__________ POV Narration__________
Everyone in the room looked at the scientist with scorn. After all, they were all at the top of the association when it came to strength.
They had all been recognised by the old chairman, which gave them a certain amount of pride. They obviously wouldn't accept such a claim at face value.
Even if his killing intent took them by surprise, they understood that he may be stronger than a few of the people present. But his claim sounded outrageous to everyone present...
Well, not everyone, Morel knew better than to think the scientist would ever boast in such a boorish way.
Besides, he had seen him win against Netero in the past. Even if they weren't going at it seriously, no one could claim to have defeated the old chairman in such a way.
After all, if Netero were to say these words, no one would dare to refute them. And Morel considered Ashton to be Netero's match.
Still, none of the others had that much insight into this enigma of a man. The only people in the room beside him that didn't react strongly to that statement were Cheadle and the dragon of the Zodiacs. Botobai Gigante.
The current chairman was pondering a few things, processing some of what the scientist had said previously.
Whilst the other had a gut feeling ever since the first time he had met the lab-coated bipedal monster.
His outward appearance didn't give anything away, but that gut feeling coupled with his earlier outburst made the scientist a frightening man in the dragon's eyes.
And a first impression is hard to get rid of... The angriest one was Beyond, who thought the scientist's entire story was a lie and a shitty attempt at gaining a pass.
And he wasn't entirely wrong, although Ashton hadn't lied in any way, he left out many details and left them to interpret his words in many places.
Like how he said he had been there for 'a while' before Netero's expedition. It was not a lie, it just allowed them to come to their own conclusions.
Leaving the truth ambiguous was the best way to go in Ashton's mind. As he had no way of knowing the other party's ability, this was a precaution against any lie-detecting Hatsu.
He was being both deceitful and transparent at the same time, a combination that was may sound simpler on paper than in practice.
Now, it was time for the outrage to ensue. Ashton had said his piece, his tone and mannerisms weren't those of an arrogant miser. He was calm and collected, his words were slow, filled with confidence, but they lacked the demeaning quality of arrogance, which made the reactions of the zodiac somewhat mixed.
Some were angry. "What? You think you're tough just because you took us by surprise for a bit?" Asked the Tiger, also named Kanzai, looking at Ashton like he was his worst enemy.
Others were just looking at him suspiciously. Judging his performance with their eyes and evaluating him in their minds.
"I am not one to inflate my chest and sing out praises in my own name... I just don't want so many people to die due to my words..." The scientist gave a sad sigh. No one interrupted him.
"You see, everyone in this room can easily perish whilst one the dark continent. Only the extremely lucky ones would have a slight chance of survival."
Although Ashton wasn't being completely honest, he was still not downplaying the dangers of his homeland.
The strength of Beyond and the others here could be comparable to a common predator in his homeland.
But the second they run into the more powerful animals, they'd be nothing but tasty food and fertiliser.
The Zodiacs didn't take Ashton's words seriously, at least not a lot of them. His explanation only got them even madder than before.
"Stop underestimating us!" Screamed the angry Kanzai. A yellowish Nen covered his hand as he jumped towards Ashton.
'A practical demonstration... I see.' Ashton almost couldn't help the devious smile threatening to show itself on his face.
But his fun was soon ended. As a frightened Morel slammed his smoking pipe into the Kanzai's face.
The powerful hit sent him flying in the complete opposite direction from the scientist.
Ashton could easily spot the cold sweat on Morels back. If one looked a bit closer to his face a suppressed pout was present.
Like a child that had just been denied a toy in the store.
Ashton wasn't going to kill the short-fused man, but he was going to use him as an example. A Humiliating defeat, a victory decided by only one clash.
Then Smoke Hatsu user knew all too well what was about to happen had he not stopped then hunter's assault.
He wasn't close to the scientist, but he had seen enough of him to be able to somewhat read his intentions. At least on a base level.
He knew that whatever Ashton was planning, Kanzai wasn't going to end up well. He acted on his instincts when hitting the zodiac member, and he had saved him the humiliation.
"What the hell was that!?" Asked Kanzai whilst holding his bleeding nose.
"No, what the hell were you even trying to do?!" Cheadle was angered by her fellow Zodiac's misconduct.
"I-I was just trying to show him that we are strong..." He seemed to deflate when faced with the angry chairman.
"Your behaviour is reprehensible. Even if his words didn't please you, his intentions are good." Botobai said in a sagely manner.
Beyond was strangely silent during this entire argument. His gaze was fixated on Ashton the entire time, his eyes turning wider as he came to a realisation.
"W-wait... Father told me about you..." His strange outburst seemed to silence the argument the Zodiacs were having, as Ashton tilted his head at the restrained man.
"He said that I would eventually meet my uncle... Always wears a suit and lab coat, his appearance never changes over the years... But he said you were supposed to look in your twenties." Beyond was mostly talking to himself at this point.
But the information he was giving the others in the room seemed to annoy Ashton quite a bit.
'Dammned Neteros and their thinking out loud.' Everyone in the room turned to look at him strangely.
"Say... Why do you look older?" Asked Beyond as a strange light flashed in his eyes.
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Hope you like the chapter!
And yes, Beyond gets to live cuz he's Linne's and Netero's only son.
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