Bab 1295: Zoroark
When Yuga and Caitlin led their team to the valley, they found it in complete chaos.
The Team Plasma members patrolling at night had noticed something was wrong. After discovering that a large number of Pokémon were missing from the Ecopark, they did not dare to conceal the issue and immediately reported it to their superiors, Giallo and Rood.
Giallo and Rood were both shocked and furious upon learning the situation. They were stunned that someone had managed to take so many Pokémon from their Ecopark undetected and outraged that the Ecopark, which Team Plasma had managed for so long, had been destroyed overnight.
Without delay, Giallo and Rood ordered a lockdown of the valley, determined to find the culprit who had stolen the Pokémon.
However, they were unaware that the person they were searching for was no longer in the valley and had even sent a Pokémon to guard the valley's entrances and exits.
When Team Plasma discovered that an Aegislash was guarding the entrance, Giallo and Rood immediately brought reinforcements to investigate.
Unfortunately for them, none of them could match Aegislash's strength, and breaking through its defenses was simply impossible.
Since Yuga had only instructed Aegislash to guard the entrance and prevent Team Plasma from leaving, it refrained from harming anyone, adhering strictly to its orders.
When Yuga and Caitlin arrived, they were greeted by the sight of Aegislash standing off against Giallo, Rood, and their team.
Upon seeing the League members, Giallo and Rood instinctively assumed that the Ecopark's incident was orchestrated by the League, leaving them both of them furious and terrified.
They had just witnessed the overwhelming strength of the Aegislash stationed outside and couldn't help but wonder: would they be able to leave unscathed today?
During the journey, Yuga had already informed Caitlin that he had stationed a Pokémon to guard the valley's entrance. Thus, upon arrival, Caitlin immediately ordered the capture of the Team Plasma members.
A fierce battle ensued, plunging the scene into utter chaos.
Due to the large number of Team Plasma members, Aegislash refrained from intervening. Its sole mission was to guard the entrance and monitor the entire valley, ensuring that no one escaped.
As a Level 100 Ghost-type Pokémon, Aegislash possessed immense psychic power, making it more than capable of overseeing an entire valley.
Although the valley was surrounded by steep mountains on all sides, any attempt to escape via Flying-type Pokémon was futile, as Aegislash ensured no one could fly out.
Yuga and Caitlin each confronted Giallo and Rood, respectively.
As two of the Seven Sages—the highest-ranking leaders of Team Plasma—Giallo and Rood's strength matched Yuga's previous expectations: both were Elite level Trainers.
Giallo's Pokémon included a Liepard, a Gigalith, and a Conkeldurr, all of which were Elite level Pokémon. However, Yuga managed to hold them off using only his Absol.
Absol used Shadow Claw to swat away a concrete pillar that Conkeldurr hurled toward it. Immediately after, it let out a mighty roar, unleashing a soundwave from Roar that sent Liepard and Gigalith tumbling.
With its concrete pillar gone, Conkeldurr's combat effectiveness dropped significantly. Seizing the opportunity, Absol delivered another Shadow Claw to its abdomen, sending it flying backward with a pained scream.
Seeing this, Liepard and Gigalith lunged at Absol, but it simply raised a paw and struck the ground. Sharp Stone Edges suddenly erupted from the ground, catching Liepard and Gigalith off guard and blasting them away.
Yuga was deeply puzzled. Although Giallo's three Pokémon were all Elite level, their teamwork with him seemed rather poor.
Is this really the caliber of an Elite level Trainer?
Similarly, Caitlin also noticed the same issue with Rood.
In truth, Giallo and Rood were only Elite level Trainers in name. Their titles were more for show and to maintain the authority of the Seven Sages within Team Plasma. The Pokémon under their command were not ones they had trained themselves but rather enforcers assigned to them by Team Plasma. How could there be any real synergy between them?
While Yuga and Caitlin were locked in intense battles, far away in Opelucid City, Colress received a phone call. It was a distress call from the valley.
It was already close to dawn, but Colress wasn't resting. He was engrossed in his laboratory, conducting critical experiments related to the DNA Splicers and Kyurem.
At the crucial moment of his work, the phone rang unexpectedly.
Answering the call, Colress spoke impatiently, "What's going on? Why are you calling me at this hour?"
After hearing the reason, Colress fell silent for a few seconds before abruptly hanging up.
Rescue? That's impossible.
With Yuga and Caitlin both on the scene, even if he sent reinforcements, it would only mean sending them to their deaths. He wasn't that foolish.
