I dragged myself back to the border, still depressed from the fight last night. I didn't bother saying anything as me and my friends felt the same for not helping Kite deal with that Chimera Ant. I thought about its ill-filled aura and how it got me frightened to death upon feeling it.

When we got to the tree, Killua placed the unconscious Gon on the ground and leaned him against it. I cast a sorrowful gaze at the spiky-haired boy, thinking about how he felt when he saw Kite's arm flying. I didn't think I'd seen him so furious my entire life.

I felt a hand on my shoulder, and I looked back to see my sister with a discouraged face.

"Who knows if Kite had already defeated the ant and survived? Maybe we're just overthinking about last night." She spoke, her voice matching the way she was feeling.

"I don't think he survived! I knew how powerful that ant was, and that he had no chance against it!" I snapped, my eyes watery.

"Look, we can't be certain about its power, and I know that if Kite can defeat every ant we face, he can defeat that ant, too. We're not sure about the outcome." She replied.

"B-but—"

"He's alive. That's what I think."

I looked down and tried to get myself to think about the same thing. I wiped my eyes and looked back at Gon, who was still unconscious. Killua took off his shirt and covered him with it. I sat down next to the spiky-haired boy and laid my melancholic eyes on him.

We heard a vehicle approaching, and we saw it traveling to where we were. It drove up, and three people got out. A tall guy with white hair holding a huge pipe, a guy with black hair wearing a black suit, and an old guy with white hair tied into a ponytail.

Wait. Isn't that...Chairman Netero?

"What the hell is this? They're just a bunch of kids who thought this was a game. You got burned real bad. Now, hurry up and go home." The tall guy mocked us.

"Stop it, Morel. That's not nice." The dark-haired guy calmly scolded him, and he growled. "Like you said, they're only children."

The old guy chuckled. "You guys seem depressed. So, was your opponent that powerful?"

Killua softly grunted, and Lynn and I turned to him for an answer. His eyes softened before he answered.

"One of them could use Nen. This was the worst aura I've ever encountered. It's worse than my brother's or Hisoka's. After learning Nen myself, I can tell you guys are incredibly strong. But still, I don't think you're able to defeat him." He solemnly explained.

The guy with black hair fixed his glasses and looked at him with keen eyes.

"People overrate things they can't understand, and that's a perfect answer. Unfortunately, you guys are in a state of panic right now. Get some rest while we take care of it." He stated.

The tall guy who I'd known as Morel laughed. "How is that different from what I said? Come on, Knov."

The dark-haired guy called Knov scoffed at his taunting remark.

"Look, the moment you start thinking about who will win in Nen combat, you will be missing the point. You don't know about the opponent's abilities yet. Any moment of carelessness can turn the whole battle around. Suddenly, having more or less aura than your opponent isn't much of an excuse. The battle can turn quickly in any time. That's the essence of Nen combat." He explained, sounding scornful.

I was still feeling down, but I understood his point.

"No matter what, always fight like you know you're gonna win. That is the spirit of a Nen user. You guys were disqualified the moment you fled from the battle. You're worse than losers."

"Enough, Morel." Knov turned to him with a warning look.

"Is Gon sleeping?" Netero asked, changing the subject.

"No. I had to use force to stop him from attacking. I didn't have time to hold back, so I don't know when he'll wake up." Killua explained.

Morel laughed again. "Sounds like the other kid's got a better future ahead."

"Morel!" Knov whispered, telling him to be quiet.

"It's hard to believe that giant Chimera Ants are eating humans. It seems to be true, and therefore, we must try to keep the casualties low. If we send in fighters who aren't strong enough, we're risking assimilation. Do you understand?" Netero asked.

"Yeah." Killua replied, and Lynn and I only nodded, not feeling comfortable saying anything.

I sat next to Lynn in the truck, staring down at Gon, still feeling distraught after hearing Netero explain what we had to do in order to go back into the NGL. He had sent two assassins into a nearby city and invited us to fight them. He also gave us two tiles which were our tokens representing us as part of the Extermination Team. If we wanted to remain as Hunters, we had to defeat those two assassins and get the other two pieces.

