The suffocating, intensely fierce battle...
Came to an abrupt halt just like that.
The examinees, who had never witnessed such a scene before, were all plunged into silent astonishment.
Even Nen users like Satotz, Buhara, and Barbara couldn't conceal their shock.
Before this duel began, they could tell just from the aura Hisoka emitted that he was purely a combat specialist. In terms of sheer strength alone, he was far beyond their ability to contend with.
Meanwhile, the aura Morrow displayed appeared much more restrained.
Yet the outcome of this battle was Morrow effortlessly defeating Hisoka.
Everyone except Gon had their eyes fixed on Morrow.
It wasn't until the sound of fishing line cutting through the air echoed through the arena that everyone snapped to attention and looked toward Gon.
What met their eyes was Gon clutching Hisoka's number tag.
While everyone's focus had been entirely on the duel between Morrow and Hisoka, only Gon...
Even after experiencing an indescribable visual impact, he never abandoned his goal of "obtaining the number tag."
That's why, after Hisoka fell, he seized what could be described as the only fleeting opportunity.
This kid...
After Hanzo processed what happened, he looked at Gon with disbelief.
Gon tightly gripped the number tag, the pounding in his chest showing no signs of slowing down.
The arena instantly fell into complete silence.
Morrow shifted his gaze from Hisoka to Gon, who inherently possessed the qualities of a Hunter.
To instinctively seize this opportunity under such mental pressure...
Truly worthy of being Ging's child, exceptionally gifted indeed.
Morrow remained completely unfazed, utterly indifferent to the gains or losses of this test. He withdrew his gaze from Gon and walked directly over to Hisoka.
At that moment, Satotz seemed to remember his role as referee. He immediately stepped forward with light footsteps, entered the arena, and announced: "The first duel is won by Gon and Hanzo."
Hanzo stared blankly for a moment, then his expression became complicated.
Although he had secured the Hunter License, he couldn't feel happy about it at all.
Gon let out a long sigh, then hesitated as he looked at Hisoka lying motionless on the ground and Morrow, who had already reached Hisoka's side.
He was considering whether to return the number tag.
Morrow briefly examined Hisoka's injuries before looking up at Satotz.
Understanding immediately, Satotz said softly, "The medical team will be here shortly."
No sooner had he spoken, the training hall doors swung open, and a group of medical staff rushed in with stretchers, heading straight for the fallen Hisoka.
Soon, Hisoka, whose face was battered beyond recognition, was lifted onto a stretcher and taken to the medical room.
Morrow watched as Hisoka was carried away, then turned his gaze toward Chairman Netero, who had remained perfectly composed throughout.
It was hard to believe that pairing Hisoka and him together wasn't Netero's deliberate arrangement.
But since things had come to this, Morrow was more concerned about the subsequent tests. He asked directly, "May I ask, if Hisoka is unable to continue fighting, can I participate in the remaining duels alone?"
"Of course, but any disadvantage from having fewer team members will be your responsibility to bear."
Netero chuckled, then said seriously, "After all, Hisoka's current condition ultimately stems from internal conflict within your own team."
"..."
Morrow thought to himself, wasn't this all deliberately arranged by you, you old geezer?
But it didn't matter, as long as it didn't affect the subsequent tests.
Seeing that Morrow had stopped speaking, Netero added, "Also, according to the rules, starting from your second duel, you can fight alone, but you must wear Hisoka's number tag."
"No problem."
Morrow agreed without hesitation.
Wearing an extra number tag made no difference to him.
At the edge of the arena, the examinees silently watched Morrow, whom they now regarded as a monster.
No one had expected the first match of the Hunter Final Exam to end in such a way.
They had assumed Gon and Hanzo, the clearly disadvantaged side, would promptly surrender, but Gon, stubborn as ever, refused.
Even more baffling was that Morrow and Hisoka, who should have easily passed the test, suddenly turned on each other.
The terrifying, incomprehensible power they displayed still seemed to linger in their retinas.
But even though Hisoka had been taken down by Morrow, they believed Morrow alone could easily handle Gon and Hanzo.
Yet, at the critical moment, Gon used his fishing rod to snatch the number tag while Hisoka lay unconscious, securing victory in the first duel.
It was surreal.
That was the sentiment shared by most examinees.
Hisoka's severe injury and withdrawal did not affect the test's progression.
The second duel began shortly after.
The participants were the team of Sommy and Bourbon, and the team of Shishito and Umori.
Netero had divided the bracket into left and right halves.
The left half consisted of examinee teams with 3 to 5 challenge opportunities.
The right half consisted of teams with only 2 opportunities.
From this arrangement, it was clear Netero hadn't randomly assigned the matchups; at the very least, he had given the weaker examinees a valuable chance to qualify.
Whether they could seize it was up to them.
Under this format, as the duels continued, one team would "advance" from each half.
Finally, these two teams would compete for the final qualification spot.
The result of the second duel was quickly decided, with Sommy and Bourbon's team emerging victorious.
