Despite Killua's warning, Ryu still found himself glaring straight through Sanguis. His aura was spiking with pure malice, something that rivaled even Illumi's.

A crooked smirk tugs at Sanguis' lips. "What? Are you gonna kill me?"

"Yeah. And you look oddly happy about that, don't you?" Ryu seethes, gathering more Nen into his fist one last time. It formed a deep blue color, signifying his signature Ko attack. Though the orb of Nen, which was usually extremely stable and controlled, now held an air of desperation and wrath. It was turning into something Ryu may not even be able to control by himself.

Meanwhile, the damage Sanguis has taken from the battle started to work its way on him. A burning pain could be felt through the deep cut on his right forearm, right where his scar lay. The bruises and scrapes throughout his body almost pulsed in a dull pain as the feeling in his legs faded away. Yet, he still stared up at Ryu, showing no signs of opposition, almost as if begging him to end his life.

Ryu furrowed his brows in anger, pulling Sanguis up by the collar one last time. Immediately, he struck with his Nen-powered fist.

'Senka, I finally did it.'

______________________

"Congratulations on passing the Hunter exam!"

A younger Ryu looked at the dark-colored folder on the examiner's hand. The Hunter's Association logo was plastered on the front, with the card he had dreamed of for so long sitting inside.

"T... Thank you!" Ryu bowed lightly, taking the folder with both hands.

"Yeah! We finally have our licenses!!" Senka exclaimed from beside him, grinning from ear to ear while she held the same folder by her side. "Come on, let's get outta here!" She grabs Ryu by the hand, dragging him out of the room.

He nearly staggers forward from the force. "Hey, watch it or I'm gonna drop my license!"

_ _ _

"Open the folders in three, two, one.... go!"

Ryu opens the folder on Senka's cue. Immediately, his eyes landed on the light blue card boasting the Hunter's Association logo, slightly smaller than the length of his hand.

"Woah!!" Senka's eyes practically sparkled as she held her license in her hands. "This is a lot shinier than I expected, Ryu! What do you think?"

Ryu merely stared at his license, slowly ghosting his hands over it.

Senka raised a brow, tilting her head ever so slightly. "Ryu? What's wrong with you? –OH, that rhymed!" She burst out laughing, leaning over and slapping Ryu on the back.

His eyes widened as his grip on the folder loosened. Quickly, he grabbed his card before it fell off. "Ugh, Senka." He sighs, turning to her with a deadpan look. "Can't you stop being annoying for five seconds?"

"Me? Annoying?!" An irk mark appears on Senka's forehead. "You're the one being all quiet and weird! Be happy for a second, will you?!"

Ryu resists the urge to roll his eyes. "I am happy," he says. Not even the ghost of a smile appeared on his face.

"No, you're not!" Senka points at his face. "That's weird. You're weird! What's wrong with you?"

"Geez, stop acting as if I just did something terrible." He sighs, looking back at his license, watching as it shines against the sunlight's rays. "I was just thinking..."

Senka raised a brow. "Thinking?"

"If we're able to find Sanguis. What if..." Ryu pauses, lips spreading into a thin line. "What if I end up killing him?"

Senka's eyes widened. "Killing him?!"

Ryu sighs, shaking his head. "Ugh, never mind. As a Hunter, I am allowed to kill if necessary so it shouldn't be a big deal," he says.

"Wait a sec!" Senka steps in front of Ryu, practically glaring at him as she puts her hands on her hips. "Didn't we have an agreement that we're not going to kill anyone? That includes Sanguis, too!"

He frowns. "Yeah, but–" he sighs once more. "After the things he's done–"

"If we did, we would just be stooping to his level. Don't you think, Ryu?"

He widens his eyes. "I know that, but–"

"Alright! Then let's not resort to doing that, okay? We're here to hunt down Sanguis for murder, not become murderers ourselves!" Senka smiles brightly, giving him a thumbs up.

Ryu stares at Senka in disbelief. The sunlight shone against her skin, making it seem like it was glowing an ethereal light.

He scoffs and turns away, waving a hand dismissively. "Yeah, yeah. I get it," he says, the corners of his lips tugging upwards into the smallest smile.

______________________

Sanguis stared at Ryu, who wasn't even glaring at him anymore. "You missed."

"I know." Ryu takes a deep, shaky breath. He pulls his fist back from the patch of broken wall beside Sanguis, letting debris fall to the ground in chunks.

Sanguis lets out a raspy chuckle. "What? You're sparing me? How naive of you," he says, watching as Ryu steps back. "You Hunters are so naive~ No wonder–"

Ryu quickly pulled him by the collar and knocked him out, hitting him on the back of the neck with a chopping motion. He watches as Sanguis' eyes roll to the back of his head, eyelids closing shut afterward.

"Just because I wouldn't kill you doesn't mean I'll let you off the hook, dumbass," Ryu mumbles, picking up Sanguis' limp body from the ground and carelessly throwing him over his shoulder, arms and head dangling like a rag doll. "Plus, the bounty reward is greater if I catch you alive."

