"I'm a little curious—just who are you, to be able to cause such a big commotion?"
Joker raised an eyebrow and looked at Tobias, who was already scared stiff.
This guy had only appeared once in the original ani. It felt like he was specifically introduced as a deus ex machina to prevent Ash from winning the championship.
Later, when the Masters Eight tournant started, he was nowhere to be seen.
As a result, his background remained a complete mystery.
During the Lily of the Valley Conference, it was ntioned that he was from Sinnoh.
But as a Sinnoh trainer, he sohow made the Hoenn League go to such great lengths for him.
Compared to Steven, the son of Hoenn's richest man, his background was probably even more powerful.
At the very least, if sothing happened to Steven in Sinnoh, the Sinnoh League wouldn't mobilize such a large force for him.
"I-I..."
Having Darkrai as his starter Pokémon, Tobias, who had grown up in a sheltered environnt, had never experienced such a scene before.
Just yesterday, on the southern island, Sird had almost scared him to the point of wetting himself.
And Joker was even worse.
"There's no need to answer a criminal's questions!"
Officer Jenny of Slateport City, overflowing with a sense of justice, gave a stern shout.
Beside her, Arcanine had already used Extre Speed, dashing to Entei's right rear flank.
Being the police captain of a major city like Slateport, she had considerable strength.
But that also depended on who she was up against.
"Grrr~!"
Entei slightly narrowed its eyes and opened its mouth. The golden-red flas, resembling a fire dragon, swept out—similar to Ho-Oh.
Arcanine, which had been charging in with Extre Speed, initially tried to push through the flas.
But after just two steps, it suddenly let out a miserable howl and collapsed in the scorching fire, which had even charred the ground, losing its ability to fight.
If a Fire-type Pokémon like Arcanine was in such a state, there was no need to ntion the other police Pokémon present.
Even those rely touched by the embers—like Watchog and Granbull—reacted as if they had been electrocuted, continuously retreating.
Those directly caught in the flas were rolling on the ground, wailing in agony.
"How is this possible?! My Arcanine's ability is Flash Fire!"
Officer Jenny of Slateport exclaid in disbelief.
Flash Fire is an ability that allows a Pokémon to absorb Fire-type moves and boost its firepower.
"That only works when the difference in strength isn't too overwhelming," Stephen kindly reminded her.
Abilities like Flash Fire (which grants immunity to Fire-type moves) and Water Absorb (which grants immunity to Water-type moves), as well as type immunities like Ground-types being immune to Electric moves or Fairy-types being immune to Dragon moves, all rely on the premise that there isn't an enormous gap in level.
After all, this isn't a ga. Otherwise, even if the move itself doesn't work, the sheer impact of the attack would be enough to crush the opponent.
For example, if Rayquaza used Dragon Ascent against a Clefairy—
In the ga, Clefairy would indeed take no damage.
But in reality? Would Rayquaza even have any dignity left?
Of course, even so, in the future Masters Eight tournant, Lance using Dragon-type moves against Diantha's Gardevoir was still incredibly dumb.
Sure, he's stronger than Diantha, but not to such an absurd degree.
"Roar!"
Entei let out a deep growl.
The flas raging across the plaza spread outward as if they were its pets.
"Anyone below Elite Four level, fall back!"
Cynthia made a decisive call, waving her hand and shouting.
At the sa ti, her Garchomp didn't hesitate—its sharp Dragon Claw hooked onto Tobias, who had collapsed to the ground in fear and flung him backward.
As Tobias scread, an Infernape erged from the crowd behind and caught him in midair.
"Looks like things are serious."
A man stepped out from behind the Infernape.
Dressed in hiking gear with a single-strap backpack, covered in mud and even with a few leaves stuck to his shoulder.
This was Norman, the reserve Gym Leader of the Hoenn League!
"Mr. Norman, you're here too?"
Sidney asked in surprise.
Originally from Johto but having transferred to Hoenn, Norman had been held accountable for the Salance attack on Johto's Pokémon Research Center so ti ago.
As a result, he was banned from taking the Gym Leader exam for five years.
"Just happened to be passing by. Didn't expect to run into an S-rank criminal wanted by the League."
Norman frowned.
Ever since the attack on Johto's Pokémon Research Center, he hadn't returned ho.
He had been tracking Rayquaza's whereabouts across Johto and Hoenn.
That was the real punishnt the League had given him.
But he hadn't expected to stumble upon such a major incident.