One of them raised monkeys, the other kept venomous snakes.
They used a snake formation to create an opportunity for a small monkey to steal the number tag.
It was a fairly clever tactical arrangement.
With the second duel over, it was time for the left half's match.
Morrow, who had "advanced," returned to the arena, and his opponents this time were the team of Killua and Barbara.
"I surrender."
Barbara was a Nen user, but as soon as she stepped onto the field, she decisively surrendered.
Against a monster like Morrow, there was no chance at all.
After surrendering, Barbara looked at her teammate, Killua.
She knew Killua was strong, but he wasn't a Nen user...
And even if he were, she didn't think they stood a chance.
So surrendering outright was their only option.
"..."
Meeting Barbara's gaze, Killua remained silent for a moment before shaking his head. "I don't want to surrender."
"Huh?"
Barbara was taken aback, completely unprepared for this.
In her eyes, Killua was the rational type, adept at assessing situations; why would he refuse to surrender, just like Gon?
Taken aback, Barbara suddenly realized that what Killua had said earlier was "I don't want to admit defeat," not "I won't admit defeat." Coupled with her recollection of Gon's performance in the first duel...
So that's how it is.
Is it unwillingness to accept defeat, or resentment?
With her sharp intuition, Barbara deduced from that single word difference that Killua's reluctance to concede was likely tied to Gon.
If it was unwillingness, it might be because Gon hadn't admitted defeat either.
If it was resentment, it could be because Killua felt his performance in the previous tests shouldn't have ranked lower than Gon's.
"Sorry, I don't want to take the risk of 'possibly getting injured' in a fight where there's no chance of winning."
Barbara could understand Killua's reasoning, but she didn't agree with it.
Because acting on impulse wouldn't change anything.
After speaking, she unfastened her number tag and held it in her hand.
But she wasn't planning to throw it directly to Morrow.
Instead, she intended to wait and see; if Killua remained stubborn, she would judge the right moment to throw the tag to minimize his risk of injury and avoid affecting the next match.
Clutching the number tag, Barbara quietly stepped back a distance.
Logically, she knew the best course was to simply toss the tag and end the fight, preserving both her and Killua's condition.
But in the end, she chose to respect the young man's decision.
Killua tacitly accepted Barbara's action.
Had she attempted to throw the tag, he would have snatched it back immediately.
Yet even if he kept the chance to continue the duel, what meaning did it really hold?
No matter how I look at it, I should just admit defeat, right...
Killua's heart was clouded with gloom.
The mere thought of what happened in the Milsy Wetlands made him inexplicably reluctant to back down here.
On the other side of the arena.
Morrow showed no aura, quietly observing as Killua and Barbara reached their conclusion.
He was somewhat surprised by Killua's decision.
Although he was only maintaining a harmless Ten, it didn't seem like Killua's style to act this way.
But soon, he noticed Killua's despondent mood.
After a moment's thought, Morrow suddenly spoke up: "Killua, are you ready?"
Killua was taken aback.
Seeing his stunned expression, Morrow smiled and said, "If you're ready, I'm going all out to take your number tag next."
"..."
Killua remained silent, but noticing that Morrow still hadn't unleashed that intimidating aura, he frowned and said:
"You say you're going all out, but you don't look serious at all. If you're planning to go easy, don't bother. Even if you do, I probably still can't win."
"How would you know without trying?"
Morrow casually raised his right hand, grinning. "Who knows, I might not be able to defend against your Rhythm Echo."
"Tch."
At the mention of Rhythm Echo, Killua snorted coldly. But Morrow's words finally pulled him out of his conflicted state, sparking a flicker of desire to give it a shot.
Going all out, huh...
Then I'll test him with Rhythm Echo!
Suddenly, Killua advanced toward Morrow with irregular, shifting footsteps, instantly creating a series of afterimages.
With practiced skill, he swiftly enveloped himself in over a dozen phantom shadows, closing the distance between them in moments.
Morrow smiled.
Though Rhythm Echo was indeed quite useful, as long as one focused on the naturally flowing aura, they could instantly locate the true body.
「Astral Step」
Morrow's figure vanished into thin air, and in the next blink, he had already taken Killua's number tag in hand.
The match ended there, signifying that Morrow had passed the final test.
Only after seeing Morrow vanish into thin air did Killua suddenly realize his number tag had been taken, causing his steps to falter and all the afterimages to disappear instantly.
"Is this the possibility you mentioned!?"
Spinning around abruptly to glare at the number tag in Morrow's hand, the instantly defeated Killua gritted his teeth.
Morrow tossed the number tag lightly in his hand and chuckled, "But I also said I would give it my all."
"Damn it."
Killua's eyes widened, but instead of feeling defeated, he felt a hint of joy in his heart.
Outside the arena.
The examinees were not at all surprised by the outcome.
Only Kalluto and Netero noticed that after being utterly defeated, Killua had actually shed the negative emotions he had accumulated up to that point.