Chapter Art
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Kurapika stares at the man who's pointing his fingers at him. The man with a face full of tears and snot dripping out of his nose, making himself look like an idiot. The man, who had somehow made his dying and lonely heart, beat again.
It had been four years since he had felt his heartbeat. After finding out his home had been ravaged and his entire clan had been massacred.
He closes his eyes as the image that has been haunting him for four years appears again in his mind. His brethren surround him just like they did when he was about to leave the village to find an eye doctor for his best friend, but this time it's different. There are no smiles on their face, there are no words of encouragement, and no laughter. They stare at him emotionlessly, with holes where their eyes are supposed to be. Their clothes are ripped and tattered in which one can see many gruesome wounds on their pale bodies.
Kurapika stood still, frozen. His head starts to sweat, he starts to breathe frantically, and his body starts to tremble in fear. He keeps his head down, as he couldn't bear to see the horrible state of his former clansmen, but he could still feel their stare on his body. Those eyeless gazes are staring at him, silently, as if judging him for being the only one alive.
He stayed in that state for what felt like an eternity until he felt his body shaking and a familiar voice calling out to him.
"-Hey, hey! Can you hear me Kurapika?! Wake up!"
He looked up to see that it was Manfred, the boy who had declared his insane dream of making the entire sky his.
He could see those sharp eyes looking at him with a hint of worry. At first, he doesn't understand why the boy is looking at him like that until he realizes that his soaked body was trembling. He lowered his head, closing his eyes trying to calm himself down before looking up again at the boy.
"Huh? Oh, it's Manfred. I'm sorry for worrying you, but I'm fine. I was just feeling cold from the rain." He lied, as he force his body to shiver and let out a few shaky breaths as if trying to prove his point.
"Oh, I see. It seems like the rain has gotten you pretty bad huh? You should take some rest to not let yourself get sick." The younger boy who had a similar past as him answered, trying to comfort him.
He doesn't know why, but he could feel that the boy knew he was lying. He could see those sharp hawk-like eyes of the boy staring into his eyes that were hidden underneath the contact lenses intently, boring into his soul directly. He felt completely naked under that gaze as if he had nothing he could hide.
Until finally the boy, Manfred takes his gaze back as he stares at him with a smile of sympathy and sadness. He doesn't understand that look. He doesn't understand, how can a boy who looks a few years younger than him could have such a mature look. What could the boy have gone through to have such a look?
He wanted to ask that question, but something inside him held him back. His instinct tells him that he wouldn't want to know the answer to that question. He has a feeling that he would regret knowing the answer.
He turns his head elsewhere to hide from the look the boy is giving him. He looks around to see that the sailors who originally surrounded them have gone back to their posts, going back to work.
"-*Sniff* What were you thinking, you moron! You shouldn't have just jumped out to action without any plan, you reckless idiot! If it wasn't for Manfred who jumped after you, you'd be sleeping with the fishes as we speak!"
Kurapika turned around to the voice to see the man Reo- Leorio is currently berating Gon, the boy who had just pulled a death-seeking stunt to save a person. He could see Leorio, pointing his index finger into the reckless boy's forehead as he spoke with a face full of worry. It appears that Leorio had managed to clean his face while he was distracted, but he could still see the tear stains and red eyes of the man.
He unconsciously lets out a soft smile as he looks at the man who continues to berate the boy. He had misunderstood the man. The man who he had initially thought to be nothing but a greedy and perverted bastard, turns out to be a man with a noble dream and a heart of gold.
As he thought of that, he could feel his previously silent heart starts to beat again.
He still remembers the feeling from earlier but opted to ignore this familiar yet completely unknown. Because he doesn't have the rights nor the luxury to feel that way. He couldn't afford to get distracted now.
Not when the group who is the cause of his suffering, is still out there, alive and breathing. Causing countless harm to innocent people. He has a mission, a vendetta that he needs to accomplish, and he will complete it, one way or another.
He calms his heart as he makes his way to Gon and Leorio.
"He's right, Gon. What you did is completely stupid and dangerous! If Manfred isn't there to save you, you would already be swallowed by the ocean! Even a mermaid would be hard-pressed to survive the maelstrom out there! You'd go under in a split second!" Said Kurapika as he began to join Leorio in berating the boy.
"Yeah! and don't even think I would forget about you, Manfred! Why would you go on follow Gon's step?! I thought you were supposed to be the mature one in here!" Leorio pointed out turning his attention to the second boy who had been watching from the sideline.
"Eh?" The boy, Manfred. let out a voice in confusion as he wonders how can the man manage to notice him watching. He's pretty sure he has completely hidden his presence.
"But you did catch me." Gon said, catching the trio's attention.
"Huh?"
"The three of you did!" The boy said with a bright smile on his face.
"W-well, I guess so..." Leorio said, as he, Manfred, and Kurapika looked at the boy completely stunned, not knowing what to say.
"Guys!" a voice called out to them, making them shift their attention to the voice. It was Katzo, they could see the sailor who had been thrown off the ship walking toward them with a pale face, with the Captain walking a few steps behind him.
"Everyone, thank you for saving me! If it weren't for all of you, I would already be sent to the depth of the sea by now." Katzo said as he give a smile to them
"No, you don't need to thank me. It was mostly Leorio, Gon, and Manfred who save you." Kurapika folds his arms and turns his head to the side, not willing to take the credit for saving the sailor.
