Gon learns the four basic principles of Nen and their types while the four guys bond and have some fun in the meantime.
(Fluffy humor and silly, stupid bonding)
I cut back a lot on this chapter. It used to be super long and I just managed to cut it up enough that it wasn't excessive. This chapter can be skipped as its primarily just them discussing what the basic Nen properties is in my own personal, crazy way. There's a lot of stupid humor here and them just joking around and cracking laughs for the hell of it, because I love to see the four of them interact together. It's cute.
Picking up on the plot now so things will start speeding along after this, yeppers.
Enjoy.
Guest: YES IT WAS LUL. I love flashbacks. But I'm gonna do just a few every now and again that are relevant to the future plot yiss. That and it was Gon's bday so yep. KILLUGON. Thank you!
A speck of Gold
13
The sweet, salty tang on Gon's lips was tasty. Growing up on Whale Island subjected you to the constant spray of sea and grass on your tongue, your nose, your face. It heightened your senses to the world around you; fresh, leaving a lasting impression. Your fingertips were acutely aware of the dirt and grime beneath your nails, the sweat and sheen of ocean submerging over your palms. No sooner would you rise from the earth would the water take you in; either was one in the same in your realm.
Gon wouldn't deny because he loved it.
As his fingers dangled to catch the wind whipping at the water below, hugging at the sides of their passing boat, he helplessly delighted in the feel of its cool, ticklishness on his heavily worn pads.
"I love being on the water." He said, absently, ignoring the string of protests from Killua at his side during a rather rough hit of the waves against the boat. "It makes me feel at peace, you know? The smell of salt and sea in your mouth is great."
"That's nice, I guess. The water does make me feel a little calm sometimes on days like these." drawled the assassin, his eyes closed and mouth pulled in a thin line, humming to himself. He wasn't as in tune with mother nature as Gon was. His life was born in the under world; the dark and dank corners of cool, bleak back alleys and corners of fortitude and solitary confinement. Where the evil underhanded ways lead you astray, it was.
Killua appreciated the fact that at least some part of him clung to the edge on that point-of-no-return. Because that kept him from sinking to that forbidden level in his life; admitting that his fate may still possibly be sealed.
He hoped it still wasn't.
"How much longer until Leorio and Kurapika come back with the training tools-?"
"-We're back!"
"Never mind!" Gon laughed and greeted the two hunters with an eager wave. Leorio set down the small crate he was carrying down between them, allowing Kurapika to place the small glass down with a bottle of water and a leaf at its side. He poured the contents of the water into the glass until it was filled and gently balanced the bright, green leaf atop its wavering surface. Gon hovered like a kid in front of a window display filled with delicious sweets and candies, hands on his knees and beaming a little too excitedly. "Oooooh. What's that for?"
Killua cocked a brow, but didn't budge from his cozy spot, head now resting on the backs of his bent arms. "You're sure skipping a lot of steps, don't you think? I thought that stage came after he learned the basic principles of Nen. Not before."
"Well, we're skipping a few steps then." informed Kurapika, tossing the empty bottle to Leorio. "I think it's a good idea to start off with something neat to grab Gon's attention, that way he doesn't get disinterested too quick."
"I guess that sounds reasonable."
"Hurry up! Let's get started! Come on!" Gon was bouncing up and down on his feet, face-splitting grin barely intact as he laughed and Killua hopelessly rolled his eyes at the behavior.
"What are you, four? Calm down, Gon. You're not a kid!"
"Oh, come on, Killua." A disagreeing whine, "I'm excited to learn about this Nen everybody keeps going on about. I really, realllyyyyyy want to know. Kurapika!" He tugged on the side of the blonde's tabard and crooned, "Can we start now? Can we? Can we?"
"Yes, Gon. We can start." Kurapika chuckled bemusedly. Bubbly and bright; that was Gon for you.
"Gon, you are going to put your hands around the glass and very calmly emit some of your aura around it. Watch me. It goes like this." Leorio demonstrated his own instructions by placing both of his own hands by the glass and emitting his own aura; a soft, orange and reddish hue, as the water in the glass began to shift color into a deep, vibrant yet murky yellow color.
"Ooooooooooh." Gon gawked in total awe that even Killua perked up a little in surprise. "The water changed color. Now it looks like lemonade!"
"Are you kidding, Gon? It looks like piss-"
SMACK.
"SHIT."
Killua dodged the second chain flying his way and yowled at the big gaping hole left behind in the pathetic wooden hull of the boat. "Hanzo's going to kill you for that." He commented, rather dryly, even in the face of the chain-user's menacing glare directed his way, nursing the small bruise on his forearm with a childish pout.
"Language, Killua."
