"The electromagnetic interference devices have all been torn down, I see..."
Kashiwagi noticed that the devices intended to ground hover vehicles had been destroyed. It was no wonder these punks felt brave enough to fly around so recklessly.
Fortunately, he had anticipated this before setting out and had requested a new batch of jammers.
"Let's drive these guys off first, then find a way to locate the Crystal Unit survivors", he said, turning to address his group.
The Snagem members responded immediately, while the Jackal Gang prisoners hesitated for a moment before nodding in understanding. These men were finding it hard to adjust to their sudden change in status. No processing? No punishment? Just captured and immediately expected to start bleeding for Team Snagem?
Even though they were captured and they knew Roki's division was finished, the sheer speed of events had left their minds in a whirl.
However, looking at Kashiwagi's young, energetic face, they felt that following a "big brother" with such a promising future might not be so bad. At the very least, this guy was generous and brave, more importantly, he led from the front, unlike other bosses who sat safely in their high chairs while sending their underlings to die.
The Jackal members began to self-hypnotize. Gripping the Poké Balls that had been returned to them, they exchanged glances and made their decision.
At the same moment, Kashiwagi and Mawile charged toward the neon-clad "Ghost-Fire" bikers.
Knowing the situation wouldn't end easily, Kashiwagi had been consciously preserving the stamina of Aggron and the others. He needed to avoid being caught off guard by a sudden ambush. He was well aware that Team Snagem's occupation of the Jackal Gang's nest was precarious, it was the classic "Mantis stalks the cicada unaware of the oriole behind" scenario where a third party might easily swoop in to snatch the prize.
The third Top Executive of the Jackal Gang had defected to another organization. While that group had been hit by the earthquake which left their territory in worse shape than Gemat's, they hadn't lost men in the mines. Their strength was intact, and they could strike at any moment.
He had to stay on guard.
In the distance, the middle-aged "Ghost-Fire" bikers spotted Kashiwagi's approach.
God only knew what was going through their heads. Perhaps because they had already tasted success against the Crystal Unit, they didn't immediately scatter into the alleys to fight a guerilla war. Instead, they quickly organized a seven-man motorcade, screaming and hollering as they roared directly toward Kashiwagi's group.
"So arrogant? Do they have something backing them up?"
Kashiwagi gripped a Poké Ball and warned Mawile in the sidecar, "Be careful! Take out the one in the middle first who seems likely the leader!"
"Mawile!"
Mawile stood up, kicked off the edge of the sidecar, and shot forward like a bolt of lightning!
Its explosive speed had improved significantly since the day it first arrived at Kashiwagi's home. Combined with the biker's own reckless momentum, the gap closed before they could even react. There was only a sharp whoosh of wind, followed immediately by a scream from behind.
"AH!"
The bikers glanced back and saw a hovercycle tumbling across the pavement, parts flying off until it was reduced to a heap of scrap metal. The biker, a middle-aged thug covered in glowing tattoos lay unconscious in the distance alongside his Pokémon.
What happened? What was that?
As panic set in, Mawile, having successfully struck the leader, turned back to pursue the rest, though its speed was now at a more sustainable pace. Taking advantage of the bikers distraction, Otsuka's Donphan let out a roar, curling into a solid tire. It ignored the Poison Gas spewing from a biker's Koffing and smashed into the front of another machine, pulverizing it!
CRASH!
The biker had been holding a Molotov cocktail. The sparks from the collision ignited the Koffing's gas, triggering a violent explosion!
BOOM!!
The small fireball spread to the nearby bikes. Since those riders were also holding flammable glass bottles, the chain reaction set them off before they could even throw them at Kashiwagi.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Kashiwagi and his team slammed on their brakes, watching in disbelief as the bikes disintegrated and the bikers rolled on the ground, screaming in agony.
The remaining two small fry saw the carnage, panicked, and pulled their throttles to the limit, fleeing the scene. The rest of the gang watching from the distance felt their souls leave their bodies; they babbled something incoherent and scrambled into the maze of the district to hide.
"Is this a joke?"
Kashiwagi was speechless. He turned to Otsuka. "I thought they had an ace up their sleeve. Turns out they just blew themselves up. Otsuka, your Donphan really came through there."
"Heh... heh heh..."
Otsuka scratched his head sheepishly. As Donphan rolled back to his side, he patted its head proudly. "Just a lucky coincidence, lucky coincidence."
The Snagem members were fine, but the Jackal prisoners were stunned. They had never imagined so many enemies could be dealt with so easily. It was a full sweep. They looked at the returning Mawile with awe, knowing that if it hadn't taken out the leader in the first strike, the rest wouldn't have gone so smoothly.
"Clean up the battlefield. Arrest the ones still breathing. Contact the Crystal Unit inside and tell them to come out and explain themselves", Kashiwagi ordered a Snagem subordinate.
"Understood!"
-----
In reality, before Kashiwagi had been dispatched, this district had already been picked clean by various small organizations. The Crystal Unit had held off the first wave, but they failed against the second and third.
They simply didn't have the heavy hitters.
The Sand Unit had Kashiwagi (who had High Executive strength) and seven or eight squad leaders on the surface. The Crystal Unit, desperate to grab more resources from the Underdome, had only left three squad leaders to manage their surface district. It was understandable as this was the poorest of Roki's three districts with the least loot, so three leaders seemed sufficient.
Normally, it would have been. But after the earthquake, in the midst of the internal chaos, the smaller gangs had grown bold enough to launch repeated raids. The Crystal Unit had buckled almost instantly.
Even more embarrassingly, when they called for help, none of their own High Executives wanted to leave the Underdome. The Rock Unit was tied up with its own mess, leaving them no choice but to pull reinforcements from their rivals, the Sand Unit.
The irony was thick.
By the time Kashiwagi met up with them, only one of the three squad leaders was still standing; the other two were down. Many of the official members were nursing injuries. When the surviving leader saw Kashiwagi, his face soured. "Why is it you?"
"I'm the only one who could be spared. Your own people didn't want to come." Kashiwagi glanced at him. "Giving me an attitude? Fine. I'll leave right now, and you can let those punks wear you down until you're dead. It's no skin off my back."
Kashiwagi turned to leave.
"Wait... wait! Please, Brother Kashiwagi, save us." The man lowered his head in humiliation. The Crystal Unit and Kashiwagi had bad blood, but in this situation, he had to swallow his pride.
Kashiwagi nodded in satisfaction. "That's better. Now, what's the situation? Where are the holdouts? Which areas did the outsiders take? Are the water and power cut? Get the surrender broadcasts back on, don't tell me you don't even have those..."
The rapid-fire questions left the man dizzy. "Slow down, please..."
"I'll put it simply," Kashiwagi said, staring the man down. "As of right now, I'm taking over. If you have a problem with that, you can take it up with the Boss."