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Hunters x Aren't x Weak

Team Kite and Team Asuma had just finished their meal and were getting ready to leave the restaurant. Up till now, Gon has been speaking minimally, only listening and laughing at things others said. The only time he really said anything was when someone addressed him, but even then he just gave short responses.

"Gon," Shikamaru called out. Gon, who had just been about to walk out the restaurant with his team, turned back. "Up for a game of shogi later?"

That was Shikamaru's way of asking if Gon was ok. Killua turned back to listen to Gon's response.

"...No thanks Shikamaru," Gon said, shaking his head. "I gotta go train today. Maybe tomorrow."

Shikamaru sighed but nodded. "That's fine. But we're here if anything, ok?" He gestured to him and Choji.

Gon nodded.

As Team Asuma walked out, Shikamaru shared a look with Killua, Choji patted Gon's shoulder, Ino stared between Gon and Killua curiously, and Asuma nodded at Kite.

Team Kite walked out behind them and surprisingly, it was Gon who spoke first. He turned to Bisky and asked, "Bisky, what type of training should I do to get stronger?"

Bisky hummed and looked at him. "Well, the next set of training I was gonna have you boys do is more Ren training. Remember how you had to run away from Kite during the test and use zetsu to recover aura?" Gon nodded. "You won't have that luxury in a real fight. If you want to be able to get into real fights without tiring out fast, you'll have to be able to maintain your ren for at least three hours."

"Really? That long?" Gon asked. Killua, too, looked surprised.

"An hour of ren roughly translates into ten minutes of fighting with Nen. So three hours would put you at thirty minutes," Bisky explained. "It'll be hard though. They say it takes a month to add just ten minutes to your ren." She held up a finger.

Gon and Killua instantly used Gyo. "The number 1!" They both called out. Kite was confused by the suddenness.

Bisky smiled and nodded. "Consistent training means everything when it comes to nen. You should practice at least once a day, twice if you can."

Gon nodded, digesting his teacher's words. "Got it." He turned to Kite. "Anything you want to add, Kite?"

Kite shook his head. "No, I'm sure Biscuit has it covered. Even though I'm technically the squad leader, I'm sure she knows more about nen than me and is better at teaching."

Gon nodded again. "Alright then." He looked at Killua. "Let's go Killua."

Killua was surprised, but relieved. He was afraid Gon wouldn't want him around.

"O-ok," he said. He followed Gon when the boy started walking off, and they both waved back at Bisky and Kite.

The two adults watched them get farther away before Bisky spoke.

"So any idea what's up with Gon?" Bisky asked.

Kite raised an eyebrow at her. "Wouldn't you know better than me? You've spent quite a lot of time with him."

"True," she replied. "But I've never seen Gon like this. He's usually an open book. Not one to close himself off from others, at least not as long as I've known him." She turned to Kite. "I figured if he's anything like his father, you might know something."

Kite shook his head. "He's very different from Ging-san. The only thing I see them having in common is that they're both Hunters to the core." He narrowed his eyes at Gon's back. "And that may be part of the problem..."

Gon and Killua barely spoke as they walked to the training grounds. Gon was just humming a tune and smiling while Killua was trying to bring himself to ask Gon if he really was ok now. He had never seen the boy act closed off like that before.

"Go–"

"Hey look Killua!" Gon said, pointing to the training ground entrance. "There's Naruto and Sakura! Looks like they just finished their test!"

It was true. Naruto and Sakura had just walked out with Sasuke and a man with spiky silver hair and a mask on his face. That was probably their sensei.

Gon ran forward and called out to their friends, waving happily. Killua walked behind him and kept his eyes trained on the man. The closer he got, the more familiar the guy seemed for some reason. The stature and hair color in particular was familiar.

"Hey guys!" Naruto said, grinning and waving.

"Gon! Killua! How'd your test go?" Sakura asked with a smile. "Knowing you two, I'm sure you aced it!"

Killua saw Gon's smile falter minisculely before it came back and he said, "We passed! We just came back from celebrating."

Naruto tilted his head. "So why'd you come here? You knew where we were taking our test?"

Killua shook his head. "Nah. Gon wanted to train a bit, so we came here."

Sakura looked interested. "What type of training?"

Before Gon could answer, Killua cut in. "Chakra training."

Sakura immediately understood they meant Nen training. She hadn't seen them use it much, and was kind of interested in watching, but she figured that if she came, the others on her team might come too(mainly Naruto). She didn't want to risk giving away the boys' secret.

So she nodded and yawned. "I would join you guys like usual, but I'm kind of beat." She turned to Naruto. "Naruto, if you're still hungry, wanna go to Ichiraku's?"

Naruto's eyes lit up and he nodded excitedly. "Of course! That bento box barely did anything for me!" He paused and turned to Kakashi. "No offense Kaka-sensei."

"Kaka-sensei..?" Kakashi thought, eye twitching. "It's fine Naruto. It was a small box, after all." Naruto grinned at him.

Killua had to take a closer look at the man. That voice definitely sounded familiar.

"Wait... isn't that..."

Kakashi saw him looking and eye smiled. "Is there something on my mask?"

"Ah, no..." Killua said. "You just remind me of somebody else I know..." He saw Gon, Sakura and Naruto all giving him curious looks while Sasuke just stared at him in silence. He locked eyes with the raven-haired boy. "Oh, nice seeing you again duck-san. How's it going?"

Sasuke scoffed and walked away with his hands in his pockets. Sakura sighed at Killua and he smirked in response.

Sakura turned back to Sasuke. "Sasuke-kun, do you want to come to Ichiraku's with us too?"

Sasuke kept walking. "I'll pass."

The fact that he even responded surprised Killua. And it wasn't an arrogant or disrespectful response either. That's progress if he's ever seen it.

"Don't worry about him Sakura," Naruto said, patting her shoulder. "He'll come around. We did good today, right?"

Killua blinked in surprise. Just yesterday it seemed like Naruto hated Sasuke and wanted nothing to do with him. What the hell happened during their test?

"Yeah," Sakura said. She turned back to Gon and Killua. "Well, I don't want to hold up your training anymore. So, I'll see you guys later?"

Gon nodded. "Yeah." He turned to Naruto. "You too Naruto."

Naruto grinned in response and gave them a thumbs up.

Sakura nodded. "Alright," She turned to Kakashi. "Thanks for the lesson today sensei."

