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The conditions of the three Legendary Pokémon clones—Celebi, Moltres, and Heatran—were not good. For some reason, whether due to genetic instability or inherent defects, their bodies had begun to age rapidly after sustaining heavy injuries.
Since the battle ended, aside from Celebi—the Grass-type Legendary clone—the other two had already begun showing severe signs of aging.
Sato tried having Roserade use Grassy Terrain to heal them. While their injuries did recover, the rate of aging did not slow down in the slightest. It was clear that this accelerated aging was irreversible.
"Sigh… they really are imperfect clones. These Legendary clones are basically disposable products—quick to create, decent in combat, but with a limited lifespan. Once they suffer heavy damage or intense battles, their usable time shortens even further."
After examining the three clones, Sato noticed their aging had clearly accelerated. After thinking it through, he couldn't help but feel a bit regretful.
Earlier, he had already learned more about these clones from the man in the black robe. That man had obtained a total of sixteen Legendary clones from the so-called "Legendary Beast Society."
So far, aside from the four currently present, the other twelve had all either been reclaimed by the organization or died quickly due to rapid aging. As for those reclaimed, he had never seen them again.
Additionally, Sato learned that these Legendary clones only obeyed the black-robed man. No matter what others said to them, they would not respond at all.
From this, Sato inferred that the organization must have tampered with them during their creation. Most likely, some kind of special device had been implanted in their bodies, allowing them to respond only to specific individuals.
Sato didn't dwell further on their aging or control issues. Instead, he began thinking about the final missing Legendary clone.
Yes—he still hadn't found Darkrai, the clone that had been knocked away by Swampert with a single punch.
He had searched the area where Darkrai was blasted away for quite some time, but found nothing—only unconscious wild Pokémon scattered around.
From this, Sato could already guess what had happened.
Clearly, that Darkrai clone hadn't completely lost its fighting ability. Unlike Celebi and the others, it possessed independent awareness. It knew it couldn't defeat Swampert, and it also knew the black-robed man stood no chance against Sato.
Returning would only result in being crushed.
So it had chosen to flee—without even sparing a glance back at its "master."
Its method of recovery was also brutal and efficient: it preyed on nearby wild Pokémon. With a combination of Dark Void and Dream Eater, it quickly healed itself and then escaped the area.
Sato didn't think much of Darkrai's escape. Now that he understood the flaws of these clones, he had little interest in them.
He estimated that before long, Darkrai would rapidly age and perish on its own. He wouldn't even need to act—the problem would resolve itself.
"I can ignore Darkrai, Moltres, and Heatran… but Celebi is different. There must be some kind of connection between me and this clone—and a close one at that."
After giving up the search, Sato began seriously considering how to deal with the three clones in his possession—especially Celebi. His brows furrowed deeply.
In truth, Sato already had a rough idea of how to solve the clones' defects—but he wasn't confident it would work.
The core issue was simple: their genes were incomplete and unstable.
So how could this be fixed?
In Sato's view, the only true solution was to optimize and complete their genetic structure.
Unfortunately, with the current level of science in the Pokémon world, humanity simply couldn't achieve this. Otherwise, even an organization like the Legendary Beast Society—dedicated to cloning Legendary Pokémon—wouldn't be limited to producing flawed copies.
Perhaps it might be possible in the future—but not now.
That path was closed.
However, Sato did have one potential solution: the Mew Gene Enhancement Serum in his possession.
(Mew Gene Enhancement Serum: Mew contains the genes of all Pokémon. This is a special serum cultivated from Mew's genetic cells. When consumed, it can repair and perfect a Pokémon's genetic chain, improving its IV ratings.)
On paper, this serum seemed like a perfect solution to the clones' genetic defects.
But in practice, Sato had no idea how effective it would be.
After all, Legendary clones and naturally born Pokémon were fundamentally different. The severity of their genetic flaws was on completely different levels—the clones' defects were far more serious.
Whether the serum would work at all was unknown. It might even become a bottomless pit of investment. If he poured resources into it without results, the loss would be catastrophic.
"Forget it… no need to rush this decision. The priority right now is fixing Celebi's internal issue. If I can't restore its self-awareness, then no matter how much of the Mew serum I use, it'll be pointless—just helping the Legendary Beast Society for nothing."
Sato quickly set aside the dilemma of whether to use the serum. Instead, he focused on how to restore the self-awareness of Celebi and the other clones.
This was not his area of expertise.
Sato was skilled at training Pokémon—but when it came to scientific research, especially genetic cloning, he was completely out of his depth.
He needed an expert.
After running through possible candidates in his mind, Sato quickly identified a highly suitable person.
"Maybe… I'll end up being the key figure behind the success of the Mewtwo creation project."
Looking at the three PokeBalls containing the Legendary clones in his hand, Sato fell into deep thought.