"Have they arrived?"
On Battleship Island, an elderly couple had been waiting for a long time.
Hearing the phone ring, an old woman drying clothes on the deck of an abandoned warship shouted towards the pavilion converted from a cabin, "Old man, who is it?"
Jina, wearing reading glasses on the bridge of his nose, whispered, "It's Lippo."
Then, he spoke into the phone with a chuckle, "Understood. When people get old, they just love watching the younger generation pop up one after another."
"I heard this Sean Zoldyck can exchange a few moves with the Chairman without losing ground."
"To be honest, this old man can't wait to meet him."
'I don't think you want to meet him,' Lippo curled his lips. 'Anyone who dares to say daifuku doesn't taste good is a heretic, no matter how strong they are. Besides...'
"Uncle Jina, your information is outdated."
"That guy, Sean Zoldyck, has already killed Lord Saiyu."
"Who? My ears are bad. Do you have the guts to say that again? See if I dare to listen?"
Old man Jina was stunned. His reading glasses slid down his nose, revealing pupils that had shrunk to the size of pinpoints due to sheer shock.
"I said... Lord Saiyu died under Sean Zoldyck's blade!"
"You didn't see it. That guy nearly shaved off the entire arena with a single slash."
"It was truly exaggerated."
Clang. The water cup placed on the wooden table fell to the ground. The noise of spilling tea reached the deck, attracting the old woman's attention.
"What's wrong, Jina?" Bana poked her head out.
Jina snapped back to reality. "Oh... Oh... nothing."
But his trembling tone could not hide it from Granny Bana, who had lived with him day and night for a lifetime.
Granny Bana furrowed her white brows. "Tell the truth. What happened?"
Jina adjusted the reading glasses that had almost fallen to the ground with the cup. He sighed, "Yare yare," and said to his wife, "Lippo said that Lord Saiyu... is dead!"
"Nonsense! What kind of figure is a Zodiac? How could he just die?"
Granny Bana's eyes widened, and she said in disbelief, "Lippo! You aren't joking with this old lady, are you?!"
If news got out that Lord Saiyu was killed by an examinee during the Hunter Exam... let alone the V5 nations, even the Kakin Empire wouldn't believe it.
"But... that is the truth," Lippo said solemnly. "Lord Saiyu died right before my eyes."
"Also, Aunt Bana, Uncle Jina, I'm reminding you. When you should go easy, go easy. You absolutely must not treat that Sean Zoldyck guy as an ordinary examinee. And do not anger him. Otherwise, you now know Lord Saiyu's fate."
The couple, Jina and Bana, fell silent.
They looked at each other, both seeing a trace of trepidation in the other's eyes.
This trepidation remained steadfast and showed no signs of dissipating even after Lippo hung up and Beans' phone call came through.
"Ohohoho... Is this Jina?"
"The examinees will be arriving at your place shortly. Remember to keep an eye on a certain fellow."
"What fellow? Old man, I feel you don't respect my grandson at all." In the Chairman's office, Maha glared at Netero.
The Grand Chairman glanced at him, ignored him completely, turned his back, and continued to stare at the Jina and Bana couple through the phone.
"Yes... it's Sean Zoldyck."
"Yes... he killed Saiyu. The kid has a bit of a temper. Young people, you know... it's normal to have a bit of fire."
"What? You want to retire early? You want to change examiners?"
"That won't do... How about this. I give you tacit permission to go easy. When that Sean kid arrives, whatever he wants to do, just don't stop him."
"Mm, good. I understand. Don't worry, with me here, you two will definitely be able to spend your remaining years in peace."
"That's it then. Next time you come back, I'll treat you to tea. Hohoho."
Beep... beep. The phone hung up. Inside the abandoned warship, an old man and an old woman wiped the cold sweat from their foreheads in unison. It had been many years since they felt this kind of immense pressure.
"Hearing the Chairman talk about 'going easy'... why does it feel so unreal to me?" Jina looked a bit dazed.
"Maybe this is that saying... how does it go? Stick to one pattern... what?" Granny Bana patted her forehead. "Look at my brain, it's getting worse and worse."
Jina said faintly, "It's 'Not sticking to one pattern when using talent'."
"Right, right... not sticking to formalities." Granny Bana sighed. "Jina, we really are old. Let's just follow Chairman Netero's instructions."
What else could they do if they didn't follow them? Jina shook his head. Could they really imitate Lord Saiyu and seek death?
"Alright. Old woman, go dry the clothes. Tonight we still have to pack up and run away."
"What about Sean Zoldyck's side?"
"Special cases handled specially, special people treated specially. Just follow whatever that kid wants, right?"
The rear waves were already formed. For these front waves, if they didn't listen, they had no choice but to be ruthlessly smashed onto the beach.
Whoosh. A sea breeze blew past. It relieved the heat, yet felt slightly cold.