Naruto nodded in agreement. He had taken the man's words about never betraying comrades to heart.

Kakashi eye smiled at them. "No problem. Now go have fun you two."

Sakura's eye twitched, sensing that the man was implying they were going on a date. She said bye to her sensei and friends before walking off. Naruto did the same, even group hugging Gon and Killua, before following.

All that was left was Gon, Killua and Kakashi. Gon watched the man curiously, wondering why he was just standing there reading a book. Killua, meanwhile, had a feeling he knew who the man was.

"So it seems you're friends of my students," Kakashi said. He looked up at them with his visible eye. "In case you didn't hear, my name's Kakashi. Mind telling me yours?"

"Gon."

"Killua."

Kakashi hummed and looked back to his book. "Strange names indeed. But I guess it makes sense. You're foreigners after all." He flipped a page. "Though, those names sound strange even for foreigners."

Killua narrowed his eyes. "What are you trying to say?"

"Nothing. Can't I be curious about two foreigners who pop up in the village and suddenly get the chance to be genin?" Kakashi asked, still reading casually. "Especially when they've befriended two of my students?"

"So you don't trust us," Gon stated impatiently. "Instead of beating around the bush, you should just say what's on your mind."

There goes Gon being bold again.

Kakashi giggled lightly, covering his mouth with one hand. He seemed to be acting like he just read something funny in the book. It annoyed the boys.

"It's not that I don't trust you," Kakashi said between giggles. "I just wanted a closer look."

"Well you got it." Gon promptly stomped off, leaving Killua behind with Kakashi.

Normally, Killua would've immediately followed behind Gon. But he wanted to ask the man about something.

"So... it was you, right?" Killua asked in a low voice once he made sure Gon was out of hearing range. When Kakashi met his eye with a questioning gaze, Killua continued. "You were the ANBU with the Cat mask from a few days ago. The one that caught me following Naruto and brought me to the old man."

Kakashi said nothing for a few moments, just staring at Killua. It was kind of unsettling. "What makes you say that?"

"Well, for one thing, even though your hair is styled a bit differently, you have the same spiky silver hair as the ANBU," Killua started. "Then, you two also seem to be the same height and have the same body type."

Kakashi flipped a page. "That's all? That description could still fit many others," he said disinterestedly.

Killua's eye twitched in annoyance. "Your chakra feels the same too."

At that, Kakashi looked back at the boy in mild interest. "You can sense chakra at your age? And you sensed the chakra of an ANBU no less? Count me impressed."

Killua just knew the man was playing with him. "At first, I couldn't sense your chakra because it was suppressed. But when I admitted to being an assassin, your chakra flared like you were ready to take out a threat. After I cleared up that misunderstanding, it went back to being suppressed. But then, when I talked about Mizuki manipulating Naruto, your chakra steadily intensified in anger." Killua looked him in the eye. "You can try all you want to act dumb. I know it was you. I won't tell anyone, because I know it's supposed to be a secret, but I know it was you."

Kakashi stared at him silence for a few moments before eye smiling. "Aren't you just the little prodigy?" He ruffled Killua's hair.

"Hey!" Killua yelled out. He had to pry the man's hand off his head.

"Keep being friends with Naruto. You and that Gon boy. He needs all the friends he can get," Kakashi said, starting to walk away.

Killua raised an eyebrow, a question popping in his mind. "Why do you care so much about Naruto? What is he to you?"

Kakashi paused and said nothing for a moment before answering. "Someone important to someone important to me." He waved back at Killua and vanished in smoke.

Killua took a second to wonder what that meant, before remembering Gon and running to catch up with him.

Kakashi appeared in the Hokage's office, and Hiruzen greeted him with a kind smile.

"Kakashi-kun, how'd the test go?"

"It went much better than expected," Kakashi replied. "I had no idea that Naruto and Sakura would take initiative and work together so well. Their academy reports weren't accurate about them at all. Sasuke on the other hand, acted exactly how I expected, but he actually came around during the end. There's hope for him. He just needs guidance, and maybe actually having friends for the first time will help him too."

Hiruzen hummed. "I'm glad to hear that. I'm sure Naruto-kun and Sakura-chan's changes were at least partly influenced by their friendships with Gon-kun and Killua-kun. Those two boys just have a certain effect on people," he mused, taking a drag from his pipe. "They helped Sakura to become more open-minded and grow a bit from the girl she was for most of her time in the academy, even if it's not a total change. As for Naruto, they seem to be the first kids his age that he has actually let in, and his friendship with Sakura is no doubt because of them too."

Kakashi raised an eyebrow. From the encounter he had with them, they didn't seem like they were capable of having that big of an effect on others. His first impression of them was that Gon was a naive kid with anger/impatience issues and Killua was a calm, rational boy with a lot of skill in many areas but not very social. Killua especially interested him, but that might just be because the boy reminded him of himself when he was that age, appearance wise, skill wise and personality wise(minus the cold demeanor).

But then again, he had seen the way Naruto hugged them and how Sakura had said something about how she normally trains with them. Maybe Kakashi just hadn't seen enough of the boys yet. He would have to keep an eye on them.

"How did their test go?" Kakashi asked. "They're on Kite-san's team with another foreigner girl right? How did they do?"

Hiruzen took a long drag from his pipe and blew out the smoke before smirking. "Those boys could full well become monsters."

Now Kakashi was interested. "What do you mean?"

The Hokage folded his hands together. "...When it comes to the basics like agility, speed, and strength, they're both at least high-chunin to low-jounin level, higher depending on the specific area." Kakashi's eye widened slightly, but he wasn't that surprised about Killua. Not after he knew about the boy's assassin training. He was more surprised about Gon, the boy had seemed pretty underwhelming. "Their combat skill isn't as refined, but they have a lot of time for improvement. Killua-kun excels with stealth, weapons, and has impressive techniques under his belt. Gon-kun, on the other hand..." Hiruzen looked Kakashi in the eye. "He is the main one I'm referring to when I say might become a monster."

"And why is that?"

"Because Killua-kun has been put through assassin training since he was three..." Hiruzen paused, then continued. "But from what Kite and Bisky have told me, Gon-kun hasn't went through any real type of battle training until about less than a year ago."

Kakashi failed to see where this was going. Even if the boy had speed and strength, doesn't this mean he would be far behind when it comes to combat and using jutsu? "And?"

