Thanks to the meticulous treatment by Nurse Joy and Chansey, Gengar’s injuries had fully healed, restoring it to perfect condition.
Sean didn’t let hotheadedness take over and rush out like he usually did.
Instead, he sat in the waiting area, cradling his head in his hands as he racked his brain for a strategy.
“The gap in our strength is just too massive.
Setting aside that monstrosity, Team Rocket probably has over a hundred combat personnel on site!
Going by myself is a literal suicide mission!
What do I do…
what on earth am I supposed to do?!” Sean’s mind, usually overflowing with brilliant sparks of inspiration, felt completely rusted over, making him more and more frustrated by the second.
Right then.
A boiling wave of noisy chatter erupted from outside the Pokémon Center, instantly magnifying his frustration a hundredfold.
He was so irritated he wanted to swear out loud!
Just as Sean violently stormed out the door, looking to find a quiet place…
He saw a massive crowd of television station crew members lugging cameras, alongside reporters clutching microphones, completely surrounding a young man.
The young man wore a black, high-collared combat uniform—his signature look—and boasted a head of deep red hair paired with a handsome, resolute face.
His gaze was as sharp as a blazing torch, looking as though it could pierce through anything.
The most eye-catching feature was the black cape behind him, snapping and crackling in the wind, radiating absolute dominance!
It was the current Kanto Champion, celebrated as the “Dragon Master”—Lance!
His fame and strength were things even a three-year-old child knew about, so Sean naturally recognized him at a single glance.
However, Sean was a fan of the former Champion, Red—the man who had become Kanto’s strongest after barely six months on the scene.
His understanding of Lance was still stuck on the internet memes poking fun at him as “The Dodo Bird.” The reporters scrambled over one another to thrust their microphones forward: “Mr.
Lance, did you come to New Bark Town to investigate clues?” “Mr.
Lance, what are your thoughts on Team Rocket kidnapping Professor Elm?” “Rumor has it that Team Rocket is secretly conducting horrifying Pokémon experiments.
Is this true?” “Mr.
Lance, the progress of the investigation…” “…” Lance crossed his arms over his chest, looking exceptionally patient.
He answered the reporters’ questions one by one, declaring with absolute righteousness that he would completely eradicate Team Rocket!
Staring at Lance as he held court, surrounded by the press, Sean felt incredibly anxious and frustrated!
*The Professor’s life hangs in the balance, and every single second is incredibly precious, yet here you are spouting corporate pleasantries!* Sean immediately shoved his way forward, but he kept getting pushed right back out by the perimeter of reporters and the surging crowd.
The mounting anxiety and rage caused him to completely lose his cool!
“Gengar!” Sean stomped his foot violently, his eyes turning vicious as he unhesitatingly summoned Gengar from the shadow beneath his feet.
“Fire a Shadow Ball at that red-haired older guy in the center!!” Faced with this command, Gengar hesitated for a split second: “Ke-giah, ke-giah?
(Are we seriously attacking him?
He’s a human, you know?)” “Inaa!” Cyndaquil flailed its little paws, trying to get Sean to calm down.
Sean clenched his fists, speaking with pure resentment: “It doesn’t matter, he’s the Champion!
I’m betting everything on a Champion’s strength and reflexes!” Gengar hesitated no longer.
It soared into mid-air, conjuring a purple energy sphere between its hands before launching it straight toward Lance in the center of the crowd!
However, the exact microsecond the Shadow Ball was about to strike Lance…
“ROAR!!!” Lance’s ace Pokémon, Dragonite, burst out from its Poké Ball in a flash.
Its colossal dragon claw easily crushed the Shadow Ball into dust!
[Dragonite Level: 80] A powerful aura resembling that of a primordial beast violently swept outward from Dragonite, causing the surrounding reporters to collapse flat on their rears.
Dragonite glared viciously at Gengar and Sean!
!!!
Only then did everyone snap out of it.
They spun around in unison, training their cameras dead onto the incredibly audacious youth who had dared to publicly assault the Champion, terrified of missing out on a piece of breaking news!
Lance’s gaze followed the exact line of Dragonite’s glaring eyes.
At this moment, silence spoke louder than words.
Looking at Sean’s dead-serious expression, Lance understood everything in a flash.
He patted Dragonite’s shoulder to signal it to relax, then softly whispered a command into its ear.
