The current flowed sluggishly.

Exerting the suit's power to right himself, George spotted a floundering form below in the water. It was spewing bubbles while thrashing in evident distress. Instinctively, he reached out his hand to take hold and kick towards the shallows.

Peripherally, a beige blur darted past him. George scooped up the obliviously bobbing Kuwabara and surfaced alongside Roserade at the same spot.

Drawing a deep breath, George shot Roserade a scornful look as she coughed and spluttered.

"You can't even swim?"

No retort, only thorny vines lashing out from her crimson bouquet.

"Oi!"

George rolled aside, recognizing the toxin-laced tendrils. Even if the suit could nullify them, that wasn't guaranteed.

A sudden scorching migraine hit him, but the sight of Roserade’s insolently protruding tongue smothered any impulse towards seriousness.

"Ungrateful little weed..."

Next to him, Kuwabara feigned breathless exhaustion, demanding mouth-to-mouth from Milotic. George tried to recall if that human euphemism even applied to Milotic’s unique physiology.

George’s faculties remained addled, struggling to parse this surreal turn of events.

"Oi, hey..."  Kuwabara sat up, having confirmed his cigarettes' complete loss. "So what now?"

"What else - we fight," said George.

"But Nobu, he's dead..."

"He got careless."

"No, I mean - was that really the level we faced!?"

Truthfully, George felt no sorrow. His own survival took precedence. That uncanny, tengu-like monstrosity was unmistakably S-Class - he'd encountered one before. Two-thirds of that squad had perished, George himself did not emerged unscathed until Oka settled matters preemptively before it was too late.

"Just leave it to Oka again. He'll pull through somehow."

Rather than respond, George stood and roughly clapped Kuwabara's shoulder.

"What?"

Meeting his bleary gaze evoked a similarly grim expression.

Evidently, they'd ended up near the dockside wharf, a veritable horde converging up the embankment stairs from the shoreline. Chimeric monstrosities in droves.

Likewise, piscine abominations continuously emerged, swimming upstream. All undoubtedly alien entities homing in on their location.

Kuwabara exhaled heavily. "Don't tell me - is this the final showdown? The last mission?"

"Could be."

"So that's the final boss back there?"

Following his line of sight revealed a vastly larger silhouette trailing the lesser throng. A fair descriptor might be 'upright jackal' - reminiscent of one of Shirona's lupine companions yet elongated and cream-furred, sporting archaic ecclesiastical vestments that rendered it vaguely unsettling. Most disconcerting was its immense size - likely triple Lucario's stature. Perched upon its shoulders rode a diminutive figure.

George too sighed wistfully, he had an absent urge for a cigarette unfulfilled amidst the depleted stashes.

Matching Gantz's display, an elderly geezer scrutinized them through wispy white whiskers, stroking his beard contemplatively.

"Do we retreat?"

"No."

George’s Z-Gun had been abandoned on that distant bridge during the previous clash. Only their X-Guns and Gantz swords remained as they unsheathed the suits' armaments into ready stances.

"We fight. Might be our best chance if it's anything besides that tengu."

"No fleeing left, I suppose..." Kuwabara sighed.

"We hit it together - just the two of us..."

Milotic stepped forth before Kuwabara and Roserade mounted George's shoulder.

Well, beggars couldn't be choosers in such straits. Welcoming some auxiliary firepower to cull the lesser rabble, as long as they didn't impede. George snorted derisively at the prospect of Pokémon "comrades." He hoped they would at most serve as tools.

"And our partners, that is." Kuwabara glanced at the Pokémon.

Milotic and Roserade simultaneously unleashed techniques in unison. That was the signal for the start of a war.

***

Lucario tore off the man's shirt with deft psychokinetic control, deftly wrapping it around his eye as a makeshift bandage.

"That shirt cost me eight thousand yen. You're paying for it."

"Wow."

"Hey, use that to stop the bleeding on me too."

It was fortunate the enemy wasn't attacking right now. Both Lucario and the man named Hikawa were injured, having lost a fair amount of blood. It was questionable whether they could move at full capacity.

Lucario tore off more strips of cloth to bind Hikawa's hand. Proper treatment was needed, but he stood up before Lucario could finish.

Surprisingly, Lucario seemed quite calm. HIkawa couldn't say the same for himself. That fox woman didn't seem intent on killing them from the start. She had declared them "passed" before vanishing elsewhere. Their wounds weren't shallow enough to give chase.

Lucario felt outmatched. At least as they were now, they couldn't put up a real fight. Cooperation with other Pokémon like Mikaruge would be necessary, otherwise total defeat was possible if they didn't regroup soon.

