Tap, tap, tap. Tap, tap, tap, tap.
The sound of countless footsteps echoed through a long, dark tunnel, growing louder with each moment. Men, women, and children ran together, their paces and breaths uneven. The 287th Hunter Exam had begun. Seven hundred eighty candidates jogged side by side, led by a lanky man with a thin, curled mustache.
Satotsu, as he'd introduced himself, moved with a distinctive stride—extravagant and exaggerated, like an officer parading in a national square. At first, the pace was a brisk walk, but without warning, Satotsu gradually sped up, turning the walk into a jog, then a run. The tempo kept climbing.
The crowd of candidates matched his rhythm. This had been going on for nearly an hour. In the middle of the pack was most of our trio.
"We've been running for an hour. What's the point of this?" Leorio griped.
"The examiner said to follow him, so he's leading us somewhere," Kurapika replied.
"I know that. It's just too vague. We don't know where we're going or how long it'll take," Leorio shot back.
"It's deliberate, to build mental tension. He's likely testing our endurance and resolve," Kurapika said.
"Resolve, huh…" Leorio echoed. If that was the game, he was confident. 'Nothing's stopping me from reaching my goal!'
"By the way, where's Gon?" Leorio asked, noticing their companion's absence.
"He moved up with another kid," Kurapika answered.
"Oh, that little punk with the skateboard?" Leorio said, recalling his earlier indignation.
Time dragged on. One hour became two, then two became four. By now, some candidates were faltering. Others had collapsed, exhausted, giving up entirely. The pace had also ramped up.
Near the back of the pack, a man stood out—shirtless, his jacket tied around his waist. Though he kept running, his steps grew heavier, his breathing ragged. It was Leorio, clearly at his limit.
"Giving up?" a voice asked nearby.
Kurapika. Despite being among the stragglers, he showed no signs of struggle—no sweat on his brow, his breathing steady.
"You kidding?" Leorio snapped.
"Really? You look like you're about to collapse," Kurapika said flatly.
"If you've got that much energy, why not move up front?" Leorio retorted, annoyed.
"Well, I'd hate to leave you behind," Kurapika replied.
"Hey, Leorio, Kurapika! What're you doing way back here?" a young voice called.
It had been a while since they'd heard it—Gon, who'd doubled back to join them, alongside a boy with snowy white hair.
"Ask Leorio. He's out of gas," Kurapika said.
"Already tired? What a weakling," the white-haired boy taunted.
"Say that again, you little brat!" Leorio growled, his tone menacing.
"Leorio, I can carry your bag if you want," Gon offered.
"Won't make a difference, Gon," the white-haired boy said. "If you ask me, he's done for."
The kid's jab made Kurapika smirk, though he tried to hide it. It didn't go unnoticed. At his breaking point, Leorio's legs gave out, unable to take another step.
"Damn it!" he roared.
Seeing their friend stop, Gon and Kurapika halted too. The white-haired boy had no choice but to follow suit. Leorio's lungs burned, forcing him to breathe through his mouth. The world around him was oddly silent, save for the relentless thumping of his heart. He doubled over, hands on his thighs.
"He's toast, Gon. Let's go if we don't wanna fall behind," the white-haired boy said.
But neither Gon nor Kurapika budged. They stood facing Leorio, their eyes locked on him. Inside Leorio's battered body, a fierce battle raged. 'I'm not stopping here. No way. I have to keep going… I…'
Lifting his head, he froze. "What the…"
There were the two who'd stuck with him through all this. "Gon, Kurapika…" he whispered. Their gazes carried a single, clear message—one that stirred his heart and muscles.
'Thanks.'
"Aaaaaaaaaaaah!" Like a lion, Leorio let out a sudden roar. "Who do you take me for?!" he shouted. "I'm gonna be a Hunter, no matter what!"