Hiruzen sighed. "He displayed a technique much more powerful than a rasengan."

Oh.

"On top of that," Hiruzen continued, "His potential is really clear to see while fighting. Even though Kite-kun outclassed him by far, the boy was constantly adapting to the situation and using improvised strategies to make openings, never giving up. He appears to not be much of a thinker, but that's clearly not the case. He's clever in a way I haven't seen from many his age. A possible battle genius, if you will. Mind you, a year ago, he was just a civilian on a fishing island."

Oh.

"While Killua-kun has a lot of talent and skills that were honed by years of training, Gon-kun has raw potential and seemingly even more talent, with no where near the same amount of training. Killua-kun beats Gon when it comes to speed, skill, execution, and many other things. So overall, Killua is still above him. Yet, when it comes to raw power, instincts, and just an overall affinity for combat, he has Killua-kun beat."

Oh.

"Do you see what I mean now?"

Kakashi nodded. The kids in the academy had been training for years, but from what the Hokage was telling him, this boy who was a civilian a year ago is leagues above them with less than a year of training. That, and Killua has been put through most likely very harsh training from since he was a toddler, and Gon isn't as far behind him as he should be. It really was the awakening of a monster.

"But wait," Kakashi started. "How did he just start training with chakra if he's about the same age as the other genin? Normally, it's hard to use chakra once you get to a certain age, which is why the academy kids start so young. Are you telling me he got to a level where he can use a jutsu that is at least A-class when he just started using chakra?"

The rasengan is one of the most amazing jutsu Kakashi has ever had the privilege to witness, and it had taken Minato three years to create it, with years of chakra training under his belt. Kakashi himself had tried to imitate it and add his own elemental affinity, but even he had failed. This Gon kid acquiring something more powerful in less than a year of learning chakra sounded absurd. And frightening.

Hiruzen coughed slightly. "Well, I can't disclose too much. Let's just say, those two boys don't use the same type of chakra. Neither do Kite or their other teammate."

That was interesting, but Kakashi decided not to press the subject. Maybe it was something like a kekkai genkai or a secret technique that stems from where they were from? Wait, that brings him to a new question.

"If I may, where are they all from anyway?" Kakashi asked. "You said Gon was from a fishing island, is he from the Land of the Waves?"

Hiruzen shook his head. "I want to tell you, Kakashi-kun, but it's complicated. Which is why I'm keeping the information classified." Kakashi said nothing. "Just know that those boys, their teammate, and Kite are no threat to the village. I promise you."

Kakashi wasn't all satisfied, but he nodded anyway. He trusted the Hokage. The man wouldn't let anyone who he thought was dangerous stay in his village. Especially ones who interact with Naruto. And besides, the kids knew Kite, and Kite proved himself to be a valuable Leaf shinobi years ago.

But, nevertheless, he would keep an eye on them. Not because he thought they were dangerous, but because he really did want a closer look. At first he had been mainly interested in Killua, but now this Gon boy also seemed promising to him. He was intrigued to see both how they would grow, and how they would help his new students grow.

"On another note..." Hiruzen started. "What are your plans for training your new students? I have no doubts that Sakura-chan and Naruto-kun will be determined to catch up to those boys, and Sasuke-kun isn't the type to want to fall behind either."

Oh, right. Training them. Kakashi hadn't gotten that far because he honestly had no clue. He had been busy with his last ANBU mission and reading Make-out Paradise lately too.

"Uh... well... haha..." Kakashi replied nervously, scratching his cheek.

Hiruzen shook his head. "You would think you would have figured out at least the beginning of their training, Kakashi-kun." He took another drag from his pipe and exhaled slowly. "Well, if I were you, I'd get on it. The chunin exams will be held in a few months and Gon-kun and Killua-kun will be participating. More than likely, your students will want to participate too because of them. And that'll start a chain reaction for the other rookie genin to join in too." He smirked at Kakashi. "Kite's genin are far beyond the other teams. Im sure you know Guy's team is a threat too. Genin from other village are no joke either. If you want your students to keep up, train them well. Or they might just hate you."

Kakashi sighed. Why'd he become a jounin sensei again?

Meanwhile, the two boys were in the training field, panting and sweating like they had just run nine marathons. Killua was standing up, still maintaining his ren slightly, while Gon was on his hands and knees trying to stand back up.

"Damn it..." Gon muttered. "It's only been... forty minutes..."

Killua wiped the sweat off his forehead and looked down at Gon. "Remember what Bisky told us? About how the average person takes a month to add ten minutes to their ren?" Gon slowly nodded. "We'll have to work really hard if we want to increase it fast."

Gon shakily got back up to his feet and produced a little more aura. "Yeah..."

They were in a secluded part of the forest and were using one of the scrolls they received from Kite that allows them to hide the sight of their nen. The scroll has a seal in it that activates a special genjutsu. The genjutsu makes their nen appear and feel more like chakra as long as they stay within a certain proximity to the seal.

Apparently, Kite helped create the seal. It even had the pattern that was on the string Wing made Gon wear and the Greed Island Ring. The design clearly had some type of interactive properties with Nen. When combined with the sealing jutsu of Ninja, Kite created "Nen Seals." He even told them that he would place seals on their own bodies at a later time for practical purposes.

Snapping out of his thoughts, Killua saw Gon struggling to keep up his ren. He, too, was having a hard time, but Gon looked ready to collapse. "Gon, try to calm your aura flow a bit. You're wasting too much." Even though Gon had more aura than Killua, Killua had better control. This allowed him to maintain ren longer.

"Yeah..." Gon said. He closed his eyes and entered a meditative-like state, gradually calming his nen. He opened his eyes. "Thanks Killua."

"NOW WHAT DO WE HAVE HERE?!"

Gon and Killua turned in alarm at the voice. Behind them was a man dressed from head to toe in green, with a bowlcut hairstyle, and a bright grin on his face.

"Nothing makes me happier than seeing two flames of youth trying to brighten their fire!" He gave them a thumbs up and an eye wink to accompany his speech.

Killua's eye twitched. "What does that even mean...?"

Gon just stared blankly, still panting. "Is there something you need mister?"

