The competitive nature of the Hunter Exam ant it was nearly impossible for candidates to unite; fighting one another was the norm.
Especially now, shrouded in this thick fog, it was all too easy to provoke the darker side of the human heart.
"Gon, we need to pick up the pace and move further ahead."
Killua, moving within the main group, seed to sense sothing and suddenly turned his head to look at Hisoka, who was not far behind.
Having been raised as an assassin since childhood, his sensitivity to bloodlust was incredibly keen.
At this mont, he sensed a murderous intent from Hisoka that felt as if it could erupt at any second.
Without hesitation, Killua imdiately looked away and warned Gon beside him.
"Why?" Gon asked curiously.
Killua didn't hide anything and briefly explained the bloodlust he felt radiating from Hisoka.
Gon froze for a mont and instinctively turned to look back as well.
But he wasn't looking for Hisoka; he was searching for Zane and the others.
By now, due to the interference of the wetland creatures, Zane's group had already drifted away from the main body of candidates.
Finding no sign of Zane's group, Gon ca to an involuntary halt.
"Killua, you go ahead. I'm going to find Zane and the others. Let's et at the finish line later." Gon gave Killua a bright smile and imdiately turned to run back.
"Gon?!"
Killua quickly stopped and shouted after him.
But Gon didn't stop, and his figure was soon lost within the thick fog.
"That idiot!" Killua was smart enough to imdiately realize Gon's plan.
He couldn't help but curse under his breath, looking a bit dazed.
After hesitating, Killua took a deep breath and turned to continue running in Satotz's direction.
He wasn't a fool like Gon.
Survival of the fittest was only natural; there was no reason to care.
Though he thought this, for so reason, Killua felt increasingly agitated.
...
The sound of running footsteps stopped.
Zane's trio, who had been following tracks and footprints to catch up with the main group, stopped in unison.
"It's Hisoka."
"Sothing feels off here."
The three of them hadn't stopped to give up; rather, quite a few people had gathered in a clearing ahead of them.
Seven or eight candidates had surrounded Hisoka for unknown reasons.
Because of the deep impression Hisoka had left before, Kurapika and Leorio imdiately beca wary the mont they saw him.
Suddenly...
Just as the three had stopped and before they could move around the clearing, Hisoka acted.
Like a magic trick, a playing card suddenly appeared in his hand.
A circle representing death manifested.
Before Kurapika and Leorio could even register what was happening, Hisoka had already used the playing cards in his hand to instantly slit the throats of the seven or eight candidates surrounding him.
Blood sprayed.
The surrounding candidates died instantly, their bodies collapsing limply to the ground.
Having finished off the candidates who held a grudge against him for severely injuring an examiner during the previous year's exam, Hisoka inhaled the scent of blood, looking as if his shackles had been broken.
"How lucky. I didn't expect to have the chance to et you so soon." Zane's appearance hadn't escaped Hisoka's notice.
Having dealt with the small fry, he turned directly to face Zane's group.
To be precise, he was staring at Zane.
With a bizarre smile on his face, Hisoka flicked his fingers, turning a single card into many, and sent them flying with a wave of his hand.
The cards weren't just aid at Zane; they included Kurapika and Leorio nearby as well.
Zane had been on guard since spotting Hisoka; facing the flying cards, he showed no sign of panic.
Although he couldn't truly see Nen, based on his vague perception, he sensed that the flying cards weren't infused with it. His hands beca a blur, catching all the incoming cards.
And he didn't stop there.
With a sharp gaze fixed on Hisoka, Zane mimicked Hisoka's technique and hurled the cards back.
"Back at you!"
The cards flew back as blurs toward various parts of Hisoka's body, moving just as fast as they had co.
Hisoka's eyes lit up.
Instead of being angered by Zane's counterattack, Hisoka showed intense excitent.
His card-throwing technique wasn't incredibly profound, but it wasn't sothing an ordinary person could learn with just one glance.
Zane's ability to do so was proof enough of his talent.
"Wow!"
Hisoka's hands moved in tandem, mimicking Zane's recent feat by catching the returned cards in a blur. Letting out a strange cry, he charged straight at Zane.
"You two go ahead!"
Almost at the sa mont he threw the cards, Zane barked an order for Kurapika and Leorio to leave.
His sensitivity to bloodlust was no less than Killua's; there was no way he could fail to sense Hisoka's intent.
Seeing Hisoka charging behind the cover of the cards, Zane could no longer focus on Kurapika and Leorio's reactions and imdiately t the attack head-on.
Amidst the sound of whistling air, two figures leaned forward at forty-five-degree angles, skimming across the grass and colliding in the blink of an eye.
BOOM!!!
Zane and Hisoka's arms slamd into each other with brute force.
The powerful impact created a visible shockwave.
Dirt flew beneath their feet, and the surrounding grass tore and scattered.
Hisoka wasn't using Nen, but his physical constitution was not to be underestimated.
In a direct collision, Zane, who possessed a constitution from the One Piece world, did not hold the advantage.
Their eyes t.
Hisoka's gaze was burning with excitent.
Zane's gaze was calm and sharp.
After a brief test of strength, sensing they couldn't overpower each other, both backed away simultaneously in a tacit understanding.
They left deep footprints in the ground.
Shedding the impact, Hisoka imdiately launched another attack.
Gripping cards between his fingers, he swung them like blades, slashing rapidly at Zane.
Zane's movents were swift. He dodged the card strikes while delivering a barrage of punches in return.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The two fought while moving, their high-speed exchange of offense and defense turning them into two blurred figures darting across the grass.
Every movent kicked up visible ripples of air and left fractured pits in the turf.
"What is this?!!"
Leorio, who hadn't yet listened to Zane's command, stared wide-eyed at the battle unfolding before him.
He couldn't see the two fighters clearly at all, but that only made it harder to believe.
He knew Zane was strong, but he never imagined he was this powerful.
Clang!
The sound of a blade being drawn rang out from beside him.
This jolted Leorio, and he quickly looked over.
He saw that Kurapika had already unsheathed his twin blades, keeping his eyes fixed on the battle between Zane and Hisoka while maintaining a stance ready for combat.
"Telling us to leave first... how could anyone actually do that!"
Snapped out of it by Kurapika's actions, Leorio muttered a curse and pulled out his own folding knife.
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