Instead of retorting like he usually did, Killua only poked out his tongue and huffed, turning away but keeping the corners of his navy eyes still watching. Gon leaned forward on the heels of his hands and inspected the now-yellow water with interest, prodding a finger into it and swirling the liquid around eagerly. Droplets of gold stayed put on his thumb, keeping the same glow as it did when in the glass. He was careful not to disturb the bobbing leaf on top. "How did you do that Leorio? With the water."
"It's a form of water divination." Leorio withdrew his hands, canceling out his aura and the yellow tint the water carried also. Gon's face dropped a little in disappointment, but perked up again when Leorio's finger rose in the air, saying, "If you push your aura around the glass, it changes the properties of the water. It's like some old, weird trick people used to use to define Nen types, or something crazy like that."
Kurapika shooed Leorio away so he could bring his own hands forward, settling them at the sides of the glass. "What he means to say is, Gon, that this is an ancient technique used back then that allowed others to discover their Nen type. Every person is born with one and there are six types in total. By knowing your own Nen type, a person can better develop their powers and abilities to suit their own style."
"I'm an Emitter." Leorio spoke up, chest swelling with pride. Killua laughed obnoxiously from the side, not the least bit deterred by Leorio's dagger-filled stare. "Which means I can emit or shoot out my Nen away from my body. It changes the color of the water when I do it. I just use my Nen mainly for healing, since I can transmit my aura to stimulate others into healing themselves. That's kind of the only purpose I've ever thought my Nen would be of use for, anyway. And to punch a certain someone when he is misbehaving is a major bonus when he least expects it." He stuck out his tongue and challenged Killua's own mimicked response, Kurapika sighing in the background.
"Wow. So cool." Gon was squirming in place when Kurapika started next. As soon as his calm, serene reddish energy swallowed it up, large glossy blotches began to form at the bottom of the water, solidifying and piling together like a bunch of rocks. "Ooooh. Those are pretty! Like shiny gems or stars."
"They got bigger since the last time you did that." Killua giggled from the sidelines, "Unfortunately your height didn't."
The white-haired teen ducked just in time to avoid another whip lashing from a fist-full of chains, smashing another good-sized hole in the ship. Hanzo would surely be furious by this point.
"I'm a Conjurer." The blonde's lip twitched and he smiled down at an ogling Gon who's primary focus was the shiny foreign things resting on the glass bottom. "Which grants me the ability to create things out of my aura. When I emit my aura to the glass, it makes impurities form in the water, like the things you're seeing right now inside of it, because being a Conjurer gives me the power to create something."
"You can make things out of thin air? What kind of things?" Gon lit up like a firework, eyes wide, mouth parted, and he leaned uncomfortably close to Kurapika out of sheer curiosity.
Killua bent forward to stare into the water, too, tapping it and causing the strange starry things to shift about. "Anything, Gon. You can create anything within reason, if you're really that skilled anyway. It's impossible to create some things though, like living people for instance. That's just out of our league, especially for somebody like Kurapika."
"You'd be surprised." Leorio appeared perturbed, frowning. "Kurapika's got talent and skill you'd have to spend years dreaming about to reach, Killua."
"Lee-oreo."
"Kihaha."
"Oiroel."
"The hell does that even mean?"
"Your name backwards."
"Oh."
Pushing on the bridge of his nose, Kurapika released his hold on the Nen producing those make-shift stars and Gon visibly deflated a little at their disappearance. "Awe. Those were really pretty, too."
"Thank you, Gon." The Kurta smiled graciously, his right hand raised to flash the set of chains in full display. Golden irises reflected the shiny metal within them, retracted by the light. "For my conjuring ability, I picked chains. It took me several months to master this, but I can create multiple chains that each hold different abilities on their own. It's quite useful."
"Why chains though?" asked Gon, his itching fingers just millimeters from touching those metal links, but he restrained himself.
"I think that explanation is better left for another time. It's rather long." Kurapika chortled. Gon audibly whined his disapproval. "Killua, will you do the honors?"
"Yeah, yeah. I'm next." Bemoaning his disinterest, Killua lazily pulled his hands up and dropped them onto the pathetic excuse for a make-shift table. The glass dinged and almost tipped if it hadn't been for Gon's quick reaction timing, grabbing and saving the day with a smirk. "You're really weird, you know that, right Gon?"
"Yep."
With a roll of his blue eyes, Killua activated his own aura; a spark ringing through the air as his cottony, vibrant indigo color took precedence against the mirror-like reflective glass. Gon swore the hairs on his neck suddenly stood up on end because of it; even the little bit of hair on his arms was getting tingly in Killua's presence. Whatever he was feeling from Killua, felt ominous. Strong. Electrifying.
