This chapter took quite a good time to finish.

It's also the one I enjoyed writing the most until now, though, so maybe it explains why I extended it so much…

By the way, action is much harder to write than I expected. I knew it could be tricky to make as I heard it from other people, but I wasn't expecting it to be like that.

Soooooo… I would like to apologize in advance if the action scene of this chapter sucks. Like I said, it's harder than I expected and it's different from what I'm used to do…

Disclaimer: Pokémon and anything related to it belong to Nintendo. Anything from any other franchise belong to their respective creators. I only own this story, any OC made for it and a few more stuff that isn't worth mentioning.

Bad Lessons With Your Boy, Guzma!

How to Become a Villain: Grade Retention – Final Class

If it was a regular day, Ilima would be calling everyone to his house to chat, spend some good friend time together, have a few Pokémon battles and maybe even voice their personal problems to each other.

After all, Trial Captains or not, they were still young. Young people have problems too, no matter how much the grownups may believe otherwise.

However, it wasn't a regular day. Far from it, truth be said.

In his whole comfortable (and admittedly not very long) life, Ilima never felt the uneasiness he was feeling that day. He kept the calm and collected nature that gave him the title of 'Prince of the Pokémon School' because it was… well, his nature and to an extent what defined which was his best stat, but even princes have worries and Ilima couldn't be more worried.

"Why are they taking so long?" Ilima heard Kiawe's voice somewhere behind him, while he looked through his window with a thoughtful expression.

"Didn't you see Acerola while coming here?" Mallow's voice was the next he heard.

"No. I think she was at the Pokémon League. I thought about going there to look for her, but I was already late and decided to come straight here," Sophocles answered.

Of the seven Trial Captains, five were already there. The only ones missing were Mina and Acerola.

"I can't believe it really happened…" Lana's voice was the next one heard. "I mean, he's always been full of surprises, but… That?"

The room was filled with thick silence. Ilima didn't even need to turn around and look at his friends' faces to know they were in a mix of worry and confusion.

The glass of the window did reflect their images, but that's off the point.

"Excuse me," Ilima's mother suddenly opened the door and looked inside. "Your friend arrived."

She fully opened the door and invited a girl to enter. The paint on her shirt was an unmistakable characteristic and delated who she was to anyone.

"Sorry for the delay," Mina calmly apologized and approached the others. "I had a few problems to get here."

"Don't worry. What matters is that you're here," Ilima turned from the window to look at the newcomer with a smile.

Ilima's mother excused herself and left, while Mina found a chair to sit.

"Now, the only one missing is Acerola," Lana commented aloud.

"Acerola won't come," Mina suddenly informed.

The reveal surprised everyone.

"She won't come?! Why not?! We're having an emergency here!" Kiawe exclaimed incredulous.

"Problems in the Pokémon League," Mina said. "She asked me to send her apologies and to inform her of everything we discuss here."

"But she couldn't leave what she had to do for a moment and come here?" Mallow asked.

"Unfortunately, seems like what she had to do couldn't be delayed."

Which was a shame, because if Acerola was there, they would have a very potent weapon against Sun.

If you read the last chapter, you know what I mean.

"That's inconvenient, but she's a part of the Elite Four now. Matters related to the Pokémon League are her responsibility as well, so we must understand," Ilima calmly reasoned. "Which also means we'll have to start the meeting without her."

With the Trial Captains' meeting officially starting with one member less than intended, Ilima got a chair, positioned himself closer to the others and crossed his arms with a worried expression.

"Well, I think it's completely unnecessary to tell you what's the reason I called everyone here so suddenly," the Normal-type Trial Captain sighed.

"There's no way we wouldn't know. All the news channels are talking about it," Lana sadly added.

"I don't understand what happened," Mallow scratched her head with a scowl. "How… Why would he suddenly do such a horrible thing?"

"Could it be because we didn't take him seriously before?" Sophocles lowly commented.

Everyone fell in silence, feeling like fools for not noticing the signs warning the upcoming disaster.

"I'm probably not aware of what you're talking right now, so I may need some explanations," Mina said.

Nobody wanted to talk about it, but it was a fact that, sooner or later, they would have to touch that subject again, especially since Mina needed to know everything that happened. Because of that, even if a bit unwillingly, Kiawe ended taking the initiative.

"A few days ago, we went out to eat some Malasadas and talk when we met Sun. He was wearing a weird attire and acting abnormally. At first, we didn't understand what he was doing, then he told us he was trying…"

Kiawe bit his lip.

"To become a villain."

"Ooooooh…" Mina understood what he was trying to tell. "Considering what happened, we can assume he wasn't joking, which also means…"

She awkwardly rubbed her cheek.

"That he didn't like you not believing him."

"Didn't like is nothing compared to what happened. He became furious like a Gyarados," Lana told looking down.

"And even after that, nobody believed him," Mallow added awkwardly. "I mean, nobody except…"

"Hau," Ilima finished for her.

"Yes, Hau noticed Sun wasn't joking and we didn't give him credit," Sophocles admitted embarrassed. "He knows Sun way better than us. We should have listened to him."

"By the way, did you call Hau to come?" Kiawe suddenly asked Ilima. "I know he isn't a Trial Captain, but like Sophocles said, he knows Sun better than anyone here. Maybe he could tell us where Sun is or give us an idea of what to do."

Ilima scratched the back of his head and tilted his it with a conflicted expression.

"I cogitated that, but after thinking a bit more about it, I decided it would be better to leave Hau out of this. He's probably one of the people that are having a harder time trying to accept what happened and the last thing I want is to pressure him in such a moment."

"Talking about that, how do you think Sun's mother is right now?" Lana asked worried.

"Aw, man… we completely forgot about his mom!" Mallow facepalmed. "She must be so devastated!"

Meanwhile…

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK

"Just a moment," Sun's mother put the broom aside, adjusted her hair and went to answer the door.

Noticing something was happening, Meowth stopped playing with his yarn ball and observed his owner walking towards the door and opening it, revealing two policemen with serious expressions.

"How may I help you?" Sun's mother asked with a gentle smile.

"Mistress, your son has committed a serious crime last night and must be taken to the police station for questioning," one of the policemen affirmed with a hard stare. "If he's here, it'll be better if you collaborate or we'll have to use force."

"Oh, really?" the woman put a finger on her chin. "Well, if you came here looking for my Sun, you're out of luck. He's a smart boy and knows it would be foolish to return home after what happened."

"You speak like you don't care about the seriousness of what he did," the other policeman said in a mix of incredulity and disapproval.

"I didn't want him to trail that way, but if I approve or not changes nothing. It's his life and he does whatever he wants," Sun's mother giggled mischievously. "Kinda reminds me in my younger years."

"Huh?" both men raised their eyebrows.

"Nothing," the woman dismissed with a gesture. "In any case, Sun isn't here. And before you ask, I don't know where he could be."

"Mistress, your behavior is extremely suspicious," the first policeman glared suspicious. "You wouldn't be hiding anything, would you?"

"Me? Of course not," Sun's mother smiled innocently.

"So, you wouldn't mind if we took a quick look in your house, would you?"

"If you really want to know, I would mind."

"Which makes me even more suspicious," the policeman said serious. "Mistress, open way. We're entering."

"No, you won't," Sun's mother gently said with a sweet, but also challenging smile. "If there's something I won't accept is someone putting their hands on my son's stuff without his authorization."

"Mistress, you're obstructing an official operation. Do you understand this has consequences?" the second policeman asked menacingly.

"And do you know who I am?" the woman's voice tone turned a bit sinister as her smile became slightly evil.

"Huh?" both men looked a bit surprised at the sudden change in behavior.

"Please, leave," Sun's mother asked gently.

"Mistress, for the last time…"

"Well, I see you two leave me no other choice," the woman rolled up her sleeves and snapped her fingers. "I'll have to show you some tricks I learned during my adolescence with a few… special people."

Knowing what was about to happen, Meowth quickly got up, ran to Sun's room, closed the door, locked it and prepared for the screams.

Not too far from there…

"We can check on Hau and Sun's mother later. Now, we have a much more important problem to deal with," Kiawe said with a serious tone, trying to return to the main subject.

"You're right," Ilima nodded and crossed his arms. "Now, we must discuss what we'll do about Sun. It won't be easy, though. We still don't know why he did that, for what purpose, his current location or what he'll do next. The only things we know are that he had a sudden change of heart and that Guzma is somehow involved."

"I bet it was Guzma who convinced him to do that!" Mallow accused. "There's no way Sun would do such a horrible thing on his own will!"

The girl suddenly suppressed a gasp with both hands.

"Oh, my! And if Guzma forced Sun?!"

Everyone began talking at the same time.

"Hey, guys! Let's calm down. We can't just jump to conclusions. We don't even know if that's what really happened," Mina then turned to Mallow. "Besides, Kiawe just told me he got very angry at you all not believing him. I don't think that would happen if Guzma was forcing him to do that."

"Mina is right. As much as I would like to deny, it doesn't look like Guzma is forcing Sun to do anything. He seems to be doing everything out of his own free will," Ilima sighed worried. "In fact, now that I'm remembering what happened last night, Guzma appeared after Sun surrendered the workers and was invited to enter the ship."

"And if it was also something Guzma forced him to do?!" Mallow insisted, her cheeks red in irritation. "I just can't believe Sun would do something so horrible because he wanted! That isn't the Sun we know!"

"I also wonder why he did such a thing," Lana rubbed her chin thoughtful. "I can't imagine what he would do with a ship full of construction material."

"No matter the reasons or his objectives, we can't let him run amok completely out of control," Kiawe crossed his arms and frowned. "He is… better saying, WAS the Champion of Alola, which means he's the strongest trainer in the whole region. His battle skills being used for the evil will bring nothing but chaos."

"Was? What do you mean?" Sophocles raised an eyebrow.

"Nobody will recognize Sun as the Champion now that he converted to evil," Ilima explained serious. "In fewer words, he lost his title the moment he stole the ship."

"But that means…" Mina tilted her head.

"The post of Champion is open."

Which also meant Alola was, once again, the only region in the whole world without a Champion.

"Talking about the ship, what happened to it?" Lana turned to Ilima.

"Believe it or not, the ship disappeared," the boy scratched his cheek sheepishly.

"D… disappeared?" the Water-type Trial Captain couldn't believe her ears. "A ship of that size simply disappeared? Like, gone? Like…"

"Nobody knows where it is? Yes, exactly like that," Ilima confirmed. "I must admit the shame is on me and the police department of Melemele Island. We were so shocked by what happened nobody thought about following the ship or checking where it was going. The only thing we know is that it went to the north, staying not too far from the coast."

"Do you think Sun and Guzma went to another island or maybe even another region?" Sophocles wondered. "That would explain why nobody has seen it since yesterday."

"There's no way to know," Ilima scratched the back of his head. "I don't think they went to another island because there were no sightings of the ship anywhere in Alola, which makes them leaving for another region possible."

"If they left for another region, then it'll be harder to find them," Kiawe added.

"I don't think it'll be too hard to find a ship that big," Lana commented.

"Even if it isn't, we would still need a way to reach them AND stop Sun. The former is easier. The latter, though…" Sophocles muttered.

"Sun is smart and Guzma has experience." Mina suddenly commented. "I bet they must have a plan or two under their sleeves in case things start going awry for them."

"Things will be much harder than I expected. Not that I thought it would be any easy," the pink-haired Trial Captain rubbed his chin thoughtful, his mind trying to find a solution for their problem. "If only we had just a small clue…"

"Wait…" Lana suddenly raised a finger and turned her head to the window. "Is that coming from outside?"

"What?" Kiawe asked.

"Listen."

As everyone made silence to listen what Lana was talking about, they heard what seemed to be many voices speaking at the same time coming from the direction of the window.

Intrigued, Ilima got up from his chair, walked towards the window and peeked outside. His position wasn't very good, though, and he ended opening the window and putting his head out to take a better look at the street.

"What's happening?" Mallow inquired a bit worried and another bit curious.

"I'm not sure," the boy answered moving his head to many directions. "There are lots of people in the middle of the street and they're surrounding something, but I can't see what from here."

