Creation began on 08-02-22

Creation ended on 01-20-23

Neon Genesis Evangelion

Wraith of Wrath, Hand of Justice

A/N: One way or another, we've all felt like we've been followed by something we can't explain. But when we're faced with it, we can either ignore it or resolve it in whichever way we can in order to deal with it.

"…That's strange," went Tracey as he noticed several of the Pokémon caught by Shinji displaying odd behavior; most of them seemed as though they were on their guard about something. "Uh, Master, do you know anything about why most of Shinji's Pokémon are…defensive right now?"

"They do not feel as though the rage of the fallen has left this world just yet," Master told him.

"The rage of the fallen? You mean the Ursaring?"

"It may have fallen as a result of its own misbehavior, but not every creature with anger in its heart can pass into the beyond. Not fully, at least. Something keeps them from moving on. Sometimes, it's something they have yet to resolve."

"They're worried for Shinji, aren't they? All of you are."

The Mewtwo nodded as it floated up.

"I cannot predict the future," it responded, "but I have faith in Shinji's ability to survive what is yet to come."

Stomp! Tracey turned and saw Shinji's Tyranitar, Toji, and he gave a small smile as a sign that he, too, had faith in Shinji.

Stomp! Two of the Snorlax Shinji had caught came over, unable to sleep due to their shared concern for the young man, and Tracey could see that they also had the same level of faith.

"Well, Shinji is quite the trainer if he's been able to face threats and survive," he expressed.

"Jynx!" Katsuragi uttered. "Jynx! Jynx!"

"She says that their faith in Shinji gets us all through this trying time," Master translated.

Whatever was heading towards Shinji, Tracey could only hope that he could handle it when it did. If it was this…restless rage that belonged to the Ursaring that passed away yesterday, there was no telling what could happen if Shinji had to face it the only way he was likely to.

-x-

"…Sylveon," Valerie's Sylveon groaned as it tried to stand again after being attacked twice by Shinji's Eevee's Iron Tail. "Syl…"

Her Spritzee still floated in the air against Komadori as he flew around, his wings returning to their previous state after using Steel Wing for the third time.

"I really must say, you're in sync with your Pokémon like I've heard before you showed up here," Valerie told Shinji, seeing that he was feeling his Pokémon's exhaustion in the match.

"As am I impressed by the tenacity of your Pokémon," Shinji responded. "To the victor goes the admiration from the spectators."

"Shinji has got this match in the bag," said Toji.

"Yeah," agreed Hikari.

Shinji's Eevee was preparing to attack Valerie's Sylveon as her Spritzee floated up again…until she turned to face her trainer and had a look of concern on her face, her ears pointed upwards.

"Eee!" She went.

"Syl," Valerie's Sylveon uttered.

"Spritz!" Her Spritzee added. "Spritzee! Spritzee!"

"What's going on?" Ritsuko questioned.

Suddenly, a man ran into the gym and got everyone's attention.

"There's trouble!" He yelled. "A Pokémon is running around, attacking everyone!"

"What kind of Pokémon?" Shinji asked him.

"A Ghastly, the likes of which we've never seen before. Red eyes. Fangs like tusks. It attacks anyone it gets near. Some trainers with Psychic-Type Pokémon tried to fight it, but it fought back. It…it doesn't seem to have any restraint. It nearly sent a little girl and her Marill to the hospital…just for being near it."

Shinji turned to face Valerie and then at his friends; whatever this Pokémon truly was, all he knew right then and there was that it was clearly dangerous and had to be stopped.

"Do you know where it's going?" Valerie asked him.

"It seems to be coming this way?"

"It's coming to the gym?" Kensuke questioned.

Crash! A wall on the side of the gym was smashed into…and they saw the Ghastly described by the man.

"Ghastly!" It went, looking at them. "Ghastly!"

"Aaah!" Hyuga gasped. "Please, tell me that that's just a rare form of Ghastly!"

"Ghastly don't look anything like that!" Maya expressed.

The Ghastly looked at them…and locked its eyes on Shinji.

"Ghastly!" It roared, baring its fangs as it flew towards him. "Ghastly!"

"Whoa!" Shinji jumped away from its path and was nearly turned into a crater by the Ghost Pokemon! "What the heck?!"

The Ghastly appeared as the dust cleared and glared at him.

"Ghastly…" It went, its gaseous exterior shaping into a hand on its left side, which pointed at him. "Ghastly!"

It was that gesture, that way of pointing, the way it looked at him with those eyes. There was something about this Pokémon that was…off by many levels.

"Eevo!" Misato gasped and ran over to Shinji. "Eee! Eevo!"

