The atmosphere was tense; everyone knew a battle was unavoidable.
Everyone took out their Pokémon simultaneously. In an instant, a dozen flashes of blue light erupted, and Pokémon appeared beside their trainers.
First was the Team Rocket trio. Jessie and James sent out all the Pokémon they had, but their numbers were relatively small. Even including Meowth and Wobbuffet, they only had six in total.
On the opposing side, Erika, Misty, and Brock, not traveling for the sake of training, also had few Pokémon. Although Erika had caught some new Grass-types recently, they weren't combat-ready.
Furthermore, she was holding the unconscious Celebi and couldn't join the fight.
The pressure fell entirely on Misty and Brock.
However, against the Team Rocket trio, the two former Gym Leaders still held the upper hand in both quantity and quality. Barring any surprises, dealing with these weaklings should be more than enough.
But that didn't mean the trio had no chance. They had some skill, and as the aggressors, they would attack recklessly. Not to mention, they could pull out bizarre inventions at any moment.
Overall, Misty and Brock were likely to win, but they still needed to be cautious.
The real trouble was Vicious.
It wasn't that Vicious's Pokémon were overwhelmingly strong, but rather that he possessed the Dark Ball, which could forcibly capture others' Pokémon and make them stronger and more evil.
Natsui remembered back at the Dragon's Holy Land, Vicious had used a Dark Ball to control Lance's Dragonite, causing them significant trouble.
"Be careful," Natsui said to Ash. "He has a Dark Ball that can snatch Pokémon. Don't let your Pokémon get caught!"
"Even if you say that..."
Hearing Natsui's warning, Ash felt a headache coming on.
How are we supposed to fight an enemy while constantly worrying about our Pokémon being stolen?
On the other side, Vicious looked at the group and sneered.
Ever since his last failure, he had been hunted by Dragon trainers. He had long since started carrying a full supply of Dark Balls, which was the main reason he had repeatedly escaped and continued to live so comfortably.
"Let me show you my latest collection!" Vicious said to the wary group. He took a Dark Ball from his vest, threw it far out, and shouted, "Go! My Dark Tyranitar!"
After the black light faded, a Tyranitar that looked completely unnatural appeared before Natsui and the others.
Not only were its eyes glowing with black light, but its body also emanated a dark aura. It was clearly controlled by the Dark Ball, devoid of reason, looking both dangerous and immensely destructive!
Upon appearing, the Dark Tyranitar roared at the sky. Before the sound even faded, it gathered energy and fired a Hyper Beam straight at Natsui's group.
"Look out!"
The Hyper Beam was visibly thick and massive. Natsui and the others quickly scattered to dodge. In the instant they moved, the energy beam shot through where they had been and struck a giant tree in the distance.
Too close!
Natsui could even feel the heat from the beam.
Looking in the direction the beam had gone, they saw a towering ancient tree, over ten meters in diameter, completely blasted in two.
And it wasn't over. The beam continued backward, striking a rocky mountain and causing a large chunk of it to collapse before finally dissipating.
"How... so... so strong..."
Ash and the others stared, dumbfounded, truly understanding the terror of the Dark Ball.
The attack also startled the Team Rocket trio nearby. They were closest to the blast and were nearly knocked off their feet by the shockwave. But once they recovered, they were ecstatic about the Dark Tyranitar's power.
With an executive and a Pokémon like this, revenge is guaranteed!
Hmph, this time we'll teach Natsui a lesson, and we'll snatch Pikachu too!
Overjoyed, they also commanded their Pokémon to attack Natsui's group. Caught off guard, Misty and Brock were forced to defend themselves.
This attack triggered a chain reaction. Ash gritted his teeth and threw out Muk and Bayleef. Even Sammy took an old-fashioned, kettle-like Poké Ball from his pocket, opened the lid, and released his Pokémon—a Charmeleon!
The young Samuel Oak, not yet a Pokémon Professor or a full-fledged trainer, had a Charmeleon that didn't look particularly strong, but its spirit was impressive. Upon appearing, it wasn't intimidated by the Dark Tyranitar at all, instead roaring defensively at it.
It was surprising that the highly respected, kind old Professor Oak's first Pokémon as a youth was such a fierce and aggressive Charmeleon.
Including Pikachu, the group's Pokémon surrounded the Dark Tyranitar from all sides. But Vicious clearly didn't intend to defeat them with just one Pokémon.
He threw out two more Dark Balls. With flashes of light, a Sneasel and a Scizor, their eyes also glowing black, appeared beside the Dark Tyranitar.
The Pokémon instantly clashed. Although Ash's Pokémon were well-trained from his long journey, they were at a slight disadvantage against the enhanced Dark Pokémon.
The Dark Tyranitar, especially, seemed to have endless power, firing Hyper Beam after Hyper Beam as if unaffected by the recharge, making the battle even harder for Ash's side. They had to fight their opponents while constantly watching out for the Tyranitar's attacks, unable to lose focus for a second.
Under these circumstances, Natsui observed for a long time before cautiously taking a Poké Ball from his pouch.
The situation looked like a stalemate, but the only variable was the Dark Tyranitar.
If it could be defeated, the tide would turn in their favor.
But to defeat it quickly, he couldn't just swarm it with his Pokémon. He had to send out one powerful Pokémon to fight it alone, allowing him to recall it instantly if Vicious tried to use a Dark Ball.
