"Testing, testing, 1, 2, 3. Can all of you hear me?"

"Yes, Tomoe. We can hear you loud and clear."

"Eupho-1! Do you remember that we're supposed to use our codenames when we're communicating over this channel? There's a chance HTT's bugged us, so we're going to be in big trouble if we say anything about ourselves!"

"Yeah, thanks for giving me that heads-up, Princess Trumpet-1. Of course I remember that. Just wanted to give Miss Manager-1 a quick shout-out before the raid starts for real. Must be lonely up there, having to handle everything by yourself. Hey, why don't we all go for a round of drinks after we're done here? Last to the meeting point picks up the tab!"

"Trumpet-1, Eupho-1. Seeing as you're having such a lively chat there, I'll assume you can hear me just fine from your current location. As for your offer, I'll consider it. How about everyone else?"

"Flute-1 here. Signal's crystal-clear on my end. I'm down for drinks as well."

"Oboe-1. All green. Will go wherever Flute-1 goes."

"Horn-1. Not even a speck of interference here. I'll drag myself along."

"Tuba-1. Everything's A-OK here. I'm free tonight, so I'll see you all there."

"Tuba-2. Nothing out of the ordinary. Will accompany Tuba-1."

"Percussion-1 checking in. The signal's perfectly fine. I'll go if my friends here also go."

"Percussion-2. I can hear you loud and clear. I'll join Percussion-1 tonight."

"...Percussion-3. No problem on my end. Seeing as my friends are going, I'll be there with them."

"Advisor-1, checking in. Everything's working as expected. I'll leave you all to your own devices tonight, so count me out."

"Advisor-2, reporting in! It's right as rain over here. Same as Advisor-1, I'll let you kids go wild once you're done. You deserve it."

"Alright, now that everyone's confirmed they can hear me, I'll begin counting down from my end. T-minus 63… 62… 61… 60..."

As Natsuki heard Tomoe Kabe count down the seconds before the raid on HTT began, she recalled the events which led to this bizarre confrontation with one of her favourite rock bands.

Shortly after seeing how HTT opened Ultra Wormholes across the region and unleashing countless Ultra Beasts, Natsuki and Yuuko quickly headed for the meeting room where the raid had been discussed. Summoned by an emergency notification on their phones, the pair soon found themselves dodging attacks from various Ultra Beasts as they made their way there.

Once they arrived at the underground facility, Natsuki and Yuuko saw that it had been transformed into a whirlwind of action, people scrambling everywhere as they dealt with the sudden appearance of so many disasters at once. Finally reaching the meeting room, they were greeted by the sight of Asuka jabbing her finger at the map non-stop.

"Change of plans: the Gym Leaders will defend their respective cities, while Aoi-chan and I will handle the Ultra Beasts around here." Asuka told everyone involved with the raid as they piled into the room. "Whoever doesn't belong into those two categories will go ahead with the raid as planned. Since HTT's clearly behind all this Ultra Beast havoc, this must mean they're really desperate to divert our attention away from them. If we want to catch them in the act once and for all, it's now or never."

With the raid team's numbers reduced down to thirteen people, there was now a significantly higher chance of things going horribly wrong, especially without any Gym Leaders or Elite Four members present. Despite the heightened risks she and everyone else were facing, Natsuki was still determined to see this mission through. HTT was now threatening the lives of innocent people, some of which she definitely knew.

"10… 9… 8…" Running through the raid's opening stages one final time, Natsuki took several deep breaths to calm herself before the upcoming storm. Despite how much everyone's roles had been adjusted to account for the smaller raid team, Natsuki's main objectives hadn't changed much: smash through the main gates and subdue as many members of HTT as possible.

"7… 6… 5…" Two weeks ago, if someone told Natsuki she would be fighting against a rock band for the fate of the region, she would have simply laughed them off. But now that she learned the true extent of how deep HTT's machinations were, Natsuki realized this wasn't something she could joke about. If they were left unchecked, then all hell would break loose.

"4… 3… 2… 1..." As the countdown reached its zenith, Natsuki felt her head getting lighter and her eyelids drooping down in exhaustion. With the combination of being rudely awoken last night and her pre-existing sleeping problems, Natsuki felt her narcolepsy take ahold of her. Even at this critical juncture, she couldn't overcome her physical limitations in time to take action.

