HxH : Pokemon Master-Chapter 163: Running Into a Max-Level Boss Right After Leaving the Starter Zone!

Chapter 163: Running Into a Max-Level Boss Right After Leaving the Starter Zone!

"Thankfully, the Chairman invited Mr. Akira." Knov, who had somehow produced a handkerchief at some point, wiped his sweat as he spoke sincerely.

Not just Knov—Morel felt the same way.

Faced with such an unknown enemy, the stronger their companions, the better.

No one would ever complain about being too safe.

As two of the ’World Top Five Nen Users’, one was the former strongest in the world and the other was the current strongest.

There was probably no duo that could inspire more confidence than these two.

"Now that everyone’s up to speed, it’s time for us to set off." With that, Chairman Netero flipped his palm like a magician, producing two wooden tokens, each broken in half.

"I’ve arranged for two opponent for you in the nearest town."

"If you want to continue joining the team in battle, you’ll have to defeat them."

"...If you still want to live as Hunters, that is."

Chairman Netero placed the two wooden tokens in Killua’s hands, each inscribed with the characters "Fly" and "General."

These weren’t ordinary tokens—they were called ’warifu’, a type of Aura Tool, albeit a rudimentary one.

The marked bamboo tablet was split in two, with each party holding one half.

Among Nen Users, ’warifu’ were widely regarded as proof of companionship and identity.

When Aura was channeled into them, the tokens would merge into the holder’s hand, imprinting the characters onto their skin.

Akira guessed that the effects of these ’warifu’ were likely tied to the inscribed words.

Perhaps, like ’Divine Script’, these characters possessed various effects—or maybe they were even a type of Divine Script themselves?

Akira quietly observed Chairman Netero’s actions, a faint smile flashing in his eyes.

It was clear that the other two individuals held matching tokens—only when reunited would they form a complete the piece.

This carried deeper meaning from Netero.

The old man had probably anticipated that both groups would arrive together.

After all, neither Gon and Killua nor Knuckle and Shoot were the type of Hunters to give up easily.

"Though it might sound like boasting, I still have to warn you."

"The two I arranged are my disciples. They’re not weak—if you want to defeat them, you’ll have to give it your all."

Morel spoke honestly to Killua, giving him a thumbs-up and a confident grin at the end.

"Uh... got it." Killua scratched his head, thinking the guy was a bit strange—almost too cheerful.

Even with his own students over there, Morel didn’t play favorites, giving Killua some encouraging words when he clearly needed it.

Once everything was sorted, Chairman Netero took the lead, moving ahead while Akira and the other two trailed behind.

The four of them walked on, with only their backs to Killua.

Just as they were stepping into the old tree, they seemed to disappear in an instant.

"What—?!" Killua pupils contracted as he stared blankly at where they had disappeared.

In just a split second, they were gone.

He could barely make out the moment Morel and Knov vanished, but with Akira and Chairman Netero, he saw nothing—as if they had simply blinked out of existence.

Then again, while Morel and Knov weren’t as strong as Akira, they were still elite members of the Hunter Association.

Those capable of participating in this battle were certainly not weak.

If rated by Akira’s standards, the four of them consisted of two S-class and two A-class individuals.

Even Knov, the relatively weakest among them, possessed sufficient Aura and Nen ability to rank within A-tier.

His main issue was that he didn’t handle pressure as well as the others.

You could see that when the enemy’s Killing intent freaked him out so much that his hair turned white.

Honestly, it’s no surprise—he was up against some serious monsters.

Most people would have been scared too.

You could definitely say this extermination squad was a top-notch group.

’I must trust them, but at the same time, Gon and I must also do our part!’

Killua took one last deep look at where the group had disappeared.

Then he crouched down, hoisted Gon onto his back and headed toward a nearby transport vehicle.

Kite’s team members would assist them, transporting them to the town mentioned by the chairman.

There, the grueling training from Biscuit Krueger awaited them.

***

Meanwhile, Akira group of four raced across the grasslands.

Earlier, they’d deliberately avoided passing through the Great Ancient Tree, choosing instead to detour around it.

Their main purpose was to evade inspection by the staff.

They’d come to resolve troubles—having their high-tech equipment confiscated would be utterly unreasonable.

The Great Ancient Tree served as the passage between the NGL Autonomous Region and the outside world.