"No, you're wrong. We would've failed to save him if it weren't for you and Leorio who pulled us back into the boat. Don't try to sell yourself short, Kurapika!" The boy, Manfred who had been silently watching them, decided to join them.
"Yeah, Kurapika! You also helped us!" Gon, the cheerful boy followed in after Manfred.
"Thank you, Kurapika-san, and Leorio-san!" Katzo said as he bowed in gratitude to both Leorio and Kurapika. Making both of them embarrassed.
"Well... yeah, I'm glad you're ok," Leorio said, giving Katzo a cheerful smile with his eyes closed and flushed cheeks.
"Yeah! So, I'll be returning to my station!." Katzo gives them one last bow before turning around to try to go back to do his job when realizes his Captain has been standing behind him watching them with a bottle of rum in his right hand. "Captain!"
"Where do you think you're going, kid? Go back to your quarters and take a good rest. You had almost died earlier." The Captain said, giving his men some time off to get some rest after almost dying.
"A-aye, Captain!"
Leorio watches the man that he had just saved salute the Captain before walking back to his living quarters when he notices Kurapika has been looking at him from the side.
"What?" Leorio asked awkwardly, as he was still feeling guilty from the words he had said to the blonde.
"No, It was nothing." Kurapika gives him an amused smile as he begins to apologize to Leorio.
"I'm sorry, for my rude behavior. Sorry, Leorio-san." Kurapika said, looking directly into Leorio's eyes.
"Wh-What's with the sudden change? We sound like strangers. Just call me Leorio." Leorio said turning his head to the side as wave his hands, embarrassed.
Kurapika smiled, looking at the man's action.
"I'm also sorry. I take back everything I said. I was wrong" Leorio said solemnly.
"No, it's ok."
Gon and Manfred who had been watching from the side looked at each other, noticing the smiles they had on their faces.
"Gyeeehahaha! I like you guys! Ok! I'll be taking responsibility to bring this old ship to the port as soon as possible." The Captain laughed as he turns around to go back to the bridge to take command of the ship.
"Really? What about your tests?" Gon asked.
"Like I said... It's my decision to make." The captain stopped his steps as he turned his head to the side answering the question.
The Captain gives them a big grin, "And all four of you passed!".
Hearing that, the four applicants smiled and Gon jumped up in celebration, "Yay!"
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January 6th, 1999.
[2 Days after the Storm]
After winning the Captain's favor, the four Manfred, Kurapika, Leorio, and Gon arrived safely at Dolle Harbor. The four of them stood in front of the Captain to express their thanks and say goodbye.
"Thanks for everything, Captain!" Gon shook the Captain's hand as he offered his gratitude.
"Fair seas, to you lads! Good luck, with taking on the Exam. I don't want to see you, troublesome lads on my ship again next year!" The Captain laugh as he shook the boy's hand.
"And a final word, if I may." The Captain said in a low voice, making the four of them look at him in inquiry.
"That big cedar tree up there, on that hill might be a good place to start lookin' for the Exam Hall." The Captain points at a big tree on top of a hill in the distance.
"Eh? Really? I thought we were supposed to head to Zaban City for the Exam Hall?" Leorio asked the Captain in confusion, same with the other three.
"Heh, the trip to Zaban City is a trap the examination committee has set for those who had failed the tests. None of the express buses will ever reach the city" The captain said as he let out a puff of smoke.
Hearing that, the four open their eyes wide in the realization of the new information. Manfred turns his head to the big tree as his pupil shrinks and his vision zooms in on that tree.
Between the thick foliage, he could see there was a lone cabin underneath the big tree, with some shadows moving around between the trees.
He focused his gaze on those shadows, to see a yellow magical beast moving known as a Kiriko moving through the forest. Manfred raised an eyebrow wondering why would the Captain tell them to go to a place infested with magical beasts.
'Well, it doesn't matter. Since the Captain had told us to go then there's a chance that this is just another part of the Hunter Exam'
Manfred smiled in anticipation, as he couldn't wait to see what the exam has for him.
With that done, they all say goodbye to the Captain before heading to the place the captain suggested.
The walk to the tree was calm and peaceful as they traveled through the city, towards their destination.
Manfred walks with a calm face as he gave a discreet glance at Kurapika.
'I should probably hold off to the information about the White Hare for now. His emotions are too unstable to bear this news.'
Manfred thought as he decided to wait for the right time to tell the blonde boy Kurapika. He knows that telling the info to him now will only push the boy deeper into the abyss. After all, there's a reason why the saying "There is bliss in ignorance" came to exist.
He wants to help the blonde who reminded him so much of his past self. He also used to have the same nightmares just like the blonde. The Nightmare still haunts him to this day, even though he had already finished off the people that had caused him so much grief.
He could still remember the time when he asked, his adoptive father/sensei, why he is still hurting from the nightmare. Why did the nightmare still exist even after he had gotten his revenge? To which the man looks at his eyes as he speaks solemnly.
{" It's because you can't. Those images will always exist in your head, hiding somewhere deep inside your mind. Occasionally resurfacing to haunt you. What you need to learn is not to forget those memories, but to learn how to live with them. Let those memories be a reminder of the times when you were weak, in which you failed to protect those who you loved. And try to not let those moments happen again in your future."}
He smiles when he recalls the face of his father as he said that. Those deadened eyes that look deep into his own eyes. Those eyes looked at him solemnly, but he could still see the hints of reminiscence in those eyes. He had tried to investigate the past of his adoptive father, but he couldn't find anything about the man. That man had hidden and guarded his secrets too tightly.
