After Gon woke up, as expected, he went to settle the score with Illumi... But this time, there was one less person who planned to accompany him to Kukuroo Mountain.
After obtaining his Hunter license, Kurapika had left the team one step ahead of them.
He had only left Leorio a note.
The location that Oboro had given Kurapika was Gram City, where he had once stayed.
After arriving on the airship, Kurapika walked into a barren mountain range with a map.
This mountain range was also where Oboro had done his 'savage' training before heading to the Heavens Arena.
The next day, Kurapika pushed aside a patch of weeds that were as tall as a person, and walked into a gentle hillside. Looking around, there was green grass under his feet, and it was very open, without any trees blocking the view. The scenery was pleasant. But what first caught his eye wasn't the beautiful scenery, but a person.
A man sitting cross-legged on the ground, surrounded by many wild beasts... There were wolf packs nearby, as well as individual tigers, leopards, foxes, etc., and some strangely shaped small animals. What was amazing was that these wild beasts, like the humans lying on the ground, were resting, enjoying the breeze, and basking in the sun.
The scene was quite harmonious.
And with his appearance... Some ferocious wild beasts slowly got up, and let out aggressive growls.
This made Kurapika wary instantly, and he took a defensive stance.
"It's okay... Come over."
At this time, Oboro, who was lying on the ground, stretched, sat up, and smiled slightly at the golden-haired boy.
Then, he waved his hand.
Strangely, the wild beasts seemed to understand Oboro's words, and scattered and walked away one after another.
This scene completely exceeded Kurapika's understanding.
"Is this what you said... That ability, called Nen?" Kurapika asked as he slowly stepped forward.
"No."
Oboro answered lazily.
"How long will it take? How long will it take for me to have that Nen ability?"
Kurapika was very anxious.
"With me here, it'll be fast... Under normal circumstances, you might need half a year, and at the fastest, it would take a few months... I can greatly shorten this time, and at the same time, help you develop your own trump card." Oboro took off his sunglasses, and said easily.
"Where's Hisoka?"
Kurapika looked around.
He already knew Hisoka's identity, and that he had ties to the Troupe.
"Isn't he also one of the participants in the game?"
"Hmm... He's already gone back."
"What?"
Kurapika's expression changed, "Did you tell him anything?"
"No, he doesn't need me to tell him anything. He'll handle it himself."
Oboro said casually.
"You trust him that much? Aren't you afraid that he'll betray you or expose our plan?"
"I don't trust him!"
Kurapika's face was serious.
"Don't worry, you don't understand him yet... He has a greater desire to participate in this game than you do. He's just likes to cause trouble. He's an out-and-out, headache-inducing guy." Even if Oboro explained, Kurapika wouldn't understand.
Back then, Moritonio's description of Hisoka was most appropriate.
A childlike interest... Not the kind of innocent child, but a mischievous, troublemaking brat.
In addition, he had a bit of a morbid madness... His mind might not be very normal either.
He changed the subject, "So next... Let's start Nen training... Are you prepared for the resolve to die?"
"Of course."
Kurapika's eyes were cold.
"Very good!"
...
On the other side, at the hotel where the Troupe was staying.
Shalnark was communicating with Hisoka over the phone, "The Hunter Exam is over, right?"
"Hmm."
"Now that you've gotten your license, why aren't you coming back?"
"I'm here. I'm near the hotel." Hisoka said with an eerie smile.
"What do you mean?"
The conversation between the two was on speakerphone, so everyone present could hear it clearly.
He had already returned, so why wasn't he coming to the hotel?
Chrollo reached out his hand, put Shalnark's phone to his ear, and said with a calm expression, "Hisoka..."
"I'm here."
"Did you do something bad?"
"Hmm... There's a little bit, but not much." Hisoka's voice made Chrollo's eyes narrow, but his expression didn't change.
At this time, several miles away from the hotel, Hisoka was sitting in the middle of a crowded street, at the entrance of a juice shop, drinking juice, with a relaxed expression.
One hand was holding the phone, and the other hand was gently stirring the liquid in the cup with a straw.
