"Sizzle!"
The sound of burning flames rang out. Mega Charizard Y's opponent, a Poliwrath of the Beginner Elite rank, was forcefully crushed by the flames and fell to the ground, its body charred black.
Relying on the gap in strength, even though Poliwrath had a type advantage, it simply could not withstand Mega Charizard Y's violent assault. As if signaling something, when Mega Charizard Y finished off its opponent, Moltres and the others also concluded their respective battles.
Gengar had already knocked the woman unconscious long before the battle ended and had been watching the scene unfold since then. Once the fighting was over, Gu Yuan took his unconscious prisoner to be handed over.
The harvest from this operation was extremely successful; every member of the Hunter's Guild involved in the action was captured. Furthermore, this was merely the beginning.
After handing the prisoner over to specialized personnel, Gu Yuan and his team immediately resumed their actions. Just as the name of the operation suggested, this small amount of spoils was not enough to satisfy the League's appetite.
The battle continued. With his excellent mobility, Gu Yuan quickly arrived at the next mission point. By now, the fighting here had already begun, and the League side clearly held the upper hand. Without hesitation, Gu Yuan immediately released his Pokémon to join the fray.
The Hunter's Guild and the families were not fools. Although the League gained an advantage through the initial sneak attack, they reacted quickly. The Hunter's Guild, in particular, notified all exposed or potentially exposed outposts to transfer immediately.
Little did they know, this was exactly what the Elite Four wanted to see. Once people panic, they easily make mistakes and leave openings. For the Hunter's Guild, which can only survive in the shadows, this was undoubtedly a fatal blow.
Thus, the well-prepared troops immediately launched raids at high speed as the Hunter's Guild outposts began to move.
"What's the situation!? Has the League made a move against us!?"
Seeing Mizuno walk in, Toranosuke Kurata asked in a slightly panicked tone. The previous war had undoubtedly crushed the spirit of these families. Nowadays, even the slightest disturbance could easily fill them with a sense of dread.
"No!"
"The League has focused all its strength on striking the Hunter's Guild. Regarding us, they are still maintaining the same precautions as before. Meanwhile, according to news from our undercover agent in the League, the Elite Four should be unaware of our involvement behind the scenes."
Mizuno's concise answer allowed Toranosuke Kurata to breathe a sigh of relief. After calming down, Toranosuke Kurata regained his composure and immediately contacted Gaius Cotton and Jin Kobe, who should have also received this news.
At the same time, Toranosuke Kurata instructed his vassals to remain calm, maintaining an air of composure as if unmoved even if Mount Tai were to collapse before them. Afterward, he began to communicate with the other two family heads.
Ultimately, the three decided to act as if nothing had happened for the time being, though they remained vigilant in secret—especially wary of the Hunter's Guild dragging them down with them.
To the three great families' surprise, both the League and the Hunter's Guild seemed to have subconsciously ignored them.
"How much have we lost this time?"
At dawn, as the League's offensive came to a temporary halt, Matsubara—the branch president of the Kanto region Hunter's Guild—slowly asked.
"The losses are heavy. Except for our most important main base and the surrounding outposts, there are very few left. The specific information is all in here; please look it over."
Yazhi pulled out a prepared folder, a hint of heartache flashing in her eyes.
"Understood. Inform those families that we will be recuperating and temporarily suspending cooperation. Notify everyone outside to hide well nearby and await the Guild's summons. Tell them that day is not far off; the technology we are currently working on will soon bear fruit. When that time comes, the entire Kanto region will be ours! Now, it is merely the darkness before the dawn!"
For losses of this scale, Matsubara not only felt no heartache but instead showed a fanatical expression.
Upon learning that the League was unaware of their cooperation with the Hunter's Guild, Toranosuke Kurata and the others were visibly relieved. Little did they know, the Elite Four were merely waiting for the second phase of the Fatal Blow.
"I truly didn't expect that in the end, it would be you who comes to see me off on my last journey."
"Don't, please don't say that. I'm just a small Elite-level Trainer; I don't deserve such formalities. The main reason I'm here is that my survival skills are a bit better. If you wanted to send me on my way, I might actually have a chance to escape."
Gu Yuan waved his hand, speaking to Tatao Fukuda with feigned alarm.
"You're joking. Since I've decided to cooperate, I won't go back on my word. It's truly a pity I didn't meet you sooner; otherwise, we might have become friends despite our age gap."
With that, Tatao Fukuda stood up abruptly.
"Alright, I won't beat around the bush. When I leave, I will hand over the disc containing all the evidence I've collected. Rest assured, I know your procedures. I guarantee the contents are enough to leave the three great families speechless and enough for you to completely eradicate them. Afterward, those remaining small and medium-sized families shouldn't be worth your focused attention."
Staring at Gu Yuan, Tatao Fukuda continued.
"No problem. Let's go then."
Gu Yuan nodded; he had no objections as this was what both parties had agreed upon. By the time Gu Yuan arrived, Tatao Fukuda had already moved most of the Fukuda family out, leaving only himself. After all, if he had left first, the Elite Four—no matter how confident—would not have felt he was cooperating sincerely.
Releasing Alakazam, Gu Yuan took Tatao Fukuda and disappeared into the night. Throughout the continuous teleportations, Tatao Fukuda showed no abnormalities, indicating he had long since adapted to this mode of travel. Yet, in the League's investigation data regarding the Psychics of the Fukuda family, no one of such caliber had ever appeared.
Gu Yuan smiled as he brought him to the air above the seaside, where a small boat waited below to receive him. For someone capable of moving the entire Fukuda family out silently, arranging a small boat was the easiest thing in the world.
"Take this. I hope we have a chance to meet again in the future."
"No problem. I just hope we aren't enemies when we meet again."
Taking the disc, Gu Yuan had no intention of breaking the agreement and immediately left the deck with the item. The small boat started up, quickly carrying Tatao Fukuda away into the night.
Without Gu Yuan even needing to leave, a group of people soon appeared at the seaside to verify the authenticity of the disc's contents.
"The intelligence is accurate."
"Fatal Blow Phase Two—begin!"
Once the authenticity was confirmed, Agatha immediately launched the second phase of the general offensive!