Pokemon: Spiritual Master-Chapter 490: Even Without a Poké Ball, I Can Summon a Legendary

How the hell was that thing here?!

And more importantly—why was it standing on Ghost's submarine, the very same one she'd been fixated on?

Had Ghost betrayed them?

Or... had Ghost already surrendered, and the submarine had been seized by that guy?

But how could a single person take over a massive submarine like that? There were at least a dozen or two of Ghost's underlings aboard—some of them not weak either.

Hunter J didn't know that Gengar and Rotom alone had no trouble taking control of the sub, especially once Gengar realized there might be plenty of good stuff onboard.

"Wanna come down and talk?" Johan looked up at Hunter J floating in the air, still tense and on guard, and smiled as he spoke.

Hunter J narrowed her eyes.

Talk?

What was there to talk about...

Before the thought could finish forming, a chill ran down her spine, and she snapped out sharply:

"Salamence!"

Whoosh—

Salamence suddenly dove, its back flaring with ghostly blue fire. Ceruledge's sneak attack missed, vanishing into a puff of black mist in the night sky.

"You!" Hunter J glared at Johan.

He'd tried to ambush her?!

This guy—this so-called "teacher" respected by so many—resorted to ambushes?!

Had the world changed? Had the rules flipped?

In her mind, League trainers, even if not all of them followed some noble sense of heroism, at least didn't stoop to these kinds of sneaky tactics.

Wasn't this the kind of thing villains did?

In her head, she struggled for the word... "bottom line."

Wasn't this the kind of behavior reserved for the likes of evil teams?

Sure, the only person she knew of in the League who might do something like this was that completely shameless Elite Four member, Bertha from Kanto.

If Johan knew what she was thinking, he'd probably just chuckle and say, "What a coincidence—Bertha's practically half my teacher."

Hunter J had been born too early. If she'd met Gold from Johto two years later, she wouldn't be half this surprised.

That guy really never played by the rules.

"Shame," Johan clicked his tongue in disappointment.

As for Hunter J's angry glare, he just chuckled. "Just returning the favor in kind. No need to get emotional."

Johan had always remembered one thing: to deal with the wicked, you have to be even more wicked.

Still, you couldn't deny that Hunter J was among the very top tier of Pokémon hunters. Her reaction speed and danger sense were solid.

"Salamence, go!"

When up against a shameless opponent with overwhelming power, fighting was clearly not the smart move.

"Garrr—!!"

Even Salamence flinched a little inside. It beat its wings and bolted, soaring fast into the distance.

In terms of speed, both Salamence and Hunter J were extremely confident.

Speed was their bread and butter—essential to survival.

She glanced back.

Johan's submarine? Way too slow to keep up.

Whew—

Both Salamence and Hunter J relaxed a little.

"Draaa?"

Just then, a soft questioning sound echoed in their ears.

Huh?

Both Hunter J and Salamence turned.

There, flying right alongside them—Dragonite, totally relaxed.

H-how did it catch up?!

"Salamence, Dragon Breath!"

In midair, Salamence opened its mouth wide. A searing blue Dragon-type breath burst forth.

But what met it was Dragonite's already-prepared, frost-covered fist.

"Draaa~!(ˊˋ)"

Ice Punch!

BAM!!

Both being Dragon/Flying-types, Salamence and Dragonite were four-times weak to Ice.

Salamence dropped like a stone, tumbling through the air like a broken kite. Hunter J clung to its back, teeth gritted, yelling:

"Salamence!"

Whew—

One punch wasn't enough to knock it out. Salamence beat its wings quickly, slowing the fall.

Then realized—wait, they were standing on top of the submarine.

Salamence gritted its teeth.

It was a Dragon-type pseudo-legendary. No way could it accept being outmatched like this!

It roared again.

"Garrr—ooowoo—"

It hadn't even finished roaring when something shoved straight into its mouth.

It looked down—

A big, golden cannon barrel shoved into its face.

"Goka~(`)︻デ═一"

Armarouge!

Johan just watched from the side, smiling calmly, fingers in his ears.

"Kai-Cannon."

Instant cold sweat drenched Salamence. Even its scales glistened with it.

That feeling...

BOOM!!

A monstrous roar erupted. Blazing fire surged inside Salamence's mouth. The impact blasted it off the submarine's top yet again.

Armarouge skidded back across the sub's surface, leaving scorched tracks with its feet, smoke rising from its cannon as it stood.

