"Go, Master Ball!" Natsume had no other choice—this was his last resort.
This time, there was finally no *Divine Authority* interference.
The Master Ball struck the massive Dragonite, wrapping it in a beam of red light.
> Natsume used a Master Ball! This Pokémon is in Eternamax state. Capture failed.
"Eternamax?" Natsume was utterly shocked, unable even to grieve over the loss of a Master Ball.
Eternamax was exclusive to Eternatus—so why did this Dragonite have it too?
"It's over, it's all over, meow!"
Meowth clutched his head, feeling as though the sky was collapsing.
"System, can we escape?" Natsume suddenly asked.
> Attempting escape… Success!
The next second, the battlefield collapsed, and Natsume plunged into the sea.
Soaked in the bitter saltwater, Natsume was speechless.
"Do something, nya! She's looking this way, nya!"
Meowth clung to Natsume's head, shaking him frantically.
"Meowth…" Natsume raised his eyes, gazing seriously at him.
"What, you actually have a plan, nya?" Meowth's heart flared with faint hope.
"Instead of struggling in despair, better to put your affairs in order." With that, Natsume closed his eyes, wearing a peaceful expression.
"Put your sister in order, nya!!!"
As the seawater churned, Natsume and Meowth were snatched up by Dragonite's giant claw.
"Natsume!"
"Mr. Natsume!!"
"Natsume!!!"
"Go, Pidgeotto!"
Ash hurled a Pokéball, but the massive Dragonite beat its wings and soared into the sky.
*Boom!* Even the smallest movement summoned a storm.
The violent wind lifted the sands into a choking haze, forcing everyone down.
"Onix, block it for us!"
"Rhyperior!"
"Dragonite, use Twister!"
Just as the group struggled under the chaos, a powerful voice rang out from afar.
A violent pressure collided with the raging storm, clearing the beach in an instant.
"It's Mr. Lance!"
"Mr. Lance, please save Natsume!"
Ash leapt up in desperation, nearly reaching the Dragonite hovering above.
"Hmm?" Dragonite glanced at him curiously, but soon shifted its gaze toward the sea's horizon.
There's the aura of a dragon prodigy of my kind!
"Mr. Lance, save my teacher!"
"Lance! I planted a tracker on Natsume—Dragonite grabbed him and hasn't gone far. Hurry and save him!"
Bill had clearly prepared more thoroughly. He tossed a device into the air.
"Leave it to me!" Lance caught the device, and his Dragonite immediately surged forward in pursuit of the massive one.
"Mr. Lance will manage, right?" Brock asked anxiously, eyes fixed on the direction Lance had gone.
"Come on, he's the Dragon-type Champion. He's got his own Dragonite—maybe he can even negotiate with that one." Misty tried to sound optimistic.
In the next moment, a streak of light plummeted back down—Lance and his Dragonite slammed into the beach, leaving a deep crater.
"Mr. Lance, are you alright?!"
Everyone looked over, only to see Dragonite cradling Lance protectively. Thanks to its soft belly cushioning him, he was unharmed.
Dragonite let out a mournful cry.
She had been mistaken—this wasn't a prodigy, but an elder.
"What a crazy wind pressure, nya!" Meowth wailed above Natsume's head, his mouth wide open as the sea wind rushed in.
It wasn't that he didn't want to close it—he simply couldn't against the force of the wind.
"What did you say?"
Meowth's voice was carried away by the gale, and even Natsume's words were barely audible.
The massive Dragonite flew at full speed in one direction, carrying him away without explanation.
The freezing sea wind slapped Natsume's face again and again until he felt close to fainting.
Sensing something was wrong with Natsume and Meowth, Dragonite finally stopped.
Only then did she notice the human in her grasp had gone pale and cold to the touch—he looked like he'd been dead for a while.
*Huh—?* Dragonite froze for a moment.
Then she spat a mouthful of saliva over him.
"What the heck is this, meow?!"
Meowth thrashed in the sticky fluid, his instincts screaming in disgust.
But Natsume suddenly felt warmth spreading around him. Opening his eyes, he realized he was wrapped in Dragonite's saliva.
"Meowth, this saliva keeps us warm," Natsume explained helpfully.
Meowth paused mid-swipe.
"Seriously, nya? You're trying to make me—nya!!"
Before he could finish, Dragonite took off again at full speed.
This time, with the saliva's protection, Natsume felt much better.
He even started lecturing Meowth about ocean Pokémon as they flew.
"See that one? Pelipper. My fa~vorite Pokémon. And that white one, Seel—my fa~vorite Pokémon. And that one too—"
"How can you have so many favorites, meow?"
"Look at those two Blastoise, one male and one female. I'll teach you how to tell them apart—the one on top is male, the one on the bottom is female."
"Don't say pervy stuff like that, nya!"
...
Natsume's droning explanations were so hypnotic that Dragonite began snoring above them.
"Wait, how can the pilot fall asleep, nya?!" Meowth panicked.
Fortunately, even with her eyes shut as if asleep, Dragonite still flew steadily onward.
Along the way, Natsume spotted several islands, though most were remote and unfamiliar.
"We're getting closer to the sea's surface. Don't tell me we're gonna crash, nya!" Meowth said nervously.
Though Dragonite seemed asleep, her grip on Natsume remained firm.
Natsume couldn't break free, and Meowth had no chance to escape.
"Should we wake her up, nya? Honestly, she doesn't seem to mean us harm," Meowth said, hearing soft snores beside him.
Turning, he saw that Natsume had also fallen asleep.
...
Natsume awoke sometime later to Meowth's terrified scream.
Opening his eyes, he found Meowth staring ahead in horror.
"We're gonna crash, nya! We're gonna crash!!"
Following his gaze, Natsume saw they had arrived at a massive island, dotted with towering peaks.
At that moment, Dragonite was skimming just above the sea's surface, her flight alone raising towering waves.
"Do something, wake her up, nya!"
Meowth shouted and bit her hand, but it had no effect.
"Maybe you should just pee on her hand. That might wake her," Natsume suggested.
As if on cue, just before they smashed into the island, a pair of enormous vertical pupils snapped open.
With a single beat of her wings, Dragonite stopped dead in the air.
Natsume could see countless trees on the island being uprooted by the impact and flung several miles away.
*Where is this?*
He studied the island in front of him with curiosity.
It wasn't until the massive Dragonite set him and Meowth down that he realized the island was shrouded in thick mist.
You can read more (around 70+ free chapters) of Natsume's adventure ad-free at [https ://ravenarchives .com/book/pokemon-who-let-him-leave-pallet-town]. Bulk uploads is a mess here, so updates here might be irregular.