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This sudden ambush instantly disrupted what had been a smooth and growing offensive. The enemies hidden among the League personnel were highly organized and precise in their actions—they directly targeted and took down the leading Rhydon in each of the four Rhydon formations.
In an instant, all four formations fell into chaos, their structure collapsing.
With the formations broken, the lightning raining from the sky was no longer restrained. Under Zapdos's frantic control, bolts of thunder poured down wildly upon the League members and their Pokémon at the center.
Even worse, Roserade—the crucial healer in this entire offensive—was severely injured. She had been struck by a fierce attack from a level 64 Magmortar.
The attacker showed no mercy, directly commanding Magmortar to use Overheat on Roserade.
Fortunately, the League forces understood Roserade's importance. Many personnel had been stationed nearby to protect her. The attacker withdrew immediately after striking, recalled Magmortar, and fled without hesitation.
It was no surprise—if not for the fact that everyone's attention had been focused on Zapdos, and Roserade had been exhausted, the attacker would never have found the opportunity. And he knew full well that seriously injuring Roserade would enrage the League; if he lingered even a moment longer, he would be torn apart.
With both the Rhydon formations and Roserade severely compromised, the pressure on Zapdos dropped instantly—and it knew this was its chance to turn the tide.
Without hesitation, it split its focus. Using Brave Bird to temporarily block Crobat's Shadow Ball, it then unleashed Hidden Power (Water) at full strength toward the Rhydon and Golem formations below.
The battlefield was still under rain. Under such conditions, the power of Hidden Power (Water) surged dramatically. Without Roserade's healing, the low special defense of Rhydon and Golem left them completely unable to endure the attack.
In an instant, Zapdos's attack swept through them like cutting grass, effortlessly knocking down the very Pokémon that had just caused it so much trouble.
"Damn it! Who did this?!"
Wattson's face turned ashen with rage, his anger erupting into a furious shout.
But he knew clearly that this was not the time to hunt down the traitor. The capture operation was on the brink of failure—he had to make a decision immediately.
Otherwise, once Zapdos recovered, none of them would be able to escape.
"Listen up! The Zapdos capture operation has failed. All units, retreat immediately!"
Wattson acted decisively, issuing the order without hesitation.
At the same time, Sato's expression also turned grim. However, his anger wasn't because the operation had failed—it was because Roserade had been grievously injured.
Fortunately, he saw several League Trainers immediately rushing to treat her with high-quality medicine. Combined with her use of Ingrain, which continued to restore her body, her life was no longer in danger. Only then did Sato breathe a sigh of relief.
Still, he knew that this operation was doomed. Without the Rhydon and Golem formations, the League had lost the ability to continue contending with Zapdos.
Meanwhile, Crobat had already been exhausted after holding Zapdos off for so long. If not for sheer willpower, it would have collapsed long ago.
"Come back, Crobat. No need to hold it off any longer."
Sato immediately ordered Crobat to retreat via telepathy.
However, what troubled him was that Zapdos clearly had no intention of letting Crobat escape. The moment it noticed Crobat pulling back, it pursued with bloodshot eyes.
Throughout the entire battle, Crobat had been the one that frustrated Zapdos the most. Its Shadow Ball had prevented Zapdos from freely using Hidden Power (Water). Its Mean Look had stopped Zapdos from escaping. Its Taunt had even prevented it from retreating to nearby rooftops to use Roost.
In short, Zapdos's hatred toward Crobat had reached the level of: even if the battle was lost, Crobat must die.
"Nidoking, go cover Crobat—use Ice Beam!"
Seeing Zapdos relentlessly chasing Crobat, Sato's expression darkened further. He quickly ordered Nidoking to assist.
At this point, under the identity of Raiden Suzuki, Nidoking was the only Pokémon he had left that could still threaten Zapdos.
Unlike Roserade, Nidoking lacked strong self-recovery abilities. Earlier, while covering the League's retreat, it had fought numerous wild Pokémon and sustained heavy injuries.
Thus, Sato had previously kept Nidoking by his side—to protect him, recover, and occasionally fire off Ice Beam.
Now, after some recovery and with the help of medicine, Nidoking had regained about 80% of its strength.
But could an 80%-strength Nidoking defeat a heavily injured Zapdos? That was hard to say.
Nidoking showed no fear. Upon receiving the command, it immediately fired a massive icy-blue beam from its mouth toward Zapdos, who was chasing Crobat.
Although Nidoking's attack and speed boosts had faded, its Special Attack remained highly boosted thanks to its current Lightning Rod ability. Combined with the Life Orb's enhancement, this Ice Beam was extremely dangerous to the already wounded Zapdos.
Zapdos, having fought Sato and the League forces for so long, possessed sharp battle instincts. It immediately sensed the threat from Nidoking, halted its pursuit of Crobat, and dodged the attack.
At the same time, with a thought, it summoned thick bolts of lightning from the storm clouds above Sato—attempting to strike down the Trainer controlling Crobat and Nidoking.
But the moment the lightning fell, Sato had already used Teleport to move away. Moreover, due to Nidoking's current Lightning Rod, the lightning bolts were redirected and all struck Nidoking instead.
At that moment, Crobat finally escaped Zapdos's pursuit and returned safely to Sato's side.
"Come then, Zapdos. Let me see how much strength you still have left."
Sato stepped out from cover, facing the powerful Legendary Pokémon directly without fear. Using telepathy, he spoke to it.
The moment his words fell, a thick bolt of lightning descended toward him—but halfway down, it was intercepted by Crobat and Kecleon.
"Shriek!!! (Damn human!!!)"
At the same time, Zapdos let out a furious, piercing cry and transformed into a massive being of pure lightning, charging straight toward Sato.