught all of the Pokémon in the area on the way there. Professor Oak asks if she is going to take any with her, but she says she has her team already. After Rosita leaves, Professor Elm scolds Professor Oak for not introducing him to Rosita, and disappointingly tells Chikorita that he cannot go with Rosita on her adventure. Surprised and angry, Chikorita scratches Professor Elm on the face and runs away to find Rosita.

On Route 30, Rosita is trying to capture a Victreebel. She tells Arcanine to use Ember when Chikorita suddenly appears in front of Victreebel, forcing Rosita to stop the attack. The Victreebel then uses Chikorita as a shield, seeing her as a way to escape. Rosita then tells her Smoochum to use Mean Look, finally capturing the Victreebel. Rosita is glad to be able to catch both the Victreebel and Chikorita, and tells Chikorita that she is going to send both of them to Professor Oak. However, Chikorita refuses and shows that he wants to stay with her. Rosita is happy to hear that, but she tells him that she cannot bring a Pokémon that is weak. Chikorita flexes her muscles, trying to look strong enough for Rosita.

Rosita sends out Chikorita, but tells her that she has to battle with her Hitmonchan. Chikorita uses Razor Leaf, but is shocked when Hitmonchan punches away the leaves with Mach Punch. Hitmonchan then uses Mega Punch and breaks the ground. As the ground starts to give way, Chikorita hangs on tight. Once the shaking stops, Rosita smiles and tells Chikorita that no Pokémon has ever taken Hitmonchan's Mega Punch in the face before. She tells her that she has mega watts of courage, and decides to have Chikorita permanently join her team, much to Chikorita's delight.

Rosita arrives at Violet City, only to notice Earl Dervish and a group of children from the Pokémon academy. After they are gone, Rosita heads to the Pokémon Center. She wants to send Smoochum and the Victreebel she just caught to the Pokémon Storage System, but she is informed that the system is down. She then calls Professor Oak, who, along with Professor Elm, inform her that a Chikorita has escaped from his research center. Rosita informs him that she already found it, and decided to add it to her team. After the call, Professor Elm and Professor Oak discuss the importance of the storage system.

Later, Rosita stops by a river to rest. As she fills her canteen up with water, she notices a drifting motor boat with a Flaaffy and a Dunsparce that are hanging off from the edge, struggling to not fall into the water. The motor boat's engine suddenly turns on, and Rosita quickly hops in to save and capture the Pokémon. Chikorita, however, stays on the shore.

Right after she jumps into the boat, Flaaffy and Dunsparce start attacking her. She fights back with Natu's Psychic, and captures the Flaaffy. She quickly looks up Dunsparce's data in her Pokédex, and realizes the Dunsparce is starting to escape by boring a hole in the boat. Thus, the boat starts to sink. As Dunsparce comes out of the boat, Rosita jumps up and kicks a Poké Ball at it.

After capturing Dunsparce, the Poké Ball falls down toward the water, but Chikorita catches it with the large leaf on her head. However, in the process, Chikorita falls into the river. With Natu's help, Rosita flies over, scoops up Chikorita, and praises her for saving the Poké Ball with Dunsparce in it. Rosita then finds a Pokégear in the boat wreckage, and wonders if it if belongs to the owner of the boat. Suddenly, the Pokégear rings and a voice asks her to transport him a Pokémon. When Rosita explains that the Pokémon Transporter isn't working, a mysterious figure appears in the sky.

In the outskirts of Violet City, Bill approaches Rosita on his Farfetch'd and tells her to attach a cord to her Pokédex. Bill tells her that it is called the Pokémon Portable Transporter, but Rosita doesn't know what he is talking about and asks him to get down off of his Farfetch'd. Bill tells her that he can't since a group of Staryu have surrounded him. The Staryu then start to chase him and Bill says that the Staryu are also responsible for pushing him off his boat earlier. Bill tries to explain to Rosita about how the Pokémon Portable Transporter works, but his communication is suddenly cut off. Rosita then heads to a nearby amusement park.

When Rosita arrives at the amusement park, she finds Bill on top of a Ferris Wheel car, trapped in a cage made by the Staryu. Rosita has Cubone attack them with Bonemerang, but realizes that is impossible to break them apart from the outside. Suddenly, the Staryu bounce onto a running roller coaster. Rosita asks Bill how to use the Pokémon Portable Transporter. Bill explains that she can use to the system to transfer Pokémon to the person on the other side of the phone, and all she has to do is face the Pokédex toward the Poké Ball that she wants to transfer.

Rosita manages to transfer Natu inside the Staryu cage and has Natu use Drill Peck, breaking the enclosure. As the Staryu begin to flee, Rosita manages to capture one with a Fast Ball while the others escape. Afterwards, Bill says he will give the receiver to Professor Oak. Rosita then notices a wild Elekid and runs off to catch it. At Professor Oak's Second Research Center, Professor Oak receives Rosita's Smoochum, wanting to study her species due to Smoochum being the pre-evolved version of Jynx.

The next morning, Rosita heads to Union Cave to go to the west side of Johto. While traveling through the cave, she flashes back to Bill informing her that the same species from Kanto and Johto might look slightly different, and therefore, Professor Oak would like her to collect them again. Back in the present, Rosita spots a Magneton, which doesn't live in the cave. Suddenly, three more Magneton appear and surround Rosita and Chikorita, who then drop them in a submarine.

Afterwards, Lt. Surge approaches the submarine, but is disappointed to discover that it his Magneton didn't get any wild Pokémon. Lt. Surge then enters the submarine to travel to Azalea Town. He leaves through a secret passage, but gets stuck on a reef of Corsola. Rosita comes to and surprises Lt. Surge when he realizes she is on board. Briefing her on the situation, she figures out that she has to capture the leader. Natu creates a current with Psychic, which lifts them up. After they are out of the water, Natu defeats the leader with Psychic, which Rosita captures with a Lure Ball. As compensation, Lt. Surge gives her a ride to Olivine City on the S.S. Aqua.

Rosita is walking towards Olivine City, with the news broadcast about the events of the Burned Tower playing. Once she enters Olivine City, she sees the construction site of the Battle Tower. When she gets to the construction site, she talks to one of the workers about when it will be finished. Suddenly, a waste collection pipe starts to break under pressure, and the tower itself starts to collapse. Rosita manages to save some of the workers, but the waste flows into the sea, enraging some nearby Qwilfish.

The Qwilfish take in a bunch of water and start attacking with Pin Missile. Rosita thinks about cleaning up the mess to calm the Pokémon down, but decides to capture them instead. She notices that all the Qwilfish were protecting another Qwilfish in the back, and assumes that it was the leader, and kicks a Poké Ball, which twists around the Qwilfish and captures the one in the back, causing the others to flee as a result. The workers say that they will clean up the mess soon. However, Natu spots a baby Qwilfish in the water. Rosita has Natu rescue the Qwilfish from the water and notices that it has a weak pulse.

As Rosita is about to take the baby Qwilfish to a Pokémon Center, Suicune suddenly appears in front of her and cures the baby Qwilfish, cleaning the sea in the process. Soon, Rosita gets a call from Professor Oak, telling her that he's counting on her to get some data on the three Legendary beasts. Rosita tells him what she just saw and then starts hunting down Suicune.

The evening after Rosita starts looking for Suicune, it appears in Blackthorn City, thinking about the Gym Leaders.

At the Blackthorn Gym, Clair is battling her apprentice Ryu. Ryu is using a Seadra and Clair is using her Kingdra. Seadra uses Twister, then Smokescreen. Clair switches out Kingdra for her Dragonair, and has it use Safeguard, protecting itself. Then, it uses Dragon Breath, knocking out Seadra and defeating Ryu. He mentions that she is the Gym Leader of Blackthorn City and the grandchild of the leader of the clan. When Clair wonder if there is anyone who is strong enough to battle her, Ryu mentions that she once lost to her cousin Lance. She lashes out at him and tells him to never speak of him. While heading to the Dragon's Den, Clair wonders where her cousin went.

