Chapter 159: Dr. Fuji’s Diary
Gengar floated before the statue, studying it for a moment, then asked Rio: "What Pokémon is this?"
"It’s called Mewtwo—a powerful Pokémon created by humans," Rio explained as he walked further into the mansion.
"A Pokémon created by humans? Powerful? How powerful? As strong as Old Ghost?" Gengar scoffed. "One day, I’m going to get a statue made of me too."
Rio laughed. "If you were as strong as Mewtwo, we wouldn’t have been running from Lugia like that yesterday—Lugia might have been the one running."
"It’s that strong? Really? You’re not exaggerating?" Gengar looked at the Mewtwo statue with newfound respect.
"Let me put it this way—Team Rocket’s boss, Giovanni, the guy with that Beedrill yesterday? Mewtwo is the Pokémon he wants to catch more than anything else. I can’t say for sure who’d win in a one-on-one between Mewtwo and Lugia, but Mewtwo could definitely toy with Raikou, Moltres, and Zapdos without breaking a sweat."
Rio explained with a smile as he observed the mansion’s interior. It looked like any ordinary estate—similar to James’s family home. Aside from the Mewtwo statue, there was no other trace of Mewtwo-related clues.
"That powerful!" Gengar was even more shocked after hearing Rio’s explanation. It couldn’t resist touching the statue.
As Gengar continued to pat the statue, Rio suddenly slipped—the floor tiles beneath him had shifted. A hidden entrance opened up before him within seconds. Rio was startled. He looked around, then back at Gengar still fondling the statue.
"Stop touching it!" Rio called out.
Gengar turned in confusion—and saw that it had accidentally triggered a hidden passage. It stared at the Mewtwo statue in surprise. "You’ve got some well-hidden secrets, don’t you?"
"Stay here—don’t touch anything else. Charizard and I are going down to check it out." Rio released Charizard. The dark entrance was illuminated by Charizard’s flame, casting light into the passage below.
Rio followed Charizard into the basement. Inside, he found a variety of items: research equipment, ancient texts, and photographs—all of Mewtwo, from infancy to adulthood. Rio couldn’t help snapping photos with his phone. Young Mewtwo was actually pretty cute, he thought. It only got colder and more aloof as it grew.
After taking photos, he continued exploring. He found some discarded Pokémon items—two Great Balls—then released Munchlax.
"Munchlax—take a look around here. See if there’s anything good. I’ll take you out for a feast after this." Treasure-hunting was best left to Munchlax.
"Ka~" At the mention of a feast, Munchlax pulled its paw out of its mouth and began waddling around the basement with enthusiasm.
Rio and Charizard explored other parts of the basement. Eventually, Rio spotted two pieces of paper on the ground. He picked them up—they appeared to be torn from a diary.
The first page read: July 5th—I discovered a Pokémon I’ve never seen before in the depths of an uninhabited island.
The second read: July 10th—After frantically searching through ancient texts, I learned that it is a very ancient mythical Pokémon called Mew.
"Charizard—help me look for more pages like these. Munchlax—you too," Rio said.
"Roaar~"
"Ka~"
Recognizing Mr. Fuji’s handwriting—similar to what he’d seen at the Pokémon House—Rio kept searching. Soon, he found five more pages.
August 6th—From my observations, Mew can turn invisible at will. Unless it reveals itself, it’s nearly impossible to find. Truly incredible.
August 8th—Mew seems to share the same transformation ability as Ditto. It can change into any Pokémon and use corresponding moves—but it’s far more powerful than Ditto.
September 23rd—Mew appears to have left. I haven’t seen it in over forty days. However, I did find one of its hairs. If I don’t see Mew again in ten more days, I’ll leave.
October 23rd—A stunning discovery: Mew appears to contain the genetic material of all Pokémon. I wonder if it might be the ancestor of all Pokémon.
October 30th—I have a very bold idea. I’m not sure whether I should carry it out.
Rio was hooked. He wanted to read more.
Above ground, in the mansion, Gengar sat beneath the Mewtwo statue, idly playing with rocks using Psychic, grumbling to itself: "Gengar~" — I really want to lock that Rio kid down there. He never thinks of me for the fun stuff—only for scouting and guard duty. No one cares about Old Ghost...
"Rattata~" — A hundred years? You’ve lived a hundred years?
A voice came from beside it. Gengar turned to see a Rattata.
"Gengar~" — Of course—Old Ghost was already a champion in the Orange League a hundred years ago. How old are you? Probably not even a fraction of my age.
Seeing another Pokémon to chat with, Gengar perked up.
"Rattata~" — A champion a hundred years ago? That’s amazing! I’ve never actually participated in a human Pokémon battle—just watched from afar. But as for how old I am... let me think.
The Rattata stood up on its hind legs, deep in thought. Gengar chuckled.
"Gengar~" — What’s there to think about? You look like you’ve lived maybe a few years—nowhere close to Old Ghost.
The Rattata shook its head.
"Rattata~" — No, no—I don’t know exactly how old I am, but I think I’ve lived through many hundreds of years. So many I’ve lost count.
"Gengar~" — Bull! There’s no way a Rattata could live hundreds of years—you might not even make it to a hundred. And if you’d lived that long, you’d have evolved into Raticate by now.
Gengar scoffed. The Rattata glowed—and in an instant, transformed into a Raticate.
"Raticate~" — Now I am!
∑(O_O;)
Gengar’s mocking expression froze. Its jaw slowly dropped as it stared at the Raticate that had just been a Rattata. The Raticate, amused by Gengar’s reaction, glowed again—changing into a Gengar. A pale purple Gengar identical to Gengar itself.
Gengar’s expression grew even more dramatic. It rubbed its fat little hands over its eyes, making sure it wasn’t seeing things. "Gengar~" — My god—am I under a hypnotic spell?
The Raticate-turned-Gengar glowed once more and transformed into a white, cat-like Pokémon. It covered its mouth with a paw, giggling.
"Mew~" — You’re not dreaming. It’s all real.