Nobunaga's brow furrowed. "This isn't the sa thing."
"How is it not the sa?" Uvogin's voice was sharp.
"Of course it's not," Nobunaga snapped, eyes locking with Uvogin's. "I stopped Feitan and Phinks because I didn't want them to kill you. I was protecting your life—because you're my closest friend, my comrade!"
"But Machi… she wants to leave."
Uvogin cut him off. "She's not happy in the Troupe anymore. She doesn't want to stay. If you force her to remain, how is that any different from killing her?"
Nobunaga stiffened, his words caught in his throat. "Is she really that disgusted with the Troupe?" he asked, almost to himself. "Was it us that made her feel this way?"
Uvogin shook his head. "No. It's not us."
"Then who? Feitan? Phinks? Kortopi or Shalnark? Or maybe those two new recruits?" Nobunaga's tone dropped, darker now. "Don't tell … the boss?"
"None of them," Uvogin said quietly. "I don't know how to explain it, but Nobunaga… you know as well as I do, Machi has always been smarter than the two of us. She thinks deeper, sees more."
"If she's made this decision, then she must have her reasons. As her friends, the only thing we need to do is support her."
"And what about us?"
"I don't know about you. But … I can't walk away from the Troupe. This life—it's the only one I've ever known, and I'll stick with it until the end."
Nobunaga stood silent for a long mont. "Sa," he finally said. "Just… I wonder what it'll be like the next ti we see her. What kind of scene it'll be. What we'll say to each other."
Uvogin placed a heavy hand on his shoulder. "Worry about that when the ti cos. If she's living happily, that's enough for .... and hopefully it should be enough for you as well."
...............
.......
.
anwhile, Ron and the others exited the restaurant.
"Kurapika's supposed to be in Yorknew too," Gon remarked, glancing around as if he might suddenly appear. But there was no sign of him.
"Ron-nii, what's next on your schedule?" Killua asked.
Ron checked the ti. "The auction starts at nine tonight. I'll head over, but I've got other people to et first."
"Other people? Anyone we know?" Killua's curiosity was piqued.
"No," Ron said with a small smile. "You don't."
He was eting Morena, soone Gon and Killua hadn't encountered.
"Can we co with you?"
Ron shook his head. "Not a good idea."
"You four go on together.
Milluki, technically, no one should be stirring up trouble tonight—but just in case sothing does happen, I'm counting on you to keep them safe."
Milluki gave a lazy nod. "Sure. If nothing happens, that's great. But if it does, they'll owe a protection fee."
It sounded a little cold, but it was more consideration than most would've given. Milluki normally wouldn't bother, but for Killua, this was different.
"Then I'll head out first," Ron said. He wasn't particularly worried about the others—Phantom Troupe's target wasn't them, and even if things got chaotic, it wasn't likely they'd be caught in a fatal crossfire. And Milluki might be a specialist in information warfare, but that didn't an he lacked offensive capability. His arsenal of bizarre bombs could be a nightmare to deal with, and he had trained under the Zoldyck family like the rest of them. He had more confird kills than most of the Troupe's mbers individually.
................
......
.
Ron entered the auction hall and quickly found Morena, waiting at their agreed eting spot.
"Ron, over here."
She waved him over, then handed him a small bag.
"This is the Greed Island cartridge?"
"Yep," Morena nodded. "I managed to get one. You take it. When we've got the ti, let's play it together."
"Sure," Ron replied, slipping the bag into Sumas's space. Then the two leaned casually against the railing in the corridor, looking down as guests began to file into the venue below.
All around, mbers of the Underworld Mafia dressed like business executives patrolled the area, looking more like corporate staff than gangsters. Surveillance was everywhere. Yorknew's auction security was airtight. Ordinary people didn't stand a chance of breaking in—nor did ordinary Nen users.
But the Phantom Troupe were anything but ordinary.
Morena had no idea what was coming.
Gon, Killua, and Leorio, guided by Milluki, also arrived at the auction hall. Elsewhere, Kurapika's team entered from another entrance.
As they waited, Morena turned to Ron. "Do you have a dream?"
The cool night wind stirred her hair as she looked out over the city, its lights pulsing like distant stars.
"To beco strong," Ron said. "I want to see what the limit of a Nen user really looks like."
"I want to see the Dark Continent. If I had to na it… my dream would be freedom."
"What about you, Morena?"
Ron glanced at the skyline, the glowing sprawl that stretched past the horizon. In his past life, dreams had been smaller. Earn enough to live comfortably. Avoid risk. Stay quiet and out of the way.
But this world didn't allow for quiet lives.
Since arriving, he'd seen too much—monsters, miracles, raw power that broke every rule he thought he knew. He'd tasted strength, and it had changed him.
At first, it was survival. Then it was growth. Now, it was sothing else entirely.
People always want more. No matter how much they have, it's never enough.
Right now, his dream was to reach the S-rank threshold as soon as possible. But deep down, he knew it wouldn't stop there. Not once he got a glimpse of what lay beyond.
He wanted to climb higher—not for the title, but to see how far a person could really go in a world like this.
To find the edge of power, and then push past it.
Morena fell silent for a mont. "I guess I want freedom too. But for … it's a luxury."
"From the mont I was born, my fate was already sealed."
Ron took her hand. "One day, you'll have it."
"Kakin might seem massive—but that's only compared to the human world. When you look at the entire world… it's actually quite small."
"If you climb high enough, you'll be able to break free."
Suddenly, a shrill alarm rang out. Down below, chaos erupted in an instant.
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