Dark.
Only one minute in, and the water had yet to shift or change as far as Gon could decipher. He stared, leaning forward dramatically on his hands and narrowed his beady golden orbs so close his nose almost touched the glass if Killua didn't smack him in the shoulder to grab his attention.
"Don't lean so close, idiot! I'm trying to concentrate. I can't work if you stick your damn nose in the water, sheesh."
"Ouch! That was mean Killua." Gon whimpered, nursing a budding bruise, and Killua's annoyed expression looked rather funny, really, for someone trying really hard not to break that completely focused expression of his. "You're taking too long, that's why. Hurry up!"
"Shut up and I will!"
"Fine! I'll shut up!"
"Good!"
"Yeah, good!"
Snorting to themselves very loudly, the two teenagers both scowled at the water with looks of utmost concentration and Kurapika and Leorio couldn't help but laugh quietly at the side lines. Gon was just a foot away from the glass, his cheeks puffed out in a pout and his eyes so narrowed and hard that he might as well stab the object with them. Killua wore a matching set of his own; brow pushed down towards the bridge of his nose and jaw tight and tense with determination.
Kids.
"There. I'm done." Killua pulled back after a long pause, releasing a quiet, heartfelt sigh. His smug grin grew and he never looked more proud of himself then he did now. "It's ready."
"Uh. Killua." Gon started in, face dropping disappointingly, "Nothing happened. The water looks exactly the same."
An irritable twitch didn't go unnoticed. "Well, it's not the same so shut up and taste it already, dumb ass. Find out for yourself what I did before you judge."
Picking up the small glass, Gon sniffed at the water first off. Kurapika made a face and Leorio was, somehow, still laughing. "Really, Gon? You're going to smell it first?"
The tanned-skinned male was the only one who didn't appear phased by his own instinctual behavior, shrugging off to the side. "Well, yeah. That's what I always do when someone tells me to taste something. I smell it first."
"You're a dog, idiot."
"Pretty much."
All three men gaped silently in Gon's direction and he shrugged again, smiling, as he tipped the cool object to his lips and took a sip of the water. He was beaming seconds after he had the first drink, eyes large like dinner plates and lips parted in an 'o', now giddy.
"It tastes sweet! Like honey!"
"Well, duh. That's what its supposed to be." Killua folded his arms in front of his chest; his ego larger then his brain, and the pair of older adults each dipped a finger into the water and tasted it for themselves.
"It's gotten much more sweeter then it was last time." commented Kurapika, licking the flavor from his lips with a hum.
Leorio was dipping his digits in more thoroughly after the first bit, snickering happily in satisfaction. "Yeah. Way better then when you first did it. That stuff tasted awful and sour."
"Screw you too!"
"But, wait." Gon set down the glass and ran his thumb along the rim of it, peering into the reflecting surface, "Isn't this just plain water?"
Kurapika shook the empty bottle with a nod. "Yes. I borrowed some from our drinking water storage. It's as plain and ordinary as you'll find it."
"Then how did you make it become sweet? It really tastes like honey. Or pure sugar almost!"
"I'm a Transmuter." The Zoldyck assassin sniggered, his lips curled upward on their own accordance and he raised his right hand to eye level. There was a soft, barely audible crackling sound, before neon turquoise bolts began to dance back and forth around his hand. Gon shrunk back in shock and relaxed the moment Killua pulled the pirouetting light into a more confined space between just two fingers. Gon recognized the jittery feel the closer he leaned in to inspect this abrupt change in atmosphere and calmed in dawning realization.
"You can make lightning."
"Yeah." Killua giggled, oddly amused by Gon's interpretation. "Transmuters can change the properties of their aura into something out of the norm. For instance, I can make mine transform itself into electricity. So when I press it to someone..." He moved his hand in a flash and the two fingers brushed over Gon's skin on his bare arm, eliciting a loud, startled gasp from the teenager who flung himself back and away automatically. "I can zap them."
"Ooooh." After collecting himself, Gon didn't seem to be disturbed by the initial shock and scooted even closer to Killua now, rocking in place. "That is so cool! Killua is like an electric eel!"
Killua hissed after he punched Gon in the same place he zapped, earning a pitiful whimper from the Freecs teen. His scarlet red cheeks of embarrassment were plain as day on a pale face such as his. "That's a terrible comparison, idiot!"
"Haha. No better then what I compared you to when I first saw it." Leorio butt in, his sinister smile portraying his every bad intention.
"Oi, I'm not a stinking battery, crusty sack of wrinkles, so lay off!"
"You are if I can put my electronics close enough to you and still get enough juice to run them without a wall plug. It's much better then the portable generators they make on today's market! And do you know how much I saved on my electric bill? Hundreds!"
