The oppressive forean Look immediately armed the Dusclops, their glowing red eyes flickering ominously.

  In an instant, four Shadow Punches came striking from different angles, perfectly coordinated, all aimed at Haunter.

  "Zor!"

  Aed Zoroark dashed forward, swinging its Dark Pulse-formed whip high into the air!

  Smack! Smack!

  Two crisp strikes rang out, instantly dispelling half of the Shadow Punches.

  Haunter swiftly escaped from its position, looking relieved—although it had Protect prepared, that was a st-resort survival move.

  "Zoroark, Night Daze! Haunter, Lick, hold down Duskull!"

  "Zor!"

  With its body brimming with power, Zoroark charged toward the tanky Dusclops, unleashing Night Daze over a wide area!

  The Mean Look effect had fully taken hold—Duskull couldn't vanish into thin air and, in a panic, tried to hide among the dense underbrush, futilely hoping to avoid attention.

  Unfortunately, Sato had e precisely for it!

  Slurp!

  "Dusk!"

  Haunter's tongue shed out like lightning, striking Duskull dead-on. Under Sato's training, Haunter had pletely abandoned Lick's already weak damage output, fog solely on its paralysis effect!

  And luck seemed to be on their side—Duskull aralyzed on the spot, uo move. Sato wasted no time in throwing a Poké Ball, attempting to capture it!

  Oher side, after three Nasty Plots, Night Daze had bee terrifyingly strong.

  No matter how high the Dusclops' defenses were, none of them could withstand two full-powered Night Dazes.

  Ding!

  The Duskull ihe Poké Ball seemed to accept its fate, quietly staying ihout further struggle. Sato swiftly retrieved the ball, calling back Zoroark before immediately sprinting toward the outskirts of the valley!

  -------------------------

  Mier, the Dusclops slowly began tain sciousness, but by then, the Duskull had vanished.

  Their eerie, enraged wails echoed throughout the valley, spreading further and further—almost as if signaling something.

  --------------------------

  Sato and Zoroark picked a path and hurriedly made their way back the way they came. But something didn't sit right with Sato—he couldn't shake the feeling that this wasn't over yet...

  As they fled, occasional wild Pokémon still attempted to harass them, but at some point, all sounds around them seemed to pletely vanish.

  "It's happening again..."

  Sato signaled Zoroark to stop and serve energy. The effects of Nasty Plot hadn't fully worn off yet—if an ambush happened now, they'd give the attacker a nasty surprise!

  Of course, Sato himself also remained on high alert, knowing that Dark Energy alone wouldn't be enough to detect everything.

  Whoosh...

  A faint breeze brushed past Sato's ear—but something about the air felt... wrong!

  "It's Ominous Wind! Zoroark, Fmethrower—shoot it into the sky! Hauhunderbolt!"

  Bzing fmes and dazzling lightning momentarily illuminated everything around them.

  High in the sky, a massive Drifblim was floating at a distance, geing Ominous Wind. Its bright red, bead-like eyes stared at Sato, expression unreadable.

  "Whoo... Whoo..."

  The Ominous Wind suddenly surged in strength, an invisible corrosive force carried by the gale seeping into both trainer and Pokémon.

  Sato immediately activated his Dark Energy, eradig the encroag corruption before it could take effect.

  He coldly eyed the Drifblim—he had no idea why it had followed them, but that didn't matter. First, he'd take it down!

  "Fmethrower! Shadow Ball!"

  Zoroark and Haunter uheir attacks in unison, but the airborne Drifblim was unnaturally agile, easily dodging both moves.

  At that moment, Sato realized a major fw in his team—he cked an airborne Pokémon. Without one, his lineup couldn't be sidered plete.

  However, that didn't mean he was out of options!

  "Haunter, Psychic! Zoroark, Extrasensory!" First, they'd pin the Drifblim dowhey could deal with it properly!

  Ghost-types might resist Psychic-type moves, but they weren't immune.

  Uhe bined force of dual Psychic teiques, no matter how nimble the Drifblim was, it couldn't avoid being dragged down. For the first time, a hint of panic flickered in its bead-like eyes!

  "Zoroark—whip it!"

  Smack! Smack! Smack!

  After three swift shes, the Drifblim pletely defted, sinking like a punctured balloon.

  Sato wasted no time and threoké Ball, capturing it on the spot. Drifblim was a rare sight in Johto—this one could fetch a high price.

  They resumed their escape, but barely two minutes had passed when Sato suddenly felt an overwhelming presence behind him!

  "Speed up!"

  Sato burst forward at full speed, dodging just in time. The space he had just occupied was instantly bombarded by a swarm of Shadow Balls, which exploded violently upon impact!

  Gng back, Sato saw a massive horde of Dusclops and Duskull emerging from the shadows. Leading them was her than a Dusknoir!

  There was no time to be surprised—before Sato could react, he suddenly felt himself being yanked upward. The world spun around him as he was lifted onto Zoroark's back.

  Agility activated!

  Zoroark dashed forward at breakneck speed, carrying Sato while Haunter g onto its fur, trailing behind.

  "Haunter, return for now! Spinarak, y down Toxic Spikes behind us!"

  Sato kept his body low against Zoroark's back, his right arm securely holding onto Spinarak, who was frantically tossing Toxic Spikes behind them to hiheir pursuers.

  However, as Satained his posure, he quickly realized something—Duskull and Dusclops had a major fw: their speed was abysmally slow!

  "Don't panic. Just maintain this pace—they won't be able to catch up," Sato reassured Zoroark, patting its fur.

  The eerie procession of ghosts behind them looked terrifying at first gnce, but when he really thought about it… they couldn't even nd a hit. There wasn't even a need for Spinarak to keep deying them.

  A false arm.

  "Zor…"

  Sato's calm demeanor helped ease Zoroark's tension to some extent, but the situation had clearly left an impa it.

  "I used to hold you in my arms to protect you, and now you're the one carrying me while we escape," Sato observed.

  He could sense Zoroark's subtle ge in mood—it was loyal, calm, perceptive, and proud.

  Even though Sato hadn't been injured, Zoroark would undoubtedly bme itself, feeling like it had failed to protect him properly.

  "Zor…"

  "It's fine. We're getting stronger—slowly but surely," Sato reassured, speaking softly.

  As soon as he finished, he realized they had already left the Valley of the Dead.

  Turning back, the valley looked as peaceful as ever, as if the earlier pursuit had been nothing more than an illusion.

  Sato patted his backpack, feeling the three Poké Balls inside. firming that the trip hadn't been in vain, he wasted no time. Mounting Zoroark once again, he quickly left the area.

  -----------------

  After departing from the Valley of the Dead, Sato first located the official League-maintained road. Then, traveling as fast as possible, he reached Ecruteak City in just under five days.

  Uhe bustling financial metropolis of Goldenrod City, Ecruteak City was filled with a wooden structures and stone-paved roads. In the north, two t pagodas—one newly restored, the other old ahered—stood in harmony with each other.

  Monks dressed in traditional robes occasionally passed by, exging respectful greetings with the townspeople. It was clear that Ecruteak City was deeply influenced by Sage culture.