Disclaimer: I do not own Hunter x hunter or my hero academia. Those rights go to the legends Togashi and Horikoshi.
Edited: 23/03/2020
Izuku POV
After an incredibly short airship ride, we arrived at Mount. Split-in-half. Looking down the huge ravine, revealed a thick network of webs from the Spider eagle, of which beneath were bundles of many eggs.
Menchi jumped down into the abyss of webs, and stylishly caught onto one of them. She dropped, and grabbed an egg... but kept falling.
She disappeared into the fog within the ravine, only to reappear, shooting back up in a strong gust of wind.
"By the way, you don't have to do this as you already passed." She mentioned to Kacchan, once she landed back onto her two feet.
It certainly looked terrifying, #255 from earlier agreed, saying "No one in their right mind would jump down there!"
Yet, without hesitation, Leorio, Kurapika, Gon and Killua all jumped forward into the ravine.
"Izuku! Come on!" Gon looked back, noticing I hadn't come with them.
"O-okay!" I overcame my fears and jumped, I didn't want to disappoint my newly found friends. Besides, I couldn't have them all pass, and then I fail from from a lack of courage.
One by one, people jumped in after us motivated by the confidence in the four.
Once everyone had caught onto one of the strings of webs, we all waited with baited breath. We didn't know when the gust of wind would come.
And there was a possibility the web would break from all the weight.
One person jumped down, but not at the right time. He plummeted to his death, due to the lack of an up draft.
"Wait." Gon closed his eyes and wriggled his nose. It must be that superior smelling of his.
Just as I thought, the web tugged down, it wouldn't be able to hold us all for much longer.
More and more people dropped, desperate to get the egg, ignoring that there was no updraft yet. I swallowed, knowing it was pointless feeling pity for those who had fallen to their death, yet the feeling ate at my gut.
Just when the web was about to snap, at the sound of Gon's assurance, everyone dropped at once to grab an egg, trusting Gon.
Right on cue, an up draft shot us all up in the nick of time, allowing us all to land back on our feet on solid ground.
'I'm so glad... That was terrifying! I need to keep my cool though. Anyway, all we need to do now is boil the egg!'
Once finished, everyone bit into their eggs, shocked by the mouth-watering taste.
By the look of the size of the group, less than 100 people were left on the 2nd phase.
/
Everyone made their way into the airship again, on our way to the 3rd phase, gathering by Chairman Netero.
"Allow me to introduce myself to the 45 remaining applicants."
'45 huh... Usually there are five or six phases, and I don't think I have ever seen more than 10 people pass the exam at once in all the information I could find. That means over 3/4 of the people here are going to fail.'
"I am Netero, chairman of this year's hunter exam selection committee."
"I'm Beans, his assistant." The small green man who handed us our badges at the beginning spoke up, standing on the chairman's side.
They both had a casual cheery atmosphere about them.
"Originally I planned to appear in the final phase, but I'm already here so... I love the tension! I think I'll stay for the rest of the trip," The old man chuckled.
"We will reach our destination at 8am tomorrow morning. Dinner is waiting in the dining hall. You are allowed to do anything until contacted," explained Beans
"Alright! Gon... Izuku Katsu- spikey-hair, let's go explore the airship!" Killua's exclaimed in excitement.
"Eh? Oh, I-I was thinking I should get some rest, I want to be prepared for the next phase." I shut down Killua's suggestion, to his dismay, before I ended up regretting not doing so.
"I'll pass too then I guess." Surprisingly, Kacchan agreed with me. He had always been one to take on a challenge, whether it's actually a challenge or not.
"Really? Okay then. Killua let's go!"
At Gon's approval, the two ran off, cheerful at the prospect.
'How can they be so full of energy? I need to use this time to conserve my energy, otherwise I'll be in trouble in the next phase."
"How can they be so full of energy? I'm hitting the sack." Leorio spoke my exact thoughts.
"You can say that again. However, I have one concern - how many more phases are there?"
"W-well I looked it up before coming here, and it said five to six phases, so 3 or four more to go. It also said once we pass the third phase, we can automatically take the exam without the pre-exam."
"I see... Anyway, I don't think we have been properly acquainted. The exam has been intense thus far, and we haven't had much time to chat about other things. I'm Kurapika, as you must've heard."
"I'm I-Izuku." I decided to only say my first name. Although I was quite uncomfortable, only my mother had called me Izuku before Killua and Gon, but it would've been strange seeing as they were all using first names.
I nudged Kacchan, he didn't look as if he was paying much attention.
"Katsuki."
