It was only the smallest flicker of nen, something you'd miss if you weren't specifically looking for it. But Hisoka saw it and it made him purse his lips in annoyance. Illumi must have a needle in the boy's head because he could not see the child assassin attacking his proclaimed friend like that. And now the rat was going to die and the precious fruit trapped in it's paws would rot with it.

Perhaps after this exam, he'd finally go after Illumi. If the man was going to get in his way, no matter the twisted fondness he had for him, Hisoka was going to put him in the ground. Such potential… utterly wasted. It was a tragedy of the highest order!

He watched the medic in the room try to stop the bleeding and couldn't help but hold out a little hope. The other personality had come out before when the first was in danger so there was a small chance that it could happen again. A small chance that was shrinking the further nothing happened.

He glanced at the other ripening fruit, Illumi's precious younger brother, taking in the empty look in his eyes and the slump of his shoulders. That was another that was potentially ruined all because Illumi couldn't keep his possessiveness to himself. The option of killing the other was getting more and more tempting.

The Kurta boy was attempting to talk to Killua but there was no reaction; just empty eyes staring at a dying body. Actually… Now that he thought it over a little more, it was a surprise that his little rat wasn't immediately killed. Under Illumi's control, that's exactly what should have happened. Instead it was long and drawn out, wheezy gurgling breaths echoing in the large room. So, did that mean that Killua had fought back subconsciously? Though, the boy didn't seem aware of nen or the needle in his head, which meant his will was strong. There was only one time he'd ever seen someone fight against Illumi's nen and that was a one off, someone who had only just had the needle inserted (that man died rather quickly without nen but the will was still there). Killua's had been there… for goodness knows how long considering the dynamics of the Zoldyck family.

Before he could ruminate on it further, the white haired assassin himself jerked into motion when the little rat fell silent. Pulling away from the Kurta, he fled out the door blind and deaf to anyone calling out to him.

Hm.

Gold eyes turned back to the medic. They were frantically using a battery powered defibrillator but it was honestly no use with how much blood he'd started losing after Killua's fist had left his chest. Even if they were to use nen (which they wouldn't because Hunter's were sticklers for secrets apparently) the boy's rib cage was shattered, his lungs likely punctured, and the hole was a gaping void of viscous fleshy dark red.

But then-

Oohhh! Then-!

That beautiful nen was snapping out, the aura nodes tearing open around the little rat's head. Blue eyes that had fallen closed snapped open a brilliant green that seemed to swirl along with his nen.

Hisoka's tongue swiped out against his lips as saliva started pooling in his mouth. He wanted to see! He wanted to know what the precious fruit would do!

There were shouts of shock from participants and hunters alike but Hisoka was silent. Well, mostly silent, as a quiet moan left him unbidden. The nen was strong, stronger now that the boy was literally on the cusp of death. Just like before, it worked its way down into his neck, then shoulders, then arms and hands.

"Clove," his fruit gurgled slowly, drawing Hisoka's attention to the deathly pale face. "I need... help."

From the floor sprouted two distinct crystalline looking flowers made entirely of nen. And moments later there was a doe made of pure starlight and mist standing directly over the boy's prone body.

Was it a construct? Something else?

And what exactly was that on his chest? He hadn't seen it before as the boy's hands had blocked his view in the tower. But now it was in full view; an ugly black looking mass that was gnawing at where the fruit's nen stopped abruptly. It spitted and hissed, attacking and retreating in equal measure against the boy's nen; it could go no further, but neither could his nen. Was it some sort of seal?

Those who could see what was going on, were fascinated just like Hisoka himself. Those who could not, on the other hand, were freaking out. The Kurta had already knelt by the boy's side, though he was facing away from the Magician and so he could not see the expression upon the teen's face. Behind him, he could hear the prospective doctor trying to speak but his vocals were too slurred and unintelligible. The rest of the participants varied from teary to grim but he paid them no mind beyond registering them in his peripherals.

The doe had shifted, lowering its head over his face.

