The mont Ryuuske heard those words, his gaze instinctively fell to the Master Ball hanging around his neck.
The only one who needed this was wtwo.
"This is the result of my research over the past few months—a genetically modified culture fluid. The reason I called you here this ti is to replace the culture fluid in your Master Ball."
The culture fluid in the petri dish before him was substantial, but Ryuuske knew this amount was actually normal. Poké Balls contained black-box technology involving spatial manipulation. Despite their small spherical appearance, the space inside was far larger than imagined. The exact amount of culture fluid required was precisely what was in the dish before him.
"If we replace the culture fluid, will wtwo's genes be fully restored?" Ryuuske gripped the Master Ball tightly. If this were true, wtwo's battle ti would no longer be limited, and his own strength would increase significantly.
Blaine hesitated for a mont before letting out a bitter laugh. "...It still requires ti."
"How long?"
"At least half a year, at most a year."
Blaine gave a rough estimate.
This was already an incredible achievent. Back at Professor Oak's lab, Ryuuske had asked the professor to estimate the ti needed to complete wtwo's genetic restoration. With the previous generation of culture fluid, it would have taken about three years. Now, the second-generation culture fluid provided by Blaine had shortened that ti by more than threefold. Theoretically, this should have been cause for celebration, but—
"Even so, it still won't be ready in ti for the battle against Team Rocket."
Ryuuske sighed. "...If my predictions are correct, based on what Sabrina said, Team Rocket will launch their full-scale attack in at most half a month. Half a year or even a year is far too long."
He felt a pang of frustration.
In truth, half a year to a year wasn't long at all. It had already been ten months since he first crossed into this world—ti had practically flown by. Moreover, the one-year estimate was the maximum Blaine had given; theoretically, it wouldn't even take that long. But whether it was half a year or a full year, neither would be of imdiate use against Team Rocket.
"Ryuuske, do you know who the mastermind behind Team Rocket is?"
Blaine suddenly asked.
"It's Giovanni, right?"
Ryuuske answered without hesitation.
Blaine looked at him in astonishnt. "...I didn't expect you to already know. It was only recently, because of Team Rocket's increasingly conspicuous movents and the many clues they've left behind, that I managed to uncover the truth—that the missing Viridian City Gym Leader is actually the mastermind behind Team Rocket. Even when I was working for them, I never knew his true identity."
"...But based on my understanding of Team Rocket's thods, Giovanni should be an extrely cautious man, the type who wouldn't act without absolute certainty. Yet this ti, he's pushed Team Rocket into the spotlight far too abruptly. At first, I thought he would continue expanding Team Rocket's influence for another year or two before making his move."
"This culture fluid was also designed with that tifra in mind. But as they say, even the best-laid plans can't keep up with changes. I never expected Giovanni to make such a choice. I wonder if he's encountered so unforeseen trouble."
Blaine fell into deep thought, but as a scientist, no matter how intelligent or sharp he was, he couldn't fully grasp the mind of a scher.
"Don't worry about it, Blaine. This is already excellent progress. I can wait half a year. It's just that the upcoming confrontation with Team Rocket is indeed a dangerous crisis."
Ryuuske stroked his chin as he spoke. This was likely the most perilous situation he'd faced since arriving in this world. The ti he'd been given to grow was far too short, yet in that limited span, he had to confront an overwhelmingly powerful enemy.
"Even if we can't completely resolve wtwo's issues right now, we can still significantly extend its combat duration. For the next three days, Ryuuske, you should stay at my lab. I'll use this ti to further adjust wtwo's genes. Actually..."
Blaine hesitated for a long mont before finally sighing.
"...Even if wtwo were fully unleashed right now, it alone wouldn't be enough to defeat Team Rocket. Ryuuske, you shouldn't place too much faith in wtwo's strength. Legendary Pokémon may be powerful, but they are neither invincible nor undefeatable. Throughout recorded history, there have been instances—albeit rare—of trainers defeating Legendary Pokémon."
"wtwo may not be a match for Giovanni!"
