The moment the Lightning Bird—Zapdos was snatched by the massive Ark-like airship overhead, Ash pointed sharply toward the sky.
"That's what Lawrence's Ark got from Zapdos too?"
"Exactly," Lorelei replied, resentment flickering in her voice. "That thing already captured Moltres, and none of us can get close to it."
Ash's Three-Tomoe Sharingan spun to life, piercing through the metallic hull. With enhanced clarity, he located both captured Legendary Pokémon inside.
"I've found Moltres and Zapdos," Ash said sharply. "You go secure the third treasure. Contact me after that—I'll intercept the Ark first."
Without waiting for Lorelei's response, Ash stepped into the air, his chakra reinforcing each step as he ascended toward the airborne fortress.
"BOOM!"
Cannons unfolded beneath the Ark and unleashed a barrage of artillery fire.
"Tch… there's too many." Ash frowned. "They can't hurt me, but I still need to protect everyone on the island."
With a surge of chakra, Susanō erupted around him—red, armored, and imposing. The defensive plating deflected the exploding shells with ease.
"Watch out!"
Another three-barrel blast hammered against the spectral armor.
Ash didn't hesitate. He flexed Susanō's massive arm.
"Sword-drawing technique—Totsuka Blade!"
With a single slash, Susanō cleaved half the Ark's cannons clean off, their pieces falling like metallic rain toward the ocean.
Inside the Ark
In the control chamber, Lawrence watched the display, pupils narrowing.
"So the one causing interference is Ash Ketchum, Kanto's champion." His tone was cold, but confidence lingered.
"Even he can't defeat my Ark. I spent fortunes building it—this is beyond current world technology."
Ash felt Lorelei and the others retreat to safety.
"Good. Time to stop playing around."
He raised Susanō's arm.
"Yasaka Magatama!"
Three colossal spiraling Magatama shot forward, drilling through the Ark's hull and detonating its internal systems.
Lawrence's composure shattered as alarms blared.
"Impossible! My Ark is the strongest—how can it—?!"
Reality answered him:
Panels burst open, conduits exploded, and the ship began collapsing under its own weight.
Chains shattered.
Energy dampeners died.
Moltres and Zapdos burst free—but in their enraged, storm-driven state, they could barely stay airborne.
"You two idiots—wake up!"
Ash dissolved Susanō and flash-stepped behind Moltres, planting a powerful chakra-enhanced kick to its head.
"BOOM!"
"SKRAAAH!" Moltres screamed, then retaliated with a roaring Flamethrower.
"Suiton: Suijinheki!"
A massive Water Wall surged up, extinguishing the incoming flames.
A lightning strike suddenly hit Ash from behind—Zapdos.
"Tch. After the storm, they're at peak third-tier Legendary levels… and this cursed weather keeps blinding them."
His back wound healed instantly as the Mokuton vitality coursed through him.
"KYYYYUUU!"
A chilling gust washed over the battlefield.
Articuno descended—calm, composed, and not berserk.
Unlike the other two.
"It seems you haven't gone wild," Ash said, switching to Aura communication to speak directly.
Articuno chirped softly, nodding—then lowered herself, motioning for Ash to climb onto her back.
Ash stepped forward, eyes narrowing at the chaos in the sky.
"Let's settle this."
Standing atop Articuno's head, Ash surveyed the heavens, voice steady despite the chaos around him.
"Lead them away from the islands. If we fight here, the nearby land will be destroyed—and I can't unleash my full strength."
"Kyuu!"
Articuno responded instantly, banking sharply toward the open sea.
Behind them, Zapdos and Moltres screeched in pursuit—wild, unstable, their instincts overtaken by the storm's influence.
"They're yours. Leave the rest to me," Ash said, fingers weaving into a rapid sequence of seals.
"Katon: Gōka Mekkyaku!"
A colossal wall of flame—over twenty meters tall—erupted from his mouth, painting the sky blood-red.
Moltres countered with a spiraling Flame Vortex, punching a gap through the inferno and bursting out unharmed.
Zapdos wasn't as fortunate—its feathers crackled with burns, though its regenerative lightning softened the damage.
Good thing Zapdos can burn off injuries with electricity. Otherwise, it would've been the first Legendary Pokémon I accidentally killed…
Ash's Three-Tomoe Sharingan whirled violently.
"Sharingan!"
He locked eyes with Moltres, attempting to force his chakra into its mind, to override the frenzy consuming it.
But the moment his spiritual energy touched Moltres's consciousness—
—a blazing pressure slammed into him.
His expression twisted.
"Tch… Controlling the Nine-Tails was easier than this."
He winced as a scorching backlash burned through his mind.
"I didn't expect Moltres to resist more fiercely. Something—some kind of burning aura—is blocking my spiritual influence… Is this the interference of the Law?"
The realization struck him sharply.
The Legendary Birds—guardians of elemental laws—were passively shielded by the very forces they commanded.
Moltres's flame-law aura scorched any foreign influence.
Zapdos's thunder-law surged unpredictably.
Articuno's ice-law stabilized the sky itself.
Ash gritted his teeth, sweat dripping from his brow as the searing mental resistance intensified.
A creature tied to a Law could never be controlled as simply as a tailed beast.
His mind throbbed under the pressure.
The burning sensation spread deeper.
"Damn… this Law-flame keeps scorching my spiritual energy…"
Even with Sharingan, even with Ninja training—this was something entirely different.
This was Divine-level resistance—a natural safeguard of a true Legendary Pokémon.