Recaps

Giovanni, a penniless orphan and transmigrator, risked entering Viridian Forest to find food but was nearly killed by a Rattata. After eating the Red Apple he had found, he recovered enough strength to turn and fight the Pokémon, leaving their confrontation about to begin.

• Giovanni fled through Viridian Forest with a Red Apple while a Rattata pursued him.
• The Rattata’s Tackle badly injured Giovanni, and he realized he might not escape before it caught him.
• Giovanni ate the Red Apple, which restored his strength and began healing his injuries.
• Giovanni stopped, grabbed a withered branch, and faced the Rattata as it prepared to attack.
• Giovanni charged at the Rattata, determined to fight for his life.

Giovanni killed Rattata but collapsed from his wounds, only to be healed by a mysterious green light and found by Team Rocket. Team Rocket leader Giovanni Rika claimed him as her son and ordered her subordinates to take him away, while hinting at an extreme plan involving a thousand rescued children.

• Giovanni used a sharpened branch to stab Rattata in the neck, then kept attacking until it died.
• Giovanni collapsed from exhaustion and blood loss, but green light from Viridian Forest healed his wounds and left him ravenously hungry.
• Miyamoto and her Houndoom found Giovanni, and she assured him that Team Rocket would give him food.
• Giovanni Rika arrived, saw that Giovanni had killed Rattata, and asked him to become her son; he passed out before answering.
• Giovanni Rika ordered her subordinates to carry Giovanni away and told Miyamoto that the thousand rescued children would have an opportunity to rise through Team Rocket.

Giovanni woke in Team Rocket’s infirmary after being rescued and learned that his body had changed. Miyamoto took him to meet the woman she called his mother and his new brothers and sisters.

• Giovanni woke in the Viridian City base and discovered that his body had recovered and grown stronger.
• Doctor Liangmu tried to recruit Giovanni as a research subject, but Miyamoto stopped him, saying Giovanni was needed for the boss’s plan.
• Giovanni recognized Miyamoto as his rescuer and realized she had claimed him as her son.
• Giovanni changed into a Team Rocket uniform and followed Miyamoto through the base.
• Miyamoto told Giovanni that the boss was his mother and led him through a large door to meet his brothers and sisters.

Giovanni entered a hall filled with young candidates and learned from Giovanni Rika that they would compete to become Team Rocket’s next boss. As the first selection began with Pokémon Eggs, Giovanni avoided the coveted starter Eggs and considered safer options for himself.

• Miyamoto advised Giovanni to stand at the front or back, and he took a place at the rear of the crowded hall.
• Giovanni Rika welcomed the candidates to Team Rocket and announced that one of them would become its next boss.
• Giovanni Rika declared the candidates competitors and revealed five hundred Pokémon Eggs, warning that anyone who failed to hatch an Egg within fourteen days would be disqualified.
• Giovanni studied the Eggs and weighed Bug-type and Ground-type Pokémon, while deciding against choosing a Beedrill because of its later temperament.

During the chaotic scramble for Pokémon Eggs, Giovanni ignored his plan to choose a Ground-type Egg and followed a powerful premonition to a Bug-type Egg that seemed perfectly matched to him. When Nohara demanded the Egg, Giovanni refused and faced him down.

• Giovanni Rika and Miyamoto started the one-hour scramble, and the youths rushed the Pokémon Eggs in a deadly crush.
• Giovanni noticed a premonition drawing him toward the Bug-type Eggs and chose to trust it over his original plan.
• Giovanni searched the Bug-type Eggs by touch until he found one that felt like a perfect match, and the Egg rocked in response to his promise to raise it.
• Nohara confronted Giovanni and demanded the Egg, but Giovanni told him to get lost.
• Nohara, humiliated and angry, threatened Giovanni with death.

Giovanni killed Nohara in a brutal fight to keep the Pokémon Egg and intimidate the other boys. As the selection ended, he discovered his healing power could connect with the Egg and realized he was the Giovanni he had feared competing against.