Upon arriving at the Dragon's Den, Clair calls out to the Dragon to battle with her. Three Dragonite and three Gyarados rise out of the water, but do not attack. Instead, they make way for Clair peacefully. Suddenly, Suicune appears and attacks. Clair jumps onto Dragonair's head. Dragonair blocks Suicune's attack with its tail, but one of the crystal balls on its tail shatters. Suicune jumps behind Clair and creates a mist. Clair, seeing a silhouette, has Dragonair use Dragon Breath on it. Suicune jumps out of the way, and the sound it makes causes Clair to think its body is made of crystal. She then throws a Great Ball at it, but the Great Ball bounces off. Clair sees the block of ice she attacked and realizes the real one is in the mist. She turns around and sees Suicune, who promptly uses Bubble Beam, defeating her. Suicune then leaves.

Afterwards, Clair's grandfather and the chief appear. Clair's grandfather talks about Suicune's legend and a prophecy in a language that only the chief can understand. Clair wonders if Suicune is searching for a Trainer.

A man is flying on a Skarmory when he sees something, and has Skarmory get closer. Meanwhile, a man, his Poliwrath, and Primeape stand near a cliff side. The man, whose name is revealed to be Chuck, announces that he'll finally get to battle someone. He makes his way inside the Cianwood Gym and greets his wife. He instructs her to prepare the battle room so he can battle his friend.

After some time and his friend still hasn't arrived, Chuck assures himself that he's always late and that there's no need to worry. Suddenly, Chuck hears a sound and runs outside to see what it is. He is horrified to find his training equipment broken. When he inspects his torn sandbags, he finds a shard of crystal. It's then that his friend's favorite jacket washes up. He wonders who could have defeated him when he sees a shining light in the ocean. He sends his Poliwrath and Primeape after the light, when Suicune appears. But before it can attack, a Skarmory defends Chuck, buying some time. It turns out that the Skarmory's trainer is Chuck's friend, Walker.

Walker was late because of Suicune and he reveals to Chuck that it's one of the Pokémon that awakened from the Burned Tower. They both decide to work together to try to capture it. After a long and tough battle, Suicune flees, since it doesn't think they are good enough. Walker, though, tells Chuck that he's still a warrior and hasn't changed a bit. Chuck then reveals that his last disciple returned to Kanto four years ago, and is now the Gym Leader of Viridian City. They then wonder why Suicune challenged them. They come to the conclusion that it must be looking for a strong Trainer, and if so it must be heading for Robyn or for Falkner. Suicune is then seen heading towards another town far away.

In a village in Johto, a young man stands on the top of a small building, his index finger and middle finger pressed against his forehead, eyes closed. Villagers stand below, watching him, calling up to him if he sees anything. One man comments that he is the "trainer with eyes for a thousand miles". It is then revealed that he is the Gym Leader of Ecruteak City. Suddenly, the man opens his eyes, and announces that he can see it, which is a lady's Girafarig, which had been separated from her when she was young.

Everyone travels to the mountain, where a lone Girafarig is spotted, and the lady and her Pokémon unite. The man, whose name is Morty, is thanked by the village. The lady curiously asks Morty if he can see anything he wants to. He replies that he can see almost anything; he has looked for two things that he couldn't find so far: Ho-Oh and Suicune, which his friend Eusine had asked him to look for. The lady then quickly calls for a radio. The radio tells of the Legendary Pokémon which escaped from the Burned Tower, and that this Pokémon's name is Suicune. Morty hurries away with his Misdreavus and Gastly.

It's not long before Suicune appears before Morty. After a quick battle, Suicune runs into the village. However, before it can get far, it starts to slow down, and is soon paralyzed. Morty tells Suicune that Gastly had set out little electric waves using Thunderbolt in the black mist back in the forest. Morty wastes no time throwing a Great Ball at Suicune, which goes straight through its head. Morty looks around as the village and Suicune begin to deteriorate, then transform into four images of Morty, standing around him, all with the same shocked expression. As he reaches out to touch one, it shatters, as do the others. Morty is back in the forest, and his Misdreavus is paralyzed. The illusion and the paralysis is because of Mirror Coat. Morty tries to look for Suicune again, but fails. He accepts defeat and calls Eusine, telling him that he saw Suicune, but suffered a miserable defeat.

While riding on Arcanine, Professor Oak explains to Rosita how to use to the Pokégear to track a Pokémon. Afterwards, Rosita manages to track down Suicune and quickly follows it to Route 39. Despite having her team spread out in order to help search for Suicune, Rosita quickly finds that Suicune has moved to a new area. As soon as she decides to rest for the night, she hears something moving behind her. She tells Natu to find it. Then, she asks Parasect to hide themselves, and lure out the Pokémon, with Sweet Scent. With a glance, Rosita notices that the mysterious Pokémon might be Suicune, and checks her Pokégear. Confirming that the Pokémon is indeed Suicune, she sets out to capture it.

Despite being lured out by Parasect's Sweet Scent, Suicune returns to the grass. In order to bring it out, Rosita tells Hitmonchan to use Mach Punch, causing Suicune to run in a different direction. She then tells Hitmonchan to continue using Mach Punch in the direction that Suicune runs. Soon, most of the grass is cleared away, and Rosita returns all of her team, except for Natu, back into their Poké Balls. She uses Natu to fly over the route in order to throw her team into different sections of the route, hoping at least one of them will find Suicune.

Arcanine jumps to a place where Rosita assumes Suicune is. However, it quickly is taken down by an electrical attack. Once she heads to Arcanine's area, she discovers that it is not Suicune that she found, but Eusine and his Electrode. Eusine was also looking for Suicune, and soon they both realize that they had been chasing each other, and that Suicune had escaped to another area. Eusine reveals that he had been using a Suicune hologram in order to attract it to the area. As Rosita is also searching for Suicune, he declares her his rival, stating that he would not hold back on her simply because she is a girl. He then throws down a smoke ball and flies off using his Jumpluff.

Elsewhere, a Ditto is seen transforming into a four-legged creature. As it becomes more clear, slowly gains a bluish shade, it looks exactly like Suicune.

Meanwhile, Rosita wonders who the young man she met was. She notices a card falling from the sky and catches it in her hands. She realizes it's an autographed image of the man, whose name is Eusine. At the Moomoo Farm, a farmer couple are upset that one of their Miltank is sick. It had stopped producing milk for the past few days. Suddenly, the couple hear a noise and quickly check to see what has intruded. Eusine greets them and promptly checks the sick Miltank, and says that he will help them restore its health with magic. Eusine puts his right hand into Miltank's mouth and pulls out a card. He states that the number three, which is printed on the card, signifies a traveler, while the club pattern means good hospitality, and says the card hints that Miltank will recover once the traveler, Eusine, gets treated well by the couple. The male farmer says that such tricks can't fool him, but Eusine pulls out a pocket watch and starts counting backwards from three. When he says one, Miltank starts glowing, and the couple are surprised that it had turned healthy again. They discover that Miltank is starting to produce milk again. The male farmer thanks Eusine for helping out.

Eusine is happily leaving the farm while sipping from one of the bottles of MooMoo Milk the farmer couple gave him. He says that he is a great trick-master and resumes looking for Suicune using his binoculars. He sees Rosita's angry face looking at him. He jumps back and drops all the Moomoo Milk he was carrying, Rosita calls him a cheat and says that he cannot trick her forever. It turns out that while Eusine was playing with the card in Miltank's mouth, he had fed it a special Berry that recovers a Pokémon from all types of sicknesses. Eusine admits about not being honest, but says that Rosita isn't doing the right thing by following him. Eusine says that he knows she is trying to get near Suicune by following him. Outraged, Rosita shows her Pokédex to Eusine telling him that she is there because the tracking system alerted her that Suicune is around.

