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The Pokémon Special Zone was vast. Sato had already been walking around for over an hour and was still far from covering the entire area.
During that time, he had come across several Ditto being sold at various Pokémon Hunter stalls. By comparing prices, he got a rough idea of Ditto's going rate in the Saffron City black market, typically ranging from 4 to 5 million PokeDollars, with the highest-priced one currently at 5.5 million.
Although Sato had mentally prepared himself for the steep prices, he couldn't help but be surprised by how expensive Pokémon were in the Saffron black market. It gave him a new understanding of the lucrative nature of the Pokémon trade.
It wasn't hard to see that if a Pokémon Hunter could capture rare Pokémon in the wild and find the right buyers, they would be rolling in wealth. No wonder so many ordinary Trainers fell into this dark path—the temptation was simply too great.
Currently, Sato had around 7 million PokeDollars on hand. If he were to purchase a Ditto, more than half of that would vanish instantly. His earlier idea of heading to the Free Trade Zone to browse for other bargains quickly faded.
"I thought I had enough money to buy a lot of things, but now I realize I was too naive. The Saffron City black market is like a giant money-devouring beast. The amount of money flowing through here in a single day must be astronomical," Sato thought as he continued his search for Ditto in the Pokémon Special Zone.
After over an hour of searching, Sato still hadn't found what he was looking for. Like most of the Pokémon here, the Dittos he had seen had completely lost their wild nature.
Perhaps due to being caged for so long, many of them appeared to have mental health issues, with most of them looking sluggish and unresponsive. It was clear they had lost their potential.
In Sato's view, the potential of a Pokémon was secondary—what mattered most was their personality. As the saying goes, "Character determines destiny," and this held true for Pokémon as well.
Even if a Pokémon had excellent potential, if it lacked the drive to grow stronger, it would be hard for it to achieve great things. While innate talent was important, hard work and determination were equally crucial.
In Sato's current team, the most ambitious Pokémon were Zubat and Growlithe. Zubat had a goal to surpass its parent, while Growlithe, as a Fire-type, had an intense sense of pride.
On the other hand, Sato had some concerns about Bellossom and Nidoran. However, recently, Bellossom had shown much more determination since evolving, as if something had given her the resolve to become stronger.
Nidoran also seemed to be influenced by Growlithe. Perhaps constantly being outperformed by its peer had stirred its competitive spirit. Lately, Nidoran had been more diligent, even secretly training its Psychic powers, instead of always seeking to play around.
The Dittos Sato had seen so far, however, were clearly spineless, and with their deteriorated mental states, he had no intention of purchasing one as a companion. Since he wasn't exactly wealthy, every partner he chose had to be carefully selected—he preferred quality over quantity.
After another ten minutes of walking through the Special Zone, Sato finally came across a stall selling Ditto where the Pokémon's condition was noticeably better than those at the other stalls.
The difference was clear: the Pokémon at this stall hadn't undergone much training or conditioning. They appeared to be freshly caught from the wild.
However, because these Pokémon were still untamed and it was early in the morning with few people around, combined with the fact that the stall owner wasn't as enthusiastic as others, the stall was quite deserted, with not a single customer in sight.
In reality, most of the people who came to the Pokémon Special Zone to buy Pokémon had some sort of background. They were generally from certain organizations, here to purchase large quantities of already tamed Pokémon, which would then be distributed to low-ranking members as replacements for their losses.
The Ditto in front of Sato was full of wild energy. Trapped inside a specially made glass cage, it constantly transformed into various nearby Pokémon that were also confined, using different types of moves to try and break the cage.
Unfortunately, the glass cage holding the Ditto was clearly designed to withstand such attacks. No matter how many times Ditto transformed into other Pokémon and used different moves, the cage remained completely unscathed.
Still, this Ditto clearly hated being trapped in such a small space. After taking short breaks, it relentlessly continued attacking the glass cage in different ways. Sato even noticed it transforming parts of its body into a hammer and a knife to try and break the glass.
"Looks pretty good," Sato thought to himself, watching from a distance as Ditto tirelessly tried to escape. His eyes brightened—he knew this time he wouldn't be leaving empty-handed.
The owner of the stall was an elderly man with silver hair, dressed in a loose black robe. He was sitting on a simple wooden chair, carving a high-quality piece of wood with a small chisel, while an old Houndoom lay quietly at his feet.
This old hunter's weathered face was marked with several deep scars, making him look fearsome. Despite his age, his eyes were as sharp as an eagle's, watching everything with cold caution. He only softened slightly when looking at the aged Houndoom lying beneath him.
When Sato approached, the old hunter merely glanced at him before resuming his carving, paying him little attention. He was meticulously chiseling away at the wood, which had already taken the rough shape of a Heracross.
"If you need something, go get it yourself and bring it over. I'm too old to bother getting up to help you, young man," the old hunter said coldly as Sato stepped within two meters of him, still focused on his woodwork.
At the same time, the Houndoom under the old hunter's chair opened its eyes, fixing a sharp gaze on Sato. Its resting posture shifted slightly, ready to leap at Sato if needed.
"I understand the rules, sir," Sato replied with a nod, then quickly made his way to the glass cage holding the Ditto.
At that moment, the Ditto turned to face Sato, its small eyes glaring fiercely at him. In a flash, it transformed into an Ekans, coiling its body and raising its head, mimicking a threatening pose toward Sato.
Sato remained silent, but under his mask, a smile appeared on his face. Clearly, this Ditto was quite intelligent, with an impressive memory.
There wasn't a single Ekans in any of the nearby cages for Ditto to mimic, yet it had successfully transformed into one.
What's more, this Ditto seemed to have a deep understanding of Ekans' behavior, perfectly mimicking its threatening stance, capturing the very essence of how Ekans intimidates other creatures.