An. Okay for the whole 'rehashing cannon' thing… Gon is a stubborn kid, and the other MC's are all in the exam for one reason or another. Gene is also an over protective older brother. His being an emitter also just means he is emotional, non detail oriented and knowing it's gonna have a mortality rate? Yeah he'll wait till Gon is ready to do it. Also he knew that the power he has wasn't enough for anything to come, and while he went from talented noob to Gon level talent he is not in the top 50 nen users like I think Killua and Gon aren't either. If you watch a video by new world review ranking nen users shown Razor and Kurapika are in his top ten by that point of the series, and while I think he CAN get there he mostly focused on refining hatsu, and the base 4 abilities and hasn't learned the top tier ones before kite left for the last time. For Gene? Gene went from noob tier to around Gon in the beginning of the chimera ant arc because of post mortem Nen, man was technically on the edge of life and death for over a weak, finally it will start changing during the zoldyck arc. Now that I've finished this brick of text let's start
The cedar tree
"Hmm. Not bad kid, what you season this with?" Said a voice off to the side of Gene before a slightly higher voice to the side chastised it with a "don't speak with your mouth full dear, you're setting a bad president for the kids." The only thing Gene can do is laugh a bit before saying a few herbs he grabbed on the way.
Eventually what appears to be a young couple walk into the room. Facing a different source of the voices each the young man complained "did you guys start eating while we picked out forms?" In way of response Gene just passed the two some sausage. The bribe was excepted under the duress of hunger, the young woman giving the boy the stink eye regardless.
"I can sense Gon and the other two on their way, I'll run around the forest for a bit and go in one direction so Gon won't smell me." Gene said brushing his hands on his pants and doing a stretch. "Thanks for cooking with me ma'am" he said with a bow before flickering away.
"Nice kid" the deepest voice said "which one of you will do the fake injury bit?"
"I will" the son sighed, laying on the floor and making a false injury for them to work with for later.
"Okay honey keep yourself in a ball, don't want you getting hurt like this, after all one of them is a nen user" said the slightly higher voice.
"Uh, Dad I'm not a kid anymore!" said the exasperated voice of the daughter. "What if we make it more realistic?"
———
"So over-under on how bad the magical beasts will be?" Asked Leorio, after being told to see a couple under the cedar tree by the 'traitor old woman' and seeing all the insanity following Gene, honestly, there is nothing that would surprise the two older teens with Gon anymore. The 12-year-old moving a couple of trunks out of the path cut from an earlier exam participant or maybe Gene making sure his little cousin gets his daily exercise just adds to their numbness.
The promise of how to heal a full boatload of people and fix them of their illness and injuries, no matter the actual professional training, is what's doing the most for keeping Leorio in the game. Everything he wants, being a hunter, a doctor, having the literal power to heal on mass. Gene can be a pain in his ass, mostly because apparently the only people he interacts with either feed into his behavior or are his family. 'You know… I kinda want to meet their family to see what the hell they feed these boys' Leorio thought to himself.
"With all the 'beware' signs probably something a bit dangerous right?" Gon said while Kurapika was focusing on regaining his calm. The headache medicine Leorio had given him along with some breathing exercises returned his mental state to near normal, the fact Gon was so innocent helps.
"We will know shortly," the Kurta clan survivor said, pointing towards the cabin up ahead. The two non-nen users felt a small bit of relief before joining Gon's increased pace towards the small cabin.
"Hey! Anybody home!" Leorio said, knocking on the door.
"I guess not?" Gon said after not seeing any light or sound. "Gene has been here though!" Sniffing the air he corrects himself "he was here about a half hour ago! And spent some time here? Maybe he is doing an extra test for me to track him down with the guide?"
"Great", Leorio sighed "if he's doing that he can be halfway to the exam sight, took us about 4 hours to get here and we don't know how fast he can do that." Here the hopeful med student looked towards a thinking Gon "unless you have any insight?"
Gon thought for a moment, before replying for about 10 minutes. Sighing in defeat Leorio suggests looking for clues in the house to see if they could get any info or something stronger for Gon to track them with. 'I'm accepting that the best way to achieve my dream at the moment is a 12-year-old human bloodhound…'
The fact that Kurapika is having similar thoughts visibly does little to cheer up the older-looking teen more than the basic comradery through shared misery.
"Let's see what we can…" stopping short at the sight of a trashed living room, a man bleeding on the floor, and a creature holding up a woman Leorio shifts sentences fast with a "MAGICAL BEAST!"
"Gyukyekyekyekyekye," said the fox-like creature with golden fur and red eyes. Its long ears reaching to halfway down its near 7 ft frame. Its hairless arms hold the woman by the throat as she grips the hand.