Lucario started walking, then stopped abruptly. He turned back towards the still Hikawa.

He was gripping the black sword, his original weapon having been destroyed by the fox woman. So he had picked up the sword previously wielded by Kimura.

"You can extend this, right? What do I do?"

Recalling the times he had seen Shirona practicing with that sword, Lucario motioned towards the white button on the hilt.

Hikawa seemed to understand from just that gesture. He was getting better at interpreting Lucario's gestures and body language.

Lucario extended an arm, motioning for them to hurry. But Hikawa remained unmoving.

"Huh?"

"What? You got the wrong idea. Why should I help clean up those cockroach aliens? Handle it yourself. I'm out."

He could have taunted him for being scared, but Lucario just watched his retreating back in silence. The coming battle would likely be extraordinarily difficult. Having an unwilling ally could prove more hindrance than help.

Confirming he had turned the corner, Lucario turned to leave. For now, regrouping with Shirona was the top priority. Reaching her would allow checking on Anzu's safety as well, knowing she was likely by Shirona's side.

Picturing their faces filled him with renewed determination as he hurried through the eerily silent streets.

***

Part of the river was freezing over.

A transparent ice wall had suddenly formed underwater, many creatures smashing straight into it when unable to stop. Milotic exhaled more freezing vapors through the opening gaps, extending the icy barrier.

Nothing could capture her in the water. Even on land, she could evade any Z-Gun shots by slipping out of their targeting range at the last moment. In her element, her speed was astonishing. She had neutralized most of the river-borne monstrosities. That front seemed secure.

While checking the area, George punched away a gremlin-like creature clinging to him.

"Just grunts, these things."

Despite being surrounded, he spoke casually. Most enemies couldn't even approach before being cut down by him and Kuwabara. He fired his X-Gun at one dodging Kuwabara's slash without even confirming the hit, instead cleaving another trying to flank him.

A pained groan came from behind. One leaping for George had been shot down by Roserade. Not even sparing it a glance - it would be making some pathetic expression regardless.

"Extend. Take cover."

Pressing the button on his sword's hilt, George swung it horizontally with full force. The impacts reverberated continuously as the surrounding monster bodies were bisected in an instant.

After Kuwabara impaled a pair of gremlins together, he exhaled heavily. "Shit, I'm beat."

"That's just the warmup if you're already gassed."

"Shut it."

A lone figure landed before them.

George snorted derisively. "Just you? You're underestimating us."

The dog-like creature in white robes stared down silently, its countenance distinctly separate from the other aliens. Despite their considerably culled numbers, it showed no agitation whatsoever.

Further behind, an elderly man idly swung his legs while observing languidly, no intention to join the fray.

As George tensed up to make his opening move, flashes of the previous tragedy flickered through his mind - Muroya declaring the same intent before being slain in an instant. Unlike him, George could still think clearly.

"Let's just finish this."

Smirking at his comrades, his arms were already in motion. His sword arced vertically as the canine shifted its legs to evade. Remarkably agile.

It leapt over Kuwabara's horizontal sweep. In perfect sync, George thrust inwards as Roserade unleashed an energy barrage.

Every attack was deflected, never even reaching the dog's body - ricocheting off some invisible barrier.

The beast pounced forwards as Milotic's ice beam streaked forth, only to be repelled short of its trajectory. Her aim had been true until something knocked it awry at the last moment.

The dog's right arm twitched. Anticipating it, George reflexively withdrew. His cheek split open.

The Gantz suit offered impact protection, but lacked defenses against cutting damage. From within those billowing robes, a blade had lanced out - the dog's arm replaced by an elongated sword-like protrusion.

"Keep your guard up! We're being played with!"

Through combined efforts with Kuwabara, they gradually forced the beast back - dodging the extended blade while trying to sever that protruding arm. But its narrowed gaze always deftly deflected George's Gantz sword.

Twisting around, Kuwabara shot him a dire look. They were just exhausting themselves making no headway, unable to land any decisive blows.

This time truly felt different from previous battles. The sense of this opponent potentially being another "100-pointer" like that tengu grew stronger by the second - multiple S-Class aliens gathered here.

It didn't matter, George grit his teeth. 100-pointer or 200, he convinced himself he could win against anything.

Roserade, who was deflected by what appeared to be an energy ball, swung a poisonous whip directly at the opponent. However, the tip was cut off.

"Dammit!"

George unleashed X-Gun bursts relentlessly. The agile beast sometimes stoically took shots head-on, unfazed. But his barrage couldn't breach its defenses either.

Then he noticed something odd. If it could negate any attack, why bother dodging at all? Yet it kept alternating those evasive movements.