This was tricky...
After some thought, Natsui decided to send out his most trusted partner—Gardevoir.
Gardevoir's Teleport would allow it to escape to safety if Vicious used a Dark Ball, greatly reducing its chances of being captured.
"Gardevoir, try to distract it!"
Gardevoir moved to engage the Dark Tyranitar, first attacking with Confusion. But perhaps Dark Tyranitar's power was too great; the usually effective Confusion failed to lift it!
Surprised, Natsui quickly had Gardevoir use the stronger Psychic. This time, it finally worked, successfully pushing the Dark Tyranitar back several steps.
But this undoubtedly attracted the Dark Tyranitar's attention, and its retaliation!
The Dark Tyranitar turned and fired another Hyper Beam at Gardevoir.
The power of this attack was immense; a direct hit would mean critical damage, if not a knockout. If it were another Pokémon, dodging such a thick beam would be difficult, but Gardevoir simply used Teleport to escape the attack range.
However, while it dodged, the forest behind it suffered.
Caught in the Hyper Beam's path, trees and rocks shattered instantly, and a deep trench was carved into the ground.
Strong, just too strong!
The Dark Tyranitar, enhanced by dark power, displayed terrifying strength, truly embodying the "destruction" in Hyper Beam.
But...
If it kept this up, destroying the surrounding forest was a minor issue; starting a wildfire would be the real disaster.
"Gengar!" Natsui called out to his feet. "You help too! Use Hypnosis!"
Gengar, knowing the situation was difficult, said nothing. It flew out of Natsui's shadow, its large eyes staring, and instantly, rings of energy pulsed towards the Dark Tyranitar.
Hypnosis successfully hit the Dark Tyranitar.
But the Dark Ball's priority was higher. Controlled by that dark power, which stimulated its brain, the Dark Tyranitar was completely unaffected by Hypnosis!
Natsui clicked his tongue.
What a pain...
Watching the battle, Vicious sat securely in his machine's cockpit, smiling smugly.
Although the Dark Ball was an enhancement tool that boosted a Pokémon's power, the extent of the boost depended on the Pokémon itself.
Last time at the Dragon's Holy Land, although he had controlled Lance's Dragonite, the amplifying effect hadn't been very satisfactory.
But this time was different!
Perhaps this Tyranitar was inherently strong, or perhaps it was just highly compatible with the Dark Ball, but the result was far greater than the sum of its parts.
If he could control a few more Tyranitar like this, wouldn't he be invincible?
However, before he could celebrate, the tide turned on the other side of the battlefield.
The Team Rocket trio was ultimately no match for Misty and Brock. Even with superior numbers, after a short fight, they were quickly defeated.
And those three were cunning. Seeing defeat was imminent, they promptly fled, successfully escaping their usual fate of being blasted off.
But their retreat immediately increased the pressure on Vicious.
Misty and Brock commanded their Pokémon to join the main battle, attacking from the flanks. They were smart, too—they didn't go for Tyranitar first. Instead, they helped Ash and Sammy defeat the Dark Sneasel and Dark Scizor.
Once those two pests were dealt with, they all ganged up on the Dark Tyranitar.
As strong as Dark Tyranitar was, it couldn't fend off so many opponents at once. Overwhelmed, it could no longer rampage and was forced onto the defensive.
Seeing this, Vicious cursed the uselessness of the Team Rocket trio and slowly reached for the other Dark Balls on his vest.
Nearby, Sammy had been wary ever since Natsui warned him about the hunter's capturing ability.
Seeing Vicious's movement, he was startled and shouted loudly, "He's going to use the Dark Balls! Watch out!"
Alerted by his shout, the others immediately looked at Vicious and saw his intention, causing their assault to falter.
Natsui assessed the situation and said to the group, "Fighting like this is pointless. The priority right now is to heal Celebi. Let's get out of here."
Hearing him, Ash and the others calmed down, realized they couldn't continue fighting Vicious, and nodded in agreement.
They exchanged glances and simultaneously ran off to the side.
With the Team Rocket trio no longer blocking their path, and Dark Tyranitar unable to catch up, their escape was easy.
They ducked into the forest and ran for a long time. Looking back, Vicious was nowhere in sight.
Clearly, he wasn't pursuing them, which brought them temporary relief.
Back on the battlefield, seeing Natsui's group escape, the Team Rocket trio peeked out from the bushes.
They saw Vicious sitting calmly in his spider-mech and the Dark Tyranitar standing unharmed. They quickly hurried over, plastering on obsequious smiles.
"Lord Vicious," James said, rubbing his hands, "You're truly amazing! You scared off Natsui and those little twerps!"
Vicious just glanced at the cowards and snorted disdainfully.
Although they were all Team Rocket, he had long heard of this trio's "fame" and their "tragic" reputation. He had thought it was just exaggerated gossip, but seeing them now, they truly were hopeless.
Good thing I wasn't counting on them for anything.
Seeing Vicious ignore them, James glanced in the direction Natsui's group had fled and asked nervously, "Um... aren't you going to chase them? If you don't hurry, they'll get away..."
"What do you know?" Vicious said coldly. "Hunting prey, especially rare prey like Celebi, is only interesting when it's a challenge. As a hunter, one must savor the process!"
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