"Skree..."
Braviary steadied itself in the air.
Its sharp eagle eyes were filled with unwillingness and determination.
Never before had it faced an opponent this troublesome.
After only a single exchange, its stamina was already nearly depleted.
The feeling...
Was eerily familiar.
Like the helplessness it had once felt as a young Rufflet facing its father.
But Bewear had no intention of giving it time to recover.
With a single leap, it reached the edge of the nearby forest.
Then—
It wrapped its arms around a massive tree.
Roots and all.
The giant bear ripped it from the ground.
The next moment, it stomped forward and launched itself skyward.
The lush tree spun through the air in its grasp.
Like an oversized flyswatter.
And came crashing down.
WHOOOOM!
The force generated a sonic boom.
Already exhausted, Braviary was struck directly by the trunk and sent plummeting toward the ground.
"..."
Peter clenched his fists.
His eyes remained locked on Braviary.
As its Trainer...
How could he possibly accept defeat so easily?
If it fell here—
Then what difference would there be between it and that helpless little Rufflet from years ago...
The one that had been slapped off a cliff by its father?
"All those years of effort..."
"All those relentless challenges against stronger opponents..."
"All those razor-sharp Air Slashes that pierced the sky..."
"All those passionate battles..."
"And the promise we made beneath the setting sun..."
The Z-Crystal on Peter's wrist erupted with brilliant azure light.
A beam shot straight into the heavens.
FWOOOSH!
A flame called bond ignited within both Trainer and Pokémon.
At the same moment—
Braviary's tightly shut eyes snapped open.
Its gaze met Peter's.
"BRAVIARY—!!!"
Peter roared.
Golden light exploded outward.
Stars seemed to shine within his eyes.
His arms crossed once again.
"Carry our convictions with you!!"
"SUPersonic SKYSTRIKE——!!!!"
"SKREEEEEEEEE—!!!!"
The eagle's cry echoed across the heavens.
Braviary spun through the air.
Like a blade capable of splitting the sky itself.
It shot upward.
In an instant—
The world turned pure white.
...
Moments later.
The winds finally calmed.
The dark-blue eagle drifted gently downward.
Guided by the breeze.
It landed before Peter.
It had lost the ability to battle.
Thud.
Bewear landed heavily on the ground.
The protective barrier surrounding it shattered into fragments.
The massive tree trunk in its hands broke into two pieces and fell beside it.
Unfortunately...
It had used Protect to block most of the damage.
The Bear God still had strength left to fight.
"Come back... Braviary."
Peter recalled it.
"You've already done everything you could."
Supporting himself with one hand on his knee, he panted heavily.
One eye remained half-closed from exhaustion.
Repeatedly channeling overwhelming Z-Power through the strength of his bonds had pushed his body far beyond its limits.
He was almost completely drained.
Yet even so—
He grabbed Lopunny's Poké Ball and threw it with all the strength he had left.
"Lopunny! I'm counting on you!"
A flash of light appeared.
Mega Lopunny entered the battlefield once more.
The moment she appeared, she glanced toward Peter with obvious concern.
"Go fight with everything you've got."
Peter smiled weakly.
"As your Trainer, I'll fight alongside you until the very end."
"Lopu!"
Lopunny nodded.
Agility activated instantly.
Her body became a streak of light racing toward Bewear.
"Bewear..."
The giant bear spread its arms.
Pain Split activated once again.
"The same trick won't work twice."
Peter's eyes flashed.
"Lopunny, use Substitute!"
Lopunny split into two figures.
One charged ahead.
The other followed behind.
Pain Split struck the Substitute.
But nothing happened.
A lifeless decoy couldn't share HP.
As Lopunny closed in—
Bewear suddenly grabbed the broken halves of the tree Braviary had split earlier.
Then it began spinning in place.
Sword-like afterimages appeared around its body.
At the same time, violent winds and sand erupted outward.
Sword Dance.
Combined with Brutal Swing.
A terrifying fusion technique.
In an instant, it became a move that enhanced offense, defense, and attack power simultaneously.
"That's just like you, Bewear..."
A nostalgic smile appeared on Peter's face.
The martial arts master among Pokémon.
Even in his previous life, this Bear God had left an unforgettable impression on him.