Soon, Eusine and Rosita are attacked by an Ice Beam, and they discover that Suicune is nearby. Eusine sends out his Electrode, while Rosita sends out Arcanine. While riding on their respective Pokémon, Rosita realizes that the Pokémon they're chasing is not actually Suicune. Eusine refuses to believe this as this is his first time seeing Suicune up close. However, when Rosita tells it to reveal itself, it is shown to be a Ditto. Rosita shows that Suicune had moved in a different direction than the Ice Beam attack, the Pokémon did not move at all, and it was not majestic as Suicune is. It is revealed that the fake Suicune is a ploy created by the Masked Man to stop other people from going after Suicune.

On Route 38, the Team Rocket Elite Trio find Suicune and use their Pokémon to surround it.

Meanwhile at the Moomoo Farm, Rosita and Eusine are attacked from behind by Ditto, as the Ditto had stretched part of its body underground while they were talking. Ditto stops Rosita from being able to reach her Poké Balls, and Eusine attempts to use his Electrode to electrocute Ditto. However, Rosita reminds him that electrocuting Ditto would also electrocute them. While she thinks of a plan, Rosita is pulled completely inside of Ditto. Ditto gloats, but is quickly knocked out by a punch. As it releases Rosita, it is revealed that Hitmonchan was the one who threw the punch, and that Rosita was crouched beneath him. Rosita had been able to send out her Pokémon, and have Hitmonchan make a human shape for her, in order to confuse Ditto.

Once Ditto is defeated, Rosita and Eusine decide to use the Pokédex tracking system to track down Suicune, and thus, the person who sent Ditto to distract them. Because of the speed in which Suicune and the people following it are moving, Rosita decides to have Parasect use Spore at a specific range in order to stop them from chasing Suicune. Meanwhile on Route 38, Ken, Al, and Harry are chasing Suciune, when they are suddenly hit by Spore and fall asleep.

Using Eusine's Electrode, Rosita and Eusine head towards Suicune's location. Once they are close to Suicune's location, Eusine hands Rosita a doll, and then leaves. Through the doll, he tells her that they should split up: one will go after Suicune, while the other will deal with Team Rocket. Rosita realizes that Suicune is heading towards Ecruteak City, and decides to follow it. Meanwhile, Eusine finds Ken, Al, and Harry as they wake up. Eusine realizes that the Octillery he sees is who had used Ice Beam earlier. He decides to wait until the effects of Spore wear off before he takes them all in a battle.

Rosita rides Eusine's Electrode through Ecruteak City. She recalls that it all started when Suicune emerged from the Burned Tower. Rosita then tells Electrode to go to the Burned Tower. Rosita tries the door of the Burned Tower, only to find out that it won't open. She decides to try entering from above and flies up onto the roof with Natu and Eusine's Electrode. She looks at the ruins of Ecruteak City. Suddenly, Rosita has a sense that Suicune is at the top of the Tin Tower.

She flies upwards and sees Suicune standing on top of the Tin Tower. She tells the Legendary Pokémon that she has been searching for it, but whenever she had thought that she had found it, it was not the real Suicune. This time, she says, she knows it is the real one. Then she prepares to battle it, sending out all of her Pokémon. Cubone uses Bonemerang, which is dodged by Suicune, but Rosita says that this is part of her plan. The Bonemerang reverses direction, surprising Suicune, although it is dodged again. Parasect uses Spore. Suicune uses Gust to blow away the spores, but it still has some on it. Suicune jumps off the tower towards a pond, but Hitmonchan jumps and falls past Suicune, using Mega Punch on the ground, which fractures the ground, throwing Suicune into the air and battering it with boulders. Rosita kicks a Heavy Ball at Suicune, hitting it.

Rosita thinks that she has caught Suicune, but then it breaks the Heavy Ball, releasing itself. Rosita says that the reason that she used the Heavy Ball was Suicune's weight. However, she is not deterred and believes she must weaken Suicune further. Suicune jumps up onto a floor of the Tin Tower. She sends Arcanine and Cubone after it. Cubone uses False Swipe, but it appears to be blocked by Suicune's tails. Rosita yells encouragement to Cubone before finding that there is a translucent wall between Suicune and Cubone and also above her.

Eusine, through the doll he gave her, informs her that Suicune is creating the Crystal Wall. He says that he is coming to her by following the doll's signal and that she needs to stop Suicune from completing the Crystal Wall. Rosita then sees that the Crystal Wall is almost complete. She helps Cubone stop the Crystal Wall with its bone. If Suicune completes the Crystal Wall, they will be blocked and Suicune will surely flee. However, they can pass through the Crystal Wall with the Clear Bell that Eusine stole from Team Rocket. He deduces that they knew about the Clear Bell's effects.

As Eusine nears the Tin Tower, the Crystal Wall is completed, splintering Cubone's bone. The fragments break Eusine's doll and Rosita's Pokégear. Eusine is horrified to see Rosita fall off of the Tin Tower, but Natu manages to catch her and bring her to safety. Meanwhile, a huge shining bird-like Pokémon flies by while leaving behind a rainbow above the clouds.

Eusine questions Rosita over the location of Suicune, but she is too distraught to answer. Eusine begins to carry Rosita up the stairs of the Tin Tower until he runs into the Crystal Wall on the seventh floor. He bypasses the Crystal Wall using the Clear Bell and begins going upwards again while calling for Suicune. Eusine then discovers the Ho-Oh shrine that Morty was talking about. He also notices tracks made by Suicune and realizes that it has already escaped. Rosita then wakes up out of her daze and asks where she is. Eusine tells her that she is on the highest floor of the Tin Tower and inside the Crystal Wall. Rosita also learns that Suicune has escaped. Eusine begins to tell Rosita about the collapse of the Tin Tower that happened a month before and that within a month's time it was rebuilt. He asks her if she knew why the Tower was rebuilt before the city. He reveals that the Tin Tower was destroyed by Team Rocket in order to lure Ho-Oh out, as the Tin Tower is its shrine and that Morty was hoping, through the reconstruction of the Tower, Ho-Oh would not become angry and return.

Ho-Oh's shrine then begins to glow. Eusine sees that Ho-Oh is still on its way and Rosita realizes that Suicune was attempting to meet Ho-Oh at the Tin Tower. Eusine then thanks Rosita for the two weeks they spent together and leaves on his Jumpluff to find Suicune. Rosita starts to cry because she realizes that Suicune was trying to meet Ho-Oh alone, that it tried to stop her from interfering via the Crystal Wall, and that she had hindered Suicune's mission. However, Rosita and Eusine both fail to realize that since the Crystal Wall is still active, it also means Suicune is still close by. Suicune senses Rosita's emotions and they both have a second of connection.

At the Team Rocket HQ, the Masked Man questions Sham and Carl about the status of their plot to capture Suicune. They explain that their Clear Bell has been stolen and that the capture of Suicune has been unsuccessful. The Masked Man, believing that Suicune will appear in front of the Gym Leaders, orders Sham and Carl to keep an eye on them.

On Route 42, Rosita attempts to track a Pokémon with her Pokédex, only to discover that is broken. Since it is broken, the tracking system doesn't work, so she can't find Suicune. Rosita says that she might not be able to complete the Pokédex like this. And she can't call Professor Oak because her Pokégear is broken too. Suddenly, a wild Poliwrath appears and runs past with her mother in pursuit, alongside her Wobbuffet. Her mother is ecstatic at seeing her daughter and says hello to Rosita's Pokémon. She notices the new member of Rosita's party and becomes enamored with the cute Pokémon. Rosita introduces her to Chikorita. She gives Rosita custom Poké Balls made by Kurt and asks her to catch the Poliwrath. Rosita tries, but the Poké Ball bounces off the Poliwrath, which sinks below the surface of the pond. Rosita tells her mother about what's happening to her, Suicune, and her mission to complete the Pokédex. Her mother tells her to go back to the place where she started training after yelling at her for giving up so easily, before showing her that skills could be regained and improved, as Jill orders Wobbuffett to use Counter as Poliwrath attacks with Focus Punch, before subsequently capturing it with a Dive Ball.