'Should have listened to dad, this is uncomfortable,' the daughter thought. The son internally laughed at his sister's misery 'some advantage for not being the hostage, not being forced into manhandling by mom and dad.'
"It appears to be a kiriko" Kurapika proclaims sticks at the ready. "They can copy human form, they are extremely intelligent."
"He's got a woman!" Gon exclaimed looking around to see if this is something for a test before thinking this thing isn't as strong as Gene. Or maybe this is a couple and their children took Gene before this beast came?
(AN- there is nothing new here so I'm going to summarize what happens)
Leorio with his fists up says the man on the floor needs a doctor just before the beast leaped into the forest. Leorio began immediately healing his injuries before Kurapika sees how outsped he is before running after Gon and the beast.
Watching the creature jump, twist, and move around the trees Gon copies the motions and learns how it does so. After a few minutes of learning Gon tries to attack the beast only to be shocked about what comes next. "Why don't you take her from me?" The beast answers to Gon's question about releasing its target.
Jumping back in shock Gon runs with Kurapika where he reiterates the beast's intelligence. Gon grins before increasing his speed before he taunts Kiriko. When the beast reacts to it Gon hits it over the head before shouting to Kurapika for him to catch the woman.
"That was reckless," said Kurapika as Gon went to chase the annoyed Kiriko. Turning to the woman Kurapika asks her "are you feeling pain anywhere at all?" Looked her over and seeing a few marks showing she was roughed up. Her face had several small scratches between her tattoos, in addition to the beginning of her watering eyes.
'Time to win the award for however many years in a row ' the young shapeshifter thought. "I-I'm fine," she said with a slight tremble. "But what about my husband? Is, is he alright?" Feeling good so far with her performance she can almost tell this kid has a combination of an avenger complex and a hero complex on him. Most likely he'll believe the act because he wants something to drain his anger on.
"Not to worry, our friend is taking good care of him," Kurapika said in a kind and calm manner. Thinking of how to best get the woman to her husband. As the woman asked for her return to her husband though Kurapika saw the woman's tattooed hand before Leorio appears.
After he says he left the man passed out on painkillers Kurapika throws his sticks to hit him in the head. "How did you know?" The shifter asks, facing the teen, honestly curious on what he did wrong.
"I didn't," Kurapika responds "but Leorio gave his word to be there and treat the patient, when I saw him I thought he left an unconscious man with a magical beast on the floor" making the beast laugh before the Kurta survivor turns towards the woman he was just saving. "Now who are you? And what do you want from us?" Giving the woman a tired yet threatening stare, annoyed at the combination of lack of sleep and the feeling of being played as the woman's face shifted into a smirk.
Gon looks around for the Kiriko in the forest wondering where his prey is. Before hearing a rustling in the bushes, running after the beast by scaling cliffs and jumping through trees Gon looks from side to side wondering where it ran to this time. "Hehehehehe" a slightly higher voice to the side heckled the boy into looking up. "You're pretty fast for a kid you know?" The higher voices Kiriko said to Gon as the boy started to look side to side. " you really hit me, I didn't expect that from you." Jumping down towards the boy all of Gon's reaction was just confusion. 'Is this a different Kiriko? Are they siblings?'
As the Kiriko went forward to throw an attack, all Gon could do was ask "who are you?"
After explaining their differences all the beast could do was laugh, yelling to the side in the midst of her breathlessness "HONEY GENE WAS RIGHT! HE FIGURED IT OUT!"
— back at the cabin—
"You were right Gene, he got us," said the deeper voice of Kiriko. Gene was by the fire pit after having cleaned out some fish and grilled it with some herb butter for his traveling companions and the Kiriko family, lessening his friend's glares slightly.
"The one thing I know Gon beats me in is smell and sight tracking. Had to spend the whole time upwind of him" said the 14 year old laughing a bit at the hilarity of it all. The fact his newer traveling companions are now numbly eating while flipping him off just makes the Nen user giggle at their annoyance. Finally deciding he had his fun he threw them a bone. "One of the things you'll need to do to learn the skills, meditation and mental physical skill. Part of the reason I'm messing with you so much is because the power lessons morality"
This shocked the two teens, looking at the Freecs, and the Kiriko family and seeing them all agree with Gene. Seeing they are lost, Gene thinks to himself 'let's give them an idea'. Wondering what to say, he just goes with the first idea in his head.
"The best way to put it" Gene says while tilting his head "is I have a button you can press for 1 billion jeni." Seeing the two following in their confusion, Gene hopes he can be a decent teacher for them. He's never done the teacher thing before besides Gon! Who is a prodigy like him! "But for each time you press it you sacrifice something, either a part of yourself, your time, your life, or all of the above" watching their expressions go from confused to concerned you think they have the right idea. Nen is something that helps twist people into something new, that is rarely a good thing.