Understanding immediately, Dragonite spread its wings, generating a powerful gust of wind that instantly swept the surrounding crowd aside.
It carefully scooped up Lance and Sean, soaring straight into the sky…
A short while later.
Dragonite touched down in a quiet, secluded forest outside New Bark Town.
“I assume you didn’t seek me out for something as tedious as a Pokémon battle?” Lance looked at Sean, his tone serious.
“Show him.” “Ke-giah.
(Understood.)” Gengar stepped forward immediately, preparing to press its small purple hand against Lance’s forehead.
Lance froze slightly, but he didn’t resist.
He allowed Gengar’s hand to rest on his forehead and closed his eyes.
The next second.
Telepathy transmitted a colossal wave of information directly into Lance’s mind.
A few moments later, the transmission concluded…
“Those absolute lunatics!” Lance snapped his eyes open, his gaze filled with an unprecedented level of shock!
He expressed his gratitude to Sean with deep gravity: “You’ve been an immense help.
This intelligence is absolutely critical!
Dragonite!” Without a shred of hesitation, Lance vaulted onto Dragonite’s back, preparing to head straight for the Team Rocket base.
“Um…
can I come along?” Sean asked tentatively.
“I can help!
Professor Elm is my family!” Lance hesitated for a brief moment, but looking at the determined resolve written across Sean’s face, he reached his hand down.
Sean grabbed Lance’s hand instantly, vaulting onto Dragonite’s back right behind him, while Cyndaquil hopped up as well.
Dragonite immediately beat its wings, letting out a deafening roar as it rocketed in the direction of the Team Rocket base!
Dragonite’s speed defied Sean’s wildest imagination.
The New Bark Town buildings, forests, and rivers below shrunk at a terrifying rate.
Having a severe fear of heights, Sean instinctively plastered his entire body flat against Dragonite’s back, mumbling in his heart that falling from this height would definitely leave him black and blue all over.
He instinctively wanted to recall Cyndaquil into its Poké Ball to ensure its safety, but looking up, he saw the little guy crouching steadily right in front of him.
Far from being terrified, it looked incredibly thrilled.
It stood in stark contrast to Sean, who was death-gripping the dragon’s back with a deathly pale face.
“Ke-hehe-hehe.” Gengar mocked him from the side.
“What do you know?
This is called minimizing air resistance to make Dragonite fly faster!” Sean fired back, stubborn to the end.
“Ke-giah, ke-giah~ (If you say so~)” Hearing Sean and Gengar bickering, Lance offered a word of comfort from the front: “Everyone is like this the first time they fly on a Pokémon.” “What’s your name?” “Se…
Sean!” The wind was too loud, forcing Sean to crank his volume up.
“Sean, excellent!” Lance’s voice was steady and powerful.
“Now, let’s discuss our battle plan.” With that, Lance didn’t even turn his head around, simply tossing a Poké Ball backward to Sean.
Startled, Sean fumbled wildly to catch it, grumbling in his heart that Lance wasn’t even worried about the Poké Ball falling down!
“The Pokémon inside is a Larvitar.
Its Digging capability will be highly useful for our operation,” Lance explained.
“Digging?
Operation?” Sean looked thoroughly confused.
Lance began to briefly outline his tactics: “Listen closely.
The plan goes like this: I will mount a forced breakthrough directly from the front of the base to cause mass chaos and draw all their firepower.
What you need to do is have that special Gengar of yours utilize its phasing ability to slip inside the base interior once more and locate the room where Professor Elm is being held.
The second Gengar confirms the location, have Larvitar dig a tunnel directly beneath or near that room.
Considering the walls of the base are made of alloy, you’ll…” Lance’s gaze shifted over to the Cyndaquil on the side.
“Use this Cyndaquil’s flames to melt right through the alloy.
I believe it can do it.” The plan was bold and direct; Lance didn’t view Team Rocket as a threat in the slightest.
“However, the most important point…” Lance’s tone turned incredibly severe: “Safety first!
The second things go south, abort the mission immediately.
Understood?” “U-Understood!” Sean nodded vigorously, gripping Larvitar’s Poké Ball tightly in his hand.
“Hold on tight!” Lance said no more, patting Dragonite to signal it to accelerate.
Dragonite let out a low growl, beating its wings with even greater force as its speed skyrocketed once more.