"Found you~♡"

Hisoka narrowed his eyes on Alluka and one other person. They were rushing from the warehouse and cutting through the deep forest at great speed. Meanwhile, he was watching from behind some bushes, completely engulfed in the Zetsu state to not alert them.

His lips curl up into an amused smile. Slowly, Hisoka pulls up a couple of cards and holds them between his index and middle finger. Within the next second, he was in front of the two, effectively blocking their way.

Alluka was the first to flinch and freeze in her tracks. "Hisoka!"

Hisoka ignored her, turning his eyes on the person next to her instead. "Long time no see, Gon. ♡"

Alluka's savior, Gon, immediately stepped in front of Alluka protectively. He still had the same spiky hair and round, clear eyes. "Sorry, Hisoka. I don't have time to fight you right now. I need to get Alluka out of here," he says earnestly.

Hisoka smirks, trying to contain his excitement. "I see~ But how will you get me out of the way, hm?" He licks his cards, slowly infusing them with Nen.

Gon fell into deep thought. You could almost see smoke coming out of his ears.

Finally, he furrows his brows. "Fine, then. Let's have a deal!" He points at Hisoka. "If I beat you in a fight, you'll have to let us go!"

"Already asking for a fight? But dear Gon, you haven't even ripened yet~ ♢" Hisoka feigns a look of shock.

But Gon was already preparing himself to fight.

Alluka blinks in surprise. "Wait... didn't you tell me that Onii-chan asked you to avoid fighting at all costs?"

Hearing her words, Gon almost freezes in place. Eventually, he looks back at her with a sheepish smile. "I know, sorry about that! I'll be sure to apologize to Killua later!"

Alluka opens her mouth to speak, but hesitates. Eventually, she backs off into a safe spot, seemingly pouting.

"Thanks, Alluka!" Gon waves his hand high in the air with a bright smile, before turning to Hisoka.

A small chuckle erupts from the jester's lips. "I'm looking forward to how you'll entertain me today~ ♡"

______________________

"(Y/N), behind you!"

You manage to dodge out of the way just before Sanguis lands an attack. After finding your balance, you focus your Nen onto your fist, lunging forward to punch Sanguis in the face. However, it was easily blocked.

Sanguis smirks. "What's wrong, (Y/N)? You're a lot weaker than last time."

You immediately jump back, feeling chills run down your spine. His approachable smiles and caring gazes were all gone, and it unsettled you to no end.

"What happened to not hesitating, hm?" He continues to taunt you, taking a step closer as you back away.

Killua takes this chance to catch him off-guard. As fast as lightning, he did a sweeping kick to knock Sanguis off his feet.

"Now, (Y/N)!"

As soon as you heard Killua's signal, you immediately focused all your Nen into your foot before kicking him in the stomach. The force of it, along with Sanguis' lost balance, was enough to throw him across the wall, hitting it with a loud thud. The wall crumbles ever so slightly as dust and debris fly all over the air.

'I can't afford to hesitate anymore.'

Feeling Killua's warm hand on your shoulder, you turn your head to meet his gentle gaze. 'After all, Killua's here with me...'

Soft, shaky chuckles erupted from Sanguis' lips. Slowly, he gets up, wiping away the blood that dripped down his mouth. "Was that hesitation all a front to get me to lower down my guard, (Y/N)? How clever," he spat.

Your lips spread into a thin line as your brows furrowed. But you remained silent, lunging forward for your next attack while Killua followed right behind you.

"You think I'll let you get away with that again?" Sanguis mumbled.

Just before you landed your attack, you felt a surge of aura engulf everything around you. Killua seemed to sense this quickly enough, as he completely stopped in his tracks. "(Y/N), wait up!"

But your fist already hit his jaw. And somehow, a cut appeared on your own just a second after.

You jumped back in surprise, clutching your bleeding jaw.

"Oi, (Y/N)!" Killua runs to your side, inspecting the cut on your jaw. "Tsk, it's a little deep," he mumbles, furrowing his brows. "...So this is his Hatsu, huh?"

You checked your hand, all bloody from the cut on your jaw. "He did this last time," you said. "Whenever Sanguis sustained damage from my attacks, I get the same amount of damage in return through cuts. I couldn't..." you pause, clenching your hands. "I couldn't get past it."

Killua glares at Sanguis, who was already standing proud. "So, it's that kind of Hatsu, huh?"

Sanguis' lips twist into a crooked smirk. "As long as you're within my range, you'll never be able to lay a hand on me without getting yourself hurt. Good luck with that~"

Killua locks eyes with Sanguis, and all of a sudden it seemed like his demeanor changed. His glare was ice-cold, and his hands had morphed into sharp claws as veins bulge from his fingers.

"And what if I kill you in one hit? Am I still gonna receive damage from that?" he asks. Even his tone was cold, almost dripping with bloodlust.

You glanced at Killua with widened eyes, the feeling of dread settling deep in your stomach. He was completely serious, and every part of you knew this wasn't going to end well.

Sanguis' smirk dropped. Even he seemed wary of this sudden shift. "Why don't you give it a try, then?"

A suffocating silence fills the room. Killua takes a step forward, completely set on bloodshed.

"WAIT!" You cut through the silence, grabbing onto Killua's arm.

He looks back at you. The look on his blue eyes made the hairs on the back of your neck stand on end.

