After all of Emboar's injuries were completely healed, it no longer entangled itself with Lapras and instead turned its head and ran straight toward the direction where Musharna was.
Compared to helping the lord of the grassland achieve his goal, Emboar naturally cared more about its partner.
Yuga didn't stop Emboar; instead, he followed behind it along with Lapras.
Upon arriving there, Emboar immediately spotted Musharna, who was being held in Mismagius's arms.
That massive beam of light just now and the sudden recovery of its injuries made it clear to Emboar that Musharna had been injured because it had used Wish, but it assumed Musharna had been forced into it by Mismagius and had used Wish as a last resort to support it one final time. As a result, it immediately breathed out a Flamethrower.
Mismagius's figure flickered as it dodged Emboar's attack, but Emboar seemed to have gone berserk, repeatedly attacking Mismagius. The pillars of flame dyed the entire sky red.
Clearly, its bond with Musharna was extremely deep.
Mismagius had just broken through not long ago, and even with the support of Champion level Gengar, they couldn't possibly be a match for Emboar. Fortunately, at that moment, Yuga and Lapras arrived in time.
Lapras blinked forward and stood in front of Mismagius. Emboar, now fearing to harm Musharna, dared not attack recklessly anymore and could only silently enter a standoff with Lapras.
Yuga sensed that something was different about Mismagius, so he activated Insight and looked at it.
...
[ Mismagius (Spell Tag) ]
Type: Ghost
Ability: Levitate
Gender: Female
Potential: Purple
Level: 91
Moves: Screech, Grudge, Scary Face, Confuse Ray, Mean Look, Pain Split, Mystical Fire, Shadow Sneak, Power Gem, Lucky Chant, Magical Leaf, Thunderbolt, Psychic, Double Team, Will-O-Wisp, Taunt, Skill Swap, Trick Room, Dazzling Gleam.
...
Mismagius had always been on par in level with Gengar, yet today it had actually broken through before Gengar. Yuga couldn't help but feel joy in his heart, though he didn't show it on his face.
He looked at Emboar, then glanced at Musharna in Mismagius's arms and roughly figured out the relationship between the two Pokémon. He then decided to use Musharna as a bargaining chip to talk to Emboar.
Yuga, riding on Dragonite, flew to face Emboar. Lapras quickly flew to his side to protect him, in case Emboar suddenly lashed out and harmed him.
"Emboar, Musharna is with me now. It's very important to you, isn't it? I'm sure you don't want to see it get hurt," Yuga said.
When Emboar heard this, it assumed Yuga was threatening it with Musharna. Instantly, its expression turned fierce, and the muscles all over its body bulged as if it might leap up at any moment and smash Yuga to death.
Yuga then added, "If you're willing to calm down and talk to me properly, I promise I won't hurt Musharna."
Sure enough, upon hearing Yuga's words, Emboar withdrew its offensive posture, though the look in its eyes as it stared at Yuga was still filled with wariness.
Seeing this, Yuga decided to offer Emboar a sweet date to taste first.
Musharna had been injured because it used Wish. Wish is a very powerful move. It sacrifices the user to help allies recover their injuries. No matter how severe the wounds, Wish can fully restore them—and it's not limited to healing just one target.
The cost, however, was that the user would fall into a near-death state.
Just like Perish Song, this move was rare and difficult to learn, but its effect was incredibly powerful.
"Near-death" truly meant near death, not just losing the ability to battle or simply losing consciousness. That's why, even if a Pokémon could use it, they rarely did.
Yuga waved at Mismagius, who immediately understood and flew over to Yuga with Musharna in her arms.
Yuga extended his palm, and a rich green glow radiated from the center of his hand.
Seeing Yuga's action, Emboar, not knowing what he was doing, stepped forward in concern, looking extremely nervous.
Yuga turned back to reassure it: "Musharna was injured because it used Wish. The situation is very serious. Let me treat it first — consider it a small token of my sincerity."
With the severity of Musharna's injuries, it naturally wouldn't be possible for Yuga's healing ability to completely restore it, but at the very least, he could ease the pain and prevent it from worsening.
Upon hearing Yuga's words, Emboar instinctively stopped in its tracks, and its anxious expression eased a little.
Under Yuga's treatment, Musharna's injuries were quickly brought under control.
After Yuga withdrew his hand, he looked at Emboar and said, "Now, can we talk?"
Emboar remained silent for several minutes before slowly nodding.
Yuga smiled and asked, "May I ask how the lord of the grassland managed to recruit you?"
Yuga knew that in past battles with the Pioneer Army, Emboar and Musharna had never appeared. Their sudden appearance this time was definitely unusual — especially after they had destroyed the lord of the grassland's army.
