The protagonist always arrives late

Sensing the fierce attack rushing toward him, Volkner quickly rolled to the side.

Boom!!!

At the same time, Raichu, the fastest on the field and the Pokémon most in sync with Volkner, moved with all its might. As the Psychic blast shot forward, Raichu twisted its body and used its long, thin tail to deflect the attack with Iron Tail.

The Psychic attack struck the ground, exploding on impact.

Volkner stood up, glancing at the fresh crater nearby. He looked ahead into the dissipating smoke, a slow smile forming at the corner of his mouth.

"Although it's unexpected, this makes the battle all the more interesting..."

He was curious how Azelf, after enduring the damage from Hex and the paralyzing effect of Thunder Wave, could still counterattack so swiftly.

Even if he had miscalculated the damage, and Rotom's attack hadn't directly defeated it, the hit had certainly inflicted considerable harm.

But despite suffering serious injuries and being paralyzed, Azelf had somehow managed to attack again at such speed.

However, curiosity aside, since his opponent hadn't lost its ability to fight, there was no reason to stop now.

"Electivire, Thunder!

Raichu, Thunderbolt!

Rotom, Shadow Ball!"

The three Pokémon were equally surprised by Azelf's recent attack, but that didn't stop their actions. In fact, due to the attack on their trainer, this round of attacks was infused with a hint of anger.

In an instant, two bolts of lightning fell, with Shadow Ball trailing closely behind, exploding in the area where Azelf was located.

Given what had just happened, Volkner didn't dare to be careless and was about to signal Raichu and the others to continue attacking.

If one round wasn't enough, then they would just attack a few more times.

But before he could give the command or even make a move, Volkner's vision blurred for a moment. In the next second, a bluish-gray figure appeared directly in front of him.

Teleport?

There was no time to question how Azelf had mastered this move; Volkner immediately swung his fist.

But Azelf's reaction was even faster.

Its eyes flashed red, and a beam shot out from the red gem on its forehead, piercing through a hasty electrical attack from Raichu and striking Volkner directly.

Boom!

Volkner was sent flying, rolling on the ground for over a dozen spins before finally coming to a stop.

Feeling the sharp pain in his chest, Volkner quickly unzipped his blue jacket. A palm-sized, golden spider Pokémon fell to the ground, its eyes lifeless, already unconscious.

"Even Struggle Bug couldn't withstand a single hit..." Volkner said, his face tense.

This Joltik had been with him since his Sinnoh League challenges. Although it had never evolved, it had become highly skilled in using the move Struggle Bug.

During his victory at the Lily of the Valley Conference and his official challenge against the Elite Four, this Pokémon had once endured two direct attacks from Flint's lead Pokémon.

Its small size made it easy to carry, and Volkner often used it as his personal guard.

But to think, a Pokémon that could endure the attacks of an Elite Four Pokémon couldn't withstand a single strike from a legendary one.

Not daring to be careless, Volkner quickly took out two Poké Balls.

But to his surprise, Azelf didn't attempt to stop him.

In fact, the legendary Pokémon didn't even seem to notice Raichu, Electivire, and Rotom, who were racing back from the battlefield, bodies still crackling with electricity.

Azelf's once blood-red eyes suddenly turned calm, and its frenzied, out-of-control expression vanished.

It floated in midair, gazing down at Volkner with an eerie calm.

Then, slowly, it curled its lips into a strange, chilling smile.

Volkner felt a cold shiver down his spine.

In a flash, he realized something was off with Azelf's two consecutive attacks and its unsettling expression.

But before he could call out a warning, a large, white void silently appeared in the air above Raichu, Electivire, and Rotom.

"Is that... Future Sight from earlier?"

Future Sight, one of the most powerful Psychic-type moves, doesn't strike immediately upon activation. Instead, the attack is delayed, only coming into effect after a longer period of time.

And now, this Future Sight was clearly the one Azelf had seemingly used recklessly earlier.

In that instant, Volkner's eyes widened in shock.

He wanted to shout a warning, but there was no way his voice could outpace the move, which had already been set in motion.

The next moment, a massive bolt of lightning, though white in color, shot down from the void, carrying an overwhelming force as it crashed directly into his three unsuspecting Pokémon.

Boom!!!

A sound like thunder on a stormy night echoed in the air.

The terrifying energy wave engulfed Raichu, Electivire, and Rotom in an instant, followed by a deafening explosion that shook the ground.

When the dust finally settled, the entire area behind Azelf had vanished.

In its place was a giant crater.

White smoke mixed with sand slowly rose from the hole.

At the center of the crater, Volkner's three Pokémon lay battered and bruised, unable to stand.

Volkner's breath hitched at the sight.

"First, it pretended to be in a frenzy after the battle had reached a stalemate, using that as a cover to hide its finishing blow.

"Then, it ramped up its offensive, leaving me no time to think about its hidden strategy.

"Finally, using Teleport to get in close, it baited me, ensuring that Future Sight would land perfectly..."

Volkner looked up at Azelf, his expression dark. "So from the beginning, you weren't out of control, nor were you berserk. You've been deliberately setting me up, haven't you?!"

Faced with Volkner's accusation, Azelf didn't respond.

Its blood-red eyes remained, though the eerie smile from earlier was fading away. The red gem on its forehead was beginning to glow once more.

A powerful surge of Psychic energy was gathering.

Volkner had no intention of waiting for his defeat.

Even with his three strongest Pokémon down, and aside from Joltik, the two remaining were a tier below in strength. But giving up wasn't something Volkner would consider.

As he pressed the switch, the Poké Balls expanded in size.

To save time, Volkner skipped the usual motion of throwing the balls and opted to release his Pokémon directly.

However, even this speed was no match for Azelf's attack, which no longer required Volkner as bait. The speed at which Azelf gathered its Psychic energy was far faster than Volkner's attempt to release his Pokémon.

As the surge of Psychic energy reached its peak, and just as Volkner's heart began to sink...

A voice suddenly echoed from the sky in the distance.

"Volkner, what's going on with you? It's just a legendary Pokemon. Is there a need to have this much trouble?"

(T/N: Honestly Joltik is such a bad idea as a guard or rather, keeping it in the jacket as a whole. I would probably forget about it and throw it in the washing machine along with the jacket.)