"In return," the doe chimed, voice sounding alike to ringing bells both small and high and deep and loud. "I shall take your ability to taste for one year. Is this agreeable?"

More blood bubbled from his lips as he responded with a ragged, "Yes."

"Jasper, stop talking. Focus on me, okay? Why aren't you doing your job," the Kurta snarled at the other man kneeling there, hands gently stroking through the thick messy locks of the child dying on the cold stone floor.

"There's nothing I can do," the medic protested, eyes flickering to the deer and back. He was obviously a nen user of some kind.

The doe, ignoring the byplay of the people around her creator, leaned forward, mouth opening and closing over the boy's own mouth. For a moment, she stood there chewing, and Hisoka blinked at the absurdity. Did she just eat his ability to taste? Did she eat his taste buds? His tongue? And why did he have to sacrifice something in the first place? Was it the severity of the wounds involved? He hadn't sacrificed anything in the Trick tower… had he?

The doe, Clove she had been called, suddenly teared up and let out an echoing trill of sorrow that sounded nothing like what should be coming from a deer. It was lyrical and haunting, sounding more like a warped birdsong than anything. Hisoka shivered at the cry, his skin breaking out into goosebumps as it rattled all the way down to the marrow of his bones. The absolute power behind it was astounding! To be able to affect him, to almost bring Hisoka to tears-

His pants tightened and he let out a breathy moan. He didn't know how much of a fighter his beautiful fruit would be… but that power was not one to be underestimated.

Clove bowed her head over the hole in the boy's chest, the tears dripping in a steady stream. And the flesh started regenerating immediately, bubbling up to fill the unnatural void. The Kurta let out a shocked cry, lurching back but not truly moving away.

It was confirmed. Healing nen. A very strong healing nen. What a magnificent rarity he'd stumbled across! Jasper (or perhaps it was only the second personality whose name he did not yet know, if they even had a name?), wonderful fruit that he was, had to be a specialist to have a Hatsu ability like that. He'd thought perhaps an Manipulator, due to his scatterbrained mind. But he could certainly see the individuality of a Specialist. The charisma might be lacking a little, most likely because of all of his mental issues that popped up all over the exam, but it was still there in little ways. Jasper had attracted Gon to him after all, as well as the rest of their group, and he'd certainly caught Hisoka's attention in a special way.

The boy coughed again, blood flying in droplets across his chest, but the next breath he took was clear.

And then the nen dissipated into wisps.

Menchi flipped the page in her recipe book. She looked at the scribbles she'd made in the margins and frowned. With the scratch of her pen to accompany the steady beeps filling the room, she crossed out an entire section and rewrote it with a new combination.

Then she leaned back in her chair with a sigh. Updating her works was often tedious which is why she always put it off. But if she was going to publish it like she truly wanted she was going to have to keep on top of it more. Right now- with nothing else to do but sit and wait- was the best time she was ever going to get. Menchi wasn't a very still person in general so she'd take what she could get.

With a groan of exhaustion she tossed her legs out and threw her arms up, arching her back to get the best stretch she possibly could in this chair. As comfortable as it was, sitting in it for a few hours was still enough to make anyone feel tense. And she'd been here for way more than just a few hours.

Two days of in and out traffic and the kid still made no moves towards actually getting his scrawny ass out of bed. The only good thing about him not waking up was being able to monitor his nutrition levels and come up with a plan for it while she wasn't distracted. She glanced back down at her book with a small frown.

Not as easy as one would think.

Trying not to cause medical problems while still trying to keep the food tasty and rich was a chore. She wasn't a licensed dietician so she was only working off of what she knew from her years as a Gourmet Hunter (which was actually quite a bit if she actually dug into it). And then there was the fact that this might not even be needed because he wouldn't be able to taste anything. Which was horrifying in and of itself. The Chairman seemed absolutely delighted by watching the kid's nen in action and had already called an exorcist to see if that black nen was suppressing him but Menchi was still on the fence about it. The kid had nen, and a Hatsu? Great. His Hatsu had utterly screwed any plans she had made to take him on as an apprentice? Not so great.

