"Hurry up—all these mined ores must be transported to the furnace inside."
Inside the Steel Factory—filled with rolling smoke—a stubble-faced man in a black uniform shouted loudly.
"Hey—you guys—patrol the other side of the river! Don't let anyone get close here!"
"Understood."
Passing by several robust Machamp moving ores—a middle-aged man with a buzz cut slightly lowered his head—deliberately falling to the very back of the patrol team.
His name was Hanson—an Interpol agent who had voluntarily gone undercover here.
"Croak~"
"Well done—Croagunk."
Hanson took the blueprint from Croagunk—secretly memorized the internal layout—then subtly observed his surroundings—carefully folding and crumpling it into a small piece—putting it in his pocket.
There were a total of sixty people—equipped with many powerful Pokémon—danger level very high—requiring sufficient police officers to arrest them all.
"Enemy attack—enemy attack—"
Just as the Interpol undercover agent was still pretending to patrol—but actually thinking about how to better escape—the thugs patrolling the riverbank not far away were in a panic.
A Lucario—appearing from who knows where—held a Bone Club in one hand—intending to directly break through here.
"Honchkrow—Aerial Ace!"
Following the patrol captain's loud command—Honchkrow's wings suddenly folded into sharp blades—as it let out a long cry—the surrounding air emitted a glass-shattering shriek—countless transparent air blades condensed—fiercely slashed down.
But facing this sudden spiral storm—Lucario advanced instead of retreating—raising its swirling Bone Club like an impenetrable Aura shield—blocking all incoming air blades.
The long-accumulated [Aura Sphere] —gathered in its claws—engulfed its opponent like a falling meteor.
"Damn it—you can't even withstand a single move?"
Looking at the wailing Honchkrow flying backward—the man with a scar on his face was stunned.
However—in his astonishment—he slightly turned his head—and saw that the group of patrol soldiers behind him were still standing there—as if scared silly—and for a moment—he was furious.
"You scoundrels—don't just stand there—quickly release your Pokémon to engage!!!"
Under the captain's almost furious roar—the soldiers finally threw out their Poké Balls—as if waking from a dream.
There were only two people and one Lucario on the other side—what was there to fear when they had the advantage in numbers!
"Mightyena—use Bite!"
"Skuntank—use Sucker Punch!"
"…"
"Lucario—Max Power Bone Rush."
At this moment—looking at the thugs being blasted one by one and embedded in the tree trunks—Hanson and Croagunk—who had rushed over—were stunned.
Given the generally strong physical quality of Trainers—these patrol soldiers would most likely not lose their lives—but the severe injuries caused by the violent impact—would still leave them immobile for several months.
However—the fighting style of sending both Pokémon and Trainer away at once—was simply too brutal—
After swiftly dealing with the obstructing patrol soldiers—Lucario's gaze was cold—and it also noticed Hanson's gaze.
"Lucario~"
"Wait—we're… we're on the same side!"
"Croagunk?!"
The moment the Bone Club paused—behind it—like a typhoon passing through—waves of Aura energy—raising a surging gale—exploded—destroying all the continuous bushes around.
The middle-aged man and Croagunk—who had instinctively raised their hands above their heads—couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat.
"My name is Hanson—and I am an Interpol officer."
At this moment—Hanson secretly swallowed a mouthful of saliva—for the first time—he felt that if he had introduced himself any slower—the Lucario in front of him would have mercilessly smashed down its Bone Club—blasting him to the big tree not far away as well.
Croagunk—always known for its untamed nature—stood tall and straight—fearing that it wouldn't display the demeanor of an Interpol Pokémon—and would ultimately be swept away by a single blow—losing all face.
"Croagunk!!!"
A few minutes later—looking at the Interpol identification presented to them—which didn't seem fake—the farm owner and Jenny beside him exchanged glances.
Coming to forcefully dismantle a criminal gang polluting the river—only to almost wipe out an Interpol undercover agent along the way—it really was like a flood washing away the Gyarados Temple—
"I didn't expect—Mr. Hanson—that you were an undercover agent actively infiltrating here. I'm truly sorry about earlier."
"Lucario~"
After a slight awkwardness—Wade and Jenny did not forget their final introductions.
"Nice to meet you. My name is Wade—a farm owner from Hiyori Town."
"Hello, Officer Hanson. I am Jenny—responsible for maintaining public order in En City, Sinnoh region."
Similar to Jenny police stations—Interpol is also a type of law enforcement agency in the Pokémon world.
But unlike the former—which primarily maintains local public order and assists Gym Leaders—Interpol's work is more secretive and dangerous.
They are often assigned to various regions—responsible for investigating local evil organizations and their activities—and are of a very high rank.
"It's fine—after all—my disguise was indeed the same as theirs."
"Croagunk~"
Seeing the tense atmosphere suddenly dissipate—Hanson and Croagunk couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
Though they had not been without similar dangerous missions together—facing such a powerful attack at close range—no normal person would likely be able to remain unperturbed.
After introductions—Wade looked at the somewhat familiar buzz-cut middle-aged man—and his heart already understood.
Hanson—code-named "Handsome."
In the anime and game views of his past life—whether pursuing Team Galactic in Sinnoh—arresting Team Plasma in Unova—or investigating Ultra Beast incidents in Alola—this Interpol officer's active presence could be seen—making him a "top model worker" in the Pokémon world.
"A few hundred meters across this river—there's an abandoned factory called the Totorro Steel Factory—and the criminal gang responsible for the river pollution in this area during this time is stationed there."
Hanson used a rope to tie all the unconscious patrol members to a tree trunk—then turned around—explaining verbally as he led the farm owner and Jenny behind him towards the source.
