"Did you know? My Bungee Gum possesses properties of both rubber and gum~♢" Hisoka smirks, watching as Ryu and Senka struggle against Hisoka's Nen.

The two Hunters were exhausted, sustaining a few injuries here and there. However, they couldn't move an inch from where they stood, as if an invisible force wrapped itself around them and kept them from going forward. Ryu pulled on his arm but felt something tighten around his wrist, pulling it back to where it was.

"Careful now~" Hisoka chuckles, licking a couple of cards he had between his fingers. "I wouldn't try to move if I were you," he says, throwing the cards as they vanished into thin air.

"You...!" Senka's face twists into a scowl as she tries to free herself once more. As she did, she felt a light sting on the side of her neck.

Ryu's eyes widened as he watched droplets of blood trickle down the cut on her neck. "Senka, you dumbass! Stop squirming and use Gyo!" he exclaims.

"What did you just call me?!" Senka clapped back, though she immediately activated her Gyo. As she looked at the situation once more, a soft gasp escaped her lips.

Senka could see Hisoka being enveloped by a strange, bubblegum pink aura. Strangely enough, a thin string of Nen extended from him and went all the way towards her and Ryu. She looked down on herself to see that her wrists, ankles, and waist were being tightly wrapped around by his Nen, just like rope. It attached itself to the ground to keep her and Ryu from moving an inch. When she tried to move her leg, the Nen tightened around her ankles, before rebounding and sending it back to its original spot just like a rubber band.

To make matters worse, a Nen-infused card floated just a few millimeters from the side of their necks. If they were to make any sudden movements, their throats could be slit.

Senka's eyes widened as she gazed at it from the corner of her eye. 'So this is Bungee Gum...' she thought. The sting she felt earlier made a lot more sense now.

"Not bad! You saw through that rather quickly~♡" Hisoka gives them a close-eyed smile. Immediately after that, however, his expression turns upside down as he gives them a cold glare instead. The amusement and excitement he had earlier were completely gone, just like a child losing interest in a toy they've played with.

"Such a shame that that's all you can do." Hisoka sighs, walking closer to the Hunters. "Humans are so fickle, wouldn't you say? It takes a mere second for treasure to turn to trash~ ♤"

Suddenly, the air changed around Hisoka. Ryu and Senka could feel malicious intent from him. A pit of dread started forming in their stomachs as his bloodlust grew more and more.

"Ryu..." Senka mumbles. "He's serious about killing us."

"Hmm, yes. The floor is made out of floor." Ryu scoffs and rolls his eyes.

An irk mark appears on Senka's forehead. "Seriously? You know now's not the time for this!"

As the two Hunters begin glaring at each other, Hisoka stops in his tracks. "Oh? Arguing right before your deaths?" he chuckles. "Quite the odd pair~ ♡"

Sensing Hisoka's bloodlust die down, Ryu looks back at Senka with a serious expression on his face. 'Senka, let's bust out as much Ren as we can to free ourselves.'

Senka somehow got the message, but not before a look of conflict crossed her face. 'Isn't it too risky?'

Ryu ignores her, looking back at Hisoka as he prepares himself. Senka sighs in defeat, before following suit.

"Oh oops! Seems like my killing intent has faded off! ♤" Hisoka put a finger to his chin. "Looks like I've been underestimating you two all this time." An amused smirk made its way to his face.

Ryu and Senka share a look, and right before Hisoka could gain his momentum back, they projected their Ren in the most explosive way possible. The force of it pushes his Bungee Gum away, allowing the two Hunters to finally put some distance between them and Hisoka.

All at once, Ryu and Senka unleash a synchronized attack. They both concentrated their aura onto their fists, with Ryu's aura turning a deep blue and Senka's turning into a pale yellow. With perfect timing, they both unleash their attacks on Hisoka. Ryu punches the ground with his Ko, forming shockwaves on the ground and forcing Hisoka to lose balance. Meanwhile, Senka releases her Ko high into the air as an Emission attack. Before Hisoka could stabilize himself from Ryu's attack, he sees Senka's ball of Nen right above his head.

