Chapter 212: Do You Enjoy This Endless Pursuit?
Seeing Asahi, who just wouldn't go away, Pryce—hiding within the ice sculpture of the "New Masked Man"—furrowed his brows.
Last time, it was because of Asahi's interference that he was forced to abandon capturing Ho-Oh, leaving with only a single feather.
And now… Asahi was here again!
Fortunately, this time he had come prepared. He was here in person, and he hadn't come alone.
Dodging Lugia's Air Slash, Pryce manipulated the "Masked Man's" body to wave his hand. A flash of white light, and a Swinub appeared on his shoulder.
The moment he saw the Swinub, Asahi—while closing in on Salamence—casually activated his portable camera and put on a suitably "shocked" expression.
"Swinub… could it be that you're Pryce!?"
Asahi silently praised his own acting. Flawless.
He had deliberately infused his voice with Aura power, ensuring that even in the midst of the storm, his words reached Pryce clearly.
Pryce, who had been about to command Swinub and Delibird to attack Lugia, froze for a moment.
There were so many Swinub in the world—how could Asahi identify him based on just one?
Team Rocket's methods were one thing, but did Interpol really not need evidence either?!
Despite his brief thoughts, Pryce did not hesitate in battle.
Both Delibird and Swinub attacked simultaneously.
A soft blue glow enveloped Swinub's body as it unleashed Blizzard, while Delibird took a deep breath and blew out a large-scale Icy Wind toward Lugia.
Whoosh!
A frigid blast expanded outward from the two Pokémon, sending temperatures plummeting. The storm's rain turned into countless sharp hailstones, pelting Lugia.
At the same time, Swinub's Blizzard altered the storm in a localized area, creating a blizzard in the sky.
On this day, the Whirl Islands saw both snow and hail.
"Ugh!"
The hail struck Lugia relentlessly, causing it to wince in pain.
As a Psychic/Flying-type, Lugia was naturally weak to Ice-type attacks. Now, with the altered weather and Pryce going all out, Lugia was in an increasingly dire situation.
It flapped its wings, attempting to counterattack with Aeroblast.
But Pryce swiftly commanded Delibird to evade, effortlessly dodging Lugia's attack.
Sometimes, being smaller had its advantages!
The missed Aeroblast struck the sea below, churning the water into a massive whirlpool.
Pryce saw his chance. Before Asahi could interfere, he planned to defeat Lugia first, ensuring it wouldn't become a factor in the battle.
But just as he was about to press the attack, a dark, ominous Shadow Ball flew toward him.
Of course, Asahi wasn't about to stand by and let Pryce take Lugia down. The moment he finished speaking, he had already released Mewtwo and Gardevoir.
The Shadow Ball was one of Mewtwo's signature "Giovanni's Favorite Orb" attacks.
Pryce had been watching Asahi carefully while focusing on Lugia.
Seeing the Shadow Ball brimming with terrifying energy fluctuations, he immediately understood Asahi's intention—Asahi was forcing him to abandon his attack on Lugia.
Now, Pryce had two options:
One, dodge the Shadow Ball, but lose his golden opportunity to defeat Lugia.
Or two…
"Delibird! Swinub!"
Pryce made his decision in an instant. He ordered both Pokémon to launch an all-out attack on Lugia while he, controlling his "Masked Man" armor, leaped off Delibird's back, reaching out toward the incoming Shadow Ball.
His identity had already been exposed to both the League and Team Rocket. He needed Lugia's power to deal with their inevitable pursuit!
Delibird and Swinub charged toward Lugia.
Delibird's fist shimmered with icy energy as it readied an Ice Punch, while Swinub unleashed a long-charged Ice Beam.
Boom!
The Ice Beam and Ice Punch struck Lugia simultaneously, freezing one of its wings solid.
At the same time, the Shadow Ball hit the "Masked Man" armor, engulfing Pryce in a dark explosion.
Both Lugia and Pryce fell from the sky.
Splash!
Lugia's massive body crashed into the sea, sending up towering waves.
But just before Pryce could hit the water, Delibird swooped down with Swinub, catching him and reducing his fall impact.
With a flap of its wings, Delibird used Icy Wind to freeze the ocean surface, forming a floating ice platform, safely placing Pryce on top.
At this moment, Pryce looked utterly miserable.
The ice-sculpted substitute of the "Masked Man" had been completely shattered by the explosion of the Shadow Ball. Half of his body was gone, and he was even missing a leg.
His mask had broken apart, fully exposing Pryce's true identity.
"Cough... cough..." Pryce wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.
Though the "Masked Man" armor had absorbed most of the damage for him, the shockwave from the explosion had still left him injured.
But it was worth it.
Pryce glanced toward the weakened Lugia lying on the ice. Seeing its condition, he felt relieved.