And then there were all the Hunter's that had a form of healing nen clambering to come visit and swipe him. There weren't many of them in total but even one was enough to set off her temper. She'd already staked a claim, dammit! But apparently the kid was unconscious and hadn't agreed to anything of the sort. She never imagined she'd have to guard a potential apprentice from slavering Hunters.

So, here she was waiting for him to wake up and let her know if she needed to wait…. again. Back to the not so great at sitting still. Her recipe book had more corrections stuffed into it in the last two days than in the last year combined. She had decided after the Second Phase of the exam that she was going to add a section specifically for those recovering from malnourishment… and another for weight loss… and another for light and/or liquid diets… and well, her ideas just kept expanding.

Maybe she should have more than one book?

The quiet sound of the doorknob clicking had her turn her head up. Ah. The impressively (stupidly) stubborn green child again. He'd shown up yesterday after the briefing when Menchi was on her way out for a dinner break. There hadn't been much beyond a passing greeting then. And behind him came the Sushi Failure number 1 and 2. Actually she was surprised that Failure 1 was up and moving around. The paralytic the archer boy had used was nasty and even trying to flush it had still left the man in a wheelchair. To see him out of it now was surprising, at least until she took in his quivering limbs. Considering she was in the only chair in the room (specifically to ward away apprentice poachers) he ended up leaning onto the blonde companion of his with a tired huff.

"Oh, hello Miss Menchi," the kid greeted cheerfully.

"Kid," she returned. "I suppose you're all comin' to visit him? He hasn't woken up at all yet."

Failure 2 nodded at her even as Number 1 nudged the blonde and pointed to the clipboard attached to the end of the bed.

"That's okay! I can just sit and talk to him. Kurapika wanted to see him too and Leorio is looking to be a doctor so he wants to know what's going on!"

She shrugged and leaned back in the chair, gesturing with one hand towards the still form in the bed. The green kid happily plopped himself down at the edge of the bed, being careful of all the wires and tubes, and started chattering. Menchi was more interested in the older boys though. She watched the emotions pass over Failure 1's face as he flipped quietly through the papers. She watched Failure 2 with his riveted gaze stuck on the boy's on the bed, the small wrinkle in his brow paired with a frown being the only give away to his thoughts.

Then she sighed. Blondie was up front and center during the whole nen explosion. He watched the entire thing start to finish and was bound to have questions. And the other guy… Well, if he was looking to be a doctor then she was sure there was something in those papers that would be suspicious. Menchi could just leave them confused but…

Her gaze drifted to the boys again.

Rules were made to be skirted.

She pushed herself up with a groan, catching the attention of everyone (currently awake) in the room. Taking a moment to shake her legs out and stretch again- and she was not blind to the heavy eyes of Failure 1. Ugh, men- she padded over and gestured to the two of them to follow.

"I have to talk to these guys, kid. You just focus on your friend and we'll be right back," she said to the tiny brunette. Amber eyes watched her expressionlessly for a moment before he nodded with a smile. Weird as that was, Menchi decided to ignore it.

The light oak door closed behind the three of them with a click. Menchi sighed again, taking a moment to admire the golden bright hallways. It gave her enough time to gather her thoughts and think about how she wanted to phrase this. With a sharp click of her heel, she turned to face them taking in their positions leaning against the doorway. Failure 2 was still supporting his taller friend though they were both leaning against the wall. Number 1 was more in the doorway and his legs were trembling even more than before but he said nothing. Better she let the man have his pride as she didn't really care to correct him.

"Alright, listen up. Technically, I'm not even supposed to be saying any of this but you," her nicely shaped nail pointed at Failure 2, "saw something fantastical, right? Something that couldn't be explained?"

His lips pursed further but he nodded, keeping quiet for now. Her eyes turned to Failure 1, taking in the new pale cast to his skin. "And I'm assuming you," her finger followed her eyes, "have read something that can't be explained."

The tall brunette nodded as well.

