On the busy street near the Dole Island port, Yuu moved swiftly through the dense crowd, eyes closed.
He navigated purely on the sensory feedback from the Six Eyes, picking up the flow of energy and the presence of people around him.
He hadn't forgotten the Captain's warning.
In a place packed like sardines, keeping his eyes shut was the smart move. It kept him from attracting the attention of any creeps hiding in the masses.
---
Thanks to the Six Eyes, Yuu's perception was hypersensitive. He could distinguish the shape and nature of objects by reading the differences in their energy signatures.
The image formed in his mind was almost identical to regular sight, just color-coded differently.
Even if someone blasted a fire extinguisher in his face, the dust wouldn't blind him. He didn't need light to see.
---
Yuu "looked" up toward the solitary cedar tree on the distant mountain peak, deep in thought.
The information the Captain gave him matched what Gon and his friends received in the original story. Still, Yuu didn't doubt the Captain's good intentions.
Maybe those two magical beasts living on the mountaintop are permanent fixtures of the Hunter Exam, he guessed.
Or maybe this just isn't the 'official' Hunter Exam, so the difficulty is lower. They might change the location every year but reuse the same examiners—like the Captain.
But man, the benefits of 'Ten' are way better than I expected...
Since practicing Ten on the boat for an hour, Yuu could feel a distinct change. His muscles and bones felt denser. His stamina, endurance, and mental energy had all leveled up.
Combine that with his ability to reinforce his body with Cursed Energy, and he was basically running a double buff on his physical stats.
He walked with a spring in his step.
Before he knew it, he had covered several miles without even breaking a sweat.
Soon enough...
Yuu arrived at a fork in the road marked by a signpost. It showed only two paths.
Only one led to the exam site.
The left path pointed toward the cedar tree, cutting through a dangerous jungle teeming with wild beasts.
The right path led toward the city, promising a bus that would take candidates directly to the venue.
Mixing truth with lies like this... I bet a lot of people fall for it.
Knowing the plot, Yuu would have skipped the bus even without the Captain's tip. That bus was a trap.
However, since the year was different, he couldn't be 100% sure the cedar tree was still the correct answer. It was just a strong possibility.
But with the Captain's confirmation, the path was clear. He had saved himself a lot of time and guesswork.
Now, there was no need to rush.
Grrrr~
A loud, embarrassing growl rumbled from Yuu's stomach.
Yuu clutched his midsection, silently cursing his traitorous digestive system, and stepped out of the crowd with a calm face.
"I haven't eaten all day... feeling a little lightheaded."
"If I take the exam like this, I might pass out halfway through."
He shoved his hands into his pockets and fished around. All he found were a few large-denomination bills featuring Ichiyo Higuchi and some loose change.
The coins might pass for scrap metal, but the bills...
There was no way Japanese Yen would work here.
Trying to use them would probably get him beaten up for passing counterfeit money.
Yuu sighed, stuffing the useless cash back into his pocket.
---
A kindly old man standing nearby heard the sigh.
He leaned in, looking at the gloomy teenager.
"Something wrong, young man?"
Yuu turned toward the voice. It was a thin, hunched old man holding a stack of flyers.
He didn't look like a bad guy.
"It's nothing..." Yuu smiled and waved a hand. But before he could finish, his stomach roared again.
GRRRRR~
Silence fell between them.
The old man chuckled softly. He had a pretty good idea of what the boy's problem was.
Noticing the boy's eyes were closed, the old man assumed he was blind. A wave of pity washed over him.
"Poor child..."
He pulled a flyer from his stack and pressed it into Yuu's hand.
"My name is Maldo. My wife and I run a noodle shop."
"If you don't mind, you can take this flyer and come work at the shop... we're actually short on help right now."
"Thanks," Yuu said, taking the paper.
"But actually, I'm here to take the Hunter Exam... not to find a job."
"A Hunter?"
Maldo looked surprised.
"But... you're so young..."
"Don't let the looks fool you. I'm stronger than I look." Yuu rolled up his sleeve and flexed a fist. "See?"
Maldo peered closer.
It was true. Under that pale skin, the muscle definition on the boy's forearm was clear.
He wasn't bulky like a grown man, but the muscle looked dense and powerful.
Maldo relaxed.
Living on Dole Island, he saw all kinds of candidates every year.
Compared to the serial killers and wanted criminals who had eaten at his shop, a white-haired teenager wasn't all that shocking.
