Chapter 5: Prompt Entanglement

"This old man, he's quite compassionate..."

With a concerned gaze, he watched the old captain walk into the cabin, a hint of smile appearing at the corner of his mouth.

He knew that next up was the scrutiny that guy, Hisoka, had to undergo, and since it wasn't his business, he didn't plan on staying long.

Turning around, he left the cabin and arrived at the deck already soaked with seawater.

At this moment, the sky was gradually brightening.

Feeling the cold sea breeze on his face, he noticed a black island gradually approaching not far ahead.

Presumably, that was the destination of this journey—Doril Island.

Leaning on the railing at the bow of the ship, he noticed that the "aura" surrounding him was much fuller than before, and he speculated in his mind...

Probably because he had slept earlier and his body had received sufficient rest, so the "aura" inside him had also recovered.

After all, "aura" was closely related to both physical and mental health.

But compared to this...

What the captain mentioned earlier about something, that was what caught his attention more.

"The extermination of the Kurta Clan..."

Muttering to himself, he pondered, "If I remember correctly, this... most likely was done by the Phantom Troupe.

In the original work, there was plenty of evidence pointing to those guys...

Although I don't know their motives, judging from the results, the process was undoubtedly a gruesome unilateral massacre."

Thinking of this, he fell silent for a while before uttering a sentence:

"A bunch of despicable scumbags..."

Rarely did he feel some disgust and resentment in his heart.

But it didn't quite reach the level of anger.

Without firsthand experience, he couldn't possibly empathize with Kurapika, a survivor of the Kurta Clan.

But out of respect for life, he closed his eyes and silently mourned for the souls of those who had died for a few seconds.

He considered himself to be a person with a gentle personality.

For people like the old captain, who were inherently kind-hearted, he was willing to maintain a humble and respectful attitude.

But if he encountered scumbags who disregarded life, like the Phantom Troupe, who trampled on life, or various murderers and criminals rampant in the world of hunters, he would definitely not show any mercy.

Because letting such individuals go would mean more lives being cruelly taken.

Why not accumulate some merits within one's capabilities?

Of course...

The premise and focus were both "within one's capabilities."

If he encountered those tricky, or even dangerous individuals, he naturally wouldn't choose to engage in a deadly battle with them.

"Thinking about it, I've figured out one thing..."

"The fist is the ultimate truth!"

"Instead of thinking about these useless things, it's better to spend time on practicing."

Having realized this, he put his thoughts aside.

Then he closed his eyes and carefully felt the flow of energy around him, intending to practice one of the four basic principles of Nen before reaching the destination.

"Ten."

—This is a technique that envelops oneself in aura, preventing it from leaking out of the body.

Practicing "Ten" could make the body stronger, keep youthfulness, and enhance concentration, emotional stability, making it less susceptible to external disturbances.

This was the foundation of becoming a Nen user, the crucial first step.

So, whether Nen would gather and leak from the top of the head was also an effective method to determine whether someone was a Nen user or not.

But it was also prone to mistakes.

At this moment, he focused all his attention on the aura surrounding him, trying to replicate the technique of manipulating "cursed energy" used by sorcerers in the process of practicing "Ten."

As expected, he easily found the trick and gradually wrapped the smoke above his head around his body.

"As I expected, 'Ten' and the technique of wrapping 'cursed energy' around the body are essentially the same.

Both heavily rely on concentration, sensitivity to the aura inside the body, and the smoothness of manipulation.

It's just that, compared to having six eyes, I naturally have a unique advantage in controlling 'cursed,' but manipulating 'Nen' isn't as easy, and I have to improve gradually with practice."

He tried to extend the time of "Ten" as much as possible, but the best state he could achieve only lasted a few minutes.

Almost any slight relaxation would cause some aura to escape, leading to the collapse of "Ten."

In the blink of an eye, half an hour passed.

He felt a slight improvement in his perception of the aura around him, and at this moment, a man with a strange temperament and a tall figure walked out of the cabin.

"Hmm~"

Hisoka stepped out of the cabin, leaned against the wooden wall nearby, chin in hand, and muttered to himself:

"He's growing quite rapidly..."

"This kid, just yesterday he didn't have any aura at all, but in just one night, the total amount of aura has increased significantly..."

"And, it seems like... he's practicing 'Ten' now."

Hisoka rarely observed seriously.