"Next time I see a single one of your electronics I am going to blow them into a thousand pieces and I hope you're close enough that they fry you, too."
"At least I wouldn't need a recharge after that."
"Fuck you-"
"Eh hem." Kurapika cleared his throat, rapping a fist against the wooden box in the center to garner their attention. Only Gon and Killua turned his way. "Now Gon can take his turn and-"
"-Hey, I just remembered something. At least Killua can use his lightning Nen to power that huge stash of vibrators he has hidden in his-"
ZAP.
Killua would easily admit if asked how pleased he was seeing the roasted version of Leorio Paladiknight laying crumpled and smoldering at his side, convulsing a little. The clank of iron rubbing on iron perked his hyper-sensitive ears to attention and Killua made a move to say something, anything, before he was thoroughly thrashed by Kurapika's Nen-chains, throwing him over onto his back with a groan.
"I'm not even going to ask or think about any of that right now." The Kurta said, voice controlled, emotionless. "I'm just going to pretend none of this has happened and Gon," He glanced the other teen's way, causing him to jump in place out of pure fear, "Will take his turn and show us what Nen type user he is. Won't you, Gon?"
"H-haiii.. I'm on it."
As soon as everyone and Kurapika means everyone was back in their normal, civilized and well-behaved positions, he gestured for Gon to proceed. Placing both of his tanned hands forward, Gon inhaled a deep, steady breath to calm his wired heart beat. He'd best left it secret that he wasn't feeling a massive adrenaline rush at the prospect of finding out his true power; what he was really capable of. Gon never thought of himself as being more then a wild, untamed free-spirit. He thrived, lived on the woods, the forest, the trees; the animal and plant life his kin. To imagine himself as something other then just, well, Gon Freecs, was out of his league.
He wouldn't say no to not trying. However, every image he's come up with always left him returning to his previous spot, a stand still in time. An infinite loop of running in circles; that is, Gon never quite made it past a certain point in his life that spoke; told him, that he was capable of so much more then who he was now. Helping out the elderly on Whale Island with their daily chores, assisting his aunt and grandma with every day life; just existingand surviving in a world, self-taught to the ways of being alive in a world filled with animals, with floral, with people.
The anticipation that has built within him, finding out he had more then just a purpose of being there; gave Gon hope. Like a light in the dark; lingering in the depths of shadows.
Gon sought for that sun.
"Here I go, then." Gon exhaled, fingers splayed along the sides. His eyes drooped shut and he controlled his breathing until it was nothing but a slow, quiet hum in the back of his throat; a hint of a rumbling vibration in his chest. The bated breaths of those around him stilled, waiting patiently.
It took Gon awhile to grasp the idea of 'harnessing' your own aura, as he reached out internally to touch it, feel it, and let it envelope him in its warmth. Gon felt like it was having a second skin; a warm, coating of mucus clinging to the outside of his flesh, flickering and pleasant on the inside. It wasn't sticky or slimy, gross or itchy like he thought it might be when wearing something you're not used to; like a new article of clothing fresh from the racks. No, this was so much more familiar; like something he'd been wearing since birth, an outer layer but not. It was almost intimate, one with his being; like being locked in a passionate embrace with oneself. Gon recognized the feeling as soon as he brushed against it yet this was the first time he had ever intentionally sought it out, so it was a new feeling all the same.
He rather liked it, actually. This mysterious, hidden power delved deep into the depths of his soul.
Nen.
A burst of energy met him half-way in the contact, exploding to life at the points of his fingertips and spreading out until it encompassed his entire form in its ethereal glow. An orange-gold color; like fire, flickered into existence and Gon beamed, proud and accomplished. His personal aura coloration suited him. A boy hidden in forest green, bathed by a determined flame.
Holding his hands closer towards the glass, he concentrated at the see-through material with an intensity to match the distinct flare of his own Nen. He could see his own gaze mirroring back. It took Gon only a second to capture the glass in his personal glow, sealing it in gold and copper color, before the water in the glass shifted; just once, and began to overflow off the edge in strong, pushing waves while the leaf remained afloat on top rocking side to side like a boat caught in a storm. Watching the water tide over in constant powerful strokes somehow felt extremely exhilarating; like the movement was mimicking his own inner strength. It was something akin to a tsunami and a hurricane bolstered into one; chaotic, and Gon couldn't pull his eyes away from the display of Nen power for anything in the world.
"Ooooh, so cool. Kakuii!"
