Chapter 11: The Deadly Demon Tree

"Plop~" A drop of water fell from the top of the dark sewer, landing on the face of a tall, unconscious young man. His face was pale, and a ghastly wound on his left thigh was starting to rot from the dampness. The ground beneath him was stained dark red with dried blood.

A Koffing circled the young man anxiously, its small eyes filled with worry, occasionally casting wary glances at the coiled purple snake beside the young man. The snake's eyes were cold and emotionless, but it watched the young man with a complex expression, ignoring the hostility from the Koffing.

Nearby, a Tentacruel emerged halfway from the rushing river, looking at the young man with a similarly complicated expression.

The cold water droplets stimulated the young man, making his eyes twitch slightly before he slowly opened them. After a moment of confusion, his eyes widened and sharpened immediately.

"Koff Koff~" The Koffing excitedly flew above the young man's head when it saw he had woken up, a happy expression on its face.

"Ekans~" The Ekans swiftly moved to the young man's side, raising its formidable head to look at him, a hint of barely noticeable joy in its eyes.

Seeing Koffing and Ekans by his side, the young man, Noah, smiled faintly. Despite the excruciating pain in his left leg, he propped himself up with his hands and sat up with difficulty. He retrieved a bottle of clean water from his waist pouch, unscrewed the cap, and eagerly drank from it.

"Ugh, ugh, ugh~" Noah choked a little, coughing as the water revived his dehydrated body. After catching his breath, he glanced at the wound on his leg, which had turned black from infection.

After some thought, he took out a sharp knife, a bottle of disinfectant, and a roll of clean gauze from his pouch. He cut a piece of gauze, rolled it up, and bit down on it. With a fierce glint in his eyes, he began cutting away the rotten flesh.

"Argh~" The pain of cutting his own flesh brought out a cold sweat, but he managed to remove all the necrotic tissue. Fresh blood oozed from the wound again.

"Phew~" Noah spat out the gauze and took a deep breath, his eyebrows knitted together. He quickly poured disinfectant over the wound.

"Sss~" The disinfectant fizzed on contact, causing pain a hundred times worse than cutting the flesh. His face turned even paler, and he closed his eyes, enduring the agony.

"Ha, ha, ha~" Gasping for breath, Noah felt like he had been pulled out of water, his clothes soaked with sweat. With the wound disinfected, he took out another item from his pouch: a blood-red potion glowing eerily.

This was a special healing potion made by Team Rocket, designed to accelerate cell division and regenerate flesh. Despite its powerful effects, it was a forbidden drug due to its severe side effects—it permanently shortened the user's lifespan by three years per use. Nevertheless, it was highly sought after in the Team Rocket black market.

Noah had acquired this potion from his second mandatory mission, and this was his second time using it. Without hesitation, he injected the potion into his left leg. The potion took effect immediately, making his blood boil and his pale face flush with color as his flesh began to regenerate visibly.

In just over a minute, the wound had healed completely, revealing fresh, tender skin. 

"I hope this mission's rewards are worth it. Otherwise, I'm at a huge loss. Koga, you owe me for this, and I'll make sure to collect," Noah muttered, his face dark and his eyes glinting with malice.

"Ekans~" Ekans, sensing the menacing aura from Noah, showed excitement in its cold eyes and coiled around him again.

"Thanks to your help, we made it through, Ekans. I'll reward you well when we return," Noah said, smiling as he petted the snake's head.

"Ekans~" The Ekans closed its eyes and nodded.

"Koff Koff~" The Koffing, not wanting to be left out, flew to Noah with a pleading look.

"Hahaha, don't worry, you'll get your reward too," Noah said, patting Koffing's head.

Two minutes later, as Noah prepared to set off again, he realized he was lost.

"It seems my suspicions were correct. Vivian used us as pawns. Elite members always have some tricks up their sleeves. She swapped places with a Ditto without us noticing. What do I do now? Should I just go back empty-handed?" Noah thought, eating a compressed biscuit and contemplating his next move.

Suddenly, he turned to the Tentacruel in the river with a sharp gaze and a slight smile.

As Noah rode the Tentacruel toward the central area, a fierce battle was already underway in the purple swamp at the center.

The Pokémon in the swamp had split into two factions: one loyal to the four leader Pokémon, and the other, the rebels, who sought the strange tree's fruit to gain power. The battle between these factions was brutal, with both same-species and cross-species fights only ending in death.

Some of the stronger rebels, despite their injuries, reached the tree's canopy, only to be attacked by the four leader Pokémon and killed instantly.

These four leader Pokémon seemed to have made a temporary pact, guarding the black tree and attacking any rebel Pokémon attempting to seize the fruit. As the death toll rose, the swamp turned crimson with blood, and the fallen Pokémon's bodies shriveled and sank into the swamp.

A purple flower bud appeared at the top of the tree, quickly blooming and withering, leaving a blue fruit behind.

"Amazing, the Toxic Trevenant bears fruit by absorbing the blood of Poison-type Pokémon. With the scale of this battle, it might bear another fruit," marveled a hidden Team Rocket elite.

He had concealed his presence entirely, silently observing the carnage below.

"Power comes at a cost. Toxic Trevenant's fruit is a treasure for Poison-types, enhancing their abilities and granting a sliver of Poison-type essence, crucial for breaking through to Legendary status. It seems the tree's miraculous effects are due to absorbing the innate Poison essence from these Pokémon," Vivian said gravely, feeling an inexplicable dread towards the tree's consumption of Pokémon blood.

"Don't worry, our preparations are complete. Once the time is right, the fruit will be ours," the elite said, eyeing the glowing fruits with fanaticism.

"I hope you're right," Vivian thought, feeling she had fallen into a meticulously planned trap with no escape.

Above the purple swamp, a young ninja sat cross-legged in the air, coldly watching the battle below while polishing his katana. Below him hung a giant spider and a cocoon wrapped in web.

"Noah, where are you? The show's about to start," Koga muttered, gazing at his blade.

In the shallow waters connecting the swamp, Noah lay leisurely in a giant water bubble, carefully wrapped by Tentacruel's tentacles.

Thanks to Tentacruel's guidance, Noah quickly reached the central area. Seeing the fierce battle and the strange tree, he had Tentacruel hide him underwater, waiting for the right moment.

Though the water was murky, Noah could hear the battle above clearly, understanding the situation.

As the sounds of battle waned, the cold glint in Noah's eyes grew stronger.

To be continued...