While he was lost in his thoughts, thinking about his father, Gon decided to ask Manfred the question he had been meaning to ask before.
"Ne, ne, Manfred! How old are you right now?"
"Hmm, well, I was born on January 1st, 1987. So I should already be 12 right now." Manfred smiled at Gon, moving his thought back to the present.
"Really?! My birthday is on May 5th of the same year, so we should be the same age!" Gon said with bright eyes as he looks at the Hawk-eyed boy who has the same age as him.
"And how about you guys, Kurapika, Leorio?", He turns his head to look at Kurapika and Leorio who are watching their conversation.
"I'm 17 and I was born on April 4th, 1982." The bishounen, Kurapika smiled at the cheerful boy, joining in their conversation.
"I'm 19, I was born on March 3rd, 1980!" The older-looking man pointed at himself, replying to Gon's question with a big smile.
At that, the trio Manfred, Gon, and Kurapika, stumble as they snap their heads to Leorio in shock.
"Eh?! You're 19?!" All of them shouted at Leorio. Couldn't believe that the older-looking man is also a teenager just like them.
Seeing those stupefied looks the trio is giving him, Leorio's veins popped as he looks at them, pissed. "Oi! What does that suppose to mean?! I don't look that old!"
'No. No matter how we look at you, you seem like you're in the middle of your twenties.' all three of them thought, as they look at his angry face.
"*cough*, I'm not trying to be rude, but you look older than your actual age. When I first saw you, I thought you were in your mid-twenties" Manfred said as he awkwardly looks at Leorio, to which both Gon and Kurapika nodded in agreement as they continued walking.
"What?! ...screw you guys, I don't look that old!" Leorio looks to the side pouting and grumbling to himself as they arrive at a desolate town, which took the attention of all of them.
Manfred, Kurapika, and Gon frowned, as they could sense there were people in front of them hiding, despite the desolate look of the village it seemed to be.
*Caw*
As they enter the town, they could see many ravens staying on the rooftops of the houses cawing and staring at them, giving the desolate town an even more ominous aura. The sounds of their footsteps seem to be particularly loud as they reverberate through the narrow streets of the silent town.
"What a creepy place... I don't see a single person around..." Leorio said as he began to feel creeped out by the place.
"No, there are a lot of folks around. I could hear them." Gon replied as his animal-like instinct kicked into action. He could hear many hurried footsteps coming from one of the buildings
"Yeah. Keep your guard up." Kurapika agreed with Gon, as he too began to look around vigilantly.
And Manfred just continues walking with what seems to be a relaxed posture. But if one looked closely at his hands, one could see his palms are now open wide, facing outside as his posture lowered, putting his whole weight to the front of his feet.
Although he could feel that the gazes held no malicious intent, he still decided to be ready for a fight because he knows there are people out there who can completely hide their bloodlust until they were about to strike. But then again, those kinds of people won't just let their presence be known so carelessly, so he still decided to hold back on some of his strength, just in case this is just another test and not a real fight.
"Huh?" Leorio hearing what Gon and Kurapika said, immediately looks around, trying to find out if people are hiding somewhere.
*Creeeaaak*
Suddenly, the doors to one of the buildings opened up, showing two figures, one with blue hair and another with red hair, dressed completely in a white robe that covers their whole body and wearing white masks dragging out a small stage.
As they walked out of the building they could see more and more people with the same attire and different hair colors coming out, and the small stage completely blocks the street from anyone who tried to walk through the road.
There are six of those masked people on the stage holding musical instruments, except for one who is holding a raven and in the middle of them is an old woman sitting resting her chin on the top of her hands, with her eyes completely closed.
The four of them stare at the weird group, not knowing how to feel about this situation.
"W-What's up with this freak show?" Leorio asked, confused looking at the group in front of him.
They all stare at the old woman in the middle, as she seems to be the leader of the group. The old woman has a hunched back and long, gray hair tied behind her back, and a wrinkled face. All her teeth have fallen out except for two, which protruded from her lips. She wears a tabi, a pink skirt, a light purple shirt with large sleeves and a darker collar and hem, a light shirt, and a white necklace reminiscent of Buddhist prayer beads, with leaves between some of them.
"Exciting." The old woman said with her eyes still closed, making the four applicants tense up.
"E-Exciting?" Leorio asked with a nervous voice.
"Exciting..." The old woman repeated her earlier words, now the tension had reached an all-time high.
"Exciting..." Leorio said, gulping his saliva in nervousness.
"It's time for the exciting Two-Choice Quiz!!" The old woman, opened her eyes wide, glaring at them with bloodshot eyes as the masked people behind her starts to play a tune as if they are announcing the start of a game show.
"Eh?" The four applicants frozed, stunned at the theatrics the weird group is showing them.
The old woman closes her eyes again, before speaking. "You boys are heading to that big tree up on that hill, correct? To reach that tree, you must pass through this town".
The four put all of their attention on her, realizing that this is just another test the Examination Committee has set up for them before they can reach the Exam Hall.
"I will pose a single question and give you five seconds to answer. Answer incorrectly and you will fail. There will be no Hunter's License for you this year." The woman said, confirming the assumption of everyone.