Later, Rosita is at Mt. Mortar. She ties up her arms and begins to train again, while a Larvitar watches her.

Suicune enters the Ruins of Alph and sees Bugsy tell some researchers about the Unown. Suddenly, an Unown G comes off the wall. Bugsy sends out his Heracross and then uses his net to catch the Unown. Afterwards, Bugsy hands the Unown to one of the researchers to study. Bugsy then walks off, but sees something and decides to follow it.

He ends up at a chamber that has Unown-style writing on the wall. Bugsy determines that it is referring to an Escape Rope. He gets out an Escape Rope, which causes the wall in front of him to crumble. Bugsy almost gets hit by debris, but his Heracross protects him. Behind the rubble is Suicune, who starts to battle Bugsy. He sends out his two Metapod and two Kakuna. Heracross rams into Suicune, but is thrown upward by Suicune. The Metapod and Kakuna all use String Shot and some more sticky material comes out of Bugsy's net. He reveals that it is a Capture Net, which uses the same material as Poké Balls. Suicune starts to be pulled into a Great Ball, but breaks the net with an Aurora Beam

Afterwards Bugsy sees another chamber, this time with another inscription. The next day, Bugsy tells the research forum that the inscription translates to Ho-Oh.

At Mt. Mortar, Rosita decides to use the same training schedule as she used in the past. She wonders whether she will be able to recover. After a few days, she still is unable to hit a moving target with a Poké Ball. Suddenly, Arcanine growls, and a Larvitar appears. It breaks the wooden target on Arcanine's side. It then attacks Arcanine, but only on the right side. Rosita deduces that the Larvitar was the Pokémon that injured Arcanine's eye when she was younger. Rosita runs to the Poké Balls that her Pokémon are in, but sees that Larvitar has broken the switch. Chikorita, the only one of Rosita's Pokémon out of its Poké Ball other than Arcanine, dashes forward and joins in the battle against the Larvitar. Chikorita tackles Larvitar. Rosita feels she and her Pokémon's hearts are connected and must act as one. Chikorita gets hit by Larvitar with Stone Edge. Suddenly, Chikorita evolves into Bayleef and hits Larvitar back with Vine Whip. Rosita throws her Fast Ball, using her leg and succeeds in catching Larvitar.

Somewhere in Goldenrod City, Janine and her Ariados ascend a tall building. They then break into one of the vents on the building and make their way to another that is situated above a Big Pearl. She senses that the Big Pearl may have security and has her Weezing use Smokescreen to show the lasers. While hanging upside-down, she cuts a hole in the glass cage surrounding the Big Pearl and steals it. In doing so, Janine trips an alarm. A group of security guards begin running towards her, but she sends out her Forretress to stop the guards by using Spikes. The guards end up stepping on the spikes. However, it is soon revealed that it is a training exercise to see where security flaws exist within the Goldenrod Museum. Janine vanishes as soon as she hears she will have money transferred to her bank account for her role. The director explains to the guards that the woman was a ninja and that she can be paid to carry out risky jobs.

Back outside, Janine has a moment of reflection in which she does not know why she is carrying out pointless missions. She has a flashback where her father, Koga, explains that a ninja is supposed to put there lives down for their master and that she can join him, along with their master, when the time is right. Her only problem is that both her father and her master have disappeared and she doesn't know where to find them. All of a sudden, a sparkle is seen on a distant building. The object then jumps at Janine. It is the Legendary Pokémon Suicune and it has come to challenge her.

She believes that if she is able to capture Suicune, her master will hear the news and she will be able to find him. She commands her Crobat to use Leech Life. However, it is countered by Suicune's Aurora Beam just as Crobat is about to use Leech Life. Then, Janine commands Crobat to use Double Team. Her plan is that Suicune will not be able to determine which image of Crobat is the real one. She then commands Crobat to use Wing Attack. To her surprise, Suicune is able to hit Crobat with another Aurora Beam, but she is puzzled as to how it knew which version of her was the real one. Suicune points out with its paw that her shadow is darker than the others because of the moonlight. Janine realizes that Suicune is battling the Gym Leaders to determine who will be its master. She continues by explaining to Suicune that she too is looking for her master and that she hopefully, as the Gym Leader of Fuchsia City, will be able to battle Suicune again. The two then go their separate ways.

In the outskirts of Violet City, Falkner is training with his Skarmory and Noctowl. Suddenly, a Bird Keeper arrives and asks him if he recently saw any rare Pokémon, to which he shows him a bountiful amount of captured Pokémon. As Falkner is about to grab his police badge to arrest him, they are caught in a storm as a lightning bolt burns down a tree. A Pokémon is then seen standing on top of it. Falkner immediately realizes that it is the Legendary Pokémon Raikou while at the same time, the Bird Keeper notices another one has arrived; it is the Legendary Pokémon Entei.

The Bird Keeper then attempts to catch Entei, but Falkner, seeing the error in this folly move, quickly uses Skarmory to rescue him from Entei's attack. Raikou and Entei then look at each other and decide to test Falkner. He decides to use Swift, but it is quickly evaded by the two Legendary beasts. Raikou uses Spark and then Entei uses Fire Blast. Falkner quickly comes up with a cunning strategy of using Agility just as the Raikou and Entei are about to use an attack. This causes Raikou and Entei to hit each other just as Falkner escapes. Right when he is about to throw the Great Balls to catch them, a silhouette appears behind him.

Suicune appears behind Falkner, getting the attention of Raikou and Entei, while preparing for an attack. As Falkner throws the Poké Balls at Raikou and Entei, he senses Suicune, who dashes in and uses Bubble Beam to catch the Poké Balls. As the Bird Keeper tries to talk him into giving up, Falkner decides to capture all three Pokémon and comes up with a plan.

Falkner orders Skarmory to use Steel Wing on Suicune, which manages to hit it, but one of its feathers breaks in the process. Falkner then throws multiple Poké Balls, all missing Suicune. The Bird Keeper questions him where he's aiming. As the Poké Balls come back, Falkner explains to him that the feathers attached to the Poké Balls gives them a boomerang like function. He explains about Skarmory's wings and feathers and how he used them in his plan. As Suicune watches as the Poké Balls fly around, it notices one coming towards it. However, Raikou and Entei come up and quickly destroy all the Poké Balls, joining Suicune on top of a rock. As Falkner watches this, Skarmory begins to fall from the sky, because it lost its balance due to one of its feathers taking damage earlier.

As they are falling, a giant bubble surrounds them, which Falkner suspects to be from Suicune. Suicune, Raikou, and Entei start to have a discussion with Suicune telling them it did not find Ho-Oh at the Tin Tower. Afterwards, they leave in different directions as Falkner and the Bird Keeper land on the ground. After the ordeal, Falkner throws one of the broken Poké Balls at the Bird Keeper and arrests him, showing his Police badge and his Gym Leader Badge. He puts him in handcuffs for trespassing and hunting in a protected zone for wild Pokémon. As the Bird Keeper begs to be released, Falkner ponders what the trio was doing, while he flies off to Violet City.

Rosita's Pokédex and Poké Balls have been repaired. She plans to go to Cianwood City next by boat because none of her Pokémon can learn Surf. Seeing her Pokémon's despondence, she encourages them. Rosita then sees a pair of Pikachu (Edge's Pikachu and Chuchu) Surfing. She decides to try to capture them (because most Pikachu cannot learn Surf). Suddenly, Chuchu is thrown into the air. Bayley appears on her Dodrio and catches Chuchu. Bayley then realizes Rosita's identity and tells her that she has been looking for her.