"Oh, nothing really!" The man said. "I was just strolling by, talking a calming walk before I started my 1000 laps around the village," Killua raised an eye brow at this while Gon's eyes widened slightly. Even though Bisky had put them through grueling training, this village was very big and that was a lot of laps. "I happened to sense two presences and got curious. I didn't expect to find two youthful ones in their springtime!"

"Ok," Killua thought, "I have no idea what this guy's talking about." He took a deep breath, focusing on maintaining his ren still, and spoke. "And? Why'd you stop to talk to us? Is there something you want?"

"Ah, well you see, I couldn't help but notice your outfits!" He said. Gon and Killua both looked down. They were still wearing the kung fu pants and shoes, along with a tank top for Gon and a sweatshirt for Killua. "I couldn't help but wonder, are you two taijutsu practitioners? Your clothes certainly suggest so!" He pointed at Gon's bare arms. "And so does your physique, young man!"

Both Killua and Gon knew that Taijutsu meant martial arts. "Kind of..." Gon replied, still struggling to keep up his ren.

The man started clapping in delight. "I had hoped so! Two pillars like you deserve to be guided down the righteous path of the furious fist!"

Killua saw where this was going. "Sorry, but we already have a teacher."

The man fell to the floor in comical fashion, causing both boys to drop their ren at his bizarreness.

He was now on the ground crying. "Some one else got to these pillars of youth before me?! Damn!" He raised a fist at the sky. "It better not have been you, my splendid rival Kakashi!"

Gon and Killua both instantly recognized that name, but it was Killua who spoke. "Kakashi isn't our teacher, but we know him." When the man looked his way, he continued. "We met him about an hour ago. He's the sensei of two of our friends. But we're on a different team from them."

The man regarded them silently for a few moments before a lightbulb went off in his head. "Oh! I see! You must be the new foreigners that became genin, correct?!" They nodded, a bit warily. "Sorry, sorry! Here I had thought you were two blossoming academy students! Only cause you appear to be a bit on the younger side but..." Killua's eye twitched in annoyance. "This is great news! I've been dying to meet you, I'm acquainted with Kite-kun!" He stood up and got into another thumbs up pose. "My name is Might Guy, the one and only Green Beast of Konoha! What are your names?!"

Gon titled his head at him curiously, but answered, "Gon Freecs."

"Killua Zoldyck," Killua said, still a bit put off by this man. "It was nice to meet you, but we were training before and we'd like to get back to it."

Gon nodded. "Yeah. Sorry mister, but I have to get stronger." He took a deep breath and activated his ren again.

"Oh? I can help you with that!" Guy said. When both kids looked at him skeptically, he explained. "I can't help you really with improving your chakra, but I can help you go beyond your physical limits!"

"My limits..." Gon mused, looking down at his feet. Killua gave him a sidelong look, wondering what he was thinking.

"I'm not asking to be your official teacher. After all, you already have your own teacher and I have my own student." He grinned, and continued. "But it seems as though fate has guided me to you boys. There's nothing wrong with me helping out two youngsters for a day!"

Killua narrowed his eyes at him. The man didn't seem untrustworthy, but he didn't understand his reasoning. "Why are you doing this? You don't even know us, and you already said you have your own student..."

Guy regarded the boys seriously for a few moments. "Well you see..." He bowed his head. "The thing is..." Gon and Killua got ready to hear some big reveal, but instead, the man's eyes started sparkling and somehow a sunset appeared behind him. "YOU TWO ARE THE MOST YOUTHFUL ONES I'VE SEEN IN A VERY LONG TIME!" The boys stumbled back a bit from the loudness of his voice. "THE DEDICATION TO ALREADY BE AT THE TRAINING GROUNDS THE SAME DAY YOU HAD YOUR GENIN EXAM, THE DETERMINATION TO KEEP TRAINING DESPITE YOUR FATIGUE, THE TEAMWORK YOU DISPLAY BY HELPING EACH OTHER TO IMPROVE, IT'S ALL SO BEAUTIFUL! IT'S ONLY NATURAL I WANT TO HELP FAN YOUR FLAMES!"

The boys just stared at him with weirded out faces. "Uh... Ok?" Gon said. His ren was once again dispelled, having a hard time keeping it up in the man's presence.

Killua had to wonder how long the man was watching them, but didn't bother asking. He took a deep breath and instead asked, "Ok, so what did you have in mind? The two of us fight you in a taijutsu match?"

Guy grinned and nodded. "That's a start. But how about..." He pulled out a scroll and with a 'poof', a few pairs of weighted wrist and leg bands appeared. "You fight with these on. It will serve to strengthen your body and resolve at a faster rate."

Killua looked at the weights disinterestedly. "How much do they weigh?"

"Great question my young one! There's 5 sets of wrist bands and 5 sets of leg bands, and each set weighs differently. The lowest set weighs around 50 kg each—"

"How much does the highest set weigh?" Killua cut in.

Guy hummed. "I think the ones here weigh about 1000 kg—"

"Then don't bother." Guy looked up at Killua in confusion. "That's too low for us. The last time we measured our strength, I could handle over 16 tons and Gon could handle around 2." The man's jaw dropped in disbelief. "And that was almost a year ago, we've gotten much stronger since then. Gon especially."

Gon looked at Killua a bit skeptically but said nothing.

"Y-you do realize that 4 tons is over 3,000 kg and 16 tons is over 10,000 kg right?! No way that's true!" Guy said.

"We can't give away too much, but let's just say physical strength is our homeland's forte," Killua said.

Killua remembered Kite saying something about how the measurement units were the same here, yet another oddity. Bisky and him had been talking about what shinobi were like compared to Hunters, and he said that on average, Hunters have superior physical strength to shinobi, especially when Nen is factored in. The average shinobi won't be able to lift more than 3 tons, but because of chakra and the strange physiology of people in this world, that doesn't hinder their durability and striking strength as much as one would think. Most shinobi would still get dominated in a drawn out close combat fight by any skilled Hunter, but they can hold their own.

Guy had been staring at the boys with a serious gaze for a few moments, before he nodded to himself and spoke. "I have heavier weights, but I'm wearing them. I don't have any ones for you."

"How much do the ones you have on weigh?" Gon asked curiously.

Guy looked down at his legwarmers. "Well the ones on my legs should be about 6 tons each." Gon and Killua's eyes widened, but Guy continued. "The undervest I have on is about 8 tons. I'm also wearing armbands with weighted seals that add 4 tons each." He looked back up at the boys. "All in all, I have on 28 tons. I would've added a bit more, but I'm trying to give my body a decent workout without having to enhance it with chakra."