Just as he finished his sentence, a very loud and irritated voice coming from the middle of the crowd yelled:

"GET OUTTA MY WAY! I HAVE TO SPEAK WITH THE TRIAL CAPTAIN, LIKING IT OR NOT!"

Everyone widened their eyes in surprise as they recognized the voice.

Immediately, all the Trial Captains got up, left the room, ran downstairs, nearly tripped on each other in the process and left the house as fast as they could.

That is, all the Trial Captains except for Mina, who calmly followed the others with a good (and safe) distance from their clumsy hurry.

As soon as he put his feet on the street and looked at the crowd from a better angle, Ilima noticed how the situation was dangerously close to becoming a riot. A very unfair one, by the way everyone was angrily shouting insults or threats directed at Guzma and said man was doing the same to all the others like he thought there was any way he stood a chance against so many people at once.

Guzma was always like that, though, so it wasn't exactly a big surprise, but anyways…

If he… better saying, THEY didn't interfere quickly, the white-haired man risked being kicked out of Hau'oli City after taking the beating of his life.

And by 'kicked', I mean literally kicked.

"Excuse me! Excuse me!" Ilima forced a way through the people, trying to reach the center of the crowd as soon as possible.

While he and the other Trial Captains behind him did that, the mess continued marvelously.

"What did you do to Sun, you numskull?!" someone who sounded like a middle-aged woman shouted.

"It was you who made him do that, wasn't it?!" what was probably a young man yelled.

"We should get that poor excuse of a villain and throw him in the sea!" a third voice suggested, to which many people agreed.

"CAN YOU ALL SHUT UP AND CLEAN THE WAY?! I'M TRYING TO HELP YOU, ONLY ARCEUS KNOWS WHY, AND YOU'RE ACTING LIKE A BUNCH OF IDIOTS!" Guzma's irate voice exploded amidst the mess of sounds.

"Help us?! How on Earth can you help us?!"

"MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS! NOW, GET OUT OF MY WAY AND LET ME GO SPEAK WITH THE FREAKING TRIAL CAPTAIN!"

For his luck, there was no need to go after Ilima as he suddenly popped from behind some people.

"Guzma? What are you doing here?" the boy asked, still a bit surprised to see the man in public after the events of the previous night.

"There you are!" Guzma groaned looking at him.

Just a few seconds later, Lana, Mallow, Kiawe and Sophocles also appeared.

"Ah, great… I asked for only one and got the whole pack…" Guzma complained to no one in specific.

"Hey, we heard that!" Mallow grumbled, puffing her cheeks irritated.

"And what do you think I wanted when I said it aloud?" the man pocketed his hands smiling mockingly.

Mallow got ready to start an argument, but Ilima rose a hand asking her to stay calm. Understanding Guzma was their best chance to discover where Sun was, the girl took a deep breath and resisted the will of giving him a very rude answer.

"Sorry, excuse me," Mina gently squeezed herself between some people to get where the others were, positioned a bit behind them and adjusted her clothes. "Okay, everyone. I know you all are very nervous and want answers just as much as we do, but let's stay calm and control our nerves. Violence and anger never took anyone anywhere."

She then rubbed her chin thoughtful.

"Actually, now that I thought about it, violence and anger did take some people somewhere, but it was usually a nasty place and I bet nobody wants that kind of thing to happen, so let's calm down anyway, okay?"

Maybe it was Mina's calm voice or the arrival of the Trial Captains that made everyone relax a bit (some more easily than others), but whatever the reason, at least the situation was under control.

"I thank you all for your collaboration," Ilima said with a smile, looking at the crowd around him before turning his face to Guzma. "Now, if I heard it right, you wanted to speak with me."

"I initially planned to speak with ONLY you, but since the other Trial Captains are already here and I'm sure these people won't leave me alone, I won't create suspense and will say it at once," Guzma groaned.

"Say what?" Kiawe asked giving the man a suspicious glare.

"I know what the brat is planning to do, when he'll do it, how he'll do it and I came here to tell you."

What the former Team Skull boss said surprised everyone.

"Wait, for real?" Lana inquired a bit astonished.

"Yes. He told me all the details of his crazed plan. That part of the plan, that is…" Guzma answered with a monotone tone.

"And why did he do that?" the girl asked back.

"Because I'm supposed to help him," the man said annoyed.

"Aha! I knew it! You have something to do with Sun's sudden change of heart!" Mallow accused with a scowl.

That simple sentence was enough to restart the mess.

"Woah! Woah! Woah! Let's calm down. No need for rushed assumptions," Mina tried to tranquilize everyone.

"But Mallow is right about one thing," Kiawe crossed his arms and glared harder at Guzma. "You're the only person that Sun allowed to enter the ship, that knows his plans and that he trusts enough to make a part of his scheme without fear of retaliation or being backstabbed, which means you have a bigger role in this situation than it may look at first."

"If you really want to know, yes, I have some participation in this whole story, but not because I wanted," Guzma grumbled.

"Not because you wanted? What is that supposed to mean?" Ilima asked intrigued.

"I doesn't matter if I tell or not. You won't believe me anyways," the white-haired man looked away with a disdainful air.

"Try us," Lana mischievously challenged.

With an irritated sigh, Guzma rolled his eyes, mentally asked himself what he was doing, gave the Trial Captains an emotionless glare and began narrating.

"A few days ago, I was in my parents' house when the brat appeared suddenly, desperate like a freaking little girl and asked me the stupidest thing I ever heard in my whole life."

"And that would be?" Ilima asked.

"To teach him how to become a villain."

Many people gasped shocked or began whispering incredulous.

"Ha! Like we're going to buy that lie!" Mallow growled.

"It doesn't matter if you believe or not, it's still the truth," Guzma growled back.

"But why would he want such a thing?!" Sophocles inquired incredulous.

"It was something about him feeling used, his responsibilities as the Champion being abusive, people harassing him because of his title… I don't remember very well. Gotta admit I wasn't paying too much attention to his chatter," the man said nonchalant.

"Abusive?" Kiawe raised an eyebrow. "What did he…"

"In any case, he asked… Better saying, he PLEADED me to help him with becoming a villain by giving him 'evil lessons' like I was some kind of stupid teacher," Guzma suddenly resumed.

"And did you accept?" Lana tilted her head.

"At first, I outright refused, but the brat began pestering me so much I ended agreeing. Of course, he failed miserably."

"Failed? But he just stole…"

"I WASN'T FINISHED," the former Team Skull boss rudely interrupted with a scowl. "After that, I tried to get as far as possible from him, but that stubborn brat continued pestering me and even nearly killed me in the process."

"Don't exaggerate…" Mallow deadpanned.

"If you saw what happened, you would know I'm NOT exaggerating," Guzma growled irritated and cleared his throat to proceed. "To get rid of him and because he made a… tempting offer, I ended agreeing to pass through that rubbish again."

"And what did he offer you?" Sophocles asked.

"His title of Champion."

Another wave of gasps and whispers.

"His title?! The title he worked so hard to get?! Why would he give up on it so easily?!" Kiawe asked incredulous.

"Something about his Champion responsibilities being abusive, yadda, yadda, yadda…" Guzma rolled his eyes. "I just said that! Were you paying attention or traveling far away in the magical land of your stupid Trial?"

"Hey!" the Fire-type Trial Captain groaned indignant.

"In any case, the offer he made would be good for me no matter if he failed or succeeded, because I would win in both cases," Guzma continued. "If he failed, then I would become the Champion like I deserve to be."

Some people wanted to argue about that, but everyone concluded it would be a waste of time and remained quiet.

"If he succeeded, I wouldn't have the Champion title, but would see AND be the responsible for making the brat that ruined my life fall from grace and throw everything he conquered in the trash can."

"You monster!" Lana angrily insulted, with some people around her doing the same.

"Say whatever you want. I don't care," Guzma dismissed. "It was supposed to be just that; an easy way to get the title or revenge, but…"

The man looked away with an irritated face.

"Am I really going to say this to them?" he growled to himself before looking at the Trial Captains again with a reluctant expression. "Somehow, the brat managed to impress me. In comparison to the first time he tried those stupid 'villain lessons', he was one thousand times better. So much better I began believing that maybe, MAYBE it was worth my time."

That statement also surprised everyone. Guzma saying he believed Sun was worth his time after everything that happened between them was just as unexpected as Sun wanting to become a villain.

"The brat wasn't just pretending to be a villain anymore; he was being a villain! Acting like a villain, thinking like a villain, doing things a villain would do!" the man continued exasperated. "Not in a million years I would imagine such a thing happening! I never thought I could stay at the brat's side out of free will and without wanting to kill myself!"

"You speak like you were liking it," Mina pointed out.

"GAH! NOT EVEN IF SHADOW PUNCH WAS A VIABLE MOVE FOR GENGAR!" Guzma shot back extremely angry.

"But wait a moment…" the girl poked her chin with a finger. "If you believed Sun was worth your time, then why are you betraying him now?"

"Because the brat has gone COMPLETELY NUTS!" the white-haired man's eye twitched violently. "If I let him run amok doing whatever he wants, he'll turn the whole region into a naturalist mess! It reached a point where we could make Lusamine look like a totally sane person just by putting her at his side!"

"Is it that bad?" Mallow asked worried, feeling a drop of cold sweat running down the back of her head.

"To give you a small taste of the brat's madness, his 'amazing' objective as a villain is to make Alola a better place for all the children and Pokémon that live here."

A lot of 'awwws' echoed.

"And how is that supposed to be an evil villain thing?" Sophocles scratched his head confused.

"The problem isn't what he plans to do, but HOW he's doing it," Guzma explained with a grimace. "Do you remember that ship of yesterday? He took all the material out of it for a reason he refuses to tell me and sank the darn thing to turn it into an artificial coral for the Pokémon!"

The jaws of Mallow, Lana, Sophocles, Kiawe, Mina and Ilima dropped as they all let out a long and confused:

"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA?"

"Exactly. What. You. Heard," Guzma said slowly.

The crowd around them began whispering or making nervous comments.

"An artificial coral? With the ship?" Lana began questioning. "For the Pokémon? Here? In Melemele Island?"

…

"I kinda liked that idea."

"Which side are you at?!" Kiawe growled incredulous at the girl.

"Hey! I'm not supporting his villainous actions! I just think the artificial coral part is very cool!" the blue-haired girl reasoned defensively.

"Holy Arceus…" Sophocles shook his head and looked at Guzma. "Now we know what's happening with Sun, what he did with the ship and what he expects to achieve with it, but what you really wanted to tell us is what he plans to do now, right?"

"Yes, and it's even weirder," the man crossed his arms and sighed. "Do you know the president of that company, the Koppai Corp. or Kalki something…"

"Kifo Inc.," Ilima corrected.

"Kifo Inc., Kiwi Corps., whatever…" Guzma rolled his eyes nonchalant. "The guy is coming to Alola today and is expected to arrive at three in the afternoon."

"We know it. It's in the New Pokémon Times," Mina told. "What so?"

"I'll tell you what so: the brat plans to ambush the guy here in Melemele Island and steal his post as the company's president."

"What?!" the Trial Captains asked in incredulous unison as the crowd around them began speaking nervously.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Hold on just a second!" Lana spoke up. "How on Earth will Sun steal the post of president just by ambushing the man?"

"You probably won't believe it at first, because I also didn't believe it myself," Guzma commented with a sigh. "For reasons I still can't understand, there are only two ways to become that company's president. The first is to receive the post from the previous president, be it by inheritance or designation. The second is by taking… better saying, USURPING the post."

"U-usurping?" Mallow stuttered. "Do you mean…"

"Taking by force? Eliminating the previous president? Gaining the employees' support to overthrow the guy? Yes, exactly that," Guzma confirmed and pocketed his hands. "However, no matter how someone plans to usurp the post, there's one thing that's mandatory for them to be recognized as the president."

"And that would be?" Ilima invited the man to continue.

"The person MUST put their hands on the presidential card," Guzma told. "The card is what gives power over the company. Without it, nothing else matters."

…

"So, that means…" Mina raised an eyebrow. "the only thing Sun needs to do to become the all-powerful boss of the company is…"

"Steal the card."

Everyone used Confusion!

