Author's Note:

Hello my wonderful Poliwags, welcome to Generation Z – Gotta Catch 'em All! Now, some of you may be wondering...does that sound like the Bonnie story title? The answer is yes! And for good reason! This story is actually not one story all on its own. In fact, it may end up being dozens...or dare I say...hundreds of stories. Maybe not that far, but who knows. Anyway, I will explain.

So, Generation Z – Hoenn Alone is my first story for a Bonnie adventure series. I assume all of you reading this are readers of that, but if not, please go and give it a read. It's the reason this story is here. My hope is that I can write Bonnie's adventure over a few regions, and give her exciting battles with rivals and villains all over the place. But sometimes, certain info might slip through the cracks that can be important if explored further. Well, the idea with Gotta Catch 'em All is to provide special oneshots that are all gathered in one place to provide additional information on certain things going on that may impact Bonnie and her friends in the...Z-verse...Bonnieverse...anyway, hopefully it all works out and we can enjoy some extra content.

So, with this first special oneshot, we'll be following Jessie, James and Meowth as they go after Ash on a special mission for Giovanni. This will be important for Bonnie's adventure now and in the future, though, so if you want the timeline right, you'll need to read up to the end of chapter 15 in Hoenn Alone. That's approximately where this starts off. Technically, this kicks off after the beginning of 16, but whatever. Hope you enjoy!

Chapter 1: A Picture's Worth a Thousand Words

"Today's the day! Today, we're finally going to catch that Pikachu, and defeat the twerp!"

Meowth listened closely, his tail swishing back and forth as he looked to the lavender-haired man next to him. James looked nervous, but he was just as excited to hear Jessie's plan as the feline Pokemon was. They'd been waiting for a few weeks to get their chance again, and finally, the twerp had returned to Alola. Jessie had been planning a strike ever since the twerp had left after his Alola League victory to train back in Kanto, and now the magenta-haired woman was ready to put it into action.

"The twerp is finally back to challenge the new Alola Elite Four," Jessie said excitedly, pulling out some kind of folder with really poor drawings in it. Meowth wasn't sure if one of the drawings was of him, or Pikachu, or just some other random Pokemon. He wasn't sure he wanted to know. "Without us following him back to Kanto when he left, he won't have any idea that we'll be after him."

"We are pretty forgettable aren't we?" James sighed, looking defeated.

There was a brief flash from a pokeball opening from Jessie's hip. "Wobbuffet!" the Patient Pokemon yelled out, saluting the three of them, its big blue body swaying back and forth as their Meowth hot air balloon briefly jerked in the air from the extra weight.

"Get back in there!" Jessie yelled, recalling Wobbuffet to its pokeball before continuing. "Where was I?" She looked at her folder, nodding to herself, and then went on. "When the twerp gets here, he's probably going to stop and see those other twerpy friends of his at the Pokemon School. If we attack while he's on his way..."

"Dey can't help him dat way!" Meowth finished, nodding his head. "I like it, Jess!"

James didn't seem quite as enthusiastic. "When do these plans of ours actually work?"

"Plans of ours never work!" Jessie countered. "This is a plan of mine."

James nodded, apparently seeing the sense in that. "All right then, when do we expect him to arrive? Couldn't he be here already and we wouldn't even know?"

"I was following a couple of his twerpette friends the other day," Jessie explained, looking quite pleased with herself. "I heard them saying that they were expecting him this afternoon, so we just need to pay close attention to the airport and wait for his arrival in Hau'oli City."

Meowth had to admit that it did seem as though Jessie was reasonably well prepared for this mission, but he still worried about attacking the twerp in the middle of a crowded city. He was strong enough on his own, but they didn't need Officer Jenny and the police to get involved as well, along with whoever else might be around. "We gonna just attack him out in da open?"

"Of course not!" Jessie snapped, folding her arms and shaking her head. "We attack him in the forest. If we get in trouble, Bewear will help us."

Meowth and James exchanged a nervous look at that, but neither could argue with the idea. Bewear wasn't exactly gentle when "saving" them, but at least she would be some measure of backup if they weren't able to grab Pikachu and take out the twerp. The only issue would be if Bewear interrupted them if they did end up successful. They'd been close a few times with the Strong Arm Pokemon eagerly rushing to get them to her den in the forest before they could land their final attacks or snatch Pikachu away. Maybe Jessie's plan would work, though. Or maybe...