"That's a shame. If you're a candidate, I guess you can't work..." Maldo looked disappointed.
He paused for a moment, then spoke up again.
"But you must be starving, right? Why don't you come to the shop and have a bowl of noodles? It's just down the road. Eating a bowl won't make you late for the exam."
Yuu shook his head, embarrassed by his empty pockets.
"Sorry, I don't have any money..."
"You can wash dishes to pay for it. Besides... it's just a bowl of noodles. You can pay me back when you become a Hunter."
Yuu thought it over. He was really hungry.
"Then... thank you."
---
Ten minutes later.
Yuu followed Maldo through a few alleyways into a small, secluded noodle shop.
Inside, everything from the counters to the floor was spotless.
Wooden plaques with menu items hung on the wall, their colors faded with age.
But the shop was empty.
Yuu didn't see the "wife" the old man had mentioned.
He glanced at Maldo, who was busy in the kitchen...
And decided not to ask.
---
A few minutes later, Maldo brought out a steaming bowl of noodles.
"This is our signature dish! Enjoy!"
The smell hit Yuu, and his mouth watered.
"Smells amazing!"
He grabbed his chopsticks and started slurping the noodles down like a vacuum cleaner.
Maldo watched him eat with a genuine smile.
---
But after only a few minutes, Yuu suddenly stopped eating.
His expression hardened. He sat up straight and turned his head toward the door.
"What is it?"
Maldo asked, confused.
"Someone's coming..." Yuu's voice dropped, becoming serious.
"And their vibes aren't friendly..."
A second later, four or five large men in black suits burst into the shop. They looked mean, and they were all carrying metal pry bars.
The leader, a man with a buzz cut, swaggered in and looked around arrogantly.
"Yo! Old man, you finally showed up! Thought we scared you off for good!"
"What are you doing here? You already came by this morning!" Maldo rushed out of the kitchen, placing himself between the men and Yuu.
"Who are they...?" Yuu asked quietly.
"Don't worry about it. This is between me and them."
The buzz-cut man noticed the white-haired boy sitting behind the old man. He leaned in, lifting his sunglasses to get a better look at Yuu's face.
"Tsk tsk. Pretty face," the man commented. He straightened up and sneered at Maldo.
"You planning to sell the kid to pay off your debt? Nice idea, but disabled kids don't sell for much these days."
"He is a guest! Watch your mouth!" Maldo shouted, angry now.
"Heh, a guest?"
The man laughed mockingly. "Just a guest, not your grandson!
"I'm telling you, old man, you're delusional. That's why that old hag of yours dragged you down into this mess..."
"What did you just say?" Maldo clenched his fists, his teeth grinding.
"Think about it, geezer," the buzz-cut man said coldly.
"Sell this dump. Give us the money and the land, and I'll stop bothering you.
"How about it?"
"You..."
Veins popped on Maldo's forehead, but he was too choked up with rage to speak.
---
Yuu had seen enough.
He didn't know the full story.
But that bowl of noodles—which he hadn't even finished yet—was enough to decide whose side he was on.
"I'll handle this."
Yuu spoke calmly. He gently pushed Maldo's protective arm down and stepped forward.
"This isn't your fight..."
Maldo panicked. He reached out to grab the boy's shirt, but his hand stopped in mid-air a few inches from Yuu's back.
It felt like an invisible wall was blocking him.
"Smart kid..." the buzz-cut man grinned.
Yuu ignored him. He turned his head slightly and spoke to the old man behind him.
"Step back a bit, Mr. Maldo."
"This might get a little loud."
Yuu turned back, his face expressionless.
Black Cursed Energy surged through his body like a river, pooling in his feet and fists.
Just as the men in suits were getting ready to enjoy bullying a kid...
Yuu moved.
He covered the distance in a blink. It was like teleportation.
The buzz-cut man saw the fist coming toward his chest, but by the time his brain registered the threat, it was already too late.
BAM—!!!
With a deafening crack, the man's massive body was launched backward like a cannonball. He flew through the air, smashing through the glass front door and shattering it into a million pieces.
The other men watched in horror as their boss flew fifteen feet and slammed into the pavement outside, howling in agony.
For a long moment, no one moved. No one made a sound.
It was like they had all crashed.
System failure.
Yuu brushed some dust off his shirt. He looked at the remaining thugs and spoke casually.
"Alright. All of you, at once."
"Come on. My noodles are getting cold."
---