The fact that Giovanni, the leader of Team Rocket, had once had an Elite Four member as his mentor… was shocking!
Just how much had that mentor contributed to this full-scale city raid?
The League's intelligence division wasn't as incompetent as it seemed. But if all information was being suppressed by direct superiors…
With Shaka's rank and seniority, he could absolutely pull that off!
But what the man said next chilled Sato to the bone.
"Viridian Power has deep ties to my apprentice. I'll let you go for now… he'll come find you when the time is right."
…Giovanni was going to come for Joseph?
Sato stared at Shaka, face twisted in disbelief, like he was hearing an absolute joke.
In that instant, the thought in Sato's mind was to stop Shaka.
"Gardevoir, Cacturne, Energy Ball barrage!"
And since that's what he thought, he acted immediately. If there was any chance at defeating Shaka…
Then against Giovanni…
Sato didn't know what level Giovanni had reached now, but he knew the Giovanni of the future would reach the Champion level.
Having a Champion level enemy lurking in the shadows would drive both Sato and Joseph insane!
Sato attacked with no warning, even Joseph hadn't expected it.
A dozen Energy Balls roared forward, striking both Donphan and Claydol directly!
BOOOM! BOOM! BOOOOM! BOOOM…
The successive blasts triggered an energy storm that even engulfed Shaka himself.
"Kid… DID YOU NOT HEAR WHAT I JUST SAID?" Shaka's furious voice echoed from within the swirling green storm.
Next, Donphan used Rapid Spin to tear through the energy storm, then immediately transitioned into Rollout, charging straight at Gardevoir.
Claydol also used Rapid Spin to block the incoming Energy Balls and defend Shaka, but did not strike back… for now.
Still, no matter how much power Rapid Spin dispersed, there was no denying that both Pokémon had taken damage.
"PSYCHIC! GRASS KNOT!" Sato shouted, ignoring everything else.
Though Joseph didn't yet understand why Sato was acting so aggressively, that didn't stop him from offering full support.
"Heal Pulse, Grassy Terrain!"
Four Heal Pulses split into two pairs, restoring both Gardevoir and Cacturne. It wasn't for healing, it was to prepare them to endure incoming damage.
At the same time, Gogoat was sent out and used Grassy Terrain to boost Cacturne's power.
Gardevoir struck Donphan's flank hard with Psychic. The precise angle caused it to lose balance and exit its Rollout state.
Cacturne seized the moment and used Grass Knot. Vines erupted from beneath, wrapping tightly around one of Donphan's hind legs.
The momentum from its charge was still present. Donphan couldn't stop!
…And the Grass Knot yanked hard.
Crack~
BOOOOM!
The sound of a bone snapping echoed from within Donphan, and its entire body slammed violently into the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Donphan's standard weight was 120 kilograms, and Shaka's was likely even heavier. Coupled with the type disadvantage…
That fall had left Donphan completely dazed!
"DONPHAN! GET UP! USE GIGA IMPACT!" Shaka roared, his voice full of energy, completely unlike that of an old man.
Soon, the four Pokémon were locked in fierce combat once again; or rather, with Joseph's five support Pokémon, it was 5v2!
And with Gardevoir having sealed Claydol's Psychic-type moves, and Cacturne holding the type advantage, the battle gradually tilted in Sato's favor as they began to suppress Shaka.
"Am I… really getting old?"
Looking at the unfavorable situation before him, Shaka couldn't help but ask himself that soul-piercing question.
Facing Sato -and the healer, Joseph-, he could clearly read their tactics and strategies before they executed them… yet his body simply couldn't keep up.
In short, he was outpaced.
As much as he hated to admit it, Shaka knew… it was time to send out a third Pokémon.
Just as he reached for the third Poké Ball on his battle belt, golden-red hypnotic rings suddenly flashed in his eyes.
Hypnosis!
Gengar!
Gengar had been on the field from the start, but hadn't taken a single action. Using the chaos of battle as cover, it had returned underground unnoticed.
Sato knew they couldn't keep dragging the fight out. If Shaka abandoned his pride as an Elite Four and went all-out by sending in his full team, their side would undoubtedly lose.
That's why the idea of a sneak attack had taken root in Sato's mind early on.
Especially once he noticed Shaka's aging state preventing him from keeping up with the pace of their Pokémon's attacks.
Sato had already predicted the perfect moment to strike!
As expected, Shaka's eyes closed and he fell into a deep sleep…
Claydol and Donphan flew into a frenzy, roaring in rage as they tried to rouse their Trainer.
But without their leader, their battle rhythm instantly fell apart. Their coordination vanished. All they wanted now was to protect their unconscious Trainer and flee.
The opening was obvious. Gardevoir and Cacturne didn't miss it. They first focused their fire on the heavier of the two: Donphan.
Under concentrated attack, Donphan fell quickly. And Claydol, surrounded by both Pokémon, didn't last long either.
Gengar removed Shaka's battle belt and tossed it to Sato. Sato pulled out the Poké Balls belonging to Claydol and Donphan, recalled them, and locked the balls shut.
Looking at Shaka -his eyes twitching, still unable to wake- Sato could only feel fortunate.
To sum it up, this wasn't a fight that Sato and Joseph had won. Shaka had simply underestimated them from start to finish. That's what led to his defeat.
After instructing Cacturne to search Shaka's body and tie him up securely, Sato turned and met Joseph's gaze.
Why?
Though no words were spoken, Sato instantly understood the question in Joseph's eyes.
At this point, Sato had no reason to hide anything.
"Team Rocket's leader… is Shaka's apprentice."
Joseph's face filled with shock. He had speculated many possible reasons for Sato's insistence on fighting, and had vaguely guessed it might involve the mysterious apprentice Shaka mentioned.
But now, realizing that the leader of Team Rocket had his eyes on him, Joseph couldn't help swallowing hard. He glanced uneasily at the unconscious Shaka on the ground.
"S-SATO!"
"Hm?"
"…T-THANKS!"
Sato shrugged, looking totally indifferent. "Don't get sentimental… better think about how we're going to deal with this old man. If we hand him straight over to the League, I'm worried it'll be like letting a Tyranitar back into the mountains."
Joseph: …[1]
In the end, after discussing it for a long time, the two decided to hide him for now. Once everything had settled down, they'd deal with this hot potato later.
.
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150 PS - Chap
Patr-eon/Romeloff
[1] (#-_-)