• Giovanni dodged Nohara's charge, struck him, and kicked him in the groin before Nohara overpowered him and pinned him down.
• Giovanni waited until Nohara weakened, then smashed his nose and beat him to death with an Incubator as the other boys watched.
• Giovanni sat on Nohara's corpse and held onto his Egg, frightening the others into leaving him alone despite his exhaustion and horror at killing for the first time.
• The first selection ended with hundreds dead or injured and nearly all the Pokémon Eggs claimed, while Giovanni's wounds began healing through a strange green energy.
• Giovanni realized the energy could help the Egg absorb nutrients and suspected it was the Viridian Force; after examining his reflection, he recognized that he was Giovanni all along.

Giovanni refused Mu Sen’s attempt to recruit him, and Mu Sen’s group attacked him to take his Pokémon Egg. The Egg hatched into a Weedle, which poisoned the attackers and freed Giovanni.

• Mu Sen approached Giovanni and offered him a place in his group, but Giovanni refused.
• Mu Sen demanded that Giovanni trade his Egg for a Ground-type Egg, then ordered his boys to attack when Giovanni tried to stall.
• Giovanni fought back and wounded one boy, but Mu Sen’s group overwhelmed him and pinned him down.
• Mu Sen took Giovanni’s Incubator and threatened to kill him with it, but the Pokémon Egg cracked and hatched into a Weedle.
• Weedle knocked Mu Sen down and poisoned the surrounding boys with Poison Sting, allowing Giovanni to break free.

Giovanni and Weedle survived the selection fight, and Giovanni captured Weedle as his partner. After the first round ended, Miyamoto announced that everyone who had failed to obtain a Pokémon Egg would be killed, and Team Rocket’s Pokémon began slaughtering them.

• Miyamoto and Giovanni Rika discussed Weedle’s early hatching and Giovanni’s apparent potential.
• Team Rocket members stopped the fighting and treated the wounded who had obtained Pokémon Eggs, while Giovanni’s Weedle-poisoned opponents survived except for the first two it had stung.
• Giovanni apologized to Weedle for its damaged potential and promised to restore and strengthen it with the Viridian Force.
• Giovanni accepted a Poké Ball and captured Weedle as his lifelong partner.
• Miyamoto declared the boys who had failed to obtain Pokémon Eggs disqualified and sentenced them to death.
• Team Rocket’s members ordered their Pokémon to attack the disqualified boys, killing them as they screamed and begged for another chance.

Giovanni Rika’s selection left five hundred youths dead, and she warned the survivors that their Pokémon Eggs had to hatch within fourteen days. When Mu Sen tried to get Giovanni disqualified because his Weedle had already hatched, Giovanni Rika defended him and silenced the protestors, while Giovanni marked his enemies and taunted Mu Sen.

• Giovanni Rika ordered her golden Alakazam to kill youths who had lost their minds, then had Team Rocket members clean up the bloodshed.
• Miyamoto announced that the survivors had passed the first stage and would have fourteen days for the second stage, during which they could not kill one another.
• Miyamoto warned that anyone whose Pokémon Egg had not hatched after fourteen days would be killed.
• Mu Sen prompted a subordinate and other youths to protest that Giovanni should be disqualified because his Weedle had already hatched.
• Giovanni Rika declared that luck was part of strength and threatened the protestors, while Giovanni silently noted his enemies and raised a finger at Mu Sen.

Giovanni completed Team Rocket’s identity check and officially joined as a member pending the end of the selection. After Axin led him to collect Pokémon Food, Hera recognized him as the boy chosen by the Boss and Miyamoto and asked whether he intended to become Team Rocket’s young master.

• A Team Rocket member verified Giovanni’s identity and registered him after confirming his photograph matched the orphanage records.
• Giovanni received ID number 9527 and learned that a suspicious applicant had been carried away after the check.
• Axin explained that Giovanni could collect Pokémon Food early because he had hatched his Pokémon Egg and passed the second selection stage.
• Axin led Giovanni to Hera, who distributed Pokémon Food and recognized him from Viridian Forest.
• Hera asked Giovanni if he might become Team Rocket’s young master, and he said he would give the selection his all.