Yuga couldn't help but suspect that the lord of the grassland was making a desperate move.
Emboar was honest and did not try to hide anything; it directly told Yuga about the deal it had made with the lord of the grassland.
After hearing it, Yuga exclaimed in surprise, "The Pioneer Army has an item that can help you break through? You must have been tricked by the lord of the grassland!"
If the League were to produce an item that could help Emboar break through, it might be possible — but there was absolutely no way something like that existed in the Pioneer Army.
Emboar's face was taut, and it said nothing.
"There really isn't anything in the Pioneer Army that could help you break through. You should know that yourself. At your level, how hard is it to take that next step?" Yuga continued.
Emboar still remained silent. Of course it knew how difficult it was. It was precisely because it knew that it wasn't willing to give up even the slightest glimmer of hope — even though it knew full well that the lord of the grassland was not trustworthy.
Seeing Emboar still keeping silent, Yuga continued, "Since you were willing to strike a deal with the lord of the grassland, why not make a deal with me instead? With me here, your deal with the lord of the grassland clearly won't succeed."
Emboar lifted its head and looked straight at Yuga, a trace of curiosity flashing in its eyes.
Yuga smiled slightly. "Let's talk about Musharna first. Given the severity of Musharna's injuries, if I let you go now, are you confident you can heal it?"
Emboar looked at Musharna, who was cradled in Mismagius's arms, and after a long pause, slowly shook its head — it had no way to do it.
Yuga thought to himself: I knew it.
Pokémon have incredibly strong vitality and don't die easily, but once they fall into a near-death state, it's basically a fatal wound.
"I can heal it," Yuga said.
When Emboar heard this, its eyes lit up and stared fixedly at Yuga.
Emboar and Musharna had known each other since they were nobodies and had supported each other through everything to get to where they were today. The depth of their bond was hard to measure. As long as Musharna could be safe and sound, it was willing to pay any price.
"I'm not done talking yet," Yuga said, and instead of continuing about Musharna, he took out something — a Giant Stone Fragment.
When Emboar saw the Giant Stone Fragment, its eyes widened. It could feel the mysterious and unfathomable power within it.
"What do you think of this? Maybe it could help you break through," Yuga tempted Emboar.
In fact, the Giant Stone Fragment didn't have much of an effect on ordinary Pokémon; it could only unleash its full potential in the hands of a legendary Pokémon. However, Yuga merely brought it out to bluff Emboar — the actual effect didn't matter, as long as it could deceive Emboar.
The unique energy fluctuations of the Giant Stone Fragment were indeed very persuasive.
Seeing the desire in Emboar's eyes, Yuga instead put the Giant Stone Fragment away.
"Well? Do you want to make a deal with me?" Yuga asked.
"How do we make a deal?" Emboar remained silent for a long time before finally speaking.
Yuga said, "Very simple. I will heal Musharna for you and provide you with a treasure that can help you break through. In exchange, you follow me — until the day I die."
Yuga quietly dug a pitfall for Emboar.
Upon hearing this, Emboar felt that Yuga's condition wasn't excessive. How long was a human's lifespan, after all? Not even a hundred years. As for a being of its level, if it managed to break through again, it would have plenty of time.
How could Emboar possibly know about Yuga's special circumstances?
However, if it followed this human, it would have to leave this place. Thinking about that made it feel a bit reluctant. Though it wasn't born here, it had grown up here and held a deep emotional attachment to this land.
Wait a minute… Emboar suddenly realized something. Didn't this human just say the Pioneer Army had no treasures that could help it break through? Then what was that thing just now?
So Emboar angrily questioned Yuga.
Yuga pretended to be surprised and said, "Oh, you didn't know? I'm not part of the Pioneer Army! So my stuff obviously doesn't count as theirs. Are you planning to try and snatch it? But it seems like you can't beat me!"
Emboar thought to itself: That's true… I can't beat him!
In the end, under Yuga's half-smiling gaze, Emboar said, "I agree to the deal."
Yuga nodded with satisfaction and then added, "Since the deal is sealed, I can heal Musharna right away. But as for the treasure, I can't give it to you just yet. I need to make sure you're not playing tricks on me."
Emboar felt that this human was being unreasonable, actually daring to suspect it. But in the end, it still nodded. After all, humans were like that — always full of schemes and calculations.
In the end, between the opportunity to break through and the reluctance to part from its homeland, Emboar chose the opportunity to break through. It thought: after this human dies in the future, I can just come back.
Emboar decided to follow Yuga. Yuga did indeed intend to help it break through, though not by using the Giant Stone Fragment — that item wasn't reliable for ordinary Pokémon.
