Chapter 8: The Fight Begins
The instant Kyle and the others returned, Hisoka's eyes snapped open as if he'd sensed them. An excited glint appeared in his golden pupils, shining like a predator's in the dim room. He had smelled his long-awaited prey.
"Gon, what do you think your chances are against Hisoka?" Kyle asked, wanting to gauge Gon's current self-assessment.
Gon sat down on the sofa. A clear image of Hisoka formed in his mind. Even though his strength had increased dramatically, he still had very little confidence he could actually win.
"I don't know," Gon said, his hand moving to his pocket. He pulled out the #44 badge Hisoka had given him. "But I have to fight him. I have to give this back." His eyes were like steel.
"Gon, Hisoka is strong. Very strong," Kyle said, his expression grave.
"His ability, [Bungee Gum], gives him a massive boost in power, speed, close-quarters combat, and defense. If you're on the same power level as him and you fight him up close, he's virtually invincible."
"Invincible... up close?" Both Gon and Killua were stunned.
Kyle nodded seriously and explained.
"Besides his use of In, the second you get hit, you risk being stuck. Once you're stuck, if you don't have enough raw power to break free, you're in his hunting ground. Think about it. He can pull you in whenever he wants, or sling you around whenever he wants. What would that even feel like?"
Kyle had analyzed Hisoka's ability in his past life. In the fight between Hisoka and Gon, Hisoka had given him four "choices," and even though the outcome was a fifth, the first four were all but unavoidable.
There was only one way to avoid it: don't let him touch you. The moment you engage, you risk getting tagged by his Nen. The only way out is to be so strong that his pulling has no effect.
Hearing this, Gon fell silent.
His entire fighting style was close-range. He had no long-distance attacks. This meant he was guaranteed to get hit by Hisoka's ability. And Hisoka was far, far above him in both strength and speed.
Killua was also deep in thought, his blue eyes flashing as he ran calculations. But no matter how he simulated it, based on Gon's fighting style, he couldn't find a single viable counter. After dozens of scenarios, Gon's win rate was less than 1%.
After a moment of silence, Gon's eyes hardened again. His body began to tremble slightly with excitement. He looked at Kyle and Killua and said, "Even if the win rate is 0%, I'm still fighting. It's a promise."
Kyle knew he'd say that. He smiled. "Good. Then for these next four days, we're going to figure out a counter-strategy."
Even Kyle didn't have a perfect answer, but he knew one thing: Gon had to show Hisoka how much he had grown. The key to breaking the stalemate had to lie in the application of Observation and Armament Haki.
The four days of preparation flew by.
Thanks to a massive promotional push, the match between Gon and Hisoka had drawn an enormous crowd. Every seat in Heaven's Arena was full. The roar of the audience was deafening.
Kyle knew, of course, that this was Hisoka's celebrity at work. While Gon had gained some fans, he was nothing compared to the Magician, who was a living legend in the arena.
"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen!" the announcer's high-energy voice boomed through the stadium.
"Tonight, we witness a long-awaited showdown! In one corner, the undefeated legend of Heaven's Arena—the Magician, HISOKA! In the other, the rising star who has taken us all by storm—GON FREECSS!"
The crowd erupted in a deafening cheer, with the chants for "HISOKA" drowning out everything else.
"Hisoka maintains an astonishing perfect-win record! His [Bungee Gum] has brought countless powerful opponents to their knees! But his young challenger, Gon, has shown us incredible, explosive growth in his previous matches! What kind of sparks will fly in this battle of old vs. new?!"
"Kyle," Killua asked, his voice low with worry. "Do you think Hisoka might... you know... unconsciously go for the kill?"
Hisoka was a total psycho. Even now, Killua couldn't fully read him.
"I can't be sure," Kyle said seriously. "But this is Gon's choice. We just have to trust him."
Kyle understood Killua's fear. Hisoka was a wild card. If Gon managed to excite him too much, he might not be able to suppress his killing intent. The chance was small, but with Hisoka, you could never be 100% sure.
Just then, the entire crowd leaped to their feet, screaming and waving.
A spotlight hit the center of the ring. Amidst the thunderous applause, Gon and Hisoka appeared.
Hisoka stood in his corner, an eerie smile plastered on his face. His golden eyes were locked on Gon, like a hunter admiring his prey. He licked his lips, radiating an aura of dangerous excitement.
"Look at that, folks! Hisoka is showing us that unique, terrifying pressure as always! But Gon doesn't look the least bit afraid! Can this young warrior give us the surprise of a lifetime?"
The referee ran through the rules and, without wasting a second, declared the match...
"BEGIN!"
Gon, following Kyle's plan, charged straight at Hisoka. His steps were solid, his eyes focused, his Aura flaring.
Hisoka stood still, a look of pure enjoyment on his face as he watched Gon's every move. Gon's aggressive offense was like music to him. He simply parried the blows, casually swatting them aside, making no effort to move his feet.
"Incredible! Hisoka isn't moving a single step against Gon's ferocious assault! Is this the confidence of a true master?"
Gon saw that Hisoka was acting exactly as Kyle had predicted. He immediately moved to the next phase of the plan.
After trading a few more blows, he leaped back, jammed his fingers into a seam in the arena floor, and pulled.
KRRR-ACK!
A stone tile, weighing over a thousand pounds, was ripped from the floor and sent flying at Hisoka.
"WHAT! Gon just tore up the ring! That slab has to be a thousand pounds! What kind of strength is that?!"
Gon leaped into the air, got in front of the flying slab, and punched it.
BOOM!
The massive tile exploded into a cloud of shrapnel.
Hisoka, seeing the debris cloud, began casually punching the chunks out of the air. In that exact moment, Gon vanished from his senses.
"Is this... Zetsu?" A flicker of surprise crossed Hisoka's face, but it was immediately replaced by even thicker excitement.
He didn't bother using En. He just used his eyes.
And by then, Gon was already behind him.
With no aura or bloodlust to track, Gon's fist connected squarely with Hisoka's cheek.
"IT'S A HIT! GON HAS LANDED A CLEAN BLOW ON HISOKA! Is this the first time Hisoka has ever been hit in the opening of a match?!" the announcer screamed.
The crowd went insane, their cheers threatening to tear the roof off the arena.
"Just as we thought," Killua analyzed. "Hisoka isn't using his ability, and he's not taking it seriously. But... the real fight starts now."
"He landed the punch," Kyle said, his eyes fixed on the ring. "Gon fulfilled his promise from back at the exam. Now... the real fight begins."
In the ring, Hisoka slowly wiped a trickle of blood from the corner of his mouth. His smile grew wider, more dangerous, and infinitely more excited.