Chapter 258: Move, and You Will Die
2024-05-15 Author: Samsung Charmander (Author Name)
*Thwack, thwack, thwack, thwack, thwack*
In the Soul Space, after a round of punches and kicks, Ash and Small Fry Mewtwo separated. The latter was now covered in bruises and wounds, its body still trembling intermittently.
However, its recovery was remarkable. In just a few breaths, its soul-body was as good as new, as if it had never been injured. The only thing that wouldn't fade were the two panda-like black eyes, the area around its pupils dark and bruised.
Mewtwo stared with its large, innocent eyes, still completely baffled as to why this Human had attacked it on sight.
"You're pretty strong, you know."
Ash's body was also trembling. Just because his opponent looked bewildered didn't mean it wouldn't fight back.
He roughly estimated that for every five punches he landed on Mewtwo, his opponent would hit him back once, and with considerable force.
"So, is this enough?"
Ash secretly asked Red. He had already hit it with everything he had.
Red nodded silently. Today's punching session should have inflicted enough suffering on Mewtwo. The concept of 'Bond' was likely now etched into the deepest part of its soul.
"It's enough. Right, state your identity one more time."
Hearing the voice in his mind, Ash didn't question it. Brother Red had always been his good brother; how could he possibly have any ill intent?
So Ash once again pounced on the soul of Mewtwo and pinned it to the ground, grabbing its chest as if wringing out a dead dog.
"I'll say it again! Remember the man who beat you until you cried today! I am Ash from Pallet Town, the future Pokémon Master!"
Small Fry Mewtwo: "?"
The veteran Mewtwo: "..."
Immediately, the veteran Mewtwo activated its ability, sending the former's soul back into its body inside the Viridian Gym.
Inside the Viridian Gym.
Mewtwo's physical body, which had been suspended by telekinetic energy, suddenly jolted violently. Its eyes snapped open. The pain in its soul made it impossible to maintain its telekinesis. Its body fell from mid-air, crashing back into the rubble of the wall.
With its soul returned to its body, it was even more bewildered.
What just happened?
Was that a dream?
He subconsciously touched his eye sockets. Although there were no physical wounds on his body, he felt as if both his eyes had really been swollen shut, and they ached.
The memory was beginning to blur, but the anguish deep within his soul was unforgettable, something he could never forget, carved into the deepest part of his being.
Mewtwo mumbled one last sentence before the excessive physical and mental exhaustion became too much to bear, and it fainted amidst the rock ruins.
"Ash from Pallet Town..."
Before losing consciousness, this was the only thing it could remember.
Giovanni: "?"
Seeing Mewtwo, who had been on the verge of erupting, suddenly collapse and faint, Giovanni was utterly baffled. What had happened?
Why did Mewtwo's expression look so strange? It was like...
It was like the innocent look of a street punk who had just had his head covered and been beaten senseless.
"Tsk, someone beat me to it..."
Green naturally understood what had happened. Although he had originally intended to lure this Mewtwo away himself, being preempted only left him slightly annoyed; he wasn't hung up on it.
He and a Pokémon like Mewtwo were naturally incompatible. It was better not to have it anyway.
Thus, Green just stood by and watched as Giovanni instructed his subordinates to carry the unconscious Mewtwo into the Gym's interior, making no move to stop them.
This Mewtwo's future was no longer any of his concern.
"How about it? Care to join Team Rocket? I can make you the second-in-command of Team Rocket, and we can even share this world. With the two of us working together, this world will be ours for the taking!"
Giovanni had, at some point, descended from the high platform on the second floor to the Battle Arena below. He met Green's gaze and once again extended an olive branch.
Giovanni had already placed this Youth on the same level as himself, not daring to be the slightest bit careless or complacent.
He had actually developed a rather good impression of Green.
"Hmph, don't get it wrong. We are not the same kind of people."
Green recalled the Arcanine in front of him and replied coldly, showing Giovanni no respect whatsoever.