"A week ago—I received intelligence that a group of lawbreakers was wantonly mining precious ores at Mt. Coronet's foot—smelting them in this abandoned Steel Factory—and then smuggling them to other regions at exorbitant prices."
"Because the situation was still unclear—and intelligence needed verification and further collection—Croagunk and I disguised ourselves as new members to infiltrate—and gather more information."
Since their objectives were consistent—the buzz-cut Interpol officer explained the specific situation.
"I see."
Wade nodded thoughtfully.
Unlike the games—the real Pokémon world doesn't just have large evil organizations like Team Rocket and Team Galactic.
More often—there are criminal gangs involved in poaching Pokémon—smuggling minerals—and so on.
Cracking down on these hidden, troublesome smaller groups—is also an important duty of these Interpol officers.
Because of these smugglers' illegal ore smelting—large amounts of untreated wastewater were discharged into the river—coupled with the Grimer that came attracted by the smell—which is why the river became murky and smelly.
"Officer Hanson—we should be almost there, right?"
After crossing the river using a hidden bridge concealed by water plants—Jenny—walking in front—looked up and keenly noticed several Zubat hanging upside down from treetops.
Those were the reconnaissance and alert methods commonly used by criminals.
These bat Pokémon—though their eyesight was poor—could confirm their surroundings by emitting Supersonic from their mouths—and could even directly detect and locate enemies thousands of meters away.
Though the forest here was dense—reducing detection range—just walking a few steps further from the riverbank—would immediately attract the attention of these sentinels.
Wade—jumped over the last hidden water plant stake—also took in the scene.
"Don't alert them yet—it's clearly not enough for just the three of us to arrest them all. We need to dispatch dozens more experienced police officers—or even Gym Trainers."
Hanson reached out to stop the farm owner—said softly.
Though Wade had shown astonishing combat power earlier—Hanson—always cautious—still believed that sending more people would be safer.
"Based on my undercover infiltration these past few days—I've roughly figured out their personnel arrangements. This smuggling organization has sixty members."
"They have clear divisions of labor: some are responsible for guarding the entrance—some are smelting ores in the internal furnace—as for the open platform on top of the Steel Factory—there are also dozens of powerful Skarmory."
"Skarmory too?"
The farm owner skipped the lengthy preamble—focused on the more crucial point.
"That's right—this group isn't just numerous—they can be described as well-trained."
Hanson nodded—lowering his voice to explain.
"Besides the patrol team across the river—and the Zubat flock responsible for detection—there are dozens of Skarmory on standby at the top of the Steel Factory. As soon as something seems amiss—those guys can immediately escape by riding them."
"Furthermore—their leader has even specially equipped several Golem that know the Self-Destruct move."
At this point—the buzz-cut Interpol officer paused deliberately—his already stern expression becoming even more serious.
[Self-Destruct] —the most powerful Normal-type move in the Pokémon world.
After using it—the user not only falls into a near-fainting state—but also triggers an extremely powerful explosion—attacking all surrounding Trainers and Pokémon.
Throughout all criminal gang apprehension operations—there has been no shortage of evil individuals who use this move for a desperate counterattack.
Trainers' physical fitness—not weak—but a slight carelessness—could easily lead to heavy casualties.
Jenny—also an officer—frowned.
For these smuggling organizations—if there's any slight movement that alerts them—they will flee.
But if pushed too hard—and cannot be taken down quickly—it's easy to fall into the dangerous situation where criminals—in desperation—initiate an indiscriminate explosion.
The optimal solution—as Hanson said—mobilize enough police officers—and even have Gym Trainers from nearby towns come to assist—to safely and efficiently apprehend these criminals.
However—Jenny did not intend to follow through with that plan—but instead turned her gaze to the farm owner—deep in thought.
She now wanted to hear Wade's arrangements more.
After a moment of contemplation—Wade chose to resolve it using his own unique method.
"Zapdos—use Thunder on top of the Steel Factory."
"Roar~"
Accompanied by a high-pitched bird cry that resounded—a golden lightning bolt—splitting the sky completely—descended like a silver dragon.
As the cascade-like silver snake arcs continuously spread—they instantly illuminated the dim, sprawling forest below.
"Hmm—this way they shouldn't be able to escape~"
Watching plumes of smoke rise from the open platform on top of the Steel Factory—Wade nodded with satisfaction.
Though he could have also had Zapdos strike down the fleeing criminals one by one—overly powerful lightning could easily cause a forest fire—better to first wipe out their flock of Skarmory.
Seeing that his objective had been achieved—he slightly turned his head—and asked the dumbfounded Interpol officer.
"Officer Hanson—you still remember what they look like, right?"
"Of course I reme- remember."
The buzz-cut officer instinctively swallowed.
Due to the effect of the Thunder move—chaotic, panicked shouting erupted from inside the Steel Factory—the arrest operation was at a critical stage—where it had to be carried out.
And he naturally understood the unspoken meaning in Wade's words—that not a single one should be let go when counting the numbers at the end.
But the key points shouldn't be that—but rather—
Hanson and Croagunk exchanged glances—both seeing shock in each other's eyes.
Zapdos —with arcs of electricity constantly emanating from it—hovering in the sky above the forest—flapping its wings.
Articuno —appearing amidst a Blizzard—soaring high—stirring up a sky full of ice crystals—like surging waves.
Darkrai —whose figure gradually emerged from the farm owner's shadow—cold gaze—gloomy nightmare—already spreading a more terrifying black curtain over most of the shaded branches.
Two Legendary Pokémon—one Mythical Pokémon—
No—when had they ever fought such a rich battle in their lives?!