Seeing Killua satisfied, Auren gives the group a few moments to celebrate, Gon looking incredibly happy, despite having known the boy for only 10 days or so.
Finally, he speaks up.
"Listen to me, everyone. Try to calm down and focus on the last exam. In one way, it's the easiest exam I can possibly imagine. In another way... it's quite cruel and difficult," Auren cautions them. "Don't fail right at the end. Believe in yourself, rest, and focus! You'll regret it for the rest of your lives if you fail here. And most importantly... don't fuck around! Win... at any cost! You should all easily pass this exam, especially you, Killua. If you fail, I'll swear I'll replace that damn needle with one five times as large and make your life a living hell for the next few years as punishment for wasting my time. Do you get that?!"
"Yes!" Gon and Leorio reply, full of motivation, while Kurapika smiles warmly, despite Auren's harsh words.
"Good," Auren replies. "Then rest up and prepare yourself mentally."
"Auren..." Killua says quietly. "I... thank you."
He... you still owe me, and I intend to take full advantage of that. There's something only you can grant me, after all.
"It's fine," Auren says, turning around. "As for you other three... if you pass... I might have a special, unique gift for you as well, so you'd better try your hardest."
With all four of them looking satisfied, Auren returns to his own little group, currently sized at four as well.
"..."
With the days on board quickly passing and the location of the final exam now only hours away, Auren and Vanessa are sitting cross-legged in front of Leroute, who is sitting the same way, her eyes closed, focusing intently. Meanwhile, Neffi is floating above her bed, her clothes keeping her suspended in the air as she watches curiously.
After a while, Leroute opens her eyes, breathing heavily. "This is... too difficult... and boring!"
"Yeah, it really is... thankfully, I didn't have to go through that!" Vanessa says, grinning.
"Then why do I have to go through this shit?!" Leroute instantly asks.
Dummy. Such an unnecessary statement.
"..."
"..."
"Uhh..." Vanessa thinks, not sure how to reply.
"Because it's the proper way, and in the long run, you'll be quite happy and won't regret that decision, unlike someone else who, despite training all day, still can't create a proper En," Auren says, causing Vanessa's eyes to widen.
"It's because... of that!?" she asks. "No way!"
"Partly... it certainly dulls you and your senses and requires you to spend way more time getting a feel for your Aura Nodes instead of learning how to open them by yourself. It's a shortcut that turns into a detour... at least in the long run," Auren explains. "Although... you're probably the type who needs to sense and feel Nen immediately before getting truly motivated."
"Hehe, that might be true," she says, smiling at Auren.
"I'll keep trying then," Leroute says, her motivation returning.
"You're not doing too badly... you're already making some progress in opening your Aura Nodes... if you manage to succeed in under two weeks... you'll pass," Auren says.
Maybe that will motivate her.
Immediately, Leroute continues, while Neffi chuckles. "Hehe. Such a cheap move."
"It's unfair... I can't really help her properly, because I took the shortcut... despite being her master..." Vanessa pouts.
"This is the only part I'm handling. Since you know all the other techniques and can even use En at the minimum range, which is your biggest weakness, you're more than qualified to teach her. In fact, you know almost as much as I do, which makes you one of the best teachers in the world. If you still fail, I'll blame it on your attitude," Auren cautions her.
"Fine, I'll show you all," she says confidently, before softly slapping Leroute's left cheek.
"Ih?!" Leroute yells, tensing up. "What... why did you do that?"
"Always be aware of your surroundings at all times!" Vanessa says, raising a finger.
"You're regressing... quickly," Neffi notes, her mouth wide open. "This is terrible. Is this called bullying? No, it's even worse..."
Auren just shakes his head, his whole expression showing disappointment.
"He... hehe," Vanessa laughs awkwardly. "Just trying to loosen her up. Don't take it too seriously. Forget the time and don't stress yourself out. You have all the time in the world. Take it easy."
"That's actually a good piece of advice," Auren says. "You barely redeemed yourself as a master."
With Leroute still looking doubtful, she continues her training while the airship lands at its intended destination.
Just a short while later, all examiners, many assistant examiners in their black suits, and the 11 examinees are standing in a large ballroom with stone walls and an incredibly tall ceiling.