It was also where outsiders were inspected for prohibited technological items.

The inspections here are pretty strict—even plastic products were forbidden.

Even clothes need to be made from all-natural materials.

If you have anything that doesn’t fit the rules, you have to leave it at the Border stop to get in.

For the top fighters in the group, these so-called rules didn’t matter much.

Things that would stop normal folks were no problem for them—they could breeze into NGL territory in no time.

Out on the grassland, a dad and his daughter were riding horses, dressed in traditional nomad outfits.

They were part of NGL citizens—the regular folks living here.

"Daddy, look! What’s that?" The adorable daughter pointed excitedly, urging her father to follow her finger.

"What? Where?" The simple, honest father looked hurriedly, but saw nothing except endless green grassland.

"There’s nothing there?" Scratching his head, the father couldn’t understand what his daughter meant.

"Huh? But I just saw some shadows flash by over there..." The young girl rubbed her eyes uncertainly.

Indeed, there was nothing there now.

"You must have imagined it."

***

"Our mission isn’t just to reach the destination—we must also eliminate any Chimera Ants along the way."

"According to intelligence, the Chimera Ants’ territory is expanding outward from the depths. We must curb their advance."

Netero explained their objectives as they pressed forward.

The girl hadn’t been mistaken—the figures on the grassland had indeed been Netero group of four.

Their speed was simply too fast—the child had only caught glimpses of ghostly afterimages.

Had Morel and Knov not been slightly slower, forcing Netero and Akira to moderate their pace, the girl likely wouldn’t have seen even those fleeting shadows.

Since there were no vehicles in this place, people relied on horses for transportation, much like the father and daughter pair they had seen earlier.

Given that their primary objective was to eliminate the Chimera Ants, they opted to travel on foot.

First, time was of the essence—every second counted.

All four of them were elite Nen Users, capable of moving far faster than any horse.

Second, traveling on foot made it easier to deal with any Chimera Ants they encountered along the way, as they wouldn’t have to worry about managing horses.

The vast NGL Autonomous Region had already been steadily consumed by the Chimera Ants.

While the people near the entrance of the Great Ancient Tree remained unharmed for now, the deeper regions of the country had become a playground for the ants.

Venturing further in, they could encounter Chimera Ants at any moment.

Each of the four moved in their own distinctive manner.

Chairman Netero looked like an old man out for a leisurely stroll, hands clasped behind his back as he walked forward.

Despite his seemingly slow pace, in the blink of an eye, he would appear far ahead, leaving only afterimages in his wake.

This bore a striking resemblance to his Hyakushiki Kannon—both were manifestations of speed pushed to its limits.

Morel on the other hand, resembled a character straight out of the tale of Aladdin’s magic lamp, seated atop a white "carpet."

The white "carpet" hovered in the air, though not too high off the ground, carrying him as he flew closely behind Chairman Netero.

A closer look would reveal that it wasn’t a carpet at all, but rather a flat mass of white smoke.

At first glance, Morel seemed motionless and look effortless.

Yet his energy expenditure was no less than the others—this "flying carpet" was controlled through his Nen ability.

While it didn’t drain as much Aura as his Deep Purple Smoke Soldiers, it still took its toll.

Among them, Knov appeared to be exerting the most effort, forced to run the old-fashioned way.

Of course, he was also using his Aura to enhance his speed, otherwise he wouldn’t have been able to keep up with the others.

Knov Nen ability, the Four-Dimensional mansion did possess spatial teleportation capabilities.

However, he first needed to mark a location with his Nen ability before he could teleport there directly.

Since he had never been to the NGL before, Knov had no choice but to run the entire way.

’As expected of Akira~’

Even as he ran, Knov kept an eye on his surroundings and the most eye-catching among them was undoubtedly Akira.

While the others walked or rode on white smoke, Akira had summoned a Nen beast to serve as his mount.

At the moment, Akira was seated atop an Arcanine, enjoying the refreshing breeze blowing against him.

Out here on the grasslands, the wind carried the crisp scent of fresh grass, invigorating both mind and body.

"Woof! Woof!"

Being a dog, Arcanine was especially fond of the vast plains, where it could run freely at full speed.

Occasionally, sparks would fly from its mouth as it let out a bark or two.

Emotions were contagious and seeing Arcanine’s excitement lifted Akira spirits as well.