"What do you mean sacrifice?" Kurapika asks, looking curious, probably on what 'sacrifices' the people who butchered his family had played.
Thinking on that question leads to a far too long explanation, so Gene is relieved when the father Kiriko responds for him. "Think like this kid" the father gets Genes spice bowl and tears out a piece of his fish, before filling it around in the spices. Holding up the fish the beast continues, "I just took away a piece of my fish and added too strong a flavor in exchange." The beastial father then explained the skills they want to use are at their strongest with either self imposed restrictions or pure sacrifice.
"I sacrificed for my strength." After having the example of a fish being torn apart Leorio immediately worked on checking Gene with a critical eye, and being surprised on how he wasn't missing anything. "Not like that Leorio!" Gene laughed a bit. "I said time can be sacrificed too! The current chairman of the association was said to have spent decades performing a ritual on a mountaintop! He's now the top hunter in the association with no one coming close!"
Hearing this the two boys still in the dark relaxed a bit. Wondering what in hell their friend sacrificed and if they will be too numb to care at the end of this. "Can we just go to the exam please?" Questioned the tired would be doctor. Leorio didn't know what would he give up to have his dream, but he wouldn't let this type of power ever change him, also he was just tired of Gene's antics. Gon's antics involved making stuff easier and destroying his masculine pride, he could live with that. The fact Gene ADMITTED he wasn't close to the strongest just means he better learn fast.
The beastly Kiriko family agreed and told them all they had passed. It's time for the exam.
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"Oooh look at this! And this!" "Oh what's this thing!" "I don't know but it looks pretty!" For Leorio and Kurapika this was a breath of fresh air, these two small town kids getting sucked into tourist traps as the two of them marched them with their guide barely restraining his amusement. The way Gene talked about their lives, he and Gon were alone on an island village where everyone they talked to were adults, and where they didn't get much socializing done either. Seeing the two of them wander markets JUST for cheap nick nacks instead of defeating humongous beasts or throwing logs and boulders a mile away casually is just the breather the two needed.
Finally Leorio goes into a lecturing pose to teach them about scams"Okay guys remember a lot of these things are scams and - Gene why did you buy two statues and a necklace?" Pointing towards the odd things that Gene picked up.
"Oh the necklace is for my mom!" The 14 year old responded " she is always worried we'll abandon her like Gons dad did, so I think every time I go out I'll buy her a present, that way I can say my next hunt is for the best present I can for her or something" sticking his tongue out towards the elder two boys that have small smiles on their faces the terrifying teen looks to the side.
"What about the statue?" Kurapika questions next seeing the obvious embarrassment of his stressing friend and not wanting to know what damage he can wreck on the obviously new emotional state he is in. 'Something tells me a kid this strong embarrassed for the first time will wreck the exam site before it starts.
"Oh these were marked with power so I want to open them, we're a day early so if there is something cool I'll sell it." Gene says with Gyo applied to his eyes, Gons exclamation of him being right confusing the two elder boys. When going into an alley the guide and two non nen user had to have their mouths covered as both statues spilled from inside them gold and jewels.
"T-this is insane!? Your powers gave you the ability to find money!" Leorio whisper shouted at Gene, shocked at the fact he might not need to be a hunter to be a doctor, he just needs a week a the markets with his friends!
"Nope, people just hide things with powers. Kite says over the years it became less popular because people kept developing senses to find these things" explaining the reason why so many hunters were treasure hunters. Selling the money and getting 500,000 jeni for the gold and jewels. Deciding to be nice and giving 25,000 to his companions, Gon and their guide Gene wires the rest towards his mom.
"So if I find another of those statues I can make that much money?" Leorio asks with an excited gleam in his eye. "That sounds amazing!"
"No" Gene denies "only the statue I had was covered in power" still refusing to call it nen till they pass his test with the exam "the others were opened on the side that screwed up the aura, wouldn't have noticed if I didn't find the good one" 'the fact these markets had things like this was amazing enough, now I get to be better than uncle and take care of Gon!' Gene thinks with a sparkle in his eye.
The normallacy hits Leorio for a second before he has a realization, the boys haven't mentioned a friend. The only people they mentioned are family. We're they the only kids on their island? Gon's dad is gone, Gene's dad is sporadic at best from what Leorio remembers. The tears with safety nets, the gifts like this money, the amount of bullshit things they learned. They are bored super soldier boys aren't they?
As Gene and Gon return to the shops curious if they can find more 'powered items' he takes Kurapika to the side.
"Hear me out" Leorio begins with a sad frown towards the curious Kurta. "What happens when you have two kids with no social skills, super powers, absentee father figures and what sounds like a loving mother and grandma only?"