Ryu takes a deep breath and tilts his head from side to side, cracking the joints of his neck. "That was a close one, wasn't it, Senka?" he chuckles. "No wonder you refused to leave me alone all these years..." Trailing off, he looks down on the ground.

'Senka... I finally did it.'

__________

Things were quiet between you and Killua. Too quiet. The slight rustling and crushing of leaves beneath your feet were all you could hear. Even so, your hands remained intertwined, showing no signs of letting go.

The warm feeling never really left your lips. You pursed them together, replaying the scene in your head over and over. It haunted your mind, and it was all you thought about for the entire journey.

"Why?"

"Huh?" you hear Killua's voice cut through the thick silence.

You turn to him, tilting your head in confusion. "What?"

"I thought I heard you say something," he replies, deep blue eyes staring straight into yours.

"O-Oh... what?" You immediately feel your cheeks heating up. 'Did I say that out loud?'

Killua blinked in confusion, before averting his eyes and shaking his head. "Nevermind, must be hearing things," he says, light pink dusting his cheeks.

"No, you weren't!" you exclaim. "I was just asking myself why..."

"Why? Why what?" Killua furrows his brows in confusion. But upon seeing your red-tinted cheeks, his eyes slowly widened in realization. "L-Look, I just didn't know how else to calm you down!" He frantically explains, letting go of your hand in the process. "I... won't do it again..." he mumbles, looking away.

"No, that's not what I meant!" you reply. Wasn't it Killua who said this to you just moments earlier? You shook your head, pushing that thought to the back of your mind. "I meant... why me?"

"Huh?"

"Why... stay with me? Why do all these things for me?" You looked away, the warmth on your cheeks persisting.

The long silence that followed was deafening.

"(Y/N)." Killua finally stopped you in your tracks, looking you straight in the eye again. "I–"

"KILLUAAAAAAA!!" A shrill voice cuts through the air. You whirl around, looking for the source of the unfamiliar voice.

In the distance, you see Alluka with a spiky-haired boy wearing a lot of green clothing. He vigorously waves his hand, bolting straight for Killua.

You furrow your brows. 'Who?'

"Gon?!" Killua nearly staggered back from the loudness of his voice. "I told you to meet us outside the forest, you stupid!"

'Oh. So that's him.'

Gon stopped in front of him, slightly panting from exhaustion. "Eh? But we are outside the forest!"

You immediately look around. Sure enough, all the trees have thinned out and city buildings came into view.

"O-Oh..." Killua mutters, much to Gon's amusement.

"ONII-CHAN!! ONEE-CHAN!!" Alluka sprints towards you, following Gon's movements.

Killua sighs in relief upon seeing his sister. "Alluka. Thank god you're safe."

Alluka engulfs Killua in a bone-crushing hug, before running over to you and doing the same. You immediately feel the air getting knocked out of your lungs as she hugged you. "Onee-chan! You finally got out!!"

"Y-Yeah... sorry for the trouble I caused, Alluka. I'm really sorry..." you mumble, returning the hug.

Alluka shakes her head. "It's fine, Onee-chan! Gon saved me!" she exclaimed, pulling away and pointing to Gon.

He turns to you with a wide grin on his face. This was the first time you properly looked at him, and the first thing you noticed was the excitement in his eyes. They sparkled in their golden-brown color, round eyes widening even more in anticipation.

"Hello, I'm Gon! Killua's best friend!" He takes your hand and shakes it.

You were taken aback by Gon's outgoing presence, but you returned a bright smile. "Hi, Gon! I'm (Y/N)," you reply. "S...Sorry for all the trouble I caused. You had to come all the way..." Laughing sheepishly, you scratch the back of your head.

He laughs heartily. "It's okay! Killua told me so much about you, actually! So I knew what I was getting myself into."

You blinked in confusion. "He... he did?" You turn to Killua, who immediately averted his eyes.

"Yeah! It was in every text he sent me for the past year! I was– owww!" Gon's head lurched forward, a huge bump appearing on the back of it.

Behind him was a visibly annoyed Killua, irk mark protruding from his forehead and everything. "Alright Gon, that's enough. (Y/N) needs to get her injuries treated ASAP."

Gon rubs the back of his head as he slumps his shoulders. "Aww, fine..." he says, before sighing and flashing a smile. "But you know, Killua," he gives a thumbs up. "I'm glad you asked for my help this time!"

Killua stared at his best friend for a moment, before the corners of his lips tug upwards into a small smirk. "Yeah, yeah."

A smile rests on your face as you watch them. Next thing you knew, though, Killua stood beside you, taking your hand in his. "Alright, let's get going. Ryu will meet us back at the inn."

"Where is Ryu, though? Is he... is he okay?" Alluka wonders, gazing at everyone's faces with worry.

You looked down, furrowing your brows. The image of Ryu's wrath-filled expression flashed through your mind.

"Pretty sure he's fine," Killua replies. "He won't do anything stupid. He may be an Enhancer, but he's not like Gon at the very least," he shrugs, before turning around and walking ahead with you.

"Huh?! What's that supposed to mean??"