Slowly but surely, Netero steps forward, pushing in a whiteboard covered by a white tarp.
"Welcome to the final exam!" Netero announces. "This hotel is committee-run, and it is ours while we conduct the finals. The finals themselves shall consist of one-on-one contests in a tournament format!" Netero explains.
"As for the matchups... hoho. Take a look!" he says, removing the white tarp from the whiteboard.
Everyone in the room looks at the bracket, Auren sighing again as he cannot comprehend Netero's insane judgment.
–Bracket– Look at the comment for the bracket.
Despite his rational and objective input, apparently, it was barely valued by Netero, as, despite the changes, the bracket feels vaguely familiar to Auren.
Now that I look at it... the ones with the worst positions are... Tonpa and Ponzu.
They only have two shots. This gave Leorio and Illumi, as well as anyone else, one more shot. Still, Pokkle is rated this highly, while Illumi is rated as one of the four worst examinees? This is blatantly stupid. Netero's as mysterious as always.
As everyone stares at the bracket in shock, Netero instantly clarifies, raising a finger. "You only need to win one time to pass. It's the winners that drop out and the losers that advance. In the end... only one examinee will fail this exam. Everyone has at least two shots at winning, most of you significantly more. Any questions?"
"Why are the rounds so unequal?" Bodoro asks, Netero nodding at him, obviously having expected such a question.
"Hehe, it simply reflects the exam record of each contender. Those with the best scores get the most chances to win, advance, and become Hunters," Netero says.
"Huh? I'm not convinced! That can't be all," Killua points out. "Tell us how you made these decisions."
"I'm not telling!" Netero says, barely hiding his amusement. "The specifics of our scoring system are classified..."
"Not ours," Auren suddenly interjects loudly. "Yours. Don't spread lies and give US a bad reputation."
"..."
"..."
"The specifics of my scoring system are classified. I won't reveal your actual scores, but in broad terms, I considered three categories. Physical ability, mental ability, and overall impression," Netero explains. "You should already know this."
"Are these the ratings that Examiner Auren told us?" Ponzu asks curiously.
"Not quite. While my student can gauge your strengths and weaknesses, his views on your talent as Hunters are closely similar to a certain rat's, and obviously, I can't accept them!" Netero explains, smiling at Auren.
Stupid old man. Then why appoint him as Vice-chairman?!
"But... I agree roughly with him on the first two categories... I don't need to go into more detail about them, I suppose. What remains is the last category. It's your potential as Hunters... and the most important category, as well as some of your opinions about others. It's the most important thing... I can't put it into words, but trust me, I've considered it carefully." Netero reasons, looking quite satisfied.
"He probably just chose these matchups because he wants to rile people up and wants to watch them suffer. I wouldn't take them too seriously," Auren says to Menchi, just loudly enough for anyone to hear him, many people nodding slowly, already resigned to their fates.
"I kinda agree," Menchi whispers back, a little embarrassed.
"The peanut gallery needs to be quiet," Netero says, before looking at the examinees. "Now for the rules of the fights. Weapons are okay, but you can only win your fight if your opponent admits defeat! You also cannot kill your opponent, which would lead to disqualification. Should that happen, everyone else will immediately pass. Finally... the last phase of the 287th Hunter Exam... starts now!"
A somewhat chubby Hunter in a black suit and wearing sunglasses, thus hiding his identity a little, steps forward into the middle of the room while everyone else moves back towards the walls.
"The first round. Hanzo vs. Gon! I'm Masta, and I'll be serving as your referee."
Instead of fighting, Hanzo smiles at the man. "Finally... I get to meet you! Thank you so much for accurately pointing out my strengths, hehe. Thankfully, I got someone wise who managed to see my talent. Others were ranked quite badly, so I guess I need to thank you for real."
A few people look stumped, as they apparently didn't know they were tailed during Auren's exam.
"However... I have a question!" Hanzo says. "I can only win if my opponent admits defeat... no other way? No knockout?"
"Those are the rules!" Masta replies calmly.
"Take your positions," he continues, causing Gon and Hanzo to walk towards the middle of the room and stand opposite each other. "All right... begin!"
Gon immediately takes the initiative and runs to the side, trying to put some distance between himself and Hanzo, but within a second, Hanzo catches up to him and chops at the back of his head with the side of his hand, causing Gon to slump forward and collapse on the ground.