...
Not long after leaving Trick Tower, the airship carried Number Two and his group to the skies above Battleship Island.
"Wow... it's an island! Mister, I see an island!" Lying on the airship's porthole, looking down.
On the boundless sea, an island resembling a warship appeared before the eyes of Gon, Kurapika, Leorio, and the other examinees.
The waters around the island were littered with silent ships. All of them were wrecked ships... and since they were shipwrecks, they represented wealth.
Number Two played with a strand of Armament Haki thread in his fingers, his fishing soul stirring. 'Hehe... shipwrecks are good...'
The young man chuckled. Hanzo, Bourbon, Ponzu, Cherry, Geretta, and the others seemed to shudder inexplicably, their hearts trembling.
"Teacher Ben An is terrifying every time he laughs..." As Sean's die-hard fan, Pokkle rubbed his teeth and hugged himself tightly as well.
Only a certain useless uncle, leaning against the railing due to motion sickness, said listlessly, half-dead, "Whatever is fine, just let me off this ship quickly."
Hum. As if hearing Leorio's prayer, the airship slowly descended and landed on the "deck" of Battleship Island.
"Hoya... hoya... Old man, our guests seem to have arrived." Not long after finishing the laundry, Granny Bana shouted to Jina.
Jina lifted his drooping head, pushed up the glasses on his nose, took a deep breath, and walked onto the deck with a solemn expression to stand side by side with Granny Bana.
Hum. The sound of the propellers churning the air grew quieter. The airship docked steadily on the deck. Subsequently, the gangway was lowered. A young man, a full three meters tall, walked down first.
He had his hands in his pockets, his face handsome and flawless. His black and white pupils swept downward.
The old couple, Jina and Bana, felt their hearts tighten abruptly. They felt as if they were back in the hospital undergoing an X-ray. A thought emerged simultaneously in their minds—the two of them had been seen through by the other party.
'Oh? Two First Limit Breakers?'
'One Strength... Strength Second Limit Breaker. One Aura Limit Breaker. To maintain this without decline at such an age...'
'It seems the Hunter Association isn't entirely made up of trash like Saiyu.'
'Oh... ahem... presumably this is Sean Zoldyck. What a sharp gaze.'
The Jina and Bana couple were horrified. They exchanged a secret glance, both seeing shock in the other's eyes.
Being seen through at a glance... in the past, only Netero had achieved this. Now, there was obviously one more!
It could only be said that this young man, whose shadow alone seemed to engulf the couple, was indeed the figure the Chairman had personally called to warn them to go easy on!
Step, step. Following Sean, Gon, Killua, Kurapika, Leorio, Hisoka, Hanzo, and the other examinees walked out of the airship one after another.
Seeing that everyone had mostly arrived, the Jina and Bana couple smiled slightly and bowed to the examinees. "Examinees, welcome to our hotel."
'So polite.'
"Are they really the examiners for this round?" Leorio barely broke free from his seasickness, looking weakly at the Jina and Bana couple.
"Not necessarily. I don't sense any danger from them," Gon sniffed. The Jina and Bana couple seemed to really be running a hotel here, just as they said.
"So, what does the sky anomaly mean?" Kurapika glanced at Gon, then stole a glance at Number Two, and finally, his gaze landed on the Jina and Bana couple.
The old couple looked kindly. Aside from being a bit nervous when facing Teacher Ben An, there didn't seem to be anything else suspicious about them.
At this moment, Hanzo couldn't hold back his impatience and walked out. "You said you indeed run a hotel here, right?"
"Yes," Jina looked at Hanzo gently. "The ship you are standing on has been modified by us... It is now the hotel provided for your accommodation. And..."
"Cut the crap, old man." Hanzo waved his hand to interrupt Jina, walked around Sean, came up to the two, and glared down at them. "You two must be the examiners for this round too, right?"
"Correct." Bana looked past Hanzo and addressed the examinees behind him. "Now, I will first convey the message from the Hunter Committee to everyone."
"Qualified examinees, you have worked hard in the Third Phase."
"The next round, the Fourth Phase, will begin in three days."
"For these three days, please enjoy your rest here to the fullest."
"Oh? Is that so?" Hearing this, Number Two looked at the Jina and Bana couple with a faint smile, making the couple's hearts tremble. The X-ray... was back!
'What does this Sean Zoldyck guy want to say?'
The Jina and Bana couple swallowed secretly. Meeting Number Two's calm eyes, they heard the young man sneer. "I'm afraid we won't rest well."
"A room for ten million a night... you two tell me, who can afford that?"
The Jina and Bana couple fell silent.
Shocked! We're done for. How does he know the price?
Did the Chairman worry that we wouldn't go easy, so he gave him a head start?
Uh... counting it up, is this still called going easy? Just call it letting the ocean loose!