When we arrived at the city, we went to the square and found a blackboard with a message written on it.

To Killua, Gon, Lynn, and Lizzy.

Will you fight us or not?

I stared at the message on the board, thinking about what Netero said about wanting to fight them and remaining as Pro Hunters.

I walked around the city with my distressed face on, kicking random objects on the ground. No one dared asking me what was going on, as my gloomy aura already told them for me.

We got to the hotel where we were going to stay at for a while. I sat down on the bed, feeling deep sorrow from pondering about Morel's unfriendly explanation. I could feel tears coming out of my eyes, and I sniffed.

Maybe I was no good at being a Pro Hunter.

"Killua." I heard Gon's soft voice, and I slightly turned my head to see that he woke up.

"Thank you." He said, making Killua shudder.

"For what? There's nothing you can thank me for." The silver-haired boy bluntly replied.

"Yes, there is. You knocked me out, right? If you hadn't done that, I would lose control and get in the way. And if I had, all of us would have died." He stated.

"Maybe, but...we left Kite there to die." Killua muttered.

"He's alive." He said, and we gasped in shock. "He would never let himself be beaten by that thing. But he did get injured, so it would be pretty hard for him to move around. He's hiding somewhere. He's waiting for us to come back."

My eyes stopped tearing up and widened for a second. Could it be really true? That Kite defeated that ant and survived? Was he really waiting for us inside the NGL?

"So now, we get strong and find him. We're gonna go save Kite." He swore.

I was getting mesmerized by the boy's heartwarming smile filled with serious resolve. His hazel eyes were glimmering in the sunlight, and so were my green ones. I couldn't stop staring at them, feeling motivated to do what he wanted to do.

"Yeah. Yeah, you're right." Killua looked down and smiled.

"I totally agree." Lynn replied.

"Yeah." I nodded, my lips parting in a warm smile.

Oh, Gon. You're like a light that shines a path to my bright future. Actually, you are my light. I will stay by your side until the end, just like I promised. Let's get stronger, together.

After our discussion, we went back to the square and left a reply on the blackboard.

We welcome you anytime!

When that was done, we started to walk around the city again. I felt better thanks to Gon's beaming confidence.

"Hey Killua. What are those?" Gon asked, pointing at the wooden tiles Killua was playing around with.

"They're shogi tiles. You take a piece of marked wood and split it in half, then you give each half to somebody else. You can use it to verify a document or use it as proof of identity." He stated, tossing them in the air and catching them. "In this case, the two assassins each have the other halves. We'll defeat them and take their pieces."

When we got to the station to check the blackboard, the message was gone.

"The message was erased. That means someone checked the board." Killua pointed out.

"You must be Killua, Gon, Lynn, and Lizzy." A voice spoke from behind us. The four of us turned to see a thin woman with long, unruly black hair wearing a light pink blouse. She had very pale skin, and we felt a displeasing aura around her. I shuddered.

"It's nice to meet you. My name is Palm. It's a pleasure." She introduced herself. The boys and Lynn tensed up upon feeling her aura.

"Oh, dear. There's no reason to be like that. The chairman probably didn't tell you anything. Allow me to explain. Let's go and have some tea."

We looked at each other in confusion before deciding to follow her out of the station.

Palm took us to a nearby café, and she ordered a cup of tea while Gon and Killua ordered orange juice and I ordered a fruit punch. Lynn ordered water since she did not want any juice.

"I am Knov's student. He told me I would only get in his way, but I insisted on going with him." Palm explained, adding some sugar to her tea.

"Who's that?" Gon asked.

"I think it's the guy wearing a black suit." Lynn answered.

"Yes. He's a wonderful man. Cool and intelligent and composed. Oh, cool and composed have the same meaning. I just admire him, that's all. Nothing romantic or anything." She admitted, and we were perplexed from watching her add so much sugar to her tea. Why in the name of God would someone so eccentric like her put an insane amount of sugar into their cup of tea? That was downright ridiculous!

