Chapter 8: Disguise

As for the second reason he had joined the organization, it was simply a matter of convenience.

In his past life, Sato had many enemies, but after being reborn, he had let go of all grudges.

Except for one person—the assassin who had kidnapped him.

And now, there was another target—the Red-rank assassin.

People who speak little tend to think a lot.

Sato wasn't sure if this was a side effect of reincarnation, but he shook off his wandering thoughts and refocused on Zorua and Gastly.

"Zorua, jog for twenty minutes, then come find me."

Sato activated a treadmill specifically designed for small Pokémon and instructed Zorua to start running.

"Gastly, this training room is five meters long and five meters wide. I want you to move back and forth continuously until you collapse."

"Kehehe~"

Gastly slumped dejectedly, nodding its head, but its eyes darted around, clearly scheming ways to slack off.

"Oh, and anyone who slacks off during training doesn't get to eat."

Sato pointed at the Pokémon food placed nearby, then raised his hand, where a ball of black mist suddenly formed.

"Kehehe!"

Gastly immediately straightened up, nodding seriously, swearing it would complete its task.

However, its eyes kept flickering toward Sato's hand, unsettled by the eerie Dark Energy.

After twenty minutes, Zorua collapsed on the treadmill, completely exhausted.

Sato gently picked it up, allowing a small amount of Dark Energy to flow into its body.

"Zor…"

Zorua let out a comfortable sound. Pokémon naturally had strong recovery abilities, and this time, the Dark Energy was simply replenishing its internal reserves, so there was no pain.

"Kehe~"

Gastly floated over, feigning curiosity, but in reality, it was just looking for an excuse to take a break.

Sato glanced at it but didn't call it out. He understood Gastly's nature and allowed it this small moment of laziness.

"Kehehe~"

Seeing no punishment, Gastly pushed its luck, floating over to Zorua and asking about the sensation with a mischievous grin.

However, before it could react, a familiar hand grabbed it again and flung it across the room.

"Kehe…"

Gastly resigned itself to training, zipping back and forth at high speed, leaving afterimages in its wake.

Oddly enough, it seemed to enjoy itself—perhaps it had never realized before that it could move this fast.

That night, after dinner, Sato returned to his room.

He released Gastly, who didn't need sleep, and gave the drowsy Zorua two drops of his own blood before sitting cross-legged on the bed and beginning his meditation.

Since Dark-type Pokémon could enhance their bodies through Dark Energy, so too could Sato himself.

Unlike Psychic Energy, which focused on mental development, Dark Energy specialized in enhancing physical attributes.

By circulating Dark Energy throughout his body, he could subtly improve his physique.

Through long-term training, Sato had even replaced sleep with meditation.

This way, while his Pokémon rapidly grew stronger, he wouldn't fall behind.

At 6:00 AM, Sato ended his meditation.

After two hours of morning training with Zorua and Gastly, he arrived at the cafeteria by 8:00 AM.

In one corner of the cafeteria, all 19 other recruits sat in a row.

After a moment's thought, Sato decided that from now on, he would arrive ten minutes earlier to avoid standing out.

Keeping a low profile was key.

Grabbing a simple breakfast, he took the last seat among the recruits and silently ate his meal.

Fortunately, everyone was still unfamiliar with one another, and in this unfamiliar environment, no one had the energy to mock Sato for arriving late.

By 8:30 AM, the group arrived at the classroom.

For half an hour, they waited.

Then, right on time, a mature female instructor with a Green-rank insignia stepped into the room.

"Good morning, everyone. I will be your instructor for disguise training…"

From 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM, the recruits spent the morning learning disguise and reconnaissance techniques in the classroom.

From 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM, they had lunch and rest time.

From 1:00 PM to 6:00 PM, they took turns undergoing physical endurance and combat training in the training grounds.

Dinner lasted one hour, and after 7:00 PM, the schedule became free training time.

Most used this time for Pokémon training, but others focused on physical combat or even rest.

There were no instructors for Pokémon training—recruits had to figure everything out themselves.

That didn't mean they had zero guidance, though.

The organization's resource exchange system didn't operate on Pokémon League currency; instead, everything was bought using points.

Each recruit started with 200 points, which could be spent freely.

Pokémon TMs, Pokéblocks, training manuals—all were available for purchase.

However, 200 points was only enough to buy one TM for a move with 60 base power or lower or a beginner-level Pokémon training manual.

Most recruits chose the training manual specific to their starter Pokémon.

Naturally, this led to some recruits mocking Sato, thinking:

What good is having an extra Pokémon if you don't have a manual? That unknown weakling won't amount to anything in three months.

Yet, Sato paid no mind to their glances and murmurs.

He simply continued attending classes, training, and resting, all in a steady rhythm.

One week later, Rika successfully purchased the Toxic Gas he had requested, costing 100 points.

Sato saved the remaining 100 points, leaving them untouched.

Inside the training room, Zorua had undergone a complete transformation.

Its once frail body had grown stronger, its fur now sleek and smooth, and its blue eyes sharp and lively.

Standing at 0.7 meters, it had now reached the normal size for its species.

Additionally, under the stimulation of Dark Energy, Zorua had successfully learned Dark Pulse.

Although it still lacked precise control, Sato was confident that in three months, it would master it completely.

Now, Zorua stood facing Gastly, who had also improved significantly.

Compared to a week ago, Gastly's movements were much sharper.

Following Sato's guidance, it had learned to split its Shadow Ball into multiple smaller spheres.

Although the power was lower, the increased accuracy and rapid firing made it much more reliable.

With its naturally high Special Attack, as long as it didn't encounter a Normal-type wall like Blissey, its damage output would be more than enough.

All of this progress had been made in secret within the private training rooms.

But at night, when everyone trained publicly at the training grounds, Sato held back deliberately.

Both Zorua and Gastly would only use their most basic moves, making their combat abilities appear mediocre at best.

Even in disguise training and reconnaissance lessons, Sato performed just adequately enough.

Within one week, he had successfully created the illusion that he was below average in talent, quiet in personality, and not particularly hardworking.

Only Rika, who had occasionally glimpsed his true training, had a faint idea of his real strength.