Giovanni collected his monthly resources from Hera, who advised him on how to feed his Weedle and supplied him with a dagger for self-defense. As he left with Axin, Hera hoped he would return to her for future supplies.

• Hera said Giovanni might become Team Rocket's young master, while Axin considered waiting to see more before pledging his allegiance.
• Giovanni handed Hera his ID card, and she checked his information and arranged a month's supply of resources.
• After learning Giovanni owned a Weedle, Hera suggested exchanging his two Berries for Berry tree leaves so he could provide Bug-type and Poison-type food separately.
• Giovanni accepted Hera's advice and asked whether the exchange would cause her trouble; Hera reassured him and brought out his supplies.
• Giovanni said he trusted Weedle and did not need taming tools, so Hera gave him a dagger for self-defense instead.
• Giovanni and Axin left, and Giovanni promised Hera he would return to collect resources from her.

Giovanni settled into his Team Rocket room with his newly hatched Weedle, then discovered that his Viridian Force could heal and strengthen it. He prepared to use the next fourteen days to grow stronger before facing Mu Sen's Gang and the third stage of selection.

• Axin showed Giovanni to his furnished room and explained that he could find him in room 6001 if he needed help.
• Giovanni released Weedle, fed it, and washed away the blood and grime from his ordeal.
• Giovanni resolved to prepare for Mu Sen's Gang and the third selection stage during the fourteen-day ban on attacks.
• Giovanni used his Viridian Force to heal and strengthen Weedle, then realized the power could help his Pokémon reach extraordinary strength.
• Giovanni considered seeking psychic training methods in Saffron City once he was strong enough.

Giovanni began training Weedle, building their stamina and practicing Poison Sting while using Viridian Power to help Weedle recover. They ended the session with Weedle rapidly firing poison needles at a chair to improve his accuracy and speed.

• Giovanni woke from nightmares about killing people and received food for himself and Weedle from a Team Rocket member.
• Giovanni fed Weedle, checked his improving condition, and cleared space in the room for training.
• Giovanni and Weedle trained their stamina, with Giovanni tiring far sooner than Weedle.
• Giovanni used Viridian Power to restore Weedle after exercise, then both ate and rested.
• Giovanni had Weedle practice firing Poison Sting quickly and accurately at a chair.

Giovanni trained Weedle in Poison Sting and String Shot, identifying weaknesses in its accuracy, stamina, and silk toughness while encouraging it to keep improving. After ten days of training, he learned that Mu Sen’s talented Charmander had hatched, making Mu Sen an even greater threat ahead of the second-stage selection.

• Giovanni tested Weedle’s Poison Sting and String Shot, found that its attacks weakened with use and its silk snapped easily, and adjusted its training plan.
• Giovanni reassured and praised Weedle, then began a routine of physical conditioning and focused move practice with it.
• Over ten days, new Pokémon hatched and youths faced the second-stage assessment, while some trainees struggled with delayed hatching and others were attacked by their Pokémon.
• Giovanni learned that Mu Sen’s Pokémon Egg had hatched into a talented Charmander that could challenge the three Pokémon under Mu Sen’s command.

Giovanni and Weedle left their trashed room to train at Team Rocket’s dedicated grounds, where they began running laps. The chapter ended with Mu Sen arriving with his Charmander as Giovanni trained nearby.

• Over ten days, Giovanni regained a normal build while Weedle grew to level 4 and recovered its aptitude to green.
• After learning that Miyamoto had prepared training grounds for the candidates, Giovanni thanked the delivery man and headed there with Weedle.
• Giovanni found the other candidates training and began running laps with Weedle in the spacious grounds.
• Mu Sen entered with a group of boys, displaying his Charmander as he arrived.

Mu Sen and his gang confronted Giovanni, who had Weedle poison their Pokémon and followers before they could attack. Team Rocket stopped the brawl and treated the poisoned group, while Giovanni lay bruised on the ground, making it unclear who had started the fight.