"GO!"

However, right when Tomoe uttered the command to begin, Natsuki was saved by her Musharna Zenzense eating away at her drowsy thoughts. Her eyes snapping open with her fatigue disappearing, the first thing Natsuki saw were the lights of Houkago Records' headquarters going completely dark.

Smiling to herself, Natsuki knew that meant the underground team had done their job. After getting permission from the relevant authorities, the first stage of the League's plan was to cut off HTT's power supply. Though everyone was already aware that Houkago Records' headquarters contained numerous backup generators, this maneuver would surely disorient everyone inside, leaving them unprepared for the raid.

Taking this as her cue to begin, Natsuki sprang into action. Hastily discarding the cap and jacket she wore to conceal her identity, Natsuki made a mad dash towards the gates of Houkago Records' headquarters from a nearby alleyway she hid in. Sending out the rest of her Pokémon on the way, Natsuki reached the iron bars which separated her from her goal when she was stopped by something unexpected.

Blocking the only entrance from Natsuki's side was a metallic mannequin, wearing a rose-colored wig styled in a pixie cut and wielding an axe with both its hands. Confused as to whether or not this was some kind of prank, Natsuki was soon presented with the truth when a decidedly un-robotic voice boomed from the speakers dotted all across the gates.

"Greetings, young intruders!" the energetic voice of a woman began taunting. Freezing in her tracks, Natsuki then realized two things. HTT expected them to come, and they weren't going down without a fight. "On behalf of my friends and colleagues at Houkago Records, I, Jun Suzuki, would like to give you all a very warm welcome! Now get lost!"

With that rude welcome, the metallic mannequin in front of Natsuki began swinging its axe at her as she frantically tried to dodge. Gnashing her teeth, Natsuki knew she couldn't beat it if she tried to fight it unarmed. Thankfully, this unforeseen circumstance also provided Natsuki with an opportunity to try out something new. "Samson, Mega Evolve!"

Tapping the Key Stone on her newly-obtained Mega Bracelet, Natsuki watched in awe as the Sablenite on her Sableye's choker began glowing in tandem as well. Once the light faded, Samson's eyes had turned red, the spikes on his head had grown longer, and he was now carrying a gigantic red gem as a shield. Lifting it up, Samson used the crimson crystal to parry the next attack coming Natsuki's way, giving him the opportunity to attack.

"Knock Off!" Natsuki ordered. Swinging his shield around with both his hands, Samson used its weight to disarm the metallic mannequin, knocking the axe out of its hands. As it scrambled to retrieve its weapon, Natsuki knew this could well be her only chance to take the 'doll' out of the fight. If she let it be, then there was no telling how long she would be held up here.

"Mega Punch!" she called out. Lumbering forward, Natsuki's Slaking Largo rammed his fist straight through the metallic mannequin's chest, causing it to sputter for a few moments before completely shutting down. Breathing a sigh of relief, Natsuki watched as Largo loafed around on the pavement, exhausted after that single attack. Despite her Pokémon's needs, Natsuki couldn't afford to rest now.

"Eupho-1 reporting in. Destroyed an axe-swinging Terminator over at my gate. How's everyone holding up?"

"Copy that, Eupho-1. Oboe-1's also defeated one of those robots at her gate. As for Trumpet-1 and Flute-1, they're currently tied up at the main entrance with seven more of those robots. Oboe-1's going over there to help them, so would you mind giving them a hand too?"

"On my way." Ending her call with Tomoe, Natsuki recalled her Pokémon as she sprinted over to the main entrance. While she had defeated a single metallic mannequin rather easily, Natsuki knew that was only because she had the right Pokémon for the job. If it wasn't for Samson disarming it and Largo being strong enough to punch a hole through metal, Natsuki was sure the situation would soon become a battle of attrition.

Reaching the main entrance, Natsuki saw that the surrounding area had become a complete warzone. The metal gates and fencing had already been smashed apart by various attacks, but nobody was able to get in due to the airtight defenses of the seven mannequins there. Despite their vastly different weapons, the mannequins' strange ability to flawlessly coordinate themselves made them stronger as a whole.

