Chapter 178: 178. Carr
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A seven- or eight-year-old kid wearing a Team Rocket uniform appeared in Chris's field of vision.
He sat on the head of a Steelix, weighing the Poké Ball in his hand, looking down at Chris from above.
To join Team Rocket as a child, one needed either extraordinary status or impressive strength, at least at the captain level.
Chris suddenly recalled the name of the woman from earlier—Sird.
If he remembered correctly, she was one of Team Rocket's Three Beasts.
The other two members of the Three Beasts were named Carr and Orm.
Sird had mentioned these two names earlier, and they were currently at the Lake of Rage.
The little child in front of him must be Carr, one of the Three Beasts. Having encountered many surprises before, when Chris first heard Carr's name, his immediate thought was that this kid might be a ninja.
"Greninja," Chris recalled, summoning the Pokémon.
Greninja immediately returned to Chris from a distance.
The red Gyarados behind them was left to Tyranitar.
This red Gyarados likely wasn't just a Shiny Pokémon—it might be a Totem Pokémon with a Totem aura. Otherwise, it was hard to explain how it could counter a Rock Throw attack with such force and without hesitation.
"Steelix, let's have some fun! Use Earthquake!" Carr shouted, clearly eager for a confrontation with Chris.
Steelix swung its tail and slammed it into the ground, releasing a violent shockwave that lifted the earth like a quilt, spreading destruction in all directions.
"Greninja, jump and dodge!" Chris commanded. At the same time, Gardevoir used Teleport to move Chris to a higher vantage point, keeping him safe from Earthquake.
Greninja leapt into the air with ease, avoiding the attack.
Earthquake was a powerful move, but its biggest flaw was that leaving the ground rendered it ineffective.
As Greninja soared, a sly smile appeared on Carr's face.
He quickly threw a Poké Ball in Greninja's direction.
The Poké Ball burst open in mid-air, releasing a Forretress that hurtled toward Greninja's position.
But Forretress wasn't using Take Down.
The move it was about to use was—
"Explosion!" Carr called out with a smirk.
Smoke started billowing from Forretress's red vents as it prepared to unleash its stored energy.
Chris's eyes widened in alarm.
Greninja was mid-air and unable to evade quickly using its speed-boosting skills.
Being a Dark-type, it couldn't be moved by Gardevoir's Teleport.
As for teleporting Forretress...
If it were possible, Chris would gladly teleport the Forretress straight into Carr's face to deliver the explosion there instead.
Unfortunately, as a member of the Three Beasts, Carr's Pokémon—his Steelix and Forretress—were both at level 63. This power made it impossible for Gardevoir to teleport them away.
In this critical moment, Greninja found its own solution.
Using Substitute mid-air, Greninja created a clone. The Substitute grabbed Greninja's real body and flung it out of the explosion's range just in time.
"Boom!" The explosion detonated in mid-air, sending black smoke billowing into the sky.
"Impressive!" Carr exclaimed, giving Greninja a thumbs-up. It was a rare sight to see a Pokémon escape Forretress's explosive attack with such clever ingenuity.
"Boom!" Suddenly, Carr's "mount," Steelix, shook violently as if it had received a heavy blow.
Carr, seated on Steelix's head, was thrown backward uncontrollably, struggling to stabilize himself.
"Water Shuriken!" Chris's follow-up command rang out.
As soon as Greninja landed, it used a torrent of water to pierce through the lingering black smoke from the explosion, striking Steelix directly.
Although Steelix's physical defenses were formidable, Water-type moves dealt double damage to it. Greninja's Water Shuriken, powered by its unique Battle Bond ability, was not just for show!
Greninja raised its hand swiftly, conjuring five shurikens made of water. Each flew out in rapid succession, striking Steelix at close range.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Each Water Shuriken exploded on impact, dealing consecutive damage to Steelix.
Despite its Level 63 strength, Steelix's special defense was its weak point. Combined with Greninja's boosted Water Shuriken and type advantage, it couldn't withstand the onslaught.
"Boom!" Steelix's massive body crashed to the ground, defeated.
"You! Are you trying to force me to get serious?" Carr shouted furiously. He had already leapt onto a Skarmory just before Steelix fell, now glaring down at Chris from mid-air.
His question was more of a vent of his frustration than a real query. Without waiting for an answer, Carr hurled six Poké Balls into the air.
As each Poké Ball opened, six Forretress appeared, ranging in levels from 52 to 62.
The Forretress immediately activated Explosion, smoke billowing from their red vents as their bodies accelerated toward Greninja.
Chris quickly pieced together Carr's strategy. It became clear that Carr had been using Forretress as bombs all along. And judging by his calculated movements, he had a plan to make it even more devastating.
The six Forretress didn't charge in blindly. One locked onto Greninja directly, while the other five spread out strategically, surrounding Greninja to ensure there was no escape from the massive blast radius.
Chris realized the danger. "So that's why Carr's been so confident. He's a pro at this tactic," he thought grimly.
But Chris was ready this time. Having just witnessed Forretress's destructive capabilities, he quickly recalled Greninja into its Poké Ball before the six explosions could detonate.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
The chain of explosions was deafening. Violent energy erupted, sending shockwaves a hundred meters into the air.
However, despite the immense power, the attack ended up being nothing more than a grand firework display.
"Urgh!" Carr groaned in frustration as he punched the air from atop Skarmory. "That sneaky adult! Using a Poké Ball to recall his Pokémon and dodge my attack!"
Suddenly, a bright blue streak shot through the lingering black smoke, rising from the ground at breakneck speed. It hurtled directly toward Carr and his Skarmory.
The attack was moments from striking.
"Cotton Guard!"