He saw the Mismagius radiating an intense purple light from its whole body—this was the sign of its mental power erupting.
Yuga only felt a loud buzzing in his head, and the surrounding scenery instantly reverted to its original state. Verdanturf City disappeared. The YoYo Day Care also disappeared.
Only then did Yuga realize that he had been hit—it was an illusion!
Speaking of illusions, Yuga immediately thought of how General Damov and the others had been lured into the Labyrinth Cave precisely because they were trapped in an illusion created by Emboar's partner—Musharna.
Musharna's illusions had a psychological suggestion effect; they could cause people (or Pokémon) to forget parts of their memories when falling into the illusion, making it so they didn't even realize they were trapped.
For example, Yuga had just forgotten that he had already come to the Unova Region, that he had arrived at the Pioneer Army to carry out a mission. He mistakenly believed he was still in Verdanturf City, which was why he hadn't realized he was in an illusion.
This time, it was all thanks to Mismagius!
Mismagius is also a Pokémon highly skilled in using illusions. Although this particular Mismagius of Yuga's hadn't specialized in that skill, it didn't prevent it from being highly sensitive to illusions.
Though the two Pokémon species use different methods to create illusions, they have one thing in common: both rely on their own mental power. Because of this, Mismagius could easily detect abnormal mental fluctuations.
Just as Yuga had guessed, not long after the illusion was broken, a Musharna slowly appeared in front of him and Mismagius.
It revealed itself voluntarily.
Due to their species' nature, most Musharna spent the majority of their time asleep with their eyes closed. But this Musharna had its bright, watery eyes wide open, curiously observing the Mismagius who had broken its illusion, seemingly very interested in it.
...
[ Musharna ]
Type: Psychic
Ability: Forewarn
Gender: Female
Potential: Indigo
Level: 91
Moves: Psywave, Lucky Chant, Yawn, Moonlight, Imprison, Hypnosis, Synchronoise, Telekinesis, Dream Eater, Psychic Terrain, Psybeam, Calm Mind, Light Screen, Safeguard, Shadow Ball, Psychic, Energy Ball, Healing Wish.
...
It turned out to be a master level Pokémon—no wonder it had so easily lured General Damov and the others.
At that moment, Mismagius flew forward and positioned itself in front of Yuga, calling out to him twice.
"Leave it to you? But its level is higher than yours. You might not be able to handle it."
Mismagius meant to let Yuga go on ahead while it dealt with Musharna. But Mismagius was still only a champion-class Pokémon. Although it was only one step away from master-class, that one step represented an enormous gap in power.
Mismagius called out to Yuga again with firm determination, indicating that it would be fine.
Yuga thought for a moment, then summoned Gengar as well: "How about this—Gengar will go with you!"
Although both Mismagius and Gengar were only champion level Pokémon, if they worked together, they could absolutely deal with a newly advanced master level opponent.
Mismagius did not object and gently nodded its head.
"Then be careful, you two!" Yuga said before riding Dragonite and continuing to fly forward.
After Yuga left, Gengar was about to move forward to assist Mismagius, but Mismagius stopped it. The two Pokémon seemed to be of one mind—Mismagius only gave Gengar a single look, and Gengar immediately understood its intention and silently retreated to the side to provide backup.
After flying for a while, Yuga finally heard the sounds of battle. He saw that the area ahead had already turned into a sea of fire—General Leo and General Toyama were both trapped inside the blaze.
Outside the sea of fire, an Emboar was still wantonly spewing blazing flames.
Yuga quickly took out Lapras and said, "Lapras, use Rain Dance."
"Lapras~"
Lapras's figure flashed and instantly appeared above the sea of fire. Under its control, moisture in the surrounding air rapidly condensed, and before long, a torrential downpour began to fall with a loud whoosh.
"General Leo! General Toyama!" Yuga rode Dragonite and flew over, shouting loudly.
"Mr. Shimizu!"
Upon seeing Yuga, both General Leo and General Yuanshan were delighted. This Emboar was simply too powerful—they were absolutely no match for it.
The flames were quickly doused by the heavy rain. Emboar looked up at Lapras in the sky, then looked at Yuga. Although there was no major change in its expression, a jolt of alarm passed through its heart.
This human is not simple!
Yuga said to General Leo and General Toyama, "Generals, leave this place to me. Please return to the base camp at once to take command!"
Because of the surprise night raid by the Pokémon, the base camp was already in total chaos at this moment.
"But…" General Leo hesitated. He felt that Emboar was too powerful, and he wasn't entirely at ease leaving Yuga to face it alone.
Yuga reassured him, "Don't worry. With me here, Emboar won't cause any trouble."