Gon had his mouth wide open in amazement, walking forward and asking Guy to see his weights. The man sat on the ground and showed Gon the ones of his legs.

Killua, meanwhile, hung back in shock. "But Kite said..."

Then again, Kite had been talking about the average shinobi. This man was clearly far from average, and all signs pointed towards him being a taijutsu specialist. It made sense that those who relied on close combat would excel when it came to physical strength. He didn't even want to begin to think of what kind of strength he had with chakra enhancement. Even though lifting strength didn't directly translate to striking strength here, it was still scary to think about.

"Guy-san," Gon said. Guy turned to look at him. "Do you think you could get some weights for me? I'd like to use them for my training."

Guy grinned and went back to his over-the-top persona. "Of course youthful one! If your claims of strength are true, then I should see to it that you reach even greater heights!" He turned to Killua. "My offer still stands by the way. I don't have to be your teacher. I'll just give you the weights and some training tips. Maybe if I have free time in the future and happen to find you two we can spar."

Killua put a hand to his chin in thought. Bisky used to give them a lot of physical training back on Greed Island (mainly digging paths through mountains and doing thousands of push-ups) but now it seemed like she was focusing more on their Nen training. Kite seemed like he was going to just be giving them guidance more than actually training them. Guy was giving them the opportunity to improve physically and combat-wise, even if Nen was their main focus right now. But still...

"What about your student?" Killua asked suddenly, catching Gon and Guy's attention. "If you're wasting time training us, won't you be neglecting him?"

"Nope," the man answered. "Lee knows what he has to do. He's very self-motivated, and these days he's been working on improving himself alone anyway. There's not much I can do to assist him right now besides the mandatory team training sessions I do with him and his two teammates." He gestured to the two boys. "Like I said, this isn't going to be an everyday thing, and it probably won't even be often. But if I happen to come to the training grounds during my free time and see you, I'll help you. You can just take the pointers I give you today and find your own ways to improve. I'll give Kite-kun some weights for you too."

"But still," Killua pressed. "Won't your student at least be upset that you're training two other kids?"

Guy rubbed his chin in thought. "Upset? No, probably the opposite." When Killua and Gon looked at him confused, he gave them a smirk. "After all, he might get to fight you boys in the future. He'll be honored to exchange blows with the ones I saw potential in." When the boys didn't reply, he changed the subject. "So anyway, why did you stop doing the chakra aura training you were doing before I got here? You should've kept it up while we were talking."

"Chakra aura?" Killua questioned. He hadn't seen that in the academy textbooks. Even though him and Gon used Nen, he still was curious about what it was, though it sounded self-explanatory.

"You didn't even know what you were doing?" Guy asked. The boys shook their heads, playing along. Guy sighed. "I see. So you were just experimenting with chakra and accidentally learned an advanced chakra control skill. Prodigies, just like another one I know..." The way he trailed off made Killua raise an eyebrow.

"So a chakra aura is just surrounding the body with chakra right?" Gon asked for clarification.

Guy nodded. "Well let me just say that you two are very advanced for your age, because it isn't that simple." At their curious gazes, he continued. "Normally, a little chakra always surrounds the body, but it is slow-flowing and invisible to the naked eye. It can only be seen by doujutsu users. A chakra aura involves releasing chakra from all the chakra points around the body simultaneously to increase the outer layer of chakra. It takes a lot of chakra control and skill to be able to form a chakra aura and a lot of reserves to maintain it. That technique usually isn't even taught to genin because it's risky for those with small reserves and mediocre control. The only person I know who could do that at your age was Kakashi..."

Gon and Killua made brief eye contact, but Guy didn't catch it.

"But anyway, here's something interesting for you." The boys perked up. "Chakra is tied to your stamina. If you train by maintaining a chakra aura and fighting in a taijutsu battle, you'll be increasing your chakra reserves, the amount of time you can maintain a chakra aura, and your overall stamina. Not to mention fighting while fatigued will help increase your speed and reactions. This is the type of training taijutsu practitioners do on a regular to get in peak condition," Guy grinned. "And didn't you want to get stronger?"

That was all Gon needed to hear. Even though Guy was talking about chakra, the same rules pretty much applied to Nen anyway.

He stepped up and activated his ren. "Ok... let's do it Killua."

Killua looked at Gon skeptically, but nodded. The boy wasn't going to change his mind. He just hoped their battle wouldn't take them too far away from the scroll. "Alright." He stepped up beside Gon, activated his ren, and looked at Guy. "You're on bowlhead."

Guy grinned and got into a relaxed fighting stance. "May the springtime of battle begin!"

Killua rolled his eyes and raced to catch up to Gon, who was already sprinting forward.

Meanwhile, an old man was watching two kids get smacked around by a man in green yelling about "youth" from a crystal ball.

He couldn't maintain his amusement, or his intrigue.

"These boys truly have a way of getting acquainted with people don't they?" He mused.

Part of him hoped that Guy would keep his word and training with them would just be a rare occurrence.

Between their already present skills, being taught by Bisky, being guided by Kite, and training with Guy, they would become absolute savages.

It just wasn't fair.

At this rate, the Hokage had no doubt in his mind that they would make all leaf shinobi lose motivation.

The boys dropped onto the floor as soon as they got inside their apartment. They were exhausted, and had gotten pretty much tossed around for hours. Twice in one day.

"Ah, I was just about to go looking for you two! It's really late you know!" Bisky scolded, peeking out from the kitchen. "I came to your apartment to see if you had food, but you weren't here so I started cooking."

Gon and Killua just made grunts of acknowledgement from the ground, drifting off into unconsciousness.

Bisky walked out from the kitchen to examine her students. They were sweating a lot, with multiple bruises all over their body and exhausted expressions on their faces.

She decided to take pity on them.

"Well, looks like it's time to use my ability!" She summoned her hatsu masseur 'Cookie' and pointed at the boys. "Take it away, Cookie-chan!"

The moment 'Cookie's' fingers started touching the boys' backs, their bodies instantly became more relaxed and their expressions became more content.

Bisky smiled and went back to cooking while her hatsu worked it's magic.