And now...
He stood only a single step away from capturing it.
"Then..."
A dangerous light flashed in his eyes.
"Let's go completely crazy."
Peter slowly straightened his exhausted body.
His deep eyes blazed with renewed intensity.
"Use Bounce!!"
Lopunny leaped into the air.
Directly above the spinning Bewear.
A blind spot.
An opening in its defense.
Peter crossed his arms once more.
The orange Fightinginium Z on his wrist erupted with blood-red fighting spirit.
"Take this..."
"OUR FINAL Z-MOVE!"
"ALL-OUT PUMMELING——!!!!"
"LOPUUUU—!!!"
Lopunny unleashed a storm of punches.
Golden shockwaves poured down like rain.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
KABOOOOOOOM—!!!!
A gigantic mushroom cloud erupted from the coastline.
The golden beach was blasted into blackened ash.
The scorched sand rose into the air and drifted away like dark rain.
"Go..."
Peter's voice trembled.
Using every last ounce of strength remaining in his body—
He threw a Poké Ball.
"Poké Ball!!!"
The ball flew toward the location where he remembered Bewear standing.
His legs gave out.
The world tilted.
His vision rotated ninety degrees before stopping entirely.
Three consecutive Z-Moves.
And the final one had been unleashed while supporting a Mega Evolution.
Every drop of strength had been squeezed from his body.
Yet despite that...
His longing.
His passion.
His admiration.
All of it kept him conscious.
He lay on the beach.
Watching the Poké Ball's trajectory.
Whoosh—
The Luxury Ball traced a beautiful arc through the air.
But because of his exhausted state, the throw had drifted slightly off course.
"No..."
The light in Peter's eyes dimmed.
"Wasn't enough...?"
Regret flooded his heart.
"Bewear..."
A pink head emerged from the smoke.
The giant bear's body was covered in wounds.
Yet a smile of approval rested on its face.
It raised one arm.
And—
Caught the Luxury Ball itself.
Click.
The button depressed.
Red light enveloped Bewear.
The Bear God willingly entered the Poké Ball.
"Shake... Shake... Shake..."
The Poké Ball rocked back and forth.
With every movement, Peter's hopes swayed alongside it.
Lopunny landed beside him.
"Lopu!"
She hurried over and supported his body.
Trainer and Pokémon stared at the shaking Poké Ball together.
"Shake..."
"Click!"
The crisp sound finally rang out.
Perhaps two and a half minutes had passed.
Perhaps only a few seconds.
To Peter, it felt like an eternity.
Then—
A relieved smile appeared on his face.
"Caught..."
"I caught it."
"LOPUUUUU—!!!"
Lopunny cried out in joy.
And in the next instant—
Peter's consciousness finally faded into darkness.
...
[Ding! Completed a special battle against an opponent far above your level.]
Reward: 200 Universal Talent Points.
Lopunny, Zoroark, Braviary, and Ursaluna have leveled up and may continue allocating Talent Points.
[Ding! Unique Mission Completed: Legendary Pokémon Capture — Bewear.]
Successfully established deep trust with Bewear.
Bewear has reached Lv.71.
Reward: 50 Transcendent Talent Points that may be freely allocated.
A series of system notifications echoed through Peter's mind.
Slowly...
His consciousness returned.
"Mmm..."
His eyes opened.
The first thing he saw was Whitney's worried face.
And, naturally, the exceptionally gifted sight directly beneath it.
Around him stood all of his Pokémon.
A giant bear paw suddenly entered his vision.
Resting on it was a Sitrus Berry coated in sweet Honey.
Behind it stood a pink-headed giant bear.
Its dark eyes sparkled brightly.
"Bewear..."
The giant bear smiled.
Then—
Stuffed the entire Berry into Peter's mouth.
"MMMMPH!!!"
Peter's eyes widened instantly.
While struggling to chew, he also had to admit...
The fruit prepared by Bewear was ridiculously delicious.
"Hahaha!"
Whitney burst into laughter.
"Honey, your expression is priceless!"
The rest of the Pokémon joined in as well.
Not a single one showed any mercy.
Peter struggled to swallow the enormous fruit.
Then he laughed too.
Because he knew...
His family had just gained another member.