"Looks like this year is going to be more interesting than usual."
Old Captain Mark Seam noticed the tree branch Roy carried on his shoulder. It vaguely reminded him of soone else who also loved fishing. When they first t, that person also carried a fishing rod on his shoulder, a red orb hanging from its end. He was the only one to pass the exam that year... Was his na Ging Freecss? Mark Seam vaguely recalled the na.
"Welco... welco... Roy Zoldyck, we et again."
Applause rang out as Pariston approached with open arms, grinning, to welco Roy aboard.
However, Roy ignored him completely, walking straight past, heading to the bow of the ship. He sat down cross-legged, flicked his 'rod', and continued fishing, honing his Nen ability. Still water wasn't the sa as the living sea; the movent of the Sea God added significant difficulty to fishing. Roy remained steady as a reef, swaying slightly with the ship. Behind him stood Gotoh, silent, facing the crowd, guarding his back.
"Heh heh heh... Little Hill got ignored again." First by the strange man... now by the Zoldyck...
Clark glanced back at the sea. The blue surface was calm; the strange man was gone. Just as he wondered if the guy had drowned, a hand suddenly grabbed the ship's railing, and a soaked figure climbed aboard.
Illumi had seen it... that blonde guy looking at Big Brother. What did he intend to do with open arms? Embrace him?
'Dangerous!' Pariston suddenly felt a chill on the back of his neck. He turned and t a pair of vacant eyes. It was the strange man!
Creak... creak... The strange man sat down leaning against the railing. Noticing Pariston looking his way, he simply closed his eyes, adopting an 'out of sight, out of mind' attitude.
The thin bodyguard, Golem, sensed sothing was off. "This person is strange," he whispered.
Pariston gave Illumi a deep look, then shrugged nonchalantly. "That's... what makes it interesting..." Roy Zoldyck was here; nothing else mattered. He led Clark and Golem to find a spot to wait.
Seeing everyone was aboard, Old Captain Mark Seam clapped his hands and ordered his first mate, Gus, to bring out a box. He surveyed the crowd and shouted, "Everyone, look over here!"
"Each of you, take a number plate and wear it!"
All eyes turned. Gus, wearing a red bandana, tipped the box over, spilling out a pile of number plates. White background, black numbers, with a red button on the side. A rough estimate put the count at over a hundred.
"What's this for? Exam registration numbers?" The bald ninja flickered forward, the first to grab a plate. Holding it curiously, he reached for the red button, but was stopped mid-motion by Captain Mark Seam.
"If you don't want to be eliminated right now, go ahead and press it," Mark Seam said, puffing on his pipe and exhaling smoke. The bald ninja flinched, nearly dropping the plate.
"So serious! Why didn't you say so earlier, old man?" Yusuke was annoyed. As an elite Jonin from the Cloud shinobi village of his holand, being eliminated here, before even reaching the official Hunter Exam site... forget facing his peers, if his master found out, he'd be ordered to commit seppuku! It would be utterly humiliating!
"Hmph... Say so earlier?" Mark Seam scanned the crowd, raising his voice. "Don't think you're safe just because you're on board!"
"I'm telling you, the mont your foot touched this deck, the Hunter Exam began!"
"If you're counting on luck, you might as well quit now!"
"We've co this far, who the hell would quit? Get on with it, old tir! What do you want us to do?" soone shouted impatiently.
"Excellent!" Mark Seam wasn't bothered by the insult. He picked up a number plate and showed it to everyone. "Each plate represents one point. This stage of the exam is actually very simple. It's called the 'Point Scramble'!"
"Before we reach the official exam site, Dolle Island, whoever accumulates the most points wins." The old captain paused, narrowing his eyes and holding up one finger. "Only the top ten will pass!"
Wait...
"You're making us kill each other!" Soone finally understood. What 'Point Scramble'? It clearly ant everyone here had to fight until only ten remained!
The realization sent ripples through the crowd. Yusuke, the snake charr, the boy with the bow, the Kurta girl, Kite, Gotoh—all looked sharply at Mark Seam. He chuckled, taking a deep drag from his pipe. "That's why we gave you a 'surrender button' in advance." The old man pressed the red button on his plate, which let out a sharp whine. He grinned maliciously. "If you can't take it, just surrender. We'll intervene."
"Of course," Mark Seam glanced at Yusuke, "pressing it ans you forfeit your right to take the exam."
Whoosh. A sea breeze swept across the deck, carrying away all the noise.
The sound of rustling pages broke the silence. The Kurta girl spoke up. "As far as I know, the preliminary stages aren't usually this harsh. Even last year, mass eliminations only occurred upon arrival at the official site."
"You said it yourself, that was usually," Mark Seam replied淡淡道. "Each exam has its own rules. If you disagree, you can appeal to the Association!" Anyway, these are orders from above. It won't co back on , Mark Seam added silently in his head.
"Then there's nothing more to say." Following the impulsive bald ninja, Pariston was the first to step forward. He took plate number "1", pinned it to his chest, surveyed the crowd, his gaze lingering on Roy for a mont, and smiled sinisterly. "I wholeheartedly support the Association's decision. Trash should be cleared out early, lest they tarnish the Association's reputation!"
"It's that guy again!" The image of Donovan being splattered into paste was still vivid. Yusuke, the snake charr, the boy with the bow, the man in bandages... all glared furiously but dared not speak out. They waited until Pariston, Clark, and Golem had each taken a number and moved aside before cautiously stepping forward, taking their own plates, and quickly finding places to hide.
Suddenly, a scream pierced the air. Soone, seeing the person ahead of them take a plate, had stabbed them in the back while their guard was down, snatched the plate, and ran.
It was like dropping a boulder into a calm lake. That single act ignited the killing!
"Welco to the real Hunter world," Mark Seam remarked, noticing the bloody knife. He instructed Gus and the crew to intervene imdiately if anyone pressed the surrender button, then turned and headed for the captain's cabin, closing the door behind him. Getting too old for this bloody business. Those higher-ups really don't consider an old man's feelings. The old captain slumped into his chair, closed his eyes, and decided to take a nap, leaving the candidates to their brutal battle royale on the deck.
Swish— Amidst the chaos on deck, a throwing knife, blindly aid, flew towards Roy!
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