"Yeah, I think this one has it out for me, too," he responded as he got up.

"Ghastly!" The Ghastly roared as it flew towards the two, intent of causing harm.

-x-

"Okay, this is not good," went Antonio as he and everyone else present in the large room witnessed the unusual Ghost Pokémon attacking Shinji. "What is wrong with this Ghastly?"

"Unprovoked aggression," Tama Pāru observed, "unchecked rage, singling out young Ikari… This Pokémon has a grudge."

"But…Shinji has never seen this one before, has he?" Fuyutsuki questioned; he had only been to the Pokémon world a few times, but even before taking a chance and going there, he had never heard from those that went before he did of any Ghost Pokémon coming after the trainer. "Not even the recorded or distributed footage of his adventures had one attacking him without any provocation. Not one."

One the screens, they saw Shinji run out of the Laverre City Gym with his Eevee and Fletchinder, followed by the Ghastly that attacked, making it clear that this creature was after him for some reason.

Tama Pāru looked at the Ghastly, finding it odd for such a Pokémon to hold a grudge that seemed very…one-sided and self-destructive.

"Tell me," it uttered, looking at Fuyutsuki, "is there anything in your world, in your cultures…that is similar to what is happening in the Pokémon world right now with this young man? Are there creatures, beings, that have departed the living realm, only to return and enact hostile behavior towards members of the living?"

"In some cultures of our world, they would be referred to as vengeful ghosts," he responded. "In Japan, they're mostly known as onryō, the souls of people that have died untimely deaths while consumed by immense rage."

"Like in The Grudge?" Antonio asked. "Could this be the same thing?"

"If so, it has to be connected to Shinji in some way."

"But a Pokémon consumed with rage that doesn't quell, even in death," Tama Pāru addressed, "this can only escalate until it is dealt with."

-x-

Shinji ran across a bridge with Misato as the Ghastly continued to chase after them. As he turned to see it closing in, he thought he saw the Ghost Pokémon doing something that was weird, even for it. It almost looked like it was…running or galloping. He shook his head a little and ran with his Eevee as the adversarial Ghastly pursued them.

"Ghastly!" It roared at them. "Ghastly!"

Running into the city, they avoided some people walking around that likely didn't know about the Ghastly.

"Run!" Shinji warned them. "Get out of here!"

Smash! The Ghastly flew another wall and out onto the walkway, knocking over some people.

"Ghastly!"

But now something new was off about it. Its face now with a protruding maw! It was just not something that a Ghastly should have. But this Pokémon was creeping Shinji out by so many levels of being off. The gas surrounding its darker form started to expand and condense into a thicker exterior.

I'm not here because I'm free, Shinji heard a malicious voice in his head. I'm here because I'm not free! I'm here…because of you!

Slam! A foot dug into the ground as a pair of claws flexed.

You were the worst thing that ever happened to me that day! And now, I'll make you pay! A life…for a life. You need to suffer!

Shinji's eyes widened at the horrid sight in front of them. The Ghastly that appeared to have singled him out…made itself resemble a Pokémon that the trainer had to deal with over two-and-a-half years ago when he was in the Johto Region.

"Ursaring?" He questioned. "Oh, no."

"Eevo!" Misato uttered in realization that this Pokémon was a ghostly reincarnation of the one that died a little over a day ago.

Stand aside, girl, or else your fate will be the same as his, that malicious voice spoke again, making it clear that this Ghastly had, not a short time ago, once been a troublesome and uncooperative Ursaring that Shinji had to capture in order to preserve the peace it threatened by attacking others for food instead of foraging for its own.

"Eee! Eevo!"

You dare to say that I'm wrong for desiring revenge against this human? That he was right to catch me and have me confined with those other Pokémon?

"Eevo! Eevo, Eevo!"

I suffered…because of his decision to protect something I could care less about so long as I have my food my way! I suffered because of your friend!

"No," Shinji told the vengeance-driven Pokémon, needing to share his thoughts on this issue. "You didn't die because of me, Ursaring. You died…because of your own mistakes, because you crossed the line and paid the price with your last breath. I caught you to stop you, to protect others from your recklessness and cruelty. I did nothing but try to preserve the order you threatened…and I did preserve the order. I kept you from harassing other trainers in order to take their food."

-x-

"Whoa!" Kensuke gasped as he made sure he was filming this turn of events, seeing the strange Ghastly looking like an Ursaring now.

"What's with this Pokémon?" Ritsuko questioned.

"It's starting to look like something it's not," Hikari stated, worried because it looked like it wanted to harm Shinji.

"It looks…almost evil," went Shigeru.

