Chapter 657: Lance: No Way, Are His Students This Strong Already?

"Bamo!"

Pawmi, wielding electrified fists, dodged Sharpedo's bite by a hair's breadth and seized the momentum to unleash a super-effective "Thunder Punch" that exploded across Sharpedo's body.

Dazzling lightning illuminated Sharpedo as it blasted backward.

At this moment, Archie was already itching to curse aloud.

What exactly is going on with that little girl!?

Archie considered that even if he couldn't compare to champions shining as brightly as Steven or Wallace, otherwise he would have long ago challenged the Hoenn Elite Four, instead of playing the role of some lousy villain boss.

But relying on the entire Aqua Team's resource supply, matching the level of an Elite Four trainer was certainly no problem.

Even so, his strongest Sharpedo right now was being completely dominated by Hearing Nimo's Pawmi!

As if that weren't enough, she had successively sent out two more Pokémon, blocking Admin Matt's Crawdaunt and Admin Shelly's Walrein.

Are you kidding me! Could she possibly be a champion-level trainer?

But despite his frustration, Archie gripped the Crimson Orb tightly in his hand and forced himself to calm down.

Strong as Hearing Nimo was, she wasn't powerful enough to instantly defeat and crush their aces, let alone snatch the Crimson Orb from his grasp, which was crucial for controlling the ancient Pokémon Groudon.

Noticing the commotion here, his subordinates also gathered around; Archie exchanged glances with Shelly and Matt, signaling them to just stall Hearing Nimo together with him.

Bullies always pick on the weak; Hearing Nimo was alone, and counting carefully, she possessed no more than five Pokémon total, so they would surely find an opportunity to break through from the weak points of Paul and Shizuka.

Of course, this premise relied on Maxie not kicking them while they were down, after all, aside from that decent Red Gyarados, that side posed virtually no threat.

That glasses-wearing schemer really got a bargain!

On the other side.

After leaving its Poké Ball, Dragonite quickly knocked the Indigo Orb from Maxie's hand and was just about to bend down to pick it up when it was immediately body-slammed several meters away by Camerupt, which had reacted in time.

Dragonite tried to flash past using its speed under the special "Extreme Speed" state, but Camerupt used its bulk to firmly shield Maxie and the Indigo Orb behind it.

Given Dragonite's own size, it truly couldn't find any gap for the moment.

Maxie seized the opportunity to immediately pick up the Indigo Orb.

"Tsk."

With an ugly expression, Lance raised his arm to block a punch thrown by a Magma Grunt, then countered by throwing the grunt over his shoulder onto the ground.

Several Mightyena bared their fangs viciously at Lance, but were immediately swept to the ground by a tail swipe from Dragonite, which had pulled back to retrieve Lance.

"Let's go over there!"

Lance smoothly jumped onto Dragonite's back, pointing toward Brock's group and the Red Gyarados as he issued his command.

His appearance undoubtedly allowed Brock, who was under immense pressure, to breathe a sigh of relief.

"Mr. Lance!"

Brock excitedly shouted toward Lance, who rode Dragonite over numerous Magma Grunts and descended before them.

"Mm, do not be afraid, leave everything to me!"

Lance nodded slightly to the three of them, his champion's cape fluttering on his shoulders as if guarding them.

To put their minds at ease, he also casually added, "By the way, Ash is also very safe right now."

"That's wonderful!"

May exchanged a glance with her brother, smiles breaking out on their faces as the heavy stone in their hearts finally settled.

"I apologize, I failed to seize the Orb."

Lance apologized to Brock and the other two, though his gaze remained firmly fixed on the Magma Team members who were gradually forming an encirclement.

He would not attribute the cause of his failure to the fact that he could only carry two Pokémon due to his undercover status; the truth was simply that he had missed a hard-won opportunity.

"How could that be, Mr. Lance clearly already—"

May wanted to say something in a slight panic, but at that moment, Maxie spoke up.

"Lance of the Dragon Clan, Elite Four of the Kanto region and Champion of the Johto region, why have you come to meddle in Hohto region affairs?"

Looking at the young man before him with a head of flamboyant red hair, his expression appeared somewhat gloomy.

This guy was still wearing his Magma Team uniform; even a fool could guess that the other party had been infiltrating Magma Team for quite some time.

Yet he himself had been completely unaware of it!!

"Justice knows no regional boundaries."

Signaling May not to make excuses for him, Lance declared with righteous air.

"Your justice involves being a spy and an undercover agent?" Maxie sneered coldly, issuing an order, "All Magma Team members, capture them all for me!"

Dozens, even hundreds, of eyes immediately turned toward the four of them.

The next instant.

Dazzling move effects shot fiercely toward the four of them.

Lance crossed his arms and issued commands in a deep voice.

"Dragonite, Gyarados—"

"Hyper Beam!"

"What an intense battle."

In the dense forest in the completely opposite direction, Zinnia, still clad in an Aqua Team uniform, leaned against a large tree watching that scene, her expression complex.