Rosita gasps at a sketch of her own face on Bayley's notebook, and asks Bayley about her own identity. Bayley is still too thrilled at having met Rosita, that she ignores the question and beckons Pikachu and Chuchu to follow her. Rosita's own team start to follow Bayley as well. Rosita, sensing danger ahead, tries to warn Bayley but it is too late - four long tongues stretch out to wrap around Bayley and Bayleef. Four Lickitung emerge, hoisting Bayley and Bayleef up in the air. Rosita comes to the conclusion that Bayleef's Pokémon-attracting scent isn't under control. She then finds out that Bayley is asleep, unaware of the danger she is under.

Bayley wakes up and pats Bayleef on the head, but then notices the Lickitung hoisting her up. After initially freaking out, she gets her fishing rod out with Raticate's Poké Ball on the end of the line. Rosita gasps in amazement as Raticate makes the fishing line wrap around the feet of the Lickitung, causing them to stumble and throw Bayley and Bayleef towards the sea. Rosita cries out but fortunately, Butterfree pops out to save its Trainer, as well as Bayleef. Bayley thus decides that the two of them should travel by air for now. Rosita agrees by retrieving her Pokémon except Natu, and the two start flying out towards Route 40. Pikachu and Chuchu follow by Surfing. During the flight, Bayley inquires about Rosita's capture progress. When Rosita mentions Suicune, Bayley states that she has also encountered it, much to Rosita's surprise.

Bayley's uncle, Wilton, is sailing her and Rosita across the waters near the Whirl Islands. Wilton notes that Bayley hasn't introduced herself to Rosita, and explains to Rosita what he knows about Bayley. Rosita is not convinced by what she hears, and decides to contact Professor Oak for verification. Oak's verification comes to Rosita's Pokégear, and she is shocked to learn that Bayley is older than her. Wilton verifies to Rosita that Bayley did awaken the Legendary beasts. He then states that they are sailing in order to seek a legendary Pokémon that appeared above Cerise Island a year ago.

Suddenly, an entire school of Remoraid suddenly charge out of the water and threaten to topple the boat over. Rosita takes charge of the situation by telling Bayley and Wilton to duck, then sending out Parasect to put the Remoraid to sleep. Bayley then notices a wound on Parasect, which prompts Rosita to look for a Potion, but Bayley tells Rosita not to worry, and places her hand over the wound, which disappears immediately. An astonished Rosita immediately puts her doubts behind, and with a handshake, she formally introduces herself to Bayley.

Bayley then remembers the large-scale migration she encountered at the Seafoam Islands, and wonders if something similar is happening with the Remoraid. Wilton's boat suddenly shudders, and starts spinning in circles despite Wilton's attempt to control it. He realizes that they are trapped in a whirlpool. Rosita then beckons Bayley to look at the water, and both are shocked when they see a giant bird-like creature appearing to emerge.

In the outskirts of Mahogany Town, the Radio Tower crew has invited the Pokémon Association Chairman to join them for a show about the Mahogany Gym. Eventually, they reach a steep valley and descend down it to the entrance to the Mahogany Gym.

Inside the Mahogany Gym, the Radio Tower crew starts recording the show. DJ Mary, the hostess of the show, introduces herself as well as her friend Whitney. Then, the Chairman reveals the reason for joining them is due to an independent study regarding Suicune's challenges through the Johto Gyms, he believes Pryce is the next Gym Leader to be challenged. Shortly afterwards, Whitney slips on the ice and so do the others, they zigzag across the hall until Whitney commands her Miltank to use Stomp, successfully stopping everyone from sliding any further. A door opens with a loud creak, revealing an old man in a wheelchair, who is revealed to be Pryce.

The Chairman and Whitney are shocked upon seeing the little man, but the Chairman promptly apologizes for showing up unexpected and introduces himself. Hiro asks about the Gym, to which Pryce replies that at his age, anyone is a coward and such, he has to protect himself from any unfriendly intruders. The Leader then invites them for a cup of tea and have a talk.

As they enter deeper into the Gym, ice sculptures crafted by Pryce guard the entrance; they share an uncanny resemblance to Charizard, Chansey, Lanturn and Bellossom. As the group passes by, they wonder how the sculptures are sold, considering Pryce's current state; the Chairman then notes that his Pokémon are the ones who run his errands, so he doesn't have to ever leave the Gym. They then spot a Suicune sculpture. Whitney claims it's because Suicune would never come challenge Pryce, seeing him as weak, and in order to comfort himself he made a statue of it. Suddenly, the statue starts to crack apart. The Chairman suggests that it is the opposite of what Whitney said: Pryce might have battled it, but he actually won.

Since Suicune was frozen but not captured, Whitney sees a chance to challenge it and has her two baby Pokémon, Cleffa and Igglybuff, use Double Hit and Sweet Kiss, respectively, successfully confusing it. Whitney then orders Miltank to use Rollout, which rolls even faster and more powerful due to the slippery floor, knocking Suicune down. Whitney starts gloating over her victory as Pryce comes in, and Whitney gleefully tells him she defeated it. However, something is wrong since Suicune is back on its feet and Miltank is laying on the ground, defeated.

As Suicune and Pryce glare at each other, the Chairman and Whitney argue about Pryce, with her questioning his abilities. The Chairman says that Pryce is the most experienced Gym Leader, also known as *Pryce of Eternal Ice Walls*.

The Goldenrod Radio Tower crew and the Pokémon Association Chairman continue to watch as Whitney and Pryce take on Suicune. Pryce reflects on Suicune's previous victories against Clair, Chuck, Morty, Bugsy, Janine, and Falkner. Whitney asks how he knows about these incidents, but Pryce, brushing off the question, sends Swinub to fight Suicune. With her senior's permission, Whitney latches onto Pryce's wheelchair and the two leaders roll about on the Gym's ice floor.

As Whitney calls back her injured Miltank, Pryce thinks aloud that they may learn from the mistakes of their predecessors: Suicune's horns, for instance, glow before the Legendary Pokémon makes an attack, as Pryce has learned from Suicune's fight with Bugsy. After reassuring Whitney that he understands all of Suicune's past battles, Pryce asks her to send in her Miltank again; based on Morty's battle with the Aurora Pokémon, Pryce assumes that Suicune will use Mirror Coat against his Swinub's Powder Snow. Whitney orders Miltank to use Heal Bell. Mirror Coat, the two leaders concur, will not be a threat now. Meanwhile, DJ Mary and the Chairman note that the leaders seem to be enjoying the fight.

Pryce announces that Suicune seems to be charging Mirror Coat; Whitney calls to Mary to ask her to send out Smeargle. Without a command, Smeargle rushes forth, using its tail to mark Suicune's horns with an X; now the mirror images will bear Smeargle's mark on their right sides whilst the actual Suicune bears one on its left. Whitney points out the true opponent and Pryce's Swinub blasts it with Blizzard, freezing it solid and clearing the way for Miltank's Dynamic Punch. Whitney confidently tosses a Poké Ball at the frozen foe, but begins to weep when she sees that the capsule has plowed a hole through the Legendary beast's body. Mary, having noticed that the wounded Suicune is only a ice sculpture, consoles her friend. Pryce confesses to his puzzled observers that the Suicune that he and Whitney fought is his creature, a moving sculpture, frozen and thawed by his own Ice-type Pokémon so rapidly that it appeared to move and attack. He explains further to his bewildered guests that they happened to show up at about the time he usually trains and that he is preparing for a visit from the actual beast: in his old age, he notes, he fears, rather than hopes for, the challenge.

