Clearly, the three hunters had already noticed Haruki's presence.
Everything that had just happened was nothing but a show to lower Haruki's guard.
Now that Claydol's sneak attack had failed, it had cautiously returned to the side of the hunter on the right. But Drapion and Skuntank were already charging toward Marowak.
Only Ariados was still busy binding Tropius with String Shot and couldn't spare the effort.
"Surrender, kid. Hand over your Pokémon and the backpack, and we'll let you go."
The Pokémon Hunter in the center spoke in a low voice, standing in place while remaining cautious.
"Bulldoze!"
Haruki wasn't moved at all. He simply commanded Marowak to take on Drapion and Skuntank at once.
With Bulldoze, a ripple of Ground-type energy spread out rapidly. Skuntank, who had just been preparing to attack, immediately gave up and leapt away to evade.
Drapion wasn't as agile, but its three claws were embedded in the ground, allowing it to withstand the Bulldoze impact with solid footing.
Due to the type disadvantage, Drapion and Skuntank were clearly holding back.
Marowak, on the other hand, was a "tiny" body relentlessly chasing them down. Each strike of its bone club made the two Pokémon tremble.
And yet none of the three Pokémon Hunters made any further moves.
Until Ariados came to assist…
"Hehehe, going 1-vs-3… think your Marowak can handle that?"
It was the same foul-mouthed hunter from the start, continuing to taunt.
Haruki didn't reply. He just gripped the Poké Ball in his hand, waiting patiently.
Marowak, who had been holding its own just moments ago, immediately became overwhelmed after Ariados joined the fray.
Ariados, with its strong control moves, instantly began spamming String Shot, severely restricting Marowak's mobility.
And outside the fray, Claydol was still lurking with predatory eyes, making Marowak hesitate to use Bonemerang recklessly.
After getting focused down once again, Marowak was knocked back directly to Haruki's feet, its body faintly glowing with a purple toxic haze.
But just then, Claydol suddenly sprouted a mass of vines all over its body, with an abnormal purple hue spreading from the corners of its eyes.
And then, Claydol, who had been levitating, lost control and crashed to the ground.
Leech Seed-Toxic-Worry Seed.
Worry Seed had changed its Ability to Insomnia, sealing away Claydol's original Levitate trait.
When had it happened… Claydol had been hit with all these control moves?
Bang!
Another flash of red light.
The silver Metang entered the field.
"Bullet Punch, Bulldoze!"
Haruki's commands rang out in unison, and both Metang and Marowak sprang into action.
Before any of the three hunters could even register what kind of Pokémon had appeared, Metang had already used Bullet Punch's explosive speed to arrive right beside Claydol.
Bullet Punch landed hard, striking directly into one of Claydol's eyes, severely injuring it on the spot. A gust of wind roared as Skiploom activated Tailwind from the shadows.
Marowak sprang forward and willingly dove into the center of the triangle between Drapion, Ariados, and Skuntank.
Bulldoze activated again. All three Pokémon were caught by the Ground-type ripples and had no choice but to struggle just to maintain balance.
Finally, the three hunters got a clear look at Metang's unique coloration, and their eyes instantly turned bloodshot!
…But none of them noticed that Skiploom had already floated above their heads.
Sleep Powder, boosted by Tailwind, was practically diving straight into their nostrils.
Sleep Powder took effect instantly. No matter how excited the three hunters were, they couldn't resist the wave of drowsiness washing over them.
"Metang, Claydol's yours. Don't let it get away! Skiploom, come back and help."
Haruki gave his orders, then looked at the three Pokémon Hunters lying on the ground and drew the dagger he always carried.
From the moment he included Metang in the counterattack, these three had no path to survival.
Thankfully, he'd had experience dealing with Mismagius before, so he wasn't so fearful of corpses anymore.
Shk~ Shk~ Shk~
Haruki retracted the blood-red dagger and slowly stood up, his face pale.
In his mind, the pinkish-purple glow flashed wildly, helping him calm down quickly after that first kill.
Only then did Haruki look toward both battlefields.
Having lost its Levitate Ability, Claydol had become a sitting duck, rooted to the ground and unable to move.
Teleport, which was supposed to be its escape ace, was completely suppressed by Metang's Pursuit.
The moment it began to prep Teleport, Metang could interrupt it directly with Pursuit.
Add to that the earlier Leech Seed and Toxic placed by Skiploom, and Claydol had no strength left to fight. It soon went down.
On the other side, with Skiploom's support, the three Poison-types also had no way to resist.
Cotton Spore slowed the enemies down, Tailwind sped up the allies.
And then, every so often, a gust of Tailwind would blow in some Sleep Powder or Stun Spore… the experience was just plain miserable.
With Claydol's threat removed, Marowak's Bonemerang flew freely, knocking all three Pokémon to the ground in just a few hits.
"Metang, check the surroundings for anything suspicious and bring it back."
"Meta!"
Metang flew off, while Haruki quietly began cleaning up the chaotic battlefield.
He first confiscated the Pokémon the three hunters hadn't released yet, along with all their Poké Balls.
Then he located the Poké Balls of Drapion and the others and locked them after recalling them.
Looking at the blood-soaked ground, Haruki called Marowak over.
"Bury them. Make it deep."
Marowak nodded and silently activated its Ground-type energy.
Soon, the ground beneath the three began to churn and then slowly swallowed them whole.
In the end, even the red-stained ground completely vanished without a trace.
"Skiploom, Grassy Terrain."
"Skip~"
The obedient Skiploom looked even more well-behaved than usual. With a wave of its little hand, a soft green glow spread over the entire battlefield.
Grass sprouted. Wildflowers poked through.
Soon, a fresh green lawn covered the entire area.
This was the entrance connecting the flower fields and Eterna Forest. Unless another battle broke out here soon and someone happened to use Dig repeatedly, the chance of discovery was minuscule.
And even if someone did find it… so what? Who would know who did it?
After finishing the cleanup, Haruki brought Marowak and Skiploom over to the net.
The two Tropius were badly wounded, lying on the ground gasping for breath, eyes filled with pleading as they looked at Haruki.
Maybe it was because he had just killed someone, or maybe it was discovering that the two Tropius were a mother and child; either way, Haruki felt a sudden urge to do something good.
"Skiploom, Grassy Terrain, Aromatherapy."
"Skip~ Skip~"
Skiploom, already eager to help, sprang into action.
Haruki and Marowak also helped open the net and released the mother-and-child Tropius.
"Tro~"
The mother Tropius bowed her head slightly toward Haruki and Marowak, then gently nuzzled Skiploom beside her.
The little Tropius timidly hid behind its mother but looked on with wide, curious eyes.
There was no dramatic gratitude scene. After all, they had been harmed by humans in the first place. Just being able to rationally plead for Haruki's help was already rare.
As Haruki watched the mother and child Tropius fly away, he still couldn't fully calm down.
"Meta~"
At that moment, Metang flew back.