A sharp, incomparably fierce slash sank into the wall in front of them with a crisp sound.
Without any visible exertion, Number Two slowly sheathed his blade. The extended Kusanagi Sword brushed against the air, emitting a clear, ringing hum. Accompanied by the crashing collapse of the wall, a deep, dark passage was revealed behind it.
Is this the so-called "Open Sesame"?
Gon, Kurapika, Leorio, and Tonpa all swallowed hard in unison. This violent method of opening doors was truly very "Teacher Ben An."
"Let's go. There is still some trash ahead waiting to be disposed of. Don't waste time."
Clack, clack, clack.
The scabbard of the Kusanagi Sword tapped against the ground as Number Two stepped over the shattered stone door. Taking the lead, he walked into the depths of the passage, leaving the others with a view of his back, which seemed as tall and imposing as a mountain.
"Actually... we should have gotten used to this long ago," Kurapika suddenly spoke, breaking the silence.
Leorio glanced at him. "Used to what?"
'Idiot, don't you claim to be a smart guy?'
"Used to Teacher Ben An's strength... and also used to rejoicing that he considers us friends." Kurapika rolled his eyes at Leorio, then looked at Gon, who was scratching the back of his head.
Gon's eyes went wide. "Eh? Aren't we friends already?"
Seeming surprised that Kurapika would say such a thing, he pumped his two short legs and chased after Number Two. While running, he shouted at the top of his lungs, "Old man! Kurapika said you didn't consider us friends before! Is that true?"
Leorio and Kurapika: "..."
'This kid really knows how to read between the lines... Do you have to have such a big mouth and blurt out everything?'
Kurapika felt dizzy. He looked apprehensively at Number Two, who was already five meters away.
The young man smiled faintly. "Of course. The adult world only has interests, where would there be friends? He isn't wrong."
"Eh? Old man, you're so mean~"
"Haha~ Mean? Being mean is correct." Number Two reached out and scooped Gon up, tucked him under his armpit. 'Compared to a certain trash father named Ging, no matter how mean I am, I can't compare to him.'
Elsewhere, Ging touched the bridge of his nose. Standing next to Sean on the deck of the Sunny and feeling the sea breeze, he stared deeply at Gon on the screen. He was genuinely worried that one day, he would be tucked under the armpit of this guy, Sean. Just thinking about that feeling... Ging shivered and quietly moved a little further away from Sean.
Tap, tap.
A glimmer of light appeared at the end of the passage. Number Two stopped at the appropriate moment and glanced indifferently at the cliff on the opposite side.
From the passage on the opposite cliff, a series of footsteps rang out. Five prisoners wearing gray hoods, with glimpses of blue prison uniforms visible beneath the brims, walked out from the depths of the tunnel. Separated by the arena, they gazed at Number Two, Gon, Kurapika, and Leorio from afar.
"It seems these are the 'Examiners' for this round," Kurapika observed Bendot, Sedokan, and the others carefully. There were tall ones, short ones, fat ones, and thin ones. He could even vaguely see someone with female characteristics. He secretly speculated that the rules for this round of the exam would likely not be simple.
Just examiners? "Just a few pieces of trash. Don't insult the word 'Examiner'."
Number Two sneered. He didn't even need to use his status panel; a casual glance at Bendot and the others was enough to completely understand the depths of their strength.
Bendot stood in front, with Sedokan, Majtani, Leroute, and Johness behind him. The five had just taken their positions at the edge of the cliff when they met Number Two's indifferent eyes. Their pupils constricted violently. Suddenly, they felt a chill rush from the soles of their feet straight to the top of their heads. They couldn't control the shivers running down their spines.
'Hiss... what terrifying killing intent!'
'He must be the guy Warden Lippo mentioned, the one who fought back and forth with Chairman Netero!'
"Ugh, hehehe~ That's really scary enough... But I just happen to like this kind of challenge. Bendot, leave this guy to me. I'll kill him!"
Crack.
With a crisp sound, Johness gouged out a chunk of the stone wall next to the cliff with his bare fingers.
The Mass Murderer, Johness.