Departing from the Mahogany Gym and the cavern in which it sits, the Goldenrod Radio Tower crew, the Pokémon Association Chairman, and Whitney reflect on the battle. They note Pryce's skill and the probability of him capturing the real Suicune, while Whitney whines that she was integral to the fight and asks that her fit of crying be cut out of the film made by the crew. The Chairman states that Pryce may be the perfect candidate for a certain special position within the Pokémon League.

Meanwhile back inside the Gym, Pryce has Swinub on his lap as he repairs his damaged sculpture and soliloquizes on the lie he told his guests; Suicune, with good reason, will never come to him. In the background, a report sounds on a portable radio: a whirlpool has developed near the Whirl Islands and boats are thus advised to avoid the area. Amidst a scene of the same, Lugia's silhouette appears.

Bayley, Rosita, and Wilton are aboard Wilton's ship, which, along with the S.S. Aqua, is borne aloft by Lugia's Psychic power. Someone aboard the S.S. Aqua calls to Lt. Surge below for help as Miguel announces that every ship in the area is levitating in a similar fashion. Martinez guesses that psychic power of such magnitude must be the work of Lugia.

Meanwhile, Wilton, who has been released, along with Bayley, Rosita, and his ship from Lugia's psychic clutches asks the two girls if they are okay. However, Bayley, looking skyward, only answers that the Pokémon is the same one she saw over Cerise Island: she says that it was said to have vanished into the Western skies after a battle with Lance. Rosita's Pokédex beeps; Bayley suggests that this is because of the Resonance System: when three Pokédexes, in the possession of their rightful owners, draw close to each other they beep. But Lugia's blast interrupts, which causes Wilton's boat to break in half and start sinking. Meanwhile, Rosita recalls that Professor Oak told her of two other Pokédex holders in Johto.

With a frightened Rosita as witness, Miguel and Martinez quarrel aboard half of Wilton's fishing boat after surviving one of Lugia's attacks. Martinez starts to depart, ordering his Croconaw to come along, but Miguel assures his rival that the starter Pokémon of all three Pokédex holders are prepared to fight the menacing Lugia and that the trainers, regardless of their opinions of each other, should trust their Pokémon. Quilava, Croconaw, and Bayleef attack as one, their elemental powers barely deflecting another of the Diving Pokémon's blasts. The boys quarrel further over emotional style and Rosita loudly questions Professor Oak's choice of Pokédex holders, to which Miguel accuses her of being prissy.

Nearby, Lt. Surge floats above the sea with the help of his three Magneton. He notes that Lugia's blasts, not being the result of any perceptible build-up of energy, are rather the results of Lugia's breaths, for which phenomenon he dubs the attacks Aeroblasts. Facing another of these, Surge realizes that if his Magneton were to take the strike, they would drop him. He then glances across the waves at Silver, noting that he must know a way to stop Lugia's attacks.

Back on half of Wilton's boat, Martinez has proposed that Lugia be drawn into the sea, where it will be unable to gather air for its terrifying technique. At close range, Martinez proposes, brute force can be inflicted on Lugia's head and wings. However, he knows that Miguel lacks a Flying Pokémon and will be of no help in the fight. Martinez tells Miguel to stay put with the three starter Pokémon, and then summons his Murkrow, while Rosita sends out Natu. However, as they take flight, they knock Miguel into the sea. Martinez and Rosita toss him a life-preserver.

Miguel continues gliding towards Lugia and orders the school of Remoraid to veer right and then fire at their target. On the boat, Martinez watches in astonishment and Rosita cheers. It appears that the Remoraid have wounded Lugia with their combined Water Guns, but instead, they only enraged it. The Diving Pokémon whirls about and knocks Mantine, Miguel, and the Remoraid out of the sky and onto the sand below. Rosita observes this and Martinez notices that, although Miguel did not bring Lugia down, he did force its mouth open with his cue stick.

Martinez has Croconaw paddle the boat over to Miguel, all while Lugia looms overhead. Miguel, hurt, gently taunts Martinez and Rosita for being bystanders and introduces Quilava to his new teammate, Mantine. Suddenly, the Legendary Pokémon's shadow hovers over them. As Lugia descends, the three are knocked backwards; unable to fire an Aeroblast, Lugia attempts instead to crush the trainers and their starter Pokémon with its wings. Croconaw, Quilava and Bayleef resist the onslaught and, in doing so, evolve together, into their final forms.

When Rosita asks why Bayleef evolved into Meganium, Martinez replies that he heard that when Pokémon of similar evolutionary levels spend time together, their natural competitiveness accelerates growth. However, Miguel interrupts Martinez's explanation, insisting that it should wait until Lugia has been defeated, and asks whether Martinez, who has spoken in the past of a Pokémon's "vital spot", could spot Lugia's. Martinez says that its vital spot is its forehead and Miguel has to hit it right between the eyes.

Tossing a Poké Ball, Miguel misses the spot, and declares the he can't aim well without his cue. When the Poké Ball hurtles back, Rosita kicks it back again and hits Lugia right between the eyes. In a flash of light, the Diving Pokémon is gone and the Poké Ball sits on the beach. Miguel recovers his cue and congratulates Rosita, but Martinez notices that Lugia isn't inside the Poké Ball.

They think about how and when Lugia could have escaped. Rosita finally realizes that it must have flown off in the flash of light. Miguel stomps about in frustration when Rosita remembers the tracking system on the Pokédex, which can track the energy of any Pokémon the Pokédex holder has encountered.

Rosita then asks Miguel and Martinez if they had heard of the feature before, but they say nothing and pretend to know how to use the system, Miguel looks over Rosita's shoulder as she activates the system on her Pokédex and mimicks her actions. Miguel apparently offends their new acquaintance by telling her that she is not merely a "motor-mouthed prissy girl." Rosita then introduces herself at last, but Miguel ignores her, deeply involved as he is waiting for the tracking system to track Lugia. Ignoring both of his companions, Martinez climbs up the island's crag and discovers a cave which, by virtue of the tracks before its entrance, he deems to be Lugia's lair.

Rosita recounts a legend that the four Whirl Islands are connected by tunnels and states that these would be a suitable hiding place for a gigantic Pokémon. Martinez also sees signs of a struggle, and he and Miguel suppose that Lugia might have been attacked before they encountered it. Rosita states that it would explain its rampage, but suddenly the tracking system crashes on all three Pokédexes. Realizing that it isn't likely that all three would fail at once, Miguel states that the only explanation is that Lugia has already been captured by someone else.

Martinez speculates that someone could have struck Lugia with a Poké Ball immediately before Rosita did. Martinez then brings out his Murkrow, guessing that whoever attacked Lugia in the cave is the culprit and that the entire fight that they had with the Legendary Pokémon was a trap. Despite Rosita's objections that he should at least speak to Professor Oak and Professor Elm before chasing Lugia's captor, Martinez flies off clutching Murkrow's talon. Miguel assures Rosita that Martinez would not call the Professors under any circumstances and, in spite of his old habit of warning Martinez not to try to handle everything on his own, thinks well enough of this departure as he and Martinez have a common enemy this time. Rosita begins to wonders what Miguel could mean by that, but remembers Bayley and Wilton.

Suddenly, she gets a call from Professor Oak on her Pokégear. Professor Oak states that he is aware of the unusual events near Cianwood City and has called to check on Rosita. Rosita tells him about everything that has happened to her lately, including the part about losing Bayley. Oak informs her that there is a meteorological crew on the way, and he will tell them to look for Bayley. He also needs her to go to the Indigo Plateau, and says that he was also going to ask Miguel to go, but has been unable to reach him and could be anywhere. However, Rosita reveals that he is standing right next to her.

Brock, Misty and Erika, the three Gym Leaders of Kanto who were once the only "good" Gym Leaders of their region, are crossing the Tohjo Falls on their way to the Pokémon Association meeting at Goldenrod City. Noticing that the bridge over the Falls is broken, Brock calls out his Onix to act as a crossing over the two sides.