"Except, I'm not certain of that either. Respect is a factor when it comes to falling in love, after all. And my teacher doesn't know anything about this!" She blushed. "I never said anything to him, and I never will."

She picked up the cup of tea and started chugging it, and we gave her disgusted looks. Seriously, what the heck was wrong with this woman?

"No one can say what happened. Love is a spontaneous thing, don't you agree?" She continued babbling on about her feelings.

"Uh, can I interrupt?" Killua spoke up, raising a hand. "Are we supposed to fight you?"

"Huh? Oh, yes I apologize. The chairman and my teacher said I couldn't accompany them, which is quite unfortunate. But I had to insist on going with them. It felt like I spent a lifetime trying to prove my determination to them. And finally, they conceded with a condition." She laughed, and we all looked at her like she was out of her mind.

"Not what I asked." Killua tried to interrupt again, but Palm continued to ramble on about the same topic.

"I know what you're thinking. My teacher seems cold, but he's actually nice. You have to spend time with him like I did to realize it. And by 'spending time with him,' I don't mean he and I—"

"Just tell us about the condition!" He snapped, slamming his hands on the table.

"You have to defeat Knuckle and Shoot." She finally answered.

"Knuckle and...Shoot?" I repeated.

"How...how dare those vulgar, rude, barbaric brats go to the NGL before me? I cannot allow it." She unconsciously used her Hatsu in anger and frustration, causing the tea to overflow. I jumped and quickly grabbed a napkin to clean up the mess.

"Ahh! Ms. Palm! Please stop using your Hatsu!" Gon cried and tried to help me clean up all the tea on the table.

So that means Palm's an Enhancer like Gon. What a coincidence.

"Hold on. So you're not here to fight us?" Killua asked.

"That's right. After all, I'm not the one who was supposed to beat Knuckle and Shoot. That task belongs to you." She stated, and we nodded.

"Knuckle and Shoot are Morel's students. They too received a condition."

"Morel? You mean the tall guy with the white hair and sunglasses?" I said, remembering the guy who mocked us for our weakness.

"Yes. And the condition, I don't know what it was. But I do know that only one group is allowed, either us or them. We have one month." She explained.

After Palm left the café and Killua came back from walking around the city, we started eating our lunch and started talking about Knuckle and Shoot.

"He's just a decoy for his partner, who might be hiding somewhere. I'm even willing to bet that they're watching to see if anyone reacts suspiciously before they make a move. Palm told us they don't know our names yet. So we're in the clear." Killua explained.

"Uh-huh." I nodded and took a sip of my fruit punch.

"They're trying to lure us out somehow. That would be idiotic of them to pull off a stunt like that."

"Is he strong?" Gon asked.

"He's powerful."

"What will it take to defeat him?" I asked before taking a sandwich to eat.

"That's a good guess. One of the Hunters with the chairman said that nothing is certain. He also said that I wasn't qualified to judge if a fight can be won. But I disagree. You'll have to increase your chances of winning in order to survive. It's important to differentiate between the strengths of you and your opponent." Killua slurped on some of his spaghetti and ate it. "If you're fighting an opponent with the lowest chances of winning, don't even bother."

I drank more of my fruit punch and ate another sandwich.

"You want at least 50-50. If possible, 70% or more. But we still have two things we need to do in order for us to reach that point. We need to work in our fundamental skills and learn about our opponent's abilities. If we find out what they are, we can come up with a plan just like we did against Genthru."

"I agree and disagree with you." Gon spoke up.

"What do you mean?"

"I agree with us having to work on our fundamentals, but I don't agree with knowing about their abilities."

"Really? Why not? Come on, why don't you think about the benefits?"

"I know. But once we're inside, that is what we're going to be facing. Our goal isn't to beat Knuckle and Shoot. It's to get stronger. Strong enough to go back into the NGL and rescue Kite."

"I mean, we've got to be powerful enough to defeat enemies we don't know anything about. What's the point of planning ahead?" Gon asked as we made our way to the hotel.

"You're right, but first, we have to defeat these two guys." Killua replied.

"We have one month to do it, so yeah, we should have enough time." Lynn added.