"It's ridiculous, nonsense, I don't know who had that stupid idea, but that's how things work," the former Team Skull boss grumbled. "And that's why the brat is planning to ambush the guy. He attacks him, steals his card…"

"And gains full control of Kifo Inc.," Ilima nervously bit the tip of his thumb. "Guzma, why does Sun want the post of president? I mean, he gains the company, which is very rich and full of resources, but I don't think that's all he wants. Knowing Sun as I do and now that his reasons for taking the ship have been revealed, I'm sure he probably has something planned for all that."

"He has, but, for whatever reason, that brat insists in keeping it a secret," the man told.

Ilima rubbed his chin with a thoughtful expression. After hearing the story Guzma told, he became sure that, if there was someone who Sun trusted, that person was the former Team Skull boss.

So, for which reason would he keep his plan hidden from what seemed to be his right-hand man?

Something was smelling extremely fishy.

"You may not know what he wants with the company, but you know how he plans to ambush the president," Kiawe suddenly spoke up with a serious tone and snapped Ilima out of his thoughts. "That information alone would put a check in all his scheme, which makes me a bit suspicious."

"Suspicious of what? I'm trying to help you, am I not?!" Guzma complained irritated.

"That's exactly what makes me suspicious," the boy glared at the man. "This all is extremely convenient. Way too much, to tell the truth. And, sincerely, you wanting to help us? That alone is already very hard to believe."

"He took the words out of my mouth," Mallow crossed her arms and glared challenging at Guzma.

Lana and Sophocles also ended giving Sun's 'tutor' a hard stare. Only Ilima and Mina had some confidence in Guzma's words, although both had some precative skepticism towards him.

"Well, if you're having difficulty to trust me, then let's see what you'll think after hearing this," the white-haired man put both hands on his hips and glared at the children. "Part of the brat's plan to steal the card involves me going after you to give false information and mislead you all into making a mistake."

All the Trial Captains widened their eyes in shock, while some people around them began whispering.

"What…? Explain yourself," Kiawe demanded.

Guzma let out a long, deep sigh and told Sun's plan.

"Before the president arrives in Alola, I should go after Ilima and tell I was tired of working with the brat, thus why I decided to delate his plan. He instructed me to say he planned to ambush the president close to Melemele Meadow, where he plans to build the storehouse. According to the brat's logic, it's very likely that he'll go there to check the place personally after what happened last night to make sure nothing would go wrong this time. That place would be perfect for an ambush, as there are lots of places to hide and he can come from both Route 1 or Route 2."

Guzma's expression hardened.

"That's a lie. He'll attack the president as soon as the ship decks in the marina of Hau'oli City."

"In the marina?" Sophocles asked confused. "Wouldn't that be a bad idea? I mean, that'll surely be the place with the most policing and the president will probably bring securities with him, which makes it the hardest place to make an ambush."

"That's the point," Guzma affirmed serious. "The hardest place to make an ambush, consequently the least expected. Nobody will be waiting for him there, so if he appears, it'll catch everyone off guard."

"But what about the police?" Mina asked.

"Aside from the police and maybe the president's body guards, I doubt there will be any special measures to take care of him if they'll reinforce the policing."

Guzma then crossed his arms and gave the Trial Captains an annoyed expression.

"Besides, do you really think the cops would have ANY chance of facing that darned brat? If he managed to defeat me, Lusamine and the entirety of Team Skull and Aether Foundation alone, then a bunch of donuts eaters won't be more than a little nuisance for him. With that army of monstrosities under his command, on top of that."

The Trial Captains fell in awkward silence. They hated to admit, but just like Guzma said, the police of Alola was… deceptively average. Slightly mediocre, some would dare to say.

The police of Alola wasn't the only, though. Aside from the International Police, all the police departments of all regions left a bit to be desired.

That was modesty; truth be said, they left A LOT to be desired.

I mean, how on Earth would the police let Team Rocket commit their crimes without doing anything? Or let Team Aqua and Magma do their shenanigans unscathed? Or not even do a single thing about Team Plasma running around and spreading their propaganda to make people release their Pokémon like it was their business?

They were so incompetent all the regions of the Pokémon world had to be saved by kids that weren't even fifteen years old, for Pikachu's sake!

"I can see what you're saying…" Ilima scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "So, the marina of Hau'oli City, right?"

"Yes. At three o'clock, when the ship arrives," Guzma confirmed. "He won't be on land, though."

"Huh?" everyone tilted their heads.

"To avoid being seen, one of the monstrosities he commands will keep him airborne and launch him at the president as soon as he sets foot on land," the man explained. "Once he gets the guy, you'll have only a few seconds to stop him before he takes the card. If he puts his hands on the card, he'll become the president and order the workers to subdue everyone."

"But will they obey Sun?" Lana inquired. "I mean, even if he gets the card, who said they can't revolt against…"

"Absolutely NOBODY likes the old man. The only reason they obey him is because he's the president and they never had a chance to strip him of his position. I ensure you, if the brat becomes the president, they'll obey him just to get rid of the guy."

What Guzma said was alarming; it meant that, if Sun put his hands on the presidential card, not only he would gain full control of the company, but also the employees' support.

Things weren't looking very good for them.

"Now, do you guys believe in me or not?" the man asked with a scowl. "I know you have reasons not to trust what I'm saying and I sincerely don't care a bit about that, but if we don't do anything now, then who knows what will be the brat's next lunatic idea?"

Should they trust Guzma or not? That was a hard question to answer.

Due to all their history with him, none of the Trial Captains (even Ilima and Mina, the most complacent and forgiving of them) were very willing to work with the former Team Skull boss or sure if that would be a good idea. After all, not only had he helped Lusamine with nearly destroying the Alola region with an infestation of invaders from other dimension (even if unintentionally), but he also admitted lying to them was part of Sun's plan. There was no way to know if it was just a ruse to gain their trust or part of the former Champion's scheme.

At the same time, it didn't make much sense that Guzma would lie to them about Sun asking him to lie to them AND tell it all right in their faces. It sounded extremely obnoxious and even a bit oxymoron. Besides, the amount of details he gave them was impressive. Not that liars can't make very detailed and well developed lies, but the whole process, how the plan would be executed, the backstory he gave them… it all sounded so genuine.

Those conflicting facts made all the six Trial Captains drown in doubts.

"Uh… Just give us a second," Ilima asked raising a finger and turning to look at the others. "I think we may have a problem in our hands now."

"What are we going to do? Can we trust Guzma?" Lana whispered, doubt and apprehension clear in her voice.

"I don't know. Part of me says trusting him would be foolish, but the other part says…" Kiawe rubbed the back of his head. "That he's the best chance we may have to find and neutralize Sun before the situation runs out of our control."

"Maybe it won't be a good idea to trust him," Sophocles commented. "We don't know if he's lying. What if he's just trying to mess with us or even working with Sun? This all could be a trap."

"But what if he isn't lying?" Mina poked her chin. "Then we would lose an opportunity to stop Sun."

Guzma tried to hear what the Trial Captains were whispering among themselves, but they were speaking in such a low tone and the crowd around them talked at such a loud volume he couldn't understand anything.

After a bit more of conversation, the six Trial Captains seemed to decide what they would do and Ilima turned to the man. He looked deep in his eyes and announced with a serious voice:

"Very well, Guzma. We'll trust you."

Their decision created a bit of controversy and the people around them commented in many differing tones of different emotions.

"Before anything else, though, I have two questions," the pink-haired boy said. "First, and most important, where is Sun now?"

"I don't know," Guzma raised his shoulders. "A bit before I came here to 'lie' to you, he used the Charizard Glide to go somewhere else. He didn't tell me where, but said he had an 'appointment' with someone."

"Someone? Who?"

"He doesn't tell me."

Another mystery and a very important one. If Sun went to meet someone, then it meant that there was a third person involved in his evil plan, whatever it was.

"Alright, as for the second question, won't Sun suspect you betrayed him?"

"There's a chance, but even if that happens, it won't be much of a game changer," the man scoffed. "Worst case scenario, he aborts the plan and escapes. Which reminds me…"

He gave a hard stare at everyone, including the people around him.

"What happened here and now must be kept a secret. If the brat discovers, he'll run away only Arceus knows to where and probably start a new plan. If you guys want to get him," he approached the Trial Captains and glared at them. "it has to be NOW, because we'll hardly have another chance like this."

Ilima, Mallow, Lana, Kiawe, Sophocles and Mina exchanged looks, then looked at Guzma and said in unison:

"Understood."

Meanwhile…

It probably wouldn't help much, but Hau couldn't keep it to himself anymore.

Usually, he would look for his grandfather or Sun to speak whenever he had something that bothered him, but in the current situation, both options were unavailable.

Hala traveled to Akala Island, where he and the other Kahunas would have an urgent meeting to discuss about their young Champion's sudden change of heart and said young Champion… well, unnecessary to explain.

So, in that case, there was only one person left he could count on.

"Huh?" the boy stared confused at the front of Sun's house.

For some reason, the windows were broken, one of the door's hinges was out of place and there was a damaged chair abandoned in front of the garage.

A bit perplexed by the scene, Hau carefully approached the house and lightly knocked on the door.

"Just a second," Hau heard the voice of Sun's mother coming from inside seconds before she opened the door and greeted him with a wide smile. "Oh, Hau! Nice to see you!"

"Nice to see you too," the boy smiled back.

"How may I help you?" the woman kindly asked.

"Well, I know we already discussed about this before and…"

…

"Uh… This has nothing to do with what I wanted to talk about, but I really need to ask if something happened here. I mean…" the boy looked again at the broken windows and the damaged hinge on the door. "It nearly looks like there was a riot."

"Oh, these things? Don't worry. It was nothing," the woman dismissed shaking a hand.

"Really? Because the more I look, the more I think…"

The sentence was left unfinished as Hau's eyes noticed something lying on the floor, right in front of him.

"Huh? What is this?" he kneeled, grabbed the object and examined with curiosity. "Looks like a broken police badge."

"May I look at it?" Sun's mother gently asked.

The boy got up and handed the object.

"Huh… You're right. It's a damaged police badge," the woman confirmed. "The policemen who came here earlier must have dropped it."

"Dropped it?" Hau tilted his head and put a hand on his chin. "But how would a policeman forget…"

"Wait…" the boy stopped to think. "Policemen… Here… Broken badge… The windows… The door… Sun's mother…"

As a scary theory formed in his mind, Hau's face turned white and his jaw dropped.

"Is something wrong, Hau?" Sun's mother asked worried, noticing the boy's expression changing suddenly.

Deep down, Hau didn't want to believe it and tried very hard to convince himself it was just his fertile imagination running wild. After all, he knew Sun's mother; she was a kind, sweet and gentle person with a giant heart. She would never do such a thing.

However, at the same time, he only discovered she had been a member of Team Rocket because she revealed it. Who knew what kind of things she did while working for the villainous group that terrorized Kanto years ago? Or what kind of skills she was hiding under her sleeves?

Sun didn't look like a dangerous or especially powerful person, but he ended becoming the strongest trainer of Alola AND a potential villain.

What if he inherited that trait of being much more than he looked from someone?

"Hau?" Sun's mother called.

"Huh?!" the boy shook his head and forced a smile. "Uh, sorry! I wasn't… Ah…"

"Are you okay?"

"Yes! Yes, I'm totally fine ma'am!" Hau nervously laughed.

"Ma'am? Why did you call me that?" the woman tilted her head confused. "You know there's no need to be so formal with me."

"Sure! As you say, ma'am! I m-mean, auntie!"

"Hau, are feeling well?" the woman gently put a hand on the boy's forehead, which sent chills down his spine. "You're acting a bit weird."

"Y-yes! I'm fine! Sorry for worrying you!" the boy fearfully, but carefully stepped back. "Uh… I… Kinda had that thing to talk with you, but I just remembered I had… Ah… That other thing to do and…"

Sun's mother used Mind Reader!

"Let me guess…" the woman playfully hummed with a wicked smile and got threateningly closer to Hau. "You think I did something to the policemen and because you're becoming suspicious I'll do the same to you."

Hau ran away!

As sadistic as it may sound, Sun's mother couldn't resist giggling a bit at the scene.

