To be honest, Team Rocket had never really been that afraid of Mewtwo rebelling.
As the creators of this artificial Legendary Pokémon, they were the ones who understood Mewtwo's abilities better than anyone else in the world—and also knew exactly how to deal with it.
Even if Mewtwo completely lost control, they were confident they could subdue her.
And if things truly got out of hand, they could always call in their "Boss" to personally take action.
After all, their Boss already knew full well what Mewtwo was capable of, and his own strength was nothing to scoff at—not beneath a Champion.
So no matter how you looked at it, with home-field advantage on his side, Giovanni taking down some freshly-born "cricket" of a Mewtwo was hardly a problem.
Sure, it wasn't exactly "a father disciplining his son," but it was at least on the level of "the warden smacking Dante around."
But the problem was… Mewtwo wasn't the only one wreaking havoc!
Who the hell was that black-haired girl supposed to be?! And why could a human wield psychic powers on par with a Legendary?!
If she was really a Legendary Pokémon in human form, then which one had come here to stir trouble with them?
Could it be they had provoked someone they should never have crossed?
…Well, then again, Team Rocket had pissed off plenty of people, so maybe that was a dumb question.
Either way, the researchers scrambling for cover were completely dumbstruck.
They were too busy dodging the combined onslaught of Mewtwo and the mysterious "black-haired girl" to spare a second to activate their emergency countermeasures.
And while neither of the two Pokémon seemed intent on killing them outright, it was obvious they meant to annihilate the laboratory into which the scientists had poured countless years of sweat and blood.
Watching precious documents go up in flames and carefully cultivated specimens smashed to pieces, the researchers' hearts bled like knives—but powerless as they were, all they could do was pray their Boss would hurry up and intervene.
If all the genetic samples and records of Mew and Mewtwo were destroyed, their grand plan would be reduced to ashes.
For some researchers, those records were even more precious than their own lives.
Yes—after breaking containment, Mewtwo hadn't fled right away. She and Necrozma had decided that before leaving, they'd raze the place to the ground.
For Mewtwo, the safest plan was obviously to harness her immense psychic power and vanish with Necrozma to some hidden corner where Team Rocket could never find them.
But if she just let Team Rocket off that easily, her heart would never be satisfied.
If this lab and her research notes were left intact, who knew if these people wouldn't try creating a second Mewtwo?
She herself was already someone else's "copy." If not for Necrozma, she might already have been reduced to nothing but a tool of war at Team Rocket's disposal.
And she would never allow a second "Mewtwo" to follow in her footsteps.
So in the end, after discussing it with Necrozma, she made a bold decision:
To hell with Team Rocket—blow it all up!
The irony was that all of Team Rocket's "Mewtwo countermeasures" had absolutely nothing to do with Necrozma.
And even against Mewtwo alone, things weren't nearly as simple as they thought—she was a bona fide Legendary, not some pushover.
Their preparations were like bringing a Buster Blader to fight a Red-Eyes without its "dad." Sure, against a regular Psychic-type it worked fine—special attack bonus damage and all.
But against the combined might of Mewtwo and Necrozma? That was like trying to stop an Unchained Dragon Fist with a Buster Blader.
Good grief—at this point maybe they should've gone crying to Nemona for help.
Still, Giovanni's response was swift. Barely twenty seconds after the chaos erupted, he stormed into the ruined lab with a squad of subordinates in tow.
And with a single glance, he recognized the identity of the "black-haired girl."
"…Haru's Pokémon? So, he's already caught wind of our plan?"
Even with their plan crumbling before his eyes, Giovanni's expression was not one of rage but almost of resignation.
Unlike those cartoonish villains who screamed at their lackeys, blamed the heavens, or collapsed muttering "Impossible… impossible!" after one setback, Giovanni remained calm and collected.
A failed plan was just a plan that needed to be salvaged, its losses mitigated, and the next one arranged more carefully.
Still, Haru had ruined their operations several times now. From here on, more caution would be required.
No—better yet, perhaps it was time to draft a plan to eliminate him altogether.
Even while facing down two Legendary Pokémon at once, Giovanni's mind was already spinning new plots in the shadows.