Suddenly, the three of them jumped as a chubby, red and white bird Pokemon crashed into Jessie from behind, knocking her down and into Meowth and James. She whipped around angrily, ready to destroy whatever had hit her, but was immediately distracted by the box that was presented to her.

"Deli delibi!"

"Delibird?!" the trio shouted out together in surprise.

"It's been a long time since we've seen you," James whispered, leaning forward curiously. "You are the Team Rocket Delibird, right?"

"Debi!" Delibird said, sounding quite friendly, handing James a small, glowing box that look different from the one it had given Jessie. "Delibi!"

"Oh, thank you!" James said gratefully, taking the box with two hands.

Meowth realized too late what it was to warn James, but he and Jessie were both able to shield themselves from the worst of the blast, while James fell back,smoke rising from his burnt clothes. "Ah...yes...you're definitely...the Team Rocket one..." he said slowly, quite dazed.

"You ain't here to collect are ya?" Meowth asked, turning to Delibird, who was now perched on the edge of the carrier. "We made some good cash running concessions at da league here and we're all payed up with da boss for our dues."

"Deli," Delibird answered, shaking its head and looking to Jessie. "Delibi!"

Jessie seemed to understand, staring down at the box in her hands before opening it up. "A pokeball?" she said in surprise, staring at the capture device and exchanging a curious glance with Meowth and the recovering James. She looked to Delibird. "The boss hasn't sent us a Pokemon in years. Is this really for us?"

"Delibi!" Delibird said, taking off and leaving Jessie more confused than before.

"Yeah," Meowth translated quickly. "And der's supposed to be a note."

Jessie quickly looked in the box, pulling out a small piece of paper inside. "It says to call headquarters," she told them, a mixture of excitement and nervousness in her eyes."

"What are ya waitin' for den? Let's call!" Meowth told her, jumping up immediately and grabbing their transmitter.

Only a few moments later, and the three of them were gathered around as the call was placed, and the image of Giovanni's secretary, Matori, appeared in front of them. Meowth could immediately sense the tension between the purple-haired woman and Jessie, but fortunately James was smart enough to do the talking. "Greetings from Alola," he said, saluting her. "Jessie, James and Meowth reporting as directed."

Matori narrowed her eyes, glaring at Jessie a moment, before clearing her throat and nodding. "Yes, I'll put you through to the boss."

A few seconds later, the image flashed, and the menacing face of the Team Rocket leader was looking at them. "Yes?" he asked, appearing as though he had other things on his mind than discussing whatever this was about with them.

"Um...sir...we received a package from Delibird," Jessie answered, holding up the pokeball. "We were told to call headquarters."

Giovanni nodded, sitting up a little straighter. "Ah, yes, the Smeargle."

"Smeargle?" Jessie asked, looking confused.

"The Pokemon you've been sent," Giovanni informed her. "It's a powerful Pokemon, and has already been quite valuable for us. We believe it can be of use on a short mission for you three as well."

These were the moments they all enjoyed, and Meowth could feel his own chest puffing out as Jessie and James straightened up. The boss had a mission for them! And, assuming everything went well, it was sure to mean a promotion. Meowth could already see himself sitting in the office on the screen, by their boss' side, purring as Persian could be heard doing right now. I'll be da top cat soon!

"What is the mission, sir?" James asked, voice shaking with barely suppressed excitement.

"It is simple. I already know you're in Alola, awaiting the Ketchum boy to return." He waited a moment for them to confirm, nodding as they did so. "As I expect you are aware, Smeargle has the ability to copy another Pokemon's attacks using the move Sketch." They nodded, and he continued. "It also appears as though this Ketchum boy is capable of using a particularly special Z-Move when battling with his Pikachu. His battle in the Alola League was quite the display of power. Team Rocket could put power such as that to excellent use."

Meowth was confused by what he was hearing. Surely Giovanni wasn't this misinformed about Z-Moves. "Boss...I don't think Z-Moves can be copied like dat."

"I am well aware. Do you take me for a fool?" Giovanni snapped, making Meowth shrink away. He wished he hadn't spoken. "We're taking other measures to recreate the power in Z-Moves if we are unable to collect enough Z-Crystals, but a Smeargle can still have the image of the attack imprinted in its mind. After that, our scientists can do the rest. Find a way to have Ash Ketchum use his attack against you and let Smeargle do what it can. Forget whatever fool's errand you were planning before and do your duty to Team Rocket."