Although it was unfortunate that the valley had been discovered by the League, there was nothing he could do about it. Once he fully controlled the DNA Splicers and Kyurem, he could reclaim the upper hand. Right now, nothing was more important than the DNA Splicers and Kyurem.
Ever since N and Reshiram had been taken by the League in Hoenn, gaining control over Kyurem had become an urgent priority for Team Plasma.
Fortunately, they had already located Kyurem. Now, they just needed to unlock the secrets of the DNA Splicers.
As for Giallo and Rood, those two old fools? If they got caught, so be it.
In fact, Colress had long disliked those old men. They constantly meddled in his affairs, had little actual ability, and yet loved to micromanage everything.
The upper echelon of Team Plasma consisted of Colress and the Seven Sages, led by Ghetsis. While Colress had no particular issue with Ghetsis, his relationship with the other six sages was far less amicable.
Colress had been discovered and recruited by Ghetsis, the founder of Team Plasma. As a rising star within the organization, he had quickly gained prominence.
Over time, Colress's dedication and competence earned him a position equal to Ghetsis's within Team Plasma. However, this also led to growing dissatisfaction with the Seven Sages, who, in his eyes, were all talk and no substance.
Yet, since the Seven Sages were the founding members of Team Plasma, Colress usually refrained from voicing his discontent. However, with Giallo and Rood now in trouble, he could do nothing about it. After all, the League's forces were too strong for him to contend with.
Ghetsis would understand, Colress thought to himself.
Similarly, at another location, Ghetsis also received a distress call from the valley but made the same choice as Colress.
He had no personal issues with Giallo and Rood; on the contrary, they shared a close relationship.
However, Ghetsis was very clear-headed. With Yuga and Caitlin involved, any attempt at a rescue would be futile and might even put his own life at risk.
When compared to his own survival, brotherhood meant nothing.
Although he felt a pang of regret over the resources in the valley, Ghetsis understood the principle of cutting losses when necessary.
At this moment, Ghetsis and Colress's thoughts were astonishingly aligned.
Meanwhile, the battle on Yuga and Caitlin's side was nearing its conclusion.
After Giallo's Liepard, Gigalith, and Conkeldurr were effortlessly defeated by Yuga's Absol, Giallo sent out a Mandibuzz and an Escavalier. However, these two Pokémon were even weaker than the first three and were quickly taken care of.
Once Giallo and Rood, the two leaders, were captured by Yuga and Caitlin, Team Plasma's morale plummeted. With the League pressing forward like a hot knife through butter—and Yuga and Caitlin now free to assist elsewhere—Team Plasma's forces were swiftly subdued.
By the time the battle ended, daylight had fully broken. Yuga instructed Chimecho and Florges to heal the injured League members and their Pokémon, while the uninjured were tasked with cleaning up the battlefield.
Once the battlefield was fully cleared, Yuga and Caitlin began leading the team to sweep through the valley, reporting their victory to the League headquarters in the process.
Around the same time, Cynthia called to inform them that everyone in the cave had also been captured, including Maxie, the former leader of Team Magma.
Even though Maxie had joined Team Plasma, he couldn't escape the same fate as his old rival Archie. With this, Team Magma was completely eradicated.
The valley, one of Team Plasma's most important bases, had now been wiped out by the League. While this didn't completely cripple Team Plasma, the losses were undeniably severe. It was certain they wouldn't recover for a long time.
Caitlin quickly organized an inventory of the Pokémon species and numbers in the various Ecopark. Because Yuga hadn't overstepped too much, nothing seemed amiss to them.
Team Plasma had mistakenly assumed that the missing Pokémon from the Ecopark were secretly taken by League agents, so they had no suspicions. This misunderstanding was left unresolved and quietly faded away.
Although Yuga had taken most of the high potential Pokémon from the Ecopark, the remaining Pokémon still numbered significantly. With the entire valley now under League control, its facilities and research materials represented a major windfall for the League.
In addition, the Elite-level Pokémon previously owned by Giallo and Rood could now be used for breeding purposes, potentially producing excellent offspring in the future.
Once the valley was mostly cleared, the League sent someone to take over its management: none other than Champion Alder himself.
As for Giallo, Rood, and the others, they were to be escorted away. The two elderly men trembled as they walked, looking as though they had aged over a decade overnight. Anyone unaware of the situation might even feel a pang of sympathy for them.
The League had already planned how to utilize the valley. With its excellent environment and history as Team Plasma's breeding facility, the Unova League decided to convert it into their own breeding facility.
Once fully under League control, more professional personnel would be dispatched to manage the Pokémon here.
