Illumi added, "After reaching the second floor, our original abilities are suppressed. When the needleman opened the door and entered the second floor, I could feel my Nen being forcibly sealed, instantly entering Zetsu. So on the second floor, it seems you can only use the additional power granted there and not our own."
Ron frowned. "That makes things much harder. Even if the two of us entered the second floor, we wouldn't be able to use our abilities, while they would have a nurical advantage—at least one more person—and could ambush us. Under these conditions, it would be difficult to defeat them."
Ten people, all with abilities. Even newcors would imdiately gain a power, but without knowing exactly what that power would be, how could you counter it?
"How did great-grandfather do it?" Ron wondered. He knew that in the original story, the Ten Dons had died—killed by Maha Zoldyck, Illumi, and Kalluto. But Kalluto was too weak to play a major role; the main force had to have been Maha, with Illumi likely providing support.
"Cousin Illumi, did you notice what ability that needleman obtained just before entering the second floor?"
"I didn't," Illumi said.
Ron looked at the laptop, instructing Chii to replay the footage at a very slow speed. "Gyo." He inspected fra by fra.
A card appeared in the footage—the mont the needleman pushed open the door, a card appeared and flew straight toward the needleman, striking his body. Ron clearly saw the card had the image of a snake on it.
"A card… a snake…" Ron's gaze sharpened. "Could this be an ability tied to the zodiac system? There were already ten Ten Dons. Great-grandfather brought Illumi and Kalluto as well—that makes thirteen people."
A theory took shape in Ron's mind. "Twelve cards… but with thirteen people, would that force a reshuffle? Not to the extent that everyone would lose their powers, because if that were the case, the Underworld Mafia and the Ten Dons wouldn't rely on the ark so much. But maybe there would be a redistribution of abilities. Redistribution would require ti. If that delay happens, then even if the opponents have ten people and unusual abilities, with my and Illumi's strength, we could still win."
Ron shared his hypothesis with Illumi.
"So, Ron, you're saying we should send in three people at the sa ti onto the second floor?"
"Exactly."
"How many needlen would we need?"
"Maybe twelve… maybe thirty." Ron couldn't be sure. During the earlier test, a second needleman survived after nine others died, but he was killed by the Don before he could ascend to the second floor. So Ron couldn't be sure if the Don had the authority to enter.
"Then let's send thirty," Illumi said, leaving to prepare.
Under Illumi's control, thirty needlen entered the ark. One after another, they died quickly. Soon, more than twenty were dead, leaving three who qualified to ascend.
Ron noted that creating three entrants seed to require exactly three tis the ti it took to create one.
The three needlen ascended the stairs together and reached the door.
Creak.
The mont the door opened, all the Ten Dons inside turned toward them, prepared to attack. But at that very instant, their powers vanished before they could act.
Streams of light flowed from their bodies, transforming into cards. A total of twelve cards floated in the air.
Ron saw clearly, just as he expected, they were the zodiac symbols, or rather, the twelve earthly branches, the sa as the Hunter Association's Zodiac Twelve: dragon, snake, rat, rooster, monkey, ox, pig, rabbit, dog, tiger, goat, horse.
The three needlen entered the room. The Ten Dons glared at them grimly but did not act rashly. Without the power of the cards, they weren't particularly strong.
The next mont, the twelve cards seed to select their targets and shot toward twelve individuals—nine Ten Dons and two needlen.
A battle was about to erupt.
Ron watched the screen closely. "Chii, record this."
The fight soon ended. The Ten Don's nurical superiority gave them the edge—three tis as many as the needlen. Even though the needlen had received card powers, they were rely forr ordinary mbers of the Underworld Mafia. Illumi's thod for acquiring needlen was simple: he would lure people from the Underworld Mafia to attack him, lead them in a chase, and when their numbers thinned enough, he would control them with needles and turn them into puppets.
All three needlen died.
But Ron still gained valuable information about the twelve card powers.
He compiled a list. "Initial analysis: all twelve cards grant the user strength roughly at the level of an A-rank Nen user. When soone enters the second floor, their original Nen abilities are sealed, but physical attributes are not."
That was Ron and Illumi's key advantage. Their physical strength, technique, experience, and reflexes far exceeded those of the Ten Dons.
It was comparable to this: the twelve cards gave everyone sothing like a kunai. With cards in play, Ron, Illumi, and the Ten Dons all had a kunai each, but it was like comparing Hanzō during the Hunter Exam wielding a kunai versus an ordinary person with one. The weapon's power and quality were the sa, but skill made all the difference. Ten people with kunais might not necessarily defeat two experts like Hanzō.
Of course, the powers granted by the twelve cards were far stronger than kunais. But Ron and Illumi weren't without a chance of victory.
Moreover, they could try more than just sending in three needlen simultaneously.
What would happen if ten entered at once?
Among the Ten Dons, there couldn't be that many cardholders.
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