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"Don't worry, Arman is no longer here."
"Let's go."
Abomasnow, who heard this statement, was obviously somewhat flustered.
"Abo..."
Just when Roy was about to leave, he spotted the Totem from Poni Island—Wishiwashi—rushing toward him from a distance, along with countless followers behind him.
They looked menacing, as if they weren't coming for a friendly chat.
Roy looked again and noticed that Ribombee was positioned behind Wishiwashi.
Ribombee's small body had been blocked by Wishiwashi at first, but now that the swarm had spread out, Roy could see its angry expression clearly.
"Bee! Bee!"
I heard that nasty troublemaker's scent is around here! My crew will take him down!
The words sounded quite like something a gang leader would say.
However, when Wishiwashi saw Roy and Lucario, its demeanor changed completely, looking as docile as an elementary school student.
"Wishi~"
Oh, it's the noble person! Good afternoon!
Please don't mind us and continue with your business!
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Wishiwashi and Ribombee led their followers toward the motionless Abomasnow.
Roy naturally wouldn't stop them.
It was just that he hadn't had time to inform them that this Pokemon had temporarily lost its trainer.
Roy glanced back at Abomasnow, who was putting up a decent fight against Ribombee and Wishiwashi, before departing.
This time, he noticed that Abomasnow no longer wore that unchanged, stoic expression from before.
"What's wrong?"
Roy shook his head and placed his hand on Lucario's head once more.
"It's nothing. I just think that some people's hearts can be truly cruel."
Roy didn't know exactly how Arman had communicated with Abomasnow after all.
However, after such an extended period of intensive pursuit, with no news of Arman being caught, he was probably hiding safely somewhere.
He was likely waiting for the Island Challenge to conclude so he could escape through everyone's blind spots.
Something must have gone wrong with Arman's original plan. Otherwise, why wouldn't he have escaped from Alola's spiritual realm the same way they had entered? Why would he now have Abomasnow draw everyone's attention instead?
The combined strength of the two Totem Pokemon, Ribombee and Wishiwashi, was still somewhat challenging for Abomasnow, who was known for his area-of-effect attacks.
What's more, after Abomasnow summoned the icy terrain and his ability "Snow Warning" activated, the massive hailstones pelted the Pokemon, making them grimace in pain.
Abomasnow glanced toward Roy and Lucario, who had already departed. No longer interested in continuing the fight, he quickly retreated from the battlefield.
A sudden gust of freezing wind blew toward Ribombee and Wishiwashi with cutting force.
The fierce wind came without warning, temporarily blinding them.
When they opened their eyes again, there was no trace of Abomasnow anywhere on Poni Island.
Ribombee flapped its wings angrily.
Darn it, he escaped again!
This was already the umpteenth time over the past few days. This Abomasnow was cunning and intelligent, never letting them gain any advantage.
So the two Totems withdrew their forces and led their followers back to their respective territories.
When Wishiwashi returned to his den, he found Roy already standing nearby waiting.
"Wishi!"
Couldn't catch him again!
This was something Roy had expected. After all, he had also engaged in a brief skirmish with Abomasnow.
Having watched numerous battle videos of the Ice-type, Roy could probably predict what the final outcome of this so-called roundup would look like.
"Have you been able to track Abomasnow's location?"
Seeing that Roy was quite interested in this Pokemon, Wishiwashi elaborated a bit more along Roy's line of questioning.
"Wishi, wishi."
Yes, we can detect Abomasnow's presence and position every so often.
The last time should have been on Melemele Island.
However, Abomasnow's condition wasn't bad at that time, and he escaped quickly.
Not sure why it took him so long this time...
Roy listened to Wishiwashi's words with a blank expression, forming a vague suspicion in his heart.
He wasn't trying to kill me, was he?
If that was the case, then Abomasnow absolutely had to be captured today!
Call for backup, Wishiwashi!
With this thought in mind, Roy offered his own suggestion.
"The next time Abomasnow's presence appears, you should try searching the other islands for relatively hidden caves."
Wishiwashi looked confused by Roy's sudden change of topic.
"Wishi?"
What do you mean?
Roy smiled mysteriously. "Don't you think that with Abomasnow changing positions so quickly, it's a bit like he's..."
"Wishi!"
Protecting something!
Wishiwashi's mind seemed quite sharp after all.
At least it was much better than a certain someone Roy knew.
Roy mentally patted himself on the back and watched as Wishiwashi hurriedly left Poni Island.
Roy sighed again, reflecting on how precious the pure loyalty of Pokemon truly was.
Seeing that there were no other Pokemon around anymore, Wingull flapped its wings, trying to appear calm.
"Gull..."
Only then did Roy remember that there was still a little creature perched on his shoulder.
What a strange shoulder he had—there were always other creatures that liked to stand on it.
After thinking for a moment, he was suddenly smacked in the face by Wingull's long wing. Hmm, it felt a bit cold.
"Are you leaving?"
Wingull nodded, indicating that it still had a small task to complete.
Roy showed some concern at the appropriate time. "Are you sure you'll be alright?"
Wingull raised one wing in an encouraging gesture.
You got this!
"???"
Roy looked puzzled. How had this expression spread so widely in just one night?
As expected of modern communication...
Wingull spread its wings, bid farewell to Lucario, and wobbled away.
Roy watched Wingull's immature retreating figure like a concerned father.
"Will he really be okay?"
Lucario didn't know quite what to say. He hadn't seen Roy act like a worried parent in quite some time.
He remembered the last time was when Ninetales was still young.
"Perhaps."
Time passed quickly, and in the blink of an eye, it was twelve o'clock noon.
The entire island felt as if someone had suddenly pressed a play button. There was no visible change, yet it felt like something invisible was flowing through the air.
The other trial participants also sensed this change at the same moment.
The Island Challenge continues!
In just a split second, all the participants released their main battle Pokemon almost simultaneously.
Everyone was on guard against fierce wild Pokemon that might suddenly appear from nowhere.
However, Roy had no such concerns for the time being.