The existing facilities were ready to use, and the breeding Pokémon left behind by Team Plasma were of excellent quality. This would save the Unova League a significant amount of money.
Although Yuga had secretly profited from the operation, there was no denying that he had contributed the most to its success. Thus, the Unova League promised to reward him afterward.
Alder personally informed Yuga of this, much to his surprise and delight. He hadn't expected such a pleasant surprise and was naturally overjoyed.
As one of the collaborators in this operation, Cynthia, though her contributions were not as significant as Yuga's, was not overlooked by the Unova League.
Since there were some follow-up matters to address regarding this incident, the League did not immediately deliver Yuga's reward. However, Yuga had already decided not to stay in Unova any longer and planned to leave the region the following day.
Alder assured Yuga that the reward would be sent to Hoenn through a trusted intermediary.
That day, Yuga returned to the Pokémon Center in Accumula Town. In the evening, he released the Zoroark he had captured into his room.
When Yuga had placed Zoroark in a Poké Ball earlier, it had been unconscious, so he had not yet had the chance to check its physical condition and was unsure if it was all right.
To Yuga's surprise, Zoroark was already awake. The moment it appeared, it glared at Yuga with a wary expression and assumed an aggressive stance, emitting a low growl as though it might attack at any moment.
Fortunately, Yuga had preemptively summoned Gengar and Mismagius. Intimidated by their presence, Zoroark hesitated and refrained from making a move against Yuga.
Zoroark had been forcibly captured by Team Plasma. Because it refused to obey their commands, it had been injected with a drug that rendered it unconscious. As a result, Zoroark harbored deep resentment toward humans.
Now that Yuga had brought it out of Team Plasma's control and the effects of the drug had worn off, it had naturally regained consciousness.
Noticing Zoroark's guarded demeanor, Yuga adopted a calm and gentle tone, saying, "You don't need to worry. I mean you no harm. Besides, I've already rescued you from Team Plasma."
Zoroark remained unmoved, its vigilant eyes still fixed on Yuga.
Yuga tried again. "Are you hungry? I can get you something to eat."
With that, Yuga took out a box of Pokéblocks, opened it, and extended it toward Zoroark. However, Zoroark immediately backed away, refusing to eat anything offered by Yuga.
Yet, despite its mental resistance, Zoroark's body betrayed it. Just as it retreated, its stomach growled loudly.
The atmosphere grew awkwardly quiet.
During its time in captivity, Zoroark had subsisted on nutritional solutions injected by Team Plasma. It could no longer recall the last time it had eaten real food.
Zoroark's keen nose caught the enticing aroma of the Pokéblocks. The delicious scent triggered an involuntary flood of saliva in its mouth.
Gulp.
Unable to resist, Zoroark swallowed a mouthful of saliva. The fragrance of the Pokéblocks seemed to transform into invisible claws, incessantly teasing its nose and scratching at its stomach.
For over ten minutes, human and Pokémon silently stared each other down. Eventually, Zoroark could not endure any longer. It slowly extended its clawed hand, then suddenly snatched the box of Pokéblocks from Yuga.
Even running away takes energy, Zoroark thought. I have to eat first!
With that rationale, it picked up a Pokéblock and tossed it into its mouth. The moment it tasted the Pokéblock, its eyes lit up.
Delicious! So delicious! It was incredibly tasty!
Seeing Zoroark happily eating, Yuga began his persuasion in earnest.
"I actually have two Zoroark at home. If you come with me, you'll get to meet others of your kind. Have you ever encountered another Zoroark before?"
Zoroark froze. It had never seen one of its own kind before and did not even know how it had been born. Hearing Yuga's words, its eating slowed down noticeably, and its ears perked up.
Yuga, noticing the subtle shift in Zoroark's behavior, smiled inwardly.
The key to its heart had been found!
The next morning, as soon as Yuga stepped out of his room, he ran into Bianca.
Seeing Yuga, Bianca's face lit up with delight. "Mr. Shimizu, you're still here! I thought you'd already left. How did your mission go? Was it successful?"
Yuga replied with a warm smile, "The mission went very smoothly. I plan to leave today."
Upon hearing that Yuga was about to leave, Bianca's expression fell. She had hoped to learn more from him.
Sensing her disappointment, Yuga offered reassurance. "You're always welcome to visit Hoenn. When you reach Verdanturf Town, you can challenge my Gym."
Her eyes brightened at this suggestion. "Really? That sounds great! I'll definitely visit!"
Status Power Mingguan
-- Peringkat
Power 
-- Power
stone