Although he had given Giovanni a hand, it didn't mean he had any fondness for the man. It was merely out of respect for the Viridian Gym.
Or perhaps it was to create a powerful future rival for himself; Giovanni had the potential.
But the current Giovanni just didn't cut it.
"Oh? Unwilling to join our Team Rocket? But you did help me out of my predicament. I must express my gratitude."
Giovanni seemed to have anticipated Green's answer. He wasn't angry, instead revealing a broad smile, looking just like a kindly old man.
"Then I shall give you a gift... a complete corpse!"
Giovanni's expression changed in an instant. His face became utterly savage, his gaze ruthless. That intensely aggressive and domineering aura once again enveloped the entire Gym.
For a rookie Trainer of such terrifying strength, if he wouldn't join Team Rocket, then there was only one path left for him.
Death!!
*Bzzzzzz*
The high-frequency sound of beating wings suddenly echoed across the Battle Arena. In the next second, the shadow of a large, yellow wasp appeared before Green. It had blood-red eyes and a yellow, insectoid body with several black, circular stripes on its abdomen.
Both its arms and the tip of its abdomen bore sharp stingers. At this moment, one of its arm-stingers was raised and held before Green's neck, its sharp tip already pressing against his skin.
"..."
Feeling the deathly chill on his neck and seeing the cold, merciless eyes of the Beedrill before him, Green had no doubt that if he made any move, this Beedrill would pierce his throat instantly.
This was a Beedrill that had killed a Human, a true killer bee!
"Such incredible speed..."
Green couldn't help but exclaim in admiration. He hadn't been able to perceive the Beedrill's movements at all.
"Hmph, I admit you are outstanding. So outstanding that it even fills me with a bit of fear. In a Pokémon Battle, even Champion Lance might not be able to defeat you."
Giovanni clasped his hands behind his back, a cruel smile playing on his lips.
"But this is an adult's battlefield now, not a Trainer's Battle."
Since he couldn't gain an advantage in a Pokémon Battle, there was only one path left.
Attack the Trainer!
"For this, I must thank you. You freed me from my obsession with Mewtwo."
Giovanni looked at the Beedrill before him as if it were a precious treasure.
That's right, what did Mewtwo matter? He, Giovanni, was already powerful. Why did he need an artificial Pokémon to prove it?
"Even Champion Lance wouldn't dare be careless against my Beedrill."
Giovanni sneered, his expression once again becoming ruthless and decisive. He adjusted the lapels of his suit, his aura as a superior powerhouse radiating without reservation. This was a completely different aura from the one Mewtwo had released earlier.
"No one has ever been able to refuse me. You are no exception!"
Giovanni snarled, posturing as if he was about to command his Beedrill to finish Green on the spot.
"Go to another world and regret your mercy..."
Green's expression remained impassive as he locked eyes with Giovanni. Then, his expression suddenly shifted. This change made Giovanni frown, and an inexplicable sense of irritation welled up inside him.
"Laughing? You can still laugh at a time like this?"
That's right. Green had laughed out loud.
"Hehe, a Giovanni who turns hostile so quickly... now *this* is a bit more interesting."
As soon as he finished speaking, Green's expression changed again, becoming serious. From his not particularly large frame, an aura several times more powerful than Giovanni's erupted, soaring to the heavens and instantly washing away Giovanni's momentum.
Although the Beedrill's sharp stinger was still pressed against Green's neck, there was not a trace of fear on his face.
*Bzzzzzz*
A familiar, high-frequency buzzing sound rang out.
In the next instant, a nearly human-height, blood-red figure appeared out of thin air at Giovanni's side. A massive steel pincer was already at Giovanni's neck, pressed tightly against his skin and glinting with a terrifyingly sharp, cold light.
There was no doubt that with the slightest pressure from the pincer, Giovanni's head would instantly hit the floor.
"Move, and you will die." Green said faintly.
(end of chapter)