As long as he could capture Lugia, everything else was secondary.
Reaching into his coat, Pryce retrieved a Master Ball and threw it toward Lugia.
But just as the Master Ball was about to hit Lugia, an unexpected event occurred...
Whoosh!
A blue light flashed.
The Master Ball froze in midair.
Riding on Salamence, Asahi had finally arrived, descending onto the icy battlefield alongside Mewtwo and Gardevoir. He looked at Pryce with a face of mock amazement.
"I honestly didn't expect it… The infamous leader of the Masked Army, the 'Masked Man,' is actually you, Pryce? I was just throwing out a wild guess earlier."
Pryce: "....."
A wild guess?
Was that really just a guess?
But now that his true identity was exposed, there was no point in dwelling on it.
His plan to capture Lugia had been thwarted. Pryce narrowed his eyes, his gaze turning as cold as ice.
"It seems… I'll have to get rid of you first." Pryce's voice was frosty. "Without Lugia's help, do you really think you can stop me?"
As he spoke, the shattered remains of his "Masked Man" armor began absorbing moisture from the air, slowly repairing itself.
In front of him, Swinub and Delibird took battle-ready stances.
Snowflakes and hail continued to fall from the sky. Mewtwo and Gardevoir had to raise psychic barriers to shield themselves, but Swinub and Delibird thrived in this environment.
Facing Pryce's two Pokémon—whose strength even exceeded the Champion level—Asahi's reaction was unexpected. He nodded in agreement.
"You're right. Without Lugia's help, I might not be your match..."
"But who said Lugia can't fight?"
As he spoke, Asahi placed his palm on the weakened Lugia.
A faint green glow spread from his hand. The ice-encased, exhausted Lugia suddenly surged with energy, its strength recovering at a speed visible to the naked eye.
The power of Viridian Forest—perfect for moments like this!
"Oooh~!"
Lugia let out a cry, looking at Asahi with gratitude.
Witnessing this, Pryce's expression darkened further.
He had completely underestimated Asahi's abilities.
And the bad news didn't stop there—Asahi released more Pokémon: Eevee, Dragonair, along with the Salamence, Mewtwo, Gardevoir, and Lugia already present.
The situation had flipped entirely.
Seeing Asahi deploy all his Pokémon, Pryce no longer held back either.
He tossed out multiple Poké Balls.
Dewgong, Ariados, Houndour… However, compared to Swinub and Delibird—capable of rivaling Legendary Pokémon—these Pokémon were far weaker.
By now, Lugia had regained mobility thanks to Asahi's healing. Although one of its wings was still frozen, preventing it from flying, it was now battle-ready.
Asahi and Pryce locked eyes.
In an instant, both sides launched their attacks.
A freezing gust from Delibird surged toward Asahi himself.
Holding the Psychic Plate, Gardevoir exchanged a glance with Asahi. A multicolored glow flashed over its body—Mega Evolution!
The newly evolved Mega Gardevoir stepped forward, erecting a Light Screen to block the Icy Wind.
At the same time, Mewtwo swung its arm, extending a psychic spoon by several dozen meters, slashing toward Pryce.
The sheer sharpness of the Psycho Cut sent tingling pain across Pryce's face, despite the distance.
Having already witnessed Mewtwo's strength during his battle with Ho-Oh, Pryce wasn't careless. He tapped his cane against the ice.
Swinub responded instantly, firing an Ice Beam to intercept.
The beam struck Mewtwo's psychic spoon, freezing it solid and creeping toward Mewtwo's hand.
Seeing this, Mewtwo's eyes narrowed. Increasing its psychic output, it shattered the ice along the spoon's length.
Meanwhile, the rest of the Pokémon weren't idle either.
Eevee fired Swift at Dewgong, while Dragonair and Salamence teamed up to launch Dragon Pulse at Ariados and Houndour.
And at that moment, the recently revived Lugia became the decisive factor in this battle!
"Oooh~!"
Lugia's gaze locked onto Pryce, filled with hatred. It opened its mouth, charging up a glowing sphere aimed directly at him.
Pryce's expression changed drastically.
Hyper Beam!
He had no time to focus on Asahi anymore. "Delibird!"
Hearing the command, Delibird, which had been fighting Mega Gardevoir, immediately retreated.
Mega Gardevoir pursued, but Delibird suddenly exhaled a powerful gust and waved its hand, forming a massive ice wall—over ten meters tall and several meters thick—shielding Pryce and his Pokémon.
Just as the ice wall solidified, Lugia unleashed its attack.
"Oooh—!"
The enraged Hyper Beam fired without hesitation.
Boom!
A deafening explosion shattered chunks of ice from the wall. However, the intense heat from the blast melted the ice into steam before the fragments even hit the ground.