"I see... Then is is another part of the Hunter Exam." Kurapika said with a smile.
"I see how it is. I happen to be a quiz master, so this should be easy- Hold on, only one question?!" Leorio said, putting his suitcase down, initially confident in his ability before realizing what the woman had just said.
"Your answer will be either number 1 or number 2. Say anything else, no matter how clever, will be considered incorrect" The woman explained the rules of the quiz, opening her eyes slightly to take a look at this batch of applicants.
"Hold on! All four of us share one question? So if one of us answered incorrectly, I'm disqualified, too?" Leorio said pointing at himself.
"As if that would happen! What scares me is the high likelihood of the vice versa happening."
Kurapika shakes his head, provoking Leorio. making the latter mad. "What was that?!"
"But you know... This way is easier since only one person needs to know the answer. I'm not good at quizzes." Gon interrupted them, trying to look at the bright side.
"That's right, Leorio. If we are not sure, we could discuss it with the others to find the correct answer." Manfred added trying to calm the tall teenager down.
"Well... Ok, if you put it that way." Leorio said looking at the two boys as he seems to accept the boy's words.
*Tshh* *tshh* *tshh*
The sound of footsteps walking on the sandy road caught their attention as they turned around to see a person walking toward them with a confident smile.
"What's the hold up here? Mind if I go first?" The man said giving them a sly grin.
"Who are you?" Leorio asked the new face when Gon answered him, "He followed us here, all the way from the port."
"Eh, really?" Leorio is shocked as he didn't notice someone was following them from the start.
Manfred's eyebrows twitched at seeing the carelessness of the teen. Wondering how he could manage to notice him hiding his presence on the ship a few days ago when he couldn't even notice this slob's poor attempt at stalking.
"I'm sorry everyone but I happened to overheard y'all conversation with your sailor friend." As the man was walking past them, he decided to tell them the reason why he was following them.
"So?" The quiz lady asked them, letting them decide who would go first.
"Well, we can let him go first since he is so eager. In that way, we can see what kind of questions we could expect." Leorio decided to take the backseat, as it is better for them to gather more information before it is their turn.
"I don't mind."
"I have no objection."
"It's the same with me."
Gon, Kurapika, and Manfred agreed with Leorio since it is more advantageous for them to wait and see.
"Here's the question." The quiz lady looked at the new participant who had just arrived.
"Evil people had taken your mother and your lover captive. You may only save one.
1. For your mother
2. For your lover.
Which do you choose to save?"
The quiz lady looked at the big-nosed man in front of her.
The others hearing her quizzes look at her stunned by the nature of her quiz.
Manfred frowned after hearing the question, as it appears that the quiz is way trickier than he had thought it would be.
'This question is very subjective. Different people will give different answers depending on their own experiences. And when this one question is shared with four different individuals who have different views and morals, it will cause a conflict between them over which answer is the correct option. There's really no clear answer to this question.'
Manfred begins to think, folding his arms, as he begins to think over what the lady had just said.
The man who is currently doing the quiz, put his fingers over his mouth as he began to pretend that he was thinking about the question.
"Number 1!" The man answered with conviction as if he was sure that what he said was the correct answer.
'Heh, in fact, I'd choose my true love... But no doubt this hag favors the answer I gave' The man looks at the Quiz Lady with a smile as he thinks that he had figured out the nature of the quiz.
"You reason?" The quiz lady asked, staring directly at the man's eyes.
"You can replace your lover, but you can't replace your mother." The man said with a smile, giving out his reason for his answer.
They all stood silent, looking at the quiz lady, waiting for her response.
*Caw*
The raven on one of the masked man's arms cawed as she waved his hand, letting the other masked man know that the applicant could go on through the road, "You may pass."
'Heh fools, I will leave a set of traps on my trails"
With that, the man walked ahead with a confident smirk on his face as he took one last glance at the four applicants who are waiting for their turns.
"ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?! YOU CRAZY OLD HAG!! WHAT KIND OF QUIZ IS THIS?!" Leorio shouted at the quiz lady, completely enraged at the absurdity of the quiz.
"There's no 'RIGHT' answer to that question, and never has been! You applicant screeners are full of shit, you know that! Fuck this whole quiz! I'm gonna go find another route to the exam hall!" Leorio turned around and pick-ups his suitcase walking away angrily, planning to find another way to the exam hall.
"There's no other route to the exam hall... Not for you. This is the only way for you to pass." The quiz lady said calmly, ignoring the insults Leorio had just thrown at her.
Leorio's veins popped as he froze in his tracks.
Kurapika and Manfred who had been thinking about the quiz, immediately opened their eyes wide in realization when they heard Leorio mention there's no right answer to the question.
"Leorio!" They both said at the same time, turning around to the angry teen to prevent him from doing anything rash.
"What?! You intend to go along with this farce?!" Leorio snapped back at them.
Then suddenly the quiz lady shouts at them "Stop!" Manfred and Kurapika who had just about to tell Leorio what they had just found swallowed their words.
"Any more words, then all of you will be immediately disqualified!" The quiz lady sternly said looking at them.
'The blonde and the hawk-eyed lads have figured out the answer.'
"Answer now!
1. You take the quiz.
2. You all forfeit."
The quiz lady gave them an ultimatum, preventing them from giving their friends any more hints.
"Number 1!" Kurapika answered immediately.
"Ugh-!!" Leorio glared at the quiz lady, gritting his teeth in anger.
