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"Mr. Sato, where are you going? We're about to enter the next level. As one of the expedition's key combatants, your absence would be quite unfortunate."
Just as Sato was about to use telepathy to have Natu teleport him and Thomas out of the ruins, Tomoki's voice exploded in his mind. A sharp burst of pain surged through his skull, and blood began to stream from his nose.
Despite the searing pain in his head, Sato forced himself to endure it and stared in shock at Tomoki, who was now looking at him coldly. At that mont, Sato felt an overwhelming sense of dread toward this Rocket Leader's nephew.
He hadn't misheard—Tomoki hadn't spoken aloud but had communicated directly via telepathy.
In other words, this broad-shouldered, simple-looking young man was actually a Psychic. And judging from the intense pressure he had just exerted on Sato's mind, Sato concluded his psychic power was incredibly strong—possibly on par with Ailes.
Too well-hidden. Far too well-hidden.
Sato never expected Tomoki to be a powerful Psychic.
In that mont, he also understood why Maya, another Psychic, had defected from Sabrina's faction and joined Tomoki. It wasn't just because Tomoki had once saved her—it was likely also because he himself was a formidable Psychic.
At the sa ti, Sato realized Tomoki had probably sensed he'd discovered sothing unusual and was now trying to stop him from leaving.
He also noticed that, without realizing it, Maya and several Team Rocket recruits who normally followed Tomoki closely were already nearby. Though they appeared to be tending to their Pokémon, they were all actually watching him closely.
If he made even the slightest move, it was clear these people wouldn't hesitate to strike. It would be an instant and overwhelming assault.
Even worse, the Natu perched on his shoulder and Thomas beside him both seed to have fallen into a deep sleep, unmoving with their eyes closed.
Sato knew his plan to sneak away had just collapsed. While he was a Psychic, and he did have a Psychic-type Pokémon capable of Teleport, both Tomoki and Maya were also Psychics—with ntal strength no weaker than his own. They almost certainly had Pokémon capable of Teleport too.
Especially Tomoki. He was far too dangerous to not be partnered with at least one powerful Psychic-type.
Against soone this calculating and powerful—flanked by his loyal subordinates—Sato's chances of escape were now effectively zero.
"Mr. Tomoki, you're impressive. I must admit, I completely failed to notice that you were a Psychic. However…. I just want to leave. Whatever it is you're planning, I have no interest in it. I'm sure you wouldn't want to force a mutual destruction scenario, either."
"You'd best consider extrely carefully—while I may be alone, if I suddenly make noise and tell everyone what I've discovered, your plans will no doubt be significantly disrupted."
Since escaping was no longer an option, negotiation was all that remained. Rather than imdiately alerting the others, Sato chose to probe and threaten Tomoki through telepathy.
"I don't know what you're talking about. But so things are best kept buried in your heart. The more you know, the quicker you die."
Tomoki left Sato no opening. Using his eerie telepathic ability, he continued to speak directly into Sato's mind—while simultaneously pressing his ntal energy against Sato's consciousness, exerting unbearable pressure.
"I understand that perfectly well. So, I'll be taking my leave now. I don't know what trick you're using to suppress my ntal energy, but I'm still more than capable of putting up a fight. If you push , gathering attention and permanently killing a few of your Pokemon along with your lackeys wouldn't be a problem at all."
Eyes closed, Sato gritted his teeth through the mind-splitting pain and maintained his telepathic conversation.
Both his hands were already gripping the PokéBalls of Swampert and Alakazam. If negotiations failed, he was ready to fight back imdiately.
After a brief silence, Tomoki seed to accept Sato's request to leave. The strange force suppressing his mind finally began to fade.
Sato opened his eyes, quickly wiped the blood from his nose with his sleeve, and refocused on Tomoki and his surroundings.
He noticed that Tomoki was no longer in his original position. Just like at the beginning, he'd taken the lead and gone down the staircase with a few subordinates to explore the second floor of the ruins. Most others had followed him.
However, Maya and several of Tomoki's trusted aides remained, still watching him closely. They had ford a loose encirclent, clearly ready to strike should he attempt anything suspicious.
As for Natu and Thomas, both appeared to be genuinely asleep, eyes closed and motionless.
What surprised Sato most was the presence of Vanna and Janine—one sitting to his left, the other to his right. Standing beside them were Kommo-o and Gengar, respectively.
'So it was them... Looks like they noticed sothing strange as well. Their sudden appearance probably made Tomoki more hesitant—that's likely why he let go imdiately. Finally made it through. Thank goodness he didn't go for mutual destruction.'
'This proves it—I must never underestimate anyone. Tomoki's cunning is terrifying. I'm still not ready. No team, no support—I should never have recklessly joined this kind of group expedition. This was a harsh lesson. If I hadn't remained cautious and noticed the anomaly in ti, I might've ultimately been buried here.'
Seeing the current situation, Sato realized his quick judgnt—and the tily arrival of Vanna and Janine—had opened a path to survival. He let out a silent sigh of relief.
At the sa ti, the feeling of being at soone else's rcy had sobered him. Since becoming a trainer, he had risen rapidly in strength, winning many battles—and without realizing it, arrogance had started to grow in his heart.
But after being outmaneuvered by Tomoki and once again spared only out of convenience and hesitation, that budding arrogance had now been thoroughly extinguished.
Without wasting another thought, Sato released Alakazam right in front of Maya and the others. He forced himself to ignore the lingering pain in his head and prepared to command it via telepathy to teleport him and the others out.
"Hey, if you're going, take with you. I was about to leave anyway. Consider it paynt for backing you up earlier."
"Take , and we'll call it even."
Just as Alakazam appeared, Vanna and Janine's voices entered Sato's ears.
Monts later, with Alakazam's help, Sato, Thomas, Vanna, and Janine silently vanished from the ruins.
...…..
"They're gone, sir. Is that okay?"
Maya lowered her head respectfully toward a seemingly empty patch of shadow nearby.
"No problem. We've got plenty of cannon fodder. Losing a few won't affect the overall plan."
As space warped above the shadows, Tomoki suddenly erged. He responded to Maya via telepathy.
"Heh… once I retrieve that object from this place, becoming the next Rocket Boss is just a matter of ti. As for you little fish who still refuse to submit—just wait and see how I deal with you in the future."
He glanced toward the direction where Sato and the others had disappeared, then lowered his gaze to the black crystal in his hand—pulsing with eerie energy and psychic waves. A faint red gleam flickered in his eyes as he muttered grimly to himself.
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