Everyone's expression turned serious instantly, and all chatter ceased.
"Take your Flying-type Pokémon and move out immediately!"
Silas commanded decisively.
Now wasn't the time to worry about stamina — time was critical.
The reason he specified Flying-types was simple. While Pokémon like Magnezone could technically "fly" via electromagnetic levitation, their speed was nothing to brag about.
By the time they reached the Seafoam Islands, the battle would likely already be over.
And of course, not all Flying-types were actually capable of sustained flight — Dodrio, for instance, could only run and glide short distances, while Gyarados could manage only low-altitude bursts.
"Staraptor! Charizard! Skarmory! Pidgeot! Tropius! Dragonite!"
One after another, the Trainers threw out their Poké Balls.
The sky filled with flapping wings and radiant Pokémon of every shape and size.
Among them, Yuji's Dragonite stood out the most.
Even for these experienced Trainers — Silas included — seeing a Dragonite at his age was still surprising.
If he already owned a Dragonite, it likely meant that it had been his starter Pokémon.
Otherwise, considering how slowly Dragon-type Pokémon developed in their early stages, there was no way he could have raised one past level 55 already.
Still, having a pseudo-legendary as one's starter came with its own unique set of challenges.
But this wasn't the time to discuss that. Everyone quickly turned their focus forward again.
"Eri, Aya— come with me," said Yumeko Murasame.
Her Pokémon was a Tropius, a Grass- and Flying-type Pokémon that, despite being called a "dragon" in its name, lacked any Dragon typing.
Tropius resembled a herbivorous dinosaur. Its body was bark-brown, sturdy and massive, with a long neck and strong legs.
Its head was adorned with large leaves like a hood or helmet, with two smaller decorative leaves on each side, and beneath its chin hung a cluster of yellow fruits resembling bananas.
Most striking of all were the three enormous leaf-like wings sprouting from its back, allowing it to soar through the sky.
With its broad back and solid physique, it could easily carry several passengers without losing much speed.
Officer Jenny and Nurse Joy nodded, then climbed aboard the waiting Tropius with Yumeko.
She gently patted its long neck, and the Pokémon took off, beating its leafy wings toward the Seafoam Islands.
The others were quick to follow.
Riko Laramie called out her Charizard and helped Daisy Oak.
True to her Laramie heritage, Riko's Charizard was visibly bulkier than the others nearby — clearly a result of the Laramie family's famous breeding techniques that emphasized size and endurance.
Even with three slender young women on its back, there was still plenty of space.
Jun Uto's expression stayed calm. His own Charizard was no slouch either — already larger than the species' average — but the Laramie lineage specialized in this, after all.
Hiroki Silph climbed up behind him without hesitation.
The two Charizard roared and ascended side by side.
Meanwhile, Seiichiro Sasaki's Pidgeot carried him and Soshu close behind.
Back on the ground —
Silas and Yezo returned to the shore, hiding their speedboat in a seaside cave.
There was no way they could drag it back with them.
Then, Silas's Pidgeot lifted the two into the air.
"Seems Team Rocket just doesn't know when to quit," Yezo remarked from behind.
"As expected," Silas replied flatly.
As long as Team Rocket hadn't achieved their objective, they would never give up.
Still, he hadn't expected them to strike again so soon — on the very day that Lorelei and Bruno had arrived.
Pidgeot soared swiftly through the clouds.
Yezo wanted to ask Silas to slow down, but the fierce headwind made speaking impossible.
It didn't take long for them to reach the open sea.
With Pidgeot's speed, they soon caught up with the others who had departed first.
Traveling by air was completely different from sea travel.
The straight-line distance from Five Island to the Seafoam Islands was only about 200 kilometers — a short 20-minute trip even for the slowest flyer, Tropius.
The Pokémon flew in silence, racing across the sky.
Before long, the Seafoam Islands appeared on the horizon — and as they drew closer, the sounds and sights of battle filled their view.
"Looks like Team Rocket's efforts were in vain," Seiichiro Sasaki commented over the group chat.