'Think, Leorio! It's a simple trick! Manfred, Gon, I'm sure you guys picked up on it too!! It's not about the question, but what we hear and what we don't hear!'
Kurapika glanced at the angry teenager, now sweating hoping that the teen didn't do anything stupid. He also cast a glance at Gon who is still frowning deep in thought and Manfred who is also looking at Leorio nervously.
The quiz lady stands from her seat with a cane in her right hand and raises her left hand in the air as she gives them the quiz
"Here's the question!
Your daughter and your son had been kidnapped. You can only get one back.
Which will you get back?
1. Your daughter.
2. Your son."
She watches as the hawk-eyed boy and the blonde tense up, glancing at the infuriated tall man who is looking around with gritted teeth.
"Five," The quiz lady began the countdown.
'Same question?! Does she takes me for an idiot?!' Leorio's veins popped as he began to look around, noticing a bunch of sticks leaning on the wall near him.
"Four,"
He walks toward them, breaking one of the sticks in half before turning towards the quiz lady glaring at her with a stoic face.
'Go on, keep counting down!!!' He thought as he began to swing the stick in his hand.
"Three,"
'That's how long you have to live, old hag!!' He looks at the quiz lady while swinging the stick around, preparing to strike when the countdown hits zero.
"Two,"
Manfred and Kurapika start tensing up, preparing to immediately stop Leorio, before he does anything stupid. While Gon is still lost in his thought, looking down with his arms folded.
"One,"
When the countdown hits one, Leorio starts running at the quiz lady. Swinging the stick from overhead.
"Zero, Your time's up."
*Thud*
But just as he was about to hit the Quiz lady, Kurapika blocked his strike with his bokken swords and Manfred pulled his suit from behind with one hand, preventing him from taking another step.
"Why'd you guys stop me?!" Leorio glared at the two boys.
"Just calm down, why won't you?!" Kurapika shouts on the teenager's face.
"I won't! I'm extremely pissed!!" Leorio returned the shout as he began to point at the quiz lady.
"I wanna knock her head off, and storm the Exam Hall!! I wanna bust some examiner's head and show 'em they're not so hot!! Who cares about Hunters, anyway! Always slinking around, niffing after bounties! Who needs 'em?!" Leorio said with his veins popping, as he began to get more and more pissed from every word he said.
"We've passed the test, Leorio." Kurapika looks directly at Leorio's eyes, making him stop at seeing the seriousness in the blonde's eyes.
"eh, what?" Leorio said, dumbfounded by what Kurapika said.
"Phew! Control your temper, Leorio." Kurapika swings his sword, knocking the stick on Leorio's hand down, and Manfred lets go of his hold of Leorio as he notices the teenager had begun to calm down.
"Don't you see?! The correct response is No response." Kurapika began to explain while Leorio just looks at him, confused at what the blonde is trying to say.
"As you aptly said yourself, neither choice is 'RIGHT'. She told us that we could only say 1 or 2, but she didn't tell us that she had to say anything. Silence indeed was golden." Kurapika put his index finger over his lip, ending his explanation.
"But that snide punk-"
"She didn't say he was right. She only says he can pass." Manfred added from behind.
Kurapika nods at him as he continues what he was about to say. "I heard his screams earlier. I don't think he got very far before encountering a magical beast."
Kurapika points in the direction of the previous applicant's walkthrough, "My conclusion-- This isn't the right path."
"You're right," the quiz lady said as she make her way down the stage.
She nodded at two of the masked men. The two masked men open up a gate of one of the buildings showing a dark tunnel with a small light visible at the end of it.
*Creeeeak*
"This is the real path. It's a plain trail, with no branches or forks. You'll reach the summit in two hours." The quiz lady looks at them, "A couple lives in the cabin beneath the tree. They serve as navigators. If you meet their standards, they will take you straight to the exam hall."
Leorio could only stare stupidly at the old lady and the dark tunnel. He realized that he had almost made a huge blunder. He drops the stick he's still holding in his hand and makes his way to the quiz lady.
"Granny, I'm sorry for my rudeness." He bowed his head, apologizing to her.
"Don't be. I don't mind." The quiz lady shakes her head,
"I do this job because I enjoy meeting people like you. Do your best to become a Hunter." The quiz lady smiled at him.
Leorio returned her smile while scratching his head when they suddenly hears Gon let out a huge breath.
"Uwaah! ...I can't!! I can't figure out an answer!" Gon said with a big smile at them.
Manfred, Kurapika, and Leorio stared with wide eyes at the boy, before they started laughing.
"You can stop thinking now. We passed." Leorio said with a big grin at the boy
"What do you mean?" Gon looks at them, tilting his head.
"We mean, the quiz is over!" Leorio answered still with a big grin on his face.
"Oh, I know... But... What if, one day, you have to make a choice like that?" They all lost their smiles as they stared at the boy.
"What then?" Gon looks at them seriously.
"It won't be about which is 'correct'... But, what's truly in your heart, when the situation happened."
They could only stare at the boy silently.
'Yes... that's the true intention of the quiz. You need to get accustomed to enduring the thought of cruel possibilities. After all, reality has the tendency to turn ruthless in a heartbeat. The day will eventually come... when you have to say goodbye.'
The quiz lady, watch as they say their good byes, and walks through the dark tunnel, heading towards their next destination.
They continue on their journey, walking through the dark tunnel in silence as they are still thinking about the boy's words.