Kurapika and Leorio had a very relaxing, gentle aura about them. We were walking out of the room, finding a place to rest, when we were interrupted by a familiar but unwanted voice.
"He's right. There are usually five to six phases."
"Yeah we know! Didn't you hear us belly-nose!?" Kacchan aggressively retorted at the middle-aged man. It was something we all wanted to do, but were too nice to actually try.
"I was going to say, you might want to be careful. The old man only said when we would arrive at our destination. It's possible that the 3rd exam could take place on this ship itself, and it doesn't necessarily mean we'll be contacted at 8am. You might wake up early to-"
He was cut short by a punch to the face, by an enraged blonde.
"Oi! No ones buying your crap belly-nose. Fuck off before I make you quit the exam for good!"
"Kacchan!" I warned him. It could not be good to harm another applicant out of the exam. Everyone was shocked at his vulgar action, however I was used to it.
"Jeez! Calm down! I'm trying to help!" Tonpa put on a fake innocent look, evidently fake, no-one could fall for it.
"Yeah, as if! They would inform us to be wary, at the very least if the next phase were to take place anytime here. It would test our mental capacity! Not knowing when the next phase is would mean we can't fucking rest. You fucking think we're all that dumb."
Furious that his trick didn't work, Tonpa stormed off, leaving us be to rest. Once Kurapika and Leorio had recovered from the shock at witnessing Kacchan's vulgar behaviour first hand, we lay down to rest, dozing off fairly quickly.
Fortunately, we all slept soundly until we had arrived.
/
We all disembarked the airship, stepping onto a tall tower by the name of trick tower. With only one goal set, and a time limit of 72 hours, we were at a loss of what to do. We had to get to the bottom of the tower, alive - jumping and climbing down was out of the question, the smooth brick with no obvious hand or foot holds would prove difficult to climb down, and one climber had met their end from some carnivorous birds from climbing down.
"If we can't jump down or climb down, the only way down would be through the tower, but how would we accomplish that? There are no trapdoors or openings in sight. It's possible we have to break through the tower, but it looks like there are less people than when we began, so either they all jumped or climbed off, or they found a secret opening."
"Izuku your doing it again."
I was brought to my senses my an exasperated Killua.
"H-huh? Oh! S-sorry." I sheepishly laughed it off. They would have to get used to my mumble storms if they were to be near me.
"Look! I found a hidden door!" Gon announced out of the blue, our entry to completing the phase.
"But I'm confused, there are 4 more hidden doors, over there, there and there."
"That many? Maybe some are rigged, or maybe they are one time uses, and only are a limited number, so eventually if your too slow on the uptake, you would be stuck up here without knowing why?" I contemplated.
"The size is only fit for one person as well. We'll have to split up," said Kurapika.
"Gon, did you see any other hidden doors around this area?" I asked.
"No. Just these 5."
"Hmm... So could it be that it's placed randomly, and it's chance that there are 5 close by each other? Or is this done in groups, and that's why they are bunched up. I counted 23 other people, 29 including us, but that is not divisible by five. there could be the possibility the size of the group varies, however it could also mean we do it solo..."
"Again..." Killua huffed.
"Ah! S-sorry... it's a habit of mine I can't break..."
"Although it is suspicious that there are five grouped together, it's better to assume we'll be alone. Let's go down these then, we'll see each other at the bottom," said Kurapika.
"But there's only 5, there's 6 of us," Leorio pointed out.
"Y-you four can go together, Kacchan and I can go find one more, then go down those."
I glanced over at Kacchan, who was silent.
"Ok, we'll leave it to you then. We'll see each other at the bottom I hope," Kurapika said, sensing agreement.
We all said our farewells, and Kacchan and I walked off to find one, hopefully two more hidden doors.
"Deku, c'mere. Here's two. "
"R-really? Let's go then."
"We'll see each other at the base of the tower, let's go."
"Y-yeah."
We both stepped onto the flaps at the same time, and fell through the floor.
Fortunately we landed in the same room.
"K-kacchan! I'm glad we're together, do you think they are as well?"
"Whatever, I don't care. Don't drag me down nerd."
It was for the better we were together. Although Kacchan didn't like to admit it, I knew he was looking out for me. I remember my mother's last words to him were to look after me, he really took it to heart.
We both spotted a stand with two watches, with some writing above
The two of you must show excellent team work to reach the goal.
The watch read the time remaining - 71:03:45.
As the doorway opened, we heard a voice from behind us, coming from a speaker.