"But…Pokémon aren't evil," said Toji. "I mean, they… This Pokémon can't be evil."

"It singled Shinji out, it hurt a bunch of people," Hyuga pointed out what they just found out about it. "How can it not be?"

Just then, Shinji's Eevee attacked the Pokémon with her Iron Tail move, but the Ghastly merely knocked her aside…and then tried to slash Shinji with its claws, but he dodged and grabbed his Eevee, taking out one of his Poké Balls.

-x-

"Pika?" Ash's Pikachu went, getting the feeling that something wrong was happening elsewhere. "Chu."

"Dedenne?" Bonnie's Dedenne added in, feeling like something was up in the world.

"Hmm?" Bonnie responded, putting her cup down after drinking her water. "What's with you two, Dedenne?"

"Probably just a chill in the air?" Serena suggested, setting her sandwich down. "It does feel a little colder now."

"Maybe this will help," said Clemont, revealing a new device to them. "The future is now, thanks to science!"

Ash looked at the device and it looked similar to another invention of Clemont's, only more reinforced and sporting additions he hadn't seen before.

"Wow!" He gasped. "Science is so amazing!"

It was shaped like a Ghastly, but sporting red flames in place of the gaseous exterior.

-x-

Looking into the reaches of the Kalos Region, Shinji's Mewtwo and Mew were able to find their trainer…and see the challenge that stood before him in the form of the Pokémon that was attacking him.

"Mew?" Hikari went.

"It appears that its rage chose to stay for one thing only," Master realized.

"Mew ("Revenge")."

They both relayed this discovery to Prof. Oak, Tracey and all the other Pokémon Shinji had caught over the years, informing them of this new wrinkle.

"JYNX!" Katsuragi yelled.

From a distance, Prof. Oak and Tracey came over after receiving this telepathic message and were followed by Katsuragi.

"Are you saying that the Ursaring that died because of its own arrogance yesterday," Tracey uttered, "returned as a Ghastly…tracked down Shinji…and plans to…get revenge?"

"Mew," Hikari responded with a nod.

"But that's insane," Prof. Oak replied. "Shinji didn't do anything wrong. Yes, he caught the Ursaring, but it was to stop it from harassing other people and Pokémon in order to take their food for itself."

"It doesn't matter to the fallen one what the reason was for Shinji capturing it," Master told them. "Even in death, it carried a grudge against Shinji for capturing it, for keeping it here where it could be watched after. It may not stop…until he stops breathing."

"Jynx, Jynx!" Katsuragi went, upset about this. "Jynx, Jynx! Jynx!"

"What is she saying, Master?" Tracey asked the Mewtwo.

"She says we should go there, to where Shinji is, to protect him. But we can't teleport over such a large distance."

"What are Shinji's chances of walking away from this revenge-driven ghost?" Professor Oak questioned the Genetic Pokémon.

"As rage is the only emotion that drives this fallen Pokémon, it is unlikely that Shinji will be taken out. In addition, he has his Charizard and Gyarados with him in case he requires stronger assistance against an adversary of such persistence."

"Jynx! Jynx, Jynx!" Katsuragi expressed, shaking her head in the negative.

"Shinji might not place any of his other Pokémon in danger over a vendetta," Tracey realized.

Even as it looked away from them, Master feared for Shinji because of this situation. This was the only time a Pokémon had come back from beyond the realm of the departed to deal out vengeance against a trainer who only did what they thought had to be done to preserve order. But Master had to have faith in Shinji; the boy had this inner strength that enabled him to overcome the challenges he faced with being in a world not his own, to be in a profession different from the one he had been manipulated into by others from a previous generation, and he had a courage that exceeded the expectations of many other trainers. It was these factors, as well as other factors, that made Shinji Ikari someone to be respected by the righteous and feared by the wicked everywhere he went and left an impression.

"Master," went Prof. Oak, "what if you, Katsuragi and Hisui went to the Kalos Region to make sure that Shinji is doing fine? It wouldn't be a violation of the six-Pokémon limitation he's under if you were simply doing it as a favor or request."

"But Nirvana, despite his size, can fly faster than Hisui," Master suggested the ancient Dragonite instead of the Rayquaza.

"True, except his presence will could incite panic should he be seen in the sky."

"Yes, that is true. You should come with us."

"Huh?!"

"Similar to Shinji, just a feeling that you'll be needed."

"Jynx, Jynx," Katsuragi went, agreeing with Master.

-x-

Shinji had experienced pain inflicted upon him by Pokémon before, but this was new because of what he was facing. His dead Ursaring, now a brutal Ghastly, had managed to leave its own impression of hatred on his chest with its ghostly variation of Fury Swipes, marking it with four slashes across his skin.