-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-
When they finally reached the end of the tunnel, they realized that the sky had darkened as the moon is shining its pale blue light, replacing the sun, as the only source of light in the night.
The pale shimmer of the moon illuminates the forest giving it a mystical yet eerie vibe.
They all look at each other before shrugging their shoulders and continue walking to find the cabin where the navigators are staying.
"Everyone be on the lookout. I feel like someone is watching us." Manfred said, looking around as he could feel a gaze on his body.
"What do you mean?" Kurapika looks at the boy
"When we were still in the port, I could see a Kiriko, wandering around this area," Manfred said making everyone looks at him shocked.
"Wait what?! You can see this place from the port? But this place is more than 10 miles from the port!" Leorio's eyes widen as he looks at the Hawk-like eyes that boy has.
"Really? Ne, Manfred, how far can you see?" Gon asked as he looks at Manfred's eyes with curiosity.
"Well, my normal eyesight could see up to a mile. But if I focused my eyes like this--"
They all could see that the boy's pupil shrinks to the size of a needlepoint, making him look like an eagle about to dive in and go in for a kill.
"My sight could go up to a little under 20 miles," Manfred said with a smile, feeling a little proud that he could show off his talent to the boy who is the same age as him.
Seeing their looks of astonishment, the boy gave them a smug grin before trying to divert them back to their attention back to the cabin.
"Ok guys, we can talk about my completely amazing eyes, later. Right now we need to find the Navigators to get to the exam site as soon as possible."
"He's right. But I'm still worried about the Kiriko you're talking about. The magical beast could still be around." Kurapika said, deciding he would be more vigilant about his surroundings
"What is a Kiriko?" Gon asked Kurapika, as the blonde seems to know more about the beast.
"A Kiriko is a magical beast that has the ability to shape-shift. They can take on a human form, and they are extremely intelligent."
Just as Kurapika finished his explanation, they reached a clearing where one could see a lone cabin and on the side of it, they could see the pine tree that stood taller than all of the trees in the surrounding area.
"It's quiet, is anyone else home?" Kurapika said as he eyed the dark cabin in front of him.
They all walked up to the front door, with Leorio taking the lead to knock on the door of the cabin.
*knock knock*
*Silence*
Leorio turned his head to glance at the others with a frown on his face making a hand gesture of opening a door, to which Kurapika nodded, letting the man do what he wants.
"We're coming in."
Leorio opened the door, and what greeted them was the beast Kiriko that Manfred had told them about, standing in the middle of the room, with all of the surrounding furniture in disarray, holding a woman by the neck.
The magical beast is large, standing on two legs, covered in light brown fur, which is thicker on its head, shoulders, chest, stomach, and pubic region. It has both anthropomorphic and fox-like traits. It has three fingers per hand and three toes per foot, all considerably long, ending in sharp claws. With an elongated muzzle, thin eyes, long ears with a darker top half, six whiskers, and a long, thin tail ending in a darker tuft of fur.
Behind the beast, they could see a gravely wounded man lying on the ground bleeding.
"Kyukyukyukyukyu" The beast gives them an eerie laugh.
"It's the Kiriko!" Kurapika exclaimed in alarm as he took out the bokken sword he hid behind him.
They all immediately prepare for a fight.
But contrary to their expectations, the beast decided to jump through the window in the back, with the woman hostage in its arms.
They ran to the broken window, to see that the beast had run into the woods carrying the women hostage.
"Leorio, we leave the injured man up to you!"
"Leave it to me!"
Manfred, Gon, and Kurapika jumped through the broken window to chase the beast.
"It escaped into the wood! Which way did it go?" Kurapika look at the dark woods when Gon and Manfred immediately made a quick dash in a direction.
"It's this way!"
Hearing that, he thought it was Manfred, the boy with monstrous eyesight who said that, but to his surprise, it was the spiky-haired boy, Gon, who turns out also has excellent eyesight.
They chase the beast deep into the forest. The faint shadow of the beast getting away, jumping from tree to tree.
Gon and Manfred, deciding that it would be too slow to run on the ground, jumped on the branches of the trees, as they began to follow the beast, getting closer to it with each second.
Kurapika watches as the two boys jump from tree to tree, slowly leaving him behind.
'These two boys are quite something.' Kurapika thought with a smile as he began to up his speed, trying to keep up with them.
"Kiriko, let go of her!"
"Come and get her if you can! Kekeke!!"
The beast spoke surprising Gon who had just shouted at it.
"Wow!! It can talk!! Did you hear that?" Gon turns to Manfred who is following behind him with bright eyes.
"Of course, it can talk! It's a magical beast, not just your normal day beast!"
'He shouted at it without even knowing it can talk?' Manfred sweatdropped at the boy.
"Ah! Then that makes this a lot easier." Gon looks at the beast, smiling with a plan in his mind
"Hey, you stupid Kiriko!!!"
"What?!--" The beast turned around, to see the boy who had just insulted it jump from a branch, appearing instantly in front of it, swinging the fishing pole in his hand to its head.
'He's fast!--'
*Whack*
The Kiriko lets go of the lady, letting the lady fall, heading towards the ground.
"Manfred, the girl!"
Manfred seeing that, jumped towards her, catching her mid-air as he landed on the ground.
"Hey, Gon!! Be more careful next time!"
"Sorry!"