Not so much because it was funny to see the Kahuna's grandson being so afraid of her to the point of running away or how amusing it was to mess with him (those were still part of the reason, though), but mostly because Hau fled the same adorable way Sun did whenever he wanted to escape from situations he couldn't handle.

"Children these days… They have such a fertile imagination," Sun's mother smiled warmly and shook her head. "Well, better get back to cleaning. There are still lots of teeth scattered around the living room and they won't go to the trash bin by themselves."

Later that same day…

Was trusting Guzma a good idea? Involving him in their plan would work? Were they being imprudent?

Even hours after agreeing to work with him to catch Sun, those questions continued to pester the minds of all the six Trial Captains (more to some than to others), and for good reason if we are being honest, but the options available were very limited, so being picky was out of question.

Besides, it wasn't like they REALLY trusted him.

Sure, they were taking precautions according to everything the former Team Skull boss told them, but they also prepared a few 'precative measures' in case the worst happened and Guzma ended being a traitor.

What they planned to do?

Long story short, while the policemen would "close both routes 2 and 3 to trap Sun and reduce his chances of ambushing the president", the Trial Captains would stay in the marina of Hau'oli City, hidden inside a docked boat, waiting for the ship to arrive.

The 'precative measures' they took in case Guzma ended trying to stab them in the back were pretty simple, but carefully planned:

Sun alone with his Ultra Beasts was a formidable opponent, but they were only seven against the entire police department, the Trial Captains and the bodyguards and security of Kifo Inc. As powerful as they were, they would be defeated by the numbers.

HOWEVER, Guzma, despite not being taken very seriously by many people, was a trainer of respectable skill and had more than enough power to defeat some policemen and even pose a threat to the Trial Captains.

If he indeed betrayed them, he could keep the Trial Captains and the policemen busy enough to buy Sun time to attack the president and steal the presidential card.

Even if that sounded way easier to be pulled off in theory than in practice, especially because they were still just two against many people, that was a risk none of the six were willing to take as it could end in the villainous ex-Champion escaping to continue his antics.

Taking in consideration the police of Alola wasn't extremely efficient and it was very unlikely the workers of Kifo Inc. were much better (see what they did in chapter 6 to have an idea), one could say it was only the six Trial Captains against the two, and both the evil boy and the former Team Skull boss had full teams of six powerful and well-trained Pokémon each.

With such a threatening opponent and a possible double agent that was just as dangerous nearby, keeping an eye on Guzma all the time was the first 'precative measure' they took.

"Step aside! You're sweating on me!"

Even if that meant having to keep him with them in that unbelievably small and stuffy boat.

"Sweating on you? I'm at least twenty centimeters away from you!" Kiawe shot back indignant.

"Oh, really? So, why is my arm all wet?! And don't say it's my own sweat, because I was dry just a few seconds ago!" Guzma grumbled disgusted while rubbing his arm on the closest thing he found, which ended being…

"Hey! What are you doing?!"

Mallow's shirt.

"Ugh! This is so gross!" the green-haired girl complained in mix of disgust and anger, glaring at the place of her shirt Guzma used to clean his arm.

"That isn't sweat!" Kiawe said defensively.

"And what is that, then?!" Guzma shouted.

While the argument between the two Trial Captains and the former Team Skull boss continued, Ilima, Lana, Sophocles and Mina looked through the window, eyes and ears focused and carefully searching for any warning of Sun's or the ship's presence.

To avoid raising suspicions, Ilima asked the management of the marina to continue with their regular activities like it was just another common and relatively monotone day, so boats, ships and people kept coming and going all the time without a single care in the world.

Of course, it was just a façade; all the people of Hau'oli City were instructed to act normally until the ship arrived, which would be the moment when they had to leave the marina as empty as possible.

Any signal or small hint that the Trial Captains were there and ready to act as soon as needed before the right time came could warn Sun of their plans and make him abort the operation and flee to only Arceus knew where.

That is, if he hadn't already discovered Guzma's betrayal and planned something to counter that.

"Ilima?" Lana suddenly called for the boy, making him snap out of his thoughts and give her a curious look.

"Yes?"

"You seemed to be lost in thought," the girl said. "Is something bothering you?"

The boy scratched the back of his head and twisted his mouth in uncertainty and worry.

"Truth be said, there's indeed something bothering me," he admitted.

"What?" Lana asked.

"Do you remember what Guzma told us earlier today? About Sun thinking his responsibilities as the Champion were abusive?"

"Yes, I do, but I sincerely don't think we can believe in that very much," the girl commented while discreetly spying the white-haired man with the corner of an eye. "I mean, why would Sun think that? Being the Champion made him so famous and admired. Everyone sees… well, used to see him as an example to be followed, a figure of respect and a hero. Even I was a bit jealous of all that, so why would he think it? In my sincerest opinion, it could very well be Guzma just trying to buy our confidence."

"Could be, but…" Ilima contorted his face into a troubled expression. "Then why would he do what he did? Stealing, threatening, scaring people, broadcasting his villainous message on television, sinking ships… It all couldn't be caused by something that simply just happened one or two days before it all began. Besides…" it was the boy's turn to spy Guzma. "If the story Guzma told us is true, Sun went after him to learn how to become a villain. It was HIS initiative, which means he had a purpose to do so."

He then turned to look outside the window with a sad face.

"I don't want to believe that's what caused all this mess, but if Guzma wasn't telling the truth, then what motivated Sun to do what he did? And above everything else, why would he think his role as the Champion was abusive?"

Lana couldn't answer the questions. She also lacked the answers and it made her just as worried as Ilima.

"Hey, guys! The ship is coming!" Sophocles announced pointing somewhere to the horizon.

Ilima, Lana and Mina immediately looked to where the boy was pointing, while Kiawe, Mallow and Guzma stopped arguing to get closer to the window and do the same.

Just as Sophocles said, it was possible to see a big ship with the logo of Kifo Inc. slowly approaching the island.

"Yo, brats. You probably wanna see that," Guzma suddenly said while looking and pointing a finger to the sky.

The Trial Captains followed the direction the man indicated and saw an unidentified object flying very high in the sky approaching the marina. It was a bit hard to determine what it was at first, but the closer it got, the more they recognized a big, red and muscular figure holding what seemed to be someone dressed in a long sleeved black shirt and pants of the same color.

"I can't believe it! It's Sun and one of his Ultra… whatever things," Mallow commented a bit shocked. "Guzma wasn't lying after all!"

"I don't want to be rude or anything, but didn't you guys say some hours ago that you would TRUST ME?!" the man groaned irritated.

"And do you think we would be stupid enough to suddenly trust you just because you magically decided to help?" the girl shot back sarcastically.

Guzma got ready to argue back, but Kiawe's firm voice prevented him from even starting his sentence.

"Enough of this! The ship is nearly here! As soon as it docks, we have to get out and position ourselves!"

"Kiawe is right. Prepare yourselves, the time is close," Ilima added serious.

A thick silence filled the boat as the six Trial Captains stared fixedly at the approaching ship, the anxiety making the minutes of wait feel much longer than they really were.

That was it; the time of truth, what they nervously waited for. Just a few more moments and the action would start.

What would be the outcome? Either success or failure, but that wasn't what they should be thinking about; first, they had to concentrate on their plan.

The timing had to be perfect. If they left the boat too early, Sun would notice them and abort the mission; if they left too late, Sun would snatch the presidential card before they could do anything. It had to be exactly when Buzzwole launched his trainer at the man.

It had to be in that exact moment, not a single second earlier or later.

Or at least, that was their plan until they noticed the Ultra Beast violently launching his trainer downwards much before the ship even arrived at the marina for no apparent reason.

"What the…?!" Ilima gasped shocked at the scene, immediately getting out of the boat and running towards the falling boy.

"No! Sun!" Lana screamed worried and went after Ilima.

"What is he doing?! Is he trying to kill his own trainer?!" Kiawe said horrified as he also ran out of the boat and followed the other two Trial Captains.

In the blink of an eye, Sophocles, Mallow and Mina also went after the others, equally worried with the boy that was falling at high speed, heading straight to the hard concrete under him.

They left the boat in such a desperate hurry they didn't notice Guzma hadn't moved a single inch, a wide, evil smile appearing in his face as he pulled a very outdated cellphone from his pocket and prepared to press the dial button.

"Sun! Sun!" Ilima yelled worried, looking at the falling boy getting nearer and nearer to the ground as he ran towards him.

Distracted by the dire situation, none of the Trial Captains noticed Buzzwole making a pose and then flying away in the direction the ship was coming, completely and amusingly unworried with his trainer.

Talking about that, just as Sun was a few feet from touching the ground, Ilima managed to launch himself in his direction and grab the villainous boy seconds before he became more smashed than mashed potato.

Holding the boy firmly in his arms, Ilima rolled a few times on the concrete before finally stopping, his heart racing and his sight a bit blurred from the nervousness, but slightly relieved to know he could save Sun.

"Ilima!" Lana yelled as she and the others approached the Trial Captains lying on the ground, the ex-Champion in his arms. "Is Sun alright?! Did he get hurt?!"

"I don't know," the pink-haired boy panted. "Sun, are you hurt? Do feel pain anywhere?"

BEEP… BEEP… BEEP… BEEP…

"Uh? What's that?" Sophocles asked looking around.

"I don't know," Mallow commented. "It sounds like a beep, but seems to be coming from…"

Mallow, Sophocles, Mina, Lana and Kiawe slowly turned their faces to look at Ilima holding Sun, noticing the beeping was coming from them.

Having heard the sound and very confused at what it meant, Ilima looked at Sun, noticed he wasn't moving and raised an eyebrow suspiciously. Carefully, he put a hand on Sun's face and turned it to him, widening his eyes in shock as he made a terrible discovery.

It wasn't Sun. It was a mannequin dressed in his clothes and using a wig that looked exactly like his hair with a stupid smile drawn on its face beneath two red lights positioned in the mannequin's eyes that blinked menacingly and made the beeping sound.

Noticing they fell into a trap, Ilima tried to throw the mannequin away, but Guzma pressed the dial button of the cell phone in his hands before the boy could do it, exploding the mannequin and launching an enormous amount of a gluey white substance that covered the six Trial Captains and completely immobilized them.

"ARGH! What is this?!"" Mallow screamed in horror and shock, desperately wiggling her arms in a futile attempt to escape.

"I can't move!" Lana angrily tried to grab the substance covering her arms and legs, only getting even more covered on it.

"I-it's all over me!" Sophocles complained, his arms glued to the sides of his body.

"The brat was right. It was way simpler than I expected," an arrogant voice came from somewhere behind them.

With some effort, the Trial Captains managed to turn their faces around and see Guzma approaching them, hands inside his pockets and a smug grin in his face.

"Look at you all. So pathetic. I nearly feel bad for you," Guzma's smile became wider. "Actually, I don't," he cackled evilly.

"You betrayed us! I knew we couldn't trust you!" Kiawe vociferated, his blood boiling with anger.

"You knew and yet you were stupid enough to do it anyways," the white-haired man crossed his arms and laughed loudly. "Although that's no big surprise. I mean, you were stupid enough to believe in this whole story. The brat launching himself from the sky on the president? Attacking in the marina? Ha! Even a five years old moron would notice it was a lie!"

"You fooled us the whole time! I bet even that thing with the presidential card is false!" Lana accused.

"Unfortunately, the presidential card thing is real," Guzma commented annoyed. "I really wonder who was the imbecile who had that idea."

"But why are you helping Sun, Guzma?" Ilima asked, his arms and legs glued to the ground. "You said he ruined your life! Why would you help him now?"

"Yes, he ruined my life. Yes, he destroyed MY Team Skull. Yes, he made me lose everything. However, there's one thing that makes working with him much more advantageous than against him," the man leaned his face towards the immobilized Trial Captains and grinned maniacally. "He's the side that's winning! If I stay with him, I won't have a chance to get my revenge on him, but I'll have a chance to get my revenge on this whole region and everyone who mocked and despised me!"

Guzma adjusted his posture and reduced his grin to a small, victorious smile.

"I think it's pretty obvious which option is better, right?" he asked mockingly.

The six Trial Captains launched heated glares at the man.

"Now, I have all the time until the ship arrives to enjoy this moment," Guzma laughed lowly, looking mockingly at the Captains immobilized in ridiculous positions. "Weren't expecting to lose that fast, were you?"

