Chapter 380: Mega vs. Ultra-Mega

The situation had been completely one-sided.

Yet within a short time, such a shocking reversal occurred—not due to defeat in Pokémon battles, but because the core airship had been stolen!

Not only stolen, but even turned against them and controlled by the enemy!

Not only had Bashu not anticipated it, he hadn't even considered it possible.

This—this makes no sense!

Even after infiltrating, they should have chosen to destroy the airship; after all, piloting such a massive vessel isn't something you can manage with sheer bravado.

"Pusen! Pusen!"

Bashu tried to contact his partner, but Baimu had already severed their internal communications at the source using Poliwhirl's power; now, all he heard was a hissing static.

Soon after, the black-tech netting used by Team Rocket to restrain Dragon-type Pokémon also malfunctioned—it was controlled by the airship's main system, and they only needed to perform simple, foolproof operations to easily capture Pokémon.

But precisely because of this, once Poliwhirl shut it down, countless Dragon-type Pokémon broke free and surged out en masse through the open hatches of the airship.

They rained down everywhere in a dense swarm.

Seeing this, Team Rocket members became even more panicked and began clustering toward their comrades' positions.

"Hahahaha…"

Old Qingliu, who had long since collapsed from exhaustion, sat slumped on the ground, drawing concerned glances from the Mega Sceptile; yet he waved it off carelessly, "Looks like I underestimated him!"

"What are you all standing around for! Don't be scared of that guy! As long as we capture these old men—ah!"

A Team Rocket member attempting to take hostages suddenly let out a piercing scream; such a loud, reckless troublemaker wouldn't be spared—Baimu wasn't blind or deaf.

"Taking hostages is wrong. Your idea is far too dangerous. As a warning, I'll give you two extra shocks."

Zzzt—

"Ah!"

Zzzt—

"Ah!"

The Team Rocket member, already unconscious with rolled-back eyes, screamed and convulsed as thin wisps of white smoke slowly rose from his body, like a soul ascending to the heavens.

His partner Pokémon stepped back several paces, drenched in sweat, wearing an expression of "I don't know this guy."

Around them, Team Rocket members and Pokémon alike bared their teeth or swallowed hard, their skin prickling with goosebumps as if they all felt it in their own bodies.

When they looked again at the airship, they began to doubt—who was the real evil organization? Normally, you'd attack Pokémon, right? Who directly targets Trainers?

Come on, you're torturing people—how are you so good at this?!

At that moment, the loudspeaker crackled again.

"I don't want to repeat myself. Please cooperate, and spare yourselves unnecessary pain. Three strikes and you're out—my patience is limited. Bashu, kid~ Agent Bashu! As one of the two leaders on-site, you're not thinking of sneaking away alone, are you?"

Bashu, who had quietly donned his Team Rocket gear, went pale.

The airship's interior situation was unknown, his comrades' status was unknown; the most correct immediate choice was to retreat and preserve himself, then later rescue his colleagues from jail or prison.

So retreating now was the right decision.

Unhesitatingly, once exposed, he yanked the valve on his Team Rocket gear; the high-speed jet blast instantly shot him into the sky!

Hoom—

Simultaneously, he adjusted his jet output to temporarily hover midair and swiftly pulled out a Poké Ball, attempting to recall his Mega Steelix.

Fully aware of the airship's attack range, he deliberately hovered in its blind spot.

Yet the moment the red beam fired, a colossal silver shadow far larger than Mega Steelix suddenly appeared, roaring as it swung its cable-like body and tightly bound the Mega Steelix!

【Tight Bind】!

The red beam struck—but exploded violently.

Under restraint, the Poké Ball's retrieval beam was useless; his plan failed.

"How could there possibly be—!"

»

Bashu's eyes widened; he had never seen a Steelix this large—even without Mega Evolution, it was over three times the size of his own Mega Steelix!

The restrained Mega Steelix couldn't move a muscle!

The more it struggled to turn the tide, the more agony it endured; its rainbow crystals clacked incessantly, as if about to shatter.

"Flame Wheel!"

"Grrrr!"

The Mega-sized Steelix opened its massive jaws and bit down hard on the Mega Steelix!

Clang—

Boom!

The metallic clang echoed through the air; flames burst from between the gleaming steel fangs, exploding into brilliant, dazzling sparks!

Ground-type moves would've been slightly more powerful, but the Mega-sized Steelix's current position made them inconvenient. Besides, even Flame Wheel alone was more than enough to overwhelm Mega Steelix, whose condition had plummeted after battling Mega Sceptile.

"Grrr…"

Mega Steelix let out a pained cry, its rainbow glow fading as it reverted to its normal form and collapsed unconscious.

In the control room.

Baimu watched the scene with immense satisfaction; once, his Steelix had been outmaneuvered by Brock's Steelix, and since that day, he had trained relentlessly in binding techniques—now, he had finally succeeded in using it on Bashu's Steelix!

While Baimu rejoiced, Bashu, hovering motionless in midair, ground his molars so hard they might shatter; unable to reclaim his Steelix, he was forced to abandon it and activated his Rocket pack to flee.

But perhaps due to long inactivity, the man was painfully sluggish in every way.

As sluggish as his partner, Pusen.

The arrogance of Team Rocket agents made them constantly expose vulnerabilities—even as they prepared to escape, they lingered for nearly half a minute.

During those thirty seconds after the failed recall, he did nothing—neither tried to free his Steelix nor pulled out a weapon to storm the airship and duel Baimu one-on-one.

