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Palworld Vs Gantz: Apocalyptic Collision (21)
🕑 Added 2024-03-10 17:29:30 +0000 UTCChapter 21 - Increased Difficulty
Lines of light extended from various spots all around, converging onto the fallen alien corpses. The transformation was instantaneous.
Before their eyes, every statue began regenerating without exception. Even the massive figures stationed on both sides of the gate regained mobility. Rendered speechless, Shirona unconsciously stepped back.
It did seem strange. These beings hardly appeared formidable. She had found it slightly puzzling that the fallen Tokyo team members could not handle them.
The central shrine crumbled. The bespectacled young man let out a gleeful cry.
"Could this be a lucrative battlefield?"
The statue towered over ten meters tall, its head adorned with numerous spherical protrusions. Despite its gentle expression and the tranquil aura emanating from its outstretched hands, its massive approaching feet clearly intended to crush Shirona's group.
"Well, well, never thought I'd get to smash a giant Buddha statue. These black candies sure know how to keep things interesting."
X-Gun rounds repeatedly struck it, but only left minor scratches on its colossal feet. Its sheer volume rendered such damage insignificant. Merely causing minor explosions would prove meaningless.
Moreover... Shirona finally grasped the difficulty of overcoming this challenge.
The Buddha's wounds instantly healed, courtesy of the light beams descending from somewhere. Ordinarily processing it would be arduous enough, but with its regenerative ability, victory seemed impossible.
She glared at the surrounding statues. This was likely how the Tokyo team had been whittled down. While individually not exceptionally powerful, their relentless onslaught would inevitably overwhelm them. A sense of trepidation momentarily gripped Shirona. What should they do?
Yet Muroya nonchalantly shouted. "Well, time to rack up some points! Take it down!"
He followed up by felling another statue, and most others resumed fighting without much hesitation.
"Wait. This isn't right. If we continue like this, we'll be the ones destroyed. We need to find a way to overcome them, or else..."
The truth was, her involvement with them remained relatively superficial. Shirona keenly felt the terror of this battle. However, she had yet to comprehend the mindset of those who had survived Gantz's ordeals far longer, having witnessed the majority of their Pokémon persevere at least once. This might have led her to slightly underestimate them.
"Over there." George pointed.
At the lamps attached to the buildings, containing the light sources responsible for the statues' regeneration. As soon as she noticed them, light beams shot forth, reviving the figure Kuwabara had previously downed.
"Take them all out."
Following his words, Muroya too opened fire with the X-Gun. The men methodically destroyed the lamps one by one. The rationale behind their actions became clear when the statues visibly regained vigor in attempting to hinder them.
"Shouldn't we let a few more waves come? There are still some lurking deeper inside."
"Nah, we can conserve our strength. They're reacting, so there's clearly more."
After a momentary pause, Shirona recalled her own task. While the statues, now unable to regenerate, were being destroyed, she called out.
"Togekiss, Roserade!"
The two swiftly approached, their gazes seeking her instructions. She gestured towards the massive Buddha that Kuwabara had tried to subdue, undoubtedly a formidable adversary even with its recovery ability suppressed.
The X-Gun hardly seemed effective against it. While she did not have the potent Z-Gun, the blade too appeared unlikely to inflict significant damage. Hence, she would need to rely on her Pokémon's power.
Milotic was already attempting to freeze the Buddha's feet, but the ice shattered before it could fully immobilize them, its sheer size and immense force preventing proper restraint.
"I'm counting on you both. Please."
After issuing her request, Togekiss took flight, carrying Roserade on its back. They swiftly reached the area near the Buddha's head, prompting it to tense its expression and brace one arm, likely intending to swat them away in a single motion.
Togekiss narrowly evaded the first strike by altering its trajectory, skillfully dodging the second as well. The maneuvers seemed quite challenging, as the statue's speed gradually increased along with its attack range's breadth. The Buddha's expression now clearly exhibited anger.
With so much of its attention focused on them, they would struggle to find an opening to charge an attack. Even if successful, their efforts might still be evaded.
Therefore, Shirona braced herself. With the surrounding statues mostly dealt with, any collateral damage should be manageable now, she reasoned.
