Tetsuya's plan was proceeding remarkably well. He had already created chaos, while presenting himself as an innocent bystander. Such a major disturbance must surely have reached Duplica's mother's ears by now.
The next stage of his plan had already begun. Mamoswine had defeated every Ditto that came to stop it and was now charging toward the shrine amid a raging blizzard and hail.
According to Duplica, this shrine was an extremely important place, so her mother would certainly intervene to stop Mamoswine. By observing her battle against Mamoswine, he would be able to clearly determine her true strength.
The blizzard was just about to strike the shrine's front gate…
"...Sunny Day!"
The voice of a middle-aged woman immediately calmed everyone's panic.
Tetsuya was secretly delighted. 'She's finally here.'
A scorching beam of light shot into the sky, and the clouds immediately parted to reveal the sun. The blizzard and hail dissipated, and Mamoswine's figure became visible once again.
Standing in front of the shrine was Yuri, the leader of the Imite Family. Beside her stood a Sunflora, which had just used Sunny Day.
Tetsuya could not command Mamoswine now and had to leave everything to its own judgment. As his strongest Pokémon, Mamoswine was certainly capable of testing the strength of Yuri's Ditto.
Facing the Ditto that had transformed into Sunflora, Mamoswine shook its body, unleashing a howling blast of freezing wind mixed with Icicle Spear.
"Transform into Pidgeot!" Yuri concentrated intently. She still did not fully understand the capacities of this Mamoswine and was not completely confident that her Pokémon could withstand its move head-on.
However, her Ditto seemed capable of transforming completely at will. It leaped into the air and transformed from Sunflora into Pidgeot, soaring upward and disappearing into the clouds.
'It can actually transform so freely… Let's see what other tricks it has.'
Although Mamoswine's Icicle Spear missed as Pidgeot followed its momentum into the sky, the freezing cold of Freeze-Dry could still spread upward under Mamoswine's control.
At that moment, Mamoswine used Icy Wind once again, sending freezing winds and Ice Shard straight toward Ditto.
With Pidgeot's capabilities, it would have been extremely difficult to withstand this Icy Wind. However, Yuri changed tactics once again. Ditto transformed from Pidgeot into Charizard, and only an all-out Overheat was enough to neutralize Mamoswine's move.
Mamoswine and Ditto exchanged attacks back and forth, with Ditto transforming into dozens of different Pokémon. Tetsuya could not help marveling at the sight. Without any reference whatsoever, it could freely realize so many transformations. It was simply unbelievable!
Moreover, the strength of Yuri's Ditto was far beyond that of the other family members' Pokémon. He could now be certain that the so-called "disguise art" was merely the most superficial aspect of this Family's competencies. Their true techniques were not something just anyone could learn…
'The shrine.' Tetsuya's gaze naturally shifted toward the weathered structure before him. It was a special ritual site that only the family leader could enter, and Yuri had been so nervous when Mamoswine approached it. There must be something extraordinary about the place…
---◓---
Having made up his mind, Tetsuya no longer had any reason to continue fighting Ditto. After receiving a message from Gengar, Mamoswine collapsed to the ground, and Tetsuya recalled it.
Since it was not uncommon for Trainers to lose control of Pokémon whose levels had grown too high, Yuri did not pursue the matter further, although a fleeting suspicion still crossed her mind.
Over the next few days, Tetsuya remained active around the shrine, sending Gengar out at night to investigate.
The entire area surrounding the shrine was guarded by Ditto. Along the outer perimeter, Ditto transformed into Arcanine patrolled the grounds, while others transformed into Crobat stationed themselves beneath the eaves. There was not a single blind spot anywhere around the old shrine.
Its defenses were practically flawless!
When the time came, he would have to rely on Gengar's capacities. However, he knew absolutely nothing about the shrine's interior, and entering blindly might leave him empty-handed. Someone to guide him would naturally be indispensable…
Tetsuya monitored Yuri's every move each day, since she was the only person who could enter the shrine.
Recently, she had been training Tetsuya's Ditto day and night, seemingly having sensed something. She wanted to fulfill Tetsuya's request as soon as possible so that he would leave sooner.
Although she still harbored some concerns about a repeat of the Brodie incident, her own abilities were more than sufficient to see through such low-level disguises. Even if Tetsuya were to cause trouble in society, she was fully capable of subduing him.
Little did she know that Tetsuya had already lived for more than half a lifetime…
How could he possibly have failed to consider the things Yuri had thought of?
---◓---
After more than a month of training, Yuri finally returned Ditto to Tetsuya. Throughout that entire month, she had not visited the shrine even once!
"Tetsuya, your Ditto has excellent potential. In just over a month, it has become quite proficient in the procedures of cell division and fusion. As for disguise art… it's all based on these capacities, so it should already be very easy for this Ditto," Yuri said.
Tetsuya bowed to Yuri, but before he could express his gratitude, she continued, "Our Family's rules don't allow outsiders to stay for too long. I've already fulfilled your wish, so you should leave as soon as possible!"
"Kaasan, please let Tetsuya stay a little longer…" Duplica said reluctantly.
"Be quiet!" Her mother glared at her, and Duplica no longer dared to speak.
Tetsuya smiled. "Duplica, I'll definitely come back to visit you when I have the chance. Thank you both for taking care of me during this time. If there's ever anything I can help you with in the future, please don't hesitate to ask!"
With that, Tetsuya went to pack his belongings. Ditto had already transformed into a wristband and returned to his wrist.
Yuri nodded, though she began to have second thoughts. Perhaps she had been overly sensitive. Ever since the incident with Brodie, she had become suspicious of everything…
---◓---
After packing his belongings, Tetsuya did not linger for even a moment and immediately left the Imite Family's town.
Along the way, Tetsuya did not stop to rest even once, traveling continuously for an entire day before finally stopping to pitch his tent and prepare for sleep.
After Tetsuya had finished setting up his tent, eaten dinner, and gone inside to "sleep", a Crobat that had been following him finally flew away.
By now, the bond between Tetsuya and Gengar through their [Shadow Contract] had become exceptionally strong. Not even the slightest disturbance in his surroundings could escape his notice. Ever since he had left the Imite Family's town, this Crobat, which was actually a transformed Ditto, had been following him.
It must have been sent by Yuri to keep an eye on him. That was precisely why he had traveled so quickly throughout the day, hoping to put Yuri at ease.
After confirming that Crobat had flown far away, Tetsuya stepped out from his tent, changed into dark clothing suitable for traveling at night, and fully equipped himself.
He calculated Crobat's flying speed…
The distance he had covered in an entire day would take Crobat only half an hour at its normal flying speed. Only after it returned would Yuri finally let down her guard completely.
Twenty minutes after Crobat departed, Tetsuya sent out Golurk and flew toward the Imite Family's town on its back. In terms of flying speed, Golurk was no slower than Crobat, so his departure was perfectly timed.
Half an hour later, Tetsuya had already arrived above the roof of Duplica's house.
He did not need to do anything himself. Gengar would naturally gather all the information he needed.
Sure enough, the Crobat that had followed him was one of the Ditto raised by Yuri, and it had already returned to her side. After receiving Ditto's report, Yuri's expression relaxed considerably, and the heavy burden on her mind was finally lifted.
Immediately afterward, Yuri began bathing and changing her clothes. She put on a ceremonial kimono for the ritual, burned incense, and offered prayers. This entire series of rituals took nearly an hour.
After completing all these elaborate formalities, Yuri finally left her home and headed toward the ancient shrine.
'Yuri, you didn't leave me a choice… no, I had no other option. For the sake of my path to the top, in this world of Pokémon, nothing is too much…'