Ron knew he wasn't like Gon or Kastro, who had yet to fully mature.
Hisoka was looking forward to the surprise of seeing Gon and Kastro grow stronger. But Ron himself was already a powerful Nen user. What Hisoka anticipated was the unknown factor in Ron's abilities—how each of them would respond in a direct confrontation, like placing stones on a Go board, exchanging moves, countering each other. That was what made it interesting.
Now, though, Hisoka suddenly proposed stopping at first contact. It could only mean one thing: Hisoka was truly parched for a fight.
Hisoka's expression grew serious.
"I promise. Compared to you, Ron, Illumi interests me even more. I'm looking forward to our battle, so there's no way I'd ruin that by risking our fight. It wouldn't be worth it for me. If I really killed you, Illumi might go to any lengths to assassinate me. There's a high probability I'd be killed by Illumi. Assassination is his specialty. Though there's also a chance I'd kill him instead. But neither outcome is what I want."
Hisoka's promises were unreliable, but his interest in Illumi was genuine. In the original story, he even went so far as to produce an "engagement ring" for Illumi.
"If that's how you see it, I can trust you somewhat. However, I'm an assassin."
"I'm an assassin. I don't like meaningless attacks, nor do I like killing without purpose. Fighting and killing are just work to me, and if you're hiring me, you ought to pay me."
Hisoka's eyes lit up.
"That depends on whether your payment meets my expectations. Also, I'll only accept a match where we stop at first contact. Whenever I decide I don't want to continue, I can call it off at any time."
"How about ten billion Jenny?"
"Sorry, I don't need money."
"Then what do you want?"
"Materials for Nen tools, mysterious items imbued with Nen, the Seven Great Beauties of the World…anything related to Nen users. That sort of thing interests me more."
Hisoka fell silent for a moment. Soon, he took out a small glass container from his pocket. Inside was a blob of azure liquid.
Ron recognized it immediately.
Previously, that old man from the Kurta clan had mentioned that liquid ore had major technological uses. Ron wasn't currently aiming to develop technologically, but he did have Chii. Her technological prowess would likely surpass anyone else's in this world, and together with the Suma mobile base, she could research liquid ore for potentially excellent results.
Moreover, liquid ore came from the Dark Continent, which might prove helpful for his future ventures there. Ron was a bit surprised to see that Hisoka actually had something ; logically, it should have been controlled by a few large countries.
"This works," Ron said, looking at Hisoka. "You probably already know that I'm a Nen Beast–type user, and fighting me directly isn't what you want. So let's set some rules:
"I'll summon two Nen Beasts to fight you.
"You can't attack my actual body.
"I'll do my best to ensure the battle with my Nen Beasts lasts at least ten minutes.
"But if I call it off, you have to stop."
Hisoka's eyes flickered.
"How do I know you'll really go all out?"
"Whether you believe me is up to you. Just like I'm trusting you to honor the idea of stopping at first contact, you'll also have to trust me."
"Alright. Shall we start now?"
At Ron's command, two figures appeared at his side.
The other was Hanma Baki.
Ron knew that Hisoka was probably aware of some of his capabilities, so he chose Hanma Baki as one of the combatants. He kept Killer Queen hidden, just to make Hisoka more cautious.
Hisoka's eyes gleamed with excitement as he looked at Natsu and Hanma Baki. Natsu was completely new to him.
"A brand-new Nen Beast? Looks pretty good."
Even though Natsu wasn't revealing his full aura, Hisoka still sensed some of it. As for Hanma Baki, Hisoka had seen him before—just a Nen Beast similar to Uvogin, so he wasn't that interested. But Natsu was a genuine surprise.
"What kind of ability does this Nen Beast have?"
Hisoka stared intently at Natsu and Hanma Baki, then looked at Ron.
Ron gave an order to Natsu and Hanma Baki, and both Nen Beasts charged at Hisoka, while Ron himself pulled back. Since they were autonomous Nen Beasts, Ron didn't need to stay close to them.
"Natsu is A-level, and Hanma Baki is B-level. I wonder how far they can push Hisoka. Even among A-level fighters, Hisoka's strength isn't weak. In the original story, it took Chrollo about half a year of planning to gain a significant upper hand on Hisoka and 'kill' him."
Natsu charged in first.
"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"
Flames erupted on Natsu's fist. The heatwave rolled over Hisoka, who only became more exhilarated, not afraid.
He sidestepped Natsu's attack. In the next moment, he flicked his wrist, sending two playing cards spinning through the air, charged with strong aura. They spun at high speed, sharper than metal blades.
Faced with the oncoming cards, Hanma Baki transformed his arm into flowing water.
He struck the side of the cards, instantly dispersing the aura Hisoka had imbued. Hisoka was a bit surprised.
Hisoka hadn't paid much attention to Hanma Baki before, but he hadn't expected him to use this kind of technique—something that hadn't been apparent in the public matches.
"Looks Nen Beast isn't just some brainless Enhancement-type."
Hisoka narrowed his eyes.
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