"Mr. Norman, Miss Cynthia, let's join forces and take down Joker!"
Winona had already mounted her Altaria and rushed over to propose.
"No, Gym Leader Winona, take Tobias and retreat to the back."
Cynthia flatly rejected her proposal without hesitation.
As she had said before—anyone below the Elite Four level wasn't qualified to participate in this battle.
And Joker had just proven this point himself: the level gap was too great. Even with abilities and type advantages, it was aningless.
Winona's Altaria might have decent resistance to Fire-type moves, but it would only delay her defeat by a few seconds at best.
"Alright... I understand."
Winona nodded dejectedly.
"We don't have to fight. Just let us leave."
Joker's voice suddenly ca from behind.
"Are you kidding ?! You stole my Darkrai and Latios, and you think you can just walk away?!"
Tobias roared in fury.
"Enough, Tobias! Let's just go!"
Winona grabbed Tobias's arm and pulled him back.
"Darkrai was caught by Sird. And Latios? You just weren't paying enough attention. Don't make excuses."
Joker smiled and said,
"I don't mind if you want to take revenge on , but you can do it yourself."
If Tobias had personally stepped forward, Joker might have even praised him for being genuine. But hiding behind other powerful trainers like an ostrich... to borrow Madara's words—
Weakness disgusts .
"Milotic, Hydro Pump!"
A Milotic leaped out, its elegant, serpentine body gliding gracefully across the ground, skillfully avoiding the rising flas.
In the blink of an eye, it had closed the distance to Entei, stopping just ten ters away.
The next second, Milotic raised the upper half of its body and released a powerful jet of water.
It perfectly avoided the burning flas and shot straight toward Entei's temple.
"That's... Juan, Wallace's ntor, isn't it?"
Joker's gaze shifted slightly, noticing the middle-aged man with a small mustache standing beside the Milotic.
He rembered that this was Wallace's teacher, the forr Gym Leader of Sootopolis City.
After Wallace rose to prominence, Juan stepped down and passed the Gym Leader position to his disciple.
If nothing unexpected happened, in a few years, when Steven relinquished his Champion title to Wallace, Juan would likely return as the Gym Leader.
Entei turned its head and countered the Hydro Pump with a Flathrower.
The two opposing elental attacks collided, unleashing a powerful wave of heat and wind.
Juan frowned slightly—he realized that the Flathrower was pushing back the Hydro Pump.
Despite having the type advantage... should he say, as expected of a legendary Pokémon?
If Juan had noticed it, then how could Entei—who was directly involved—not be aware?
Entei increased its power output, and the Flathrower grew even stronger.
As it completely overpowered the Hydro Pump and was about to engulf Milotic—
"Typhlosion!"
A powerful shout ca from the veteran Elite Four mber, Moore.
Typhlosion suddenly lunged forward, jumping directly into Entei's fire to act as a shield against the Flathrower.
"My Typhlosion can Flash Fire."
Moore shot Juan a reassuring glance.
Sure enough, standing amidst the flas, the fire on Typhlosion's back burned even more fiercely.
Earlier, Officer Jenny's Arcanine wasn't strong enough to absorb Entei's flas, but Moore's Typhlosion could handle it!
"Use Darkest Lariat!"
Even though his Typhlosion had boosted its firepower with Flash Fire, Moree didn't dare to use a Fire-type move against Entei.
That would be like showing off in front of a master swordsman.
A dark aura enveloped Typhlosion's body, completely obscuring its original appearance.
Then, with a long howl, the black mass started spinning wildly—
like a black whirlwind, it charged straight at Entei.
"Extre Speed."
At Joker's command—
Entei's body beca engulfed in a fierce windstorm and collided head-on with the incoming black whirlwind.
Through the Dark-type energy, Typhlosion could feel the imnse impact force from Entei.
Moore's main Pokémon, his strongest Typhlosion, felt like its internal organs were being shaken out of place.
But it wasn't over yet.
The next second—just as Typhlosion was enduring the pain inside its dark energy shield—
It suddenly realized sothing shocking.
A massive lion's paw had already broken through its dark barrier and was pressing against its chest!
And at the tip of the giant paw—
razor-sharp claws, like daggers, were extending out.
Typhlosion's expression changed drastically.
What... what is this?!
"Dragon Rush!"
At that mont, Cynthia's commanding voice rang out.
A blue-purple dragon fla erupted from her Garchomp, who was soaring high in the sky.
