Ye Lan was so astonished because he had actually glimpsed Shadow Team's black flame insignia on the second group's black robes.
That raised a question: even if he could just about accept that Shadow Team was protecting him, who was trying to attack him?
Lin Yan had told him that, in the short term, no one else from Team Rocket would come looking for him apart from the trio of Jessie, James, and Meowth.
With those two ruled out, Ye Lan truly couldn't think of anyone else he had offended. Team Plasma? Even Ghetsis didn't know he existed, let alone take action against him. N knew of his existence but didn't know his actual identity, only his code name, M.
That left only Team Aqua, another criminal organization Ye Lan had tangled with. But that would be underestimating Steven and the Hoenn League.
During the operation involving the Giant Venusaur Forest, Team Aqua and Team Magma had clearly upset the longstanding balance and successfully enraged the Hoenn League. Moreover, this time they were like whales breaking the surface to breathe. Had they remained hidden beneath the sea, the Hoenn League would have had few effective ways to deal with them, but now there were trails to follow.
Lately, Team Aqua and Team Magma had been hounded all over the Hoenn Region by investigators like rats scurrying through the streets. Many of their bases had been destroyed, and with their losses mounting, they had no energy to spare on tracking him down.
"An unknown new faction? This is trouble..."
The completely unexpected turn of events made Ye Lan frown deeply. That vague sense of familiarity, in particular, left him uneasy.
At some point, Ye Lan had begun to feel as though he had been dragged into something far bigger than he