Although Dragonite loved playing the "spellcaster" role, as a pseudo-legendary dragon, its physical strength was outstanding, and its Attack was nothing to scoff at.
And with a long-charged Iron Tail, Dragonite was more than capable of pummeling a same-level Clefable into the ground.
In fact, it did just that…
Clefable was smacked away with a single tail strike, finally skidding to a stop only after crashing into and bending a roadside fire hydrant.
"C-Cle… Clef…"
Clefable collapsed in pain, completely unable to battle for the time being.
The Gravity field vanished the moment Clefable was seriously injured. Dragonite immediately flapped its wings and soared back into the sky, letting out a cathartic roar!
Lance was energized and full of momentum. Without hesitation, he threw out another Poké Ball.
A flash of red light revealed a Mid Elite Four level Flygon entering the field.
Having been suppressed for so long, Lance had finally broken through the stalemate; clearly intending to arrest Miyamoto on the spot.
Across from him, Miyamoto let out a cold chuckle and recalled Clefable. The Gravity tactic had only been a temporary countermeasure she picked to restrain Lance.
As the highest-ranking Admin in Team Rocket, she didn't even fear Kanto's top Elite Four, Agatha. Much less Lance, who had only just become the fourth member.
Oh, and at most, that Sato kid's Gardevoir and two other Ace-level punks.
'Four little snot-nosed punks who hadn't even grown their n*ts properly, fufufu~? Time to show them what true power looked like!'
With that thought, Miyamoto unhesitatingly threw two more Poké Balls.
Mid Elite Four: Roserade!
High Elite Four: Espeon!
Along with the earlier Ninetales and Mismagius, Miyamoto had now revealed a total of five E4 level Pokémon!
The moment Sato's group had started to feel hopeful… they were forced into silence again, steeling themselves for the next fight. They knew the only option was to hold out for as long as possible.
Lance looked at his own lineup. Will and Joseph only had Ace level Pokémon, so they could at best provide support.
And considering Sato's age, just having one Elite Four level Gardevoir was already monstrous. Lance hadn't expected him to have any others at that level…
So, after hesitating for just a second, Lance also called up his half-crippled Charizard. No matter what, they had to hold out until reinforcements arrived.
Also, commanding three Pokémon at once was the upper limit of what Lance could handle while still ensuring full performance from each of them.
As for Sato and the others, the reason they didn't send out more Pokémon wasn't due to lack of effort. Most of their Ace Pokémon would just be cannon fodder; easy pickings for Miyamoto to counter, which would only backfire.
Four people each commanding one or two Pokémon to focus down a single opponent… when that opponent was truly powerful, having too many on your side could actually be a disadvantage.
Even a small lapse in coordination could become the opening for the enemy to pick them off one by one.
Just as Miyamoto released her four main battlers and was about to let them go wild…
For some reason, Miyamoto suddenly furrowed her brows. Though she was clearly around forty, a bashful and wronged expression appeared on her face.
"Nooooooo! I was just about to win! Ahhhh my poor little Clefable~"
"U-Ugh! {{{(>_<)}}}"
Sato and the other three shivered in unison, goosebumps prickling up all over their backs!
No one knew who Miyamoto was talking to, but her exaggerated behavior didn't match her overwhelming strength at all!
"Hmph, let her come then… What, like I'm scared of her?"
Miyamoto then stomped the ground with a coy "flourish". To Sato and the others, that move was just as lethal as her E4 level Pokémon…
Even if they were slow on the uptake, they realized now that Miyamoto was most likely wearing an earpiece and talking to someone.
And the only person in all of Team Rocket who could make her act like that… was probably the elusive and mysterious "Boss" himself.
What puzzled Sato was that Team Rocket's current leader, Giovanni, was barely in his twenties… 'The age gap between him and Miyamoto… tch tch.'
Truly living the dream…
But even Sato didn't expect that the voice on the other end of the call -though undeniably assertive and bold- was very clearly and unquestionably… female[1]!¹
No voice changer either!
Before long, the other side seemed to hang up, leaving Miyamoto standing there with a thoroughly unhappy expression.