The flas completely enveloped Garchomp, forming a massive azure dragon that roared as it charged at Entei.
Almost instantly, a freezing beam of ice shot out from the chaotic Extre Speed turbulence.
Typhlosion seized the opportunity to retreat, landing back on the ground.
Feeling the residual warmth on its chest, it remained deeply shaken.
It still couldn't comprehend—what just happened?!
But right now, aside from its trainer Moore, no one had ti to pay attention to Typhlosion.
Because everyone had just witnessed sothing unbelievable.
A beam of Ice Beam pierced through the Dragon Rush, splitting the fiery dragon in two.
Cynthia's ace Pokémon, Garchomp, stumbled and fell from the sky.
"Slaking!"
Norman imdiately threw a Poké Ball.
A huge Slaking swung its hamr-like arms, delivering a powerful punch at Entei, who was still surrounded by the Extre Speed vortex.
The attack disrupted the trajectory of the Ice Beam.
Garchomp, who hadn't taken the full force of the attack, managed to regain control at the last mont—
flipping mid-air, it crashed heavily onto the ground.
Narrowly avoiding disaster, Cynthia had minimized the damage.
"En-Entei used Ice Beam?!"
The gathered League elites all stared in shock.
Even for a legendary Pokémon, this is too ridiculous, isn't it?!
At that mont, the high-speed windstorm around Entei dissipated.
Flowing purple hair fluttered in the air.
Compared to Entei's previous majestic form, the Pokémon before them now looked more graceful.
Suicune?!
Cynthia, Juan, and the others on the battlefield—
Steven and Wallace, who were fighting against Will and Sird in the distance—
even Tobias and the others who had retreated hundreds of ters away...
Everyone exchanged glances, all thinking the sa thing—
"Am I dreaming?"
Joker had been riding Entei just a mont ago.
So why had it suddenly beco Suicune?!
"D-Did he recalls Entei at the exact mont Cynthia's Garchomp attacked... and switch it for Suicune?"
Wallace hesitated as he spoke.
"That's impossible!"
If that were true, Joker would have been completely exposed for a brief mont—
Typhlosion's Darkest Lariat would have torn him to pieces!
"Sheer Cold."
Sitting atop Suicune, Joker's expression remained unchanged as he gave the command.
A silver-white glow began to radiate from Suicune's body.
The next second, he suddenly raised his head.
"Everyone, pay attention!"
As a Water-type expert, Juan naturally had so knowledge of Ice-types as well.
In an instant, the ground beneath Suicune, which had been scorched by Entei's flas, was quickly covered in a layer of silver-white frost, spreading visibly fast.
"Garchomp, Earthquake!"
At Cynthia's command, Garchomp stomped its foot hard on the ground.
Boom—!
The tiles of the entire plaza cracked apart. The uneven terrain slowed the spread of Absolute Zero.
"Beautiful! The future champion of Sinnoh is quite good at dealing with Ice-types too," Juan praised, twirling his small mustache.
"After all, my Garchomp doesn't like ice," Cynthia responded.
Zzzzt—!
Almost as soon as Cynthia finished speaking, everyone vaguely heard a crackling thunder sound.
Boom!
Before Cynthia and the others could turn their heads to locate the source of the sound, a golden lightning bolt streaked across the battlefield, slamming hard into Juan's Milotic.
The most beautiful Pokémon was sent flying. With a crash, it shattered the display window of a shop across the street. Its red-and-blue tail drooped outside the window, obscuring the view of the inside.
It all happened too suddenly. Until Milotic was struck and sent flying, Cynthia, Juan, and the others hadn't even reacted.
About two seconds later, Juan and the others finally processed what had happened.
That was... Bolt Strike!?
Looking back at where Milotic had been standing just monts ago, they saw dazzling electricity crackling along sharp fur.
Noticing Cynthia and the others staring, the Thunder Beast wore a playful smirk.
"This ti it's Raikou!?" Cynthia was stunned.
First, it was Entei. Then Suicune. Now Raikou had appeared as well.
Had all three Legendary Beasts been captured by Joker!?
But... sothing felt off!
"Guh..."
At that mont, Milotic, which had been thrown against the building across the street, let out a groan and struggled to rise.
"Milotic! Are you okay!?" Juan called out in concern.
"Guh—"
Milotic looked back at its trainer with a reassuring gaze, but its expression didn't seem like it was "okay" at all.
"It really can take a hit," Joker comnted leisurely as he walked forward.
