Abandoning the paper fan was equivalent to giving up any possibility of defeating his opponent.
Kalluto had initially intended to retreat, but the look in Morrow's eyes deeply provoked him.
The intense shame and indignation rising from his heart gradually eroded his control over his expression.
Morrow casually unfolded his paper fan, observing Kalluto's visibly shaken demeanor, and remarked, "At such a young age, you've already developed a habit of toying with your enemies..."
"You...?!"
Toying with prey...
He did enjoy doing that.
But in this battle, he had been at a disadvantage from the start. Far from toying with his opponent, he was the one being played with.
So how could the other see through him so easily?
This feeling of having his very essence laid bare intensified the suffocating pressure weighing on Kalluto.
Morrow snapped his fan shut with a crisp sound and said calmly,
"No need to be so surprised. Nen abilities inherently reflect the user's personality. You chose an unassuming little triangular paper slip as your killing move precisely because you wanted to see disbelief in your opponent's reaction, didn't you?"
"How… how do you know my...?!"
Kalluto instinctively clenched his fists, his heart pounding violently.
At that moment, the sensation of being utterly exposed grew even stronger, so much so that his heartbeat accelerated wildly, he even felt fear...
Morrow lowered his eyelids slightly and replied evenly, "Because your offensive intent was too obvious. And you were overconfident, laying out your feints and deceptions right on the surface. Only mindless beasts would fall for such tricks."
"..."
Kalluto bit his lip hard, his voice nearly hissing through his teeth, "You… stopped attacking just to humiliate me now?"
"Not at all."
Morrow shook his head faintly. "The moment you attacked me with that paper fan, it was already over."
"Huh?"
Kalluto instantly tensed as if facing a life-or-death threat.
For no logical reason, he unconditionally believed Morrow's words at that moment. Without daring to hesitate further, he abruptly turned and fled.
The wide sleeves of his kimono billowed behind him like wings as he sprinted away.
Morrow watched Kalluto's fleeing figure with calm eyes, a faint emerald Shooting Star materializing at his fingertip.
By merely dodging one of Kalluto's attacks earlier, he had fulfilled the condition for Starlight Convergence, marking Kalluto with a Star Mark.
This was possible because Kalluto's aura output level wasn't particularly high.
Of course, another factor was that Kalluto had channeled over half of his aura output into the swarm of paper slips during his assault.
Deceptive Shooting Star.
Morrow flicked his finger lightly.
The Shooting Star, no larger than an egg, doubled in power and size after rebounding mid-air, then shot straight toward the sprinting Kalluto.
The emerald glow swept forward like a scanner through the grimy, pitch-black tunnel.
Kalluto's small frame darted swiftly through the winding alleyways, yet the emerald light pursued him relentlessly.
Within moments…
Kalluto sensed the danger.
A homing bullet…?!
The periphery of his vision flooded with green light. Kalluto skidded to a halt, instinctively raising his fan to shatter the pursuing Nen bullet. But as his right hand moved, he belatedly realized the paper fan had already fallen into that man's grasp.
Panic and fear ultimately took a heavy toll on this prodigy of the Zoldyck Family.
Kalluto watched the Nen bullet flying straight toward him, making one last futile struggle as he abruptly twisted his body and pressed himself against the wall.
The Shooting Star grazed past Kalluto's face before curving mid-air, homing in on his body.
Kalluto, now certain it was a tracking projectile, could only muster the maximum amount of aura to fortify his defenses as much as possible.
Boom!
The Shooting Star struck Kalluto.
The sheer impact sent him crashing into the building, the explosion shattering the surrounding walls and kicking up a cloud of dust.
The next second
Covered in grime, blood staining the corner of his lips, Kalluto burst out from the dust.
Lucky… the power wasn't that strong, cough.
He tried to keep running, but his legs gave way, sending him crashing to his knees as he spat out a mouthful of blood.
When he looked up again, his pupils contracted sharply at the sight of a fluorescent green glow emanating from the alley's corner.
Then, Morrow appeared, stepping atop the Shooting Star as he soared through the air from the alley's bend, arriving before Kalluto in an instant.
Kalluto's body tensed as he struggled to rise, his gaze turning icy, ready for a desperate fight.
Yet Morrow simply leaped lightly off the Shooting Star, landing steadily on the ground.
As his feet touched down, the projectile dissipated into nothingness.
Glancing at the blood smeared across Kalluto's face, Morrow remarked pointedly, "When you blocked the Nen bullet, did you think its power was lacking?"
"..."
Kalluto's eyes flickered rapidly as realization struck; Morrow had held back.
And the reason for that… was he toying with his prey?
At this thought, Kalluto gritted his teeth and snarled, "If you're going to kill me, just do it! I won't let you have your way!"
"I won't kill you."
Morrow lowered his eyelids, speaking calmly. "Because your ability is precious."
"!"
Kalluto froze.
But then, in Morrow's downcast gaze, he saw that same look, the one that deemed prey worthless.
Instantly, a mix of humiliation and terror surged within him, threatening to burst from his chest.
He had never experienced anything like this before. Under the weight of such overwhelming emotions, the instinctive urge to reclaim his pride flared up.
Yet the remnants of his rationality reminded him of one undeniable truth; You can't win. No chance at all.
Facing Kalluto's openly furious glare, Morrow paid it no mind, continuing as if to himself,
"If I were you, I'd focus my ability entirely on a killing blow instead of pointlessly mixing in other attacks. Also… your habit of toying with prey doesn't suit the nature of a Manipulation ability."
As he spoke, he extended the paper fan toward Kalluto.
"You could easily hire children to scatter more paper around your targets while they play naturally, preparing for a single decisive strike. But you're too proud for such methods, aren't you? Here, take your fan back."
"No!"
Kalluto refused viciously before turning away in pain and breaking into another desperate sprint.
Watching his reaction, Morrow could only retract the fan. Since he needed to return to the hotel anyway, he followed after Kalluto.
That direction led out of this cluster of buildings.
—--
Kurapika leaned against the alley wall, his mind replaying the recent events and that monstrous child over and over.
Tap-tap...!
A series of sharp, hurried sounds echoed from the alley.
Snapping out of his thoughts, Kurapika turned toward the noise.
But what met his eyes was the very child he had deemed a monster, now running frantically in his direction, as if fleeing from something terrifying.
Wh-what's going on...?
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5 Power Stones for a bonus chapter. 15 for 2