Then, right in front of Sato and the others, Miyamoto calmly recalled all her Pokémon except for Ninetales, making it perfectly clear she wasn't afraid of being ambushed; if anything, she was even looking forward to it…
Miyamoto swung herself onto the fox's back and began retreating without a care. At the same time, she pulled out a pitch-black whistle and began blowing it rhythmically as she walked.
The whistle was faint, but its sharp, piercing tone easily reached the ears of the nearby Team Rocket members.
Upon hearing the signal, the Team Rocket operatives immediately tightened formation and began a full-speed retreat.
More people pulled out identical whistles and began blowing them, clearly relaying the "retreat command" to other areas.
Lance could only watch as Miyamoto and the others left. He wanted to give chase, but he knew full well he wasn't strong enough…
The outcome they had achieved just now was already the best result they could hope for.
But letting Miyamoto escape was still an undeniable fact!
And for someone who had already become one of the region's Elite Four, it was a heavy blow…
"Officer Jenny, have our people stop the pursuit. Restoring order in Viridian City is the top priority."
Lance turned with a hard edge in his voice and gave the command to the nearby Officer Jenny.
Officer Jenny clenched her teeth in frustration! Harboring resentment toward Lance as well.
But due to their rank difference, she could only nod in the end and turn to instruct the others to cease pursuit of Team Rocket.
Faint light gradually appeared on the horizon, signaling the end of the "dark night".
Viridian City had become scarred and devastated, the traces of battle spread everywhere.
Citizens had kept their doors locked, lying awake through the night, listening to the chaos outside and praying their homes would be spared!
Only when the first rays of dawn lit up the war-torn city did someone finally muster the courage to step outside.
But most people chose to remain inside, quietly waiting for everything to settle.
"Honey… don't go to work today, okay?"
"Don't worry, I'll stay with you and the kids."
"D-Dad, does that mean I don't have to go to school today?"
"Keep dreaming. Online classes, NOW!"
Child: Sniff…
Across thousands of households in Viridian City, similar conversations were happening at the same time.
After all, video communication was highly developed in the Pokémon world… online classes had long been implemented even at the elementary and kindergarten levels.
---◓---
Less than half an hour after Team Rocket's complete retreat, Elite Four Agatha arrived in Viridian City with hundreds of League elites. Among them were more than a dozen Ace Trainers; their combined strength was staggering.
At the same time, Elite Four Bruno returned to the Viridian Pokémon Center dragging Mark along. That "drag" clearly had a story behind it…
But it was all for nothing, they had missed everything.
To know so precisely when Agatha would arrive for reinforcements, the most likely explanation was that there had been a Team Rocket spy among the support squad.
But these hundreds of Trainers were all elite members of the League, and their lowest strength was Peak Elite!
Even Agatha herself didn't dare openly investigate them all.
Frustrated, Agatha finally gave a stubborn command: "SEARCH! Turn Viridian City and Viridian Forest upside down! Find every last remaining Team Rocket member!"
Sato raised an eyebrow on the side, thinking to himself that Agatha might have stumbled into something useful for once…
Sure enough, on the very same day the order was given, the League uncovered no fewer than eleven underground bases in Viridian City!
Although nearly all of them were deserted, and the data either taken or destroyed…
The sheer number shocked the entire League to its core!
Viridian City might not be the most prosperous in the Kanto Region, but it was a place of deep historical significance.
With Viridian Forest right next door -rich in wild Pokémon resources- it was also a must-explore location for many Trainers traveling through the area.
In short, Viridian City was a vitally important city in the entire Kanto Region.
And yet, this very place had its underground almost completely hollowed out by Team Rocket, with eleven secret bases built underneath!
This slap landed hard on the Kanto League's face…
At the same time, the "low-profile" Viridian Gym Leader once again came under the scrutiny of the League's top brass.
---◓---
"Who was in charge of auditing the Viridian Gym last year? How is it that Giovanni hasn't even been present at the Gym for three months each year, yet it's still considered one of Kanto's Eight Official Gyms!?"