Beside him, Karen stood, accompanied by her Houndoom and Honchkrow.
They've been healed!?
Indeed, from the start, Joker had bet that using a move like Sheer Cold—powerful but with a notoriously low accuracy—wouldn't be enough to seriously threaten these elite trainers.
His real goal was simply to divert their attention, creating an opportunity for Karen and her Pokémon to recover.
"What exactly did you do!?"
For perhaps the first ti in her life, Cynthia showed a look of utter disbelief.
Even when facing Cyrus, who controlled the deities of Ti and Space, she had likely never displayed such an expression.
Cynthia was never afraid of opponents stronger than herself. But this strange sensation she felt while battling Joker unsettled her deeply.
The unknown... was even more terrifying than sheer power.
"Hmm~~ Perfect timing. Let's try that," Joker murmured to himself, seemingly lost in thought.
"Everyone, stay calm!"
At the critical mont, Norman stepped forward and shouted,
"At the end of the day, he's just one person! Even if he holds Legendary Pokémon, there's no way he can perfectly counter all of us at once. He's bound to make a mistake!"
Norman's words made sense.
In Pokémon battles—especially battles between trained Pokémon— a trainer's focus and reflexes are limited.
Even in double battles, trainers often struggle to keep up, sotis making errors in judgnt.
And now, Joker was facing multiple Elite Trainers at once—all at Champion-level or higher.
"Mr. Norman, is your child a boy or a girl?" Joker suddenly asked with a grin.
In the ani, Norman had both a daughter and a son—May and Max.
In the manga, he had a son nad Ruby.
And in the gas, it depended on the player's choice.
So Joker was genuinely curious—in this real world, who was Norman's child?
"...Huh?"
Norman was montarily thrown off.
They were about to fight to the death, and this guy was making small talk!?
"Never mind, I'll find out eventually. Now, let's begin."
Joker smiled once more and glanced down at his belt, where he had just retrieved a Poké Ball from Karen.
Inside the ball, Zoroark grinned.
Its pupils suddenly shrank, unleashing an eerie energy.
If soone had whispered, "Shatter... Kyoka Suigetsu," it would have been the perfect match for the scene.
Then, before Cynthia, Norman, and the others' disbelieving eyes...
Two beastly silhouettes erged from Raikou's body as if their souls were leaving its form.
They landed on the ground and rapidly solidified.
Entei! Suicune!
Together with Raikou, all three Legendary Beasts were now assembled!
"They... they ca out of Raikou's body!? What... what the hell!?"
Sidney was so shocked that he slapped his own thigh hard just to make sure he wasn't dreaming.
If Joker had just released the two Legendary Pokémon from their Poké Balls, he wouldn't have been this surprised.
But for them to split apart from Raikou as if they had cloned themselves—he had never seen anything like it before!
But Joker didn't answer him either.
Entei, Suicune, and Raikou charged forward one after another.
They unleashed sacred flas, released freezing cold winds, and summoned lightning and thunder.
For a mont, the surrounding League elites were in complete chaos.
The scene was as chaotic as the Luffy ssing around at the Tea Party of Big Mom.
However, from a distance of more than a mile away, watching from afar, Winona, Tobias, and Officer Jenny's police force all looked utterly confused.
Because in their eyes... aside from Juan, everyone else—like Cynthia, Norman, and the others—appeared to be fighting thin air!
That's right, from the perspective of Winona, Tobias, and the others in the distance:
Joker was commanding Raikou, forcing the Water-type expert Juan to retreat step by step.
anwhile, Cynthia, Norman, Moore, and the others were wildly attacking nothing, as if they were possessed.
Even Sidney inexplicably started cursing and shouting:
"What are you all just standing there watching for?! Why aren't you helping ?!"
Hearing Sidney's outburst, Winona and the others were even more bewildered.
Wait, aren't you just fighting thin air?
Why are you asking for help?
But in the next second, Winona and the others realized that Sidney wasn't the only one acting strangely.
Norman: "The Three Legendary Beasts' attacks are too fierce! Everyone, give a hand!"
Moore: "Sorry, I can't hold on... Damn it! Typhlosion, dodge quickly!"
Cynthia: "Garchomp! Dig underground to evade! Everyone, attack together now! Hurry! Can't you hear ?!"
Winona: "???"
Tobias: "???"
Officer Jenny's police force: "???"
Wait, what are you all even talking about?
Joker is only fighting Juan—he's not even paying attention to you guys. So what kind of one-man show are you all putting on?
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