Pryce stood alone in Howard's path. Beside him, only a Delibird fluttered its wings. It was an utterly ordinary Pokémon, yet it forced Howard to stop in his tracks.
" 'Elite Four' Howard… what are you trying to do!?" Pryce demanded.
Howard steadied himself. At first, he had not expected Pryce to be here. He had merely assumed that the Jenny Family had sent people to investigate the Department Store, and that his appearance would be enough to settle the matter. Only after learning that Pryce was here had he brought more than fifty Trainers to create chaos…
"At least you still recognize that I'm now an Elite Four, Pryce. Since you've brought people into my territory, the least you could have done was notify me first. Right now you've already seriously disrupted the normal lives of the citizens of Goldenrod City. I hope you'll withdraw immediately."
"Impossible. I'm under a League mission. Withdraw beyond the police cordon immediately. Otherwise, I'll deal with you together with Shadow Team." Pryce's face was as cold as an Ice-type, paying Howard no regard whatsoever.
"Pryyyce!Don't go too far! Don't forget your current position. Today, this isn't a place where you can throw your weight around!" Howard roared.
"Heh… then let's find out." Pryce glanced at him sideways.
Howard was completely enraged. With a casual toss, he threw out six Poké Balls. They were all Miltank. They immediately used Rollout, sending dust flying as they charged straight toward Pryce!
'…' "Delibird."
Pryce called out softly. Delibird flew forward from behind him and swept its wings. The temperature instantly plummeted as Blizzard formed a horizontal vortex, engulfing all six Miltank and sending them spinning through the storm.
Then Delibird slammed the Blizzard into the ground. The concrete instantly split open into a fissure more than two meters deep, and all six Miltank were frozen solid into blocks of ice.
Pryce had exhibited his overwhelming power with only a single move. No one else dared step forward. Those six Miltank were Howard's strongest Pokémon, yet they had not even managed to touch Pryce's Delibird before being defeated in a single blow…
Faced with such terrifying power, Howard completely abandoned the idea of helping Shadow Team. At this point, the only thing he wanted was to distance himself from them as much as possible.
At that very moment of the standoff…
The Department Store's four entrances opened simultaneously. From each entrance, fifty or sixty Shadows rushed out, with all kinds of Pokémon clearing the way.
""""Attack!""""
The captains at all four entrances gave the order almost simultaneously. The Shadows under their command all sent out their Pokémon at once. In an instant, moves flew everywhere across the Department Store plaza, and explosions rang out without end.
At that moment, Officer Jenny walked over to Howard. "Elite Four Howard, this is a letter from the League Council. Please, have a look."
Howard gave it only a symbolic glance before laughing loudly. "Why didn't you tell me sooner, Elite Four Pryce~? If I'd known, I could have contributed as well! I still have more than fifty Trainers here who can all join the battle!"
"That won't be necessary. Cooperate with Officer Jenny and make sure Shadow Team's members don't get the chance to escape," Pryce said.
"…Y-Yes!" Howard replied through gritted teeth.
---◓---
At this point, the strength of both sides was nearly evenly matched, with Pokémon on both sides continuously falling in battle.
"I can't take it anymore… I have to fight… It's been a long time since I've encountered something this… exciting!" Chuck said first.
"Wait for the right opportunity before making your move. We have to guard against Shadow Team having Shadows lying in ambush," Pryce said.
But Chuck was a battle freak. There was no way he could continue waiting. With a sweep of both hands, he threw out all six of his Pokémon: Machamp, Poliwrath, Hitmonlee, Hitmonchan, Hitmontop, and Hariyama.
Hariyama thrust both palms forward and puffed out its belly, immediately using Belly Drum. Then Hitmonlee, Hitmonchan, and Hitmontop formed a triangular formation around Hariyama. Machamp used Bulk Up and took the lead in the assault.
"Chuck's level has improved again. It looks like he's getting closer and closer to the Elite Four position," Pryce said.
The others could not help but watch Chuck's battle.
Among the six Fighting-type Pokémon, Hariyama used Belly Drum to maximize its Attack, though it sacrificed a great deal of stamina. However, the battle formation created by Hitmonlee, Hitmonchan, and Hitmontop was virtually impenetrable, capable of both offense and defense. Most importantly, it ensured Hariyama could unleash its full offensive power.
After Machamp used Bulk Up, both its Attack and Defense were enhanced accordingly. Hariyama was then completely freed to fight alongside Machamp, forming an effective combination.
Together, the six Fighting-type Pokémon formed an effective dual-core strategy that complemented each other from a distance.
In truth, Fighting-type Pokémon did not have many moves that could meaningfully complement one another. Being able to create such a battle style truly justified Chuck's reputation as one of the strongest Fighting-type Trainer in the Johto Region.
Chuck's six Pokémon charged straight into the opposing Pokémon as though walking across level ground. Hariyama, especially after using Belly Drum, defeated one Pokémon with every strike. In its very first charge alone, it knocked out more than a dozen Pokémon.
With Chuck joining the battle, Tetsuya's side completely gained the upper hand. Shadow Team could no longer hold out. The presence of just one ace Trainer like Chuck had already changed the entire course of the battle.
Shadow Team's forces at the Department Store had only one "executive" comparable to Yamamoto. All he could do now was direct the battle from every side. Even with his strength, he could do no more than fight Matsuba or Chuck to a standstill. Against Pryce, however, he had absolutely no chance of resisting, so he had no choice but to send a distress signal to Shadow Team's headquarters in Kaze no Tani.
Naturally, Shadow Team's headquarters became extremely alarmed upon receiving the Department Store's distress signal. After all, it was their source of income and the very foundation of Shadow Team's survival. Once they ran out of money, internal chaos would inevitably follow, and the resulting conflicts would quickly spiral out of control.
They had originally believed that, with Howard protecting the Department Store, nothing could possibly go wrong. They had never expected so many "important" figures to appear today…
The funds inside the Department Store had to be transferred immediately!
Otherwise, once Shadow Team lost its financial resources, it would inevitably become nothing more than a scattered mob, with destruction just around the corner.
Shadow Team's headquarters immediately dispatched four "executives" to Goldenrod City to reinforce the Department Store and hold off the League forces so the funds could be transferred safely.
However, the moment they left Kaze no Tani, they were met with a fierce assault from Team Rocket led by Giovanni!
Having made thorough preparations long beforehand, Giovanni naturally achieved a complete victory. Shadow Team had no choice but to retreat back into Kaze no Tani. Only then did the Shadows truly realize that a crisis was at hand, immediately ordering every branch to concentrate its forces at headquarters.
Chuck's side was the first to overwhelm Shadow Team. Matsuba also began to exert his strength, throwing out six Poké Balls containing two Gengar, two Mismagius, and two Dusknoir.
The Ghost World portals of the Dusknoir opened wide. The Dusknoir floated above all the Pokémon, gradually becoming ethereal. Distorted space gave rise to terrifying illusions created by the Mismagius. Many Pokémon with weak mental resilience fell into states of fear, helplessness, and confusion.
In the area guarded by Matsuba, every Pokémon felt as though the end of the world had arrived!