A half-hour later, Gon woke up. Blinking the sleep out of his eyes, he sat up and remembered where he was. He looked over at Killua, who was being massaged by a pink-haired women he wasn't familiar with.

"Umm... hello?" Gon said.

'Cookie' smiled sweetly and waved at him.

"Oh Gon! You're awake!" Bisky called from the kitchen. A few moments later she walked out with a plate of food for him. "That was fast. You truly have impressive recovery." She nudged her head towards 'Cookie'. "By the way, meet my hatsu, Cookie-chan. She has the most magic hands in existence, and her massages gave you a full-night's rest in only thirty minutes." She looked down at Killua. "I believe you woke up earlier than him because you just have faster recovery speed. He might be out for a little while longer."

Gon nodded. When Bisky handed him the plate, he gave a quiet thanks and they ate in silence while 'Cookie' worked on Killua.

"So, how did ren training go?" Bisky asked. "I assume from the way you boys came home that it was exhausting."

"Yeah. We had to keep taking breaks and using zetsu before continuing."

Bisky hummed. "Those bruises. Did you two fight somebody? I doubt that's from sparring with each other."

Gon, who had eaten his food very quickly, placed his plate down on the floor next to him. "We met a man in the forest. He was a jounin and offered to spar with us to help improve our physical skills."

"So the two of you fought him together?" Bisky asked.

"If you could even call that a fight," Gon said lowly. "We couldn't do a thing against him. Even with the two on one advantage, we were powerless. Just like earlier against Kite."

Bisky narrowed her eyes. She didn't know if it was because he was still a bit tired, but Gon was starting to give her some insight into what was going on in his head.

"Listen to me Gon," He looked up to meet her eyes. "Kite is a jounin and a remarkable hunter, no doubt a remarkable Nen user as well. You said the man you met is also a jounin. While you may be on the level of a chunin or higher in some aspects like raw power and strength, those above you have experience, tactics, and a more defined skillset. You're still unrefined, but you have plenty of time to grow..."

"Do I?" Gon questioned. His fists were shaking as they tightly gripped his pants.

"Yes, Gon," Bisky said. "You're still young. Very young. And you started training very recently. Yet, you're already at a level most people don't reach until years after they started training." Gon looked down. "I don't think you get that. You and Killua are extremely talented for your age. Don't underestimate your own growth. All things take time. What are you in such a rush for?"

Gon's fingers loosened and he looked up at Bisky with a small, tired smile. "Yeah. Thanks Bisky." Before she could reply, Gon got up from the floor and stretched a bit. "I'm gonna go up on the roof to get some fresh air. I'm still kind of sweaty. If Killua wakes up, tell him I'll be back soon." Bisky nodded and Gon went into his room for a minute before coming back out. He exited the apartment, pulling the door closed behind him.

Bisky sighed. She had a feeling that she didn't completely reach Gon, and she doesn't think she can. The boy holds himself to standards that are too high. As much as she can try to instill self-assurance in him, his doubt will always come back whenever he doesn't live up to his own standards. He also doesn't seem to have learned to deal with emotions well, instead choosing to bottle them up and keep it moving. What Gon seems to need is the one thing he's been searching for all this time: A father.

Gon sat atop the roof of the building, looking up at the night sky. It reminded him of when he used to watch the stars back on Whale Island. Between all the craziness in Yorknew City, the constant activity in Greed Island, and getting used to being in Konoha, Gon hasn't had time to really sit back and just look at the sky.

"It's easy to say stuff... but meaning what you say is something else. Right Mito-san?"

"Being a Hunter isn't for weaklings Mito-san."

"I'll come back as one of the greatest Hunters one day!"

Those were some of the things he said to Mito before going out to start his journey, but yet here he was.

Not doing what he said he would do.

He sighed. He should probably put in some extra training, but he didn't even have the drive for it right now.

Instead, he reached his hand into his pocket and pulled out his father's Hunter License, the one Kite had left with Gon all those years ago. He admired it, tracing his finger over the Hunter Logo.

"Well that looks familiar."

Gon whipped around and saw Kite, leaning against the railing of the roof.

"Kite...? What are you doing here?" Gon asked.

Kite looked up. "Same thing you're doing here, gazing at the sky."

Gon said nothing, and instead turned back around. Kite walked over and took a seat next to him.

There was silence for a while before Kite spoke again.

"I watched your training, by the way." When Gon turned to look at him, he continued. "Your training with Guy-san. I was there."

"Oh," Gon said, turning away. "Why didn't you say hi to Guy-san? You're friends with him right?"

Kite knew Gon was trying to change the subject, but he allowed it. "Guy-san can be a bit much. I wasn't in the mood today to deal with it. I'll see him soon."

Gon nodded.

"You did well," When he received no answer from Gon, he continued. "You did well both against me and against Guy. If that's the reason why you're so down, it shouldn't be." Still no response. "Look, I know this probably has to do with Ging-san. The chunin exam comes up in a few months, and after that we'll be travelling around together. We'll most likely get into battles with strong enemies, and you think you won't be ready. But trust me, you improve at a fast rate. You don't need to stress over this. You're still growing, Gon. You have time."

Gon said nothing for a long time before he finally spoke. "...Ging left a tape recorder with a message for me back on Whale Island."

Kite was thrown for a loop by the shift in conversation, but he was interested. "Really? He never told me about that..."

Gon, still looking pointedly at the sky, gave a humorless smile. "Do you want to know what one of the things he said was?"

Kite didn't say anything, waiting for the boy to open up more.

Gon's smile dimmed. "He said that he doesn't even want to see me."

Kite was taken aback by that. "What? But that's not the impression he gave me... he always seemed to care about you. He talked about you quite a bit. Bragged, even."

Gon gripped his elbows tightly. "Don't lie to me, Kite. We both know Ging doesn't care about me." His grip loosened slightly. "And that's fine."

Kite shook his head. "No Gon. Trust me, Ging-san really does care about you. Do you really think he would've made Greed Island for you if he didn't?"

Gon chuckled slightly. "Made Greed Island for me?" He laughed some more, making Kite wonder what to say. "There was a message for me at the start of Greed Island. Ging said 'he just wanted to show off the game to me.' He didn't make Greed Island for me. Ging wouldn't do something for somebody else if he didn't already want to do it for himself."

