Hello everyone, this is Gon Freecss, who is delighted that everyone gathered on the second day, unlike in the original story.
Hisoka set off on a journey to collect the remaining plates.
***
Killua and the others joined Gon on the morning of the second day of the exam, just as he was preparing breakfast. Gon had compressed Great Stamp steaks, caught from a nearby pond, along with shellfish and mountain vegetables, creating a hearty meal. However, with the hungry men and Gon eating together, it was devoured in five minutes.
"So Killua and the others have already gathered six points!? That's amazing! Now we can dedicate almost all our time to training!"
"I owe most of it to Killua, but I'm relieved I managed to get one on my own," Leorio said.
Killua smirked smugly, and Leorio, who had been given his plate, couldn't respond strongly, only growling in frustration. The thought of what might have happened if they hadn't obtained the 118th plate during their journey made him shudder.
"♥"
Then Hisoka, who had been deliberately ignoring everyone, puffed out his cheeks like a petulant child and spoke, but his words were barely comprehensible through the swelling.
"It's good that Gon brought the target. We only need three more plates, so it's much better now."
"♥"
"Hey, do you want some ointment for the swelling?" Leorio offered.
"♥"
"Still, were you guys really that evenly matched? That's pretty harsh, don't you think?"
Seeing Hisoka's pitiful state in contrast to Gon's unharmed appearance, even Leorio took out some medicine and handed it to the magician. Curious about the nature of the battle, Killua asked what had happened, and Gon, with a wry smile, explained the basics of the fight.
"It was all Hisoka's carelessness. He gave me the first move, so I went all out and won by damage difference."
"Hmm, so you couldn't tell who was actually stronger?"
Despite Hisoka's carelessness, it had been almost a surprise attack, and Killua, who had been wondering who would win in a fair fight, felt a little disappointed.
"Well, at this stage, I think Hisoka would probably win 8 times out of 10."
Surprised by Gon's unexpected assessment, despite having won without a scratch, Killua and the others looked at Hisoka in astonishment. Despite his swollen face covered in ointment, Hisoka didn't deny the prediction, and it became clear that he shared a similar opinion.
"I realized after the fight that we just don't match up well. I still have a lot to learn."
Gon spoke with a complicated expression, his heart filled with both the joy of victory and the frustration of still not being strong enough.
Seeing Gon like that, Hisoka smiled and, after finishing applying the medicine, stood up and walked toward the forest.
"♦♥"
As Hisoka disappeared from sight with a clear voice and light footsteps, Leorio, who had been holding back, finally spoke his mind.
"How the hell did he manage to make such clear sounds with that swollen face?"
Hisoka, who had walked alone into the forest away from Gon and the others, stopped at a safe distance, looked around, and called out.
"♦"
"Just stay still while I reduce the swelling."
Suddenly, a man with needles protruding from every part of his face emerged from the forest. He nonchalantly pulled out a fresh needle and thrust it deeply into Hisoka's forehead. Hisoka's face twitched several times before the painfully swollen features returned to their original form.
"Thanks ♥ That was pretty painful, you know? ♠"
"If you pull out the needles, it'll swell up again! Leave them in for a while."
The needle-wielding man, now calling himself Gitarakuru, stroked Hisoka's face, which had returned to normal, and asked him about yesterday's battle with a cheerful smile.
"So, I told you not to interfere, but I didn't go to check. How did it go? Well, I can tell just by looking at your face that it didn't go as planned."
"It was even better than I imagined ♥ I thought he was still green, but he's already a prodigy who's starting to bloom ♥"
Illumi, who had known Hisoka for a long time, recognized that this was genuine praise. He had already realized that Hisoka was deeply invested in the boy, as evidenced by the fact that he had specifically asked him not to interfere—but it seemed that Hisoka's interest had grown even stronger.
"Oh no, now I can't get rid of him. I wanted to eliminate that pest crawling around Killua sooner rather than later."
Rarely, Illumi was genuinely disappointed.
He had only briefly observed Gon at the start of the exam, but the quality of his aura and the glimpses of his personality were all types Illumi despised. He had wanted to eliminate the boy during the Hunter Exam, but since Gon had already gained Hisoka's favor, he couldn't bring himself to act, weighing the pros and cons.
"Gon will grow stronger at an accelerating rate from here on out. ♦ From what I saw, what he lacked was practical experience, right? ♠… This is my first time experiencing this thrill of being pursued from behind. ♥"
Despite saying "thrill," Hisoka smiled ecstatically, and Illumi, who knew his nature but couldn't understand it, quickly finished the medical treatment and took out three plates from his pocket.
"Here's the item for the request. Transfer the money to the usual account."
"Got it ♦ Yeah, I'll tell you as a favor since we're friends ♠ Gon is either a Manipulator or Specialist type, so your needles might not work on him ♣"
Receiving the three plates, some of which were stained with blood, Illumi, who was also a Manipulator type, felt no sympathy and just looked annoyed.
"I see. If it's a close-combat style, getting beaten one-sidedly makes sense. If he were an Enhancer type, I could've taken him down."
"True, since I won't get killed, I guess this is what happens when I indulge myself. From now on, I'll have to hold back a bit more."
"Oh, well, I need to collect more plates too, so see you later."
Having heard what he wanted to hear, Illumi turned his back on Hisoka and disappeared into the forest.
Having collected six points, Hisoka decided it was pointless to return with the needle still in his face, so he started walking again. Still basking in the afterglow of yesterday's battle with Gon, he hummed a tune as he wandered aimlessly through the forest.