Although he didn't know what the other party had experienced during this period, it was obvious to him that the process of the other party using "Ten" was that of a beginner in Nen.

Regardless of perception of aura or control, it was barely satisfactory.

It was somewhat different from his previous speculation, and he couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.

However, after watching for a few minutes...

Hisoka could clearly see the progress of the young man.

At least after each attempt, the duration of the other party's "Ten" would increase by tens of seconds or even longer.

If the other party was really a beginner.

Then this rate of progress, even in the eyes of Hisoka, who had seen countless people, could be considered excellent in terms of aptitude.

"Lucky... He's a 'fruit' worth cultivating~"

Hisoka pursed his lips, revealing a gradually distorted smile, and a faintly terrifying aura began to emanate from him.

"!!!"

Suddenly, a chill ran down his spine, and he quickly woke up from the state of emptying his mind.

Having managed to maintain "Ten" for more than ten minutes without dispersing, he suddenly felt deflated.

But when he turned around abruptly and looked behind him...

He found no one there.

"Gone...?"

He looked puzzled, faintly sensing a residual aura in his line of sight.

He guessed that the other party should be someone agile and skilled in sealing aura with "Zetsu."

Moreover, they could control their killing intent freely.

It was a very dangerous individual.

"Hisoka..."

A hint of helplessness appeared on his face, confirming that this was the answer.

Because on this entire ship, besides that guy Hisoka, there were no other options.

...

He readjusted the flow of his aura.

Because he wasn't sure if it was an illusion, he felt that as he practiced "Ten," the duration of his "Hatsu" techniques seemed to have lengthened.

"Unexpected joy."

...

Half an hour later,

The ship docked at the port of Doril Island.

The captain walked out onto the deck and immediately spotted Saruto leaning on the railing.

He walked up and patted the boy's shoulder, calling out:

"Hey! We've arrived,Saruto!"

Upon hearing this, saruto quickly snapped out of his daze, turned his head, and responded casually:

"Yeah!"

"Let's disembark. Later..." The captain didn't finish his sentence, just as he was about to lead Saruto down the ladder from the wooden ship.

But just as he turned around, he saw Saruto flipping over the railing, leaping down.

Seeing this, the captain hurried to the railing.

Looking down, he already saw Saruto standing steadily on the ground, waving to him with a faint smile.

"You're quite nimble...

It seems like this kid, when he says he's going to become a Hunter this year, it's not just talk."

After a moment, when the captain descended from the ship

But when he looked at Saruto, who had a calm

face in front of him, he no longer had any hint of contempt for him.

"Aren't you surprised? There are so many people here, but they're all examinees who have come from all over the world to participate in the Hunter Exam."

The captain scanned the crowded crowd gathered at the pier and asked Saruto.

"But most of them were eliminated on the ship, right?" Saruto looked at the captain and said nonchalantly.

At his words, the captain chuckled, "Heh, you've got a sharp mind, kid."

"So... did my performance pass?" Saruto looked at the captain, expecting his response.

"Just as I told you..." The captain said in a calm tone.

"On my ship, besides you and that guy named Hisoka, everyone else has been completely eliminated.

Even if they find the venue for the Hunter Exam later, they won't be able to participate."

As he finished speaking, the captain shifted his gaze from the mass of examinees to Saruto standing beside him:

"As for the information about you in the records, after I carefully checked, it's indeed registered in the batch of examinees I'm responsible for.

I completely forgot about you earlier, which was my negligence."

"As compensation, I'll tell you something out of the ordinary."

The captain raised his head, pointing towards a distant tree on the hill, and asked:

"Do you see that cedar tree over there?"

Gon followed his finger and nodded:

"Yes, I see it."

The captain said, "Go in that direction, and you'll find a shortcut to the Hunter Exam venue."

"If you understand, then hurry up and set off!"

"The assessment has already begun."

After saying that, he turned and left.

Saruto glanced at the distant cedar tree, then turned back to look at the captain, waving his hand back and forth, thanking him loudly:

"Thank you, Captain! Take care!"

"Sure, you too."

The captain's tone was calm, and he didn't turn back, just waving his hand briefly.

After a few steps, the captain returned to the ship.

During the break, he stood on the deck, looking down at the bustling crowd below, and from a distance, he saw Saruto weaving through the crowd.

After all, that kid's white hair was somewhat conspicuous.

However, as the captain watched... he felt that something was wrong.

"Isn't this guy running a bit too fast?"

...