11 Immortality and Friendship
__________POV Ashton__________
Netero and I kept walking for quite a long time. We eventually met up with Smokey and Glasses.
They were quite surprised to see the two of us talking like nothing even happened in the ant's nest.
But it's not like this type of situation is unusual for me and Netero. We fought many times before.
Each more aggravated than the last. But we never actually killed each other, he also only used his Hatsu on a few of those fights.
His attacks are a bit too fast to dodge. I'd even call them impossible to dodge. But I always have the means to avoid them in dire situations. He is the definition of 'A Good Offence is the Best Defence'.
"What are the two of you staring at? Let's get going." I was the one to break the ice. And also ignore their worries about the previous fight. They are Nen users, they should be used to conflict.
The two didn't respond to me. They just looked at Netero for guidance.
"Ashton here will be joining us in a mission to wipe out the ants..." Was Netero's response, short and not really telling them how we ended up not killing each other.
But they seemed to accept it well enough.
"Are you going to fight with us? Or are you going to 'observe the situation'?" Is that some scorn I hear in Smokey's voice? Oh lord, how inadequate it makes me feel. I almost started caring for a second.
"I have something to finish with the ants. You'll be lucky if you even get to fight them." Was my answer. Not all that long of an answer. But it didn't seem to make Smokey or Glasses trust me more.
Not that I care about their trust. I am only working with them to get my hands on the results of my side-project, the King. Or, at least an intact corpse. I need something to confirm my doubts and to answer my queries.
The Chimera Ants seem to come from the same place as me. That is what I found after a while. The queen was happy to answer some of my questions too.
It wasn't that hard to wrap my head around it. Such a powerful species doesn't just appear out of nowhere.
They originated from the Dark Continent. I don't know how exactly the queen got here, but she did.
Glasses was also curious about a few things.
"What exactly were you studying?" A really broad question. I guess I could answer it, there's nothing else to do right now anyway.
"Behavioral patterns, adaptability, aura manipulation, talent. Quite a few factors that I was curious about." My answer was very straightforward. Not mincing any words and not letting many ways for him to continue the conversation.
I don't really care about having a conversation with Glasses and Smokey. They hardly interest me.
Netero is the only person that I'd consider a friend in the human race. An odd friendship, but still.
He was the only thing in my life that remained consistent. Always hanging around, for one reason or another.
But reasons don't really matter much. We spent enough time together to not care about conventional friendships.
One day we can try to kill each other and the next we can go and get drunk at a random bar.
The only concerning thing about this is that he's been growing older and older. It's a shame to see him like this. He was much stronger in his prime. Now he's just reaching the end of the line.
I guess this was to be expected. Not everyone is like me. I have somewhat understood the reason for my 'immortality'. It's not even all that complicated.
It's just related to the diet I had while I was living in the dark continent. The animals always brought me rice and other foods.
I didn't know much at the time, but every single one of those was an unmatched treasure.
The rice that I ate daily for a few centuries was something the humans called 'Nitro Rice'. They also called it the ultimate secret to immortality.
I don't know how true that statement is. But judging by my own appearance, I think it isn't quite wrong.
After eating it for a few years, I stopped ageing completely. I didn't actually count the days, so I had no way to know how much time actually passed.
Netero and everyone in the group also consumed some Nitro Rice. It was not a great amount, but it allowed them all to live until now. Well, two of them are still alive at least. I don't know much about Zigg.
He just taught me his family's techniques and peace out. It was mostly as repayment for saving his life a few times on the Continent.
He didn't like owing favours. I don't really use assassination techniques, but they aren't a bad thing to have. Using my nails as blades is actually helpful from time to time.
Like dissecting a body, or taking someone's heart out to study it while they die. The look on their faces is always somewhat entertaining.
There isn't even anything to study about a heart, I just like seeing the looks on their faces.
"Oi! Ash, you're spacing out again!" Shouted Netero in my ears. He really likes doing that whenever I think about something.
"Do you truly have to be so annoying?" The old man just nodded at my question. I never considered this before, but Netero is a bit deranged.
He befriends a person that wishes to destroy humanity and does stuff like this. Is he trying to make me hate them more?
Oh well. I already decided to let humanity destroy itself. I only give them the means to.
"Of course I need to! How else would you listen to me?" Fair point Netero, I do have a track record of ignoring you.
But on the topic of Nuclear Weapons, they advanced quite a bit with my interference. They advanced much faster than any other industry.
Bombs that could wipe out entire provinces, making them completely unlivable for centuries.
Letting off such a poisonous aura that handling them without proper equipment will kill just about everyone.
Even a powerful Nen user can die if he doesn't take proper precautions when approaching a weapon like that.
I wonder if the king will be able to stay for long in their presence?
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Hope you liked today's chapter!
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