With that, he snapped upright and bolted forward, overtaking those who'd waited. In his rush, he'd left his briefcase behind. Gon, smiling at his friend's back, used his fishing rod to snag the bag, much to the white-haired boy's amazement.
He turned to Kurapika. "You good, Kurapika?"
Kurapika smiled, resting a hand on his chin. "The guy I was lagging for just took off. Guess I'll step it up too." He glanced at the white-haired boy, then Gon. "Looks like you two are already hitting it off."
'Friend?' the boy thought.
"Yeah, Killua and I get along great!" Gon said cheerfully.
"Come on, Gon, we're seriously falling behind," Killua urged, tugging Gon's clothes.
"Catch you later, Kurapika!" Gon called as Killua pulled him along.
Kurapika waved casually. Satisfied, Gon turned to Killua. "Alright, let's go!"
"Wanna bet on who gets there first?" Killua suggested.
"You're on!" Gon agreed.
The two boys sprinted off, outpacing the rest of the rear guard. Their youthful energy in such a grueling moment disheartened some candidates and recharged others.
Two more hours passed. Of the 780 who started, 127 had dropped out. The tunnel opened to a mountain of stairs, their end nowhere in sight. One might expect the pace to slow on such terrain, but that underestimated Satotsu's cunning. With sharper, faster steps, he climbed, taking four stairs at a time.
Panic rippled through the candidates. After nearly six hours and about 60 kilometers of running, most were fueled by sheer will, their minds long gone. Satotsu's sudden acceleration knocked out a dozen more, and among the rest, curses and cries of "monster" echoed.
What about our trio? They lived up to their protagonist status. Leorio, though struggling, held his spot in the pack's middle. Each time his legs wavered, he roared and pushed harder, his shouts so annoying that nearby runners either surged ahead or fell back.
Gon had reached the front with Killua, chatting as if the effort was nothing. Kurapika stayed a few rows behind Leorio, his pace and breathing steady.
After two more hours, a light appeared on the horizon—a beacon of hope that revived the candidates' fading strength. A few steps later, the front of the pack reached it: a misty forest.
'Alright, let's stop and see how many are left,' Satotsu thought, halting for the first time in eight hours.
Within 30 minutes, the middle of the pack caught up, including a gasping Leorio, who stumbled a few steps out of the tunnel before collapsing onto his back. Kurapika was close behind.
"There you are!" Gon's voice rang out, thrilled to see his friends.
"Is… is the test over?" Leorio stammered.
"Not yet," Gon replied.
That finished off what little consciousness Leorio had left. Soon, the tunnel exit began to close. A few lucky stragglers slipped through, while the unlucky reached for the fading light, only to see it vanish.
"Attention, everyone!" Satotsu commanded. Despite the crowd, his voice carried without a microphone. All eyes turned to him. "We're now in Numelle Swamp, also known as the Den of Deceivers. Cross this place to reach the site of the second test."
"Second test? What about the first?" a candidate, a young monk-like man, called out.
"Are you dense or just pretending?" another snapped. "Wasn't it obvious the first test was following the examiner?"
Realizing his question's folly, the monk shrank back, embarrassed.
"This forest," Satotsu continued, "is home to strange creatures, many of them ferocious and ravenous. They'll deceive and devour humans without hesitation." His face grew grim. "One wrong move, and they'll kill you."
A chill swept through the crowd. Satotsu turned to the forest. "That said, if you still want to follow me, stay sharp and don't lose sight of me."
With his flamboyant stride, he resumed running, ending the break to the dismay of the rear pack, who'd barely caught their breath. "We'd better stay on our toes this time," Killua said, earning a nod from Gon.
Leorio dragged himself up, having regained a sliver of strength. "Here we go!" he shouted, charging back in.
Kurapika wore an odd smile, his gaze fixed on a candidate dressed as a clown. 'Things are about to get thrilling.'
The candidates had escaped the tunnel. Of the 780 who started, 178 had dropped out. For the second part of the first test, 602 remained.
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