Gon was so engrossed in the water's startling transformation that he didn't pay attention to the frantic, blurred shouts around him, telling him to stop; begging him to quit really. It took both Kurapika and Killua's grappling arms to pry him off and Leorio to save the day when he grabbed the object of his attention away and break his line of intense concentration thoroughly and extensively.
"Awr. But I was doing so good." The young man pouted, lower lip puffed out dramatically, and the blonde hunter sighed as he dropped Gon's limp arm back onto the make-shift table. "Why'd we stop?"
"You were spilling water everywhere, Gon. Did you want to sink this pathetic piece of junk or what?" Killua hissed, nudging Gon hard in the side.
"Killua. The boat's not going to sink from just a little bit of water." Leorio's eyes shifted back to the mass of liquid drenching the entire box and puddling at the sides by their feet with a disgruntled gulp, "Well, at least not a bucket-full anyway. But at the rate you were going Gon, you might just have filled this place up. You were making the glass gush out water really dang fast."
"Is that a bad thing?" Uneasiness settled in over excitement, honey-eyes sagging like Gon's broad shoulders, "I'm sorry. I should have stopped."
Kurapika reassuringly patted the tan teen on the shoulder, smiling positively to ward the negativity creeping at bay. "It's alright, Gon. You got excited and there's nothing wrong with that. And, now we know what Nen user you are, too, so congratulations. You're an Enhancer."
"An Enhancer? Is that good?"
"That's the most balanced category of Nen-users there is, Gon. Which, I guess is a good thing since you're new to Nen. Hanzo's an Enhancer, too. Maybe he'll give you some tips!" Leorio wiggled his index finger back and forth as he set the glass back down in the center of the table.
"Since you're an Enhancer, that leaves two other categories that we didn't get to discuss. Manipulators; who can manipulate and control other objects or things with their aura, and Specialists; who are of their own unique class and have unique abilities that don't fit in with the remaining five types. Out of all of them though, Enhancer is typically the most well-wounded of all of them; so you'll be well versed between offense and defense in a battle. That's a pretty good type for a beginners, so you should be happy." informed Kurapika, towel drying the water from around and on top of the box; Gon's face nothing but sheer curiosity as he listened.
"What can Enhancers do then?"
"They enhance things, moron." The assassin's mocking laugh graced the air, grinning toothily in Gon's direction. "Like your strength or your defense or other objects. Whatever the hell you want to be stronger, you can make it so. You can even enhance objects as far as I've seen. That's why it's called Enhancer for a reason. You just enhanced the water if you didn't notice so that it was overflowing."
"Oh."
"What do you mean 'oh'?!"
"That's awesome!"
Killua's palm slapped to his face, groaning miserably behind it as he sunk in place. He didn't think he could sink any lower until Gon spoke up again, right after.
"Ne, ne, Killua! Does that mean I can enhance like my muscles to make myself super buff? Or my legs go super fast? Oh, oh! If I can enhance things-" A cheeky smirk wormed his way and Killua could see every single perverted intention behind it; mortification drawing in as Gon leaned in real close to whisper not-so-quietly to everyone around him, "-can I enhance my penis-"
"HOLY SHIT, WHAT THE FUCK GON!?"
"I WAS ONLY KIDDING!"
"..." Leorio and Kurapika both shared a look, wide-eyed and jaws loose on their hinges, hanging on by a thread, and Killua realized that; yes, it is possible to sink lower then the bottom of the scratchy planks in the scrap heap of a boat.
And that's exactly what he did, too, taking two strung out-shocked speechless adults with him. Because, if Killua was going down, he certainly wasn't going down alone.
This was all the confirmation they needed to know Gon's last shreds of apparent innocence left intact was indeed, long gone.
"Ten. Zetsu. Ren. Hatsu."
"Ten. Zetsu. Ren. Hatsu."
Gon repeated after Kurapika as he pointed to each labeled name one right after the other, his eyes following the small stick the chain-user aimed appropriately at the scrawny piece of paper covered in sloppy scribbles.
"Yes, Gon. Correct. There are four main principles to Nen and there's even more branching off from those, but we'll stick with the first four to get started. We'll begin with Ten and then go from there. Leorio, will you start?"
Clearing his throat, Leorio rose to his feet in front of Gon; slightly hunched over in the cramped, tiny space of a room they picked just to practice in quiet and somewhat secrecy. They were about one hour away and everyone was already antsy the closer they approached, preparing for the upcoming duel ahead. That meant the boat was bustling with activity and if they wanted Gon to focus on learning Nen properly, they needed someplace secluded.
The small, itty bitty storage shack Killua had taken hiding in earlier would have to do.
"Ten," Leorio inhaled as his quiet, calm aura took to the air, flowing serenely around his body in fluid, even motions, "Is what people use to keep their aura from leaving their body too fast. Since, when you first open up the nodes in your body that suppress and contain your Nen, your aura starts seeping out like crazy. You use and master Ten to keep it inside of you."