"My name is Lippo, your prison warden, and the 3rd phase examiner. Multiple paths have been set throughout the tower, you have chosen the doubles path. Teamwork will be key if you want to clear this phase of the exam. Best of luck gentleman!"
"Do you think that was a recorded message, or was it live?" I wondered.
"Does it matter? Either way we have about 71 hours to get to the bottom. The doorway's open, so let's go," Kacchan grunted.
Through the doorway we found another sign, reading:
Here you must split paths, the next part will open once one person is stood on each slab by each doorway.
"Didn't they say this way teamwork? Do you think it's so that we must rely on teamwork, and there is absolutely no way to do it without cooperation from both people?"
"Duh," he scoffed.
I nodded my head shakily.
'Teamwork is going to be difficult with him...'
We both stepped on the different slabs, and the doorway in front of us opened. There was a thin path in front of us, falling off meant falling into a dark abyss below. On my left there was a glass wall separating me and Kacchan.
Once we stepped into the path, the doorway behind us shut, and the path beneath my feet began to crumble.
The only way was forward, but not for long. I reached the end of the path, bricks behind be crumbling into the abyss.
"K-kacchan! Can you see something on your side? Like a button or lever?" I frantically called to Kacchan.
All of a sudden, a path built itself in front of me, allowing me to continue.
A lever appeared on the ground before me, and at Kacchan's shouts, I understood the same thing happening to me was happening to him.
Without hesitation, I pulled the lever, and looking to my left, saw bricks building in front of him.
Then we reached a standstill.
We were both stuck on small blocks, with no obvious way forward.
Suddenly, I noticed the glass beginning to blacken, blocking our views of our teammate. Shouting to each other showed the block wasn't soundproof, however now things would be harder without being able to see each other.
Through the speaker, we heard the voice of the examiner:
"Look at your timers."
Obeying the instructions, the timer showed writing:
This is your opportunity to pass. If you press the button below, your teammate's time will cease working, and the platform they are standing on will crumble. This will form a path in front of you, for you to reach the base. If you accept these terms, shout. However do not fret. The watch only accepts noises from nearby, so only your shout can activate this.
'I see... I'm going to assume that Kacchan has had the same message on his watch, as otherwise it wouldn't say the final message. There is pressure, as you are unknown as to whether the other person will betray you, so you are more likely to betray them quickly out of fear and distrust. There is a possibility you will be punished for betraying however, as the point of this path is teamwork and cooperation. We also can't communicate with our partner, as if we make a noise, the switch will be activated, and we are unable to see each other through the black glass. I must be careful not to mutter out loud.'
I stood there, intently watching the screen of the watch, our time ticking down steadily 70:56:23 it read. Since I hadn't heard any shouts, Kacchan either hadn't received the message, or had decided to not accept. I wouldn't betray Kacchan. I did not waver in my decision, so all I could do was wait.
/
Ten long minutes passed.
My watch's screen flickered, then showed the original timer screen again. A new path opening before me, encased in walls this time. It looked like a maze was forming
"Deku! What do you see on your side?"
I was surprised to hear Kacchan's voice after a solid 10 minutes of silence. He must've also received the message
"Th-there's a path building itself, it looks like a maze."
"Ok."
"Did you get that message on your watch? About b-betrayal?"
"Yeah, and no, I'm not that stupid to fall for a trick like that."
"W-well yeah... Anyway, let's go."
A maze was troubling. Although easy enough if you keep your hand on one wall and follow it, it would take time, and time was the most valuable thing to us as of now.
I wandered through the maze, I knew if I wandered aimlessly without a plan, chances are I'd get lost, so I decided to take it slow, and follow the wall.
Sure enough, after an hour, I reached a lever, with the glass (now clear) on my left, revealing Kacchan.
"Finally! Damn nerd, do you have no sense of direction?"
"Huh?"
"The door opens when both levers are pulled, I pulled mine 30 minutes ago."
"W-why didn't you say anything t-then?"
"I was trying! You didn't reply!"
"Hmm... Do you think the walls of the maze are soundproof then?"
"Whatever, let's finish this.
Our paths merged once again to a thin shaft leading down. We couldn't jump down, it'd surely be the end of our lives.
"I see your at a loss for what to do inmates. The obstacles before were merely child's play. Find a way down this shaft." Without warning, another speaking sounding from behind us spoke.
"W-what?" I stuttered.
"How the hell are we supposed to get down here?"
We walked around the black gaping tunnel. It was square-shaped, with rough stone making the walls. At the very top, there were two handled opposite each other.
I grabbed a lose pebble and tossed it down.
...
...
Thud.