"Gastrodon, Earthquake!"
The ground shook violently. The powerful move could potentially affect allies as well. Shirona tried her best to endure but ultimately stumbled and fell.
However, the Buddha faced a similar predicament. Its movements halted, unable to topple but forced to cease its offensive against Togekiss's group, its balance compromised by the quaking terrain.
Milotic's Ice Beams converged, freezing at least one of the Buddha's feet, rendering it unable to easily extricate itself from the combination of ice and tremors. The moment its stability faltered was only a matter of time.
During this interval of the Buddha's struggle, Roserade focused her energy. Half-closing her eyes, she positioned her flowery hands, gradually amassing light reminiscent of the sun's radiance.
Had it been nighttime, an alternative strategy would have been necessary, potentially prolonging the process. Unfortunately, her Pokémon did not know any weather-altering moves.
By the time the Buddha noticed, it was too late. The concentrated solar power... The Solar Beam unleashed by Roserade struck in an instant.
"Wow..." Kuwabara gazed upwards with keen interest.
The Buddha was already toppling over. Losing its entire upper half to that blast would have obliterated any living being. The startled bespectacled figures hastily fled the scene.
The Buddha's remains rolled down the stone steps. Everyone gathered around its fallen body.
"Think we'll face divine retribution?"
"These things are aliens, right? Could this really be what Buddhism is about?"
"Of course not..."
This time, it was truly over. Shirona exhaled in relief. The consecutive battles had gradually taken a heavy mental toll. Yet Muroya’s group still seemed energetic.
"Plenty more in the south. They're still out there." Kyō, studying the radar, prompted a puzzled reaction from Muroya.
"Kyō, did you quit your meds? You don't seem to be having withdrawal symptoms."
"Sh-Shut up, who cares about that?"
Shirona had been about to firmly discourage dragging him back down that path when their eyes met. He mouthed something silently yet emphatically - "Stop." She understood he wished to put an end to it. After tilting her head, she welcomed the returning Togekiss and Roserade.
"There's one more reaction in the northwest, right?"
"Yeah, but I can't really tell. They're clustered together. Doesn't seem like a large number, though."
"What a pain. Should we split up and take them on simultaneously?"
Many seemed inclined to tackle the larger group first, likely aimed at scoring more points. Shirona deliberately chose the smaller target, still evidently unaccustomed to battle and keen on further Anzu also offered to accompany her. Being equally inexperienced in combat, Shirona felt reassured having her by her side in case anything happened.
Additionally, she decided to have some of her Pokémon join Muroya’s group heading south. Roserade, Gastrodon, and Mikaruge would go with them.
Shirona aimed to dispel her anxiety about the future, however slightly. She did not expect them to make any genuine efforts to strengthen the team's cohesion on their own accord. Since they seemed unlikely to take the initiative, she chose to bridge the gap herself.
"Do your best not to let them outperform you."
"Got it."
"Bowa wa!"
Their responses were far from enthusiastic, but it did not matter. She did not necessarily seek a close friendship, only a minimum understanding that they would fight alongside each other when needed. She believed that alone could gradually enhance their capabilities as a team.
As Shirona began heading northwest, she glanced at Muroya. "Why did you choose that direction?"
"I can sense it. Probably just small fry over there." He spoke with a hint of smugness. "But there might be some decent ones lurking inside that shrine. The giant Buddha could've been the boss, but we can't rule out tougher ones."
Next to him, Nakayama remarked as she walked, "I wanna rack up some serious points too. Just a little more and I can clear this once." She then shot Shirona a slightly harsh look.
Clearly, this Nakayama woman did not seem to hold her in high regard, though Shirona could think of a few possible reasons and accepted it.
"Actually, I haven't asked yet..."
Muroya began, but Shirona cut him off.
"Thank you for saving me when that Oni alien caught me earlier. If you hadn't shot it, I would've died."
"Yeah, no problem. I really appreciate it."
Despite expressing her sincere gratitude, Nakayama only responded with an awkward silence, likely intending to rebuke her further had she not thanked them. However, now was not the time for petty squabbles. Additionally, there was a cause for caution.