At this moment, Yuga's Insight skill had already seen through Emboar completely.
...
[ Emboar ]
Type: Fire, Fighting
Ability: Blaze
Gender: Male
Potential: Indigo
Level: 99
Moves: Tackle, Ember, Odor Sleuth, Flame Charge, Smog, Take Down, Flamethrower, Double-Edge, Flare Blitz, Wild Charge, Hammer Arm, Bulk Up, Fire Blast, Overheat, Stone Edge, Thunder Punch, Blast Burn, Heavy Slam, Fire Pledge, Fire Punch, Iron Tail, Superpower, Focus Punch, Stomp.
...
General Leo gritted his teeth and said, "Alright then, we'll leave it to you, Mr. Shimizu."
He was truly very worried about the situation back at the base, not to mention what might be happening with Yukishiro and Chiba...
General Leo and General Toyama mounted their flying Pokémon to depart, but Emboar opened its mouth and spat out a pillar of fire, attempting to intercept the two of them.
However, the fire pillar was blocked midway by a water column—the one who acted was Lapras.
The fire column was extremely hot, and when it collided with the water column, vast amounts of steam exploded in the air, nearly obscuring everyone's vision.
Taking advantage of the moment, General Leo and General Toyama rode their Pokémon into the sky and vanished into the darkness in the blink of an eye.
The downpour was still ongoing, so the water vapor lasted only a second before being drowned by the rain. Emboar shook the water droplets from its body in irritation, and steam rose in waves from its superheated skin.
Lapras slowly descended from the sky and faced off against Emboar directly.
"Rooaar~"
Emboar howled toward the sky, and a pillar of fire suddenly erupted from its body, shooting straight into the clouds and illuminating the heavens in a fiery red. At the same time, the clouds above its head were blasted away, and the heavy rain that had been falling just moments ago came to an abrupt halt.
Yuga thought to himself: This Emboar really is no ordinary opponent!
Lapras saw what happened and immediately fired a Hydro Pump, aiming straight at Emboar.
Emboar suddenly exerted force with its legs, and its massive body shot forward like a sharp arrow. With a single punch, it dispersed Lapras's Hydro Pump.
It did not stop there. Its steps moved rapidly, leaving behind streaks of afterimages in place. Stepping on the muddy water left behind by the rain just moments ago, it leapt into the air, its fist crackling with lightning as it smashed down toward Lapras.
Thunder Punch!
Lapras, of course, would not sit there and wait to be struck. Just as Emboar's fist was about to hit it, Lapras had already vanished from its original spot, leaving behind only a mirage.
Ever since it obtained Palkia's Gem, Lapras had received a certain spatial inheritance, allowing it to use spatial talent while moving. Its speed increased with each passing day; most Pokémon couldn't even catch a glimpse of its shadow.
The mirage shattered under Emboar's fist. Emboar didn't expect this outcome, and a momentary daze appeared on its face.
Lapras didn't care how surprised Emboar was. It suddenly appeared high in the air, and beneath it surged a towering wave that rushed toward Emboar with an overwhelming momentum.
It was the move Surf!
But Emboar wasn't a pushover either. It let out a thunderous roar as one of its massive legs stomped fiercely on the ground. The earth instantly quaked, and a gigantic rock wall gleaming with blue light rose up from the ground to meet Lapras's Surf.
It was Stone Edge!
The two moves collided—stone wall crumbling, water splashing in all directions. The scene was utterly earth-shattering. Dragonite carried Yuga and dodged constantly in midair, careful not to be hit by the flying water columns or giant rocks.
Emboar then began pounding the ground repeatedly. The earth beneath its feet began to rise. Once the elevation reached a certain height, it suddenly exerted force with its legs and shot out like a sharp arrow, its entire body engulfed in raging flames.
Emboar had used the powerful Fire-type move Flare Blitz.
Lapras opened its mouth and fired a Hydro Pump in retaliation, but Emboar's massive body didn't slow down in the slightest. It directly charged through the thick water jet and crashed heavily into Lapras.
With a mournful cry, both Lapras and Emboar fell to the ground at the same time. Flames and splashes exploded in the air, and the red and blue light lit up the dark night sky in a dazzling display.
Lapras's body was charred all over, clearly badly injured. Its body even flickered with occasional sparks—evidence of a burn condition taking effect.
It could only be said that Lapras was unlucky. The burn chance from Flare Blitz was very low, but Lapras got hit by it anyway.
Emboar wasn't doing much better. Covered in wounds, it lay on the ground. Although it had struck Lapras, it had done so while tanking Lapras's Hydro Pump head-on.
Water-type moves are super effective against Fire-type Pokémon like Emboar. Hydro Pump was a powerful Water-type move, and on top of that, Flare Blitz has a recoil damage side effect.
