"What the hell?!"
"Why's there another me?!"
Gon spun his fishing rod into his hand. "Who the hell are you?!"
"I should ask you that!" the other Gon snapped, mirroring him perfectly — same posture, same voice, same grin.
And it wasn't just Gon.
All around the swamp, duplicates bloomed like a nightmare:
Two Tonpas. Two Killuas. Two Kurapikas. Two Hisokas. Two Roy Tianweis.
Hunter Association — President's Office
Watching the feed, Maha's voice dripped sarcasm.
"Keeping so many monsters inside your test site… If V5 knew, you'd be out of that chair in a week."
Netero sipped his tea. "It's just a few monkeys. A nice little sharpening stone."
Maha's eyes narrowed but he didn't argue. For both men, the point of this phase was obvious:
Hunters needed more than strength — they needed judgment, willpower, and the ability to see through deception.
Wetlands — Chaos
"The swamp under our feet," Satotz announced, "is called the Losmelo Wetlands — also known as the Lair of Fraudsters. Creatures here will mimic anything to lure prey. If you can't tell truth from lies… you'll die."
"NOW you tell us?!" Leorio roared, still grappling with his own duplicate. He took a fist to the nose and howled, "Damn it! I'm being beaten to death by myself!"
"This is your fault!" A green‑shirted man threw down a captured ape and pointed at Satotz. "He's fake — he led you into this trap to eat you alive!"
The crowd erupted. Dozens of candidates surged toward Satotz.
And then—
"Oh~ ho ho ho ho!"
That sick, lilting laugh sliced through the chaos.
A flying card hissed past. Shuack!
The fake Hisoka's head burst like a melon — its corpse slumping back into a man‑faced ape.
Real Hisoka stepped out of the mist, playing cards fanned in his hand, smile stretching into a perverse deep V.
"The solution's simple. Kill everything that moves. One card per monkey — problem solved, yes?"
"Are you insane?!"
"What if you hit a real person?!"
"I can't even dodge your cards!"
"Oh ho ho~ I wasn't asking," Hisoka purred, voice trembling with glee. "Too much trash here… cluttering up my precious apple."
The candidates froze. Hisoka wasn't joking — he was about to kill everyone.
"Mr. Tianwei, stop him!" someone screamed. "You slapped him around before — do it again!"
A dozen terrified eyes turned to Roy.
Roy Moves
Roy walked forward lazily, passing his own duplicate.
No one saw him move — just a soft plop as the fake Roy crumpled. Blood trickled from a perfect hole in its heart.
"Being imitated by a monkey is… truly disgusting." Roy flicked imaginary dust from his sleeve. The brief use of Finger Snatch left not even a ripple in his calm.
He planted his sword‑cane in the mud with a dull thunk. The ground quivered.
"Thank you for your kindness, Hisoka," Roy said lightly, voice carrying over the panicked crowd. "But mass murder isn't necessary."
He turned, smiling faintly at the examinees.
"There's an easier way to separate truth from lies — though it may cost a little money. What do you think?"
Silence. Dozens of faces stared back, wide‑eyed.
Then one voice — eager, desperate — broke through.
"Tao‑sensei! Just tell us the number!"