Pokemon: Going Undercover in Team Rocket and Raising a Shiny Metagross

As a low-level undercover agent planted by Team Rocket in the Sinnoh Region, Ming Zheng's start is practically Hell difficulty: his Starter Pokémon is the weak Cubone, his cover job is as a ramen shop dishwasher, and his bank account is painfully empty. But he knows a world-shaking secret: deep inside the barren rocky mountain north of Ironrock Town, a legendary Shiny Metagross lies dormant.

Even better, this ultimate Steel- and Psychic-type prize is perfectly countered by the Ground-type Pokémon at his side. From then on, he wipes tables and hauls sacks of noodles by day, pretending to be a law-abiding citizen, then pushes Cubone through brutal training every night. With Team Rocket's black market as his supply line and his foreknowledge as his guide, he carefully weaves a net to capture his target.

But as his strength skyrockets, trouble comes one after another: his comrades grow suspicious, the League takes notice, and a pair of Team Rocket goofballs who are about to arrive in the area are closing in on the hidden truth. When the dazzling silver Metagross tears through the night sky, the Cubone by Ming Zheng's side has already evolved into a top-tier powerhouse shaking all of Sinnoh. And his life undercover is only just turning to its wildest chapter.

This novel and its characters are entirely fictional. Any resemblance is purely coincidental. Do not imitate.