Kurapika quickly picks up what Leorio is saying, Gon is 12 years old, Gene is 14, they have no other friends and their family, according to them, is filled with monsters above Gene. Gene whose best role model is his kinda stepdad who visits sporadically. "Perhaps some trouble" the Kurta thinks back on what Gene said of the powers he wields, sacrifice of anything, restricting anything for more power. There must be a few things which affect the mind. "Leorio, do you remember the fish?" Seeing the med student nod, Kurapika continues with a question of "you looked at the body, what of the mind. What did he give up? We know he said time but with no supervision and feeling the need to protect what amounts to his little brother? What would he give up?" The surviving Kurta questions this of himself as well.
If sacrifice and self inflicted costs increase power what would he give up? Gene has said time, would he give up his life for revenge? Would he give up his new friends? His humanity? Gene said there were multiple costs to the power, that it affects more than one area of life… what would he give up?
Leorio was thinking perpendicular to his new friend. What would he give up on his dream of being a doctor? His morals, no or what's the point. His personal connection? No, that loses the reason for his medical dreams in the first place… unlike Leorio's friend he would never sacrifice his mind for his dream. Asking Gene seemed like the best idea here.
Walking up to Gene who was looking at an earring set that matches the necklace he plans on giving his adoptive mother Leorio can smile a bit at the innocence of this scene. Unfortunately he has to break this doesn't he?
"Hey Gene?" Leorio said, tapping the 14 year olds shoulder. "Can I ask a power question?" The nervousness on his face spoke volumes. The idea of losing himself is not appealing to him. Seeing the younger teen nod Leorio asks point blank "does the powers mess with your head?" Weakly looking away from Gene's eyes for a second. Not sure he wants the answer.
"Only if you're stupid with it" Gene said nonchalantly paying for the earrings. Thinking for a second Gene sighs and expands knowing he has to in order to stop the older teens worrying. While it's nice having more people closer to his age he has to remember that they don't know nen. They don't know anything at all. "Conditions are set with 'super moves' and if your dumb enough to set a mental limited on yourself then it's your own fault." Here Gene shakes his head wondering if someone was dumb enough to do it. "Some set limitations like I can only through a super move from one hand, or having to do a chant, maybe distance limitations or things like amount of power minimum or random effects."
Knowing the older boy wants the knowledge on his limitations Gene gives them with an eye roll "I have two sets of abilities, called hatsu. For one is my healing techniques and some other skills, the other is my main combat power. For the first set I can only use two branches of techniques and healing can only be done on the left and the other is on the right side, can only be done by my arms and need a chant. Those are all my restrictions." Watching the larger teen nod, and digest the information Gene continues on. "While my 'combat mode' is on I can't use my other hatsu without doing a special technique that has three conditions for activation. I also can't use a technique for hiding my aura outside of 3 conditions as well."
Leorio thinks to himself a bit, agreeing that those conditions don't sound to bad. And before he can continue Gene asks him "is this about how weird we are?" Shocking him quiet a bit to the point he can nod and nothing else with a stupid grin.
Gene suddenly turns bashful, "I've never had friends my age before… there was only one other kid on whale island and she is terrified of worships us depending on the week." As the manic kid finally lets his shoulders drop a bit he continues on "it doesn't affect Gon as much, he is never really bothered by things like this. If you put him in a forest and told him he can live there and visit once in a while he would constantly 'adventure' and make his own games. I guess I've been too excited on having… friends for the first time. Gons my little brother, Kite is a negligent dad who visits at max a month a year… granny is old… mom is a bit overprotective… sorry if I pulled a bit too much too fast?" Gene finishes with a sheepish grin.
And like that Leorio has the full picture, Gene was pushed into this. Whether it's because Gon was, that Kite entered his life, that Mito was protective and it passed down or whatever. Gene didn't actually want power at first, he just saw the path his brother in all but name was following and he went ahead to clear the way. That doesn't seem like all of it, but it's probably a good chunk of the reason now isn't it?
Softly smiling at the younger kid, and a small chuckle as he poured while Leorio ruffled his hair the would-be doctor suggested they head in for the night and join up with the exam first thing in the morning. The group of 5 all agree and rest up in the motel for the night. Their guide saying he'll meet up with them in the morning as the 4 turn in early for the day ahead.
An:Okay so I feel like I should say this, post mortem Nen is a thing and Gene startled the line of life and death for over a week, he would be zushi level without it, now he is around a B rank overall. Hisoka went from A rank to S rank with post mortem but he was a near master before that too. Gene was a kid who went from D rank to B rank in terms of power. His two Hatsu do have more limitations but those won't be needed here. Gon hasn't developed hatsu at all because there is no need for him too. He only came up with techniques for greed island and the ants, otherwise he doesn't come up with anything. Not a knock on Gon but Killua is honestly better as a nen user than Gon is. With Gene helping him I think he could be amazing with some more creative uses but I have to think on it more.