"Yes sir!" the trio agreed quickly.

"Excellent," Giovanni nodded, waving dismissively. "I expect to hear from you later."

Ash Ketchum stepped off the plane and stretched his arms high into the air, embracing the Alolan sun before walking the rest of the way down the steps and off of the plane, careful not to fall down as he'd done back when he'd arrived in Kalos for the first time. As he reached the bottom, he took off his hat, running his hand through his raven-coloured hair before placing it back upon his head, already feeling the heat of the region. He smiled, though, thinking to himself that he was just feeling the heat of battle a little early.

"Pi pikachu!" Pikachu cheered happily from his shoulder, enjoying an ocean-scented breeze that blew over them as they headed into the airport.

"Nice to be back, huh Pikachu?" Ash asked his partner Pokemon, noticing the excitement in the electric rodent's eyes. As Pikachu voiced his agreement, Ash looked ahead, barely noticing the rushing crowds going past him. "Just think, buddy! We could be winning our very first Elite Four battle at this time tomorrow! That's so awesome, isn't it?"

Pikachu nodded, cheeks sparking with barely contained excitement. "Pika!"

Ash thought of the moment that Gladion's Silvally had finally fallen, remembering the exhausted look on Pikachu's face after emerging victorious and the loud cheers of the crowd. It had certainly been one of the most incredible experiences of their lives, but he knew it only got better from here. When Professor Kukui had informed him of the newly formed Elite Four, he was eager to accept the challenge. Of course, with the League being so new, the trainers were quite busy, so Ash's Elite Four quest would be running throughout the year.

The thoughts of all of his big upcoming battles made the journey through the airport a little bit more exciting for Ash, and before he knew it, he was out of the arrivals gate, making his way to the exit. He was hoping to get to the Pokemon School fairly early, eager to get in some last minute training with his friends Kiawe and Sophocles, but as Ash approached the exit, he stopped, hearing an announcement.

"Would all passengers please note, there is a thirty minute delay to the Latias Airlines flight departing for Littleroot Town this afternoon," the announcer said clearly. "We apologize for the inconvenience."

"Littleroot Town..." Ash looked at the clock, thinking to himself that he still had plenty of time, and then he looked to where the phones were, off to his right. "Hey Pikachu, how about we make a little call?"

Pikachu nodded, seeming to understand what Ash was thinking, and the two of them quickly headed over to the phones. Ash sat down, realizing he really didn't know quite where he should be calling. After a moment of thinking, though, he dialed a number, waiting for the person on the other line to pick up.

"Hello, this is Clemont at the Lumiose City Gym," a voice answered, only after a couple of rings.

"Clemont! Hey, it's Ash!" Ash almost yelled out, excited to hear his friend's voice on the other end of the line.

"Oh, Ash!" Clemont responded, sounding quite excited himself. There was a shuffling sound, and then quickly, the Lumiose City Gym Leader appeared on screen, adjusting his glasses as he leaned in. "Hey, how's it going?"

Ash laughed, noticing some smoke behind Clemont from what must've been a blown up invention. He still thought that was really cool, and could barely contain himself from blurting out that science was so amazing. "Pretty good. We've got our first match against the Alola Elite Four tomorrow!"

At that, Clemont noticed Pikachu, smiling at the Mouse Pokemon. "I bet Pikachu's ready as ever for it!"

"You bet!" Ash told him, Pikachu pumping his fist to show his agreement. "We've been training ever since the Alola League ended and Professor Kukui told me about the new Elite Four. I'm planning on using a bunch of my old Pokemon to help out. I might need to get Goodra at some point, so can you let Keanan know if you talk to him?"

"Yeah, of course," Clemont said, looking excited by the prospect. He then seemed to remember something, looking a little uneasy and glancing away. Ash knew what it was right away.

"Greninja's got more important things to do right now," Ash told him, taking a deep breath as he thought of his powerful Ninja Pokemon. "I'll battle with him again one day."

"Yeah...I know," Clemont nodded slowly, before giving his head a quick shake and looking back to Ash. "Oh, I bet you're curious about how Bonnie's doing?"

"Yeah, I guess she's probably close to her first gym battle by now, huh?" Ash asked, leaning forward in interest, excited to hear how his young friend was doing.

Clemont tried to look casual about it, but Ash could see him almost bursting with excitement. "Actually..." he said slowly, his voice shaking a bit. When he finished, though, he nearly yelled at the screen. "She won her first badge!"

