Chapter 161: Encirclement and Lorelei
Surrounded by four Pokémon, Mewtwo became even more convinced of the voice in its dream.
The thought that Team Rocket intended to brainwash it made its expression turn ice-cold.
Raising its hand, Mewtwo's psychic energy erupted violently, sweeping through the lab.
Wherever the energy passed, all the instruments shattered into pieces!
Watching the destruction, Giovanni's expression remained unchanged.
Though these devices were costly, as long as he could control Mewtwo, any loss was acceptable.
"Nidoking!"
Under Giovanni's command, Nidoking charged toward Mewtwo, testing the waters with an attack.
Its fierce eyes gleamed as the sharp horn on its forehead glowed, stabbing straight at Mewtwo.
Megahorn!
Boom!
A loud crash echoed, but Nidoking's horn never reached Mewtwo—an invisible blue barrier blocked its advance.
"A Pokémon siding with such an evil human..."
Mewtwo's eyes glowed brightly. It lifted its hand slightly, and Nidoking suddenly found itself floating uncontrollably in the air.
"Nido...!"
Struggling with all its might, Nidoking roared, attempting to break free from Mewtwo's psychic grip.
Seeing this, Giovanni wasn't alarmed. In fact, he looked satisfied.
"Yes… This is the kind of power I wanted."
Mewtwo glared at him. Just as it was about to hurl Nidoking at him like a weapon, Aggron launched an attack first.
Its metallic claws shimmered as it swiped at Mewtwo's head.
Metal Claw!
The claws sliced through the air with a sharp whistling sound, brimming with deadly force.
Sensing the incoming attack, Mewtwo extended its other hand, using psychic power to intercept it.
Under Mewtwo's pressure, Aggron felt like it was wading through thick mud—each step was a struggle, and its raised claw met with heavy resistance.
However, Giovanni's championship-level Aggron was far stronger than Nidoking. Even under Mewtwo's psychic hold, it pushed forward, locking into a power struggle.
Neither side backed down.
Blocking attacks from two Pokémon in a row, the newly born Mewtwo was beginning to feel the pressure.
At that moment, the ground trembled.
Before Mewtwo could react, a buzzing sound came from behind—it was Aggron's horn, spinning rapidly as it drilled toward Mewtwo!
Drill Run!
Distracted by Nidoking and Aggron, Mewtwo was forced to divert some of its psychic energy to form a telekinetic barrier behind it to block Aggron's assault.
A sharp, piercing noise echoed as Aggron's Drill Run struck the barrier.
Cracks quickly spread across its surface.
The price of dealing with Aggron was that Nidoking regained some breathing room, and the Metagross, which had been at a slight disadvantage in their struggle, managed to close the distance again.
With three powerhouses attacking at once, Mewtwo seemed to be on the back foot.
Asahi, Blaine, and Mew hid behind a pile of rubble in a corner.
Seeing this, Blaine, ignoring the discomfort caused by Mewtwo's cells corroding his body, asked,
[Asahi, when do we make our move?]
Mewtwo was currently at a disadvantage. Blaine was worried that if Giovanni truly managed to defeat and capture Mewtwo, they would have to face a terrifying combination of Mewtwo + Giovanni.
Peering through a gap in the ruins, Asahi glanced at the battle between Beedrill and Mewtwo in the distance but remained unhurried.
[You're one of Mewtwo's creators. At least have some faith in it.]
He didn't believe Mewtwo would be taken down so easily. Right now, it hadn't even sustained a single real injury, and Giovanni's Pokémon were also unharmed. If they went out now, they'd just get caught in the crossfire.
However, Blaine's reminder was valid—Giovanni was currently occupied with Mewtwo, which meant they could start moving.
Asahi pulled out his phone and sent messages to Sabrina and Green, signaling the start of the operation.
[Giovanni is in play. Begin eliminating the grunts!]
Then, he sent a special message to Lorelei.
[Rocket Boss spotted. Get here ASAP!]
Just as Asahi finished sending the message, Mewtwo, struggling to move freely under the pressure of three Pokémon, finally erupted.
With a sudden surge of psychic energy, Mewtwo forcefully repelled all three opponents.
Hovering in mid-air, its eyes turned ice-cold as it raised one hand, conjuring a glowing blue energy sphere.
Seeing this, Asahi immediately knew what was coming.
He quickly pulled Blaine over and grabbed onto Mew.
As Mew deployed a protective barrier around them, Mewtwo, without any unnecessary words, hurled the energy sphere toward the ground.
BOOM!
Beyond New Island—At Sea
A thunderous explosion echoed from New Island, flames shooting into the sky!
The sheer force of the energy wave and blaring alarm signals sent water-type Pokémon in the surrounding sea fleeing in terror—even the Gyarados released by Team Rocket weren't spared.
But amidst the chaos, a Lapras floated calmly on the waves, gracefully navigating through the turbulence and the panicked Pokémon.
Seated on Lapras's back, Lorelei observed New Island through a pair of binoculars.
Seeing the explosion and the terrifying energy fluctuations, her brows furrowed.
"What happened on the island?"
A worried look crossed Lorelei's face.
According to Lance, Asahi—the interim chief of the International Police's Kanto branch—was incredibly strong.
But the overwhelming energy she had just sensed was enough to make even her uneasy. How could a recently restructured Kanto branch handle something like this?
"Lap~!"
Lapras turned its head, letting out a soft cry to comfort her.
Lorelei stroked Lapras's head, about to speak when her communicator suddenly beeped.
Opening it, she saw a message flash across the screen.
[Rocket Boss spotted. Get here ASAP! Battle comms channel: sndtxdy. -Asahi]
Lorelei's heart skipped a beat.
Rocket Boss!?
If this was true, it was a major discovery!
Would someone Lance trusted send false information?
Absolutely not!
So, despite the supercharged battle taking place on the island, Lorelei pulled herself together, quickly put on her wireless earpiece, joined the battle comms channel, and ordered Lapras:
"Let's go!"
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