"If you really want to know, we weren't expecting to lose so soon," Kiawe said serious. "But only because we haven't lost yet," the boy suddenly smiled confident.

"Uh?" Guzma raised an eyebrow. "What are you…"

Before he could finish his question, many policemen came running from Hau'oli City to the marina and took position in front of him.

"What the…?" Guzma asked confused.

"Remember when I said we wouldn't be stupid enough to suddenly trust you just because you magically decided to help?" Mallow had a wide smile in her face. "We had the suspicion you could betray us and planned ahead of that."

"Huh?" the former Team Skull boss took a step back, slightly surprised.

"The policemen we sent to Routes 2 and 3 were never there," Sophocles explained grinning. "Aside from keeping you close to us all the time, we also asked them to stay hidden in Hau'oli City until the ship arrived or something happened to us."

"And as a bonus," Lana added smiling. "We also called for Gladion and Aether Foundation to come help us."

"Now, you're cornered, Guzma," Kiawe laughed. "The whole police force of Melemele Island is here, Gladion and Aether Foundation will arrive soon and Sun has no opening to attack the president."

"And when they set us free, it'll be only you and Sun against us, Gladion, Aether Foundation, the police and the security of Kifo Inc.," Lana added victorious.

Guzma stared surprised at the Trial Captains for a few seconds, which gave them the sensation of victory, but that lasted for only a few seconds as the man's face suddenly turned into an expression of annoyance, confusing them and the policemen.

"I can't believe it… That crazy brat was right," Guzma grumbled.

"Uh? Right about what?" Ilima asked.

He didn't get his answer as the loud sound of the ship's horn filled the air, revealing it was much closer than anyone noticed.

Without ceremony, the ship docked at the marina, the anchor was launched and the workers from inside the embarkation began to loudly transmit orders to each order.

"The ship is here! Get ready! Sun may be nearby!" Ilima warned the policemen, who quickly ran to the ship's side, with a few of them going to help the Trial Captains get free from the gluey substance.

With a loud sound that startled a few people, a door at the ship's side opened and a metallic ramp descended from it to the marina. Just as the ramp touched the concrete, a group of tall, muscular bodyguards wearing black tuxedos and black glasses left the ship, clearly serving as a living wall to someone who was behind them and remained hidden by their large bodies.

They continued walking towards the policemen and stopped a few meters away from them, the Trial Captains and Guzma.

Ilima and the others had no doubt that who was behind the bodyguards was the president of Kifo Inc.

"Mr. Dan Michio, we're from the police department of Melemele Island!" a policeman loudly announced. "You're in danger! We're here to help protect you!"

Much to the policemen and the Trial Captains surprise, the only response they received was the bodyguards giving them wicked smiles.

"Mr. Dan Michio?" the policeman repeated.

Still smiling, some of the bodyguards stepped aside and revealed who they were guarding.

"I'm so sorry to disappoint you all, but Dan Michio is now story!" Sun, dressed in a very stylish white suit accompanied of black shoes and his trustworthy cane victoriously announced with a wide smile. "From this day on, Kifo Inc. is MINE!"

"SUN?!" the Trial Captains shouted in disbelief.

"The one and only!" the boy proudly said spinning his cane with one hand and approaching the group.

"But…?! How…?! When…?!" Mallow stuttered in shock.

"Details that aren't important now," Sun gently said. "What really matters is that my plan is going exactly like I wanted and my dream of turning this region into a marvelous place for all the Pokémon and children is closer to becoming real!" a tear of happiness escaped the boy's eyes.

"Are you really going to cry because of that?" Guzma facepalmed.

"Oh, don't think I've forgotten you, my good Guzma!" Sun announced approaching the man and giving him a friendly slap on the back that ended being a bit stronger than needed, much to Guzma's irritation. "When this all is over, your name will be forever immortalized in the books of history as one of the people that fought so hard to make Alola a paradise!"

"Yeah, yeah… Whatever…" the man grumbled turning his face away and pocketing his hands.

"What is going on?!" Kiawe inquired jaw dropped.

"Let me throw some light on your confused minds," Sun put both hands on his back and smiled. "I knew you would try to do something to stop me. I knew Ilima wouldn't try to do it alone. I knew even I and Guzma together wouldn't be able to take all… nearly all the Trial Captains, the police department, the workers of Kifo Inc. or whoever else you wanted to call at once. I knew the odds were against me. So, what did I do? I planned ahead of what YOU would do."

"What…?" Mina tilted her head as much as the gluey substance allowed her.

"I told Guzma to look for Ilima and tell him I planned to attack the president in the marina, but asked him to tell you I would do it near Melemele Meadow. You guys wouldn't fully trust in the story, but would still plan something according to it if it ended being the truth. What you didn't know is that both of those things were lies," Sun giggled a bit. "Guzma's role was to mislead you into wasting time planning a way to get around my false plan AND trap you with my patented Spider Web Bomb! The Spider Web was gently provided by Guzma's Ariados, so part of the copyrights belongs to him."

Guzma rolled his eyes.

"What you also didn't know is that I attacked the president when the ship was still at the sea."

"What?!" the Trial Captains gasped.

"Buzzwole took me there and with some effort and… Ah… Well, a relatively unusual plan…"

"And put unusual in that," one of the bodyguards commented.

"I snatched the presidential card from Dan Michio's hands!" Sun proudly took the card from his suit and exhibited to everyone.

"But… That means…" Lana stuttered.

"The presidency of Kifo Inc. belonged to me even before I arrived here!" the boy laughed. "I knew we had no chance to face the security of Kifo Inc., you six and the police department all at once, so I decided to… change some pieces of place," Sun smiled evilly. "Now, it's me, Guzma and the security of Kifo Inc. against you and the police department."

"I think you made a small mistake, brat," Guzma chuckled sardonically.

"Oh, right," the boy giggled. "You can't move right now, so it's me, Guzma and the security of Kifo Inc. against the police department. And it doesn't seem like Gladion or anyone from Aether Foundation is coming, does it?"

The Trial Captains widened their eyes in disbelief. How Sun discovered they called Gladion to help?

"Seems like YOU are the ones cornered now, doesn't it?" the former Team Skull boss laughed mockingly at the Trial Captains.

"And if it doesn't look enough for you…" Sun put two fingers in his mouth and let out a loud whistle.

Mere seconds after he whistled, Nihilego, Kartana, Pheromosa, Buzzwole, Xurkitree and Guzzlord jumped from the ship, fell right in front of the boy and let out many menacing growls and cries at the policemen and Trial Captains.

"My bodyguards also have their own Pokémon, just like all the workers in the ship," Sun pointed to the tall men behind him showing their Poké Balls. "Now, since the odds are clearly at my side, I highly recommend you to be gentle and…"

He grinned sinisterly.

"Open way."

The policemen hesitated.

They knew it was essential to stay firm and protect the island; to be strong and face danger; to fight tirelessly to see justice prevailing over everything…

But, as much as they hated to admit it, they also knew it was a lost cause.

Facing Sun and his Ultra Beasts would be a huge challenge alone, but with Guzma and the whole Kifo Inc. to give him support? It would be impossible. They were twenty-five, but just Sun, Guzma and the bodyguards were already nine and by the sounds coming from the ship there were dozens of workers inside.

Sun and Guzma alone could overpower them. Sun alone maybe had the potential to overpower them. The employees of Kifo Inc. outnumbered them.

Even worse, they didn't even have the Trial Captains to help.

Fighting would be useless.

They unwillingly stepped aside and opened way for Sun.

"No… This can't be happening…" Ilima mumbled, his heart racing and sweat running down his face.

"Good. Very good," Sun nodded and turned to the bodyguards. "You guys made an excellent job. You can go back to the ship to rest."

"Thank you, Mr. President!" all the bodyguards saluted before returning to the ship.

"Hey, manager!" Sun yelled looking at the ship.

"Yes, Mr. President?" a man suddenly appeared on the deck, looking down to the boy.

"Get the material and take to the place I told you! I'll be going ahead!"

"Yes, Mr. President! As you wish!" the manager nodded then turned around. "You heard the man! Ah… the boy! Get the material, you Slowpokes! We have a job to do!"

Many voices shouted a firm 'yes' and the sound of people running on the deck echoed as the manager left.

"With all this said and done," Sun turned to Guzma while putting a hand on his back and smiling at him. "I think we can go."

Guzma pocketed his hands and nodded.

"I'm sorry to leave you all so early, but I have other matters to take care of," the boy said to the Trial Captains stuck in the Spider Web and policemen nearby as he, Guzma and the UBs passed by them. "Villainous plans don't conclude themselves on their own and my schedule is a bit tight today, you know?"

As the ex-Champion, his 'mentor' and the extradimensional Pokémon left the marina with confident, if not a bit cocky steps (those who didn't float, that is), Ilima, his friends and the policemen couldn't do anything, but watch them walking away completely and unfairly unscathed.

They were stuck in place, unable to do anything; the police lacked the power to face both Sun, Guzma and the employees of Kifo Inc. at once; Hala wasn't there; Hau wasn't there; Gladion, Olivia, Nanu, Hapu, none of them were there to help…

How things could have taken such a sudden and deep turn for worse?

Meanwhile…

"What's the situation?" Gladion asked with a severe tone to one of the employees as many screens in the lab showed a warning alert.

"Four of the security system terminals have turned off and are completely inoperant, sir. Security cameras of sectors B and D not working," the employee told while checking the computer in front of him.

"Turned off? How?" the boy inquired.

"We don't know. It may have been a bug or a malfunction in the system."

"If it was just one or two, it could have been a malfunction," Gladion said making his usual 'edgelord' pose. "All those security terminals suddenly turning off looks more like sabotage," he turned to some employees behind him. "Reinforce the security! Nobody enters or leaves Aether Paradise until this situation is solved!"

"Yes, sir!" the employees said and left the room in a hurry to close all exits and spread the order.

"Excellent! Of all times, it had to happen now!" Gladion mentally growled. "When I arrive at Melemele Island, Sun will have escaped already! That was my best chance of catching him in the act and it's going down the drain!"

The more Gladion thought how inconvenient it was for him and irritatingly convenient it was for Sun that the security system of Aether Paradise stopped working properly in that exact moment when he planned to go after the villainous boy, the more it seemed like sabotage to him.

But if that was indeed sabotage, then he had a much bigger problem in his hands than just solving their current situation.

It meant there was someone working for Sun infiltrated in the Aether Foundation.

And while that happened…

"Uh.. Man, is it just me or is Po Town looking a bit emptier than usual?" one of the former Team Skull grunts that still lived in the former headquarters of the disbanded evil organization asked to his colleague.

"Now that you mentioned, there are a few people missing," the other grunt answered looking around.

"Hey, guys!" a female grunt approached them from behind. "Have you seen my homie?"

"Which one of them?" one of the grunts turned to ask the newcomer. "There are lots of homies I haven't seen in a while."

"The that owes me money!" the female grunt said.

"That didn't help reduce the list of possible people you're talking about that much."

Despite the conversation lacking any depth (like it's expected from a Team Skull grunt), the three touched a subject that had been bugging the minds of all the grunts that still lived in Po Town since the morning of that day:

For unknown reasons, there were some people missing and nobody knew where they could be.

In route 1…

"What a beautiful day, don't you think, Guzma?" Sun stretched his arms and let out a satisfied sigh as he walked through route 1, heading to where he asked Buzzwole to leave the construction material taken from the ship he sank the night before.

The man didn't answer; he just continued walking with his hands pocketed and an emotionless expression in his face.

"What's wrong, boss?" the boy asked curious. "Our plan worked perfectly! You should be happy!"

No answer.

"Guzma?"

Even the Ultra Beasts that followed them exchanged confused stares at the man's unexplained silence.

A bit more of awkward quietude until Guzma finally said:

"I can't process it."

"Can't process… what?" Sun raised an eyebrow.

"The Trial Captains were defeated, the police was humiliated, the old man Hala isn't doing anything, the whole Alola is in a state of utter shock… Everything I always wanted to happen," he then looked at Sun. "And it's all because of you."

"Is that a thank you?" Sun asked mischievously.

Guzma used Mean Look!

