Leorio glanced around anxiously and realized there was nothing nearby he could use. The Great-Stamp Wild Boar was getting closer and closer.
"Leorio, over there!"
Lu ou wiped the sweat from his brow. Seeing Leorio scanning his surroundings, he immediately understood that Leorio was still searching for an opportunity. He quickly pointed toward a vine protruding from the ground not far ahead.
In the original story, Leorio had tripped over a vine. Combined with Gon's hint about the boar's weakness, that accident inspired him to use vines to trip the beast.
Now that Lu ou was here, and as long as it didn't affect their overall development, he was more than happy to smooth out a few unnecessary twists.
Following Lu ou's gaze, Leorio spotted the green vine on the ground. His eyes lit up—his chance had come.
He rushed forward, grabbed the vine with all his strength, and yanked it up just as the Great-Stamp Wild Boar charged at him. The raised vine instantly tripped the boar, sending it crashing face-first into the ground.
While the boar struggled to get back up, Leorio lifted his suitcase and smashed it down hard onto the boar's head.
The boar let out a few pitiful snorts before collapsing completely, never to rise again.
"Hahaha! I did it!"
Leorio happily dragged his boar over to Gon and Lu ou, waiting for the others to finish before joining Lu ou to roast the whole pigs together.
Killua had no interest in competing with Leorio, but it was time to end things quickly.
He stopped running, turned around, and stood completely still, letting the Great-Stamp Wild Boar charge straight toward him.
"Killua, be careful!"
Leorio panicked at the sight. Though they hadn't known each other long, they had traveled together for quite some time now—they were companions.
Seeing Killua in danger, Leorio instinctively dropped his boar and prepared to rush over to help.
"Leorio, Killua's got this," Lu ou called out, stopping him from acting rashly.
"Yeah, Leorio—Killua's really strong too," Gon added.
Just as they spoke, the Great-Stamp Wild Boar reached Killua. Killua casually sidestepped, and the boar charged past him.
After running only two more steps, it suddenly collapsed to the ground, completely motionless.
"Huh?"
Leorio stared in disbelief. He hadn't seen Killua make any move at all—so how had the boar gone down? Surely it hadn't just exhausted itself and decided to lie down?
Because of his angle and emotional state, Leorio hadn't seen what happened clearly.
But Lu ou had.
"As expected of the Zoldyck family's heir," Luou sighed in admiration.
Despite being only twelve years old, Killua already possessed strength far beyond his peers, and his combat instincts were exceptional.
Just moments ago, Killua had seized the instant when the boar brushed past him and delivered a single punch to its head. His timing and precision were flawless.
"Killua, that was amazing," Gon said sincerely. Compared to Killua's strength, Gon knew he still had a long way to go.
Killua himself didn't react much, but he was clearly pleased by his friends' praise. His ears twitched slightly as he casually dragged his prey toward the group.
Leorio curiously examined the boar Killua was holding. When he noticed the dent in its skull, he finally understood Killua's method.
"Kid, you're pretty impressive," Leorio said. He hadn't expected the quiet one to be hiding such strength.
"Old man, you weren't bad either," Killua replied.
Following the principle of 'you compliment me, I'll compliment you back,' he tried to say something nice—but with his usual cocky tone, Leorio didn't feel much goodwill in it.
Suddenly, a boar's agonized scream echoed through the forest.
Lu ou and the others looked up and saw Kurapika with his prey.
Kurapika had lured the boar between two massive boulders. Once it was wedged tightly in place, he picked up a basin-sized rock nearby and repeatedly smashed it down on the boar's head.
The screams they heard were the result of Kurapika's merciless pounding.
"Alright," Lu ou said. "Since we've all caught a Great-Stamp Wild Boar, let's hurry to the river to clean them and start roasting. These pigs are huge—they'll take a while to cook. Time waits for no one."
Seeing that other examinees were still scrambling to hunt their boars, Lu ou quickly motioned for everyone to drag their prey and follow him, taking advantage of the time gap.
"Got it, Lu ou!"
Gon was the first to respond, dragging his boar along behind Lu ou.
The others quickly followed. After all, not knowing how to cook was a serious weakness.
By the river, Lu ou had already begun cleaning the boars using the flowing water. After the initial chaos, more examinees gradually succeeded in hunting their pigs as well.
Especially after hearing Gon shout earlier about the boars' weak points—one solid blow was all it took.
For example, Hanzo used a piece of canvas from who-knows-where to block off a boulder, then lured a boar into charging straight into it—ending the fight instantly.
The Amori brothers, on the other hand, simply knocked out three boars with blunt force, which was oddly hilarious.
Crackle, crackle.
The flames crackled softly in the breeze.
The Great-Stamp Wild Boars, brushed with Lu ou's custom spice blend, released waves of mouthwatering aroma as they roasted over the fire.
They weren't fully cooked yet, but compared to the charred disasters from the original story, these were on an entirely different level.
Five whole boars were skewered side by side on massive tree branches—an impressive sight rarely seen outside of anime.
"In the second round, Menchi will definitely ask everyone to make sushi again," Lu ou thought. "We should prepare some fish now. That way we won't have to run around later—wasting time and effort for nothing."
At Lu ou's current level, he knew how to make sushi, but it probably still wouldn't meet Menchi's standards. After all, she was a top-tier Gourmet Hunter.
A retest was inevitable—so he might as well save some effort and aim to stand out a bit. Who knew? He might even earn a reward.
Thinking about the Scale Powder Menchi scraped in the original story made Lu ou itch with anticipation. It was top-grade ingredient material. Even if he couldn't obtain it yet, that didn't mean he wouldn't one day.
"Gon, Leorio, Kurapika, Killua—I'll watch the fire here. You guys go catch some river fish. We might need them later," Luou said.
"Need them?" Kurapika asked. "Do you think the next test might involve fish?"
"I think so," Lu ou replied seriously. "We started on land, so logically, the next challenge might involve something aquatic. Fish would be the most likely."
Lu ou was, as always, confidently making things up.
Once again, Master Lu ou the Fortune Teller had begun calculating heaven and earth—looking every bit like a sage with an air of otherworldly wisdom.