Pokémon: Above the Top

The Shiny Arbok feared Dark Energy!

The endless waves of luminous Pokémon also retreated alongside Arbok, no longer attacking proactively.

"Ariados, set up Sticky Web! Gengar, use Energy Ball!"

Pure white silk shot from Ariados' mouth and tail, while its two backward-curved legs wove rapidly—in mere moments, the entire cavern was covered in webs.

Ariados hung upside-down near Sato—this battlefield favored it the most. Even if Shiny Arbok barely touched the webs, its speed would be reduced!

"Gengar, switch to Dark Pulse!"

Just like Shadow Ball and Energy Ball, Dark Pulse had no effect on Shiny Arbok!

Sato speculated—perhaps this Shiny Arbok was too unique, its typing may have even changed. He needed to test different attributes to find out what could counter it!

A chain-like wave of Dark energy surged toward Arbok—yet Arbok barely reacted, its focus still locked on Sato. To it, these attacks were nothing but an itch, not even worth dodging.

Dark Pulse was useless!

Given how potent Shiny Arbok's venom was, Sato knew Gengar's Sludge Bomb would be ineffective as well.

The only type left to test was Electric!

Sato immediately gave the command: "Gengar, use Thunderbolt!"

Flashes of electricity surged, bright yellow lightning crackling from Gengar's hands—for the first time, Shiny Arbok reacted.

It turned its head sharply, its body slithering away, dodging Thunderbolt with ease!

It worked! Arbok was weak to Electric attacks!

"Gengar, keep using Thunderbolt—don't stop!"

As Sato gave the order, he discreetly held onto Zoroark's Poké Ball, pouring a steady stream of Dark Energy into it.

Energy Infusion—temporarily amplifying the power of a Dark-type Pokémon!

Sato had avoided using this technique for a long time—he didn't want his Pokémon to develop a dependency on external boosts.

As waves of electricity flashed through the cavern, Gengar kept up a relentless barrage of Thunderbolt, forcing Shiny Arbok into motion while stalling for time!

Arbok, seeing that Sato refused to attack directly, and finding Gengar's Thunderbolt increasingly irritating, finally retaliated!

Ariados continued reinforcing the webs, knowing that while Gengar could ignore terrain, Arbok could not.

Unnoticed by Arbok, its mobility had already dropped slightly!

Gengar was barely holding its ground, relying on its resistance to Poison, high speed, and Ariados' support.

The battle had turned into a war of attrition!

Puff! Puff! Puff!

Dark brown spheres shot toward Gengar—recognizing the threat instantly, Gengar dodged frantically!

Mud Bomb—super effective against Gengar! Living for so long, Arbok had naturally learned how to exploit type advantages!

As soon as Gengar dodged, a silver-white tail whipped toward it!

Iron Tail!

There was no time to evade—at the last moment, a hailstorm of Pin Missiles crashed between Gengar and Arbok, kicking up a cloud of dust! Ariados' Pin Missile had saved Gengar!

Taking the chance, Gengar escaped!

Arbok turned to face Ariados, sending chills down the spider's spine—Ariados immediately repositioned itself, retreating behind layers of web, doing everything it could to reduce its presence.

There was no helping it—Shiny Arbok was too dangerous! If it landed even a single hit, Ariados would be instantly eliminated.

"Zap!"

Electricity flashed again—Arbok slithered sideways, dodging Gengar's Thunderbolt once more.

But Gengar had successfully kept Arbok's attention, giving Ariados more time to fortify its defenses.

Gengar and Ariados were perfectly in sync, taking turns covering each other, pushing Arbok into a frustrating stalemate!

After three long minutes, Arbok finally lost patience.

Once again, Ariados' Sticky Web restricted its movement—Arbok turned away from Gengar—it had decided to eliminate Ariados first!

"Now! Zoroark, use Dark Pulse!"

At that moment, Sato smirked slightly—and sent Zoroark back into the battle!

This Zoroark was nothing like before.

Just like Sato, its entire body was now enveloped in thick, dense Dark Energy! It was like a larger version of Sato, but its combat power had skyrocketed!

Peak Elite!

Zoroark dug its legs into the ground, leaving deep imprints beneath its feet. Then—with a single powerful leap, it vanished in an instant—appearing right next to Arbok!

Its crimson claws had turned jet black—the same move—but now at an entirely different speed and power level!

"Slash!"

For the first time, Arbok's white scales were torn open.

Black blood sprayed out, instantly corroding the ground upon contact! Even its blood was laced with deadly poison!

"Ssss—sss!"

Suddenly—the Shiny Arbok collapsed onto the ground, its small head bowing repeatedly toward Sato—it was surrendering!

"Mighty human… I admit defeat! I admit defeat! If you wish to leave, then leave! But please, I beg you—do not reveal this place to the world. We only want to live here in peace."

As it pleaded, red tears began to stream from its eyes, falling to the ground with a sizzling sound, even its tears were toxic.

"Mighty human, I will tell you the truth—every Luminous Pokémon here was once persecuted by the outside world. Just like them, I only wish for a quiet life. But humans are greedy… selfish… If you expose this sanctuary, we will have no future!

I beg you, please—I can see how much you care for your Pokémon… You are not like those Trainers who see Pokémon as mere tools!" Shiny Arbok continued bowing over and over.

Ariados, watching from the side, hesitated, its eyes filled with uncertainty as it looked toward Sato.

"Appealing to emotions, using logic, and even trying to manipulate me—you're in the wrong body, Belle. You're smarter than most humans."

Sato clicked his tongue in amusement.

Belle realized it couldn't win, so it immediately switched to begging for mercy—and within moments, it had piled up layers of excuses, enough to even move Ariados, the youngest among them.

"But you made too many mistakes...

Zoroark—use Night Daze. Kill it."

"Zoroark!"

Zoroark, who had been waiting for the order, lunged forward once again!

Its right hand slammed down, pinning Arbok's head to the ground—then—Night Daze erupted!

Shiny Arbok's eyes widened in terror, staring at Sato—most Trainers would stop attacking once a Pokémon admitted defeat—especially if it was a powerful one.

After all, a Trainer's goal was to capture strong Pokémon. But Sato hadn't hesitated at all.

Belle hadn't even processed what was happening before its head was forcefully pinned down by Zoroark!