• Mu Sen arrived with more than twenty followers and challenged Giovanni, threatening to beat him and cripple Weedle.
• Giovanni ordered Weedle to fire Poison Sting at the attackers, poisoning most of the youths and their Pokémon.
• Mu Sen sent his Charmander after Weedle, but Weedle’s Poison Sting struck Charmander and left it injured.
• Mu Sen ordered his followers to attack, and Giovanni let the youths beat him while telling Weedle to hold back and dodge.
• Team Rocket members arrived with an Arbok, whose Intimidate stopped the Pokémon, then treated the poisoned youths and Pokémon with Antidotes.

Giovanni turned Mu Sen’s attack into a disciplinary defeat for Mu Sen’s group, then considered how to protect himself from their next move. He offered Max help hatching his Pokémon Egg in exchange for a favor and returned to training, confident in his strength and future.

• Giovanni played the victim after Mu Sen attacked, and the Team Rocket member in charge banned Mu Sen and his group from every training ground.
• Mu Sen threatened Giovanni and left with his group, while Axin watched and reconsidered his opinion of Giovanni.
• The Team Rocket member in charge warned Giovanni not to cause trouble, and Giovanni agreed as long as no one provoked him.
• Giovanni thought about how to counter Mu Sen’s numbers and approached Max with an offer to help hatch his Pokémon Egg in exchange for a favor.
• Giovanni trained with Weedle while Max watched, and Giovanni relied on Weedle and his Viridian Force as he pursued greater strength.

Giovanni used his Viridian Force to help Max hatch his Pokémon Egg, earning Max’s loyalty and promising him a chance to act the next day. After Max left, Giovanni planned to use him against Mu Sen and worried about finding resources for Weedle’s coming evolution.

• Giovanni arranged for boys with nearly hatched Pokémon to become insurance, while Max grew suspicious as the Second-Stage Selection deadline approached.
• Max asked Giovanni for help, and Giovanni told him to meet in room 9527.
• Giovanni used Viridian Force to make Max’s Pokémon Egg absorb the remaining nutrient solution and begin hatching.
• Max’s egg hatched into a Machop, and Max thanked Giovanni and pledged to serve him.
• Giovanni told Max he would have a chance to act tomorrow, then thought about targeting Mu Sen and securing resources for Weedle’s evolution.

After the Second-Stage Selection, Giovanni prepared to confront Mu Sen's Gang as the youths gathered. He attacked first with Weedle, then revealed that more than twenty youths had joined him to surround Mu Sen's group.

• Axin personally summoned Giovanni and asked how he planned to deal with Mu Sen's Gang, and Giovanni told him to wait and see.
• Team Rocket members entered the rooms of youths who had failed to hatch Pokémon and killed them, frightening the surviving candidates.
• At the gathering, Mu Sen's Gang approached with their Pokémon while Giovanni released Weedle and ordered it to use Poison Sting.
• Mu Sen's Pokémon blocked Weedle's attack and prepared to overwhelm Giovanni with their numbers.
• Giovanni called on Max and the other youths, who surrounded Mu Sen's Gang with more than twenty Pokémon trainers.

Giovanni and his allies overwhelmed Mu Sen’s gang while Weedle defeated Mu Sen’s Charmander. After Giovanni ordered Weedle to attack Mu Sen, Mu Sen collapsed and died at his feet.

• Giovanni ordered the boys he had gathered to attack Mu Sen’s gang, while Max joined the fight with his Machop.
• Mu Sen sent Charmander against Giovanni and Weedle, but Weedle wore Charmander down with repeated String Shot and Poison Sting.
• Weedle bound Charmander with silk and poisoned him with a barrage of needles before he could escape.
• Mu Sen charged at Giovanni in a rage, and Weedle’s Poison Sting struck him down.
• Mu Sen died at Giovanni’s feet from the poison.

After Giovanni killed Mu Sen, he forced the boys to eliminate Mu Sen’s Gang and drew a group of them to his side. As Giovanni Rika and Miyamoto discussed the successor contest, a boy from Ninja Village attacked Giovanni with a poisoned Shuriken, but Weedle stopped it.