Although the current situation had indeed exceeded her expectations, it had to be said that this truly created an extremely favorable scenario for her plans.

The high-end combat power of both Aqua Team and Magma Team was being held back by those people who should have been sent by the Pokémon League.

One side possessed great strength, the other had overwhelming numbers; temporarily, neither could overcome the other.

It was foreseeable that both sides would remain deadlocked for some time.

This period of time—was already sufficient for her to accomplish her objective.

After a brief pause, Zinnia's agile figure vanished into the forest.

On the heavily guarded Magma Team submarine, a massive cargo container was firmly secured within the terrace.

Batches of Aqua Team grunts patrolled beside the cargo container in shifts, leaving virtually no gap for intrusion.

—Even with such tight security, a man and a woman dressed in white uniforms, along with a talking Meowth, still managed to sneak up to the cargo container.

Inside the cargo container rested the super-ancient legendary Pokémon—Kyogre.

The Magma Team discovered the sleeping Kyogre in an underwater cave, used technology to keep it in a slumbering state, and then "moved" it away.

"Sleeping so soundly~"

Gazing at Kyogre's sleeping appearance on the external display screen, James rubbed his hands together like a fly.

"Let us move it and present it to Boss Giovanni, then get promoted with a raise and become executives, meow!"

Meowth drooled from the corner of its mouth, already beginning to fantasize.

"Come now, little Kyogre-chan, it's time to move house."

Jessie had already begun frantically operating the console that controlled the entire cargo container.

Just then.

Accompanied by the angry shouts of the alerted Magma Team grunts.

A fierce wind pressure descended from the sky, nearly blowing the two humans and one cat straight away.

"What the meow is going on, is someone ambushing us, meow?"

Meowth instinctively cursed aloud, but when it lifted its head and saw the Salamence turning its head against the backdrop of an inexplicably clear sky, flapping its blood-red dragon wings, it instantly fell silent.

Jessie and James, who had wanted to join Meowth in shouting curses, also cowardly shrank their necks.

Otherwise, they feared that big creature would swallow them all alive in one bite.

On the back of the Salamence, a female voice with a rather heroic tone rang out.

"Why are Team Rocket people here?"

"Well, it's not a big problem though."

Having removed her Aqua Team uniform and donned her original attire, Zinnia leaped down from the Salamence's back, smiling as she reminded the trio:

"I personally suggest you run quickly; as for why, the Groudon on the Aqua Team's side has already been released by me, and next it will be Kyogre's turn."

"What the meow... are you crazy, meow?!"

Meowth immediately widened its eyes, its fur standing on end, nearly recalling the hissing skill it possessed as a wild Meowth.

Jessie and James also looked at the madwoman before them with expressions of disbelief.

Even they only intended to steal the soundly sleeping Kyogre, transport it back to Kanto to present to Boss Giovanni for a promotion and raise, never having thought to wake these dangerous creatures.

How did this short-haired girl dare to release them?!

"You wouldn't understand even if I told you; all of this is to prevent the world from being destroyed and to maintain world peace."

Zinnia shook her head, additionally ordering her Salamence to blast a stream of fire to block the Magma Team grunts trying to rush over.

"Hey! What kind of joke is this! That's our line!"

James was still weakly protesting, while Jessie had already attempted to pounce forward.

But before she could get close to Zinnia, she was swept away by a tail swipe from the Salamence, flying backward and crashing onto James.

Without even lifting her head, Zinnia began operating the control console, adding casually, "Since you don't seem to be the kind of people who are evil to the bone, I'll give you one last reminder: leave immediately."

"Next, this small island... no, the entire Hoenn region will become a battlefield where two prematurely awakened super-ancient Pokémon compete for scarce natural energy."

"In this moment of crisis, the 'Dragon of the Sky' will descend from heaven to quell the great disasters brought by both."

"At that time, I will make a request to Lord Dragon God to save Hoenn..."

This last sentence, Zinnia murmured to herself in a volume only she could hear.

Under the incredulous expressions of Meowth, Jessie, and James, she pressed the "Release Lock" button without hesitation.

Accompanied by the tremendous noise of machinery operating and steam billowing upwards.

All mechanisms left by the Magma Team on Kyogre to prevent it from waking failed, and the restraints were released accordingly.

In the cramped pool within the cargo container, a pair of primitive golden beast eyes, seemingly devoid of any emotion, suddenly opened!

Accompanied by Gao Ang's whale cry, dark clouds instantly gathered in the clear sky, bean-sized water droplets falling from slow to rapid, crazily dripping, and in the blink of an eye—Zha Yan De Gong—a heavy rainstorm formed.

Amidst a violent explosion, the super-ancient Pokémon named Kyogre spread its wide fin-palms and leaped into the suddenly turbulent sea.

Paying no attention to Jessie, James, and Meowth who had already chosen to flee, letting the rainstorm beat upon her, Zinnia flipped onto the back of her Salamence.

What she needed to do was temporarily finished.