I looked at Kacchan, hoping he would know what to do. He stared down at the deep hole without looking back up. After circling a few more times, he looked up - he had an idea.
"Stand opposite me," he ordered.
I listened without hesitation.
"Turn around and hold onto the handle."
I looked over my shoulder to see him doing the same on his side.
"Slower lean backward, but keep your feet on the ground and hold onto the handle."
I gulped, taking another look down the vast blackness of the shaft. I knew what to do.
At the same time, we leaned backwards, and our backs met.
"Deku, you better not fucking fall."
We pushed our backs against each other, shoes gripping onto the rough edges of the wall, and let go of the handle.
If we didn't step together, we would fall.
One mess up, and we would fall.
It was a long tunnel.
...
I wasn't looking at my timer, as that would be suicide, but it felt like 3 hours had already passed by. Time was moving screechingly slow from the exertion, yet so fast, from the time pressure.
We couldn't see the bottom, or the top, it felt like we were climbing down the entire tower in one fell swoop.
/
We fell. My foot slipped as Kacchan readjusted himself, and our four vital points of contact went down to three.
We were doomed.
I withheld the urge to scream, but Kacchan's yells reverberated around the tunnel anyway, until we landed. Painfully, but with no serious injuries. In our concentration, we didn't notice we were a few metres from the bottom.
I checked my timer, and it read 65:26:02. We had spent 4 hours and 20 minutes, going down one shaft. My muscles screamed.
We hoped we were close to the finish, but we still had a long way to go.
At the end of the hallway we walked through, tired from the previous ordeal, but anxious for time, we noticed we had entered a large room, with a large platform in the middle. at the other end stood two figures, shackled and cloaked.
"Let me explain gentleman." Right on cue, the familiar voice of Lippo echoed in the room. "You are facing 2 of Trick towers prisoners. The hunter exam committee has also officially hired them as examiners. You will fight against them at the same time. You are free to use whatever method. There will be no draws."
Both of the figures' shackles fell off, and they tore off their cloak, revealing a man with bulging muscles and tan skin, a bloodthirsty look on his face. His black, sleek hair fell just below his shoulders, and he wore muddy brown trousers, shirtless. The other was a woman, with navy wavy hair, shaved on one side, reaching he waist on the other. She wore a baggy beige shirt, and the same trousers as the other inmate. As a contrast to her piercing crimson eyes, she had pale skin. She looked deep in thought.
"This is teamwork, so you fight together, and need to win to pass." His voice boomed, the room amplifying with echo.
"U-umm, I have a question. I-if the time limit runs out, is it an automatic loss for us?"
"Of course," grinned the man.
"I see... So we are also battling against time. They have the advantage as they could simply wait it out, thus meaning we lose. Time will be crucial here."
"Deku. Stop."
"A-ah! Y-yes sorry..."
From both ends of the room, bridges appeared, linking each side to the centre. Both sides stepped forward at the same time.
"When you lose, you will be forced to stay here until the 72 hours are up. Once that happens our sentences will be reduced by 72 years."
At his bold confidence, the other prisoner whispered to him, their mutters inaudible to me, yet increasing in volume the more they spoke.
It was like they were arguing.
'So does that mean 1 hour equals 1 year? If we still win, but only at 71 hours or something, does that mean their sentences are reduced by 71 years or do they have to win in order to get 72 hours? Either way, they simply need to buy time.'
"Now, let's determine the method of combat. I propose a death match, the fight will end when each person on one team has either died or given up. Only one of you giving up won't change anything, however if your partner dies, it is still possible for you to pass. Although that definitely wont happen."
"Bring it on!"
"K-kacchan! But-!"
"Come on Deku! You can sit at the sidelines, and watch me destroy them!"
Another chapter? I didn't think I would be able to write even more haha. Sorry this chapter got so long (compared to the other chapters anyway). I looked at the word count and realised it was too long, but I didn't know where to cut it off so I continued it. Usually the cut off comes naturally to me so I don't worry about the word count, but the word count usually gets to about 2,000 lol.
What do you think of the prisoners? I'm not very good at OCs, but I had to make two here
Thanks for reading, following and favouriting! X) And thanks for all the reviews!
Replies to reviews:
Guest: Ya, I changed it, do you think it's better?
None weak: Yeah that could be one of his abilities.
Blasterino: Well your answer is in this chapter lol
Hero Hunter: Thanks! ;D
SonicMax : Haha, well have you seen Katsuki with a knife? I get that, I was originally going to make them both pass but then thought, 2 people passing would mean it makes less sense for Netero to come along. (^▽^;) Poor cinnamon roll he deserves better...