If they could see the battle from this distance, then surely Team Rocket could see them as well.
With the likes of Dragonite and Charizard among them, their identities as League-affiliated Trainers were obvious.
And yet, no Rocket members flew up to intercept them.
That alone showed how badly they were being suppressed.
Indeed, the situation on the island proved it.
"Boom!"
A Machamp darted through Team Rocket's ranks with inhuman agility.
Each time an opening appeared, it seized a Pokémon and hurled it — into the ground, against ice-covered cliffs, into frozen walls — it didn't matter.
Under that overwhelming strength, most Pokémon were knocked out on impact.
The few that survived the first blow didn't last a second or third.
Amidst the freezing weather, with temperatures well below zero, Bruno stood shirtless, arms folded, quietly observing.
"Wait—weren't Lorelei and Bruno supposed to still be underground, inside the Ice Cavern?"
A Rocket officer with a black eyepatch over his left eye grabbed a nearby informant by the collar and barked at him furiously.
He was this operation's commanding officer — an elite Rocket Executive, codename A-Class 007, better known as "One-Eyed Dragon."
"T-that's what the insider said! Both of the Elite Four were deep in the caverns, sir!" the trembling informant stammered, drenched in cold sweat.
Everyone knew this man's temper. No one wanted to be the one who got dumped into the sea afterward.
The One-Eyed Dragon kicked the man aside and took a deep breath, quickly regaining composure.
Fine. His task had only ever been to draw attention — to lure the Elite Four to the surface.
So it just happened a bit earlier than expected.
As for Kona still being below, protecting Athena while she collected genetic samples — that wasn't his concern.
If anything, he'd be thrilled if Athena got herself into trouble.
One less rival for promotion.
"Keep going! Don't stop! Send more Pokémon to stall that Machamp! Prioritize our elite units!" he barked.
The grunts obeyed immediately, sending out more Pokémon.
He didn't care if Bruno stayed in that strange, unmoving stance — as long as he remained focused on Machamp, the plan was working.
The chaotic battlefield had turned into an eerie standoff between Bruno and over a dozen of Team Rocket's elite members.
Meanwhile, Shiraki, commander of the League's Special Operations Unit, led his squad in suppressing the enemy.
The League's forces were outnumbered, both in personnel and Pokémon count.
But in terms of strength, the difference was staggering.
Team Rocket's grunts were simply no match for the League's elite Trainers.
Shiraki skillfully ordered his Blastoise to knock out three pseudo–Elite-class opponents in a single strike.
he frowned. "Elite Four Bruno — what are you waiting for?"
His gaze turned toward the nearby man standing motionless in the storm.
After all, Bruno's Machamp was his signature Pokémon — one that had even defeated Lance's second-strongest Pokémon, Charizard, in battle before.
There was no way such a fighter could be stalled this easily.
And besides Bruno certainly didn't have only one Pokémon.
For an ordinary Trainer, commanding three or four Pokémon at once was already the limit. Any more, and they risked making mistakes in the chaos of battle.
But for someone at the level of a regional Elite Four member, commanding all six Pokémon simultaneously was second nature.
"Nidoking, use Earth Power!"
While speculating about Bruno's mindset, Shiraki commanded his second Pesudo Elite-level Pokémon to strike again.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
From underground, a surge of Ground-type energy erupted, blasting two quasi-Elite Pokémon into the air.
"Pidgeot, Air Slash! Blaziken, Flamethrower!"
At the mouth of the valley, a young man's voice rang out.
Silas had arrived first and immediately launched his assault.
"Ha! You're fast," Soshu followed close behind.
Thanks to his long years of physical training, he easily kept pace with Silas.
"Machamp, Golem — Rock Tomb!"
He sent out two of his main battlers to join the fight.
The third person to arrive was none other than Officer Jenny Airi.
Though a woman, and thus at a slight physical disadvantage, she was still one of the elite of the Jenny family.
Her endurance surpassed most of the others, allowing her to catch up before the rest.