"When you're using Ten, you're just encasing your body in your aura instead of letting it go all out bat-shit crazy and placing yourself into an earlier grave." Killua offered from the sidelines, arms crossed before his chest.
Gon's face twisted up in concern as he looked from Killua to Leorio still breathing quietly while he maintained the same neutral emission of his own Nen. "What do you mean by an early grave? Does that mean I will die?"
"Well, yeah. It means you'd die quicker, Gon-"
"-What Killua really means to say, Gon," Kurapika interrupted, shooting a glare the others way that went ignored, "Is that if you expend too much of your aura at one given time, you can die. Aura is like your life energy. Everyone can make it and everyone always lets out a little bit, even unintentionally, throughout their lifetime. Nen-users, or in this case, Hunters are the people who learn to utilize it, like I said before during our first meeting with Hanzo. But they all train to make sure they never expend all of it, thus preventing themselves from dying too soon. At the same time, they unleash an unlimited amount of possible abilities and physical and mental capabilities that one couldn't unlock without knowing Nen."
"They said by knowing Ten, a person can maintain their natural youth and thus appear and feel younger, longer. Like it slows the aging process of something, the better your Ten is." Leorio laughed, squinting one eye open as he maintained a very relaxed, normal posture; hands dangling at his sides, body straight.
"Guess that means Leorio really fails in the Ten category then." Killua smirked triumphantly.
"SCREW YOU TOO, BRAT."
Killua formed a mock-heart with his hands shaped thusly before he violently ripped his hands apart and crushed them, laughing. The veins that popped out of Leorio's skulls were as prominent as the angry rage written clear upon his snarling face. His aura surged, startling Gon at the ferocious waves that were admitting from a once-peaceful, kind-hearted man.
Somehow, it terrified him to see Leorio in such a state he wasn't used to seeing.
Chuckling out of nowhere as he sweat-dropped, Gon quickly rose to his feet and came to stand between the two men, rubbing at the back of his neck sheepishly while he blocked their visual paths from crossing. "H-Hey Leorio-san! Will you show me how to use Ten now? I want to learn how to do it, too. Please? I'm really, really curious. Show me!"
This seemed to distract the doctor enough, because he relaxed and nodded, gesturing to Gon to stand beside him. Gon brightened when Leorio's aura calmed down, returning to that pleasant, lazy motion it was doing before. "Just do what I'm doing and stand as natural as possible. Whatever position makes you feel the most comfortable."
"It's said that standing as normal as a human being can stand is the best way in maintaining one's Ten." Kurapika added. Gon mimicked Leorio's stance with his head hung low, eyes shut, hands dangling by his hips, and he was breathing steady and slowly. The golden hues shimmering off his body automatically retracted and matched the timing of his own breaths; passive waves rolling along him like the sea. "Yeah, like that Gon."
"There you go." Leorio hummed thoughtfully, head bobbing in agreement. "You're doing pretty good for your first time."
"Thanks!"
Killua giggled with a roll of his eyes, waving his hand dismissively for no reason. "Gon's pretty much already mastered Ten, obviously. I mean, the guy walks in with his aura all relaxed and controlled from the first time we met. If he didn't know how to use Ten he would have been dead when we found him. Shouldn't you be teaching him the other stuff first instead of wasting your time on relearning something he already has mastered?"
"True. But it's still mandatory he at least knows what he's already learned to do naturally." sighed Kurapika, focus never leaving the two men at ease as their auras flowed in sync, quiet and motionless in their spots. "And besides, one can never truly master Ten. Even with years of meditation and practice, a person's Ten can keep growing forever. It's also the best defense against emotional Nen attacks, too, even if Ten doesn't provide any protection physically."
"What's an emotional Nen attack?"
"It's when somebody tries to use their Nen to emotionally hurt you. Like they use their Nen to scare you or something by making it appear frightening or foreboding." Leorio muttered, shoulders flexing, "It's supposed to freak out people and deal psychological damage without using physical force to harm someone."
"Could you show me how to do that sometime, Leorio?" Gon glanced up at the medical hunter, happy to finally see a small smile on those thin lips of his again.
"Hm? Of course I can, Gon." chuckled Leorio, reaching up to ruffle at the mass of spiky black locks that refused to stay down. "Though you shouldn't worry about learning something like that really. It's kind of stupid and pointless when you can justify things with words and action instead of using dumb, scary stuff like that."
"I guess so. Have you ever used it on someone before?"
"Once. And I kind of regret it, actually. I think it left me more scared then anything."
