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Ash looked behind him and saw an Alakazam floating in the air, surrounded by blue psychic energy as it slowly moved through the opening in the Team Rocket formation.
Sabrina followed close behind Alakazam. Not only had she arrived, but Green had come with her as well, looking around alertly while reaching for her Poke Balls.
Archer frowned when he spotted them. He had encountered Green previously at Cinnabar Gym - she was a highly capable rookie Trainer who had proven quite troublesome.
As for the other newcomer, he was much more familiar with her. Sabrina, the Gym Leader of Saffron City Gym, wasn't just any ordinary Gym Leader - she was also a top-tier psychic talent.
Team Rocket had thoroughly investigated this exceptional individual. Her psychic abilities were even stronger than most Pokemon's. She was an extremely dangerous opponent, and Archer was somewhat surprised to see her in Celadon City.
"And us too!" At that moment, footsteps approached from another direction.
The sound came from behind a group of Team Rocket members, who instinctively turned around to discover that many new people had appeared behind their formation.
"Erika!" Green showed a surprised expression when she saw the Gym Leader. When they had left earlier, they thought Erika had stayed behind to care for her father.
"I asked everyone to help!" Erika smiled when she saw Ash and the others, then gestured to the group accompanying her.
Erika was surrounded not only by the other trainers from her gym, but also by numerous other Trainers she had gathered.
They were mostly just Trainers who happened to be passing through the city, but with Erika's encouragement, many Trainers with a strong sense of justice had voluntarily stepped forward to oppose Team Rocket.
That's how so many people had assembled together. For the first time, it seemed like Team Rocket might actually be outnumbered.
"Ash!"
At that moment, another familiar voice called out, and a figure pushed through the crowd behind Erika and the others.
"Gary?!" Ash's expression showed mild surprise when he spotted his rival.
After leaving Grampa Canyon, Gary had continued on to challenge Cinnabar Gym while Ash had been preparing to return to Viridian City.
Ash hadn't expected Gary to arrive in Celadon City as well, though notably, he hadn't brought his usual entourage of cheerleaders with him this time.
In fact, Gary had learned from experience. He used to travel with his fan club in his convertible, which seemed faster than other trainers at first glance. However, every time they reached a new location, the girls would want to wander around and explore.
In the end, he would depart much later than other trainers. Now that he no longer drove or brought his cheerleaders along, he had surprisingly discovered that his progress wasn't any slower than when he'd been driving.
"Blaine asked me to give this to you!"
Gary didn't waste time with pleasantries. He pulled out a box and threw it directly toward Ash.
Ash was momentarily stunned upon hearing this, then caught the box Gary had thrown to him.
Upon opening it, he found a strange device inside. The apparatus had three diamond-shaped components arranged in a triangular formation, each displaying different colors: red, yellow, and blue.
As if responding to some unseen energy, the three diamond-shaped parts flickered with light intermittently. Ash paused as he examined the mysterious device.
"Could this be..." Ash looked at the object with growing understanding.
Blaine had mentioned that Team Rocket's purpose was to capture the legendary birds. If this was their ultimate goal, then this device Blaine had given him might be the key item needed to resolve the crisis.
Archer's expression suddenly darkened when he witnessed this exchange. Upon hearing Gary mention Blaine's name, he had an immediate premonition that something terrible was about to happen.
After all, Blaine had originally been in charge of the legendary birds project before the plan was shelved.
If Blaine was now intervening, Archer had to be extremely cautious. The former Team Rocket scientist possessed the knowledge and ability to potentially solve the problem of the fused legendary birds.
"Seize that device!" Archer narrowed his eyes and commanded coldly.
"Yes, sir!"
"Don't even think about it! Ivysaur, use Vine Whip!" Seeing the threat, Green took the initiative and threw her Poke Ball. Ivysaur appeared, swinging its vines to strike several Zubat in the air.
"Everyone! Protect Ash!" Erika called out immediately. Ash was now more than just another Trainer to her.
He was also her father's savior, and for some reason, she instinctively felt that only Ash could stand against these criminals and protect their city.
As the Gym Leader of this city, she felt duty-bound to protect him.
All the assembled Trainers, responding to Erika's rallying cry, rushed forward and engaged the Team Rocket members in battle.
"Ash!" A voice rang out through the chaos, and two figures could be seen quickly approaching through the melee - it was Misty and Brock.
"Are you okay?" Misty asked worriedly as they reached him.
"I'm fine! But I need to get over there now to deal with the legendary birds."
Ash was certain that Blaine must have anticipated such a day would come, and this device had to be designed specifically to counter the fused legendary birds.
"Is there really a way to stop them?" Both companions were slightly stunned after hearing this. Just from observing the distant battle, they could tell that the situation with the legendary birds was extremely dire.
"It should work! But I need to go alone. Please be careful here - I'm counting on all of you to handle things on this end."
Ash spoke as he walked toward Charizard, not intending to bring them along. When facing the fused legendary birds, he wouldn't have the luxury of protecting others during the battle.
"Don't worry! Leave this to us!" They were accustomed to Ash acting independently, so they said nothing more. Looking at Ash as he prepared to depart, they spoke with firm determination.
"Fine! I'll just have to entertain myself here for now. When all four of you are together again, I'll come back to settle our score from last time."
With those words, Ash leaped onto Charizard's back, glanced at Archer with a confident smirk, and then Charizard took off into the sky.
"Don't let him escape! Crobat!" Archer shouted immediately upon seeing this, preparing to launch an attack, but suddenly a bolt of lightning flashed through the air.
Crobat reacted quickly and barely managed to dodge the electrical assault. Archer frowned and looked toward the source of the attack.
"Your opponent right now is me!"
Gary stood facing Archer with his Electabuzz positioned in front of him, speaking with serious determination. He had actually wanted to accompany Ash, but it was obviously not appropriate given the current circumstances.
"Hmph! Nothing but annoying brats!" Archer couldn't help but snort with disdain upon seeing this challenge.
On the other side, Sabrina approached Ariana, and the two women faced each other in a tense standoff. Ariana felt an unsettling chill emanating from the psychic trainer before her.
Misty also joined Erika's group and began fighting against the other Team Rocket members. Complete chaos had erupted throughout the streets as the battle raged on multiple fronts.