Which meant there were limits to its protection. Not infinite defenses. If they could connect one blow exceeding that threshold, fracturing those barriers, an opening could emerge.

While Kuwabara and Milotic distracted it, George swiftly leaned towards Roserade. "That big beam attack, like the one you used against the giant Buddha. Do it."

Roserade stared skyward with a perplexed expression until George realized she was indicating the faint sunlight peeking through. Apparently drawing power from the sun's rays? Recalling that earlier Buddha statue incident when she had delayed unleashing some technique...

"We'll buy you time. Just do it." Not waiting for confirmation, George charged forth.

Extending his sword proved futile - its reach would be halted before ever connecting. Amplifying that force only achieved repulsion before closing within striking range, leaving a scorching pain across his midriff as the suit's abdominal section tore open. Shallow thankfully, but still.

"Look out!!" Kuwabara's shout snapped George's focus back as a gaping maw loomed overhead.

"Shit!" His sidestep came too late as distracted jaws clamped down, swallowing him whole. So this was how it ended?

That fleeting thought left him instinctively grasping the reversed sword hilt, swinging viciously to sever the throat - only to be deflected yet again. For now, the suit protected him from being chewed apart, but that compression grew increasingly stifling. Drool seeped from the edge of that cavernous mouth as his strength waned.

That suffocating pressure abruptly dissipated as he hit the ground, gasping for air. The dog had spat him out while leaping upwards.

He reflexively clicked his tongue upon realizing it had perceived Roserade's stance, anticipating her ultimate technique.

Her concentrated solar beam streaked beneath as the enemy actually grinned mockingly at them missing its vitals.

Then a cavernous hole exploded through its abdomen. The penetrating beam careened past to sear through a distant bridge before dissipating.

"Mirror Coat. Did you do it?" Kuwabara replaced his cigarette with a fresh one.

In front of him, Milotic had layered a shimmering barrier now heavily cracked - previously deflecting his Z-Gun shots. She must have intentionally caught and redirected that initial missed beam right back at their foe. Even George had to admire her technique, ignoring Kuwabara's self-satisfied smirking like it was his ploy.

Any sense of accomplishment faded as a beam lanced out to obliterate Kuwabara's shoulder completely alongside that cocky smile.

“Grrrrr!”

The dog removed its eye bandage, that exposed pupil now faintly glowing as the beam gushed forth to inflict that mortal wound.

"Just another damn beam..."

Milotic hastily caught Kuwabara's collapsing body, expelling rejuvenating aqua ring vapors. But it only staunched the bleeding momentarily, not enough to prevent him from bleeding out soon.

There was no more leeway to focus that way now.

"Dammit!"

They had to keep moving as the dog relentlessly poured forth more beams. Bluntly put, this was just cheating. One look told him those beams could pierce their suits with ease. Being bombarded so incessantly left no openings to counterattack.

Yet their landed blow had clearly taken its toll, creating considerable openings as the dog faltered, dropping to one knee while vomiting blood.

George didn't let that chance go to waste. Kicking off the ground, he closed the distance in an instant.

Reacting at the last moment, the enemy recovered faster than expected...turning its glowing gaze towards Roserade just as she aligned.

The it emitted beam clipped the creature's unprotected right flower bud, eliciting a piteous cry as it was shorn away, viscous fluids spilling from its mutilated arm stump.

"Die, you bastard!"

He hadn't expected that feint to bypass its defenses, but the dog seemed too drained to maintain full protection as George's Gantz sword found its throat, sinking through in a gory spray as he exerted the suit's full augmented might to cleave deeper.

After severing the dog's head, George immediately ran towards Roserade's prone form. A copious red liquid was already pooling beneath her, though not blood as he understood it. Still, the volume worried him.

"Hey..." Crouching uncertainly, her remaining blue bud suddenly extended to brush against him, emanating a strange glow.

George felt his knees buckle as an enervating lassitude overwhelmed his body, all vigor draining away.

That gentle radiance restored Roserade's missing flower as her hemorrhaging ceased, the ruptured stumps seamlessly regenerating in moments.

As she stood, the now-drained George managed a halfhearted glare. "You...absorbed my life force?"

She defiantly averted her face with a disdainful "Humph!"

"Give it back, dammit! That's mine!"

Her gyrating blooms exuded intensifying sweet scents, forcing George's tenuous grip on composure through sheer willpower.

Motioning towards Milotic floating on the river with Kuwabara, the urgency was clear. Transporting the grievously wounded man to their remaining Pokémon might still save his life. Understanding this, Milotic swiftly departed in that direction.

 

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