Tonpa's eyes darted about rapidly, and he scratched his head.
"Ah, is that so? Sorry, I must've overlooked that. I thought it wasn't expired. Look, I drank it myself, didn't I? I didn't do it on purpose.
I'm pretty sure it's not past its shelf life. Could it be you're just not used to the flavor?"
He looked at Gon, questioning him.
"It's not the flavor," Gon said, shaking his head.
"My nose and tongue are pretty sharp. I'm sure there's something off."
Kurapika and Leorio no longer had any intention of drinking. Even though they were indeed thirsty by now, they trusted Gon more.
Everything they'd seen so far told them he was sincere and reliable.
And even if they didn't trust Gon, they wouldn't drink something suspicious anyway. If they did, it might spell trouble. Not drinking guaranteed safety.
"It's not expired; it's poisoned," Killua spoke up.
"Isn't that right, old man? You put some kind of laxative in the soda. It's not deadly, but it'll give people diarrhea. If that happens, they won't be able to continue the Hunter Exam."
At once, Leorio and Kurapika both glared at Tonpa, ready to act.
Leorio in particular was a hothead, one would think he was Enhancement-types. Kurapika was on edge because he took this exam extremely seriously—his clan's vengeance depended on it.
"That's impossible! Stop making things up!" Tonpa insisted, shaking his head. "If it's really poisoned, how come I've drunk so much and nothing happened to me?"
"Because my body's special," Killua replied. "I've trained in poison resistance since I was little. A weak toxin doesn't affect me. If you're truly innocent, then why don't you pick out one of the veterans who've taken the Hunter Exam many times and have them drink it?"
Tonpa's face went pale.
Those veterans all knew who he was, and some of them had been his victims. If he offered them this drink and tried to pull the same trick, it would only enrage them—he could easily bring everyone's wrath down on himself and lose the chance to continue.
He quickly turned to Ron for help.
"But what about Ron? He drank it and nothing happened. What do you say to that?"
Killua also glanced at Ron curiously. He knew Ron was strong, but very few people went through poison-resistance training, and Heaven's Arena didn't really encourage it.
"It's got poison," Ron said.
"But it's weak. It doesn't affect me. As for whether it would affect you—that's another story."
Ron had heard two theories about Tonpa:
One was that Tonpa was just an ordinary "newbie killer" with a twisted hobby, finding amusement in sabotaging rookies.
Another theory suggested that he was secretly very powerful, hiding in the Hunter Exam like a top martial artist disguised as an everyman—or like a final boss lurking in the newbie village.
Based on Ron's own observations, the first theory seemed far more likely.
Either way, Ron wasn't interested in dealing with Tonpa. He cut the conversation short.
Leorio clenched his fist, while Kurapika seemed on the verge of drawing his wooden sword.
A tense atmosphere settled.
Seeing their reactions, Tonpa hesitated. Then, all of a sudden, he bowed deeply to them.
"I'm sorry! I was wrong.
As compensation, I can share information I've gathered—stuff that might help you in the next stages of the exam. I promise it's all true."
Tonpa didn't believe Gon, Leorio, or Kurapika posed much threat, but Killua and Ron were unknowns, especially Ron. He couldn't read him at all.
"That guy over there," Tonpa said, pointing at Hisoka, "he's really strong and shows no mercy. He took the exam last year but got disqualified for crippling an examiner. In other words, even the officials couldn't handle him.
If you upset him, not even the examiners can save you."
Then Tonpa pointed toward Illumi's direction. "That one calls himself Gittarackur. First time here, but based on his aura, he's bad news.
There are also the Amori Brothers. They're quite strong—
Hearing this intel, Leorio and Kurapika finally relaxed a bit.
A sharp scream rang out.
Everyone turned to see, near Hisoka, a young man with a twisted expression, sweat pouring down his forehead from the pain.
Both his arms—severed like fallen petals—tumbled to the ground.
A faint smell of blood spread through the air.
Hisoka glanced at the man.
"If you bump into someone, shouldn't you at least apologize?"
Truthfully, what really angered Hisoka wasn't the collision but the fact that his daydream had been interrupted.
He'd been busy picturing the fights he was looking forward to: Chrollo wasn't here, his match with Illumi would have to wait, so his thoughts had turned to Ron by default.
He was already picturing the confrontation he wanted during this exam, not knowing that his hopes were destined to be dashed.
Suddenly, the sound of footsteps came from behind, along with a ringing alarm.
Congratulations on arriving at the first test site of this year's Hunter Exam within the designated time. Allow me to introduce myself: I'm your examiner, Satotz. I'll now lead you all to the second test site.
Please follow me closely."
With that, Satotz walked toward a deeper passage—one step, two steps…
Ron took a quick look at Satotz.
He was a Nen user, but not a very powerful one—merely B-level, at best, and not even high-tier within that level. Ron wouldn't need any Nen Beasts to beat him; his physical body alone would suffice.
Among Ron's Nen Beasts, even the weakest—aside from the support-focused Chii or Lampent—ranked above Satotz in strength.
Gradually, Satotz quickened his pace, from a walk to a jog, then to a run.
Gon and Killua exchanged glances.
"Wanna see who's faster?"
Killua briefly looked over at Ron, who just waved a hand dismissively.
He had no interest in racing, not even if his cousin was inviting him.
He kept his speed moderate, hanging back with the second group— Maximizing the rate at which he absorbed traits.
At first, nobody thought much of the running. Even a chubby guy holding a laptop managed to keep up while typing on the move.