[He's quiet a minute, surveying the city, thinking of the list in his pocket and the house down the way and the creatures under his command. And then, finally:]

On the contrary, I think someone is going to a great deal of trouble to try to keep us from those thoughts. If we go home to the minute we left, then none of this really means anything--but we're still urged to believe it does. Training Pokemon, winning gym challenges...they're small, meaningless goals that only keep us from focusing our attention on the greater ones: discovering who did this and how, and finding a way to return home again.

[He shrugs slightly.]

It's a neat arrangement, and a classic misdirection. Whoever is responsible for bringing us here, they've certainly put thought into this.