He really suspects that Rayquaza might flip over and swallow him again.
Because this time, Rayquaza seems to have a bit of a reason.
It was only when Rayquaza flew towards the rift that Natsuhiko let out a long breath.
Without hesitation, he flipped onto Latios' back.
This should be the only way to leave for now.
Ono also leaped up, tightly hugging Latios' neck.
Earlier, Natsuhiko thought it was Ono's "Dragon Power" that made Latios not resist carrying Ono; now it seems....
"Let's go!"
"Oss!"
Latios folded its wings and followed Darkrai, flying towards the rift in the starry sky.
...
...
Above the waters outside the Hoenn Region.
Standing on the back of Salamence, Genji looked at the distant, ever-surging sea surface with a serious face, as it rolled up waves upon waves.
And on the other side of his vision, hot magma surged out from the seawater. Instead of being doused by the cold seawater, it grew even more extensive, in a trend of turning the seawater into land.
The sky.
Was even more bizarre.
As if there was a bright dividing line, splitting the entire sky in two.
On the side where the seawater surged, a drizzling rain began to fall, and the scale of the rainfall gradually increased, getting more and more intense.
On the side where the magma churned, the dark clouds gradually dispersed, and gentle sunlight shone onto the sea surface.
But as the light continued, the temperature rose higher and higher, and the seawater's temperature increased, evaporating and vaporizing.
Such commotion undoubtedly drew the attention of the entire Pokémon Alliance, even the entire world.
Numerous helicopters hovered over the surrounding sea area, with "dedicated" reporters attaching some descriptive words to the phenomena they witnessed, making listeners feel as if they were personally experiencing it.
Genji had warned these helicopters and reporters before, but since they wouldn't budge, he couldn't be bothered anymore.
"Still not back?" Genji slowly put down his phone, silently sighing.
Natsuhiko still hadn't come back, yet those two guys were already losing their patience, which made Genji's already heavy heart sink a bit more.
"Elite Trainer Genji!"
From afar.
A gigantic pyramid was actually flying in mid-air, unaffected by the weather, arriving in front of Genji.
And at the entrance of the pyramid stood a stern-faced middle-aged man, dressed in a green military uniform.
Beside him stood a woman with long, wavy blonde hair, wearing a lady's gown.
And a twenty-something-year-old man dressed fashionably, with his hands in his pockets, a hunched posture, and a somewhat hip-hop style; the tuft of red hair on his bald head was particularly striking.
"Shinda, Bonnie, Hua Yue."
Genji signaled Salamence to approach and come to the three, calling out their names.
They were Shinda, the head of the Battle Pyramid in the Battlefront Territory, and the other two Elite Four from the Hoenn Region, the Ice-type Elite Bonnie and the Dark-type Elite Hua Yue.
Seeing their arrival, Genji slightly relaxed.
At least.
This kind of strength gave him a bit of confidence to face the two Pokémon about to awaken.
Hiss!!
With a sharp bird cry.
A Braviary was rapidly approaching, and on Braviary's back was an unremarkable-looking man.
"Elite Trainer Genji, Elite Trainer Bonnie, Elite Trainer Hua Yue, and Mr. Shinda, sorry, there was a family issue that delayed me."
Seeing the newcomer, Genji and the others couldn't help but reveal smiles.
"Senri, you've had a hard time coming all this way." Genji said.
Senri, the Gym Leader of Chenghua City in the Hoenn Region, known as a devoted family man.
People who don't know think Senri is just a Dojo Trainer, but Genji and the others know that with Senri's strength, he could be an Elite Four if he wanted to.
He had turned down the Hoenn Alliance's invitation more than once.
He simply didn't want to be away from his family too much. Becoming an Elite Four would put shackles on him.
At that time, he would have to choose between family and duty, so he just abandoned becoming an Elite Four, opting to remain a Gym Leader honestly.
Although he didn't want to be an Elite Four for his family, if the Alliance needed him, Senri wouldn't refuse.
Actually, Senri's family was originally from the Johto Region, but earlier on, because the Hoenn Alliance approved his application for a dojo, they moved the whole family here.
Now with Senri's strength, the officials in the Johto Region would probably cry themselves to sleep in the bathrooms.
Mainly because, although the Johto Region had already split from the Kanto Region into two regions, the management structure was still the same as that of Kanto. Separating it completely anytime soon would probably be cumbersome.
"Elite Trainer Genji, look what you're saying." Senri scratched his head a little awkwardly, chuckling dryly twice.
In the eyes of those who knew him, Senri also had another identity, henpecked...
Ahem.
"Is it just a few of us?" Shinda, who always had the sternest expression, spoke up.
Genji also retracted his smile.
"Elite Four Ryo and the others went to quell the chaos caused by the Magma Team and Ocean Team."
"I have long said that those two organizations should be handled sooner. Flarepine and Archie are no pushovers. This incident of Groudon and Kyogre's awakening is their doing." Bonnie said angrily.