Come to think of it, the last time Arcanine had run this freely was probably back in Greed Island, wasn’t it?

Now was the perfect opportunity—it would save him effort while letting the dog enjoy running. freeweɓnovel-cøm

It was truly a win-win situation.

Arcanine’s demeanor also drew the attention of the other three.

Chairman Netero and Morel took it relatively well since they had both seen Arcanine before.

But Knov hadn’t, so he found it quite novel.

’I haven’t tested it, but even from the subtle details, I can tell this Nen beast is strong!’

’Even... far beyond my own level!’

Knov scrutinized every aspect of Arcanine with sidelong glances.

From its fur, to its powerful limbs, to the faint sparks flickering in its mouth—nothing escaped his notice.

Even Arcanine’s two barks sent a shiver down his spine and this was after Akira had specifically instructed Arcanine to suppress its Intimidate abilities.

Otherwise, its presence would have been even more terrifying.

Among the four, Akira was undoubtedly the most relaxed.

The others had all expended some energy, but he had truly used none at all.

Yet even if the others envied him, they couldn’t imitate it—this was a Nen ability unique to him.

With their varied methods of travel, they had run from morning until the afternoon.

In that short time, they had crossed half the country from NGL entrance, arriving at its central region.

The Chimera Ants’ nest lay even deeper within.

After their not-too-long journey, they finally caught their first glimpse of their target—the Chimera Ants!

***

In a vast forest—

This was the largest woodland in the NGL Autonomous Region, locally known as the "Forest of Harvest and Challenge."

It was called the "Harvest" because it teemed with animals and plants that sustained the local people’s livelihoods.

But it was also home to ferocious beasts, making every entry and exit a "Challenge."

Rumor had it that the locals even held "coming-of-age ceremonies" from time to time.

The main event involved sending young people of a certain age into this forest to survive alone for a set number of days.

But now, this once-vibrant forest was eerily silent. Not a single large creature could be seen.

Only the occasional insect crawling across the ground hinted that life still existed here.

"Quite surprising~ Not even a single animal left?" Morel, carrying his large smoking pipe, walked forward, glancing around before clicking his tongue.

In this dense woodland, his "flying carpet" wasn’t practical, so he chose to proceed on foot.

Even Akira had recalled Arcanine, opting to walk like the others.

Knov fixed his glasses while sunlight peeked through the trees, creating little spots of light on the lenses.

"Most likely they’ve all been eaten, serving as food for the Chimera Ants" he said. "Especially the queen who needs to nurture the Ant King—she requires extraordinary amounts of nutrition. I’d wager countless creatures have ended up in her stomach."

Netero walked ahead of the group through the forest, voicing his thoughts while casually digging out earwax and blowing it off his fingertips with a puff.

To any observer, he appeared to be nothing more than an eccentric old man.

As the four continued walking, Akira eyes suddenly narrowed with ’Gyo’, his previously relaxed expression gradually tensing.

A moment later, Chairman Netero body had a slight shudder—a fleeting reaction that Akira nevertheless caught.

"You sensed it too, didn’t you, Chairman?" Akira meaningful words trailed after the still-walking Netero.

Netero abruptly halted, gazing deep into the woods.

Though invisible to the naked eye, both their En abilities vividly mapped the forest’s depths.

"Hohohoho, quite the gathering we have here!" Netero chuckled, stroking his beard.

His En revealed numerous signatures deeper in the forest—judging by the energy levels, they could only be Chimera Ants!

"A large group of Chimera Ants in the forest depths?" Morel blinked in momentary confusion before realizing what the two meant.

Their targets had to be there.

Both Morel and Knov ’En’ paled in comparison to Akira and Netero’s.

They could only rely on both Akira and Netero assessment of the ant colony ahead.

"About 25 total" Akira confirmed. "A few stronger ones among them."

This immediately put Morel and Knov on high alert.

They assumed Akira "stronger ones" referred to threats capable of frightening away even Killua.

Knov took several deep breaths to steady himself while Morel clamped his giant pipe between his teeth, already exhaling smoke clouds.

Their first battle against the Chimera Ants demanded absolute vigilance.

After Akira’s earlier warnings, both men had elevated their caution to maximum levels.

This particular ant troop was about to have spectacularly bad luck—like newbies stumbling upon max-level players the moment they leave the starter zone.

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