Chapter 1 — Respawn: I'm a Monkey, Not a Player
If reincarnation had a loading screen, mine would've crashed halfway through.
One second, I was binge-reading Nen Theory Vol. 7: Unofficial Edition on some shady forum at 3 A.M., thinking, "Man, I totally understand how Genthru's Little Flower works."
The next second—boom. No chair, no body, no heartbeat. Just a loading void and a voice that sounded like the universe was buffering my soul.
> [Reincarnation complete.]
[Destination: Greed Island.]
[Race: Monkey.]
[Good luck, you damn nerd.]
Then came the banana smell.
I woke up hanging upside down from a tree branch, tail twitching, brain rebooting. I had fur. Hands with thumbs that looked like rejected DLC for human evolution.
And beneath me — a jungle that looked way too high-res to be a dream.
"...No way. This is Greed Island?"
I said that out loud. Or rather, screeched it. It came out like a dying seagull trying to do karaoke.
> [System Online.]
[Instant Mastery (Active) Initialized.]
The voice was female — calm, sarcastic, and bored, like a customer service rep from heaven.
"System?" I blinked, still dangling. "Why do you sound like you hate your job?"
> [Because I was assigned to a monkey who thinks Killua could beat Meruem with prep time.]
"…Fair."
I swung down, landing awkwardly. My monkey body moved on instinct, but my human mind kept overanalyzing it like I was in a Nen combat seminar. The forest around me pulsed with aura — faint traces in the air, the kind only hardcore HxH fans would recognize.
"This… is real Nen energy."
Leaves shimmered when I focused, like invisible threads connecting life itself. My chest buzzed with something ancient — wild. Raw. It wasn't just life force; it was the concept of being alive.
> [New comprehension target detected: Aura Flow.]
[Begin learning?]
"Hell yeah."
The moment I focused, I felt it — like my veins were river channels for something thicker than blood. I remembered every page I'd ever read about Ten and Zetsu, but knowledge wasn't enough. I had to feel it emotionally.
So I tried meditating. As a monkey.
Five minutes later, a banana hit my head.
Another monkey — bigger, angrier — screeched from a nearby branch.
He was holding a half-eaten banana like a weapon, eyes glowing with primal rage.
"Oh, fantastic. My first Nen lesson, and I'm about to get murdered by Donkey Kong."
He jumped at me. I panicked, dodged purely on instinct, and countered with a wild swing — the kind of punch that would've made Wing-sensei cry.
> [Instant Mastery Triggered.]
[Skill Acquired: Wild Combat Lv.1]
[Proficiency increasing rapidly.]
My body adapted. Every move I made became cleaner, sharper, smoother. His next swing missed, and I grabbed a vine, flipping above him like I'd practiced this all my life.
When I landed, I felt it — a pulse in my body, like aura syncing with intent.
> [Partial mastery of Ten achieved.]
I froze.
Then grinned.
Then immediately slipped on a banana peel and fell face-first into mud.
> [Dignity: 0/100]
"Thanks for the update, Siri of humiliation."
> [You're welcome.]
For a while, I just lay there, staring at the canopy, thinking. Okay. I'm not human anymore. I'm a monkey. But I can feel aura, and my System's real. Which means…
If I can master Nen as a beast, I'm not just another experiment or monster — I'm evolution itself.
The thought lit a spark inside me. A terrifying, electric curiosity.
That's when I noticed the horizon — a shimmer of data-light, faintly blue, flickering in the distance. It wasn't the sun; it was Greed Island's code. Like seeing the edges of a simulation.
> [Location: Masadora Region, Outer Jungle.]
[Nearby Threats: Aura Beasts, Players, Hunger, and your crippling curiosity.]
"System, don't sass me."
> [No promises.]
I started walking — or rather, swinging — through the trees, analyzing everything. My instincts told me where branches were weakest, where energy pooled, where danger lingered.
Every movement I focused on became smoother, faster, smarter.
> [New comprehension target: Aerial Navigation.]
[Skill mastered.]
"Oh, hell yes. Tarzan × Nen × Monkey Arc begins."
I found a small clearing with a pond. My reflection looked ridiculous — fluffy brown fur, yellow eyes glowing faintly from aura sensitivity. I looked like someone had tried to cross a shounen protagonist with a plush toy.
Still… I felt alive. More than I ever had as a human.
Then I heard footsteps — human footsteps.
Voices, too.
"Yo, check it out. I think I heard something over here."
Two players in basic armor entered the clearing, carrying cheap swords and Accompany cards. Probably low-level scrubs.
"Could be a beast. Let's catch it for bait."
> [Caution advised.]
[Hostile intent detected.]
"Yeah, I noticed," I whispered, hiding in the branches.
I focused, trying Zetsu — suppressing aura completely. My body trembled, fur prickling.
> [Learning: Zetsu.]
[Success rate: 38%.]
Come on, feel it. Stillness. Emptiness. Like being offline.
The aura dimmed. The forest quieted. Even the insects hesitated.
The players looked around.
"Hmm. Maybe it was just a normal animal."
"Let's go. This area's dead anyway."
When they left, I exhaled slowly. The silence cracked.
> [Zetsu partially mastered.]
[Congratulations. You're now 0.1% less likely to die.]
"Wow. My System's a comedian."
> [Better than your fight stats.]
I laughed. Genuinely laughed. For the first time, I didn't feel trapped or cursed.
I felt challenged.
A monkey in a human's world of power.
A beast who could think, learn, adapt — and maybe, just maybe, evolve.
And somewhere out there, Gon and Killua were beginning their own journey.
They had cards, dreams, and humanity.
I had claws, curiosity… and the most overworked AI in the multiverse.
> [Name creation unlocked.]
[Enter designation.]
I thought for a moment.
Smirked.
"Call me Monk."
> [Registered: Monk, the Wild Learner.]
And as the forest wind howled through the trees, I whispered to myself —
"Let's see how far instinct can go."