Capítulo 92: There's Something Off About My Pokémon [92]
"By law, you were still just an ordinary high school student at the time. Acting without authority—that's technically illegal, you know."
But the hint of amusement on Guo Zhang's face told Lu Cheng that things weren't that simple.
"However," Guo Zhang continued with a smile, "if we consider you as a trainee for the Armed Division, your response was pretty impressive. After all, when facing an opponent you couldn't immediately overcome, subduing the trainer was your best choice."
"To be honest," Lu Cheng sighed, "the stress in that moment was no joke."
With a pat on his shoulder, Guo Zhang grinned, "No need to stress too much about it. This time, besides assigning you a task, I've also got a little gift for you."
"This Poké Ball here," he said, handing it to Lu Cheng, "is something of a badge of rank for the Armed Division."
With this Pokémon, things like low-impact weapons and weaker moves won't harm you much."
A flash of red light, and a glob of purple-pink goop attached itself to Guo Zhang's arm. Lu Cheng's eye twitched.
It looked like a blob of nose mucus, covered with tiny bubbles, resembling a sponge—or maybe a slimy jelly creature. It wriggled around on Guo Zhang's arm, gradually stretching upright to reveal two bead-like black eyes. Then its mouth split into a wide, eerie grin, as if its entire upper body was peeling open.
"It's saying hello," Guo Zhang chuckled.
Is that how all Ditto greet people?
"Diii!" The goo creature made a peculiar noise.
DittoNature: Naughty
Ability: Limber
Moves: Transform
Analysis: Extensive experience transforming into Geodude; proficient in Harden.
"Generally, we issue Ditto as standard equipment in the Armed Division," Guo Zhang explained. "Under the Research Department's experiments, these little guys have been toughened up to have defense strength that rivals a bulletproof vest."
Lu Cheng gave the purple-pink blob a doubtful look—it looked anything but sturdy.
"Don't believe me?" Guo Zhang raised an eyebrow. "Go on, have one of your Pokémon attack me."
"Huh?"
No sooner had he spoken than the Ditto wriggled up to Guo Zhang's chest, leaving a faint trail on his arm that made Lu Cheng cringe.
"Don't worry. This Ditto has remarkable defensive capabilities—you'll see soon enough."
"Alright then." Lu Cheng nodded and summoned Vulpix from its Poké Ball. Knowing how powerful Grovyle's physical attacks were, he didn't want the lizard slicing Ditto in half.
"Let's start with a Tackle."
Vulpix gave him a confused look but nodded and sprang toward Guo Zhang, going in for the hit.
Just as Vulpix was about to make contact, the Ditto on Guo Zhang's chest began to shift. Like a rapid chemical reaction, its body appeared to tear apart, spurting gooey liquid, but within moments, it reformed, taking the shape of a Geodude.
However, the transformation wasn't complete—it only morphed into Geodude's round head, without the muscular arms, leaving it looking like an armless, floating Geodude with Ditto's classic beady eyes.
Vulpix's Tackle struck Ditto, whose newly-formed rocky surface shimmered with a metallic gleam.
Harden!
As Vulpix bounced back, Guo Zhang stood there, completely unscathed, with that same calm smile on his face.
Lu Cheng finally understood the system's description of Ditto as "proficient in the move Harden."
"This Ditto was specially bred by our Breeding Department," Guo Zhang explained. "From a young age, it was fed various minerals and trained to mimic Geodude's transformation on command. Though, to be fair, don't expect much from it on offense."
He patted the gooey blob, which squirmed on his hand with a gleeful "Dii!"
Yeah, that all makes sense. But… aren't bulletproof vests supposed to go over your clothes? How was he supposed to wear something this slimy?
"Here, give it a try," Guo Zhang said, tossing Ditto straight at Lu Cheng.
Caught off guard, Lu Cheng stumbled back as Ditto splatted squarely against his chest.
What the heck? Lu Cheng looked down at the Ditto attached to his front. It gazed up at him with its bead-like eyes, then let out a mischievous grin. The gooey creature clung to him with a steady drip of viscous liquid trailing down his clothes.
Great, Lu Cheng thought miserably, there goes this shirt.
The sensation of Ditto encasing him made it hard to breathe. Worse, it was a living creature, squirming against him in cold, slimy movements that sent a shiver up his spine.
"You'll get used to it eventually," Guo Zhang mused, stroking his chin. "Wearing a Ditto in summer keeps you quite cool."
"Dii!" Ditto squeaked, seeming pleased with itself.
"Alright, let's try a quick transformation," Guo Zhang suggested, rolling his shoulders until they cracked. A wide grin spread across his face. "Now it's my turn to go on the offensive."
Before Lu Cheng could react, Guo Zhang lunged forward like a beast released from its cage, his punch slicing through the air with a sharp whistle.
He's not holding back!
"Ditto, Transform!" Lu Cheng shouted.
Man, this is so embarrassing!
The moment he gave the command, Ditto began quivering violently, morphing into a Geodude in less than a second—this time with full arms. Hardened to stone, it blocked Guo Zhang's punch. However, the effect only lasted a split second before Ditto reverted to its squishy form, yet it quickly extended its body around Guo Zhang's fist, halting his attack.
"Not bad, not bad at all," Guo Zhang praised, pulling his hand free from Ditto's goo and giving it a shake. "This Ditto is one of the best ones we've got from the Breeding Department."
Ditto looked up at Lu Cheng with its little black eyes, proudly squawking, "Dii!"
With his whole body tensed, Lu Cheng awkwardly nodded at it. "Nice going!" He gave Guo Zhang a pained smile.
Guo Zhang tossed the Poké Ball to Lu Cheng. "The mission is in a month. Don't be late."
"Take good care of this Ditto. Just feed it metals, and it'll be fine."
"One more thing," Guo Zhang added, "this Ditto is officially owned by the Armed Division, so it doesn't need to be registered. Just use it as you need."
Lu Cheng nodded eagerly.
As Guo Zhang walked away, Lu Cheng looked down, locking eyes with Ditto.
"Think you could, uh, get off now?"
"Dii!" But Ditto clung tightly.
Lu Cheng reached for the Poké Ball, tapping Ditto with it. In a flash of red light, it vanished, leaving Lu Cheng to hurriedly check for any suspicious goo left on him.
"Huh… Non-Newtonian fluid?" To his surprise, his shirt was spotless, with no trace of Ditto's sliminess—just a faint hint of berry fragrance.
"Guess I'll deal with it later," Lu Cheng chuckled wryly. "Maybe I'll wear it when I'm on duty. For now, it can just hang out in the ball."
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