Ash's eyes widened at that, his excitement for his own battle now turning to excitement for Bonnie. "Really? No way! She beat Roxanne that fast?"

Clemont shrugged, still apparently trying to hide how proud he was of his sister. "She did lose her first match, but she was determined to win when she got her chance at a rematch. She used her new Beautifly in the battle too!"

"Awesome, so she's even got a new Pokemon!" Ash looked to Pikachu, seeing that he was pretty excited by this news as well. "Know if she's still in Rustboro City? I'd love to congratulate her on her big win!"

"Sorry, but I think she and her friends were leaving for Dewford Town right after they called me. Sounded like they were going to try to get a ride with your old friend Briney." Clemont smiled, seeing Ash's curious eyes, knowing his next question before he asked it. "Oh yeah, Bonnie's travelling with a boy named Clyde now, and actually Roxanne has decided to follow along with them. I think they'll both be good for her. They seem a little...calmer."

Ash laughed at that, thinking it was great that Bonnie had friends to travel with, and knowing that Roxanne would have a lot to teach her. "Bonnie will be good for them, too," he assured Clemont, noticing his friend smiling at that. "Any idea how Max is doing? I know May mentioned he was heading out at a similar time to when Bonnie was."

Clemont's eyes shone with amusement at that, and he answered with a chuckle. "Bonnie's not a huge fan of Max. They met in Littleroot Town, and he won a battle against her and Dedenne with his Ralts. I think he's gotten ahead of her pretty quickly. He was on his way to Dewford Town before Bonnie won her badge."

Ash nodded, smiling as he thought of Bonnie struggling away to catch up to Max. It reminded him of his own eagerness to catch up to Gary whenever his old rival would get way ahead of him. It would be good for both of them to be rivals. He was sure they'd have some good battles in the future.

The two friends talked for a few more minutes, Ash telling Clemont to tell Bonnie he was cheering her on if she talked to him again before Ash got to. As he hung up the phone, sitting back in his seat a moment, Ash couldn't help but envy the young trainer, knowing she had an exciting first adventure ahead of her. There was nothing like starting out for the first time. Ash couldn't wait to hear more stories about it, and he hoped Bonnie could tell him some pretty soon.

"Well Pikachu, I guess we'd better get going. Kiawe was gonna help us get Charizard ready for tomorrow, and Sophocles has a few ideas to boost your electric attacks." Pikachu nodded looking excited by the idea, and the two set off once again, finally exiting the airport and emerging once again into the hot Alolan sun.

As they stood outside a moment, Ash noticed a shadow pass over them briefly, glancing up quickly to see what it was. It was too bright, though, and he could only squint at the brightness of the sun before looking back towards the streets of Hau'oli City. He smiled as he began to walk, remembering when he'd first been here, exploring everything with his mom after they'd won a vacation to come to Alola.

It took a few minutes before Ash reached the forest, smiling once again at a memory from his first time here, thinking of the Grubbin that had scurried away. If it hadn't been for chasing that Grubbin, Ash might've never met Tapu Koko, or had all the adventures he'd had here. Of course, he did seem to find his way into those sorts of situations regardless. They always led to fun adventures, though, in one way or another.

Ash wasn't quite sure why, but as he headed into the forest, he couldn't help but feel as though something was watching him. He wondered if it was Tapu Koko, part of him excited by the prospect of having Pikachu train with the Guardian Deity, but he also couldn't shake the feeling that it wasn't something with good intentions. Pikachu seemed to sense it as well, the electric mouse tensed on his shoulder, ears pricked as they went further into the forest.

Eventually, after a few minutes, Ash could hear a faint rustling behind him, and he knew he wasn't imagining things. He checked his wrist, making sure his Z-Ring was secure, before turning around, Pikachu already leaping off of his shoulder. He had a pretty good guess at who it was, and was almost surprised they hadn't acted first.

"Team Rocket, you can come out now!" he called out, hand over a pokeball on his belt. He would let Pikachu take care of things at first, but he wanted to be ready in case Team Rocket had anything else up their sleeves.

"Very good, twerp," Jessie's voice was heard, as she popped out from behind a tree, her Mimikyu shuffling along ahead of her. Ash resisted the urge to take a step back from the creepy, ghostly Pokemon that looked like a warped version of Pikachu. "You don't usually spot us before we've grabbed Pikachu."