"Hey, Natsuki! I'm in a bit of a pickle here!" Nozomi waved at her from a distance, before returning to fight another mannequin armed with twin katanas. With a cursory glance across the battlefield, Natsuki estimated that about two of either Nozomi or Yuuko's Pokémon were fighting against a single mannequin. "Can you send some of your Pokémon my way?"

"Sure, give me a moment!" Dodging a Flamethrower aimed from who-knows-where, Natsuki readied Samson and Largo's Pokéballs when she saw a familiar sight. A short distance away, Yuuko was struggling to deal with a naginata-wielding mannequin, which her Furfrou Colouratura and her Chatot Klezmer were unable to effectively attack. Sighing, Natsuki turned towards where Nozomi was.

"Sorry, Nozomi. I've got a princess to bail out here. Be back in a sec!" Shouting across the battlefield, Natsuki caught a quick nod from Nozomi before she headed over to help Yuuko. Finally sending out Samson and Largo once she got close, Natsuki then told them to repeat what they previously did, their teamwork smoothly disarming and destroying the menace plaguing Yuuko.

"Hey there, princess. Did you miss me?" Natsuki casually waved at Yuuko as she tried to kick the metallic mannequin aside, only to stub her foot due to its weight. Yuuko was about to throw a snarky reply back at Natsuki, but seeing her comically hop around in pain immediately caused a severe mood whiplash. "OW OW OW OW OW! Dammit!"

"Oh my! It seems that a dashing prince has come to my rescue, but she can't even act cool in front of me?" Yuuko mocked Natsuki's plight as she continued to hobble on one leg while clutching her foot. Upon hearing Yuuko laughing at her, Natsuki quickly sent a death glare her way before rapidly hopping in her direction. In one swift stroke, Natsuki brought her injured foot down on Yuuko's own, thereby sharing the pain.

"You little- What was that for?" Yuuko shouted at Natsuki, whose pain had subsided enough to twist her mouth into a crooked grin. As she looked on at Yuuko's fuming face with glee, Natsuki was unwilling to directly provide an answer. Having no other choice now, Yuuko could only pry her own foot out of the death trap that was Natsuki's sneaker. All the while, Jun's omnipresent voice laughed at them.

"I, I can't even...! So this is who the League sends when they need to put down some trouble? Man, what a buncha jokers!" Whatever speakers that hadn't been destroyed already broadcasted Jun's voice for everyone to hear, causing Natsuki and Yuuko's faces to turn bright red. "Alright, let's see what your names are here… Natsuki and Yuuko sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G. First comes love, then comes marriage-"

"WILL YOU PLEASE SHUT THE HELL UP?!" Angry at how their unseen opponent was teasing them to no end, that was the last straw for Natsuki and Yuuko. Their combined annoyances now diverted from each other towards Jun, the pair gave each other a nod before Yuuko gave her order. "Klezmer, use Boomburst on those speakers!"

"Haha, K-I-S-S-I-N-G. K-I-S-S-I-N-G." Klezmer cawed as his voice was amplified to a deafening volume, blasting out across the battlefield. The destructive sound quickly drowned out Jun's voice before shattering the speakers it came out of, preventing her psychological warfare from working again. Meanwhile, Natsuki had rejoined Nozomi, making good on her prior promise.

"What was that all about?" Nozomi asked, to which Natsuki's face turned red again. Silently ignoring Nozomi's question, Natsuki chose to focus on the battle at hand, even when her Pokémon were already having the advantage as they reinforced Nozomi's. Wanting to forget what had happened in the past few moments, Natsuki found that not even the flames of battle could fight against something much hotter.

"...Nothing. That was just HTT trying to get on our nerves back there." Even while she blatantly lied, Natsuki couldn't help but notice that Jun somehow knew both her and Yuuko's names. Since Haruka had been captured, Natsuki guessed HTT got that information from her one way or another. If that wasn't the case, then Natsuki could only shudder at the implications. "Anyways, where's Mizore? I thought she's with you."