"Right then." Menchi cocked her hip, settling one hand on it as the other came up to gesture along with her words. "There exists in this world power beyond the commonly known. Most people cannot and will never access it. To be considered a full Hunter… you must do so. Think of it like a secret second exam. Now we aren't allowed to tell anyone what it is unless we take them on as an apprentice and honestly, the only one I want is the kid that's sleeping the days away. So, you get zilch from me beyond what I'm saying here, got it?"

Her face was stern and unyielding until they both nodded at her again. "Good. That kid. He already has it. It's how he… miraculously recovered from such a grievous wound. Great for him, he already passed the second exam. Unfortunately, as you can see," she gestured at the clipboard held in the older man's shaking fingers, "he's got lots of problems. So I, the great woman that I am, am going to take him on as an apprentice. I heard from Buhara you're going after that white haired brat so…" Her voice softened, "I guess I want to let you know you'll be leaving him in good hands."

There was a loud thump from inside the room, making them all jump. The door flung open and the tiny brunette shoved himself out, almost toppling the taller of his two friends. Staring straight at Menchi with burning eyes, he declared, "No way! We're not leaving Jasper!"

She stared for a moment before the exasperation settled in. With a groan, she tossed her head back so she could pinch the bridge of her nose to stave off a headache. "Kid, I literally pulled them out here for privacy."

"I wasn't listening purposefully," he protested, waving his still bandaged arm caught in its sling. "You were just loud!"

"Gon, we don't even know when he's going to wake up."

The kid wheeled around, his face still absolutely determined even when staring at his blonde friend. "Then we'll wait! Killua would understand!"

"Gon…" This time it was the other brunette speaking. "He's… Jas is not… not healthy. He's malnourished, his lungs almost collapsed, and… and his body went through… heavy trauma. He could… be sleeping for months."

"He won't!"

Jeez, this kid was stubborn. This was starting to sound just like the match from two days ago. "Look, kid. You wanna help your friends. That's admirable. But this one- Jasper? He doesn't even know you're here. He's so heavily medicated I'd be surprised if he woke up on his own. Why don't you go help the one that's awake?"

Because damn, did she feel pity for the annoying brat after watching him practically shut down. It had been debated for a while before the debriefing if there was any persuasion or hypnosis going on but there was literally nothing that could be proved. Menchi was all for the theory that manipulation had been involved, but again, no proof. Without it, they couldn't do anything.

"No way! I made a promise to Jasper so I'm not leaving him alone. He'll wake up and we'll both go get Killua together! Besides… I think it's better if Killua sees Jas for himself."

"You are one stubborn little shi-"

"You should come with us, Miss Menchi!"

She blinked at the enthusiastic interruption, amber eyes staring straight into her soul again. There was something dangerous about actually speaking with this kid. The purity of emotions was attractive in a way and it made Menchi want to whack him in the head just to get him to stop. It was nothing like this before when she had to judge his terrible food!

Failure 2, behind the kid, looked a little poleaxed and he hesitantly asked, "Gon, are you sure?"

"Miss Menchi is nice! And she wants to help Jas. If her coming with us gets Jas out of here faster, I don't see why not." His head bobbed along as if he was agreeing with himself and the sincerity in his voice was compelling.

But- "Me going with you has no bearing on when he's going with you. He'll wake up when the doctors are happy with his physical state. Like I said, he's drugged to the gills."

The kid, Gon, smiled brightly when he answered. "That's okay! Jasper will definitely wake up soon!"

Menchi just shook her head and sighed. What a stubborn kid.

Gon shifted again, plucking at the blanket between his fingers. "Hey, Leorio, what does malnourished mean?"

He glanced over at his friend curiously. The older teen was currently occupying the squishy blue chair Miss Menchi had sat in before she left to grab them all dinner. Kurapika was leaning against the back of the chair flipping through the papers that Leorio had looked at earlier. The sun shining in the window was making a halo around his head that was really pretty to look at.

