Kashiwagi found himself in a massive storage area where rows upon rows of Snag Balls were neatly organized. Personnel in white lab coats hurried back and forth, carrying even more Snag Balls to and from the testing areas.
Frobo was in the thick of it.
"You finally made it. Get over here!"
Frobo grabbed Kashiwagi's arm and hauled him deeper into the facility, eventually stopping in a laboratory. A group of scientists were huddled together, staring intently through a massive, reinforced floor-to-ceiling observation window.
"Look inside."
Following Frobo's gesture, Kashiwagi peered in. He saw a Pokémon with glowing crimson eyes thrashing violently inside a sealed chamber. Every time it slammed into the walls, a purple, honeycomb-patterned energy barrier flickered to life, absorbing the impact of its frenzied attacks.
A moment later, thick clouds of vapor billowed from vents in the corners, rapidly enveloping the Pokémon.
Within seconds, the mist cleared. The previously berserk Pokémon was slumped on the ground. A moment later, it woke up, its eyes no longer red but filled with confusion. It looked around, shivering with a sense of wary trepidation—the natural reaction of a Pokémon that had finally "woken up" from a nightmare.
"Success! Another successful case!"
"Dr. Kaminko, you really are a genius! With this, we have nothing to fear!"
The scientists cheered and high-fived each other.
A young man with brown hair and a lab coat rubbed the back of his neck, looking bashful. "Oh, please, it was a team effort. I couldn't have done it without everyone's help."
"This is..." Kashiwagi looked at Frobo for an explanation.
"Remember that drug you destroyed?" Frobo laughed. "That was a weakened tablet the Cipher gruntss used to forcibly turn normal Pokémon into Shadow Pokémon. Using that sample, combined with the Purification Room Dr. Kaminko previously built, they've developed the Generation II Purification Spray."
Ah!
Kashiwagi was struck with realization. He hadn't expected those tablets to be directly linked to the Shadow Pokémon process. It was a surprising connection.
"Wait, you said a spray?"
"No surgery, no long-term rituals. We just need to disperse this mist across every corner of Pyrite Town. Every Shadow Pokémon will be forcibly snapped out of their dark state. And from this day forward, no more Shadow Pokémon will ever be created again!"
Frobo laughed heartily, pulling Kashiwagi over to a monitor.
On the screen, under the cover of the pitch-black night, dozens of drones were flying over Pyrite Town and Phenac City, spraying a fine white mist like agricultural planes. Humans and normal Pokémon were unaffected by the gas, but the moment a Shadow Pokémon inhaled it or came into contact with it, they collapsed, reverting to their original forms in mere minutes.
Clearly, as soon as the lab tests were verified, they had moved straight to full-scale deployment.
Kashiwagi turned to the doctor. "Does it also fix the side effects? The damage to their intelligence?"
"Of course!" Dr. Kaminko chimed in confidently. "It won't affect their physical or mental health in the slightest. They return exactly to the state they were in before Team Cipher performed their horrific experiments!"
"Incredible!" Kashiwagi couldn't help but marvel.
In the original games, purifying a Shadow Pokémon was a tedious process involving battles and walking. Later, Dr. Kaminko's Purification Chamber was introduced, but it was still slow for the sake of gameplay. This spray was a total game-changer.
"It's a win for everyone!" Dr. Kaminko laughed, though his expression soon turned a bit somber. "I only wish we'd finished it sooner. Maybe fewer people would have been hurt."
Kashiwagi learned then that the spray had only been finalized thirty minutes ago.
It felt like a classic trope from a movie—finishing the antidote at the eleventh hour. The original development cycle was supposed to take another six months, but as the situation in Pyrite Town spiraled out of control, the research team had worked without sleep for weeks.
Kashiwagi looked at the tired, hollow eyes behind those joyous smiles. They hadn't slept properly in over a month. These were... truly great people. His heart felt a profound sense of peace and respect for them.
-----
The battle for Pyrite Town lasted a total of thirteen hours.
In truth, from the moment Steven and the others joined the fray and the Cipher commander was neutralized, the scattered Cipher grunts had been forced into a desperate, losing defense.
The overwhelming power of the visiting Trainers forced the Cipher members underground or into full flight, often abandoning their Shadow Pokémon to buy time. However, while they might have been able to hide from Steven or N's sweeping patrols, they couldn't hide from the eyes of the locals.
Desperate and cornered, some Cipher members even tried to take civilians hostage.
But they underestimated the resolve of the people. Under the fierce resistance of the residents, these attempts failed miserably, and the criminals were beaten down by the enraged populace. Long-term chaos had made the citizens easy to stir; one cry of "Get them out of our home!" followed by a brave charge was all it took for the fed-up civilians to swarm the remaining grunts.
But the final nail in the coffin was the Purification Spray.
The hordes of Shadow Pokémon were the only real leverage the grunts had. Once the spray neutralized their "weapons," the Cipher members were left utterly bewildered and defenseless.
Simultaneously, the original gang leaders of Pyrite Town were systematically dismantled by the Resistance. Most of the bosses were arrested, and the remaining thugs had their Pokémon confiscated by N.
As the final explosion faded into silence, Pyrite Town grew still.
It signaled the end of two weeks of absolute anarchy. The resilient people of this desolate land had finally survived to see a new day.
But for the Resistance, the true challenge was just beginning. Ryuka and the others were still waiting for word from Phenac City. If Phenac didn't fall, the war wasn't over, and Steven's group would have to deploy there next.
Fortunately, over a decade of planning had not been in vain.
As the first light of dawn broke over the horizon, the news arrived: Phenac City had been secured.
Es Gan's Shadow Pokémon research labs, manufacturing plants, and various key facilities had been razed. The entire interest group led by him—from Cipher agents to corrupt officials—had been brought to justice.
Even more crucial: Citadark Isle.
The isolated island that Team Cipher had converted into their main fortress had been completely dismantled by the International Police.
Es Gan's ambition to establish the "Orre League" as his personal kingdom was strangled on the very eve of its success.
Interestingly, during his final confrontation with his foster son, Dinis (Yamamino's father), the old man suffered a massive stroke. He was rushed to the ICU, and the doctors said that even if he woke up, he would likely never speak, walk, or eat normally again.
Whether this was a merciful or cruel end for a master manipulator was up for debate. But for the people of Orre, the downfall of such a villain was nothing short of a miracle.
After more than ten years of operating in the shadows, the Resistance had finally brought the region into the light.
"We won!"
The exhilarating news spread across Orre and soon across the entire world. This battle drew the eyes of the international community to this remote corner of the globe, making people realize for the first time that such a strange, troubled region even existed.