Chapter 232: Throwing the Ball at Mewtwo
Rio massaged his neck to ease the lingering discomfort while contemplating Charizard’s response. A voice heard in its mind—that was telepathy. Some Pokémon had sent a telepathic command to Charizard and the others, instructing them to rescue him.
"A trainer? Is there another trainer nearby?" Rio looked down at the island in alarm.
But then he felt something was off. If another trainer had commanded their Pokémon to help, why hadn’t they shown themselves? Could it be a League spy embedded in Team Rocket, currently lying low and pretending to be unconscious?
And the trainer’s Pokémon could actually counter Mewtwo’s psychic pressure—even briefly. That level of strength would be comparable to legendary Pokémon like Raikou, and certainly able to hold its own against Giovanni’s Beedrill. So why would someone that strong be acting as a spy in Team Rocket? That made no sense—it was creating hardship for no reason.
"Roaar~" Charizard growled again.
"What?! You said the voice sounded like mine?!" Gengar exclaimed in shock.
The voice sounded like Gengar’s? That means the one who saved me was another Gengar? Rio’s brow relaxed significantly.
If it was a Gengar, that would also explain why he’d glimpsed a dark shape sinking into the ground in his dazed moment—and why he’d felt that cold, dark presence. If that line of reasoning held, then there was a Gengar on this island powerful enough to rival a legendary Pokémon.
Rio’s eyes sharpened as he scanned the island below. But then another question arose: why would that Gengar save him, instead of helping the besieged Mewtwo? Because he was handsome? Or because he already had a Gengar? And if it was going to help, why not reveal itself? Was it afraid that once he caught Mewtwo, he’d try to catch it too? If that were the case, it shouldn’t have saved him at all.
Rio’s thoughts were in a tangle. He couldn’t make sense of what had just happened. Finally, he shook his head and set the question aside for now. The top priority was still capturing Mewtwo. Once that was done, he could ask Mewtwo what it had seen.
"Charizard—join the battle! We’re taking Mewtwo today!"
"Roaar~"
Charizard roared and rejoined the fight. While it had been catching Rio, the Red Gyarados had taken its place in the encirclement.
"Oh, and Gengar—use Mean Look," Rio added. He didn’t want Mewtwo to escape if it realized it couldn’t win. Those chase scenes were the worst.
"Gengar~" Gengar’s cold gaze locked onto Mewtwo, who was using Aura Sphere to hold off Regice and Raikou. Mewtwo felt a chill run down its spine and traced it back to Gengar. The moment their eyes met, Gengar quickly called out to Rio: "Kid—you’ve got my back, right? I can’t take a hit from that thing!"
"I know—just stay in my shadow and keep Regirock and Regice airborne with Psychic. You don’t need to fight," Rio said.
Gengar’s friendship had already risen enough—just switching it to a new Poké Ball would unlock its first-tier reward, maybe even the second. But the stubborn old ghost refused, still clinging to its trainer from a hundred years ago. Rio had no choice but to manage with what he had.
Mewtwo continued to be overwhelmed. After nearly half an hour of being ganged up on, having used Recover five or six times, and with Regirock and Articuno knocked out, it finally began to show signs of exhaustion. Seizing the moment, Rio threw the Master Ball.
With a flash of light, Mewtwo was drawn inside.
The Master Ball should be reliable, right? Rio stared at the wobbling ball in his hand, a twinge of doubt creeping in. It was odd how one could be so confident before throwing the ball, only to second-guess themselves afterward. After all, Mewtwo was only exhausted—it was far from fully incapacitated.
Thankfully, the Pokémon world’s technology held up. After three shakes, the Master Ball clicked shut. Rio’s hands trembled slightly, and an uncontrollable grin spread across his face.
It worked. It actually worked. He’d caught Mewtwo.
Rio was thrilled. Even if Mewtwo probably wouldn’t listen to him now—and would likely act like a rebellious child, greeting him with an Aura Sphere or Psystrike—he had taken the first, most important step. He had caught it.
Whether it would eventually obey him depended on his "talk-no-jutsu"—no, not talk-no-jutsu, psychological therapy. He needed to unravel the knot in Mewtwo’s heart.
But not now. There were other things to attend to.
Rio tucked the Master Ball away and turned his attention to the unconscious Rocket members below—and the island itself. He remembered his earlier speculation: there might be a Gengar here powerful enough to rival a legendary Pokémon. If his current Gengar was destined to follow its century-dead trainer, this new Gengar could take its place.
"I know you’re hiding here. Let’s meet face to face—I promise I won’t try to catch you. I just want to thank you in person for saving me," Rio called out across the island.