Emboar's condition was not much better than Lapras's.
Emboar gritted its teeth and forced itself to stand up. Lapras also slowly floated back into the air, but the burning pain across its body stirred a rising fury in its heart.
"Lapras~"
Lapras stretched out its long neck and let out a loud cry. One of its abilities, Drizzle, activated. In just an instant, dark clouds filled the sky, and a torrential downpour followed immediately—more violent than the previous storm.
This heavy rain made Emboar's already serious injuries even worse. At this point, it no longer had the strength to disperse the rain clouds as it had earlier.
Meanwhile, on Lapras's side, with the arrival of the downpour, its other ability, Hydration, was triggered, instantly curing it of its burn condition.
This situation could truly be described as one rising while the other falls.
On the other side, the battle between Mismagius and Musharna was still ongoing.
Boom!
Mismagius crashed down from the sky, smashing a large pit into the ground, while Musharna floated directly above it, looking down from a commanding height.
By now, no one knew how many times Mismagius had been knocked down by Musharna. Its entire body was covered in injuries. Gengar had tried multiple times to step in and help, but was stopped each time by a single glance from Mismagius.
Mismagius wanted to use this battle against Musharna as a way to break through its limits. Gengar understood its thoughts clearly, so it could only silently retreat to the side.
Gengar and Mismagius were at the same level as Dragonite had been previously, just one step away from reaching the Master rank. Dragonite had already broken through not long ago, which gave both Gengar and Mismagius a sense of urgency.
Currently, in Yuga's team, only Vivillon and Charizard had yet to reach the Master level. Gengar and Mismagius didn't want to fall too far behind.
They were constantly nourished by the power of the Ghost World Origin Stone within the Shadow Space, possessing a natural advantage that other Pokémon didn't have. If they fell too far behind the others, wouldn't that make them seem too incompetent?
Both Gengar and Mismagius were proud and ambitious by nature.
Mismagius slowly floated upward until it was level with Musharna. Suddenly, its psychic energy exploded forth, and its deep purple magical robe seemed to blend into the pitch-black night.
Boom!
A pillar of purple energy, under its control, shot straight at Musharna.
In truth, Mismagius was well aware that Musharna had not been using its full strength all along. Otherwise, it would have already lost the battle.
Musharna seemed to understand its intention and deliberately cooperated, assisting it. Realizing this made Mismagius feel complicated.
They were supposed to be enemies!
Musharna made no move to dodge or avoid Mismagius's attack. Just as the attack was about to strike it, a Light Screen appeared in front of it.
Mismagius's Psychic struck the Light Screen, causing it to crack in several places, but it failed to harm Musharna in the slightest.
Whoosh~ Whoosh~ Whoosh~
Several Shadow Balls flew toward Mismagius the moment its Psychic dissipated. Caught off guard, Mismagius was struck and sent flying again, crashing heavily into the ground.
Even then, Musharna had still held back. Otherwise, Mismagius would have lost the ability to battle from that single strike.
Musharna didn't pursue the advantage. It simply flew above where Mismagius had fallen, quietly waiting for it to rise again.
Suddenly, a powerful surge of Ghost-type energy erupted from below. Musharna, sensing the anomaly, paused for a moment in surprise and then quickly retreated from its position.
At the same time, Gengar also noticed the change and was overjoyed: Mismagius had succeeded.
In the darkness of the night, countless streams of Ghost-type energy began to converge on Mismagius, almost forming a tide of energy.
Such a commotion could not possibly go unnoticed by Yuga and Emboar on the other side.
Emboar sensed the anomaly and assumed something had happened to Musharna. Distracted for a moment, it took another hit from Lapras.
Mismagius's breakthrough caused less disturbance than Dragonite's and lasted for a shorter time, but it successfully completed the transformation from Champion rank to Master rank.
The newly airborne Mismagius did not suppress its powerful aura and displayed its newfound strength without restraint. However, it didn't intend to continue battling Musharna—so long as it didn't cause trouble for Yuga, that was enough.
But Mismagius's behavior misled Emboar again. Sensing Mismagius's Master level aura, it became even more convinced that something had gone wrong with Musharna.
Unable to focus, Emboar soon fell in battle.
Musharna noticed Emboar's condition. With a complicated expression, it glanced at Mismagius, and then the pink light around its body suddenly surged. A bright beam of light shot from its body and landed on Emboar.
Emboar's injuries instantly healed completely.
Musharna had used Wish, and while healing Emboar's wounds, it itself fell into a near-death state.
After casting Wish, Musharna, now barely conscious, plummeted from the sky. Mismagius quickly flew over and caught it.