In the footage—
Having reclaimed its power, the giant Unbound Hoopa no longer looked timid. Instead, it laughed maniacally, waving its six massive arms as if celebrating its newfound freedom.
"Hoopa is strong! Hoopa is the strongest!!"
Meray smiled warmly at Hoopa's joyful expression; she was genuinely happy to see her friend whole again. However, she suddenly remembered her brother and turned around. Baraz was kneeling on the ground, clutching his face in agony.
"Brother, are you okay?"
"Meray... why are you here? Where am I...?" Baraz looked dazed, as if he had no memory of his actions. Then, his eyes widened as he saw the towering Hoopa. "Is that... Hoopa? How did he regain his form?"
Baraz looked at his left hand and realized he was holding the Prison Bottle.
"Brother, what's wrong? Is it okay that you opened the bottle here?"
"I... opened the bottle? Damn it... Why don't I remember anything..."
A chill ran down Meray's spine. A terrible premonition began to take hold. Meanwhile, the "true protagonists" finally appeared! The Team Rocket trio was observing from their Meowth balloon with binoculars.
Meowth, seeing the glowing bottle, mistakenly assumed it was a power-boosting artifact and immediately began plotting to steal it.
Back on the ground, the laughing Unbound Hoopa suddenly stiffened. Its body jerked as if struck by an invisible force, and it crashed to the ground, nearly crushing Ash and his friends.
"Hoopa! Are you okay?" Ash and Pikachu shouted in concern.
Hoopa didn't respond. Instead, a thick, purple-black energy began to ooze from its body. It slowly stood back up, but its eyes were now glowing with a malevolent crimson light—just like Baraz's moments before!
The giant turned its head slowly, staring directly at the Prison Bottle in Baraz's hand. Without warning, it lunged with one of its massive arms!
CLANG!!
A brilliant blue barrier erupted from the Prison Bottle, shielding Ash's group and repelling Hoopa's hand.
"Its target... is the bottle!" Baraz realized, regret flooding his heart. Hoopa had lost control the moment it took back its power. Was it still too soon?
Hoopa opened a ring, reached through, and ripped the top off a nearby skyscraper, hurling it at the group! The bottle could block direct strikes from Hoopa, but it couldn't stop falling buildings.
"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!!" Ash commanded.
A pillar of golden electricity tore through the air, obliterating the falling debris into dust. Some of the fragments struck Team Rocket's balloon, sending them spiraling into the distance. "We're blasting off again!!"
[Cynthia: The energy around Hoopa now... It's different. It feels purely evil. It's as if Hoopa is being controlled.]
[Lance: Controlled? By who? Hoopa can thrash Primary Legendaries for breakfast! Only Arceus could control such a thing.]
[Catlin: It's not just a rampage. Before, Hoopa was like a child with a weapon. Now, it radiates pure malice. It's no longer the same entity.]
Arche Valley:
The small Hoopa cowered behind Meray, trembling as it watched its giant self on the screen. "Hoopa is scared... that's not Hoopa... it wants to make Hoopa disappear..."
Baraz watched the screen grimly. "I understand now. That isn't our Hoopa. It's the evil will born from Hoopa's power being sealed for a hundred years. It's Hoopa's 'Shadow.' It wants to destroy the bottle so it can never be sealed again!"
In the Footage—
Pikachu's Thunderbolt managed to stun the giant Hoopa. "Meray, now!" Ash yelled.
Meray raised the Prison Bottle, channeling her mysterious family power. The bottle glowed, and the surging darkness was sucked back into the glass. The giant form collapsed, and the small, exhausted Hoopa fell into Ash's arms.
The group retreated to safety. Clemont used his "A-Bit-Too-Heavy-Automatic-Lifting-Machine" to carry the bottle so no one would touch it and fall under its influence again. As they headed toward the Pokémon Center, Meray explained the truth.
A hundred years ago, Hoopa arrived in Dahara City. It was a small village then. To apologize for stealing food, Hoopa summoned massive piles of gold and jewels. This wealth allowed the village to grow into a sprawling metropolis.
[Professor Oak: So that's the truth behind the 'Hoopa stole a castle of treasure' legend. It didn't steal it out of greed; it was helping the town!]
[Karen: Typical human history. They benefit from a Pokémon's kindness and then rewrite the story to make the Pokémon the villain.]
Meray continued the story. The people grew bored of wealth and began asking Hoopa to show off its strength. Hoopa started fighting common Pokémon, then rare ones like Dragonite. The cheers of the crowd fueled Hoopa's ego.
Eventually, it began summoning Legendaries to fight. The destruction caused by these "War of the Gods" exhibitions leveled the city. "Finally, our great-grandfather used the Prison Bottle to seal that power away. Hoopa became the small friend we know today."
[Cynthia: Those humans... were they that bored? Pokémon are not toys for entertainment! They pushed a simple-minded child into a rampage for their own amusement!]
[Ash: That's so unfair! It was the humans' fault, but Hoopa was the one punished. He can't even touch his own power now!]
In the Footage—
Night fell as the group took a boat toward the city center. Suddenly, the bottle in the machine began to shake violently. The Shadow inside was screaming to get out.
Baraz realized the mistake: "The power in the bottle has been sealed so long it developed its own consciousness. It's a shadow that hates the original Hoopa. It wants to swallow the real Hoopa whole!"
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