"Oh, Mizore? Haven't seen her for quite a while. Wonder where she is-" Just as Nozomi was about to finish her sentence, the mannequin with twin katanas made a dramatic return, twirling in the air as it prepared to slash her. Right when the swords were about to cut through Nozomi, another blade blocked them in midair before knocking the mannequin back. Upon closer inspection, that 'blade' was revealed to be Mizore's Absol Solenne, Mega Evolved in time to help.

"I'm glad you're alright, Nozomi." Mizore breathed a sigh of relief as she got closer. If she even hesitated for one more second, there would be no Nozomi to talk to anymore. Thankfully, Mizore was certain that would never happen on her watch. "As for that robot you were fighting, my Pokémon are currently dealing with it and the rest of its brethren."

Looking over to where the mannequin with two swords was launched, Natsuki saw that the remaining seven robots were now encircled on all sides by Mizore's Pokémon. Despite each of her team members having to fight against slightly more than one mannequin, Mizore's Pokémon had the upper hand because of their advantageous position and overwhelming strength. Little by little, all the mannequins were disabled.

With an Air Slash from Mizore's Togekiss Volante, the last mannequin standing had its left arm separated from its body, losing its bow in the process. As it began to charge up an arrow using its right hand in desperation, the robot soon found that wasn't possible anymore, courtesy of Mizore's Mimikyu Ostinato phasing his shadowy hand through its power source and destroying it.

"Oboe-1 to Manager-1. All nine robots spotted have been eliminated. Proceeding to enter the main building."

"Copy that, Oboe-1. Do keep in mind the building's backup generators have kicked in, so expect a more coordinated resistance than planned. Are Flute-1, Trumpet-1, and Eupho-1 with you? If so, then proceed together. There's strength in numbers. Once you're in, I'll tell the underground team to advance."

"Yes, all of them are with me. Will begin heading there now." Ending her conversation with Tomoe, Mizore turned to the others, who nodded at her. As they walked past the gates, Mizore couldn't help but wonder about both the mannequins and their mysterious commander, who had only revealed her voice so far.

While the mannequins didn't pose a challenge to her either individually or as a team, Mizore knew they were certainly tough to defeat for regular trainers even on their own. From seeing Nozomi and Yuuko struggling to fight against seven of them, Mizore doubted they would have won had it not been for her and Natsuki's intervention. Even she was second-guessing her own chances if she was fighting all nine at once.

However, what bothered Mizore the most was this entire set-up. Absolutely no reinforcements had been sent by HTT to assist the mannequins, not even when they were all decimated just shortly before. Even the strategy of having only a single robot guard the side gates made completely no sense. It was as if HTT deliberately left them exposed to allow someone to break in there… or wanted everyone gathered at the front entrance to fight the main group of mannequins there.

If the latter possibility was the correct one, Mizore dreaded what they would face once they finally entered the building.


"Sawako-sensei, all nine of the Stage Dolls have been destroyed! And quicker than we expected!"

"What?! At least tell me you managed to funnel the attackers into one place! If even all the Stage Dolls combined are no match for them, then I don't know how long we've got before we're toast! Get everyone who's available to the main entrance ASAP! We'll set up our last line of defense there! We can't fail now!"

"Uh, Sawako-sensei… that's another thing I've been meaning to tell you. After that blackout, I sent everyone who was available down to the control rooms to check why the power went out. None of them came back and the cameras down there have short circuited, so I'm afraid they've run into some trouble there. Wait, one camera's come back online… everyone's been defeated?! And there's a tunnel right over there!"

"Are you kidding me?! Right when we were poised to take the stage! Alright, Jun. Here's what I want you to do. Tell everyone to Teleport out of here if possible and meet back at our building near Usagiyama, and try to help those who can't. Once that's done, I want you to go back and collect the remains of all the Stage Dolls, then get yourself back to Usagiyama as well. Is that clear?"

"Yes, sensei. But what about you and the main crew? You're going to be left completely vulnerable on the rooftop! Do you need me to send some people up there to protect you?"

"Uh-uh. There's no need for that, Jun-chan. I reckon we're still going to have some juice left in us even after this fight, so we can handle ourselves. If we're truly and utterly cornered, I'll ask Ui to send our trump card up there to help us out. No matter how many people the League's got on their side, they're bound to have some trouble dealing with that."