"Yeah. He was pretty lousy at it anyway." Killua interrupted and even Kurapika shot him a glare alongside Leorio's own heated one. "Couldn't even scare a fly let alone make another dude shit his pants with that look let alone that aura."
"No one asked for your opinion!"
"No, you didn't. I just wanted to give it regardless."
"Well, shut up. Can't you see we're trying to concentrate?!"
"Killua." Gon's voice drowned out over Leorio's agitated, hoarse gasps for air, and he stared pitifully in the albino's direction. "Have you ever done it before?"
Obviously taken aback by such a question being directed at him, Killua gawked and shied away, immediately hiding his face under his bangs while he looked the opposite way. "No. No way. Nope. Never."
"You're lying."
"Am not!"
"Are too."
"No!"
"Yes!"
"NO!"
"YES!"
"BOYS." Kurapika shouted against their scrabbling and gestured his own way, pointing back at the chart. "Can we move onto the next thing before we run out of time? As much as I'd like to let you two argue it out, we're going to land soon and Gon needs to know these four basic principles before he fights."
"Fine." Both Killua and Gon resented, heads bowed disgracefully. Leorio took his seat near Kurapika and Gon walked back towards the middle, eyeballing the hastily drawn out words there.
"Zetsu," The blonde began anew, stepping towards Gon, "Is similar to Ten, only that instead of just suppressing the amount of aura you're emitting; you're stopping the flow altogether. Think of it like twisting off the valve that lets water run out from the sink. That's Zetsu."
Drawing in his own deep, big breath of oxygen, Kurapika planted his feet firmly to either side, fists clenched at the center of his robe with his chin held at eye level. Gon watched with rapt anticipation as the light shining in those gray eyes darkened; leaving his irises a shadowed version of their former selves, almost black in color. As the glow faded from Kurapika's eyes so did the crystal-clear energy around his body, until that, too, faded from sight.
It almost felt as if Kurapika disappeared and yet did not, right before him. He was invisible; Gon's inner self said, but, he's still here.
"I can't feel Kurapika at all." said Gon, walking forward to tap Kurapika in the shoulder, just for some proof that he really hadn't disappeared from view like his own senses were alerting to him right about now. "And yet you're still here. How did you do that?"
"Zetsu hides your Nen." spoke Leorio, copying Kurapika's demeanor and he too, soon ghosted those footsteps and rendered himself undetectable, even while still in their general presences. His eyes took on a murky brown, a hazed up fog that shed no light in them, just like Kurapika's. "By stopping the flow of aura from your nodes, you prevent it from coming out of your body. This makes it so it's harder for people who use Nen to track others, to detect you. It also helps keep somebody from getting too tired from fatigue because you're not expending energy to maintain your aura. But, the bad thing is that-"
"-it also leaves you exposed and vulnerable to attacks. You're highly susceptible to a Nen attack and even a small, light punch backed by Nen can prove fatal. You're pretty much rendered defenseless the second you shut off your aura so using Zetsu should be done with extreme caution. It's best suited for either a quick getaway or when you need to pull a surprise attack on an enemy." finished Kurapika, regaining his breath and light as they slowly sunk back into life. His eyes returned to normal, color becoming bright again, and his aura licked at the creases of his body just like before. Leorio followed suit and Gon sighed out the breath he didn't realize he had been holding the entire time.
"Zetsu kind of reminds me when I went hunting out in the forest, trying to find myself some meals to eat in my spare time. I had to hide my presence from other animals in order to catch them, so I kind of got the idea from what you're showing me. It's all about maintaining your composure during a stressful situation, even if that means you're relaxing and becoming lifeless and still, right? Like a statue."
"Right."
Nodding his head, Gon squared his shoulders and sucked in some oxygen, shutting his eyes for a moment. He focused on all the times he went hunting back in Whale Island; how he felt when tailing his prey. He remembered what it was like to have the rustling leaves tickle at his calves when he knelt down, bent and hidden by tall bushes and thorny brushes lining clearings that always held the best catch before daybreak. He recalled the many scratches and scrapes he concurred whenever he climbed into high trees when trying to spot his lunch from afar; how it felt to have the branches rub at his brow or the back of his head. Or, all the times he had dirt caked on his knees for days, the dust and rocks kissing at his skin, still slick with nervous, but giddy sweat.
The adrenaline rush; above all, was what Gon easily zoned in on, what he understood best when stalking what you were hunting. The feeling of building apprehension, rising in his chest, his throat and mouth; pumping fervently through his veins like new blood.
A stirring within him like natural instinct grew and subsided fast and all that was left was Gon, standing motionless and silent as his aura took on the familiar lack of sheen; golden irises now a putrid, fogged up chestnut color.