"Aaaaauurgh!" Shinji yelled as he fell into the water under a bridge.

The stream carried him away from the bridge, but the Ghastly wasn't letting him get away that easily with just an injury.

I want to see the light leave your eyes, it went as it levitated off the bridge after him.

Splash! Shinji's Eevee, who was with him when he went into the water, surfaced beside her trainer as he tried to keep his head above the water.

"Eevo!" She cried as she saw the blood spilling out past them. "Eevo!"

"Gaaurgh!" Shinji groaned as he tried to grab onto the walls of the stream. "Aaurgh!"

Flash! Shinji recalled the day he had to capture Ursaring in the Johto Region.

"I honestly don't know what your deal is, but I can't let you treat people and other Pokémon the way you have," he told the Hibernator Pokémon, raising an empty Poké Ball at it. "Your days of arrogance end, here and now!"

Bash! He hit a small stone in the stream, snapping him back to the present.

I have you now, boy! The Ghastly announced as it appeared near him, pseudo-claws raised up to strike. Any last words?!

"Eee!" Misato went, pleading for it not to hurt him any further.

Pop! Something emerged from the water in between them, orange and scaly.

"Karp!" A Magikarp gasp. "Karp!"

It then jumped out of the water and at the Ghastly!

"Karp! Magikarp!" Several more Magikarp surfaced in the water around Shinji and Misato and formed a ring around them. "Karp!"

"Magikarp," Shinji expresses as they carried the pair to a stairway where a boat was tied. "I don't care what the majority of the Pokémon Trainer community thinks about you fellas. You're all amazing Pokémon when you do what you do. Thank you."

"Karp!" One of the Magikarp responded.

They carried them close enough that Shinji was able to climb out of the water, just in time to see the Ghastly being attacked by more than seven Magikarp, each of which were proving to be quite the astonishing jumpers. No matter how many times it threw them away, spat them out of its maw or even smacked them aside, they just swam back at it.

"It's happening all over again. It can't let go of its animosity towards anything, even when it should. Urgh!"

He struggled to get up and saw the Ghastly do something that really disgusted him: It more than likely didn't even need to eat anything because it was a Ghost Pokémon, the former Ursaring…ate one of the Magikarp…and its remains fell into the water, looking like mashed crap someone painted with gore.

"Aaugh," he groaned, seeing it look at him with a sadistic grin. "I never thought I'd be the one to say this, but I seriously hate what this Pokémon does, especially when it's just to be cruel."

"Eee!" Misato agreed with him; even if it was no longer an Ursaring, its viciousness remained the same, and it was disgusting.

"Fletchinder!" Komadori chirped as he flew down to meet the pair, seeing Shinji's injuries. "Fletchinder!"

"Thanks for coming, Komadori," Shinji praised him as he walked up the stairs. "Thank you, Magikarp. Get out of here now before that Ghastly attacks you."

The Fish Pokémon swam away, and Shinji nearly collapsed onto a nearby pole as he held his chest with his left hand.

"Oh, Kami," he groaned as he looked at his hand, seeing the blood still seeping out his wounds.

"Ghastly!" He heard the Ghastly howl at him, standing on the ground, looking at him with eyes that could see nothing else. I get rid of you…and I move on.

Shinji snorted up whatever mucus was in his nose…and spat it out onto the ground beside himself as he tried to stand up to his full height in front of the vengeful Pokémon.

"You hate me that much to be willing to kill?" He asked the ghost.

I have hated you ever since the day you caught me. I can't think of anything else but how much I despise you. No matter what I did, no matter how much I tried to torment the other Pokémon at that old man's domain, not a single one of them would ever say anything about you that was negative. What makes you so special that they won't try to make your life difficult? You're just a lowly human; finite, fragile, doomed to suffer or cause suffering as you go through the days. What makes you so special?

Shinji frowned at the ghost and uttered his choice of words in response.

"I'm just a former stranger in a world not my own," he stated. "The longer I wandered around here, the more I found myself belonging. I love Pokémon, and I love being a Pokémon Trainer. I deal with the challenges of being what I love, one step after another. But you…in life and afterlife…are by far the only Pokémon I've encountered…to actually feel negative emotions towards…because of how you chose to interact with those around you. You're probably the only one that I can truly feel disgust towards. You've hurt too many people and Pokémon, and you did so when it wasn't even necessary. You're just…an unnecessary brute that won't change its ways. I can't force you to do what was never in your nature…and I can't change your nature to suit my own interests if I can't adjust. But it's those with mindsets similar to yours that infuriate me with your unwillingness to stop, to change, to do something better and more positive. So I'll do the world another favor…and keep you confined…again."