"Arcanine, Extreme Speed!"
She relied on her strongest partner — fitting for a member of the Jenny lineage.
Arcanine blurred forward, striking before the others.
Extreme Speed wasn't just any move. Over ten years ago, it was even thought to be Arcanine's exclusive attack — believed to be usable only by that species.
It wasn't until later that researchers discovered that Pokémon like Dragonite, Lucario, Togekiss, and even Ursaluna could also learn it, somewhat diminishing Arcanine's mythical status.
Thud!
Arcanine sent two Voltorb flying.
Clatter, clatter…
The round, Poké Ball-like Pokémon rolled straight into the middle of a cluster of Team Rocket's Pokémon.
Their bodies began to glow white.
"Weezing! Golbat! Arbok! Get away from them!"
The Rocket grunts' faces changed drastically. They frantically shouted to their Pokémon while inwardly cursing their teammates.
They'd already said not to bring Electrode and Voltorb along — unstable Pokémon like those were accidents waiting to happen!
Boom!
Two simultaneous explosions drew everyone's attention.
When the smoke cleared, the two Voltorb lay in a crater, eyes spinning and bodies covered in burns and bruises.
Around them lay several other Pokémon that had been caught in the blast.
Even though they'd reacted quickly, they hadn't escaped unscathed.
Voltorb — nicknamed the "Ball Pokémon" — sometimes exploded just for amusement.
With proper training, such incidents became rarer, but if they were startled or jolted too hard, they'd still detonate with massive power.
The Electric-type energy stored in their bodies was no joke.
Before the nearby Team Rocket Pokémon could recover, a flurry of white air blades, a blazing jet of fire, and a rain of massive rocks struck them hard.
Though this was only the trio's second coordinated battle together, their teamwork was remarkably sharp — likely thanks to their shared field experience.
When Silas and Soshu saw Officer Jenny's Arcanine attacking the two Voltorb, they immediately understood her plan and redirected their own Pokémon's attacks.
It had been a bit rushed, but the result spoke for itself.
BOOM!
Another violent explosion thundered through the valley.
Dust and smoke billowed upward.
"What the hell did you blow up this time?"
Silas sighed helplessly. What did he mean, again? It wasn't like he enjoyed blowing things up all the time.
It just so happened that Team Rocket used a lot of Weezing, which naturally made the battlefield's gas concentration a bit… above average.
The Air Slashes had compressed and gathered those gases together. Combined with the sealed area created by Bruno's Machamp and Golem's Rock Tomb, Blaziken's Flamethrower had just happened to ignite it.
Pure coincidence — that's all.
Everyone's skeptical looks clearly said, Yeah, sure, we believe you.
Even Shiraki flinched at the sudden explosions. These youngsters really liked to play rough.
Still, since Bruno wasn't rushing, he slowed his own cleanup pace a little.
"Weren't those kids supposed to be over on Chrono Island?"
A one-eyed man glanced lazily toward the valley's entrance as he spoke.
His tone was calm — which somehow made it all the more terrifying.
Of course he was angry. Bruno was one thing — it was hard to predict the movements of an Elite Four member — but these rookies showing up unplanned was unacceptable.
"Looks like those incompetents really are useless… Figures."
His muttered complaint left the nearby Rocket members puzzled, but he didn't bother explaining.
"Forget it. Tell the reinforcements to keep them occupied."
He issued the order coldly.
No matter how irritated he was, the mission had to go on.
As soon as the command came through his earpiece, Shiraki heard the same from his end.
The special operations team wasn't stupid — of course they'd already scouted Seafoam Islands for hidden enemies.
They didn't have numbers on their side, but as elite agents, they had Psychic and Ghost-type Pokémon among them.
Even if they couldn't detect every hiding spot, finding one was enough — movement in one place meant the rest were mobilizing too.
"Silas, you and your squad hold the outer entrance. Team Rocket's reinforcements are heading that way."
Shiraki's calm but firm voice came through the comms in Silas's right ear.
....
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