In the matches Liam had watched over the past few months—actually, right after Liam defeated Tetsuro in his first fight—Wing had guessed that Liam was probably a Manipulator.
So when a Manipulator suddenly throws an unusual-looking Nen sphere at you, what's your first reaction?
Dodge first. Ask questions later.
For Manipulation, Specialization, and Conjuration types, everything about them could be a trap. Their words, their movements, their weird little quirks—all potential conditions for activating abilities. Who knew what would happen if you got hit by a Nen ball with the number "100" floating inside it?
What did 100 even mean?
Wing's mind raced as he sidestepped. Then he noticed something surprising.
The Nen ball Liam had just thrown at him hadn't hit the ground yet.
What kind of attack is this? Is the speed too slow?
Not just Wing—the 200th floor fighters in the audience who could see aura were equally confused. As bystanders, they could see even more clearly. The sphere of aura Liam threw toward Wing looked like it was genuinely just "aura," drifting toward Wing in a lazy arc. Meanwhile, Wing had dodged so fast he'd left an afterimage. The Nen ball was still falling slowly through its parabola.
The referee and ordinary spectators couldn't see aura at all. They were completely lost. What did Fighter Smith just do? Why did Fighter Wing suddenly dodge so far away?
The Nen ball with "100" inside wobbled through the air and finally landed.
Wing watched as the sphere touched the ground and suddenly vanished.
Not exploding. Not dispersing.
Just gone.
Wing whipped around to look at Liam. At that exact moment, there was a soft "whoosh" above Liam's palm, and the Nen ball teleported back into his hand.
Except this time, the number inside had changed.
The number increased?
It went up, so it's not a countdown timer.
Wing maintained Ken and stayed on guard while rapidly analyzing the situation. Most likely, the number inside Liam's Nen ball represented its "power."
From an initial strength of 100 aura, it had increased to 200.
Did it double? Or did it increase by 100?
Did it increase because it didn't hit me?
If the ability was that convenient, couldn't Liam just throw the ball somewhere harmless and continuously stack up the value?
There had to be other hidden rules as restrictions.
In a flash, Wing's mind—trained extensively by Master Bisky—had already formed multiple hypotheses about the Nen ball in Liam's hand.
Liam tossed the "200" ball casually and said with a smile, "How about it? Want to play toss and catch?"
As he spoke, he wound up and threw the Nen ball toward Wing.
This time, the sphere moved fast. It cut through the air with a sharp whistle.
The referee couldn't see the ball, but he heard the sound of displaced air and immediately began commentating excitedly. Finally, something he could work with!
The Nen ball with "200" inside screamed through the air. This time, Wing didn't dodge. Instead, he poured everything into Ken and crossed his arms in front of him.
The sphere slammed into the solid wall formed by his blocking arms and the thick aura defending them.
It was like a pebble hitting a concrete building. It didn't hurt Wing at all. Couldn't even scratch the defense.
So the power really is "200," Wing thought.
But his eyes narrowed. He suddenly noticed that in Liam's hand across the ring, there was another soft "whoosh." The Nen ball had teleported again, appearing out of thin air in Liam's palm.
The sphere floated quietly.
The number inside had clearly changed from "200" to "400."
Wing's eyes sharpened.
Liam grabbed the special Nen ball whose strength had doubled again. "Didn't I give you enough hints? Come on, let's play—"
"Toss and catch!"
He hurled the ball toward Wing with considerably more force.
Dodging doesn't work. Blocking doesn't work. I have to catch it.
Facing the "400" ball cutting through the air, Wing took the initiative and moved forward to intercept it.
What the hell are they doing?
Most of the tens of thousands of spectators couldn't understand what was happening on stage. In their eyes, these two strange masters seemed to be performing some kind of invisible throwing and catching game with perfect coordination.
The power of that ball seems to have increased again, Tetsuro thought, staring intently at the sphere Wing caught.
Bang. Wing caught the ball easily.
This was normal.
His aura output could be increased to at least 2,500 after he entered his enhanced state. More importantly, since he knew to catch the ball with both hands, he'd allocated more aura to his arms. His defensive power at the moment of catching could withstand even 3,000 aura of destructive force.
What was a mere "400" power ball?
After Wing caught it, he was surprised to find the ball didn't disappear. He turned his hand over and saw the number inside had changed to "800."
Wing stood there, slightly confused. Liam across the ring was already clapping his hands impatiently. "What are you standing there for? Your turn to throw."
Wing was silent for a moment, then said, "According to the rules, if you don't catch it, will it turn into '1600' and teleport back to my hand?"
As he spoke, he let go. The ball fell freely toward the ground.
The aura vanished the moment it touched the floor, then suddenly reappeared in Liam's palm.
Liam looked down and pretended to be surprised. "Oh! You were half right. The number really did become '1600.'"
"Unfortunately," he smiled, "it didn't teleport to your hand. It came to mine. Seems like it recognizes its owner?"
Wing pushed his glasses up, exhaled, and said, "I understand. It really is toss and catch.
"Not catching the ball is a violation.
"Defending but not catching the ball with your hands before it hits the ground is a violation.
"At the same time, the initiator must genuinely throw the ball to the opponent—at least past the centerline between us—or it's considered a violation.
"As long as there's a violation, the other player gets a new serve.
"Whether it's a violation or not, the ball's power doubles after each exchange.
"Your ability is betting on who can handle the most powerful ball in that round and successfully hit their opponent. Is that right?"
Wing looked at Liam. "This is a move to trade injuries for injuries. Risk your life."
As an Enhancer, I'm obviously the one with better recovery and endurance. Liam's suspected to be a Manipulator. Why would he think to compete in stamina with an Enhancement type?
"Correct answer!" Liam grabbed the "1600" ball in his hand. "Catch this—it's your reward!"
He wound up to throw, but Wing had already rushed forward and drove a fist into his abdomen.