All the Pokémon gathered together to discuss whether they should try retrieving the other item as well.
Jumpluff felt they shouldn't take any more risks. It was already midday, and they should return to the camp to wait for Luther and Mai to wake up. Since they'd already made some gains, it might be best to call it quits.
"But I want Luther and Mai to each have a gift," Corsola said.
Well, that did it. No one could argue with that. Even Jumpluff had nothing to say in return. Kirlia asked Poliwhirl whether he could help guide them to the area in question. Poliwhirl shook his head vigorously.
Goldeen explained that the last time she even got near that place, she was hit by a 'Dark Pulse' and nearly injured. Quagsire, who had come along with Wooper, also said that a certain Pokémon practically occupied the area; anyone who approached was attacked.
Judging from their descriptions… this one sounded like real trouble.
"From the way you describe it, this guy must be an outsider Pokémon," Jumpluff said. "Can the native Pokémon in your lake really put up with that behavior?"
"We can't," Goldeen replied. "But… we can't beat him either."
Fair enough. A brutally honest answer. That made things a bit more complicated. Still, Kirlia and her group didn't intend to give up.
'So what if it's an outsider? They had numbers; why should they be afraid?'
Since the decision had been made, they needed proper transportation. Poliwhirl, who had long resented that section of the lake being monopolized, volunteered to go back into the water and contact a few like-minded Pokémon.
Along with Kingler and Quagsire, who both offered to help, a large group of Pokémon rode on the backs of Water-types and set off in force toward the destination.
Chikorita watched the departing group with frustration. She had been left behind. Before leaving, Jumpluff returned to camp and found Chansey, asking her to escort Chikorita back.
It wasn't that they didn't want her to come, but this mission involved real danger. Chikorita didn't have much battle strength, and if anything happened to her, they'd be betraying Luther's trust. So no matter how tightly Chikorita clung to Jumpluff or how much she begged, it was a firm no.
Chansey gently nudged Chikorita back toward camp, while Chikorita looked back at the lake with every step, unwilling to part from it.
Mantine skimmed low over the lake's surface, carrying Pachirisu, Jumpluff, and Kirlia on her broad back.
Espurr was holding on to one of Kingler's head spikes.
Eevee lay sprawled across Poliwhirl's head, which poked just above the waterline.
The Pokémon in the lake were moving quickly. After all, it had been a long time since anyone had organized an effort to confront that outsider Pokémon. The local Pokémon were all extremely excited, putting their full effort into this expedition.
"We're getting close," Poliwhirl warned, and everyone immediately became alert.
According to the lake's Water-types, the intruder wasn't just aggressive, his territorial instinct was very strong. He wouldn't wait for others to enter his zone; he would ambush them the moment they got close.
After swimming a little further, Kingler, who was carrying Espurr, was the first to stop. Marill, who had been paired with Goldeen, yanked Goldeen back when she tried to swim forward again. Mantine told those on her back to hold on tight, she was about to gain altitude.
From her vantage point on Mantine's back, Jumpluff looked down and spotted a clearly defined white waterline, with a blue dorsal fin slicing through the surface, rapidly approaching the group of Water-type Pokémon.
Espurr felt the oncoming presence beneath the water, but before she could warn Kingler, Kingler had already reacted.
Using Agility, Kingler vanished in an instant, dashing across the water and giving Espurr a high-speed thrill ride as they zoomed over to where Marill was floating.
A 'Dark Pulse' exploded at the exact spot Kingler had just been, sending water spraying into the sky.
Even more impressively, that waterline, the one that had been rushing toward them, stopped dead in its tracks, churning up waves as the Pokémon beneath the surface began to rise.
As the body beneath the white streak surfaced, Jumpluff finally saw what kind of opponent they were up against.
It was a Sharpedo, at least two meters long.
If Luther were here, he would be absolutely stunned. Sharpedo are 100% ocean-dwelling Pokémon. Sure, you could toss one into freshwater and it'd still swim just fine, but within the academic world, no one has ever heard of a Sharpedo living in an inland lake.
Matsuyuki City is near Snowpoint City, and Snowpoint City borders the sea. So yes, the route a Sharpedo might take to get here makes some sense, but the reason?
No one had the time or mental energy to ponder that, because this Sharpedo's aggression was beyond anything the Pokémon had imagined. Originally, it only patrolled its own territory, retreating if it strayed beyond that boundary. The local Pokémon had already figured out its activity range over the past two weeks.
But now, Sharpedo burst right out of its marked territory and charged straight toward Kingler and Poliwhirl.
A stunned Poliwhirl was lightly pinched by Kingler's claw and tossed backward just in time, as Sharpedo's gaping jaws appeared at the surface the moment Kingler moved.
Too fast. Even from her vantage point on Mantine's back, Jumpluff could barely track its speed.
Espurr's 'Psyshock' slightly delayed Sharpedo's 'Crunch', giving Kingler just enough time to react. He swung his massive claw down in a 'Hammer Arm', slamming it onto Sharpedo's head.
Sharpedo was smacked into the water, but a jolt of pain traveled up Kingler's claw.
It was 'Rough Skin', a Sharpedo's ability that inflicts damage on contact.
The surface of the water went eerily quiet. That only made the scene more terrifying, Sharpedo, now submerged, could attack from any angle at any moment, and its terrifying speed left virtually no time to react.
Espurr and Kirlia focused intensely, scanning the surface for the slightest ripple. Marill sensed the danger first. She shoved Goldeen aside and used 'Superpower' directly beneath herself.
Sharpedo burst out of the water like a missile, and the sheer impact launched Marill into the air. Its massive jaws broke the surface, and in the very next instant, a 'Dark Pulse' fired straight toward Mantine.
Mantine hadn't expected that attacking Marill was just a feint, she could only watch, stunned, as the pulse of dark energy surged toward her.
Jumpluff's 'Bullet Seed', Pachirisu's 'Thunderbolt', and Kirlia's 'Psychic' all launched at once, intercepting the 'Dark Pulse' just before it hit Mantine. The resulting explosion sent shockwaves rippling through the air, causing Mantine to lurch. Pachirisu tumbled off but was yanked back up just in time by Kirlia's Psychic.
Meanwhile, the flung Poliwhirl scrambled to fish Eevee out of the water. The little one, not the strongest swimmer, had nearly sunk.
Before Eevee could even climb back onto Poliwhirl's head, Kingler, using Agility, darted back and slammed his claw down onto the water's surface with a loud thump. The sound made Eevee and Poliwhirl's ears ring, and it wasn't until a second later that they realized what he had sensed, Sharpedo lurking just beneath them.
The water surface went still again. Every Pokémon's heart was pounding. The Water-type Pokémon that had come along were trembling, clumping together underwater to act as a scouting net.
This Sharpedo's combat power was far more terrifying than anyone had expected.
(End of Chapter)
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