The Ursaring-like Ghastly frowned at him and raised its claws.

I'll put you in the ground first.

-x-

"…If this wasn't an emergency, I'd find this to be stupendous!" Professor Oak yelled as he held onto Hisui for dear life along with Katsuragi and Master as they flew towards the Kalos Region. "Aaah!"

"Jynx!" Katsuragi added, though not as bothered by Hisui flying faster than usual to reach wherever Shinji was in the Kalos Region.

So far, they had crossed the ocean and were halfway towards the desired region. Once they got there, Master would be able to sense where Shinji was and teleport them to his location. This, for the time being, left Prof. Oak being the one directing the Rayquaza in the right direction so as to not get lost, even though this Pokémon had been in the ozone layer for a long time so it likely knew where it was going a little bit.

-x-

Asuka, Rei, Misato and the others found Shinji facing off against the Ghastly on the streets, and it looked like Shinji had been injured.

"Oh, geez," went Toji as Shinji threw a Poké Ball and unleashed his Charizard. "This is brutal."

"It doesn't just seem brutal," added Maya. "It feels like a grudge match with this Ghastly or whatever it is."

Then, Shinji's Charizard glowed brightly as it grew larger and darker, with blue flames and spikes on her shoulders. In her place was a Mega Charizard X.

"It looks like Shinji's being the hero again," said Misato as the Ghastly charged towards her ward as his Flame Pokémon unleashed a fireball at it.

BLAST! Asuka's Fire Blast hit its target and enveloped the Ghastly in intense flames.

Swat! The flames were dispelled by a swipe from the gaseous limb of the Ghost Pokémon, looking like it hadn't been affected at all by the attack.

"Grr," it growled, sounding different from before.

"Kensuke," went Rei, "Ghost-Type Pokémon aren't affected by Fire-Types, are they?"

"As a matter of fact, they are affected by Fire-Types," the freckled teen answered her. "But this Ghastly doesn't seem all that bothered by a little heat."

"You call that attack it just swatted away a little heat?" Hanmyo questioned.

"Grrraurgh!" They heard Asuka growl as she snorted out residual flames from her attack.

"I guess she don't like this ghost, either," Asuka gave her opinion about the Charizard nicknamed after her.

Suddenly, the Ghastly glowed brightly, becoming enveloped in light. In five seconds, the light faded…and in place of the Ghastly…was an upside-down triangle with floating arms and menacing eyes.

"Please, tell me that it didn't just evolve," Hikari uttered, worried that Shinji was in way over his head now.

"I didn't want to say something like this, but it needs to be said," expressed Shigeru. "I don't know what happened to piss this Ghost Pokémon off…but it is really pissed off."

No longer a Ghastly, but now a Haunter, Shinji felt his muscles tightening up in his legs.

This only ends one way, he heard it say to him, with you dead.

"I'm sorry that you think I caused you to suffer without a care, but this is on you."

The Pokémon Trainer that is said to be among the best the world has ever seen. They all have great things to say about you. Every Pokémon, every powerhouse, every lead-carrying weakling you ever caught and turned into gold and silver-laced greatness, not a single one of them would ever let me walk away with disrespecting you. And then, there were those bulls belonging to that other boy. One of them had the audacity to say that their trainer will likely face you. Can you believe that crud? You? Battling the brat that caught them? Ha!

"Since I know of the guy you're referring to," Shinji told it, "I actually look forward to facing him when I see him later on in this region…and so I can tell him personally that he's not responsible for you getting put down by his herd of Tauros."

The evolved Haunter glared at him.

Do you ever think of making others feel guilt for what befell you? It had asked him.

"Why would I want to make others feel guilty about something they didn't mean to have happen?" He responded. "That would be wrong."

Then, Shinji opened another Poké Ball and released his Gyarados, which then glowed and turned into a version of herself that was bigger and stronger than it had been previously.

"Rrrraurgh!" Rei roared at the Ghost Pokémon.

It doesn't matter to me what you try, how many Pokémon you send after me, the Haunter told him, mildly shifting its form to resemble the upper form of the Ursaring it used to be. My vengeance against you will know no bounds!

To be continued…

A/N: I thought of making this chapter longer, but I want to have a scene where Shinji has a reaction to something negative and positive in different ways. But I want your thoughts on fact that a Pokémon caught by Shinji is now an enemy because of an issue that it was unhappy about and came back to cause trouble. So far, this is the only one that has ever made trouble for Shinji.