"Maybe winning that league has helped him to grow up," James suggested, appearing from the opposite side of the path, his Mareanie hopping alongside him.

Ash narrowed his eyes, watching as Meowth dropped between them, Wobbuffet with him. "What do you guys want? You're not getting Pikachu if that's what you think is happening!"

Jessie smirked, pulling a pokeball out of her pocket. "We're not interested in Pikachu this time, twerp, although we will get him eventually."

"Pika!" Pikachu yelled, taking a step forward as his cheeks sparked.

"What's in the pokeball?" Ash asked, feeling uneasy as he noticed the excitement in Jessie's eyes as she fiddled with it.

"None of ya business, twoip!" Meowth snapped, unsheathing his claws.

"Um...isn't he about to find out anyway?" James asked, turning his head to his feline companion.

Jessie ignored the two of them, tossing out the pokeball in front of her, a bright light flashing as it opened up. "Smeargle?" the Pokemon that emerged called out, tilting its beret-shaped head as it looked ahead at Ash and swished its paintbrush-like tail side to side. "Smear smeargle."

"Where'd you get a Smeargle?" Ash asked, surprised by the new Pokemon. He knew he needed to be careful. Smeargle were capable of copying almost any attack. For all he knew, this one could be capable of something like Hyper Beam, and could be ready to use it at any time.

"Now that," Jessie said, narrowing her eyes. "is none of your business."

Ash clenched his fists. We'll see about that, he thought to himself, seeing Pikachu's ears twitch, knowing it was time. "Thunderbolt, Pikachu!"

"Pika!" the electric mouse called out, leaping into the air as electricity surrounded his body. Team Rocket immediately looked nervous, losing their surprising confidence as Pikachu unleashed the attack, sending it straight for Mimikyu and the new Smeargle.

"Mimikyu, Shadow Ball!" Jessie shouted, just barely ordering the attack as Pikachu sent his out. "Smeargle, use whatever you know!"

Mimikyu responded quickly, its strange Pikachu-styled cloak blowing up as it jumped, aiming a black, shadowy ball upwards to deflect. Meanwhile, however, Smeargle simply dropped to the ground and started to flop around. As Mimikyu's and Pikachu's attacks connected, the force of the explosion sent the poor Painter Pokemon flying back, crashing into Meowth and Wobbuffet, while Mimikyu and Pikachu skidded along the ground, away from one another.

"Does that Smeargle only know the move Splash...from a Magikarp?" Ash asked, feeling almost bad for the stunned group in front of him as they stared at the Painter Pokemon once again flopping on the ground.

"It doesn't matter!" Jessie shouted angrily. "James, let's attack! Mimikyu, Shadow Ball again!"

"Mareanie, Sludge Bomb!" James ordered with her.

"Iron Tail, Pikachu!" Ash ordered, narrowing his eyes as the purple globs from Mareanie and the Shadow Ball from Mimiky rapidly approached.

"ChuuuPIKA!" Pikachu replied, leaping up to deflect the incoming attacks, swinging his body left and right as he defended himself flawlessly. Ash smirked, seeing how frustrated Jessie was becoming.

"GRRR! What are you doing?!" the magenta-haired woman yelled at her companions and the Pokemon. "We're not accomplishing anything doing this!"

"What can we do?" James asked, looking nervously towards Ash. "It's not like we ever actually beat him when we try these things..."

Jessie's eyes widened angrily at that and she turned to the Smeargle, stomping her foot as she stepped towards it. "You!" she shouted, getting its attention. "Do something useful!"

Smeargle simply tilted its head at her, lifting up his tail as he did so. "Smear?" it asked, glancing at the ground and back towards her again, as though asking if he could use Splash once more.

"I wonder if da boss knows dat all he can use is Splash," Meowth said, scratching his head in confusion as he stepped out in front of Smeargle, peering closely at him. "Seems kinda useless ta me." He unsheathed his claws again, starting to pick at the dirt in his paws. "Maybe we should just call it a day?"

Ash was almost tempted to turn around and just walk away, feeling as though Team Rocket wouldn't even bother going after him if he did, but part of him was curious about what they would do now, with whatever their plan was clearly not working. He couldn't help but wonder what was going to happen with this Smeargle, too. It seemed to be focusing intently on Meowth as he talked to it.

"You ain't that smart, are ya?" Meowth told the Painter Pokemon, poking it in the middle of the forehead. "A real shame. Ya coulda been useful ta Team Rocket if you wasn't so clueless."