It's over.
Hanzo urges Gon to resign immediately. "In a regular match, I'd now be declared the winner." He helps him up and says, "Shake it off. Your brain's been knocked around inside your skull, and you'll feel dizzy for a while. Give up now, you are not a match for me. If you do, you're in good shape to fight again."
"I won't!" Gon says confidently, sticking out his tongue.
What follows can only be described as torture.
Hanzo urges Gon to resign, trying logic, force, and intimidation. He starts by breaking his left arm and continues with equally painful attacks. Hours pass, yet the torture continues, Gon lying on the ground, which is now covered in blood.
This is truly pathetic to watch. An unequal fight... with an obvious outcome, yet this so-called fight continues.
"Is this what gets you off, old man?" Auren wonders, yet again managing to make everyone in the room stare at him, nobody able to contradict his statement.
"I agree... I never suspected the chairman had such a mean streak. No one in this final group is going to throw in the towel now. This is terrible, it's completely one-sided. The kid is in a lot of trouble," Menchi says to Auren, grabbing onto Buhara's shirt.
While Gon suffers on the ground, unable to continue fighting, Hanzo does a finger stand and explains his history as a ninja.
Somehow, though, Gon gathers his last remaining strength and kicks at Hanzo, who falls to the ground and then immediately stands up, his nose bleeding, wiping his nose in embarrassment. "I didn't dodge on purpose..."
"LIAR!" Leorio yells, pointing at him.
Hanzo's attitude now changes, and he draws a hidden blade from under his sleeve.
"Wake up. Nothing has changed. Instead of just breaking a leg... I'll amputate it, you see... that will leave you irreparably maimed. If you get my point... give up before I go through with it," Hanzo threatens.
"That's a problem!" Gon says. "I don't want to lose my leg, but I also refuse to give up. Let's find another way! If you cut off my leg I'll bleed to death, that would get him disqualified, right?"
Masta nods. "Yes... indeed."
"So you see... let's find another way!" Gon offers stubbornly.
Soon, the entire room is filled with laughter as everyone is entertained by Gon's stubbornness, while Hanzo complains loudly, unable to understand him.
Only Auren remains silent.
This may seem admirable... or strong-willed... but it's insanity, stupidity, pride, and stubbornness. If he ever meets someone truly cold-hearted... not a nice guy like Hanzo... game over.
There are enough examinees that Gon could reasonably defeat. His acting like this is the height of stupidity and shows not only his lack of intelligence, but also his insane egoism.
"What's wrong, Auren?" Vanessa asks. "That kid's pretty funny, isn't he?"
"By now you should know Auren," Neffi says. "He's not really a manipulator or schemer, but he always makes the most reasonable decision. He dislikes unreasonable people. This entire fight should have ended after the first attack. Any reasonable examinee would have given up instantly and preserved his strength."
"You know him quite well," Leroute says, pouting her lips. "Hmmmm?" She then looks at Neffi curiously, who looks away in annoyance.
"Look at the fight," Neffi mutters.
The discussion continues and finally comes to a conclusion as Hanzo says, "I can always retake the exam... while you'll remain dead!"
He then stabs his hidden blade into Gon's forehead, just piercing the skin and drawing blood, while Gon stares right at him.
"Why are you this unreasonable? Do you really want to die?! For the license?!" Hanzo yells loudly.
This guy talks too much.
"I want to meet my father... he's a Hunter and quite famous and successful, or so I'm told. If I give up now... I have a feeling I won't ever meet him. I don't have a choice," Gon says calmly, despite the blade pressed into his forehead.
"Fine!" Hanzo screams, retreating and putting away his blade, before turning around and walking off. "I give up!"
However, Gon, in his stubbornness, is still not satisfied. He continues to argue with Hanzo. "You can't walk away like that. Let's find another way to solve this! Let's have a proper match!"
-----------------------------------------
A/N: Always thankful for Power Stones, Comments, and Reviews. Thank you for reading!
If you are interested, then please support me at patreon.com/FRWriter
45+ Early chapters available
New Chapters every Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday!
Bored? Complains? Demands? Check out the Discord: https://discord.gg/puVqWsf3y9
Thank you for supporting the story with Power Stones!