His side quest reward was a portion of the origin of legendary Pokémon. If it turned out to be suitable for Emboar, he would use it for that. If not, he'd think of another solution.
Even Dusknoir had managed to break through with his help — Emboar surely had a chance too. Worst case, he could use the Giant Stone Fragment to trade with a legendary Pokémon. There would definitely be one willing to make that trade.
After man and Pokémon reached an agreement, Yuga took out a Max Revive and fed it to Musharna. Very soon, Musharna woke up.
Flying out of Mismagius's arms, Musharna, with a face full of worry, flew to Emboar's side. Only after seeing that Emboar was fine did it finally breathe a sigh of relief.
The bond between the two Pokémon was indeed deep. Even though Musharna had sustained such serious injuries and had just woken up, the first thing it cared about was Emboar.
Emboar held Musharna in his arms, gently comforting it. The way he looked now was completely different from when he had been fighting earlier — truly living up to the saying: Iron-blooded on the outside, tender-hearted within.
Emboar told Musharna about the deal he had made with Yuga. Musharna didn't show the slightest objection, looking completely like someone who would follow wherever their partner went, be it a chicken or a dog.
Since the two Pokémon had never been separated since they first met, and Emboar had already made a decision, of course Musharna would follow him without hesitation.
Seeing this, Yuga was overjoyed — he had gained two in one go.
Although Emboar and Musharna had agreed to follow him because of the deal, Yuga didn't mind at all. Wasn't it the same with Ninetales back then? And now, even if he wanted to send her away, she probably wouldn't be willing.
Who doesn't like a life where clothes come to hand and food arrives with an open mouth?
Emboar and Musharna would just have to wait to be "corrupted" by a life of luxury!
While Yuga had successfully won over Emboar and Musharna on his end, the battle within the base was still raging fiercely.
As the two strongest legions under the lord of the grassland's command, the Bisharp and the Mienshao group possessed undeniable combat strength, bringing a significant impact to the Pioneer Army.
Fortunately, General Leo and General Toyama had returned just in time to stabilize the situation smoothly.
At the same time, over where General Yukishiro and General Chiba were stationed, with the Absol Yuga had left behind, the two of them were also able to successfully withstand the lord of the grassland's fierce assault.
At this point, the lord of the grassland had gone completely mad. Its eyes were blood-red as it crazily lunged at Absol, using Flare Blitz — a move known for its high power but also its recoil damage, a self-harming skill.
"Arcanine~"
Now, the lord of the grassland was covered in wounds. It turned into a meteor and hurled itself toward Absol, only to be slapped away by Absol's Shadow Claw.
Absol was a master level Pokémon, whereas the lord of the grassland was only a champion level Pokémon. Although it was not far from reaching the master level, that tiny gap in level created a strength difference that was impossible to cross.
Boom!
Arcanine slammed hard into the ground not far away, creating yet another deep crater. The flames on its body gradually extinguished, and trails of black smoke rose slowly into the air.
Back on Yuga's side, he returned to the base and saw that everyone was still fighting. So he quickly brought his Pokémon forward to help.
General Leo, who was in the middle of battling the leader of the Mienshao group, saw Emboar beside Yuga and cried out in astonishment, "Mr. Shimizu, what's going on?"
Yuga replied, "These two Pokémon have already been subdued by me."
Upon hearing this, General Leo immediately breathed a sigh of relief. At the same time, he felt a deep sense of admiration rise in his heart: As expected of Mr. Shimizu!
The Mienshao leader, who had originally been fighting evenly with General Leo, suddenly let out a strange shout upon hearing Yuga's words, then raised its hands in surrender, leaving General Leo stunned and confused.
At that moment, the Mienshao leader was thinking: Following the lord of the grassland really has no future. Just look — even its biggest supporter has been subdued!
Even Emboar has defected — what chance does the lord of the grassland have now?
Knowing when to yield is the mark of true wisdom. This was a principle the Mienshao leader had always followed; otherwise, it wouldn't have decisively led its clan to join the lord of the grassland's side when the latter came knocking with threats.
Following the Mienshao leader's strange cry, the rest of the Mienshao and Mienfoo also stopped fighting.
Seeing this, the Bisharp and the Pawniard — who were still fighting hard — cursed the Mienshao and Mienfoo in their hearts for being fair-weather turncoats. At the same time, their assault became even fiercer, putting great strain on General Toyama, who was engaged in combat with the Bisharp.
Looking at the suddenly surrendering Mienshao and Mienfoo, General Leo was completely baffled. They were just fighting passionately a moment ago — what kind of trick were they trying to pull now?