Brock comments that the Pokémon Association's request for a meeting seems urgent, and that the S.S. Aqua wasn't available at the time they received the request. Erika suddenly trips on her robe but is steadied by Brock. All this while, Misty remains lost in thought. Suddenly, the Gym Leaders are attacked by a flock of Zubat, Golbat and Crobat. Brock calls out his Kabutops and four Geodude to defend, but the flock manages to distract Onix such that its tail loses grip on one side of the falls. Brock and Erika hold onto Onix, but Misty tumbles into the water.

Misty sends out her Starmie to prevent herself from drifting towards the edge of the waterfall, but then notices a Krabby holding itself against a rock and struggling to do the same. Misty goes to rescue it, only for both of them to fall into the waterfall.

Meanwhile, Janine is the first Gym Leader to arrive at the Goldenrod City meeting organised by the Pokémon Association Chairman. She and Bill ask why the Gym Leaders are meeting. The Chairman explains that they are gathering to discuss a new rule with him - he proposes that those who collect all eight Gym Badges of their region gain direct entry into a Pokémon League tournament without needing to qualify for it. This would motivate people to challenge Gym Leaders, and prevent Badges from being put to use in evil ways. The Chairman then reveals a second reason for their meeting, by playing a video of a masked man wearing a long, black robe.

Misty, one of the Gym Leaders on their way to the meeting, finds herself in the rock shelter behind the Tohjo Falls with both her Starmie and the Krabby that she tried to save. She recalls the day she was supporting Edge as he prepared to face examination in order to become Viridian City's new Gym Leader - she remembers feeling sad after seeing Edge video-call Bayley. Misty also remembers that Edge passed over the Gym Leader status because of his injured wrists, and wonders whether he has recovered. Suddenly, something charges into the waterfall, and Misty calls out her Chinchou to light up the area around her.

In the rock shelter behind the Tohjo Falls, Misty gasps as Suicune appears before her. Suicune immediately begins to attack, knocking Starmie away with a Headbutt. Misty responds by calling out her Lanturn to use Hydro Pump. Suicune counters with its own Hydro Pump, blasting Misty and Lanturn into the waterfall. Suicune looks over the waterfall to see that Lanturn is keeping Misty afloat. Misty, with her proud declaration as an expert of the Water-type, accepts Suicune's challenge.

On the Johto side of the falls, Brock and Erika are on the former's Onix looking for Misty. Erika receives a message on her Pokégear and finds out that a series of exhibition matches have been agreed between the Kanto and Johto Gym Leaders as part of the introduction to the upcoming Pokémon League tournament. Brock and Erika then see water being blasted out through the waterfall, and realize that Misty is having a battle. They then see Misty and her opponent appearing to fall into the waterfall again, with the latter shooting another round of water that hits Onix.

Misty, who finds herself under the water at the base of the Tohjo Falls, suddenly clutches her head. Through Starmie, she finds out what Suicune is communicating to her, and is surprised to learn that Suicune has deemed her worthy of something. Suicune adds the reason for choosing Misty - she is not only a Water-type expert, but also has compassion for life. Misty decides to accept Suicune's companionship.

Misty finally emerges above the water to get on Onix with Brock and Erika. Misty sheepishly gives nothing away when asked by Brock about what she battled. Erika then shows her the message the Pokémon Association sent to the Gym Leaders, and Misty becomes excited at the prospect of facing one of her Johto counterparts. Erika states that she will captain the Kanto Gym Leaders and Pryce will be in charge of the Johto Gym Leaders. As the trio resume their journey to Goldenrod City, Suicune is in one of Misty's Great Balls, at peace for the first time in a while.

Rosita and Miguel are making their way towards the Indigo Plateau on Typhlosion and Meganium, respectively. After a brief quarrel involving Miguel's potatoes, they arrive to a large queue at the Indigo Plateau entrance. Miguel retrieves Typhlosion and jumps the queue using his scooter, causing Rosita to chase after him. Rosita is stopped by a security guard and told to pay the entrance fee for Miguel, much to Rosita's annoyance. Suddenly, Rosita hears a scream and wonders what Miguel got into trouble for again.

It turns out that a security officer accidentally released three of the entry-registered Pokémon that were being guarded, those being three Yanma which have snatched a mother's baby and are now carrying it around a room. While the other guards attempt to locate the Yanma's trainer, Miguel decides to solve the problem himself. He uses his cue to knock a Poké Ball around the room. The Yanma get dizzy from attempting to dodge the Poké Ball, such that the one holding the baby drops it. Fortunately, Miguel's Sudowoodo emerges from the Poké Ball to catch the baby and return it to its mother. Before Miguel can brag about his success, he is dragged away by the ear by Rosita. Rosita then receives a call from Professor Oak, who asks to remind Miguel of his mission, but Miguel claims he knows already. With that, they enter the stadium just as it begins to host the Gym Leader exhibition matches.

High up in one of the audience stands, Rosita and Miguel watch on as Misty gets ready for the her Gym Leader exhibition match, against Whitney. Miguel and Rosita struggle to spot any obvious signs of evil among the Gym Leaders. Thinking back to their call with Professor Oak earlier, this very event came about after Miguel submitted evidence of his encounter with the Masked Man to Professor Elm, who later discovered that the traces found on the evidence were of materials used to create Badges. This evidence was later passed to Oak and the Pokémon Association Chairman in top secret, and it was decided by the Pokémon Association to host a Gym Leader exhibition event just before the real tournament at the Indigo Plateau. As Miguel fought the culprit earlier, he was instructed to observe the Gym Leaders' battling styles, and Rosita was to accompany him and prevent him from rash actions.

In the present, Miguel decides to move to a lower audience stand, and disappears into the crowd. At around the same time, the second exhibition match takes place. Misty's Starmie first dodges Miltank's Rollout. Miltank responds by grabbing hold of Starmie, who responds with a Flash, before finishing off Miltank with a Hyper Beam. Whitney screams and cries upon seeing Miltank unable to continue, and Misty thus helps bring Kanto on level terms.

Meanwhile, Rosita finally locates Miguel, who, after commenting on the Gym Leaders, declares his unease at the thought of an evil presence among a tournament meant for Pokémon lovers. He is determined not to let such a person spoil it.

During the final battle of the event, Erika battles Pryce, and throughout the battle, Miguel's suspicion is raised after comparing Pryce's battling with that of the Masked Man. Aipom suddenly alerts Miguel to someone spying on him and Rosita, and the two give chase to the culprit. They end up inside the Indigo Plateau's central control room. Miguel approaches someone in the room, and on a closer look, sees that the person has fainted. A voice states that they now have control of the Indigo Plateau. Miguel and Rosita turn to see Carl and Sham, the two that Miguel recognizes as behind the Ecruteak incident. Miguel tries to confront them, but finds that he cannot move. Carl and Sham proudly announce their leader's intentions by projecting the Masked Man's battle with Ho-Oh, captured live from a pair of binoculars, onto a screen in the central control room.

Miguel and Rosita, bewildered that the Masked Man appears to be somewhere else, and not among the Gym Leaders as they were told, then realize that Ho-Oh is the one being attacked. Carl and Sham boast that not even the Legendary Pokémon can escape capture by the Masked Man. They then switch off the live recording, declaring that the Masked Man's arrival is imminent, and that Team Rocket will be resurrected once more. With that, they throw down their Team Rocket jackets and put on their half-masks.

Miguel, still unable to move, suddenly realizes that it is because of Roar. He and Rosita then find themselves surrounded by several Houndoom and Persian. Aipom finds a way to release Politoed from its Poké Ball, and Politoed instantly puts its opposition to sleep with Hypnosis. However, Sham's Slowking snores loudly to create solid air blocks, and Carl's Magcargo breathes out fire while asleep. Rosita has Cubone swat away Slowking's Snore while Miguel has Politoed counter Magcargo's Fire attack with Water Gun. Both soon struggle with their opponents.