In the conference room of the Pokémon League's office building in Viridian City, Agatha held a stack of documents collected by her team and unceremoniously questioned the League officials before her.
Up to this point, it seemed that the Viridian Gym Leader, Giovanni, still didn't even know what had happened in Viridian City.
The response given by the Gym Trainers and trainees was simply that the Leader had gone traveling for over two months, and no one knew where he had gone.
Elite Four Agatha was furious!
She had met Giovanni before, her impression was that he was a mediocre, silent type who never drew much attention.
But she never expected that he had managed Viridian City so poorly.
No… HE HADN'T MANAGED IT AT ALL!
This meeting was just Agatha's excuse to find out which of these people had already been bought off by Team Rocket.
…Or rather, to see which ones were too stupid for Team Rocket to even bother bribing.
For Team Rocket to have built eleven underground bases here, in Agatha's view, not a single Viridian League official was innocent!
Sato and the others, due to their unique status, weren't treated like ordinary League members. Though they were present at the meeting, they were basically there just to listen. Agatha didn't scold or lecture them.
And even if she had something to say, it would be addressed in a private meeting later, with only the "Trainers" present.
At this moment, Sato sat silently, eyes to nose, nose to heart, saying nothing.
He had also seen the bases the League discovered, and he knew very clearly that at least the most important Team Rocket base beneath the Viridian Gym hadn't been found.
Perhaps due to inertia of thought, since Giovanni had been traveling for over two months and hadn't returned, everyone instinctively excluded him from suspicion.
Naturally, no one even considered checking if there might be a Team Rocket base beneath the League's own Gym!
Even Elite Four Agatha subconsciously assumed that Giovanni was just a quiet, hard-working Trainer.
Giovanni had mastered the art[2] of hiding in plain sight.
And the only thing on Sato's mind now was whether there was a way to subtly hint this to the League.
Even if a Gym Leader looks honest and quiet, once they betray the League, or were an undercover agent from the beginning… their city becomes a playground for underground forces. No matter how many officials you replace, it won't make a difference!
In the Pokémon world, Trainers held far more power than ordinary people. In any city with a Gym, it was never the mayor who had the final say.
Shadownight Town was no exception!
After the meeting, Agatha did indeed call Sato and the others in for a private debriefing to go over the events in detail.
Sato didn't hide anything. As for why he knew there was a Team Rocket base in Viridian City but didn't report it… his explanation was simple.
He had encountered a Team Rocket member during his travels, defeated them, and got the information by force.
Since he wasn't sure if it was real, and had been too busy growing stronger afterward, he never had time to verify it.
Eventually, he simply forgot…
As for how the base in the forest was discovered? Bruno had witnessed the whole thing. Every step followed proper investigative procedure, so there was no issue.
After hearing the explanation, Agatha nodded in approval. Though there was a hint of luck involved, the outcome made it clear: Sato had rendered immense service.
He had provided the intel about the bases in Viridian City.
He had found the base in Viridian Forest!
Bruno, Lance, and Will had all arrived at his personal request…
And in the end, Sato and his team had joined forces to hold back Team Rocket's highest-ranking Admin, Miyamoto, preventing further damage to Viridian City.
That credit had to go partly to him as well.
The only thing that puzzled Agatha was how someone so young had already become so powerful, and yet acted with such "serenity".
Even though he had E4 level strength, surpassing 99% of Trainers in the world…
When it came to rescuing others, he still prepared meticulously, calling in two Elite Four for backup.
Wasn't a young person supposed to charge in recklessly to save people?
If he hadn't known in advance that Team Rocket's presence in Viridian City was dangerously overwhelming, then where had Sato learned this extremely cautious style?
Sato noticed Agatha looking at him with a strange, curious expression and felt uncomfortable all over, wondering if he had accidentally given something away…
'Forget it, better to play it safe.' For now, he'd keep quiet about the Viridian Gym.
If Team Rocket lost their main base and came running to his Shadownight Town instead… then what?
That thought alone made Sato all the more reserved -and cautious-, and he chose not to say another word.
•
•
¹. Madame Boss
[1] Madame Boss
[2] Dao