Lugia's Hyper Beam lasted over ten seconds, melting most of the ice wall before finally ceasing.
Asahi, protected behind Mega Gardevoir's Light Screen, stared at the remaining half of the ice wall and the lingering steam. He was shocked.
Though he had seen Mewtwo's power at New Island, witnessing Lugia's Hyper Beam at such close range was an entirely different experience.
However, he quickly pushed the thought aside.
More importantly—where was Pryce?
Instinctively, Asahi expanded his Aura abilities to locate him.
Then—his face changed. "Mewtwo, dodge!"
Though Mewtwo didn't fully understand, it trusted Asahi's orders. It swiftly moved aside.
A second later—
Crack!
Delibird burst through the ice from below, ice spikes in hand, aiming for Mewtwo's throat.
Though it missed, the attack left Mewtwo momentarily stunned.
Mewtwo quickly distanced itself, forming a psychic barrier around its body. It reached up to touch its neck—there was a faint scratch.
It had been that close to a fatal wound.
"What a pity…"
Emerging from behind the ice wall, Pryce looked disappointed.
Had that strike landed, the tide of battle would have shifted completely.
But unfortunately…
Pryce glanced at the Gastly floating beside him. In its mouth, it held a silver feather.
Thanks to the battle with Lugia, its feathers were scattered all over the area. Finding one wasn't difficult.
Stowing the Silver Wing, Pryce waved his hand.
Under Swinub and Delibird's command, massive ice spikes erupted beneath Asahi's feet.
Seizing the moment as Asahi dodged, Pryce took one last deep look at him, then picked up Swinub and stepped onto Delibird's tail.
With that, he took off into the distance.
Asahi shattered the ice spikes, but by then, Pryce was already disappearing into the horizon.
Mewtwo glared after him, hurling a Shadow Ball to try and knock him down, as it had with Giovanni.
But Pryce was not so easy to deal with. Swinub simply fired an Ice Beam, detonating the Shadow Ball midair.
Mewtwo could only watch as Pryce escaped.
Seeing Mewtwo's frustration, Asahi patted its shoulder. "Don't worry about it. Didn't you see even Lugia got defeated by Pryce? You can always get your payback next time."
Lugia, who was about to thank Asahi: "..."
You know, you could just not say anything.
Hearing Asahi's words, Mewtwo felt a bit better and nodded.
Holding the shivering Eevee in his arms, Asahi also dispelled Gardevoir's Mega Evolution.
Then, he turned to Lugia. "Pryce has been defeated. He shouldn't show up again anytime soon."
Lugia nodded in response.
However, rather than Pryce, Lugia seemed more concerned about something else.
[I feel a familiar presence from you.]
Lugia looked at Asahi with a puzzled expression.
Hearing this, Asahi immediately understood what it was referring to. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a Master Ball containing the small Lugia. "Are you talking about this one?"
Previously, Asahi had been worried that if Pryce failed to capture Lugia, he might turn to kidnapping the small Lugia instead. That was why he hadn't let it out.
But now that Pryce was gone, there was no longer any need for concern.
As he spoke, Asahi released the small Lugia.
The moment Lugia saw it, it froze.
[This is…]
"I found it as an egg in some ruins in Kanto," Asahi explained. "At the time, the egg was already damaged. Do you recognize it?"
[If you're talking about the sealed, broken egg from back then, then yes, I know of it…]
Lugia carefully examined the small Lugia, a hint of hesitation in its gaze.
[But normally, a Lugia that hatches under natural conditions wouldn't have… this kind of scent.]
Clearly, this Lugia had high emotional intelligence.
If it had been less tactful, it might have outright asked Asahi what he had done to the small Lugia to make it smell like… a seasoned dish.
Hearing Lugia's words, Asahi awkwardly coughed twice, wisely choosing not to mention how he had once soaked the small Lugia in seasoned water.
Instead, he quickly changed the subject. "Since Pryce has already left, you should restore the weather to normal. On my way here, I encountered several ships that were affected by the storm..."
"And it's not just the ships. The wild Pokémon nearby won't be able to handle this chaos for much longer either."
Hearing this, Lugia's attention was successfully diverted. Before, it had no choice but to unleash the storm, but now that Pryce had left, it didn't want to cause unnecessary trouble for others.
Lugia raised its head and let out a long, resonant cry. The raging storm in the sky gradually subsided under its control.
The winds and waves calmed, sunlight broke through the clouds, and as Asahi watched the sea return to peace, he couldn't help but feel a sense of relief—until...
[But I still want to know, why does this child have such a strange scent?]
Lugia looked at Asahi seriously.
Asahi: "....."
Do you really find this fun, endlessly pestering me?
...
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