"Stupid boy." The beast, now standing on a branch, glared at the two boys before escaping once again into the dark forest, "I won't forget this!"
Seeing the beast escape, Gon immediately runs after it.
"Wait, Gon!" Manfred shouted at the boy, but it was too late, as the boy had already run too far.
*Rustle*
Kurapika ran out of the bushes, finally caught up with him.
"Manfred? Where's Gon?" Kurapika as he looks around only to see Manfred alone with no sight of the other boy around.
"Kurapika, take care of the lady. I'm gonna go chase after them."
"Understood, be careful."
Manfred gently handed over the lady in his arms to Kurapika, before running off in the direction where Gon had gone through.
...
Manfred jumps from tree to tree, looks around trying to find Gon with his Sharp eyes, when he sees a faint shadow moving in the distance.
He focused on the shadow, finding out that it was the Kiriko he had been chasing, but there was still no sight of Gon anywhere.
Manfred frowned as he glared at the beast. His mind had wandered to the possibility of the beast killing Gon, the boy who he had thought of as his friend, making him angry. The light in his sharp eyes disappeared, as it turned dull, devoid of any life.
The Kiriko sensed a great killing intent coming from his back. He stopped at a branch as he turns around to see where the aura was coming from to see there was nothing.
'W-what was that? Was that an illusion?' The Kiriko is sweating, as he thought back to the aura. He wished to believe that it was just an illusion, but his beastly instinct is telling him otherwise.
He could feel a sharp gaze on its body. As if someone is grazing an extremely sharp knife on its skin.
It frantically looked around the dark forest as it began to panic. The forest was ghost-silent, with only the pale light of the moon shining through the leaves as a source of light, giving the already dark forest an eerie vibe to it.
The Kiriko's breathing began to go faster as it couldn't help but feel fear. Just as it was about to move, suddenly it could hear a wind whistling coming at him from its side. It turned its head to see one of the boys chasing him earlier dashing at it, with his arms pulled back and his wrists twisting 360°, aiming to strike his head.
"WAIT!!!-----"
Right as the boy's hand was about to touch its face, the Kiriko screamed making the boy stop in his track, as he looks at the Kiriko silently.
"Y-yo-you passed! Y-You passed the test!!" Realizing it had just brushed face to face with death, the Kiriko stumbled backward, falling on his bottom with its hand over its chest, breathing rapidly.
Manfred stares at the fallen Kiriko.
"This is just a test? Then where's my friend, Gon?"
"He's now with my wife. I managed to make him lose track of me as me and my wife switched turns to test him. He should be ok!"
The Kiriko said as he stare at the boy's dull eyes in front of him quivering.
The boy's usual sharp gaze is now gone, replaced with coldness and indifference as he continues to gaze at the shaking eyes of the beast, freezing it to its core.
Manfred could see in its eyes that the Kiriko was telling the truth. He watches as the terrified Kiriko's quivering eyes slowly stop and his ragged breath calms down, before closing his eyes.
When the boy's eyes opened, the Kiriko could see the boy's once cold and dull eyes go back to normal. The lifeless look is now nowhere to be seen as the sharp gaze of the hawkish eyes return.
"Hahaha. I-is that so? Sorry about that, sir. It seems that had lost control of my emotion again." Manfred gives the Kiriko an awkward smile while scratching his cheeks.
"W-Well, it's fine. Let's go back to the cabin so I could explain the situation in detail." The Kiriko said, not wanting to stay alone with the terrifying boy more than he needs to, to which Manfred nodded at him.
...
Going back to where they started, the two of them can see that six people were standing in front of the cabin.
Kurapika, Gon, and Leorio are standing looking at the previously wounded man, the kidnapped girl, and another Kiriko, who shouts at them when it notices the two of them are coming.
"Hahahaha! Hey, sweetheart! Come look at this! This boy had managed to tell us apart!"
Kurapika, Leorio, and Gon turn around to see another Kiriko coming toward them, with Manfred following close behind.
"Manfred! Where have you been?! We have been searching everywhere for you." Leorio shouted as he rushed to the boy to check for any kind of injuries.
"I'm fine, Leorio." Manfred awkwardly smiles as he let Leorio check him out.
"Yeah, Manfred where did you go?" Gon said as he looks at Manfred in worry.
Hearing that Manfred's veins popped as he glared at Gon.
"Where did I go?! Where do YOU go, you idiot?!"
Manfred shouted at Gon, making everyone shocked at the outburst of the usually calm boy.
"Why would you go after the Kiriko alone?! Don't you have any idea how dangerous it is, to be chasing a dangerous magical beast alone in the dark?!" Manfred points at Gon, as the spiky-haired boy continued to stare at him speechless.
"B-because of you, I almost take another innocent life, again!" Manfred teared up, at the thought of him almost repeating the same mistake he had once made.
Gon hearing that, a figure appears in his head. The figure of the man that tells him that his father is alive, and the one that inspires him to become a Hunter.
{"Man, forced to take another life." The figure of the man said as he lowered his blue hat, sighing in frustration--}
"Damn it!"
Gon comes back to his senses to see the boy who had been worrying about him and turns around while covering his eyes with his arms to hide his tears.
Seeing that Gon walks up to him and pats his back wanting to apologize.
"Manfred, I'm really sorry for making you worried." Gon said with a sad smile, feeling guilty that he had made his friend cry.