• Giovanni ordered the boys to kill Mu Sen’s Gang, and Max led them by snapping the neck of the boy he had subdued.
• Giovanni Rika praised Giovanni’s decisiveness while Miyamoto discussed the successor candidates and warned that Aidos might disrupt the plan.
• Giovanni Rika went to settle the children, while Team Rocket members recalled ownerless Pokémon amid the chaos.
• More than twenty boys gathered around Giovanni for protection, and a concealed attacker hurled a poisoned Shuriken at him.
• Weedle bound the Shuriken with String Shot, and Giovanni recognized the frail boy beside an Ekans as a likely ninja from Ninja Village.

Giovanni faced rival groups during the aftermath of the Second-Stage Selection, but Team Rocket halted the fighting and announced the deadly rules of the Third-Stage Selection. He planned to spend the month growing stronger and keep an eye on those who had attacked him.

• Giovanni faced Yalan and her Bulbasaur, A Rui and his Squirtle, and other boys, while the ninja boy slipped away.
• Miyamoto and Giovanni Rika stopped the fighting as the platform descended, and Team Rocket removed the dead and eliminated boys.
• Giovanni Rika congratulated the survivors on passing the Second-Stage Selection.
• Miyamoto announced a month of training followed by duels that would continue until only three boys remained, and forbade private killings.
• Giovanni stayed calm and searched the crowd for the ninja boy, Yalan, and A Rui.

After the third stage began, Giovanni settled into lessons and training while learning that Max was in his class and would eventually become his competitor. Axin later approached Giovanni privately, and Max proposed a new training partnership, which Giovanni accepted.

• Miyamoto began the third stage, dividing the youths into three classes for daily academic and battle lessons.
• Giovanni learned that Max, A Rui, and Yalan had been assigned to separate classes, and that the stage’s winners would likely come from each class.
• After class, Max asked to train with Giovanni, but Giovanni insisted they were competitors and threatened to kill him if they faced each other.
• Giovanni considered delaying Weedle’s evolution until he could find a way to improve its potential and secure the resources it would need.
• Axin approached Giovanni at the training ground and arranged to speak with him in his room after training closed.
• Max returned with Machop, said he would not hold back against Giovanni, and proposed that their Pokémon train together; Giovanni agreed.

Giovanni trained with Max and learned about his background before Axin pledged allegiance to him. Axin became Giovanni’s first subordinate, and he told Giovanni about Team Rocket’s leadership and factions.

• Giovanni and Max trained together, and Max shared that he had been unable to afford an apprenticeship at Saffron Gym.
• Giovanni returned home, cared for Weedle, and prepared dinner before Axin arrived.
• Axin knelt and pledged allegiance to Giovanni, who challenged his motives before accepting him as a subordinate.
• Axin said he wanted a chance to prove himself and reach the pinnacle, and Giovanni promised he would receive what he wanted once Giovanni became Team Rocket’s leader.
• Axin explained that Giovanni Rika led Team Rocket, with Miyamoto and Aidos as executives and three Group Leaders below them; two Group Leaders backed Aidos and opposed the Selection Plan.

Giovanni refused Axin’s Advanced Arbok poison sac but accepted better food and Berries for Weedle, which reached level 6 and began wanting to evolve. In Battle Class, Giovanni challenged a boy’s Spearow with Weedle, whose hostility toward bird Pokémon startled the class before it attacked with Poison Sting.

• Giovanni asked Axin how members obtained resources and refused the poison sac Axin offered for Weedle.
• Axin gave Giovanni higher-quality Poison-type food and energy-rich Berries, and Giovanni later had him sell the old food to recover some of the cost.
• After four days of better food, Weedle reached level 6 and felt ready to evolve, but Giovanni made it wait until at least level 10.
• In Battle Class, the instructor explained type matchups and said bird Pokémon had an advantage over bug Pokémon, prompting a demonstration battle between Giovanni and a boy with Spearow.
• Giovanni sent out Weedle, which showed no fear of Spearow, and ordered Poison Sting; Spearow panicked and was struck by the needles.
• The chapter revealed that Giovanni’s room held a pillow shaped like a bird and densely covered in poisonous needles.