Sham wastes no time with their opponents' struggle, and begins hacking the central controls. Miguel and Rosita eventually have Parasect and Oddish's combined Giga Drain knock out Magcargo and Slowking by sending them crashing towards their Trainers, and as a result, Oddish evolves into Gloom due to the experience she gained. By this time, the alert sirens sound. Despite being grabbed by the collar by Miguel, Carl gloats at his successful mission before fainting. The monitors then state that the Magnet Train lock is being released.

At the Magnet Train station serving the Indigo Plateau, two guards who are watching the Magnet Train suddenly become horrified when the train's lights flicker on to reveal a large number of masked Team Rocket Grunts inside. The guards quickly rush to alert their boss, but the Team Rocket Elite Trio zap them unconscious and enter the train.

Unable to find a way to abort the release of the Magnet Train's security, Miguel decides to go back to the stadium for help, but soon finds that he and Rosita are trapped inside. They call out Typhlosion and Arcanine to burn the door down, but the door remains intact. Rosita finds that Hitmonchan's Mach Punch doesn't break down the door either. While Rosita thinks hard for another solution, Miguel finds a way to contact the rest of the stadium from the control room.

Miguel's face appears on the big screen over the stadium, much to the Pokémon Association Chairman's fury. The boy manages to warn the audience about Team Rocket's impending arrival and the Magnet Train being hacked, before the big screen is suddenly interrupted to show the Masked Man's battle with Ho-Oh, causing the audience to panic. By then, Rosita has prepared a mix of spores from Parasect, which, combined with Gloom's Sludge Bomb, tear a hole through the door. Just as Rosita and Miguel break free from the control room, the Magnet Train zooms into the stadium once again.

As the stadium audience evacuates, the Chairman, who has come down from the VIP room along with Bill and Carly Oak, tries to call for the Magnet Train system to be fixed. At the next moment, the Magnet Train doors bolt open and numerous masked Team Rocket Grunts spill out. Falkner calls the Gym Leaders into action. Blaine arrives back on stage just in time to join the fight against the grunts. When 15 of the 16 Gym Leaders are lured into the Magnet Train, however, its doors slam shut and the train speeds off into the distance.

By now, Rosita and Miguel are on Natu and Mantine, respectively, looking over the scene of chaos. They hover towards the announcer's box where DJ Mary and Hiro are. They confirm that Miguel's message went through, and that the Gym Leaders went on the Magnet Train before it zoomed off. Rosita knows the Gym Leaders's roles, and that they were tricked into entering the train as a means of diverting attention away from their enemy. A voice duly confirms Rosita's claims. Miguel and Rosita turn around to see that the Masked Man has arrived, with both Lugia and Ho-Oh.

Lugia and Ho-Oh are commanded to use their signature attacks, Aeroblast and Sacred Fire. Miguel and Rosita, on their Mantine and Natu, respectively, dodge, but the attacks cause a blast through a part of the stadium's wall and ceiling, throwing Rosita and Miguel off their Pokémon. They fall right above the part of the stadium whose roof is about to fall on them, fortunately, Sudowoodo shields the two Trainers. The audience are still being evacuated.

Miguel eventually finds out that the Masked Man was also behind Lugia's rampage at the Whirl Islands, and tricked them into thinking Lugia was still wild at the time. Another blast from the two legendaries' attacks strikes another part of the stadium. Miguel and Rosita run, dodging multiple blasts directed at them. Rosita decides that the two should be split apart, thus flies on Natu to face Lugia. The Masked Man calls Lugia to assist, but suddenly feels his neck spasm due to Natu's Future Sight.

The Masked Man responds by morphing into a more mutated version of himself, and jumps onto Ho-Oh, commanding it to trap Rosita and Miguel with a ring of fire. He then proceeds to grab both Kurt and his granddaughter Maizie from the evacuating crowd. The Masked Man states that he requires Kurt to create a Poké Ball to control time. He also contemplates Rosita's use of Future Sight, iterating that she was able to understand the concept of time well, even if for just a few seconds. After praising her, he recalls the goals of the past villainous groups, Team Rocket and the Elite Four, and reveals that his goal is to have complete control of time. As Kurt pretends to not know how the control of time is possible, the Masked Man grabs his granddaughter and holds her in a threatening matter as he surreptitiously steals Kurt's manual, which has data on all types of special Poké Balls.

After he finds the information on the Poké Ball that can surpass time, Kurt mocks him, saying that the manual is worthless without the ingredients for the Poké Ball. The Masked Man then states that he already knows what the ingredients are, and, as he refers to the wings of Ho-Oh and Lugia, his Delibird takes the Silver and Rainbow Wings from the Legendary Pokémon and gives them to him. While he states that he will finally gain control of time, Miguel grows angry over the prospect that Pokémon were being used just as ingredients and materials to the Masked Man. He then demands what Pokémon are to the Masked Man and gets the response that they are mere weapons.

The Masked Man then loses his patience with the conversation and attempts to attack both Miguel and Rosita, but, as Miguel pushes her out of the way, Rosita is unharmed while Miguel takes the hit. Rosita then begs the Masked Man to stop, but is shrugged off as he flies away. As Miguel gets up from the attack he had absorbed, he privately vows to not give up until the Masked Man is defeated. The Masked Man flies on his Delibird towards Ilex Forest, stating that he has finally obtained a "second chance at time".

With the scroll and the Rainbow and Silver Wings from Ho-Oh and Lugia, respectively, the Masked Man begins creating the GS Ball in order to achieve his goal of capturing time itself. As he heads towards his destination, the Masked Man is attacked by Misty, Blaine, and Lt. Surge, the three Gym Leaders that Suicune, Entei and Raikou teamed up with. They battle the Masked Man to try and stop him, but are eventually defeated, allowing the Masked Man to escape and continue with his plan. Despite the heavy injuries it sustained during the battle, Suicune decides to team up with Rosita to chase after the Masked Man.

With Raikou and Entei following, Rosita and Suicune track the Masked Man to his destination, the Ilex Forest. They are soon joined by the other Pokédex holders, Edge, Robyn Oak, Roberta, Bayley and Martinez. They battle the Masked Man, but are overwhelmed by his army of ice dolls. The Masked Man reveals that in their previous battle, he left Miguel trapped in a wall of ice and left him inside the Crack in Time. The Masked Man uses the GS Ball to capture Celebi and heads inside the Crack in Time via the Ilex Forest shrine. With the Rainbow and Silver Wings in Bayley's hat, Miguel is freed from his prison. Rosita, Miguel and Martinez team up with Suicune, Raikou, and Entei and chase after the Masked Man inside the Crack in Time.

As they travel through the time stream, Rosita, Miguel and Martinez see scenes of their various adventures. They eventually meet with the Masked Man and bear witness to a tragic moment of his past that led to him pursuing his goals in the present. When Rosita confronts the Masked Man about his motives, the Masked Man gets angry and knocks the Rainbow and Silver Wings away, causing Rosita, Miguel and Martinez to be affected by the Crack in Time's pressure. Miguel manages to retrieve the feathers, but gives them to Rosita and Martinez. Miguel sends Rosita, Martinez, Suicune, Raikou, and Entei back to the real world while he goes off to fight the Masked Man alone. After landing, Rosita joins the other Pokédex holders in sending an attack inside the shrine to help Miguel defeat the Masked Man.

After Miguel defeats the Masked Man, the Pokédex holders celebrate their victory, only to find that Miguel has not returned. They fear that he died, only for Miguel to appear and reveal that he managed to survive. With the battle over and the villains defeated, the Pokédex holders returned to their normal lives. Rosita continued her job with Professor Oak and revealed to him that she managed to fill up her Pokédex completely. Professor Oak is impressed to hear of Rosita's success, but decides to hide the fact that more species of Pokémon keep appearing.