*Sniff*
"No, it's fine. I'm sorry for my outburst earlier. I'm just angry at myself for losing control again." Manfred said, rubbing his eyes as he begins to call down.
The Kiriko who had almost died walks back to his family as he watches the two boys talk things out.
"Wait, did you almost die at the boy's hand?"
"Y-yeah, it was shocking. I still feel scared every time I think about it. But luckily, I managed to make him stop before he could kill me."
His wife asked him when he got close to them to which he replied while putting one of his hands over his heart.
"I've seen the boy's eyes when looked at me. It was completely lifeless and dull, devoid of any emotions. It seems that the boy had killed before, and going by the intense killing intent he emitted, the people he had killed is more than one." The male Kiriko said to his wife as he looks at the boy who is surrounded by his friends while his wife stares at him in worry.
The Kiriko could still remember the cold eyes that looks at him earlier. In that moment, he could tell those eyes didn't see him as a living being, but merely as a target to be eliminated. He couldn't help but feel a chill everytime he thought back to those eyes.
"But... looking at him now, he doesn't appear to be a bad person."
He looks at the boy who's now smiling as he apologize to his friends for his outburst.
"Hmm, poor child. Something must have happened to him, for a boy his age to kill." the wife said, also looking at the boy.
"Well, let's do our job as Navigators and get these kids to where they need to be."
The wife nods at her husband's words.
*Cough*
The male Kiriko coughed, taking the attention of the four applicants in front of him.
"We're sorry to have made you all panic before. But allow us to introduce ourselves. We are the Navigators. Our family served as a guide for those who wished to take on the Hunter Exam."
"I'm their daughter!"
"And I'm their son!"
Both the wounded man and the kidnapped girl earlier, revealed their identity as they morphed their faces back to their normal form.
"The hunter exam changes site every year, so we must bring the applicants to the gathering site," The female Kiriko said.
"But we don't just help every applicant."
"We also test them to see whether they are qualified to take the exam."
The daughter and son take turns explaining.
"Kurapika-dono." The daughter looks at the blonde as she raises her arms to show the tattoo on her arms. "Using your impressive knowledge to catch even the simplest hint, you had manage to determine that we were not a couple. The hints are these tattoos, which in this region, mark a woman to be single for life. Therefore, you pass."
Gon gives a thumbs up at Kurapika, making the latter smile.
"Leorio-dono, although you had not managed to decipher my identity to the end, the first aid you administered was faster and even more accurate than a real doctor." The man said with a smile, making Leorio rub the back of his head in embarrassment.
"And beyond that, he continued to console me and encourage me when I was worried about the safety of my wife. Your kindness makes you worthy of taking the Hunter Exam. Thus, you pass." The man continued, and the other navigators hearing that gave a smile to him.
"Gon-dono, your superhuman physical ability, and observational skills managing to differentiate me and my husband, make you worthy to take the Hunter Exam. You pass" The female Kiriko said to Gon, who smiled brightly.
"And lastly, Manfred-dono. Although I had almost died at your hands... You had shown great ability in completely hiding your presence, using the surroundings to your advantage, and striking at me right when I was the most distracted. You also pass." The male Kiriko said while wiping his head, making Manfred smile in guilt.
They all smiled and fist bumped each other at the news of all of them passing.
The four Kirikos spread their wings, then each one of the four passing applicants grabbed the legs of the Kirikos, who then take them up for a flight.
"Now, we will take all of you to the Hunter Exam site. So, grab on tight so you don't fall to your death." The Father Kiriko said while carrying Leorio on his legs.
"Hahaha! I'm flying! I'm flying in the sky!" Manfred exclaim in excitement as he watches the ground getting further away each second.
"Do you like flying, Manfred-dono?" The son who's carrying Manfred said as he looks down at the excited boy.
"Yes, of course! It is my dream to be able to fly freely in the sky!" Manfred said, with a big smile as he looks at the scenery below.
From up there, he can see the village where they had the quiz test with the old lady, and further away he can see the Dolle Harbor where they started.
Manfred watches the beautiful sight of the seaport city in the distance. And the sea which is giving a resplendent shimmer from the moonlight.
Manfred watches all of these with bright eyes. His usually sharp hawk eyes are gone, now replaced with the excited eyes of a child who has found their favorite toys.
'Soon... Soon, I will be able to see this kind of scenery anywhere and anytime I wanted.' Manfred thought as he could feel his dreams of owning the sky getting stronger and stronger. He could feel that he is one step closer to achieving his dreams.
Kurapika, Leorio, and Gon watch the boy who had previously had an emotional outburst looks around in fascination and excitement.
They could see that the boy's words of wanting to conquer the sky are not just mere words. But an ambition that the boy will achieve, one way or another.
Kurapika, Leorio, and Gon smiled at the looks of happiness Manfred is showing on his face.
"Isn't it great that we all passed?" Gon said with a smile, looking at the others.
"Don't celebrate too early, we're still not at the starting line yet. We've only earned the right to take the real Exam." Kurapika said, pouring cold water on Gon.
"What's wrong with celebrating a little? We're making progress, aren't we?" Leorio argued back at Kurapika.
Manfred ignores the conversation the others are having, as he continues to look around and feeling the cold wind of the night brushing against his face, not wanting to miss a single moment of this flight.
With that, the Kirikos take them up for a flight in the beautiful night sky, heading towards Zaban City. The city where the 287th Hunter exam is taking place.
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