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A deafening explosion, accompanied by a violent tremor, tore through the entire airship, making it shake wildly in midair.
And this shock was clearly far stronger than the previous one—the massive airship began to tilt sharply, its tail end dropping downward as thick black smoke poured out while it plummeted toward the ocean!
Countless members of the hunting squad screamed as they were thrown to the ground. The scene instantly descended into utter chaos!
Before long, with a thunderous crash, the entire airship plunged straight into the sea. The tremendous impact twisted the tail section, and seawater surged in endlessly through the ruptured hull.
"Beedrill! Use Twinneedle to destroy the controller!!"
"Bzz!"
In this moment of extreme crisis, Giovanni barked the order. His Beedrill, which had been guarding him, instantly shot forward like a streak of black and yellow lightning. Its two long, razor-sharp needles drove mercilessly into a control console—specifically, the console above Liam's light prison.
The moment Beedrill destroyed the device, the formerly brilliant, radiant light prison dimmed instantly. The glowing rings that formed its structure lost power and fell from the air, clattering across the floor.
"Seriously?! Do you have to do it like this?! I really don't want to sink into the ocean and die with you!"
Because the entire airship was tilting, Aerodactyl dug its claws firmly into the steel floor to keep from sliding, while Liam hung onto Aerodactyl's neck, suspended in the air. He turned his head toward Giovanni and Miyamoto—who were being held aloft by two Golbat—and complained with a vein bulging on his forehead.
"Haha, relax. I don't want to die with you either. Since you're out now, hurry and get to Red Rock Isle. Dragonite reported earlier that the Masked Man has already obtained the Great Sea Spirit Sapphire and is heading for Silver Rock Isle. If you go now, you should still make it in time."
The Golbat carrying Giovanni flew in front of Liam. Giovanni gave a faint smile at Liam's complaint, completely unconcerned, and quickly explained the situation outside.
"What? The Great Sea Spirit Sapphire? Silver Rock Isle… So his target really is Lugia? Fine! I'm going—I must stop him. …And what about you guys? Seawater's flooding in already—aren't you planning to evacuate?"
Upon hearing Giovanni's words, Liam's brows furrowed deeply. He had not expected that so much would happen in the single day he'd been trapped. Realizing the Masked Man's true goal, anxiety surged through him. He swung himself onto Aerodactyl's back and, seeing that Giovanni and Miyamoto had no intention of retreating, asked in confusion.
"You don't need to worry about us. Don't worry, I'm still young—I have many major tasks ahead of me. I won't die here. I simply have some unfinished business. You go first; I'll contact you again later."
Giovanni spoke casually, then glanced down at the hunting squad grunts desperately trying to escape through the cracks of the collapsing airship. A cold smile curved at his lips as he muttered quietly:
"These pests are nothing but trouble. They need to be wiped out completely."
The moment he finished speaking, Giovanni and Miyamoto leapt downward. Beedrill followed close behind, off to deal with… something.
Liam: "Aerodactyl! Use Hyper Beam on the ceiling! We're breaking out!"
"Roooaaar!!"
Trusting Giovanni despite everything, Liam turned toward the steel ceiling and shouted the command.
Aerodactyl unleashed a massive Hyper Beam upward, the powerful blast carving through multiple layers of reinforced metal as if they were paper, leaving behind a huge circular opening.
"Kraaah!!"
Aerodactyl beat its wings, lifting off and rushing through the hole with Liam. It charged another Hyper Beam and blasted through the next barrier—again and again until it pierced clean through the airship.
At last, trailing black smoke, Aerodactyl burst out of the sinking vessel.
High in the sky, Liam glanced back at the rapidly submerging airship. He exhaled deeply, then turned Aerodactyl toward Red Rock Isle at full speed.
And at that very moment—
While Liam was racing toward Red Rock Isle, another battle was already raging along the island's shoreline—and it had been going on for quite some time!
"Hmph! I let you escape last time and spared your pathetic life! And you dare come courting death again?! Fine! You asked for this! Ho-Oh—Fire Blast!"
"Kyyaaah!!"
The Masked Man, riding on Ho-Oh's back, glared furiously at the youth blocking his way—who stood atop Entei and commanded several Pokemon. Rage twisted his voice as he ordered Ho-Oh to attack.
Blazing golden fire erupted in the shape of a massive character, crashing down toward Entei with overwhelming force!
"Dodge, Entei! Then use Fire Spin! Charizard, Rock Tomb! Flareon, Misty Terrain! Sudowoodo, Block! Haunter, Mean Look!"
As the blazing attack descended, the boy on Entei's back rapidly issued a chain of commands.
Entei leaped aside to evade the Fire Blast, then unleashed a spiraling vortex of purple flames.
The spinning fireball hurtled toward Ho-Oh, but Ho-Oh nimbly dodged it.
Then Charizard, soaring in the sky, beat its wings and conjured several massive boulders, which fell like meteors toward Ho-Oh.
"Ho-Oh! Fire Blast again!"
"Kyyaaah!"
Seeing the barrage, the Masked Man reacted instantly. Ho-Oh opened its beak and unleashed a stream of brilliant gold flames, incinerating the falling boulders into dust that scattered in the wind.
"Roaaaar!!"
Charizard roared and charged straight at Ho-Oh—but instead of attacking, it twisted its body at the last second, passing right alongside. At that instant, Flareon—standing on Charizard's back—leaned in close to Ho-Oh's head and released a soft, strange whisper.
The eerie sound seeped into Ho-Oh's ears, making its mind momentarily waver and its flames weaken.
"Suuudo!"
"Haunnter!"
While Ho-Oh was dazed, Sudowoodo's Block and Haunter's Mean Look activated, surrounding Ho-Oh with a yellow and black aura that bound its movements. Ho-Oh struggled wildly, beating its wings, but couldn't break free at once.
"Hmph. So you're stalling for someone. You still don't dare face me head-on. I guess the wound I left you last time left quite the impression."
The Masked Man sneered as he looked down at the boy on Entei.
"You scarred me, of course I remember. But don't bother trying to provoke me. My task today is simple: delay you. For this mission, I specifically captured Sudowoodo and Haunter. As long as they're here, you're not leaving easily!"
The youth on Entei remained calm and focused, refusing to give Ho-Oh any chance to escape.
"Hmph! You really are hopelessly naive. Did you think I'd simply sit here waiting for your reinforcements? Foolish! Delibird! Jynx! Come out—use Blizzard!"
"Fwooooh!!"
The Masked Man sent out Delibird and Jynx. At once, a massive blizzard surged downward like an avalanche.
"Entei! Charizard! Flareon! Flamethrower!"
"Groooar!!"
The youth countered by ordering his three Fire-type Pokemon to unleash flames to meet the incoming blizzard. Charizard and Flareon immediately moved to shield Sudowoodo and Haunter.
The scorching fire and freezing blizzard collided, filling the battlefield with billowing steam that obscured everyone's vision.
In that instant—
Haunter, whose eyes had been glowing black as it locked onto Ho-Oh, suddenly lost sight of its target. The glow faded instantly, leaving Haunter confused and disoriented.
At the same time, the black aura surrounding Ho-Oh dissipated, leaving only the yellow aura of Sudowoodo's Block. But with only a single binding effect remaining, it could no longer restrain the raging Ho-Oh—
With a piercing cry, Ho-Oh shattered the last restraint. The yellow light scattered into drifting particles before fading into the air.