Without waiting for the jailers to act, he directly snapped his handcuffs and threw back his hood, revealing a face filled with melancholy and madness.
Blond hair, blue eyes. He spread his arms, muscles bulging. A circle of golden stubble on his face looked messy and untamed under the lights. As soon as he appeared...
Leorio's face changed, and he blurted out his name: "He is... Johness!"
" that notorious mass murderer!"
'Your reaction is a bit big.' Kurapika rolled his eyes at Leorio. "You know his background?"
"He does look a bit scary~" Gon also noticed the opponent. He scratched his face, searching for a descriptive word. A few seconds later, his eyes lit up. He had it.
"Right! He looks just like the Master of the Swamp... maybe even a little scarier than the Master of the Swamp."
'God damn Master of the Swamp! Just because you hold a fishing rod, don't actually think of yourself as a veteran angler!'
Smack.
Leorio slapped Gon on the forehead. The spiky-haired brat stared at Leorio aggrievedly. "You hit me again!"
'You deserve it!' Leorio glared at him grumpily, spraying spittle as he shouted, "Johness! He isn't some Master of the Swamp!"
"He is a demon..."
"You guys might not know, but he has another nickname, called—The Dissector!"
'What? The Excretor?'
Number Two raised his toe and poked Tonpa's butt. "This is your area of expertise. This Johness guy, I'll leave him to you in a bit."
"What? Leave him to me?" Tonpa jumped up, shaking his head like a rattle drum. "I'm not that guy's match!"
Tonpa had also heard of the deeds of Johness the Dissector.
He was the most vicious murderer in the criminal history of Zaban City! His personality was bloody and violent, his worldview twisted and perverted!
In his short criminal career, he had forcibly killed at least one hundred and forty-six people, and every single victim had been dismembered by him miserably.
Moreover, these victims ranged across all ages and genders; the youngest was not even eleven years old!
Such a pervert... you want to give him to me? Sorry... I, Tonpa, will 'faint' first out of respect!
Before Gon, Kurapika, Leorio, or even Number Two could react, Tonpa slammed his head into the wall with a loud bang!
Damn, even the wall seemed to tremble. Tonpa felt his vision go black, then the world spun around him, and he collapsed to the ground with a thud.
Gon, Kurapika, and Leorio were completely bewildered.
"This guy... what is he doing?" '...Ramming the wall directly? Isn't he being a bit too hard on himself?'
Gon, Kurapika, and Leorio all turned into dot-eyed caricatures, looking at me, looking at you, staring at each other in blank dismay.
Opposite them, Bendot, Johness, and the others saw Tonpa choose to "self-destruct."
They froze for a moment, then, realizing what happened, they couldn't stop their excitement.
"The other side is down a man! 5 versus 4, we win one round by default!"
"So next, we only need to win two matches, and we can be released after serving our time!"
'Thank you, Eternal Failure, for the surprise. You are such a damn good person.'
However, were they really down a man? It didn't seem so.
His ears twitched as the sound of wind entered them, bringing an image with it. Number Two's eyes flashed as he looked through the thick walls toward the outside of Trick Tower.
At the top of Trick Tower... an airship hovered in the sky.
Clang.
The hatch opened, and a golden circlet poked out from inside. Followed closely by a monkey wearing a black and yellow martial arts uniform... holding a staff in his hand!
Three large characters, "Ruyi Stick," were inscribed on the end of the staff. The monkey swung it with a single arm, whipping up gusts of wind.
"Just stop here."
"I, Saiyu, will go down myself!"
The Ruyi Stick stopped abruptly. The monkey left a cold remark and leaped from a height of one hundred meters, falling straight toward the bottom of Trick Tower!
With an unreliable Chairman like Netero around... it seemed the Zodiacs wouldn't take the usual path either.
Seeing a "human" dare to intrude into their territory, a flock of man-eating birds flapped their wings, opened their bloody mouths, and bit toward Saiyu—
Pu! Pu! Pu!
Several sonic booms exploded in succession.
All the man-eating birds were smashed into a mist of blood by Saiyu's staff!
"Don't annoy me!"
"I am... really displeased right now!"