"Goka?"

A flicker of confusion passed through its eyes—then realization.

The attack felt strange, but it quickly understood: Salamence had countered with Fire Blast during the Kai-Cannon strike.

Though still heavily damaged, it had resisted part of the impact.

Not bad.

Hunter J's Salamence really was the real deal. In terms of raw power, it probably reached Elite Four level.

But—

That was all.

"So you don't have a Mega Stone, huh..." Johan mused.

The fact that Hunter J hadn't used Mega Evolution by now meant she probably didn't have a Salamencite. He had been cautious, but now he relaxed.

Hunter J clung tightly to Salamence's back, trying not to be flung off, face pale with anger and shame.

She felt utterly humiliated—

Was Johan toying with her?

"Oowoo~~"

Before Salamence could steady itself, a Ninetales dashed in over the ice, cold air surging toward its spine.

"Garrr."

It barely exhaled a puff of smoke before Ninetales froze it solid with Ice Beam.

Even a powerful Salamence couldn't endure a beatdown like this.

Hunter J finally slipped off its back—falling not into the sea, but slamming hard onto the ice.

Her face now showed true despair.

After all her years ruling the Pokémon hunter world—defeated here?

She had caught Lugia!

With a fully tamed Shadow Lugia, she could've hunted other Legendaries.

Clack—

Johan stepped onto the ice, looking down at her.

Hunter J gritted her teeth and barked, "Do what you want! Kill me or arrest me, I don't care!"

But Johan didn't say a word. He reached straight for her chest.

"You—what are you doing?!"

Hunter J hugged herself protectively.

Was this guy... some kind of monster?!

Johan gave her a "are you nuts?" look and pulled the Dark Ball out from inside her coat.

"Psycho."

Hunter J: "..."

He studied the Dark Ball.

It was indeed one of the Marauder's models—same construction, same forced capture and power-enhancing function.

But it had serious side effects. A cheap knockoff.

Johan frowned, thinking deeper.

If the Marauder could sell this to Hunter J... could he have sold it to others too?

Hunter J couldn't replicate it. But someone else might.

That would be dangerous.

Noticing his silence, Hunter J's eyes lit up slightly. She snorted, "You wouldn't understand."

She added, "With that ball, you can control Lugia—Shadow Lugia, no less. A real, enhanced Legendary!"

She believed no trainer—no matter how noble—could resist the temptation of such power.

"Mm."

Johan just grunted through his nose.

"I can teach you how to train these Pokémon! As a hunter, I—"

Crunch—

Johan dropped the Dark Ball, then calmly stepped on it.

BAM!!

The ball shattered. Purple sparks flickered in the air.

"You—!"

Hunter J's eyes widened.

Johan shoved his hands in his pockets, leaned down slightly, and said in a flat voice:

"Even with a Poké Ball, a Pokémon might not obey. And without one, it might still follow me. You don't get it, do you?"

Huh?

"Poké Balls are just an extension of the bond between a trainer and their Pokémon."

In ancient times, before Poké Balls even existed, humans and Pokémon didn't rely on them to connect.

Hunter J's pupils shrank.

Johan slowly stood upright.

"Even without a Poké Ball, I can summon a Legendary. Why would I need this cheap junk?"

He turned and walked back to the sub.

Hunter J fell silent.

If Gengar were here, it'd be gaping, jaw dropped.

Damn... he nailed that entrance.

"Wait!"

Hunter J suddenly called out.

Johan paused.

"Don't you want to know who gave me the Dark Ball?" she said wearily.

"Who else—probably..."

No. Wait.

He was going to say the Marauder, but something felt off.

If it was him, Hunter J wouldn't bother asking—she knew Johan hated Pokémon hunters and probably knew the Marauder's name.

Another name flashed through his mind...

"Wow... they're going at it hard."

Back to the storm and crashing waves, Johan smacked his lips in awe.

Visit frёewebnoѵel.ƈo๓ for the b𝘦st novel reading experience.

Lugia sure lived up to its reputation. Brutally strong.

Especially at sea...

He rubbed his forehead. Bit of a headache.

The Dark Ball had been destroyed, but Lugia hadn't calmed down yet—its fury had taken hold.

Cynthia stood within the storm, her black coat whipping wildly.

"Garchomp, Mega Evolve!"

----------

Powerstones?

For 20 advance Chapters: patreon.com/michaeltranslates