The Team Aqua grunts wore bandanas, dressed like pirates. Aside from the three obvious grunts, the man standing in front, judging by his demeanor, was a leader, probably an admin.
He also wore a bandana, but you could tell he was bald underneath. He had a thin face and narrow eyes, which made him look untrustworthy.
One of the grunts whispered to him, "Drip-sama, what do we do?"
The man called Drip sized up Natsui, then gritted his teeth. "Don't panic! It's just one opponent! Take him down, and we can leave!"
He was the first to grab a Poké Ball. Seeing this, the men behind him also released their Pokémon.
Several blue lights flashed. When the light faded, several lobster-like Pokémon appeared.
Natsui recognized them instantly. They were the Water/Dark-type Ruffian Pokémon—Crawdaunt.
Just as Houndoom was the standard-issue Pokémon for Team Magma, Crawdaunt was the standard for Team Aqua, given to their regular grunts.
At over a meter tall, Crawdaunt was likely based on the American lobster. Its body was red, with two blue stripes on its chest. This resemblance to the Team Aqua uniform was probably why it was chosen.
Crawdaunt had a yellow, star-shaped structure on its forehead and two massive claws. They had violent personalities, loved to fight, and would start battles for no reason. They were considered very difficult Pokémon to raise.
They constantly waved their huge pincers, using them to grab other Pokémon in their ponds and throw them out. They would mercilessly defeat any rival that approached their territory. Because of this, no other creatures lived in ponds inhabited by Crawdaunt.
Natsui looked at the aggressive Crawdaunt. Since Psychic was ineffective against them, he took out another Poké Ball and released his Scizor.
The Crawdaunt, raising their pincers, and Scizor, also possessing giant pincers, stared each other down, waiting for their Trainers' commands.
Although both types had large claws, setting aside experience and strength, Scizor's Bug-type gave it an advantage over Crawdaunt's Dark-type. In that respect, it already had the upper hand.
However, the Crawdaunt had numbers on their side. And the admin, Drip, now released his Pokémon.
It was a Pelipper.
Just like its name suggested, Pelipper had a beak larger than its body, like a pouch, allowing it to scoop things up and hold them.
Pelipper were said to nest on seaside cliffs, protecting their young in their mouths. On calm days, they would float on the sea surface. They skimmed the water looking for food. When they found some, they would dip their large beaks in and scoop it up, water and all.
This Pokémon seemed fine, but in a confined space like an office, using a flying Pokémon was not a wise choice.
Its wings couldn't fully spread, and it couldn't fly to a safe height.
Unless...
Just then, the Pokémon in the hallway all moved at once, charging their opponents.
Despite their numbers, the three Crawdaunt had no coordination. They just rushed Scizor in a mob, bumping into each other and blocking their teammates' attack paths.
Scizor, like a silent warrior, used one X-Scissor after another. Its giant red pincers flashed through the air. By the time it passed the Crawdaunt, all three had collapsed.
The sight left the Team Aqua grunts dumbfounded.
Only now did they realize they were facing a true master.
And now, the only thing left between them and Scizor was Drip's Pelipper.
"What are you standing there for!?" Drip yelled at his men. "Use your other Pokémon!"
"Ah? Oh, right..."
The grunts, as if waking from a dream, fumbled for their second Poké Balls. But in the instant the blue lights flashed, Pelipper suddenly flew toward the window.
At the same time, Drip ran toward the Pelipper, grabbed onto it, and crashed toward the glass!
Just as I thought. That was his plan. The moment things looked bad, he planned to escape in the confusion.
By leaving, he was completely selling out his subordinates. The three grunts were stunned, watching their leader flee.
But before they could react, Pelipper seemed to hit something. With a thud, it was forced to stop.
Beside Natsui, Gardevoir slowly lowered its arm.
It had used Psychic to block Pelipper's path.
Since Natsui had already guessed his plan, how could he let him succeed?
Although the escape had failed and they were back where they started, it was a huge blow to Team Aqua's morale.
Their leader had abandoned them to escape alone?
How could they keep fighting?
One of them looked at Drip in disbelief and yelled, "Drip! Why did you do that?"
"You're all hopeless!" Drip sighed in frustration. "Don't you recognize him? That's the guy who just won the Silver Conference! With him here, how can we possibly win? Instead of all of us getting caught, the priority is to get this culture fluid to the boss!"
It was just as Drip said. He really had recognized Natsui, realized the situation was dire, and made his choice.
When it came to loyalty to the organization, he wasn't lacking. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been thinking of delivering the fluid to his leader.
But regardless, abandoning his teammates was still a low blow and would certainly destroy their morale.
But no matter what, the organization's grand plan was more important than individuals. If he had to, he would make the same choice again.
The grunts wanted to say more, but Natsui gave them no chance.
With a wave of his hand, Scizor and Gardevoir moved forward, knocked out the Pelipper, and brought all the grunts under control.
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