Seeing the situation turn against him, Mondo reached for a second Poké Ball at his waist—but Kael was never going to give him that chance.
Out in the wild, countless Trainers and bounty hunters had lost their lives simply because they failed to throw a Poké Ball in time. In a life-and-death confrontation like this, once Kael had seized the initiative, there was no way he would allow his opponent even the slightest opening.
The Poké Ball had barely left Mondo's hand before it was seized midair by Lulu's psychic power. His fingers spasmed uncontrollably, releasing it. The ball dropped—only to be caught again by telekinesis and delivered straight into Kael's palm.
Kael casually tossed the Poké Ball up and down, grinning.
"So? What do you say now?"
Mondo was surprisingly tough-minded. There was no trace of begging or submission as he replied coldly,
"Kid, I admit I underestimated you. The winner is king, the loser a bandit—I've got nothing to say about that. But let me give you one warning: since you've decided to go up against Team Rocket, you'd better be ready to bear the retaliation that comes next."
Instead of responding to the threat, Kael asked a question that caught Mondo completely off guard.
"What position do you hold in Team Rocket?"
Mondo sneered. "Hmph. Nothing to hide. I'm a squad leader."
"A squad leader's worth one hundred thousand," Kael muttered to himself. "Add the ten regular grunts from earlier… that's only two hundred thousand total. Damn, that feels like a rip-off."
Mondo nearly spat blood when he heard that. Staring at Kael in disbelief, he shouted,
"You crossed Team Rocket… for just two hundred thousand?!"
"Of course… not," Kael laughed.
"I'm a proud League citizen, after all. Helping League investigators crack down on criminal activity—isn't that perfectly normal?"
Perfectly normal?
Mondo was left speechless. This kid had to be completely unhinged.
...
BOOOOOOM—!
A deafening explosion roared through the ship. The entire S.S. Anne shuddered violently.
Lulu lost her footing for a moment and nearly fell, but Kael caught her in time. However, the sudden disruption caused her psychic control to falter. Mondo broke free, shooting a venomous glare toward the young man who had single-handedly ruined his mission.
There was no time for threats. He hastily recalled his unconscious Machamp, spun on his heel, and bolted toward the stairwell around the corner.
Kael didn't try to stop him.
Straightening up, he turned his gaze toward the source of the explosion. Thick black smoke was pouring from the engine section at the rear of the ship, flames spraying outward—it looked very much like the turbine engine had detonated.
"Help! Someone help!"
"The ship's taking on water!"
Panicked shouts rang out as terrified passengers flooded out of their cabins. Seeing the flames and rolling smoke at the rear of the ship, despair spread across their faces.
Kael grabbed a man running from the back and demanded loudly,
"What happened over there?!"
The male passenger was pale and shaking, gasping for breath. He swallowed hard before answering,
"J-just now, someone was fighting those attackers with a Magmar. Its Fire Blast hit a storage bay—there was fuel inside, I think—and everything exploded all at once!"
This was bad. Very bad.
Kael's expression darkened. What he'd feared most had come to pass.
Team Rocket had attacked the S.S. Anne to steal Pokémon. Trainers weren't going to sit there and die—they would fight back. But this battle was taking place in the middle of the open sea. If Pokémon combat damaged the hull—worse still, if the ship sank—
Then out of the thousand-plus crew members and passengers aboard, how many would survive?
Kael wasn't a saint. He couldn't manage this, and he couldn't save everyone. He had to ensure the safety of himself, Lulu, and Weavile first. They needed to return to their cabin and pack immediately.
...
The violent explosion also shook the standoff on the top deck.
Both Arbok were covered in wounds, while the two Fearow circling overhead were in equally poor shape, feathers scattered everywhere. One Fearow's head flickered between purple and dark hues—it had clearly been poisoned by Arbok's venom.
Renard's strongest Pokémon, his shiny Gengar, was being tied down by Tyson's subordinates. And against a Normal-type Fearow, Gengar's Ghost-type moves weren't very effective.
"Renard—Eastern Kantō League Chief Investigator," Tyson said grimly.
"I'll remember that name."
His mood was terrible. He had been completely bogged down on the top deck by this fox-like, refined-looking man.
Time had been dragged out far too long. League reinforcements were undoubtedly already on the way.
Renard didn't feel any better himself. He had clearly underestimated his opponent. And it made sense—criminals who had evaded the Kantō League police for years were never going to be easy prey.
The coordinated aerial assault by the two Fearow was nearly flawless, and under Tyson's direct command, their combat effectiveness far exceeded what they could achieve alone.
"Tyson, we have to withdraw!"
An urgent voice came through his earpiece.
"Our undercover agents within the Vermilion City police just sent word—the League has ordered joint reinforcements from Cerulean City, Celadon City, and Vermilion City. If we don't leave now, we'll be completely surrounded."
"Damn it!"
Tyson clenched his fist and slammed it into his palm.
"How were the results of this operation?"
"We lost contact with three squads, but all the high-value hostages have been secured. The speedboats are ready to depart at any moment."
Tyson let out a slow breath. They couldn't delay any longer. Kidnapping so many billionaire hostages meant the mission was at least half complete. They wouldn't face too much punishment upon returning—though any thoughts of major merit were out of the question.
"Relay my order," Tyson said decisively.
"Full retreat!"
"Yes!"
As soon as the command was issued, the surrounding Team Rocket members regrouped at Tyson's side. Each of them produced a black, spherical smoke bomb and hurled it to the deck.
Puff. Puff.
Dense white smoke instantly swallowed the entire deck.
By the time it cleared, Team Rocket was gone—leaving behind only a deck utterly ravaged by fierce battle.
Renard watched Tyson's forces withdraw without taking action.
He was outnumbered, and the sailors were effectively useless. Compared to Team Rocket's battle-hardened elites, they stood no chance. Tyson alone was enough to keep him pinned down.
If Renard had tried to stop their escape, he would have had to wager his life—because Team Rocket would have fought to mutual destruction.