"Smear?" Smeargle asked, tilting its head. Meowth just shook his head in answer and looked to the frustrated Jessie. He was about to say something else, when suddenly, Smeargle started holding his tail up higher, wiggling it around in the air.

"Huh?" Meowth turned back to it in surprise, almost looking afraid now, as a strange outline of him started to form in front of Smeargle. "Wha..."

"Smear!" Smeargle cried out excitedly as the glowing shape of his air painting faded, his own body beginning to glow. "Smearrrrrryyyaaaayyy!"

Ash's eyes widened when he heard it, but he wasn't quite sure if he'd heard it right. Pikachu glanced back in confusion, though, and Ash was pretty sure his partner Pokemon had heard the same thing. Did Smeargle just...?

Meowth was clearly wondering the same thing, and took a nervous step closer to Smeargle, who was now coughing, apparently clearing his throat. "Hey...uhh...what did you just...say?"

"Sm...y...yay!" Smeargle responded, coughing again. "Yay!"

Meowth jumped back, fear in his eyes, turning to look at Jessie behind him. "I ain't da only one who heard dat, right?"

Jessie looked horrified as well, looking across to James to see if he had also heard. Judging from the look on his face, which had gone pale, he had. "Um...Smeargle?" the woman then called out, her voice surprisingly nervous. Ash supposed that it probably wasn't good for their plan if whatever appeared to be happening now continued.

"Smeargle...sme...me...can...I can...talk!"

Everyone stared in silence at the Painter Pokemon, unable to fully comprehend. Ash supposed they shouldn't have been too surprised, considering Meowth talked all the time, but it certainly was unusual with another Pokemon. And Smeargle hadn't been able to talk just moments earlier, so this was definitely strange.

"I can talk! I can talk! I can say human words!" He was quite excited, looking around happily at those around him, seemingly embracing their shocked faces as proof of his new ability. Ash noticed that his voice was quite different from Meowth's, with a different sort of accent, but he supposed it couldn't be exactly the same if they were still different Pokemon from different places. Not that any of it really made sense in the moment.

"Sketch...can be used...to learn to talk?" Jessie finally asked, looking to Meowth as though he would know the answer.

"Looks like it," Meowth said, scratching his head in confusion. "If only I knew Sketch...tings coulda been a lot easier."

"Well, actually Meowth..." The voice brought sudden silence once more, and Ash realized it was Smeargle talking again. "You see, I could never use Sketch to copy a human talking. It was only because you were a Pokemon that had learned to do so. I was able to take in what you had learned."

Meowth narrowed his eyes, not looking pleased by that. "He's a thief!"

Jessie shrugged, looking at Smeargle a moment longer, before finally turning her attention back to Ash. "So what if he is! He's a true Team Rocket member in that case. Okay Smeargle, how about you Sketch us one more thing."

"It would be my pleasure," Smeargle said with a bow.

Ash wasn't quite sure what Jessie wanted Smeargle to use Sketch on, but he wasn't going to give them much of a chance to do it. He needed to hit them now, and hit them hard. He wasn't going to underestimate a Pokemon that could copy almost any attack, especially if it was in the hands of someone like Team Rocket. Pikachu seemed to understand, standing up straight and quickly looking back to him. Ash raised his wrist, the Z-Ring already shining as he prepared the attack.

"Let's show them all our power, Pikachu!" Ash yelled, grabbing his hat and throwing it forward. Pikachu caught it easily, resting it atop his head as both of them crossed their arms in front of them. As the Z-Crystal began to glow bright, the powerful energy exuding from it, Pikachu darted back to Ash, giving him a fist bump and then high-fiving him with his tail.

"Pika!" the electric mouse shouted, darting back a few feet in front of Ash, both of them raising their left arms in front of their faces, before thrusting out their right arms, a beam of electrical energy rushing out from Ash to Pikachu.

Ash could feel the energy rushing through them, seeing Team Rocket rushing back a few steps, while Smeargle nervously held his tail up. "Much bigger than a Thunderbolt!" Ash shouted, straightening up along with Pikachu. "Ten Million Volt Thunderbolt! Go!" He punched forward now, yelling as he felt the energy connecting him and Pikachu. "Yeahhh!"

"Pikaaa!" Pikachu cried out, electricity all around him as he glowed in midair. Orbs of electricity seemed to orbit him, and just as he'd done in the Alola League finals, Pikachu embraced the additional energy, appearing to overflow with raw power. "Pi ka ka ka ka ka PIKA PIKAAA!"