What a pity—this moment of hesitation gave Big Mouth Kid the opening he needed.

As Barshu activated his rocket pack to ascend, Big Mouth Kid shot out from the hatch like an arrow, slashing past him and smashing the rocket pack into scrap with a single punch.

Boom!

Sparks exploded; Barshu tumbled uncontrollably from the sky, crashing hard to the ground and falling unconscious on impact.

The other Rocket members, seeing this, glanced at the electromagnetic and sonic guns aimed at them from below the airship, then saw the Starfall folk gradually surrounding them from all sides, and raised their hands tremblingly.

Without technological power, they had no chance of winning.

Every Rocket member understood this clearly.

"Hands behind your head, lie flat on the ground—yes, just like that. Cooperate, and it'll be better for both of us."

Baimu directed them, his gaze sweeping over the bound Rocket members, many with bruised and swollen faces, and smiled broadly: "Your seniors have already experienced firsthand the consequences of resistance."

Next…

A quick inspection of this airship might yield something special.

——

The Rocket invasion incident was over.

Many Pokémon had been injured by nets, electric shocks, and sonic waves.

But fortunately, the older Starfall folk suffered few injuries; though humans in the anime are physically robust, their condition declines sharply with age—both healing power and stamina.

Since Rocket members didn't directly attack humans, they were, in a way, still somewhat human.

Of course.

But not by much.

"Baimu, we owe you greatly this time."

The Dragon Elder approached Baimu, who was healing a Qianmian Bird, and whispered his thanks.

"It's merely my duty. Please return to rest—leave this to us."

He stood up with a smile, relieved to see the elder's breathing had steadied and his coughing had ceased.

At that moment, when he arrived, he had suddenly seen the elder held in another's arms and nearly had a heart attack, thinking disaster had struck—thankfully, there was no serious harm.

If he had been just one minute late and the Dragon Elder had died, he would have regretted it forever.

"I'm fine. I'm not that fragile."

The Dragon Elder shook his head, watching the Starfall folk bustling about throughout Starfall Village, his face showing faint relief mixed with deep emotion.

He had thought their old bones were enough to protect the village.

Yet Rocket had nearly turned Starfall Village upside down with just one airship—despite Baimu's help in defeating the invaders…

But who would ever want to endure such a thing?

Looking around, not a single face bore a smile—only the hollow relief of survival and sighs of exhaustion.

Perhaps it was time to go further.

The Dragon Elder thought, then noticed a cluster of dark shadows speeding across the horizon—undoubtedly the dragons returning from the Long Chao.

The belated great dragons rushed anxiously toward their homes, only relaxing when they confirmed their Trainers were safe.

Like a family reunited.

Smiles finally returned to everyone's faces.

The three members of the Village Guard were also among the dragon swarm, frantically searching for their loved ones.

Upon hearing of the attack on Starfall Village, nearly every dragon in the Long Chao with flight capability had launched out—but no matter how grand the display, there were no enemies left to vent their fury upon.

All Rocket members had been forcibly put to sleep and dumped in the village center, guarded by Old Qingliu, Bonsly, and a group of Dragon Pokémon.

The Rocket airship was parked outside the village—it was too large to fit comfortably inside, and leaving it there was impractical, so they simply left it outside for Young Lady Junsa to retrieve.

Thus, when the dragons returned, all they saw were Starfall folk cleaning up the wreckage.

Upon arriving, Triplehorn immediately rushed to its home, only to find shattered glass and a ruined interior—its Trainer and companions nowhere to be seen.

It opened all three mouths wide, its expression visibly spiraling into panic; just as it prepared to dash out searching, it spotted the Galarian Sunflora rocking gently in a nearby chair.

"Sashang—"

Triplehorn lunged toward it like a long-lost relative: "Sashang! Sashang!"

It frantically asked about its Trainer's whereabouts and condition; the air in Starfall Village was too cluttered with scents—it couldn't detect its Trainer at all, and its fear was mounting.

The Galarian Sunflora, there solely to guide, extended its smoke-like tentacles and pointed toward Baimu's location.

Triplehorn shot forward like an arrow, its massive head swinging wildly in panic—until, finally, it spotted its Trainer gently soothing a Desert Dragonfly.

The Trainer's quiet comforting motions seemed to glow in its eyes.

"Sashang—"

Triplehorn, nearly in tears, charged forward so fast Baimu couldn't react—both tumbled into a rolling heap, right before the Desert Dragonfly's stunned expression.

【Honestly, I've been using Yeguo Reading to follow updates lately—easy to switch sources and reading modes, with multiple voice options. Available on Android and iOS.】

After finally stopping their rolling, Triplehorn kept licking Baimu's face nonstop, whimpering like a stray dog that had found its home after years lost, trembling with excitement, refusing to move its head no matter how much he pleaded.

"... Sigh."

Baimu lay back on the ground, letting the creature roughhouse him, helplessly smiling: "I just can't do anything about you…"

If he had been in Starfall Village and heard the Long Chao had been attacked by Rocket, he'd probably have been just as bad as Triplehorn—maybe even worse.

For instance, judging whether Rocket members deserved to keep their corpses by Triplehorn's current state.

Excitement is a sign of deep care.

He should be glad—he was so deeply loved by the Pokémon, and Triplehorn cared for him so fiercely.

"Good~ Very good~"

Baimu stroked Triplehorn's head gently, one stroke at a time.