'Looks like I'm in a bit of a pickle~♤'

Senka's Nen plunged straight down, sandwiching Hisoka between the two attacks. The force of it produced a loud explosion that permeated the air.

A smug smirk forms on Senka's lips as she watches Hisoka getting the full impact of their synchronized attack. She looks at Ryu, who gives her a thumbs up.

As the dust and debris died down, the two Hunters prepared themselves for Hisoka's next move. The said jester emerges from the rubble, looking slightly disheveled. His bright Fuschia hair was slightly matted and some strands were out of place, his clothes had spots of dust on them, and some of his face paint has worn off, leaving a few scratches in its place.

'That's all it did to him?!' Senka thought. Looks like the rumor about Hisoka being one of the strongest Nen users wasn't a lie after all.

Hisoka wipes some dirt off his face, smiling from ear to ear. However, his eyes held a deadly glint, like a predator landing its eyes on prey. "Ah~! A beautiful attack~♡" he says.

Ryu smirks. "Looks like you weren't able to dodge that, huh?"

Hisoka walks closer to them, giving them another close-eyed smile. "I admit I was caught off guard." He opens his eyes. "But this will make killing you even more fun, don't you think? ♢"

More cards appear between Hisoka's fingers. He shuffles them for a bit, before throwing them straight at the two Hunters.

Ryu and Senka quickly activate Ken to defend themselves. Right before the cards were able to slit their throats, however, it abruptly stopped just a few centimeters away from them.

The Hunters were taken aback, but they kept their defenses strong.

"Hmm... we seem to have a problem here, Sanguis. ♤" Hisoka utters, a slight frown forming on his face as looked away from the battle, gazing deeper into the forest instead.

'Sanguis?!' Senka side-eyed at Ryu, who looked just as alarmed as her. Immediately, she scanned the direction Hisoka was looking at, expecting Sanguis to pop up at any moment.

Instead, however, she felt a familiar presence. It was quite far, but the evil, malicious intent it had was something she could never forget.

"Senka, (Y/N) is with him." Ryu says. "Look harder, there's a smaller presence with his, and it's (Y/N)'s."

"What?!"

"Oh~ it looks like you've already figured it out." Hisoka looks back at them with the corner of his eye.

"Heh." Senka smirked. "Worried that our dear (Y/N)'s gonna kick his ass?"

Hisoka chuckles. "Quite the opposite, actually. ♤" he says. With a flourish of his hand, the cards were pulled back to his palms. "I can't let him have his fun with her. Not when she's still an unripe fruit~"

With that, Hisoka vanished completely, leaving Ryu and Senka alone.

_ _ _

You stared at Sanguis in shock and confusion, looking back and forth between the scar and his face.

"You– Nii-chan...?" you muttered, eyes wide.

Sanguis smiles. It was one of his friendly ones. "So, it was you all along, huh? I have had a feeling ever since I heard that name."

"Me? But–" you looked down, clutching your head with a hand. "How are you still... alive? After what happened back–" You stopped, unable to finish your sentence as memories flashed through your head.

"Does it matter, (Y/N)? I'm here now."

"How about Mom and Dad?! Are they... still alive?"

Sanguis looked down and shook his head. "Unfortunately not, (Y/N)."

You paused, a look of conflict evident in your face. "A-Are you really Nii-chan? You look so different..."

Sanguis took a step closer. You instinctively stepped back, but you stopped yourself. He may be your only family, after all.

"A lot can change over the years, (Y/N)," he states. "Besides, I don't think anyone else has this scar, right?" He shows you his right arm. It was unmistakably the same one from what you remembered.

"Yeah... I guess that's true..."

Sanguis, or rather, (B/N) smirked. He rested his other hand on your head, giving it a small pat. Your gut feeling was telling you to push his hand away, but there was no way you would do that.

"Hey, (Y/N)." Your brother said in a soft voice, reminding you of your childhood days.

"Yeah?"

"...Why don't you come with me?"