Chapter 12: The Phantom Troupe
Realizing what Killua meant, Gon sheepishly rubbed his head. He took the box from Killua and activated his Nen.
The instant the box came into contact with his Aura, it flared with a brilliant light. The metal bands securing it snapped and fell to the floor.
Killua picked up one of the bands, examining the strange, unreadable patterns etched into it. "Whoa," he said, amazed. "How can Nen last this long without fading?"
Kyle smiled. "Sometimes Nen doesn't disappear when the user dies. In fact, it can become even stronger. It's called Post-Mortem Nen."
"A powerful Nen construct, if not dispelled, can last forever. Some might even get stronger over time."
Killua focused on his own Aura, his desire to explore and master Nen growing even stronger.
"Come on, Gon," Kyle said, pulling him from his thoughts. "See what Ging left you."
Gon opened the box. Inside were just three simple items: a ring, a cassette tape, and a memory card labeled Greed Island.
He didn't know what two of the items were, so he grabbed the one he recognized—the cassette tape—and slid it into a nearby player.
A moment later, a man's voice filled the room.
"Yo, Gon. So you became a Hunter after all."
Hearing that magnetic voice, Gon's expression turned serious. So this is... my father's voice.
"Let me ask you something. Do you want to see me?"
"If you do, keep listening. If not, just press stop."
"Still listening? Then let me ask you one more thing. Do you have what it takes?"
"Because Hunters are selfish. They'll abandon anything for their own desires. If you just casually want to see me, you should stop listening now."
"I'll give you one minute to think about it."
Gon didn't move a muscle, his eyes fixed on the player, waiting.
Kyle listened to Ging's words and had to admit, he was a pure Hunter, doing what most people only dreamed of.
"Ah, so you really want to see me, huh?"
"Problem is, I don't really want to see you. I don't know what I'd even say. No matter how you look at it, I shirked my responsibilities as a father."
"It's pretty bad."
"From the time I recorded this to the time you're hearing it, at least ten years must have passed. But one thing hasn't changed. I'm still doing what I want to do."
"Right now, as you're listening, I'm probably off somewhere doing something stupid. If you still want to find me after hearing all that... then come find me."
"But like I said, I don't want to be found. If I sense you getting close, I'll run. So come and get me. You're a Hunter, aren't you?"
By the end, Gon was trembling with excitement. Even Killua was pumped up. "Looks like your dad isn't someone you can catch with normal methods."
Kyle stroked his chin. "For a Hunter, the more difficult the prey, the greater the achievement."
"Yeah!" Gon agreed.
The tape went silent, and Killua reached for the stop button.
"Wait!" Gon said, his intuition flaring. "I think there's more."
Just as he said it, Ging's voice returned.
"Ah, one more thing I forgot. About your mother. If you want to hear about her, keep listening..."
Kyle watched Gon, intensely curious. This was a mystery no one knew the answer to. But he didn't stop Gon as his hand moved to the player.
Killua wasn't surprised, given what Gon had told him, but he still had to ask. "Are you sure?"
Gon nodded firmly. "Yeah."
"What if there was a clue on it?"
"I don't think so. And even if there was, it doesn't matter. I already told you, Aunt Mito is my mom."
Killua nodded, accepting his answer, and reached over to eject the tape. But the instant his fingers touched the player, a powerful wave of Aura flared.
The tape's spools began to spin wildly on their own.
"Not good!" Killua tried to smash the player with his fist, but his blow did nothing.
Kyle smiled grimly. "It's no use. That's a mechanism-type Nen ability. It's set to trigger and self-destruct. You can't stop it until it's finished."
"It's a way to make sure no traces are left behind."
Killua, seeing it was useless, backed off. The three of them just watched as the tape was completely erased.
Kyle turned his attention back to the box. "Gon, do you know what these other two things are?"
Gon shook his head. "No."
"This is a memory card for a game called Greed Island. And this ring is an item from inside that game."
"Greed Island? A game?" Gon and Killua said in unison.
"Yep," Kyle said. "It's an old game. From what I know, only Nen users can enter. Anyone who clears the game can take three items from inside it back to the real world."
"If I'm not mistaken, Ging was one of the game's creators. And it's very likely this game... was made for you."
"For me?" Gon was stunned.
"Mhm. From the looks of it, Ging has had your entire life planned out."
Kyle didn't know what Ging's Hatsu was, but from all the small details, he suspected it had something to do with fate or destiny. Otherwise, how was he so certain Gon would be healed? How could he have arranged everything so perfectly? Only an ability that could manipulate fate could pull that off.
"Gon," Kyle said, his tone turning serious. "We have one month and fifteen days until our meeting with Kurapika and Leorio in Yorknew. It takes about a day to get there, which means we can go to the Pirate World for about one month and fourteen days."
"Kurapika's enemies are the Phantom Troupe. They're a group of Nen monsters, and every single one of them is incredibly strong."
"If I'm right, Kurapika is going to run into them in Yorknew."
"If we want to have any chance of helping him, we have to use this time to get stronger. We have to, at the very least, be strong enough to hold our own in a fight."