Nozomi was utterly speechless.
The moment he received Lorelei's distress call, he rushed over at once.
He'd simply made a flashy entrance—rather than taking the normal tunnel route, he had blasted open the ceiling of the cave and descended straight inside. How was he supposed to know Articuno would immediately dive at him in attack?
I came to save you!
But the clearly confused Articuno wasn't in the mood for explanations. The instant it saw him, it unleashed a beam of Ice Beam right at Nozomi.
Dragonite reacted instantly, dodging aside as the frozen ray missed and struck the nearby rock wall, coating it in a thick layer of glittering frost.
"Did I ever offend you or something?"
Nozomi stared blankly at the enraged Articuno.
He had seen it earlier when it fought the group of Trainers below—and its Ice Beam hadn't been anywhere near this powerful then! Why was it suddenly going all out against him?
Nozomi felt his irritation spike.
This is discrimination! He'd come to help, yet the Pokémon he was rescuing was now attacking him like an enemy. Even a saint couldn't stay calm after that.
"Fine! I'll beat some sense into you first!"
Nozomi wasn't the type to tolerate abuse in the name of heroism. If someone—or some Pokémon—attacked him, he hit back. Simple as that.
If Articuno wouldn't listen to reason, then he'd fight until it came to its senses.
Since his opponent was a Legendary Pokémon, Nozomi didn't bother holding back. He immediately threw out his strongest partner.
"Mewtwo, your powerful opponent has arrived!"
Boom!
The Poké Ball burst open, releasing a surge of purple-white light that took shape in the middle of the cave—Mewtwo had arrived.
"What is that…?"
"Could it be… that legendary Pokémon?"
"No wonder Team Rocket never used it again—it's in Nozomi's hands!"
The Trainers from the League below gasped in realization.
On the other side, the Pokémon hunters looked utterly baffled.
Legendary Pokémon?Team Rocket? What were they even talking about?
Nozomi ignored their confusion. He turned to Mewtwo and said, "Let's fight together, Mewtwo."
Mewtwo gave a short, dismissive snort but didn't refuse. A sharp gleam of battle intent flashed in its eyes.
"Then let's go!"
Nozomi grinned and pointed ahead. "Mewtwo, use Shadow Ball!"
The instant he raised his hand, Mewtwo's palm filled with swirling black-violet energy. The orb crackled as it compressed, then streaked through the air toward Articuno.
Articuno shrieked, fury blazing in its eyes. Its chaotic mind interpreted any attack as a direct challenge.
With a powerful flap of its wings, howling winds tore through the cave—snow and ice erupted everywhere in a blinding Blizzard.
In mere seconds, the cavern floor was buried under a thick layer of snow.
Mewtwo's Shadow Ball slowed as the blizzard's winds disrupted its path, its energy dissipating until Articuno easily dodged aside.
"Tch."
Mewtwo's cold glare sharpened. Missing the attack was an insult, even if that shot had been just a test.
Behind him, Nozomi called out, "Don't underestimate your opponent! Articuno might be the weakest of the three Legendary Birds, but it's still a Legendary Pokémon!"
"...Noisy."
Mewtwo's curt reply echoed in his mind.
A massive psychic spoon materialized in Mewtwo's hand as it lifted into the air. A violet barrier flared around its body, shielding it from the storm as it shot straight toward Articuno.
"Hah, rebellious as always," Nozomi muttered with a sigh, shaking his head like a weary father.
Thankfully, Mewtwo didn't hear that—or the cave might've had two battles instead of one.
Inside the psychic barrier, the raging blizzard couldn't touch Mewtwo. With a flick of its wrist, it swung the colossal spoon down toward Articuno's head—ready to literally knock some sense into the bird.
But Articuno, though outmatched, was still a Legendary Pokémon. In the final instant, it jerked its head aside and fired another Ice Beam straight at the spoon.
In a flash, the weapon froze solid.
Mewtwo didn't even flinch. It tossed the frozen spoon aside and retaliated with a blast of Psychic energy.
That was Mewtwo's advantage—its power worked both up close and from afar.
Caught off guard, Articuno took the full brunt of the attack. The beam hit dead on.
Articuno screamed in pain.
"Nice work, Mewtwo! Don't stop—use Shadow Ball again!"
Nozomi pressed the advantage.
Mewtwo hurled another Shadow Ball straight at the dazed Articuno. The dark sphere exploded on impact, slamming the frozen bird into the rock wall with a thunderous crash.
The wall cracked, dust and debris filling the air.
"Did… did they finish it off already?"
"That fast?"
"Amazing…"
The Trainers from both the League and the hunters below stared in disbelief.
Even the League members—who knew Mewtwo's reputation—were stunned.
After all, yes, Mewtwo had once easily defeated Bruno of the Elite Four…
But Bruno specialized in Fighting-types, which were weak to Psychic moves.
This time, there was no type advantage. Mewtwo had just overpowered one of Kanto's three Legendary Birds head-on—and done it within a few moves.
It was almost terrifying.
Hunter J's face went pale.
She realized, with dawning horror, that she'd made a terrible mistake.
If she'd known Nozomi had such a monster under his command, she would've fled the moment he appeared—instead of waiting, hoping he and Articuno would weaken each other so she could swoop in to capture the victor.
But now… it was far too late.
Articuno was down, and she was next.
And judging from that overwhelming strength, she knew she didn't stand a chance.
Regret filled Hunter J's heart.
(End of Chapter)