"...Don't do it," you manage to say.

Killua's gaze softens after sensing your fear. "We need to get you out of here, (Y/N)."

"But what if..." you gulp. "What if you die? What if his Hatsu still works even after his death?"

You can hear Sanguis scoff in the background.

"We have no choice–"

"Yes, we do! Stop trying to sacrifice yourself!" you argue, before facing Sanguis directly. "I have my own Hatsu after all. One that may actually help."

"Oh? You have a way to defeat me?" Sanguis chuckles.

But Killua's eyes widen in realization, as thoughts of your struggle with Illumi flash through his mind. "Do you know how to control it?"

"I've..." you avert your eyes. "I've tried to. I think I can do it."

Killua furrows his brows in thought, before calming down. "If it's too risky for you, I will kill him."

But before you can reply, Sanguis was already in front of you. "Well, I'd love to see you try, my dear sister," he says, knocking you back.

"(Y/N)!"

You manage to block some of his attacks, allowing you to regain balance fairly quickly. Within the next half-second, you pull out your dagger and slash across his right forearm, right where his scar was, causing him to pull back.

As expected, a deep cut emerges on your own arm, but you ignored them as you gripped the dagger tightly.

"So you had that this whole time, huh?" Sanguis scoffs, letting the blood drip off his arm. "But you seem to be sustaining more damage, (Y/N). What are you gonna do about that?"

Sanguis charges another attack, but Killua was right behind him. In one fell swoop, he kicks Sanguis in the gut with his electrified Nen, immobilizing him for a few seconds.

"(Y/N)! I'll take care of him. You focus on getting your ability to work!"

You nod, taking a few steps back to create some distance.

"If I'm not mistaken, the range of his ability should be the same as his En's range..." you pause, remembering how the Nen technique worked.

'En is when one extends their Ren so that their aura extends farther than normal, then uses Ten to contain its shape, usually a sphere.'

You take a few more steps back until you reach the edge of Sanguis' En. "If I step out of the sphere, I'll be out of his range," you mumbled, watching as Sanguis battled with Killua about 20 meters away.

Killua glanced at you for a split second, giving you a small smile. You smiled back, before closing your eyes and facing your palms upward.

Just like before, all the aura that usually surrounded you faded away, putting you in the vulnerable Zetsu state.

"What is she doing?!" Sanguis narrows his eyes, about to run towards you. However, Killua stopped him from going any further.

"Defeating you," Killua simply replied, a small smirk playing on his lips.

At first, you couldn't absorb any Nen. You were struggling in the presence of such a strong aura when you had none for protection.

"If it's too risky for you, I will kill him."

Killua's words repeated over and over in your head, like a mantra that helped you keep going. 'This is the best way I can help him...' you thought to yourself.

Slowly, trickles of Nen started flowing out of Sanguis' En and into your body. It provided you with the slightest protection as it engulfed your figure, before being completely absorbed into you.

Of course, Sanguis was the first to notice. "(Y/N)!!" he screamed, getting more and more frantic by the second. Once more, he tried to reach for you, but Killua had already predicted his move.

"What's wrong? Your movements are getting sloppier," Killua taunts, giving him an icy blue glare as he blocks his way again.

Sanguis watches as more of his Nen is being stolen. Gradually, fatigue had started to set in. "What kind of Nen ability is this?!" He glares at you while trying to fend off more of Killua's attacks.

By then, you managed to open your eyes while maintaining your Hatsu. You watched in awe as Sanguis' En gradually got smaller. While fatigue had started to set for him, you only seemed to be feeling more and more energized... almost too energized.

Eventually, you had to stop. You let out a deep sigh, trying to control the Nen you had just absorbed. 'If I take in any more, I might not be able to control it...' you thought, furrowing your brows.

Thankfully, the range of Sanguis' En had decreased to around 10 meters. Its spherical shape started to wobble from the instability, before dissipating.

It didn't take long for Sanguis to fall to his knees, panting in exhaustion. Killua loomed over him, ready to strike at any time.

You step closer. "We win, Nii-chan. Let us go."

A few moments of silence pass and Sanguis' breaths have steadied. "Let you go...?" he chuckles.

With breakneck speed, he manages to get up and circle his hands around your neck in a last-ditch attempt to win. Even Killua wasn't able to stop him on time.

"And why would I do that?" Sanguis mumbles, tightening his hands around your neck as you struggle to breathe.

"(Y/N)–"

"SANGUIS!!" A familiar voice screams from the other end of the warehouse.

In the corner of your eye, you spot Ryu rushing towards you. The wrath held in his expression was something you've never seen before, and the way he screamed in anger caught you off-guard.

"R-Ryu...?" you manage between coughs.

Before you knew it, Sanguis had let go of you. You take in a deep breath as you watch him being smashed onto the ground.

"Wait, Ryu!" You were about to rush towards him, but Killua put an arm in front of you, shaking his head slowly.

"I-Impossible... where the hell did Illumi go?" Sanguis mumbles.

Ryu looms over him, stepping harshly on his chest. "Oh, don't worry. He won't be here for a while," he spat. "And even if he was, Killua's gonna make sure he won't interfere."

The silver-haired Hunter nods.

Meanwhile, you could only stare at the situation, wondering why Ryu's entire demeanor had changed. And most importantly–

"Where's Senka?" you asked him. An uneasy feeling had settled in your stomach.