"Hehehe… You're welcome," the boy giggled and shook a hand dismissively.

Guzma shook his head and rolled his eyes; no matter how much time they spent together, Sun always found a way to annoy, irritate or even surprise him just as much or even more than he already did.

However, there was one thing Guzma admitted the brat was completely right about:

He should be happier.

Truth be said, until they left the marina, he was feeling quite satisfied to see the Trial Captains and the policemen humiliated, but for some reason, as soon as they walked away and it all became just an image in his mind, his satisfaction was gradually replaced by a weird feeling that something seemed off.

Maybe he wasn't used to see the brat acting like a villain yet or it could be how perfectly well things were finally turning to his side so suddenly, but something deep down inside him kept saying something was out of place.

Or maybe it could be just how Guzzlord's eyes were creepily fixated on him.

"Brat, tell that guy back there to stop staring at me like that! It's creeping me out!" the man lowly grumbled to the boy.

"Who? Guzzlord?" Sun asked while looking back. "I think he just took a liking to you."

Guzma spied over his shoulder and saw the Ultra Beast staring at him.

By the way he was staring, it really looked like he took a liking to Guzma.

And would like him even more if he was rolled inside a pancake.

"Stop right there!" a voice suddenly yelled from behind them, making everyone stop and look back.

Much to everyone's surprise, the six Trial Captains stood meters away with challenging expressions and a few blobs of Spider Web covering them.

"Uh? How did you get out?" Sun asked.

"The policemen helped us," Mina told.

"Oh, right… I forgot them. For a moment, I really thought they wouldn't try to do anything anymore," the boy scratched the back of his head.

Noticing the enemies nearby, the six Ultra Beasts immediately took fighting stance and prepared for battle.

"It's alright, dears. Let daddy take care of it for now," Sun calmly instructed his UBs as he walked past them and positioned himself between the six and the Trial Captains with a slightly annoyed expression. "May I help you? Because, if you haven't noticed, I'm a bit busy."

"Sun, what's wrong with you?!" Mallow inquired in a mix of anger and indignancy. "You were the Champion! We all admired you! Everyone in this region admired you! We six, the Kahunas, Professor Kukui, the Elite Four… Absolutely everyone saw you as an example of heroism and you threw everything to the wind like it was nothing!"

"Well, maybe things wouldn't have become what they are now IF my role as the Champion hadn't resulted in EVERYONE USING ME FOR THEIR OWN NEEDS!" the boy vociferated, angrily beating his cane on the ground.

"Using you? What are you talking about?!" Kiawe asked incredulous.

"Oh, so nobody never noticed, huh?" Sun smiled sarcastically. "Well, not a big surprise. After all, if you had noticed, you wouldn't be so shocked by our current situation."

"Sun, Guzma told us you thought your responsibilities as the Champion were abusive, but I sincerely can't see why you would think that," Ilima said taking a step forward. "If that's the reason you changed, then at least let us understand why you thought that! If you think we never noticed what was happening, then show us what we missed! Just please, stop leaving us in the dark without answers to our questions!"

Sun facepalmed and let out a low laugh that sounded extremely eerie.

"You want to know the reason, huh? You want to understand why it happened, huh?! YOU WANT TO SEE WHAT YOU MISSED, DON'T YOU?!" the boy vociferated with a forced smile, scaring the Trial Captains and making them retreat a few steps. "In this case, let me tell you a little story of how some dreams may not be so sweet as they may look."

Sun put a hand on his back, rested the other on the cane, cleared his throat and began narrating a story he had been longing to rub on the face of the Trial Captains for quite a while.

"Once upon a time, there was a boy who suddenly moved from far away to a region full of surprises and great discoveries. He was super excited to make new friends and see new things. Not much after he arrived, he discovered a little thing called the Island Challenge and he was invited to…"

"Brat, can't you just skip to the important part?" Guzma complained.

"Who is telling the story?" Sun grumbled back.

"Who is being forced to listen?!"

"Fine, fine… I'll skip some parts," the boy rolled his eyes. "After lots of marvelous experiences, the boy did something completely unexpected from a random child that suddenly moved to the region: he became the region's first Champion."

Sun turned around and took a few steps away.

"At first, he couldn't be happier. He grew hearing stories about the boy that became the Champion of his home region and, now, he was just like him! Someone people looked up to! Someone people loved! Someone much more important than he ever dreamed of one day becoming!"

The boy's face contorted into an angry frown and he tightened the hold on his cane.

"But that pleasure, that happiness… It was just an illusion. It was just a mere disguise of everything that was about to happen to him. A hoax. A stupid title that was just a fancy way to say he was now the 'butler of Alola'."

"The butler of… what are you talking about?!" Lana asked shocked. "We never…"

"I WASN'T FINISHED," Sun rudely interrupted turning around to give the Trial Captains a menacing glare. "You may think I'm exaggerating, but that's just another evidence of how blind you were to what you did to me. Or would it be a case of you not wanting to see what you were doing to me?"

"Sun, I'm not understanding anything!" Mallow growled. "See what?! What are you talking about?!"

"Maybe I'm talking about all the afternoons I spent picking Pyukumukus in the beaches of Alola to no end," the boy grumbled.

"Is it just because of that?! For real?!" Kiawe inquired indignant. "You did this all because of such a petty…"

"Or maybe I'm talking about the time when I had to clean the whole Pokémon League," Sun continued.

"You didn't do it alone!" Sophocles argued back. "Olivia was there, too! Just like…"

"Or maybe the time when a certain 'someone' asked for my help to look for an item lost in his trial site and left me to be attacked by a bunch of angry Salandits."

Guzma raised an eyebrow and looked at Sun with a slightly surprised face.

"I… I didn't…" Kiawe tried to say something.

"Or maybe that other time when another certain 'someone' asked for my help to control an invasion of Mareanies, which resulted in me having to face dozens of them ALONE and eventually ended in a trip to the Pokémon Center with lots of toxic spikes stuck on my face."

Guzma's jaw dropped slightly.

"Uh… I wasn't… Really…" Lana blushed slightly.

"Or maybe when I had to investigate ghost rumors in the Trainers School and was nearly kidnapped by a bunch of Drifloons who were, I must admit, rightfully angry at all the noise people insisted on making until late hours."

Ilima looked away a bit ashamed.

"Or maybe when an electrical breakdown happened in Malie City and, despite knowing NOTHING about electrical circuits, I was called to help and ended receiving a shock equivalent to what five Electivires would produce using Thunderbolt all at the same time."

Sophocles scratched the back of his head.

"Or maybe when I was looking for lost Stuffuls and was hit by a bus. Or when I was left under a storm because someone needed to guard Po Town. Or when a restless Garchomp was terrorizing Route 13 and ran over me! Or when I took care of a Pokémon Center for a whole night without rest! Or when I was attacked by crazy fans and nobody came to rescue me despite I BEGGING for help! Or when I got stuck in Mount Lanakila because of a snowstorm and nobody came to save me since I was the Champion and didn't need help! Or when I missed MY MOTHER'S BIRTHDAY BECAUSE EVERYONE KEPT THROWING THINGS ON MY BACK AND DIDN'T LET ME GO BACK HOME! OR WHEN I LEFT HAU HANGING AT THE MALASADA SHOP BECAUSE A RANDOM PERSON NEEDED MY HELP AND ABSOLUTELY NOBODY ELSE COULD DO IT FOR WHATEVER THE REASON! OR WHEN I MISSED A CHANCE TO GO TO KANTO AND VISIT MY FATHER BECAUSE I HAD WAY TOO MANY THINGS TO DO!"

Sun furiously beat his cane on the ground many times, clenched his fists until his veins turned white and gritted his teeth.

"DID ANYONE CARE TO ASK ME HOW I WAS FEELING?! IF I HAD OTHER PLANS?! IF I WAS IN PAIN?! HURT?! ALONE?! NEEDING HELP?! TIRED?! SAD?!" a few drops of sweat fell from the boy's forehead as his blood boiled with anger. "NO! NOBODY NEVER ASKED! NOBODY NEVER CARED! I COULDN'T DO ANYTHING, EXCEPT WHAT THE OTHERS WANTED ME TO DO! NOBODY NEVER CARED TO KNOW HOW I WAS FEELING AS LONG AS I WAS DOING WHAT THE CHAMPION SHOULD BE DOING!"

Sun dried the sweat and pointed his cane accusingly at the Trial Captains with bloodshot eyes.

"AND YOU DARE ASK ME WHY I THOUGHT IT WAS ABUSIVE?!"

The Ultra Beasts behind Sun began to growl menacingly, creating a frightening chorus of angry voices.

"Brat…?" Guzma looked incredulous at the boy in front of him.

When Sun told his responsibilities were abusive and that he was tired of being used, he imagined it was just him ranting about petty things like working too much or people being very demanding.

But that? That wasn't petty at all; it was outright hardcore.

So hardcore it made even Guzma think his childhood problems weren't that much of a deal.

"Sun… I… We…" Mallow stuttered, her face a deep red. "We didn't know…"

"OF COURSE YOU DIDN'T! YOU NEVER CARED TO KNOW!" Sun yelled accusingly, beating his cane with so much force it made a small hole where it hit the ground.

"B-but why didn't you tell us any of that?" Mina asked slightly worried.

"Why you ask? Let me think… Oh, yes! I just remembered that I TRIED A LOT OF TIMES, BUT NOBODY PAID ATTENTION!" the villainous boy shouted as his left eye began twitching violently. "And even if someone would listen to me, would you ever think that the 'great Champion of Alola' needed help?!"

The Trial Captains fell in awkward silence.

Having shouted all his anger out and with his adrenaline levels reducing, Sun took a very long and deep breath, tapped his fingers on the cane a few times and proceeded with a much calmer tone.

"Besides, the problem wasn't only the other people. I was being a problem to myself as well."

"A problem… to yourself? What do you mean?" Ilima asked confused.

"I may have tried to tell you how I was feeling, but what good would it do if I still submitted myself to those situations? I lacked the heart to refuse doing those things for other people, so I needed a way to grow a backbone and stand by my own decisions."

Sun smiled evilly.

"That's where the villain thing started. My biggest problem was how I was, and the only way to revert things would be reverting who I used to be. In other words, from hero to zero, then from zero to evil."

"That's absurd!" Kiawe shouted.

"Maybe for you, but for me it was a way to get free," Sun sighed happily.

"Free from what?" Lana asked.

"First, from my stupid and ungrateful position as the Champion. Second, from all the people that thought I was some second category butler. And last, but not least…" a wide and sinister grin appeared in the boy's face. "From the old me."

The last statement made shivers run down everyone's spines. Even Guzma and the UBs felt a bit uncomfortable with the meaning of Sun's unnaturally grim words.

"Unfortunately, there was a small part of the old Sun that insisted to stay, however, thanks to a lot of dedication, persistence, an epiphany, some spaghetti I shouldn't have eaten and Guzma's tutoring…" Sun playfully pointed to the man behind him.

"You have no idea of what I had to stand in these last days…" Guzma rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"I managed to satisfy that small part of the old Sun that survived while also becoming a new, improved Sun!"

"I have reasons to disagree with the 'new and improved' part…" Mallow lowly grumbled.

Ignoring the comment, Sun put both hands on his back and said:

"Since I still love and want to protect this region, I decided to do it for the only who never abused or mistreated me."

"The Pokémon and the children…" Ilima realized.

"Bingo! We have a winner!" Sun said mockingly. "Sure, I could have done it the old-fashioned way of trying to help everyone, but wouldn't it make me go back to square one? So, why waste time trying to do something that may take forever if I could force it to happen quickly? That would be like catching two birds with one Poké Ball! I would create a better Alola for all the Pokémon and children that live here…" the boy laughed somberly. "And get my revenge on EVERYONE ELSE."

The six Trial Captains felt their nerves tensing; if they hadn't heard it themselves, they would never believe Sun said something so evil.

"Well, this conversation was nice and much more entertaining than I expected it would be, but since I already answered all the questions you had, it's time to take my leave," Sun gave them a smile filled with false sympathy, turned around and began to walk away. "I have some very important things to take care of today."

"This isn't over yet," Ilima said serious.