"Yup, definitely. After all, we've loaded everything we got there. And given who's behind it all, the League's going to get a nasty surprise! Right then, I'll get going now! Good luck with your fight! Meet you back at our other base and peace out!"


As she walked into the building, Natsuki was completely unprepared for how it looked on the inside.

Rather than the sleek and modern lobby which it was supposed to be designed as, the ground floor of Houkago Records' headquarters looked more like a warzone. With shards of glass strewn all over the floor, smashed-up tiling, and even an entire chair implanted into the wall, Natsuki wondered just what had happened here. As no one on the raid team had made it here yet, this was clearly caused by something else.

The other three also noted the lobby's unorthodox remodeling, but it was Yuuko who spotted something hiding in plain sight which caught her attention. Running over to what seemed like a reception desk, Yuuko's suspicions were confirmed when she saw the body of an unconscious woman sprawled over it, with a fainted Meowth on top of her.

Noticing small pools of blood around the woman's body, Yuuko quickly used her foot to sweep away the glass shards on one area of the floor, before laying down a plastic tarp there she had been carrying with her. Moving the woman's body down onto the tarp, Yuuko took out a first-aid kit from her bag before deftly dressing the most obvious wounds. As she ran her hands over the woman's limbs, Yuuko realized some of her bones were broken, so she proceeded to splint them as well.

"Excuse me… but who are you?" the woman asked, regaining consciousness as she felt her bones being set by Yuuko. "Are you the first-aid team Sawako-sensei sent? Or did someone call the emergency services after what happened?"

"Uh…" Yuuko glanced over at the woman's lanyard as she thought about how to address her. "Miss Tachibana. We're actually from the League, and we're here to investigate this building for any signs of suspicious activity after a colleague of ours disappeared here three days ago. You suffered some serious injuries back there. Do you mind telling us what caused them?"

"It was…" Himeko's mind flashed back to her most recent memories prior to passing out. "There was a girl… she appeared out of nowhere earlier this morning before her Whimsicott and Deino quickly knocked me unconscious. I think she was going to search the entire building for something, but I'm not sure what it is she was looking for. Are you here to find her as well?"

"Um, no." Yuuko couldn't shake the feeling that there was a second layer to this confrontation with HTT she knew nothing about. Just who was the mystery girl who (supposedly) wrecked the entire lobby with her Pokémon? Whoever she was, Yuuko hoped she wouldn't mess up the entire operation. "Can you tell us more about the girl who knocked you out? I'll have my colleagues get you to a hospital shortly afterwards."

"...Sure, but everything happened so fast that I don't remember all the details." Himeko answered as she rubbed her head with her uninjured hand. "The girl seemed to be in her late teens, but I can't say for sure since her hoodie was so baggy. Her face was covered by the shadow of a baseball cap, so I could only see her soulless golden eyes and brown hair."

Upon hearing the physical description of the mysterious assailant, Yuuko immediately thought of Reina's girlfriend Kumiko, whose hair and eye color matched perfectly. However, Yuuko seriously doubted Kumiko was the one behind all this. Even disregarding her current location, Kumiko's personality was far too passive for her to go on a wild rampage like this. Besides, she was with Reina all the time. This lone girl couldn't be her.

"Thank you for the information, Ms. Tachibana. We'll look into it." Yuuko concluded, then proceeded to call Tomoe. "Trumpet-1 to Manager-1. We've got an injured civilian over here who's got multiple wounds and broken bones. Can you have someone send her over to a hospital?"

"Copy that. I'll have a couple of attendants Teleport to your current location and extract the civilian. Do keep in mind that due to the Ultra Beast crisis, every hospital in the region is completely overwhelmed with patients."

"Got it." After Yuuko finished speaking with Tomoe, two medical personnel Teleported in with a Xatu, lifted Himeko onto a stretcher they were carrying, and Teleported away in less than 20 seconds. Once that matter had been dealt with, the four girls then began their own search of the building, hoping to find where Haruka was and defeat HTT here once and for all.


"Ui, are you there?"

"Yes, Sawako-sensei. I'm currently with Nodoka-chan and the two support staff who rescued us. Sorry for letting our target escape quicker than you anticipated. I understand that caused a fair amount of trouble for everyone else."