"However, don't worry. Although I saw Oboro, I didn't reveal anything, oh~~"
"I just suddenly feel like I've been set up... I'm a little unhappy."
"..."
Chrollo.
"That man is indeed as you said, he's not ordinary strong, and very terrifying... It's not that easy to kill him! I originally wanted to look for some opportunities to contact him, but... After confirming his danger level, I suddenly understood... Your intention!"
"This makes me feel pretty bad..."
"Aren't you okay?"
Chrollo said lightly.
"But what if I had died at his hands? Although I haven't been in the Troupe for very long, I've always felt that it's quite interesting to be with you... I risked my life to report all the information I observed to you, and this is how you treat me..."
Hisoka swung his toes, his expression cheerful, but his tone was very resentful.
"If there's nothing wrong with you, the probability of something happening is zero percent."
Chrollo said.
"But... Your behavior has exposed your own thoughts... If I'm not mistaken, you're planning to have Pakunoda test me again, right?"
"..."
Chrollo didn't answer.
"Look... This kind of distrust is like a knife, aiming at me once again... Should I consider leaving you guys?"
"I'm very unhappy... Very unhappy!"
"Oh... You should be able to guess, right? If I'm unhappy, I can't guarantee what I'll do! For example, tell him everything about my experiences joining you these past few years, and what I know about you. I'm a Hunter in the Association now, and it's not that difficult to contact him."
"What do you want me to do?"
Chrollo said calmly.
"Apologize to me."
Hisoka thought for a while, and made a very childish request.
"I'm sorry."
Chrollo didn't hesitate at all.
"I forgive you."
Hisoka said evilly, and then revealed his location.
After hanging up the phone, Chrollo was silent, as if he was thinking.
"Is there something wrong with Hisoka?"
Shizuku on the side asked in confusion.
"No, if there really was something wrong with him, he would most likely pretend that nothing had happened and return to the hotel. After all, there's no benefit for him to show his cards with us, and he would be executed by us! This is more reasonable. The anger after realizing that he was being used as bait... If he had been told the truth from the beginning, he wouldn't have had this kind of reaction. It's precisely because we hid it from him that this sense of rejection and suspicion made him feel uncomfortable."
"And this kind of emotion also happens to show that he's innocent... Since he understands the leader's thoughts, if he was Oboro's pawn, he wouldn't be courting death. He's only one person! Moreover, the Hunter Exam has been going on for so long. If he had told Oboro about us, including the hotel we're staying at, with the Fel family's actions, we would have been attacked long ago..."
"Hehehe..."
Shalnark laughed, "Hisoka is just throwing a tantrum!"
"He's just that kind of person. There's nothing strange about it."
Machi echoed. She was the member of the Troupe who had the longest contact with Hisoka, and was also the one who understood him relatively the most.
Everyone in the Troupe generally had a consensus about Hisoka, which was that he was a madman... Sometimes, it was difficult to understand what he was thinking, and it was also difficult to guess his motives.
To be honest, apart from Machi, who was relatively close to him, the others in the Troupe didn't like Hisoka very much.
He felt too different...
But Hisoka's strength was very strong, and it was also generally acknowledged that he was a reliable partner.
"Leader, do you still want to test him?"
Pakunoda looked at Chrollo.
In this situation, if they still tested Hisoka... Then the relationship between them would really collapse.
Moreover, the leader had also apologized.
Should they risk it and try?
At the cost of abandoning a member... Even if Hisoka was innocent.
"Look at his reaction."
Chrollo gave a sentence.
"Let's go, let's go see him."
...
"Another cup, thank you."
On the other end, Hisoka was sitting in his original seat, and pointed to the empty cup at the clerk.
"Uh... Okay."
The female clerk nodded, and quickly brought the second cup of juice to him.
Hisoka propped his chin with one hand, and continued to bite on the straw, slurping.
Looking at the figures walking on the street, his eyes were relaxed.
He hadn't liked drinking juice very much before, but before the Hunter Exam, he had often drank it with Oboro, which made him feel that juice... Seemed to be not bad either.
____________________
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