"By Arceus sake, are you guys for real?!" Sun stopped and turned to look at the Trial Captains with an annoyed glare. "I already won! There's nothing you can do anymore! Can't you just leave me alone and go take care of your own lives?!"

"That's exactly what I was asking when you kept pestering me…" Guzma mentally grumbled.

Ilima took a step forward and looked at Sun with a pained expression.

"Sun, what happened to you… what we did… it was horrible and there's no excuse for that. We're sorry for not noticing how you were feeling. We never wanted to hurt you."

"You're our friend! You helped us all every time we needed and the only thing you received in return were those horrible things!" Lana also stepped forward and shouted.

"We never meant any harm to you. You're very special to us," Mina added, a small, sincere smile appearing in her face.

The unexpectedly warm and caring statements of the Trial Captains made Sun's glare turn into a surprised expression.

"But please, stop this madness before it's too late!" Ilima practically pleaded. "You may think you have changed and that the old Sun doesn't exist anymore, but that's not true!"

"What are you talking about?!" Sun retorted angry. "The old me is gone! Disappeared! Used Teleport! Fled! He was put in a box and released!"

"No, he isn't gone," Kiawe joined. "If that was true, then you wouldn't be fighting for a better world for the Pokémon and the children. Villains wouldn't do such good things for other people."

"T-that's a lie!" Sun's voice faltered for a moment. "There was N from Team Plasma! And… also…"

"But N ended not being the bad guy in the end, did he?" Mina asked gently. "A bad guy wouldn't think about the children and the Pokémon, but the good, old Sun we met and love would."

"I… not… I don't…"

Guzma looked at Sun and raised an eyebrow. What was happening to make him become such an emotional mess so suddenly?

"Please, Sun," Ilima extended a hand in the boy's direction. "Don't let the rancor and pain blind you."

"I… I…" Sun stuttered, his forehead drenched in sweat.

"Please… Come with us…"

"I… I…"

Sun used Outrage!

"NO! I WON'T GO WITH YOU!" the young villain suddenly shouted furiously. "YOU'RE TRYING TO MAKE THE OLD ME RETURN, BUT THAT WILL NEVER HAPPEN! HE'S GONE AND THERE'S NOTHING YOU CAN DO! NOTHING!" Sun began laughing maniacally. "WHAT ARE YOU GONNA DO NOW, HUH?! WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO SAY ABOUT THIS, HUH?!"

Ilima let his hand fall, a somber and pained expression on his face.

"That you left us no other choice."

Immediately, the six Trial Captains reached for their Poké Balls and threw them up. The Poké Balls opened one by one and in an instant, Gumshoos, Araquanid, Marowak, Tsareena, Vikavolt and Ribombee appeared in front of them.

"If you won't stop this, then we'll have to stop you, even if we must use force," Kiawe dryly said, a bit of disappointment and reluctance noticeable in his voice. "We can't let you continue this madness, even if it means having to fight you."

Sun frowned irritated and his Ultra Beasts began growling menacingly behind him.

"What do YOU have to say about this?" Mallow asked, slightly hurt by the situation they were forced into.

Sun gave them a very forced smile that lasted for only a few seconds before quickly becoming a glare and shouted with all the force of his lungs:

"Go **** yourselves, you bunch of *******, ************* Trial Captains!"

Not too far away…

"Huh, how weird…" Sun's mother suddenly stopped trying to fix the door hinge and looked away. "I had the faint feeling that something bad I did in the past has just returned to haunt me, but I can't put my finger on exactly what…"

For those who don't know, Sun's mother was talking about the time she got irritated at a malfunctioning microwave and accidentally taught very low vocabulary to a three years old Sun.

Back to the others…

General shock.

Nobody could believe those words were said by that person.

Even the Trial Captains' Pokémon, Guzma and the Ultra Beasts were left speechless.

"Brat?!" Guzma asked jaw dropped.

"I apologize. It's a bad family habit," Sun cleared his throat and scratched the back of his head using the cane. "What was I going to do again? Oh, yes... Nihilego! Pheromosa! Buzzwole! Kartana! Xurkitree! Guzzlord! Offensive formation!"

Noticing their trainer's order, the six extradimensional Pokémon took fighting stance, with Guzzlord, Pheromosa, Buzzwole and Xurkitree jumping above the boy and falling in front of him, while Nihilego and Kartana floated to the others' sides, all of them growling, wiggling and moving threateningly.

"Do you want a fight?! Then a fight you'll have!" Sun shouted, the nerves in his forehead bulging violently. "Get ready to face the new and improved Sun!"

The Ultra Beasts let out lots of angry growls and screeches, making the Trial Captains and their Pokémon flinch for a moment.

With a maniacal smile appearing on his face, Sun pointed the cane at his opponents and shouted a loud:

"HAVE AT YOU!"

First Exam: The Trial Captains

"Nihilego, use Sludge Bomb!" Sun commanded.

Losing no time, Nihilego began shooting many large blobs of a purplish liquid of strong smell at her opponents.

Despite the Ultra Beast's speed, the direction she was shooting the attacks was very predictable and seemed even a bit random as the purplish blobs were hitting all the area around the Trial Captains' Pokémon, which made easy to avoid the attack.

"Let's not lose time now!" Sophocles affirmed. "Vikavolt, use…"

"Guzzlord, Flamethrower on the Sludge Bomb!" Sun suddenly ordered.

"What?" Ilima asked taken aback.

Before anyone could react, Guzzlord launched a huge stream of fire from his mouth at the purple liquid left on the ground, burning it and creating a toxic mist that covered the whole area where the Trial Captains' Pokémon were.

"What the…! I can't see anything!" Kiawe said exasperated, as he tried to see Marowak and the others amidst the purple smoke.

Vikavolt and Ribombee, being able to fly, managed to escape from the toxic mist, but the others found themselves stuck in the middle of a poisonous gas that not only was damaging them, but also hindering their sight.

"Vikavolt, use Air Slash to clear the area!" Sophocles said.

The electric bug's wings glowed with a blue light as he prepared to use the move to remove the purple mist, but before he could do it…

"Pheromosa, Ice Beam!"

A light-blue ray of energy hit him, putting him inside an ice ball and making him fall straight to the ground.

"No!" Sophocles shouted.

"Kartana, Smart Strike!" Sun quickly ordered.

In the glimpse of an eye, Kartana appeared from nowhere and hit Ribombee making a keen, happy sound, violently launching the little Pokémon against a tree.

"Ribombee!" Mina shouted worried.

Although Vikavolt's and Ribombee's situations weren't very good, at least the toxic mist dissipated and the others could see again.

Unfortunately, all of them were clearly poisoned.

"Darn it…" Kiawe cursed gritting his teeth. "Marowak, use Fire Blitz on Kartana!"

Fighting the poison, Marowak charged himself with fire and jumped at the UB, but the small creature was very fast and dodged the attack without much effort.

"Tsareena, use Zen Headbutt on Nihilego!" Mallow ordered.

"Araquanid, help Tsareena with Liquidation!" Lana said in sequence.

An aura of psychic energy appeared around Tsareena as she went head first in the direction of the Parasite Pokémon while Araquanid covered himself with water and launched himself at the UB.

"Buzzwole, Stone Edge in front of Nihilego!"

Making a pose, Buzzwole summoned many rocks that floated in front of Nihilego, turned their sharp tips at the two incoming Pokémon and were launched in their direction as Buzzwole made another pose.

Noticing the rocks approaching, Tsareena had time to stop her attack and used Power Whip to create many vines in front of her to block the Stone Edge. Araquanid, however, didn't have the same time to react and ended running into Buzzwole's attack, stopping him in his tracks and greatly injuring him.

"Oh, no!" Lana yelled worried.

"And that's just the beginning!" Sun announced with a wicked smile and pointing at the vines created by Tsareena's Power Whip. "Guzzlord, Flamethrower!"

"Tsareena, get out of there!" Mallow warned.

Guzzlord opened his huge mouth and launched a stream of fire from the depth of his throat at the vines. Tsareena, having heard her trainer's warning, jumped away just a few seconds before the Flamethrower hit her protection and reduced it to ashes.

While that happened, Ribombee managed to recover and Vikavolt escaped from his icy prison.

"Now, Vikavolt, use Thunderbolt at Buzzwole!" Sophocles instructed, trying to act before Sun had any chance of stopping him again.

Determined to compensate for the time he remained unable to do anything, Vikavolt launched a powerful bolt of electricity at the muscular UB, but Xurkitree jumped in front of his teammate and took the attack for him.

Having suffered little damage from the electric attack thanks to his natural ability to absorb electricity, Xurkitree put both arms above his head and began wiggling his whole body while making keen screeches, Buzzwole right behind him making some poses.

Unable to understand what their strange behavior meant, Sophocles and Vikavolt just stared a bit confused at the scene, not realizing the two Ultra Beasts were making fun of them.

"Ribombee, use Dazzling Gleam at Guzzlord!"

Ribombee charged a sparkling, bright light and launched it at the huge Ultra Beast. Noticing the attack was too fast for him to avoid, Guzzlord closed his eyes and tried to prepare for the hit the best he could.

"Nihilego, protect Guzzlord!" Sun quickly ordered.

Obeying her trainer, Nihilego launched herself in front of her teammate, taking the attack for him. As the ball of light hit her, an explosion happened and scattered dust everywhere. When the dust settled, Nihilego screeched challenging, practically unharmed by the attack.

Thanks to her typing and Special Defense, Nihilego managed to take the Dazzling Gleam with relative ease, receiving very little damage. Guzzlord, on other hand, wouldn't have taken it so well and let out a very relieved sigh to know he was safe.

It was a bit embarrassing to admit, but Fairies and their STAB attacks really scared him.

"Kartana, Smart Strike!" Sun pointed at Ribombee.

Noticing Mina's Pokémon would be attacked again, Ilima quickly ordered Gumshoos to use Hyper Fang.

Despite Kartana's clearly higher speed, Gumshoos managed to protect Ribombee from the attack and bit the Ultra Beast with his sharp teeth seconds before he managed to land the Smart Strike.

Caught off guard by the attack, Kartana flinched and wiggled to get free from the Pokémon's fangs, quickly retreating some meters away from him. Thankfully, his Steel typing greatly reduced the damage he took from the attack.

"Araquanid, use Frost Breath!" Lana shouted.

"Marowak, use Flare Blitz on Kartana!" Kiawe ordered.

"Gumshoos, use Crunch!" Ilima said in sequence.

The three Pokémon prepared their moves and attacked at once. Araquanid's Frost Breath managed to hit Nihilego, Kartana, Guzzlord, Buzzwole and Xurkitree, not hitting Pheromosa only because she was farther and managed to jump out of the attack's range. Thanks to the Speed drop caused by Frost Breath, Kartana couldn't avoid the Flare Blitz and, instead, had to use Sacred Sword to defend himself, hitting the incoming Marowak and causing an explosion.

Gumshoos came right after Marowak, his jaw open and his fangs glowing threateningly as he approached Nihilego. Noticing the danger, the Ultra Beast launched a Sludge Bomb at Gumshoos, which reduced his speed and injured him a bit, but wasn't enough to fully stop him from landing the attack.

Nihilego retreated with an irritated growl of pain. It didn't hurt as much as it would if Gumshoos hit her at full speed, but it still caused her some damage and she hated 'ouchies'.

After the attacks, action came to a pause and the Trial Captains' Pokémon found themselves side by side once again, with Sun's Ultra Beasts growling and screeching right in front of them.

"Impressive, I must admit," Sun commented rubbing his chin. "That was very good. I can see why you became Trial Captains."

"And I can see why you became the Champion," Ilima said back, a serious expression on his face.

"Sun, you better stop now!" Kiawe shouted. "You just saw how this battle is going! No matter how good you may be, both sides are tied, but we're in six and you're just one!"

"The numbers are on our side," Mallow added. "Managing six Pokémon at once is much harder than just one. You and your team will eventually run out of energy and lose!"

"Although you aren't completely wrong, I think you may have gotten a bit too cocky," Sun giggled mischievously.

"Uh? What do you mean?" Sophocles inquired.

"It seems like you have forgotten a little detail, haven't you?" the villainous boy asked mockingly.