"Don't worry about it that much. Everything's going according to plan right now, but that could change if we let certain people slip through the cracks. That's why I'm calling you. Since the League's searching for both their missing Elite Four member and us, we're going to be in big trouble if they find us before we're done here. Last I checked, they're halfway done with the building, so we've got a bit more time before they arrive on the roof."

"Does that mean you want me to unleash our trump card once they arrive?"

"Depends on how winded we are after our battle, but given how easily the League's Trainers wiped out our normal forces and the Stage Dolls, I'd say we're going to need reinforcements pretty quickly. For now, just head back to the preparation room, make any final adjustments, and wait until I give the signal. Seeing as we're losing against the League here, I'd advise you to Teleport out with Nodoka-chan once you're done. There's no point in staying here anymore."

"Got it, Sawako-sensei. Leave this to me."


As she stood on the rooftop of Houkago Records' headquarters, Sawako Yamanaka breathed a sigh of relief amidst all the huffing and puffing she and her students were doing.

They did it. They had finally done what they had initially set out to achieve. After planning and preparing for who knows how long, HTT now had the key to their glory in their hands at last. The battle they had just fought was the last step they needed to complete, and despite how much of a challenge it proved to be, HTT somehow managed to persevere and win.

Gazing over to what Yui was holding, Sawako couldn't help but smile at their success. Ever since she met those five girls while working as a high school teacher, Sawako knew they were destined for greatness, and now here they were. Against all odds, everything had gone off perfectly without a single hitch.

Now all that remained was the final phase of their plan.

"Everyone, I'm so proud of all the hard work you've put in to make sure this plan succeeded." Sawako began addressing her students. "I never thought I'd see the day where you five girls would take the next step to stardom, but look at you now! About to launch your careers into the stratosphere! Right then, let's go down and have some tea and cake to celebrate-"

Before Sawako could finish speaking, she was quickly knocked to the ground by an Air Slash from above, and the five girls of HTT were soon shot down as well. As she knew all of the League's raid teams were still in the building proper, Sawako wondered who ordered their Pokémon to fire such precise shots when she was greeted by two new faces.

"Looks like we got here just in time. Right, Satomi?" Tilting her head up, Sawako saw a man and woman slightly older than her casually talking with each other, as if quickly incapacitating them was a minor inconvenience. "And I thought we'd need to face off against all their Pokémon when we landed! Man, they sure wrapped up whatever they were doing up here quite fast, don't you think?"

"Yes, but we need to make sure they're all secured first." the woman replied as she walked closer. Once Sawako picked herself up, the woman stared her down with a gentle yet firm gaze. "Satomi Niiyama, and my friend over there's Masahiro Hashimoto. In the name of the League, we're here to take you in for questioning regarding your company's possession of dangerous goods and the kidnapping of our colleague."

"The League, hm? You'll never take us down, and that goes double for my students. Not when we're so close to achieving greatness." Despite having just fought one of the toughest battles of her career, Sawako remained adamant in her desire to protect the girls she had developed a maternal affection for. Grabbing all six of her Pokéballs, Sawako threw them all out at once.

"No matter who you are, if you lay a finger on my kids here, I'll make sure there's hell to pay. Mega Evolve!" As Sawako sent out all her Pokémon, Hashimoto and Niiyama saw the rest of HTT doing the same as well. Now staring down what amounted to a small army, the two former Elite Four members silently looked on before sending out their entire teams to fight their opponents, ready for a slightly challenging battle.

Despite the two of them being renowned Trainers in their own right, Hashimoto and Niiyama were both caught off-guard when Taki called them early this morning to help with the raid on Houkago Records. As the Ultra Beast attacks significantly limited the League's options for powerful Trainers they could call on, Taki had no choice but to rely on his closest friends to ensure this vital operation wouldn't fail.

However, both Hashimoto and Niiyama now lived far away from League headquarters, and any Teleporting Pokémon the League had were currently ferrying medical teams everywhere to rescue injured people. With very little options for them, Niiyama flew to Hashimoto's house on her Pidgeot to pick him up before flying together to Houkago Records' headquarters.