As long as Groudon and Kyogre were released, driven by instinct, they would only engage in fierce conflict next.

Without intervening with their own will through the Orb at the first moment while they were still in a groggy state just after waking up.

The will of the super-ancient Pokémon could not be swayed.

And the Orbs in the hands of Archie and Maxie were merely tools to attract their attacks.

After all, both super-ancient Pokémon wanted to absorb all the natural energy accumulated in the two Orbs; otherwise, there wouldn't be situations like Archie and Maxie holding mismatched Orbs yet believing they could project their will onto Kyogre or Groudon.

Not long ago, on Moonstone Island.

While relying on Dragonite and Gyarados to withstand the pressure from the Magma Team.

Lance, gazing at the figures of the three people surrounded by the Aqua Team on the other side, asked without turning his head to Brock and the others who were striving to plug gaps and block attacks that Dragonite and Gyarados couldn't intercept in time:

"Who are those over there?"

Originally, he had prepared to retreat under the siege of both the Magma Team and the Aqua Team, temporarily avoiding their sharp edge to rescue Brock and the others.

But the addition of those three people had directly shouldered more than half of the pressure for him.

He truly had no impression of the other two, but among them, the slightly older female with a pink single ponytail—more accurately, her facial features—Lance seemed to see frequently.

"They are Hearing Hearing Nimo, Shinji, and Shizuka, all students of that Mr. Luo Mu!"

While commanding his Marshtomp to use Water Gun to cancel out the Flamethrower flying toward them, Brock immediately answered.

"His student!?"

Lance's eyes suddenly widened; he nearly let his guard down from shock, almost getting bitten on the left leg by a fierce, fearless large wolf-dog that pounced at him.

Little Win, hiding behind Little Haruka, added, "That Sister Hearing Hearing Nimo is even the youngest Champion-level Trainer in the Paldea region!"

Lance: "?"

No, how much time has passed? When did his student become this powerful?

What exactly did he miss while undercover in Team Magma!?

Gazing at Hearing Hearing Nimo's figure over there, who, even under the converging siege of Team Aqua, could still find gaps to withstand the assault and counterattack using type advantages.

Even knowing clearly that she still had the advantages of carrying a main Pokémon, having teammates who weren't useless, and receiving their support.

But Lance still reached the conclusion that this young girl absolutely possessed strength comparable to an ordinary Regional Champion.

How old was she?

Eleven or twelve?

If she were any younger, wouldn't she be a replica of those two who shook Kanto a few years ago?

Amidst his surprise, Lance also commanded his Dragonite to repeatedly seize opportunities to deal heavy blows to Maxie's Camerupt.

Even though they were outnumbered, within Team Magma, the only Trainers whose Pokémon could withstand Dragonite's attacks head-on were Maxie and the two Admins.

It was just that when the sky suddenly turned clear, the firepower of the opposing Fire-type Pokémon seemed to increase.

Who activated the Sunny Day move?

No matter how strong Dragonite was, its stamina still paled in comparison under the enemy's relentless attrition.

Frowning, Lance had already formed a plan: first call out to Hearing Hearing Nimo and the others, then retreat with Little Win's group, rescue Little Satoshi, and immediately request reinforcements from the Hoenn region.

Wallace or Steven, or even an Elite Four member; just one more person could change the tide of battle.

Maxie also guessed Lance's intention and ordered his subordinates to stick to them, not letting them escape.

—But just then, an alarm sounding of an attack came from Team Magma's submarine.

On the other side, the somewhat chaotic Team Aqua also seemed to have suffered a similar attack not long ago.

Before Maxie could issue the order to hold the submarine and the cargo Groudon at all costs, the sky, which had just been clear, suddenly darkened.

The moment the torrential rain suddenly poured down, as if understanding something instantly, Maxie's expression became completely twisted.

—Besides the two groups in front of them, someone else was causing trouble in the shadows!

Who was it? That boy and the Pikachu?

No, they shouldn't have that capability.

But before Maxie could think further, a loud whale cry and a heavy beast roar suddenly rang out from both ends of Mossdeep Island.

On the other side, Archie had already received follow-up contact from his subordinates with the news that Groudon had been released by a traitor wearing Team Aqua's uniform!

Both he and Maxie tried to control the other using the orbs in their hands, but no matter how hard they tried, the orbs in their hands remained dim.

It was as if they simply could not impose their will upon the two Super-Ancient Pokémon.

Gritting their teeth, Maxie and Archie roared loudly, "Everyone, prepare to retreat!"

Were they going to give up controlling Groudon and Kyogre?

Of course not.

In their view, it must be due to the distance being too great; as long as they got closer to Groudon/Kyogre, their will would surely be imprinted upon them.

The two no longer bothered to hinder each other; while ordering their subordinates to retreat and cover their rear, they directly abandoned the plan to besiege Hearing Hearing Nimo, Lance, and the others, devoting all their focus to the Super-Ancient Pokémon they had plotted over for so long.

(End of Chapter)