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Back in the early days of the Hunter Exam, Kurapika had straight-up said only one rookie made it through every three years.
Abachi was a Nen user. Passing shouldn't be hard. As long as the examiner wasn't some freak like Menchi and the other candidates weren't psychos like Hisoka, she'd clear it on the first try.
Even if she ran into Hisoka, she wouldn't sweat it.
They went way back.
Was the person Kurapika remembered passing the exam actually Abachi?
Ronin had the same suspicion. He'd already signed up for the next exam himself, so the two of them were bound to cross paths again.
"Mind if I ask something kinda personal?" Kurapika said. "Can your rod only hook stuff you already know or can see, or can it pull random things too?"
It was a bold question. Nen abilities were private as hell.
Abachi answered anyway, no hesitation. "Both. I can preset a spot and hook whatever's there, or I can just cast blind and let whatever bites take the hook."
"So what do you usually pull up when you go random?" Ronin asked, genuinely curious.
"No clue. Trash bags, diamond necklaces, gold bars, private collections, bones buried in coffins underground—pretty much anything that exists has a shot at getting hooked." She grinned. "I never come up empty. That surprise factor? I live for it."
Kurapika leaned in. "What's the actual range?"
Ronin already knew exactly where this conversation was headed.
"Two kilometers," Abachi said. "Three times farther than my current max cast."
"So it can go even farther?" Kurapika pressed.
She nodded. "Yeah, but it's tough. Two big problems—better gear and my own power level."
Kurapika nodded once, then hit the real question. "If we plant you in one spot, could you hook specific targets?"
"Pure random casts hit whatever they hit," Abachi said first, and both guys looked disappointed—until she added, "But with the right bait, there's a solid chance I can pull exactly what we want."
That tracked.
Kurapika had another angle ready. "What if we shrink the zone? Could you clear out everything inside it?"
He wanted the Scarlet Eyes, obviously. He just hadn't figured out the right bait yet, so he started with the brute-force option.
"That works," Abachi said. "Just takes forever."
Kurapika accepted that. "Tell me about the bait."
Abachi didn't answer right away. Instead she asked, "So what exactly are we fishing for? I need to know the target before I can pick the right lure."
"Scarlet Eyes," Kurapika said without flinching.
Abachi frowned. "Not living things? I've never tried that. No idea if it works."
She'd assumed he wanted actual fish. Dead organs? That changed the game.
"What if bait's useless—what about swapping the hook?" Kurapika tried.
Didn't work. She'd never tested it.
Abachi just shook her head, looking a little lost.
Ronin watched from the side and almost smiled. Classic Emission user—rough, instinctive, barely scratched the surface of her own power. She'd cooked up a killer move on gut feel and never bothered to break it down or push it further.
Kurapika's questions were hitting walls left and right, but that only made his eyes light up.
The more she couldn't answer, the more obvious it became: Abachi had massive untapped potential. Train her right and her ability could quietly steal Scarlet Eyes straight out of collectors' hands.
Kurapika's best target? Kakin. Slip in, hook the Fourth Prince's entire stash, and vanish before anyone noticed.
"So," Kurapika said, "you planning to roll with us? We've all already signed up for the Hunter Exam."
He wasn't offering full team membership yet—just a trial run. If she clicked and her power proved useful, the invitation would come later.
Ronin had zero objections.
Now it was Abachi's call.
She hesitated. "I'm still wanted. Traveling with you guys… won't I just drag you into my mess?"
Ronin spoke first this time. "Don't worry about that. Worry about the fact that sticking with us might pull you into way bigger trouble. I've got enemies a hell of a lot scarier than anything the Grasse family bounty could send after you."
Abachi blinked. She hadn't expected that angle.
She'd always been scared of being dead weight. Not the other way around.
"This is—"
"No pressure," Kurapika cut in. "The next place we're headed keeps most bounty hunters out anyway."
From the look on his face, he really wanted her to say yes.
Abachi didn't take long. Her eyes lingered on Ronin's face a couple extra seconds. "If you don't mind the hassle, I'm in."
"Then it's settled," Ronin said, clapping his hands once.
They were halfway out of the café when Ronin caught a flash of crumpled paper sticking out of Abachi's pocket. Just the corner was enough.
It was a Heaven's Arena promo poster for his fight against Hisoka.
She'd recognized him from the jump.
Did that mean her decision to join had something to do with the Magician too?
Ronin didn't ask. With Abachi temporarily riding with them, he'd already finished absorbing the latest pair of Scarlet Eyes. The crew didn't linger in Gramglaslan. They slipped out quietly and left the city behind.