Being kept up-to-date on the raid by Tomoe as it proceeded, Hashimoto and Niiyama knew what they needed to do once they reached the airspace above the Houkago Records building. As everyone else was searching from the bottom up, Hashimoto and Niiyama were tasked with doing the same but in reverse, tracking HTT's whereabouts after they landed on the roof.

Fortuitously, they discovered that all five members of HTT and Sawako Yamanaka were on the roof for some reason, so their job immediately became much easier. Niiyama sent out her Swellow and told it to use a weakened Air Slash on Sawako and HTT before she and Hashimoto landed on the roof, successfully overwhelming HTT with just a few moves. If their Pokémon weren't still in fighting condition, HTT would have been done for just then.

Such was the power of the 'old guard'.


"Everyone, Advisor-1 and Advisor-2 have located and are fighting all five members of HTT and Sawako Yamanaka on the roof! Stop everything you're doing right now and head up to help them! We'll continue searching for Haruka after this!"

As she heard Tomoe's voice echo through her earpiece, Yuuko immediately did an about turn and went back to the stairwell she just came out of. Hearing the scuffles of a battle ring out from the building's penultimate floor, Yuuko had just reached that level when Tomoe had alerted her, preventing her from checking out what was going on there.

Climbing up the staircase once again, Yuuko was soon joined by Natsuki, Yuuko, and Mizore. The four girls had previously split up to search one quarter of the building's floors each, and Yuuko had volunteered to scope out the top quarter. Though she expected to see the underground team here as well, Yuuko assumed they weren't far behind, given their lower starting point.

Turning and ascending the last flight of stairs, Yuuko flung the door open to see Hashimoto and Niiyama currently engaged in an all-out brawl against the five girls of HTT and their advisor. Despite their lesser numbers, the two ex-Elite Four members had the upper hand here, easily defeating their opponents without any trouble. As she wasn't sure how she could help battle-wise, Yuuko decided to have her Pokémon block any exits she could see and patrol the surrounding area.

Without a single one of their Pokémon fainting, Hashimoto and Niiyama soon had HTT on the ropes, having whittled all thirty-four of their Pokémon down to just three remaining. Having nothing to do here anymore (if she even had anything to do in the first place), Yuuko was about to go back down when she heard Sawako Yamanaka shout out two words.

"Ui, now!"

Everyone staring in abject confusion at what Sawako just did, there was a brief moment of silence before Hashimoto and Niiyama resumed taking HTT down, not wanting to delay their mission any further. About to deal the finishing blows, the two of them abruptly refrained from calling out their last commands when they felt the entire building rumble beneath their feet.

Assuming that this was a freak earthquake, Yuuko looked around to see the other buildings in the area surprisingly unaffected. With that narrowing down the possibilities of what this mysterious phenomenon could be, Yuuko preemptively dreaded what HTT was about to throw at them. Whatever she and everyone else was going to face, it was nothing good indeed.

Hearing the sound of glass shattering, Yuuko ran over to the roof's edge and gazed down, nearly letting out a gasp when she saw the earth shaking and windows breaking beneath her. As that ominous symphony was soon joined by concrete being smashed into pieces, Yuuko realized that 'thing' would soon arrive at the roof, stopping at nothing to do so.

Soon, Yuuko was thrown off her feet when the floor under her split, cracks and fractures forming all over as a portion of it fell down into a bottomless pit below. The cacophony of destruction ending right as the ringing in Yuuko's ears disappeared, she had now recovered enough to stand up again, and looked up to see what had caused all this damage.

Spotting a humanoid shape hovering a short distance above the hole, Yuuko was surprised when she saw that it was actually a person, clad in a white and grey bodysuit with orange highlights and a similarly-colored helmet covered by an opaque red visor. As she wondered if that person was Ui Hirasawa, everything Yuuko thought she knew about HTT was thrown out the window when the helmet's visor retracted.


A/N: Bet you all didn't expect this change of perspective!

Aside from those who were directly named in this chapter, try and guess who else was in the League raid team. Some have appeared before, while some of them are making their first appearance this time.

As for this chapter's cliffhanger, make up your own conclusions about that. I won't spoil anything until the inevitable reveal...