A rainbow of electrical energy exploded forward, creating a light that was simply too bright to look at. Ash just managed to see the frightened faces of Team Rocket before finally shutting his eyes and simply feeling the rush of energy that exploded outward. He could just barely hear Team Rocket calling out that they were blasting off again, and he was pretty sure he heard the screech of Bewear jumping up to catch them, but a few moments later, it was all silent.

When Ash opened his eyes, Team Rocket was gone, and Pikachu was standing in front of him, holding his hat up, smiling at their victory.

"I think you're ready for our match, buddy!"

"Sir...it's those three on the line."

Giovanni waved his hand dismissively, Matori nodding to him before the screen flashed and her image was replaced with the faces of Jessie, James, Meowth, their Wobbuffet and what appeared to be the Smeargle they had been sent. He narrowed his eyes as he looked at them, noticing that they were scratched up and bruised. He could already see that their mission had resulted in the Ketchum boy thoroughly defeating them. It wouldn't matter, though, so long as they had accomplished one simple thing.

"Well?" the Team Rocket leader asked, leaning back in his chair and lowering his hand to stroke his Persian's fur.

"Um...well...sir..." Jessie began, looking uneasily towards Smeargle, who was tilting his head curiously. "The mission was...well..."

"Complicated," Meowth suggested, scratching the back of his head. "Da twerp...well, he sent us off with that move you wanted us ta copy, boss, and I ain't sure if Smeargle was able ta do much."

"I did what I could!"

Giovanni narrowed his eyes at that, looking briefly to Smeargle, before glancing at the others to hear what they had to say on its...new skill.

"Uh...yeah, Smeargle...it can talk now," Meowth said nervously, avoiding eye contact with Giovanni. "Looks like Sketch can copy other tings. Not just attacks."

"So it would seem..." Giovanni didn't give anything away, and simply stared at his subordinates, watching as they waited nervously for him to say more. "Well...is there anything else to report? Or did you simply teach a painter how to speak?"

"I have much to report, sir," Smeargle answered, bowing.

"You what?" Jessie asked, eyes widening as she looked to the Painter Pokemon. "You said you couldn't use the Z-Move the twerp used on us!"

"Jess, we knew he wouldn't be able to," James said, looking nervously to Smeargle, and then Giovanni. "The boss had planned for that."

"Then what...?" Jessie looked to Giovanni nervously. "Do you have what you need then, sir?"

"Perhaps." Giovanni looked to Persian, imagining the details they'd be able to acquire from Smeargle on what Ketchum had learned. "I'll have Delibird sent to retrieve Smeargle. You may continue with your previous work in the Alola region."

"Uh...yes sir!" the three of them called out, louder than was necessary, while Smeargle looked on in interest.

Giovanni gave one last nod, before cutting the call, and staring out into his dark office. He was pleased, even if he didn't show it to those three. They were unaware of how useful this Smeargle could be, regardless of whether it could actually mimic the Z-Move or not. The plans it had copied from Devon Corp. had been remarkably detailed. If it could give anything resembling that on the Z-Move...and considering that now it could better communicate what it knew...

He clicked a button to page Matori, her voice answering almost immediately. "Yes sir?" his secretary asked.

"Inform our team of scientists that the next Smeargle is due in the next twenty-four hours. Our mission was a success." He paused, smiling to himself. "Let us hope this one makes it. If we get what we need, it might still do some good with our agents in the Hoenn region."

Author's Note:

And there we have it, the first special oneshot of the Generation Z stories. Just to note once more for any who may have missed it in all the info above, this takes place after chapter 15 in Generation Z – Hoenn Alone.

So, this oneshot does a few things. We have a little update on Ash, who is going to do an Elite Four challenge in Alola while Bonnie is on her journey in Hoenn. As for Jessie, James and Meowth, they're still following him, but of course Giovanni has his uses for them, while also having Butch and Cassidy undercover in Team Archaic. Smeargle's purpose here is to make him the Meowth of Butch and Cassidy's group which I think just makes it more fun, but also we can see that Giovanni has big plans for the future. This may have impacts that stretch into future journeys for Bonnie...

Anyway, I hope you all found this to be a fun little oneshot, and hopefully it makes the main series a little more interesting. Let me know if you think this will be good as we continue along. See you all next time.