Leorio opened his eyes, blinking tiredly before his gaze actually focused. The teenager had been harshly affected by the paralytic that Pokkle had used and Gon was rather happy with how determined Leorio was to beat it. The man he'd seen take a hit in the tall grass didn't fare nearly as well. Still, he was tired after pushing himself today by forgoing the wheelchair. "Malnourished… Means he didn't eat a lot. With his level of-… he hasn't eaten a lot in years. His body is suffering from a lack of food."

His stomach flipped unpleasantly and Gon couldn't stop his mouth from dropping open in horror. To go without eating for years!?

He turned back to the boy on the bed with a wobbly lip. He knew Jasper had been alone, he knew the boy had been taking care of himself somehow… but he hadn't known that he… that he hadn't been taking care of himself. Just the thought of skipping a day of eating for any reason wasn't something he wanted to think of. And now that he was looking… Jasper had always been thin. He'd noticed first with his pale wrists, how the bone jutted out sharply. Then when he and Killua had first gotten to see his face- his injured face- it had looked stretched tight to his cheekbones. He'd noted it… and thought that was just how the boy looked.

Gon hadn't really ever seen… someone who had… starved for a prolonged period of years. Whale Island was a fishing Island with plenty of resources so he'd never gone hungry before.

Surrounded by a heavy blanket with tubes and wires coming off him- even a large one going down his throat and smaller ones going into his nose- Jas looked even smaller.

Gon clenched his fist into the blanket. Well, now he definitely wasn't going to leave Jas alone and no one would be able to convince him otherwise. Miss Menchi was apparently trying to take Jas under her wing (probably to feed him because she was a food Hunter) and Gon would assist her happily. Actually… Now that he thought about it, hadn't Kurapika and Leorio been helping him to eat too?

He glanced over at them again, noting that they were both watching him. "Did you guys know he was hungry before?"

Leorio huffed as his brow furrowed but Kurapika's fingers on his shoulder stopped him from saying anything. Instead, the blonde answered, "Yes and no. Once you know what to look for, it's easy to see signs of starvation. Unfortunately, with Jasper he was covered and it was hard to tell until the second task."

"So," he closed his eyes and thought over Kurapika's answer. "You did know?"

The teenager sighed but confirmed it.

"Then why didn't you tell me!"

His chest felt tight with frustration and shame and his face was starting to get hot. He could have been doing more this whole time!

"Gon…" He pursed his lips staring at the folds of fabric wrinkling in his fist. "It's… not easy to handle children like Jasper. He likes you… which makes it easier… for you. You also… weren't trying… to take care of him like we… were. He doesn't want to be… cared for." Leorio hesitated a moment before continuing, "He wants a friend."

"But I can be his friend and help him too," he shouted, hunching forward until his forehead tapped against Jasper's blanket-covered knee.

"There's a difference between helping and caring for someone, Gon," Kurapika reprimanded him gently.

He grunted, shoving himself further into the blanket. "How do I tell the difference," he mumbled into the soft cotton threads.

"We can help," the blonde said soothingly, humming a bit before continuing, "But Gon… Menchi was right. Jasper may not wake up soon. What will you do if he continues to sleep?"

"He won't."

"Gon…"

"He won't."

AN: Woo! My boy isn't dead! I doubt any of you thought he was either but still-

What are ya'lls thoughts on the nen show?

Q&A: Drakality- I hope you're curiosity has been partially satisfied ;) Thank you so much for joining and I hope you stick around!

Tetractys- Yes! Canon is already started to shake off the rails! Let's see where this new path leads~

Bluepeony0- Killua was surprised at himself too but he enjoyed spending time around Jasper at the end and wanted to spend more time around him and Gon. So, he considered him on the friend list. The three of them are going to stick together for a while for sure! I hope this chapter satisfied some of that curiosity on his nen healing? ;)

KrixLight- Jasper did not cut off Killua's hand. No, Killua's hand ended up inside Jasper's chest and Jasper caught his wrist only after the fact. After this arc they're going to the Zoldyck estate and then to Heaven's Arena! And yes, Chrollo is important but not yet. We won't see him personally until York New.