Ilima was about to ask what Sun was talking about when Gumshoos, Marowak, Tsareena and Araquanid fell to their knees, panting and letting out low, pained growls.

"Guys, what happened?!" Lana asked worried. "Are you okay?!"

"They're okay. They surely are…" Sun said with a calm and sinister smile before letting out a mischievous giggle. "They're just poisoned."

The Trial Captains widened their eyes in shock.

The battle was such a huge mess they ended forgetting about the poison.

"Which means Vikavolt and Ribombee are the only ones left, so…" Sun's smile turned creepily evil. "Xurkitree, use Power Whip!"

"Power Whip?!" Mallow gasped as her jaw dropped, unable to believe that weird thing that looked like a mess of cables could use a Grass-type move.

On second thought, it kind of made some sense…

In any case, Xurkitree screeched loudly and pinched his arms in the ground, summoning large vines in front of him that launched in the Trial Captains' Pokémon's direction.

"Watch out!" Ilima uselessly warned.

Worn out by the battle, the damage taken and the poison, Gumshoos, Tsareena, Araquanid and Marowak lacked the energy to avoid the attack and were wrapped in the large vines summoned by the Glowing Pokémon.

Being the only who still had some energy left, Vikavolt and Ribombee managed to fly away from the attack moments before the vines could catch them.

"You aren't going anywhere!" Sun laughed and pointed at the two Pokémon. "Buzzwole, Stone Edge! Guzzlord, Sludge Wave! Nihilego, Thunderbolt! Pheromosa, Ice Beam!"

In a matter of seconds, rocks, electricity, a light-blue ray and a stream of purple sludge were launched at Vikavolt and Ribombee's direction. The two tried to avoid the attacks as much as they could, but the number of things flying into them was so much they were eventually hit and thrown to the ground, close to the other Pokémon trapped in the Power Whip.

"Oh, no!" Sophocles shouted worried.

"We need to do something!" Ilima muttered nervously. "Gumshoos, use Hyper Fang to cut the vines!"

Using the energy he had left, Gumshoos bit the vines around him and got free, but before he could do the same for the others…

"Guzzlord, use Flamethrower!"

The enormous Ultra Beast opened his mouth and launched a powerful stream of fire at his opponents.

The Flamethrower would have been very damaging just by itself, but the vines created by Xurkitree's Power Whip surrounding Gumshoos and all the other Pokémon burned like wood thrown in a fireplace, creating a huge ball of fire that engulfed all the Trial Captains' Pokémon and greatly damaged them.

"Oh, no!" Ilima shouted, horrified at the scene in front of him.

When the fire subsided, the Trial Captains saw their Pokémon lying on the ground, surrounded by small mounds of ash and gasped worried.

Using the few energy they had left, Gumshoos, Marowak and Araquanid tried their best to get up, panting and shaking their legs. The other three, unfortunately, couldn't join them in that last effort to stop the villainous ex-Champion.

Tsareena, Vikavolt and Ribombee were knocked out, lying completely unconscious and with swirls in their eyes.

Noticing their Pokémon unable to continue, Mallow, Sophocles and Mina called them back.

"You're much more persistent and resistant than I expected," Sun mockingly clapped. "But let's see if you have enough persistence left for this!"

Sun pointed at the three remaining Pokémon and shouted:

"Guzzlord, use Heavy Slam!"

The giant Ultra Beast let out a ferocious roar and jumped high in the air, his enormous bulk creating a menacing shadow that covered Gumshoos, Marowak and Araquanid.

"No, get out of there!" Lana shouted worried.

The three Pokémon tried to move away, but their bodies didn't obey any command.

They were exhausted; just trying to get up drained the few energies they had left and now they lacked the strength to do anything else. Not even dodging the upcoming mass of extradimensional fat was possible anymore.

With a loud thud, Guzzlord's massive body landed sitting on his targets at full speed, creating a big cloud of dust that blocked everyone's view.

As the dust subsided, Guzzlord calmly got up, took a few steps back and revealed the terrifying scene of Gumshoos, Marowak and Araquanid lying on the ground, completely knocked out.

Not even the resistance to Heavy Slam was enough to save Marowak and Araquanid, the fatigue from the battle combined with the damage caused by the poison and all the attacks they had to stood proving to be too much to handle.

"Oh, no…" Lana lowly muttered in a state of shock, staring horrified at the Pokémon knocked out.

"And that's…" Sun put a hand on his back and smiled maliciously. "How it's done."

All the six Ultra Beasts let out sinister and mocking laughs or growls of celebration.

Feeling cold sweat running down their foreheads, Kiawe, Ilima and Lana called their Pokémon back and pocketed their Poké Balls.

Sun began to spin his cane casually and said with a cocky tone:

"I know you have more Pokémon with you and I know you can still battle, but the real question here is…" he pointed his cane at the Trial Captains. "Do you still want to battle?"

The six Captains contorted their faces into afflicted expressions of reluctance.

Yes, they wanted to battle.

Yes, they wanted to keep trying.

Yes, they wanted to stop Sun at all costs.

But they knew it was impossible at that point.

Sun turning into a villain, Guzma's betrayal, Sun pulling their legs, being almost totally incapacitated by an admittedly cheap trap, the unexpected and shocking motivation for Sun's change of heart, the stressful and tiring battle… Everything was happening too fast and too suddenly for the poor Trial Captains to process.

They were mentally and emotionally exhausted, their moral crumbled to pieces…

Even if they tried to keep fighting, they lacked the energy and the strength to continue.

Their other Pokémon could be at top shape, but if they couldn't give them firm, efficient commands and keep up with the flow of battle, the result would be the same as that last confront with the villainous former Champion.

Maybe even worse.

So, without other option, Ilima, Kiawe, Lana, Mallow, Mina and Sophocles looked down with sad expressions, painfully admitting defeat.

"Exactly what I thought," Sun maliciously said before letting out a maniacal cackle.

With the battle over, the Ultra Beasts began to celebrate victory on their own ways.

Buzzwole made many poses and let out loud growls; Xurkitree wiggled his arms around like he was dancing; Nihilego floated in circles making keen, happy sounds; Pheromosa put a hand on her hips and scoffed at her opponents and Guzzlord smiled widely, stomping his feet on the ground. The only that seemed somewhat disappointed was Kartana, who was kind of hoping the Trial Captains would persist a bit longer, but still happy for his trainer's victory.

The Trial Captains, on other hand, couldn't be feeling worse. It was like a sharp, heated knife hit them in the heart and went out the other side.

The feeling became much harder to stand as they slowly realized a harsh, undigestible fact:

That was Sun's first victory since converting to evil.

In other words, his very first step into becoming a real villain.

Exam successfully concluded

Beginner Level completed

Authorized to proceed to Intermediate Level

Sun is now ranked Troublemaker

"Uh… Mr. President…" a slightly uneasy voice called from behind the Trial Captains, prompting them to look back and Sun to look over their shoulders.

"Manager?" the boy asked looking a bit surprised at the manager and noticing many employees seemingly scared behind him holding the construction material taken from the ship. "When did you get here?"

"A few minutes ago," the man said scratching the back of his head. "I thought about warning you, but you seemed to be concentrated on the battle and I decided not to disturb."

"Ah, very mindful of you! I appreciate that!" Sun complimented giving him a thumb up. "Well, since the battle is over and you're already here, why don't we go all together?"

"Yes, Mr. President!" the manager said with a firm voice then turned to the employees behind him. "Your heard the order! Follow the man! Ah… the boy!"

As the employees nodded, Sun turned around and began to walk away, closely followed by his Ultra Beasts and with the workers of Kifo Inc. some meters behind them. Noticing his 'student' leaving, Guzma decided to go after him, but not without giving the Trial Captains a last mocking grin before leaving.

When the manager passed close to the six Trial Captains, Kiawe held the man's shoulder, prompting him to turn around, and asked:

"Why are you obeying him? He's much younger than any of you! Is it just because of that presidential card thing?"

"Although the way how this stupid company works says it would be enough, that isn't the only reason we decided to work for him," the manager calmly said while taking a step away to get free from Kiawe's hold.

"Then why are you doing that?! Don't you see what he just did?!" the boy asked confused.

"First, I saw what he just did and that's one of the reasons we don't question anything. We're the equivalents of a villainous team grunts. We stand little to no chance against him!" the manager affirmed. "Second, even if that wasn't a thing, why would we rebel against the best president we had in years?"

"Huh?" Ilima raised an eyebrow.

"That boy has been three thousand times better to us than any of the presidents we had in six years. Six freaking years! And we had nine presidents during that time!"

Nine presidents in six years? In other words, nine presidents that probably usurped the post of each other in only six years?

That company had problems.

Serious problems.

"I don't know about you, but I wouldn't betray someone who has been that good to me," the manager said adjusting his clothes and huffing. "Now, if you excuse me, I have a job to do."

And with those last words, he turned around and left.

Ilima, Kiawe, Lana, Mallow, Mina and Sophocles accompanied the man with their eyes until he disappeared in the distance, their minds trying to process what they heard and what was happening.

Emphasis on 'trying', because the more they thought about it, the less sense it made.

Sun became a villain to create a better Alola; he was determined to crush anyone who opposed him to protect the Pokémon and the children; stole and sank a ship to make a coral for the Pokémon; usurped the company's presidency without mercy and was the best president they ever had…

Too many conflicting points.

Too many contradictions.

Did Sun notice how confusing his own ideas and actions seemed?

Having noticed or not, that wasn't important in that moment. Sun was diving deeper and deeper inside a dark, treacherous abyss. If he went too deep inside, he could never come back to the light.

They had to do something and they had to do it quickly, but what? And how?

Until they discovered, Sun was free to continue with his plan completely unworried, enjoying all the power the presidency of Kifo Inc. gave him.

What was his plan?

"Just wait a bit longer…"

"HOW MUCH MORE ARE YOU PLANNING TO KEEP DOING THAT?! IT'S RUBBISH!" Guzma yelled irritated at the boy's face.

"Sheesh… Why are you so desperate to know? If I tell you now, it'll ruin the surprise!" Sun argued back.

"Do you really think I care about surprises?! Just tell me already!" the man growled.

"A villainous plan is always better when revealed at the climax or close to the end of the story!"

"Who said that?!"

"I said!"

"And is that a valid argument?!"

"After everything I did, I think it is!"

"So, in that case, you don't need my tutoring anymore, correct?" Guzma smiled sarcastically.

"I didn't say that."

"THEN TELL ME WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU PLANNING TO DO!"

"WHICH PART OF 'IT'S BETTER REVEALED AT THE CLIMAX OR CLOSE TO THE END OF THE STORY' YOU DIDN'T GET?!"

"AND WHICH PART OF 'IT'S RUBBISH' YOU DIDN'T GET?!"

Like two grumpy old men, Guzma and Sun began arguing again. It was in moments like that the former Team Skull boss wondered how the brat could go from 'quite acceptable' to 'deceptively annoying' and vice-versa so quickly.

Well, at least it had been much easier and even a bit enjoyable to be with him than the first time the villain lessons started.

And that was a good thing, as they were far from over.

To be continued in the next class…

Author note: Although he's one of my favorites (which means something, since I love all of them without exception), I know Guzzlord is far from being one of the most powerful Ultra Beasts like I made in this story. Truth be said, even in comparison to other regular Pokémon, he's somewhat lacking in a few departments.

…

Okay, I'll admit: thanks to its typing and clearly messed stats distribution, Guzzlord is very mediocre from a competitive view and is hard to use even in the regular game. I would even dare to say he's 'somewhat usable' at best.

Still love him :D

And an important thing to all kids: never, EVER use Power Whip with Xurkitree. I did it in the story, but I'm a horrible example to be followed, so don't do that!

It may be a very powerful Grass-type move and gives some coverage for Ground-type Pokémon in theory, but… It's a physical attack. With 85 accuracy. And Xurkitree only has 89 Attack.

Really, just… don't do it. You have better options for that moveslot.

Thank you all for keeping up with the story and I hope this chapter was just as enjoyable to read as it was to write.

Class dismi…

Oh, yes… I nearly forgot…

In case someone noticed, yes, the graffiti lesson is missing, but that was done on purpose. I just can't tell you why yet.

And with this said, now class is dismissed!