Blaine delivered this verdict firmly, fearing that Ryuuske might grow overconfident simply because he possessed wtwo, leading him to underestimate Team Rocket.
"Don't worry, Blaine. I'm not arrogant enough to think that having wtwo ans I can rest easy. If that were the case, I wouldn't have worked so hard to train my other Pokémon."
Ryuuske smiled. He had never believed that owning a Legendary Pokémon made him invincible—that would be underestimating the world's heroes. Of course, if one Legendary Pokémon wasn't enough, then having several might just allow him to destroy human civilization and erase humanity itself.
"It's good that you think this way. If you find yourself in real danger during the battle against Team Rocket, don't hesitate—run. Legendary Pokémon have their own advantages. If you hide and wait until wtwo's genetic restoration is complete, eliminating the risk of it harming you, you can re-erge to fight Team Rocket. By then, they'll have no way to stop you."
Blaine outlined the theory of guerrilla warfare, which was precisely why he and Professor Oak had initially feared releasing wtwo. wtwo's abilities made it perfectly suited for such tactics—harassing the enemy endlessly while remaining untouchable. Capturing a Psychic-type Legendary Pokémon was far more difficult than anyone could imagine.
Unless Giovanni abandoned all other responsibilities and devoted himself solely to chasing wtwo and Ryuuske, Team Rocket would eventually be worn down and shattered by this strategy.
Of course, both Ryuuske and Blaine knew this was a last resort. They much preferred to defeat Team Rocket in direct combat. Resorting to guerrilla tactics would an admitting defeat.
"Blaine, are you planning to join the fight this ti?"
Ryuuske handed the Master Ball to Blaine so he could begin adjusting wtwo's genes.
"I've barely shown up at the Cinnabar Gym this past year, so rallying the island's trainers under my authority as Gym Leader is out of the question. However, I do have a few powerful trainer friends. When the ti cos, I'll join them in providing support. I committed grave mistakes during my ti with Team Rocket, and this is my chance to atone."
As he spoke, Blaine placed the Master Ball into a slot.
"By the way, Blaine, you must know fossil resurrection technology, right? I happen to have a fossil here. While I don't have high expectations for the Pokémon inside, it's still a rare item. Even if I don't end up using it myself, I can always give it to soone else."
Ryuuske suddenly rembered sothing and pulled out the fossil he had found in Mt. Moon.
If there was one fossil Pokémon Ryuuske hoped for most, it would undoubtedly be Aerodactyl. However, Aerodactyl wasn't a Dragon-type, so it held little value to him.
"Oh? You have a fossil, Ryuuske? Let take a look. Not all fossils can be used to resurrect ancient Pokémon. The fossil resurrection technology was sothing I developed alongside a friend from Pewter City."
Blaine's interest was imdiately piqued. Ever since he and his friend had pioneered fossil resurrection years ago, many Pokémon once thought extinct had been brought back to life. This technology stood as Blaine's crowning achievent in the scientific community, his proof of self-worth.
However, ancient fossils were scarce, and not all could be used to resurrect Pokémon. Even as the inventor of the technology, Blaine had only successfully revived a handful of Pokémon himself.
Now presented with another opportunity, his scientific curiosity flared up. Ryuuske silently marveled—Blaine was truly a genius, dabbling in so many cutting-edge technologies.
Taking the fossil from Ryuuske, Blaine walked over to a machine and examined it briefly before exclaiming happily,
"...No problem! This is a rare fossil that can indeed be used to resurrect an ancient Pokémon. Now, let's see what kind of Pokémon lies within!"
He quickly placed the fossil into a machine resembling an X-ray scanner. A beam of light swept over it, and an embryo-like image appeared on the computer screen. The system then began processing the data, transforming the embryo into a fully grown Pokémon.
Looking at the image now displayed on the monitor, Ryuuske realized his guess had been spot-on.
It wasn't an Aerodactyl, but it was indeed a creature that was "a dragon yet not a dragon."
To be continued…
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