Necrozma, however, was surprised at his words.
That Team Rocket knew Haru had a Legendary companion was no shock.
Back at Larry's Gym, Haru had already called upon her power; the fleeing Rocket members would've surely reported that to Giovanni.
But the issue was, she wasn't even in the same form she'd taken at the Gym.
Her appearance and clothing had been altered several times since—yet Giovanni still recognized her.
Unexpected, but ultimately inconsequential. She wasn't afraid of Giovanni. At worst, if he pressed her, she'd fight.
And if she couldn't win, she'd call Mewtwo to join her in a one-on-one beatdown of Giovanni.
"This has nothing to do with my master," Necrozma said lightly.
"Some birds simply cannot be caged. Their wings shine too brightly.
Mewtwo is the same. She deserves the right to be free."
With a soft laugh, Necrozma prepared for battle.
Mewtwo silently took her place at Necrozma's side, making her stance clear.
Though Necrozma often seemed unreliable, to Mewtwo—who had only just begun her new life—this Pokémon who had guided her with patience was something like a foster mother.
And now Necrozma was standing up for her freedom. How could Mewtwo not lend her support?
Of course, what Mewtwo didn't realize was…
Her "foster mother," while gazing at her, was secretly thinking of Mew.
Her mind was full of plans to mold Mewtwo into the ideal shape, then deliver her to her master for a crushing humiliation—all to vent the frustrations she still carried from Dream Eater.
This was also a kind of "substitute meal." Just one with… very peculiar flavor.
Giovanni, on the other hand, didn't know what Necrozma was plotting—but he was already disappointed.
It was clear now that all control measures over Mewtwo had completely failed.
"Mewtwo, why are you doing this? I am your creator."
"What have I done to earn such disrespect from you—that you won't even call me your master?"
The man whose hairline was in mortal danger finally drew a Poké Ball.
"Beedrill. Take them down."
Necrozma had already learned about Giovanni's signature Beedrill from Haru's intel. She knew that this Pokémon was far from ordinary.
Yet when she actually saw it, she couldn't help but laugh aloud.
"Ha! A Beedrill? You expect me to be impressed? What can that thing even do?"
"Why don't you come back after it evolves into a Mega Beedrill?"
At her words, Giovanni's expression shifted ever so slightly.
Tch—this woman dares look down on my trusty Beedrill? To hell with this—time to throw down!
Watching the interaction between the two, Haru sank into a long contemplation.
Meanwhile, hidden in the shadows, Liko began to wonder to herself…
If she put on one of those things too, would she not seem so strange anymore?
If this keeps going, something really bad is going to happen!
—
The matter between Lillie and Lusamine being brought to light had definitely affected Haru's life, though he actually felt it had become much easier.
Before, he was always worried about whether Lillie would discover Lusamine, and if she did, whether she might do something extreme.
But now, he no longer had that concern.
And Lillie's words—"I can't bring myself to punish Mr. Haru"—had deeply moved him.
Even after he had acted so outrageously, Lillie could still treat him that way. That had already reached the level of indulgence.
How many girls in the world could go that far?
As a result, Haru had recently been spending most of his time with Lillie. He had hardly put any effort into Iono and Sabrina's situations, only maintaining the "minimum dosage" needed to keep their conditions under control.
Though for some reason, Liko had been acting stranger and stranger lately.
When Haru personally coached Liko in battles, he often noticed her spacing out, yet at the same time her focus seemed to be fixed squarely on him.
Once, while Haru was teaching her the four different applications of the move Leafage, he even caught her slurping her saliva—utterly bizarre.
As for the serious matters…
Unfortunately, in the following days, Haru hardly caught any "big fish." All he found were a few Rocket members under control, and not even a trace of Ogerpon's mask. The disappointment weighed heavily on him.
But then, on the fifth day, just as Haru was preparing to make his routine search for the "signal source" using the Ogerpon radar—
He ran into someone.
Or more accurately, he was blocked at the entrance of the civic hall by someone.
The future Champion of the Paldea League, a student of Naranja Academy—Nemona.
At this moment, however, the surrounding fanatics were calling her the "Queen of Lust."
What the hell?
Haru was completely dumbfounded.
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