𝖌𝖚𝖒𝖚𝖘𝖘𝖊𝖗𝖛𝖎

t h i r t y . f i v e

the tapping of wooden shoes broke the unbearably tense silence.

"we happened to be discussing this very subject, gon," netero announced. "kurapika and leorio have both lodged complaints. the committee has been discussing the fairness of killua's disqualification."

"killua had been behaving in a strange manner during and since his battle with the man who called himself gittarackur! i believe that he was hypnotised into committing murder. under normal circumstances, it would have been impossible to use hypnosisto induce a person to kill. however, as killua was raised in a family of assassins, murder was a part of his daily life, so it's natural that he would lack the ethical restraint of most!" kurapika smoothly explained, clearly very intelligent.

"i want to mention that the attack happened during the match between bodoro and me. it's possible he was trying to help me. given that, the one who should be disqualified is me," leorio added.

"in any case. killua was not in control of his own actions. thus, he should not have been disqualified!"

"that is mere speculation. there is no proof. there were no clear signs of manipulation. in fact, i would question the claim that he was hypnotised," netero stated, eyes narrowing at the two males. "i agree that the incident occurred after the battle between leorio and bodoro had begun. at that point, both fighters were evenly matched. bodoro had more experience. but in terms of raw combat ability, leorio was stronger. there was no need for killua to interfere."

"...none of that matters," gon whispered.

"come on.. i want to get this lecture over with so i can leave," hanzo stated honestly, angering the few diligently arguing members of the group.

"hey, now..!"

"none of that matters! it's pointless to argue over whether someone should have passed. if you aren't happy about passing, keep working until you're satisfied. if killua retakes the exam, he'll definitely pass! it's unfortunate that he failed this time, but it is what it is. what does matter... if you've been forcing killua to kill, against his will, all this time.. i'll make you pay!"

"make me pay? what, exactly, will you do?"

"i won't do anything. only, once i rescue killua, i'll never let you see him again!" gon exclaimed threateningly.

illumi lifted his other hand and hovered it towards gon's face. gon immediately reacted, releasing his arm and jumping away. then, the chairman coughed to catch their attentions.

"is everyone finished? gon is absolutely correct. you must decide for yourselves if you were worthy of passing. you may complain the results all you like, but we will not be changing our minds. killua has been disqualified, and the rest of you have passed the exam."

the chairman and the small, green headed male met eyes, nodding at contact.

"okay, then i shall continue the orientation.."

~

the seven newly announced hunters left the orientation room and seperated. after finding out where killua has went off to from illumi, gon, kurapika and leorio gatherered under the trees where a bench was located and began to discuss.

"kukuroo mountain..?"

as leorio and gon were discussing the unknown location, kurapika zoned out whilst sitting on the bench, unable to concentrate and hear his own name being called out to him.

"hey, kurapika!"

"huh? oh, what is it?"

"the mountain! he said something about kukuroo mountain! do you know where it might be?"

"no i don't.. we can look it up online."

"i do," a voice answered mysteriously from beside them.

the trio turned in the direction of the voice. a figure approached the three slowly, face swallowed in light. when the figure entered the shadows casted by the trees, their faces brightened at recognition.

"[name]!" they exclaimed, making the said female smile softly and wave.

"so, kukuroo mountain is where killua is?" she asked, making them nod. "kukuroo mountain is in the dentora region of the republic of padokea. you should be able to get there in about three days by airship. don't worry, they let tourists travel around the mountain, not inside though."

the three stared at [name] in shock.

"dentora region? republic of padokea? never heard of it... how do you know so much about it?" leorio inquired curiously. "have you been there before?"

[name] nodded.

"i've been there a couple of times when my family travelled there for business reasons. i believe only authorised personnel can enter the mountain, as in the family or anyone related to the zoldyck family."

"wow, [name]! you know so much! we might need to search up how to get there and where it is, but thanks for telling us! you'll be coming with us, right?" gon askeed excitedly, making [name] frown.

"i.."

"yo!"

the four turned around to find the familiar, hairless shinobi who had battled with gon in the first round of the fifth phase.

"oh, hanzo-san!" gon called out, lifting his arm to wave at hanzo, who began to approach as [name] did.

"i'm going back to my country. it was a short, yet seemingly long acquaintance, but i had fun."

"mhm! so did i!"

"if you ever visit my country, let me know, i can show you the best tourist spots!"" hanzo exclaimed, rummaging his pockets to take out pieces of paper and hand them to kurapika, who was closest to him. "[name]. are you coming?"

[name] lifted her head, a sad expression on her face. she hesitantly nodded, turning to face the trio of boys that had accompanied her in the hunter phase, though one was missing.

"i wish i could be with you guys to save killua, but i have to go home. i promised to head straight back once i'd passed the exam," she explained. "but don't worry, it takes about the same time to go to my country as it does killua's, so i'll head over to killua's as soon as possible! maybe even with my family."

the three stared at [name] with disappointment and sadness, but smiled when she reassured them that she would meet them soon. as hanzo began to walk away, [name] timidly followed suit, waving the three a final farewell before they meet almost two weeks later...

~

hanzo and [name] sat side-by-side together on the airship, shoulders touching and lips moving as they conversed on the events that had occurred when they had been seperated. their laughs were clear and innocent.

"haha, remember that time when you-" hanzo was cut off by [name]'s hand slapping against his head. "ow! that hurt!"

[name] was the one to laugh this time. she closed her eyes and rested her head against his shoulder. they stayed in that position for a few comfortable moments. [name] slowly opened her eyes to look down at hanzo's hands. she reached out and held them gently, afraid she would hurt them or open any wounds.

some wounds on his arms had healed completely, some mostly, some barely. she ran her finger over the cuts that had fully healed. she had a sad, guilty expression on her face, and hanzo could tell she was making one although he could not physically see it. he sighed.

"i already told you, it's fine. plus, it was necessary for you to pass, and we both ended up passing and becoming hunters. so nobody was left out and nobody was hurt for no reason, right?" hanzo whispered, making [name] nod slowly. "so be quiet and get some rest. i'm sure it cost more than your physical health.."

and with that, [name] fell into a deep sleep - head on hanzo's shoulder and hands gently wrapped around his wounded arm.