[Matsuba already informed you, didn't he?] Pryce said directly.
"Yes. I've already switched to a plane ticket from Gringey City to Ecruteak City," Tetsuya replied.
[Good! Hurry back. I'll also be going to Ecruteak City tomorrow. I'm afraid Shadow Team will initiate a desperate counterattack. I'm transferring all of your Pokémon to you now, just in case.]
After speaking, Pryce transferred Mamoswine, Beedrill, and Ditto to Tetsuya.
Now that he knew Shadow Team had already discovered him, there was no way he could sleep. The scene of being captured five years ago was still vivid in his mind. He absolutely could not let history repeat itself!
---◓---
Tetsuya simply leaned against the bed with his eyes closed to rest. He had already set his alarm for two o'clock. When the time came, he would ride Golurk directly to the Airport under the cover of night.
At two o'clock in the morning, the alarm rang. He did not care about losing the deposit. Opening the window, he threw out Golurk's Poké Ball and jumped out.
"Golurk, let's go…"
With that, Golurk carried Tetsuya toward the Airport.
Right now, he was racing against time. As long as he boarded the plane, he would be more than halfway to safety. The flight from Gringey City to Ecruteak City only took four hours. No matter how quickly Shadow Team reacted, they could not possibly keep up with him.
It only took Golurk half an hour to reach Gringey City's Airport, where it landed in the plaza outside. Dim lights illuminated the Airport, and only a handful of people could be seen moving about, since there was still an hour and a half before the first flight.
After recalling Golurk, Tetsuya prepared to go to the second floor of the Airport to collect his ticket.
Suddenly, an eerie wind swept over him…
Before Tetsuya could react, Gengar had already spread out its shadow and fired six Shadow Balls, three to each side.
Six Gengar fell in the darkness!
Tetsuya slipped his hand into his coat, already gripping Mamoswine and Golurk's Poké Balls. At a life-or-death moment like this, only using his strongest Pokémon could put his mind at ease.
"Heh~ Tetsuya-kun, after returning alone from the island, you never came to pay me a visit…?" A deep, heavy voice called out.
It was another night just like this. A figure slowly emerged from the darkness, followed by a Hypno continuously swinging its pendulum.
"…After the island was destroyed, everyone fled for themselves. It took me a great deal of hardship just to make it back to the mainland. I never had the opportunity to visit you," Tetsuya replied, forcing himself to remain calm.
He still had no idea how many Shadows were here, but there were certainly quite a few in Gringey City. Those fifty ship tickets were undeniable proof. Yamamoto was an extremely meticulous man. Judging by this, every exit from Gringey City had already been covered by his people.
"Then I'd like to ask you, Tetsuya, to accompany me and tell me exactly how Shadow Island was destroyed. I would be deeply grateful," Yamamoto said as he slowly walked forward.
"Of course."
Tetsuya also stepped forward, already issuing a mental command.
"Gengar, Shadow Ball."
Five Shadow Balls suddenly shot through the darkness with terrific force.
"Hypno!"
Faced with such powerful Shadow Balls, even Yamamoto was secretly alarmed and immediately called out Hypno's name.
Hypno swung the pendulum hanging before its chest, sending powerful energy fluctuations spreading outward. They blocked the Shadow Balls and detonated them!
The explosive shockwave forced both Gengar's shadow and Hypno back a few steps. Fortunately, it was nighttime, so Gengar did not have to leave his shadow.
In that instant, Tetsuya had already thrown the Poké Balls containing Mamoswine, Golurk, and Houndoom.
"Hohoho… so, 'Tetsuya-kun', you want to have a match with me, huh." Yamamoto was inwardly startled after witnessing Tetsuya's capacities firsthand. In just that one exchange, the power Tetsuya displayed was on a completely different level from five years ago. Yamamoto no longer dared to underestimate him and casually threw out the Poké Balls containing Alakazam and Girafarig.
Alakazam hovered high in the air with its eyes gently closed, its two spoons floating before its chest.
Girafarig's eyes shone brightly, while the face on its tail continuously snapped its jaws.
Hypno moved as though it had teleported like a yōkai itself, staying close beside Girafarig.
"Mamoswine, Blizzard!"
At Tetsuya's command, Mamoswine charged forward on all fours. Everywhere it passed, Hail swirled through the air and the temperature dropped drastically.
"Weezing, Golurk, battle!"
Tetsuya did not hesitate in the slightest. Now that Mamoswine had summoned Hail simply with its presence, only the four-headed Weezing and Golurk would remain unaffected. Golurk was protected by six layers of energy, so weather conditions such as Hail, Sandstorm, and rain would have virtually no effect on it.
As for Weezing, two of its heads had grown by absorbing cold air and could naturally adapt to Hail. As a result, the weather would have no effect on it either. This added two versatile members to Mamoswine's core tactics and also prevented Mamoswine from constantly having to fight alone.
He had originally intended to develop coordinated core tactics for all of his Pokémon, but since Mamoswine and the others were still in the stage of strengthening their individual capacities, those plans had been put on hold.
Now, facing an elite Trainer like Yamamoto, he had no choice but to fight with his back against the wall and rely on the tactics from his previous life when he had Elite Four-level strength. Otherwise, no single Pokémon could possibly stand against Yamamoto's Pokémon.
Hail pelted down relentlessly, but Yamamoto's three Psychic-type Pokémon remained completely unmoved. Psychic barriers had already formed around them, and every ice shard was deflected away.
"Golurk, High Horsepower combined with Shadow Punch."
Golurk's charging force was no joke. Although Mamoswine had already rushed ahead, Golurk's legs ignited with rocket propulsion, launching it forward at astonishing speed. Energy surged around its body as it instantly overtook Mamoswine.
In the blink of an eye, it was already about to reach the Alakazam hovering high above!
Before Yamamoto could say anything, the spoons in Alakazam's hands suddenly enlarged dozens of times and crossed before its body. Despite Golurk's overwhelming impulse, Alakazam's giant spoons blocked the charge completely, preventing it from advancing even a single inch!
"…!!!?"
Golurk's charging force was powerful enough to break through the glacier falls waterfalls, yet the power revealed by this Alakazam was so terrifying. Even a Pokémon at Elite Four level could probably do no more than this.
'Could it be that Yamamoto was already at the Elite Four level…?'
Tetsuya began estimating Yamamoto's true strength.
He then noticed that both Girafarig and Hypno's eyes glowed with a blue light. Since he also had psychic powers, he could sense the fluctuations of their energy. The psychic power of all three Pokémon had been trained until they were completely synchronized. In other words, whenever any one of them acted, it was equivalent to all three combining their power…
"Hm…!?'
The moment Tetsuya realized this, he immediately shouted, "Golurk, retreat!"
Alakazam's psychic power alone might not have been enough to completely stop Golurk's violent charge. With Girafarig added, however, Golurk could already be firmly suppressed. Now, Hypno's power had been added as well, making it the combined energy of all three Pokémon.
Golurk was in danger!