From Netero's perspective, Kaizen had two ways to deal with Raiken.
One was to abandon it completely.
The other was to repurpose it.
However, for a Nen user, abandoning something outright was rarely a good choice.
It was like managing resources.
Most resources in the world were finite. Once used, they became waste. And waste could be dealt with in two ways: discard it or recycle it.
Nen, in a sense, was similar to a resource library.
When Netero sensed the strong resistance from Raiken, Kaizen made his decision—he gave it up.
In that instant, Raiken's figure blurred as he moved to the edge of the battlefield.
"Gravity Game of Libra!"
The moment Kaizen activated his ability, the gravitational force acting on Netero began to weaken. At this point, Kaizen had refined his control to reduce the target's weight to one-twentieth of its original mass.
For example, if Netero weighed 60 kilograms, under the influence of Gravity Game of Libra, he would feel as light as if he only weighed 3 kilograms.
Three kilograms—barely more than a small cut of meat on a butcher's block.
With gravity reduced to such an extent, movement was bound to be affected.
"A gravity-based ability?"
Netero raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "Interesting."
A sudden flash of lightning tore through the air—Uchiha Sasuke's attack struck in the instant Netero became weightless.
But before it could connect—
Crack!
Netero's hand shot out, effortlessly catching Sasuke's wrist.
Sasuke had some skill, but it wasn't enough.
Netero twisted his body and evaded.
Snap!
Not far away, Raiken clapped his hands together.
"Position Swap!"
In an instant, the positions of Natsu and Raiken' reversed.
Raiken hit the ground, his body folding into a grotesque, insect-like posture as he lunged at Netero, arms outstretched, aiming to latch onto him.
But Netero had already read Kaizen's intent.
His palm struck out, slamming into Raiken's chest.
Boom!
The impact sent Raiken flying like a cannonball, but in the split second his blade brushed against Netero, the gravity effect flipped.
The previous reduction—one-twentieth of normal weight—suddenly inverted.
Now, instead of 3 kilograms, Netero's body bore 120 kilograms of force.
The abrupt shift caused a slight pause in his movements.
"The Roar of the Dragon!"
Natsu inhaled sharply before exhaling a stream of scorching flames toward Netero. The heat distorted the air as it surged forward.
At this distance, dodging was impossible.
"This ability is certainly diverse," Netero mused, admiration flickering in his gaze.
He raised a hand and thrust his palm forward.
A fierce gust of wind surged outward, forming a makeshift barrier—not through air manipulation, but through sheer force, creating a wall of compressed wind.
As Natsu's flames struck, they split cleanly in two, veering off to either side.
However, Netero's reaction had been slightly rushed, and stray embers still managed to singe his training clothes.
Casually, he patted out the flames.
...
"Flame!"
"Gravity!"
"Thunder!"
"Fight!"
"Mist!"
Kaizen's summoned beasts each unleashed their abilities in rapid succession.
"Kaizen, your abilities are truly varied," Netero remarked, his eyes gleaming with curiosity. "And, more importantly, they complement each other well."
He studied Kaizen carefully. "I'm genuinely curious—how did you manage this? It's not something that can be achieved through talent alone."
Nen was already a complex discipline, and Nen Beasts required even deeper comprehension.
To master a Nen Beast, one had to not only grasp the mechanics of Nen but also develop an intuitive understanding of its nature. Without imagination and insight, it was impossible to create something cohesive.
Yet Kaizen, despite his age and relative lack of experience, had developed such a system.
"How exactly did you come to understand so much?" Netero asked.
Kaizen met his gaze and smiled slightly. "Chairman, why don't you tell me why you're here? The next exam is coming up."
Netero chuckled. "Fair enough."
Their bout had no formal conclusion, but that was expected.
No matter how talented Kaizen was, he wasn't at Netero's level yet.
Netero had only been testing his strength—there was no need for a decisive victory.
"Your Nen is solid. Your foundation is stable," Netero said approvingly. "There should be no problem with you teaching new candidates."
However, his expression turned serious. "But Kaizen, you must have noticed the sense of discord in your ability just now."
Kaizen nodded. "I did."
"Have you figured out how to fix it?"
"I have an idea."
"That's good."
Netero smiled. "You know, there aren't many Nen users who specialize in Nen Beasts, and even fewer who actively travel to different places for inspiration."
He tapped his fingers together. "That red-haired beast—did you base it on Heavens Arena?"
"The red-eyed one—was that inspired by the Kurta Clan?"
"But that light… I couldn't place it."
"Was the Flame Beast modeled after the Kingdom of Fiora? Or maybe Saherta?"
...
Meanwhile, outside the training grounds—
A shadowed figure pressed himself against the wall, ear flattened against the surface, hunched over like a gecko clinging to stone.
His grin was unsettlingly mischievous.
Footsteps echoed.
Two figures approached.
Upon seeing the man, Gon tilted his head in curiosity. "Hisoka, what are you doing?"
The voice snapped Hisoka out of his thoughts.
He turned toward Gon—
And only then realized just how ridiculous his current posture was.
For once, even Hisoka looked… slightly embarrassed.
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