Kite saw Gon's point. Ging was very selfish, but... "Gon, I think I should tell you the truth..." Gon finally looked at Kite, a questioning expression on his face. "Look, Ging-san didn't really abandon you... he—"

"I know." At Kite's confused face, Gon continued. "He brought me to Whale Island for Granny to babysit me for a while, but then Mito-san got mad at him and saw him as an unreliable parent so she took him to court. She won custody over me, and Ging left me with her. I know all of that. But still..." He looked away. "He could've fought for me. I doubt he tried his best in court. And even besides court, he's one of the best hunters in the world and regularly goes off the map. He could've took me with him if he really wanted to. But... he didn't."

"...Do you resent him for that?" Kite asked.

Gon shook his head. "I admire him for that. He was willing to put everything behind him to pursue his dream of becoming a Hunter."

Kite regarded him silently for a moment. "But you wish he had taken you with him."

Gon smiled slightly. "I love Mito-san and Granny. They're the best family you could have. And I met a lot of friends and people I care about like Killua and Bisky." The smile on his face faded quicker than it had appeared. "But sometimes I just wonder how different things would be if he had taken me with him."

Kite sighed. He really didn't know how to deal with situations like these well. "I'm sorry, Gon. I didn't know you had all of this on your mind. I know you wish you had a fa—"

"That's not it, Kite," Gon cut in, shaking his head. "It's ok that he wasn't there. I had a great home life with Mito-san and Granny. It's not that I wish I had a father. You've got it all wrong."

"So help me get it right, Gon. Help me understand." Kite made eye contact as he spoke.

Gon held his gaze for a few seconds before he looked down. "Back on Whale Island, everyone had pretty high expectations for me because I'm Ging's son," he started. "At some point, I started thinking of myself that way too. Once I caught the Lord of the Lake and left for the Hunter Exam, I felt on top of the world. Like I was ready for anything. I had left to take the Exam at the same age Ging had, and I was going to follow in his footsteps to become one of the greatest hunters." He clenched his fist. "But the Hunter Exam... showed me how wrong I was." Hisoka and Hanzo specifically flashed through his mind. "I only even passed the exam because other people allowed it, not because of my own strength. I'm nothing like Ging was at my age."

"Gon, what are you saying?" Kite asked. "You're a phenomenal kid and—"

"You don't think the same?" Gon cut in, turning to look Kite in the eye. "Can you really tell me that you didn't have higher expectations for me? That you weren't disappointed during the Genin exam? If that was a real test, I only would've passed because of Killua!"

Kite shook his head. "That's not true, it was a team effort. Your hatsu mixups and the smoke bomb you threw played a vital role in Killua being able to get close to me in the first place."

"You even said Killua played the key role!" Gon yelled in frustration. "You said that without his hatsu, we wouldn't have gotten a target! Bisky gave Killua all praise and said she's proud of him while she just gave me criticism!"

Kite was silent for a few moments, waiting for the boy to calm a bit. "Gon… are you jealous of Killua?"

"No! Killua's my best friend!"

Kite could tell he was being honest, which was a good thing. Jealously has ruined many great friendships after all.

"So why bring up Killua in that way?"

Gon said nothing for a few moments, just looked back up at the stars. "Because Killua is amazing, really amazing. I've known that since I met him. But I'm..." He picked up his father's Hunter License and stared at it. "...not."

"That's not true, Gon." Kite sighed internally. He was trying his best, but he really didn't know how to deal with this. "You're just as amazing as he is."

"You're wrong..." Gon said immediately. "Killua has gone through a lot more than I have, but he barely let's it hold him back. He might falter here and there, but he's still always amazing. Me? I couldn't even win the fight against Genthru without Killua's plan and Bisky training! I could barely even land a good hit on him! What's so great about me?" He said nothing for a few moments before continuing in a quieter voice. "If Ging saw me right now... he'd be disappointed."

Silence. Kite felt like he finally understood.

"That's what it is isn't it?" He asked quietly. "It's not that you wanted a father in the past... but you want to impress Ging when you meet him and get him to acknowledge you as a good hunter..."

Because of admiration or a subconscious longing for fatherly love? Kite didn't know. With someone like Gon, both are likely.

Gon didn't react to Kite's words for about a minute. He just sat, staring blankly at the sky.

Suddenly, he turned his face away from Kite's view and his body started shaking. Kite could tell the boy was trying to hold back tears.

"Damn it..." Gon sniffed. He furiously wiped at his eyes to stop the tears from coming out.

Kite sighed and pulled the boy into a comforting but slightly awkward hug.

"Kite... I'm... weak."

Kite looked down at Gon. The boy was gritting his teeth and glaring down at his boots, still wiping away tears. He looked like he was struggling with his emotions so he was instead resorting to being angry and directing it all at himself. This is a dangerous mentality, and could have long-lasting consequences. It seems like it's already had long lasting consequences.

Kite couldn't leave him in this self-destructive state.

"This isn't the Gon I know," Kite told. He felt Gon flinch and stop moving at this. "What happened to all that optimism? The drive to keep moving forward no matter what? Remember when I was going to kill that angry foxbear all those years ago? Because I said it couldn't live with humans in peace?"

Gon nodded slowly.

"Back then, you were determined to keep it, no matter how impossible it seemed that it would grow to be peaceful amongst humans. And yet, you made the impossible possible, Gon. That's what makes you special. Forget about Killua. Forget about Biscuit. Forget about Ging-san." He saw a tear start to leak out of Gon's eye. "You don't know if Ging-san would really be disappointed. You'll just have to find out when we find him. All you can do now is improve yourself, you have plenty of time and plenty of people to help. But if even after you find him he doesn't want to deal with you? Don't worry Gon." He patted his head. "I'll still be here. So will Biscuit. So will Killua. Just focus on being someone you can be proud of. That's what really matters."

After quietly listening to Kite's wisdom, Gon smiled shakily and nodded. "Right." He wiped away a tear and started laughing, giving Kite another hug. "Thanks, Kite. You give really good advice."

Kite, on the other hand, was happy Gon was able to open up but kind of uncomfortable that he was the one having to deal with all the boy's emotions. He wasn't used to stuff like this, but supposed he would have to get used to it. After all, he had a feeling he would be Gon's go-to source of support for the foreseeable future.

Meanwhile, in an estate deep in the center of large mountains, a woman was having a meltdown.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU LOST TRACK OF KILLUA?!"