"That's too long." Gon said, slightly opening the door. "Seven days. We'll do this in one week."

"What?" Lynn questioned his intention.

Suddenly, a fist collided with his face, and he got launched back.

"Are you an idiot?!" A familiar voice yelled, and we turned to see the blonde woman in a beautiful dress.

"Bisky?!" I exclaimed along with Killua and Gon. "Why are you here?!"

"I asked her to come here." Palm simply replied.

"You two know each other?!" We shouted in unison.

"No. I did some research on you."

"Wait, but we only know her from—" Gon was interrupted by Palm chuckling.

"It was quite simple once I used my ability. There's no time to spare, so let's begin now. We must kill Morel's students." She grinned evilly.

"No thanks." The boys said together.

"Uh-uh." I shook my head.

"Too far." Lynn closed her eyes and looked down.

"Let's get started." Bisky announced.

"Osu!" We shouted.

Bisky hit Gon on the head, and we sweatdropped.

"OW! What was that for?" He cried like a baby, wincing from the pain.

"I'm picking up where I left off! Are you an idiot or what?" She yelled at him. "That old man is notorious for being very unreasonable. If he tells you to do something in a month, then it'll probably take you a year. And that's if you're lucky. There's no way you'll be able to defeat them in only a week!"

"But you don't understand. We need to go back immediately so we can save Kite!" Gon tried to reason with her.

"Wait, what are you talking about?" She asked.

The boy explained everything about what happened to Kite and why we needed to get a lot more stronger now.

"I see. That's everything why you shouldn't rush your training! What if you make the same mistakes again?" She scolded him.

Sometimes, I can't stand her talking-tos whenever we did something wrong.

"Do you understand?" She finished.

"Osu." Gon hung his head low in shame.

"Alright, let's begin your training." The blonde walked over to a chair and took out a men's fashion magazine to read.

"Show me Ren." She told us, and we complied, activating the technique. "Maintain it for three hours."

"Three hours?!" I exclaimed, completely surprised.

"Killua, Lynn, Lizzy. How long can you guys go?" Gon asked us.

"I can maintain it for a maximum of 55 minutes." Killua answered.

"I can do about 50 minutes." Lynn replied.

"Me? I don't know...maybe 40?" I guessed, unsure about my Ren.

"Do it, and we'll move on to the next step. Train like your lives depend on it." She laughed and began reading the magazine.

I collapsed on the floor, feeling exhausted after about 55 minutes of keeping up my Ren. Then, Gon collapsed not long after, and Lynn and Killua followed along. God, that was so hard.

"Oh, come on. That was barely an hour. Now, keep going." Bisky told us.

We strained to get up, and immediately showed her our Ren again. I took small breaths to maintain my stamina.

"They say it should take about a month to prolong your Ren by 10 minutes. There will be no time to sleep." She stated and continued reading her magazine.

After some more time training, we all felt so exhausted that we fell asleep. What a hellish torture! Everything hurt and I didn't maintain my Ren for three hours like Bisky told us to do.

Then I felt a soothing sensation on my back, and I sighed, smiling with ease. It felt so good! It was like I was living in luxury!

When I woke up half an hour later, I felt so full of energy again. Palm told us that she wouldn't be able to keep herself from killing all of us if we failed the challenge.

"Don't worry! We've got this! We'll get you into the NGL no matter what! If you have anything helpful for us, just let me know!" Gon reassured her and activated his Ren.

"That's how he is. Have faith in him." I heard Bisky say to Palm.

She sighed, then she started shuddering. "Oh gosh! Oh my gosh! No!"

"Hmm. Right now, I'm very concerned about the guys back in the NGL. What will the chairman do for the next month?" Bisky asked her.

"Oh, uh...they said they're going to scout around, identifying the enemy's strength and weaken their forces. The experts couldn't come to an agreement on how much time left before the King is born. The chairman assumed it will be in two months." She explained.

Two months. We better improve our strength so we could go back inside the NGL. I believed Kite was out there waiting for us, and we were willing to risk everything to find him.

Don't worry, Kite. We would save you no matter what.