"It's a Misdreavus! Larvitar, use Bite!"
Larvitar reacted instantly, snapping its jaws toward Misdreavus, who was still crying pitifully, its frightened eyes watching as a gaping maw closed in on it.
"Rai rai!"
A sudden Thunder Shock struck the ground right in front of Larvitar, stopping its attack.
The source quickly rushed forward—a Raichu, its cheeks sparking with electricity.
"Larvitar, fall back for now!"
"Larvi~"
Larvitar obediently returned, though it refused to admit that it had backed off because it got startled.
A pseudo-legendary wouldn't be scared of a mere Raichu! Impossible!
"Misdreavus~"
Misdreavus hid pitifully behind Raichu, its big, tearful eyes looking at Sato and Larvitar like a bullied little sister.
"Rai rai!"
This wild Raichu, having been lucky enough to find a Thunder Stone, was both strong and confident.
Seeing its younger sister-like companion in distress, it crackled with frustration, clearly ready to teach Sato and his Pokémon a lesson.
"Baana~ Baana~"
Just then, a Bellossom suddenly appeared, completely ignoring Sato and Larvitar, and headed straight toward the other two Pokémon.
It examined them closely, and when its eyes landed on Misdreavus's reddened forehead, it gently patted the spot with concern.
Then, Bellossom emitted a soft, soothing fragrance, and Misdreavus's injuries slowly began to heal.
"Rai rai!"
A moment ago, Raichu had been brimming with rage, but now it shrank back slightly, pointing toward Sato as if reporting a grievance.
"Baana? Baana?"
Bellossom, however, completely ignored Raichu and instead questioned Misdreavus directly.
By this point, Sato fully understood the situation.
Bellossom was clearly the leader of the trio.
As expected, Misdreavus timidly began muttering a response.
"Baana baana!"
Bellossom sighed and gently knocked on Misdreavus's forehead, then turned to Raichu and scolded it as well.
Finally, it faced Sato, who had been watching the scene unfold with amusement.
"Baana~ Baana~"
With a graceful bow, Bellossom seemed to be offering an apology.
"I see. So Misdreavus just wanted to play a harmless prank. Still, I've never seen three completely different species getting along this well."
"Larvi."
Larvitar nodded seriously.
As a future pseudo-legendary, it would never associate with anything but fellow pseudo-legendaries…
Well, except for Sato's other Pokémon. They were an exception.
"No need to apologize. Instead, let's have a battle. No matter the outcome, I won't try to capture you."
"Baana?"
Bellossom's adorable expression turned unexpectedly serious.
"Rai rai! Rai rai!"
The hot-blooded Raichu immediately grew excited, waving its stubby arms enthusiastically, eager to fight.
"Baana~ Baana!"
Bellossom and Misdreavus stepped back, while Raichu took position in the front, ready for battle.
"Larvi!"
"Sit this one out, Larvitar. You just fought—just watch this time."
Sato blocked the eager Larvitar from stepping forward and instead released Zorua, who was still full of energy.
"Zor! Zorua!"
"Rai rai!"
The moment their eyes met, Zorua and Raichu locked onto each other, both ready to strike at a moment's notice.
"Zorua, use Fake Tears!"
"Zoruuu~"
The battle began, and Zorua immediately crouched down, looking pitifully sad as it let out a heartbreaking cry.
Raichu froze for a moment, its battle aura instantly weakening.
As a Raichu who had spent its time looking after a mischievous little Misdreavus, it had absolutely no resistance to such an attack.
Although Zorua was male, it didn't stop him from using Fake Tears effectively.
"Baana! Baana!"
Bellossom called out from behind, causing Raichu to hesitate for a brief moment—but that hesitation quickly turned into anger.
It charged straight at Zorua!
"Zorua, Scary Face!"
Sato glanced at Bellossom, slightly surprised.
"It's smart… interesting."
Zorua, who had been crying pitifully just a second ago, immediately shifted gears, its face twisting into a terrifying expression, which suddenly enlarged in Raichu's vision.
Just how terrifying was it?
Well, Raichu had already frozen in place, a few cold sweat drops forming on its head.
"Baana~ Baana!"
"Rai rai!"
Raichu shook off the fear, avoiding a direct confrontation with Zorua and instead began sprinting in circles, using Agility to build momentum!
"Taunt! Then, Sucker Punch!"
Sato watched Bellossom closely.
It had just directed Raichu to counter Scary Face with Agility…
That wasn't something a regular wild Pokémon could do.
He suddenly regretted his earlier promise not to catch them.
"Zorua!"
Zorua smirked mischievously, muttering something mocking under its breath.
Under the influence of mysterious forces, Raichu suddenly stopped mid-motion, its cheeks sparking aggressively—it was furious.
A visible vein popped on its forehead—it was absolutely livid!
"Baana!"
Bellossom seemed flustered—normally, Raichu listened well in battle, but now it was completely ignoring orders.
"Zorua~"
Seizing the opportunity, Zorua closed the distance and, before Raichu could react, slammed into it head-on!
"Larvi~"
Why does everyone keep falling face-first like that?
Larvitar, the future pseudo-legendary, sighed in disappointment.
That wasn't a cool way to go down at all.
A pseudo-legendary should stand their ground and fight head-on!
"Baana! Baana!"
Bellossom noticed something—or perhaps, realized that at this point, defense was pointless.
Its tiny arms gestured frantically, as if urging Raichu to go all-out with an attack!
"Rai rai!"
Raichu perked up instantly, and a powerful surge of electricity crackled around its body before it discharged in a violent blast—Thunderbolt!
"Dodge it!"
"Zor!"
Zorua's speed wasn't bad, and it easily evaded the first Thunderbolt—but Raichu, as if cheating, fired another one immediately, then another, and another.
Zorua was starting to struggle.
"Use Dark Pulse to block it!"
"Zorua!"
Seeing that dodging was no longer an option, Zorua quickly gathered energy, launching a Dark Pulse just in time to intercept the next Thunderbolt.
"Boom!"
The collision caused an explosion—Zorua, being too close, was blasted backward, tumbling across the ground.
Meanwhile, Raichu finally stopped attacking, panting heavily from the exertion.
"Zorua, can you keep going?"
Sato frowned.
Raichu was stronger than expected—it had superior speed, attack power, endurance, and level.
Even after weakening it with Scary Face and Fake Tears, Zorua was still struggling.
This wild battle had turned into a real challenge.
"Zorua!"
Zorua's once sleek fur was now ruffled and messy, but aside from superficial burns, it wasn't severely injured.
"Rai rai!"
Raichu charged forward again, its lightning-shaped tail whipping behind it, as if determined to finish things with the next blow.
"Zor…!"
Suddenly, a strong, eerie black light surrounded Zorua, and its eyes turned blood red.
Sato's eyes lit up—it had learned a new move!
"Zorua, use Foul Play!"
Raichu's right fist crackled with electricity, clearly preparing Thunder Punch—likely wanting to avenge Misdreavus.
However, due to Scary Face, Zorua had the slight speed advantage.
Foul Play struck first, and the two Pokémon crossed paths like swordfighters, landing their final blows before standing still.
"Zor…!"
Suddenly, Zorua flinched, an electric current running through its body—it had been paralyzed from Thunder Punch's static discharge.
But in the next moment, Raichu wobbled slightly… then collapsed onto the ground.
Zorua, victory!