"This Dugtrio is no simple opponent!" Lance said cautiously.
It was obvious that this Dugtrio that had suddenly appeared had been sent by Giovanni to stop their group.
No one had noticed when Dugtrio appeared, which meant it had been lurking for a long time, waiting here in advance for the League members to break in.
As for Red, who possessed Aura abilities, he had temporarily lost his subconscious detection ability due to the excessive exhaustion from his previous battle against Mewtwo.
Because of Dugtrio's terrifying Arena Trap Ability, most of the League members had fallen into sand pits, like pitiful ants about to be devoured by Dugtrio.
With their bodies trapped in the sand pits, many League members screamed in fear, terrified that they might lose their lives at any moment. In an instant, the morale on Lance's side was completely crushed by Dugtrio alone.
Even those League members who originally had paired Poké Balls had lost them due to Dugtrio's control over the sand pits, rendering them unable to fight.
Fortunately, Dugtrio's nature was relatively gentle. Although it was more aggressive than its pre-evolution Diglett, it was ultimately still a diligent natural guardian, so its lethality wasn't particularly strong. It merely used Arena Trap to restrict the League members' movements.
However, if Dugtrio continued to restrict their actions like this, the plan to capture Team Rocket would end in complete failure—something Lance absolutely could not allow.
"Dragonite, use Air Slash!" Lance ordered, intending to launch a direct assault on Dugtrio.
Dragonite flapped its small wings with membrane-like structures and immediately released countless sharp blades of air, which rushed toward Dugtrio in an instant.
Just as Dragonite thought its attack would hit, it saw Dugtrio below reveal a disdainful expression before using Dig to burrow underground, easily avoiding the damage from Air Slash.
The hidden Dugtrio even manipulated the flowing sand, shifting the positions of the trapped League members, nearly causing them to be struck by the Air Slash. Fortunately, Dragonite reacted in time and used Air Slash again to cancel out the damage, preventing an accident.
Sharp Stone Edges suddenly emerged from beneath the sand pit and struck Dragonite head-on. Because Dragonite was concerned about the League members below, Dugtrio seized the opportunity to launch a sneak attack. The Stone Edge hit a vital point, causing massive stamina loss.
Worried about the League members trapped in the sand pits, both Lance and Dragonite didn't dare counterattack recklessly. Meanwhile, Dugtrio held absolute terrain advantage, continuously using Stone Edge to wear down Dragonite's stamina.
Fortunately, Dragonite was no ordinary Pokémon. It directly used Dragon Claw to shatter the incoming sharp stones, disrupting Dugtrio's plan.
But this situation couldn't last long, as Lance didn't want Giovanni—who was within reach—to escape.
"Damn it, I didn't expect Giovanni to have prepared this far in advance. Looks like there's a spy within the League tipping off Team Rocket," Lance said angrily, clenching his fist, wishing he could drag out every traitor hidden within the Pokémon League.
"Sigh…"
After calming down, Lance let out a helpless sigh and planned to have Dragonite rescue the innocent League members first.
"Don't worry, Lance. Leave this small matter to me!" Red assured, his eyes glowing with a deep blue light as he used his psychic power to lift the trapped League members out of the sand pits, then Teleport them outside the Viridian Gym.
Red had no intention of letting these incapable people delay the operation.
"Red, I didn't expect to trouble you again."
Lance turned his head to look at Red, whose face showed slight fatigue, and spoke apologetically.
He knew Red had just gone through a fierce battle, so he hadn't asked him for help. He didn't expect Red to step in on his own and solve the problem.
Just as Red was about to throw a Poké Ball to provide support, his right hand was suddenly stopped by both Ash and Gary at the same time.
"Red/brother, just rest easy. Leave these small matters to me!" X2
As soon as they finished speaking, Ash and Gary looked at each other in shock.
"Ash/Gary, stop copying the way I talk!" X2
After saying that, both of them simultaneously sent out their strongest Pokémon.
As the white light faded, a well-developed Blastoise appeared. Under Gary's command, it used Hydro Pump toward Dugtrio in the sand pit.
"Swoosh—"
Suddenly, two sharp wind blades shot out from the shadows, slicing Blastoise's Hydro Pump in half before it turned into useless water and was swallowed by the sand pit below.
"How is that possible?!" Gary exclaimed in shock.
"Kid, Team Rocket's affairs aren't something someone your age can interfere with!"
A mocking voice came from the second floor. Damon appeared, casually playing with a Poké Ball in his hand.
The Pokémon that had released the Air Slash from the shadows was naturally Damon's starter Pokémon, Crobat.
"Since you're a Pokémon entrusted to me by Giovanni, show your strength!"
With that, Damon forcefully threw the Poké Ball in his hand.
As the white light faded, a robust Sandslash appeared within the sand pit. After exchanging a brief glance with Dugtrio, it immediately sprang into action.
"Pikachu, use Iron Tail!" Ash quickly ordered.
Seeing Sandslash focus on it, Pikachu refused to back down and used Iron Tail, swinging its steel-like glowing tail fiercely toward Sandslash.
Since Sandslash wasn't his Pokémon, Damon had no authority to command it. He could only instruct Crobat to stall Dragonite, which was preparing to attack.
When Sandslash saw Pikachu's Iron Tail, it immediately spun its body at high speed and collided with Pikachu's tail—it had used Gyro Ball.
"Blastoise, use Ice Beam!" Gary ordered, directing Blastoise to attack Dugtrio ahead.
A chilling Ice Beam shot out from Blastoise's mouth and rushed toward Dugtrio.
Seeing this, Dugtrio immediately used Stone Edge, continuously shattering the power of the Ice Beam with sharp stones. Then, taking advantage of the moment, it used Dig and reached beneath Blastoise in an instant, ramming heavily into its body.
"Blastoise, use Water Pulse!"
"Kame—"
Blastoise controlled the cannons on its back, firing two thick Water Pulses.
Just as the Water Pulses were about to hit Dugtrio, the shadow beneath Dugtrio suddenly twisted, transforming into a claw that destroyed the incoming attacks.
"This Dugtrio actually knows Shadow Claw?!" Gary said in shock.
Dugtrio paid no attention to Gary's astonishment and instead stirred up a sandstorm on the spot, plunging the surrounding environment into sandstorm weather.
Because of its Sand Veil Ability, Sandslash's speed was significantly increased.
(Sand Veil: During a sandstorm, Speed is doubled. Pokémon with this Ability are not harmed by sandstorm weather.)
----------------
Fanfic is finished on Patreon (308 chapters in total.)
Patreon(.)com/Jixo (for only $4.50, read this entire fanfic)