The three men in the room sighed. The woman really didn't know how to keep her cool.

"Relax Kikyo," Silva said. "Let Illumi explain more. That'll give us a better idea of how to handle the situation." Zeno nodded in agreement with his son.

Kikyo took a deep breath to reign herself in and nodded at Illumi to continue.

"The needle I put in Kil's head has vanished from my senses. I can no longer tell where he is, and don't know if my influence is still affecting him wherever he is." He paused, before adding. "I lost track of him approximately three weeks ago." Since he was on a long term mission and had just gotten back, he was telling his family now. He decided it wouldn't have been wise to tell them while he wasn't there.

"Doesn't that mean that the needle was removed? Why didn't you go to the last location you sensed it and try to track down Kil from there?!"

Zeno sighed once again. "If Kil removed the needle, Illumi would've known because he would've still been able to sense it. If the needle was destroyed, he would know because the nen would have returned to him. If Kil died, Illumi would still be able to sense the needle, but not Killua's life force. Isn't that right Illumi?" Illumi nodded. "Illumi specifically said 'vanished', which means it isn't as simple as that."

Silva's calculating eyes turned to his father. "Doesn't that mean..."

Zeno nodded. "There's a chance that Illumi's connection to the needle is being cancelled out by where Kil is..."

"And what does that mean?" Kikyo asked. "Does that mean Kil is in a place so far away that he can't be reached?!"

Silva and Zeno made momentary eye contact before turning to Kikyo. "He can be reached, woman. Calm down," Silva said. "The problem is, if he's where we think he is, he's in a very far off and dangerous place. There's a chance he might even be dead already." Kikyo gasped in horror and Illumi just stared at them blankly. "We'll have to find a safe way to get to him. We can't just rush out and chase him down."

Kikyo jumped up out her chair, fuming. "Are you saying we should waste time while Kil is in danger?! He's the heir to the family! The most talented Zoldyck in history!" She screamed. "We can't afford to lose him! We have to find him NOW!"

A vein bulged in Silva's head. "Do you know how big the Dark Continent is?" When Kikyo hesitated, he continued on. "The Dark Continent is many times larger than our world as we know it and over 10x more dangerous! Wandering around aimlessly won't help us find them! It'll only help us die, or end up like that THING we have in our basement!"

Everyone knew Silva was talking about the "little girl" they had locked up underneath the estate.

While Kikyo sat back in her chair and started crying in helplessness, Zeno turned to Illumi. "We'll try to figure out a way to get to Kil. For now, Illumi, do you know where Killua was last?"

Illumi nodded. "He was in a video game called Greed Island, which took place in an island at the center of the map." When he saw his father and grandfather rubbing their chins, he continued. "I would ask the Gon boy about Killua's whereabouts, but I'm sure that the two are together right now."

Zeno hummed. "Perhaps you should focus on trying to figure out how Kil got where he is from Greed Island, then. The Dark Continent is far from the center of the map, so he could have been transported by something. Maybe even someone's Nen."

"Got it," Illumi said, turning around to walk out.

"Illumi." He turned back to look at his father. "Keep in touch and update us with whatever you learn. We need to get to Kil as quickly as possible."

Illumi nodded. "Understood." He walked out and shut the door behind him, still hearing his mother's wails and his father's attempts to get her to be silent.

Once he walked outside the estate and got a bit of distance from it, he took out his phone and dialed a number. He waited patiently for the person he sought to pick up.

Ring.

Ring.

Ring.

"Why, hello Illumi," The person purred. "To what do I owe this pleasant surprise ◆?"

"Hisoka, I need a favor," Illumi said.

"Ooou, a favor... You never ask for those," Hisoka replied. "Want a back massage? I have really soft hands 🎔."

Illumi was unfazed. "You were in that Greed Island game with Gon and Killua." That seemed to get Hisoka's attention, if the interested hum was anything to go by. "I've lost the ability to sense Killua's needle, which means he's probably far out of my reach, in what my father and grandfather call the 'Dark Continent.' Would you know anything about what happened to them after the game?"

"Hmm, not particularly," Hisoka drawled. "Although, I do believe I've been having issues with my memory lately... Perhaps your needles can help jog it 🎔?"

Illumi knew that Hisoka was holding back information. "If I'm not mistaken, you owe me a favor from when I helped you back in Yorknew."

Hisoka purred. "Shame your help resulted in me not getting what I want anyway ◇."

"I would assume Gon is with Kil too. If Kil's in danger, so is Gon. Don't you still want to fight Gon when he gets older?" There was momentary silence over the line before Illumi heard a quiet moan. "I'm sure that's a yes. Therefore, it would be wise that you work we me so we can reach them."

Hisoka hummed. "...I may or may not have seen those two along with their Nen master transported somewhere else by nen..." He chuckled a bit. "After I sent the Nen Exorcist to Chrollo, I went back to keeping tabs on Gon. Him and Killua tried to activate a card that transports them to another person, but it seemed to have a different effect. Normally, the nen flies them to the destination, but this time, they simply vanished. Without a trace ◇." He fake sighed. "Not much else I can tell you. Sorry 🎔."

Illumi went over the information in his head before nodding to himself. "Ok. So, do you have any idea of how to locate them?"

He could picture Hisoka's responding smile in his head clear as day. "◆ A true magician always has a few tricks up his sleeve ◇."

As Illumi kept speaking to Hisoka, he paid no mind to the apprentice butler nearby who was listening in with intent. He cared about nothing else but getting his little brother back and never letting him run off again.

Chapter 11 End

For those of you wondering, yes, chakra aura is something I (kind of) made up. I mean, certain characters already basically had it. Ex: Naruto with the Kyubi Chakra. But I had to make it a chakra control technique for balance purposes. Without this, going by the rules of Nen, every shinobi that is hit by a Nen attack should either automatically die or be heavily injured because they have no protection. This can counter that.

In case anyone didn't know, Mito taking Gon away from Ging in court really happened. It's in the first chapter of the manga, and I don't know why they left it out of the 2011 version. Just like I don't know why they left Kite out of the first episode but that's a whole other story. I highly recommend HxH fans to read at least chapter 1 of the manga because it provides much more insight to Gon's character and why he acts the way he does. Especially this line: "Being a Hunter isn't for weaklings."

Anyways, thanks for reading! Stay tuned for the next chapter!