Ambush by Gengar

After capturing Rapidash and Ponyta, Yuga didn't linger too long on the East Coast, aware that the Shiftry inhabited this region. These Pokémon were communal creatures, and with their formidable strength, encountering them could bring trouble, and escape might not be guaranteed.

When departing, Yuga didn't dare to freely soar through the skies on his Dragonair like he did when he arrived. While his arrival was unavoidable, he had to be cautious on the way back.

Fortunately, his return journey went relatively smoothly, with only a few encounters with weaker ordinary Pokémon, which Yuga easily defeated before swiftly moving on, not bothering to capture them.

Returning to the dormant volcano where he had separated from Flannery and Beidou, Yuga found neither of them there. It seemed they had gone off to complete other tasks. Yuga decided not to rush to find them and continued his exploration alone.

As the mission's conclusion neared, most of the Pokémon in the area had already been captured, so Yuga's last day was spent inspecting the area to be thorough, even though he didn't encounter any Pokémon during his aimless wanderings.

As soon as Yuga finished inspecting a cave and found it empty, he walked out. However, just as he reached the cave entrance, he saw five people approaching, nearly colliding with them.

It was Beidou's former teammates!

Yuga hadn't expected to run into them.

"Why is it you?!" one of the team members, Kondoh, exclaimed.

Yuga covered his ears and furrowed his brows, perplexed by how a grown man could produce such a piercing scream.

Ignoring Kondoh's question, Yuga walked past him.

Kondoh seemed extremely fearful, stumbling backward until he bumped into another teammate, finally coming to a halt.

Later, realizing how cowardly his behavior was, Kondoh's face turned very embarrassed.

Yuga didn't care about Kondoh's reaction. But ever since Kondoh witnessing the power of Yuga's Dragonair, he had been constantly worried that Yuga might seek revenge. He didn't dare to hold any grudge against Yuga.

The other team members were also nervous. After all, Yuga was Beidou's companion, and they had done some questionable things to Beidou.

However, when they saw that Yuga paid them no attention and simply walked past them, they all breathed a sigh of relief simultaneously.

Just as Yuga had taken a few steps away, he suddenly heard a voice from behind.

"Excuse me, may I ask how Beidou has been these days?"

Yuga turned around to see that it was their team leader speaking.

In these days of busy missions, it was difficult for teams to encounter each other. Since the cafeteria incident, this was the first time Yuga had come across them.

"What's it to you?" Yuga replied.

Yuga had no favorable impression of these five individuals. Although it didn't warrant a direct confrontation, he had no intention of being friendly.

"You... Why are you..." The only woman in the group couldn't help but speak up, her voice trembling with a mix of resentment, nervousness, and fear.

Yuga gave the woman a slight glance, causing her to retreat behind her teammates in fear.

Yuga couldn't help but think, "Do I look that fierce and intimidating? Why are they so scared?"

"I just wanted to inquire about Beidou's situation, nothing more," the team leader said politely.

Looking at the well-mannered young man before him, Yuga couldn't help but think that if he hadn't heard Beidou's story, he would have never guessed that this man was capable of abandoning his teammates and showing no loyalty.

Yuga stared at the team leader and said expressionlessly, "If you had shown this concern for Beidou earlier, perhaps things wouldn't have come to this."

Upon hearing Yuga's words, the team leader's face instantly froze, clearly understanding what Yuga was referring to. The other team members wore embarrassed expressions, except for the female trainer, who seemed resentful.

Yuga had no patience for this group of people and simply turned to leave.

"Wait!" the team leader called out to Yuga.

"What else?" Yuga turned back, showing impatience.

However, he suddenly felt an unnatural presence and glanced around but found nothing, so he disregarded it.

The team leader first glanced at himself, then looked around warily, his expression darkening. Afterward, he added with a smile, "I just wanted you to help us apologize to Beidou."

Upon hearing this, Yuga turned and walked away, leaving behind the phrase, "If only I had known, why bother now?" The captain wore a perplexed expression on his face.

After parting ways with the strange group, Yuga continued his exploration mission.

Suddenly, a stout, snake-like Pokémon, a Seviper, emerged from behind a rock, opening its massive jaws to bite Yuga.

Yuga's Absol rushed forward, sending a Psycho Cut slashing quickly, knocking the Seviper aside.

The Seviper, which had climbed back up from the ground, raised its neck high, hissing with a crimson tongue and glaring at Yuga and Absol with blood-red eyes.

"Absol, use Psycho Cut!" Yuga commanded.

Yuga hadn't expected to encounter a non-Fire-type Pokémon on this volcano. This place was originally dominated by Fire-type Pokémon, and other types rarely ventured here.

As Yuga's command fell, Absol's Psycho Cut struck out.

At that moment, Yuga suddenly felt his hair stand on end. Instinctively, he lunged forward, and in the next instant, the spot where he had been standing was blasted into a large crater by a Shadow Ball.

It turned out that a Gengar had just emerged from Yuga's shadow, launching an attack on him without a word.

Yuga wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, gazing at the Gengar floating in the air. He couldn't fathom how the Gengar had stealthily hidden in his shadow without his notice.

With these thoughts in mind, Yuga glanced at the Serperior, once again knocked down by Absol, and then looked up at the floating Gengar.

If he hadn't experienced the baptism of the Light of Life, which had sharpened his ability to sense auras, Yuga would have found it incredibly challenging to detect the Gengar hidden within his shadow and evade its attacks.

After this realization, Yuga glanced at the Gengar once more. It was a green potential Gengar, and its level had reached an impressive 40. Its strength was commendable.

In comparison, the Seviper was far behind. Its level was only in the twenties, and it had ordinary orange potential. As Yuga was lost in thought, it had already been defeated by Absol.

With Seviper defeated, Absol immediately positioned itself in front of Yuga, confronting the Gengar.

The Gengar looked down at Yuga and Absol from above, smiling strangely, and then launched a Thunderbolt toward them.

Absol, unwilling to back down, released a massive Psycho Cut that instantly shattered the incoming Thunderbolt.