"Nice." Killua commented from afar, wearing a sly grin. "You took that up pretty fast. See? What did I tell you, guys? Gon's a natural."
With a roll of his eyes, Leorio waved his hand in the air and chuckled. "Okay Gon, that's good. You can stop now."
Exhaling deeply, the Freecs boy sighed and his aura shot back to the now, calmly settling onto to his body like a second skin. Brown glossed right back into their usual amber glow and Gon brightened as he bounced in place a moment, grinning broad. "Yes! That's two down and two more to go." He did a little fist pump for emphasis.
Kurapika laughed at Gon's miraculous ability to remain exuberant and upbeat like a typical kid his age should be; a kid not ravaged by the effects of a warring era just yet.
"Alright, Gon. Next is Ren. Killua, mind taking over on this one?"
"Sure." The white-haired teenager pushed himself to his feet and did a few stretches of his arms before he cracked his knuckles and was standing next to Gon with a smirk. "Better back off a bit, Gon. Ren is pretty serious stuff." The tanner of the two nodded and retreated a few steps back before Killua flexed his hands out. He only needed ten seconds to activate his Ren into full view and the room exploded with magnificent purple and blue colors as his aura danced around his form, larger then it had been earlier. It was billowing, crackling like a peel of thunder, and Gon could clearly see the sparks of white pirouetting in his Nen, down his legs and up his arms, straight to his head.
The hairs on Gon's neck were standing on end again, sharp and edged by the magnetic force radiating off that lithe, pale and pristine form of the Zoldyck assassin. He stepped towards it, feeling the irresistible pull. The way those lustrous, dark hues contrasted against his porcelain skin was heavenly in a way; angelic, and left Gon standing breathless in its presence. The power gleamed in his mind, its brilliance like a rare gem; priceless.
Gon wished to see, to feel; to experience, more of this, then he would ever want to know of his own power, his own abilities, that was for certain.
Killua lifted his hands high above his head in another stretch and giggled, both brows raised curiously towards Gon's intensive staring for the past minute his Ren had been going off nonstop. "What? It's pretty cool, huh?"
"Yeah. You're pretty." Gon said without even thinking and Killua's flustered, untimely response as he flailed forward and out of balance, his powerful burst of Ren broken, was laughable but Gon; in all his own seriousness, appeared unshaped and unblinking. "And cool!"
"G-Gon!" spat the youngest teen, seething. Leorio and Kurapika were hooting with laughter in the background only making Killua's blush even more prominent. "You freak! That's embarrassing! Don't say things like that! G-geez. Have you no shame?"
"Why not? They're true. You're really pretty-"
"FUCK GON."
"What!?"
"Just shut up!"
Gon sighed, puzzled at why he was being yelled at, but shrugged and silenced himself; waiting as Killua forcefully tried to compose himself and his Ren ignited once more. It was like a blue fire; cold and calculating, yet destructive and untamed.
"Ren is like the direct application of Ten. Instead of just allowing your aura to leak needlessly from you, Ten and Ren work together to maintain itself around the body. Ten is like the defensive version and Ren is the attacking one. It unleashes a high output of your aura while keeping it from just pointlessly leaving. It bolsters your physical strength and durability and allows you to utilize more aura when attacking, so it's very versatile to have a strong Ren when in battle." Kurapika instructed again, pointing at different parts of Killua's body without getting too close. "Like, for instance, if you use Ren to power up your fists, your punches will become stronger. The same applies to any part of your body, too."
"Ren tempers or intensifies your will. So you're putting Ten; your goal, and Zetsu, your drive; into a firmly locked mindset and preparing to do Hatsu; which is to put something into words. It's the final step to utilizing Nen properly." added Leorio towards the end, pushing his spectacles further up the bridge of his nose.
"Oooh." Gon's mouth formed an 'o' and he nodded in understanding. "That makes sense. It's like a series of steps in a math problem with your final attack being the answer, right?"
"Exactly. Ren refines and enhances your building Nen for the last step in executing your moves. Hatsu is what puts everything together and solves it, leaving you with your attack. So when Killua places everything together he gets-"
"-My Hatsu." A crackle and icy bolts of lightning bounced around his hand like a halo, jumping every which way in a small, self-imposed radius; as he held it up to eye level with a growing smirk. His Ren aura shifted, becoming more icy, until it eventually mutated into the same sparks encompassing his hand, and his entire being was surrounded in a ring of wild, stampeding electricity. It was becoming so dense, so overwhelming; that a small patch of lightning ricocheted off his back and snagged the nearest light bulb that was keeping the room just barely lit and effectively smashed the object to bits and leaving them now in pitch blackness.
Two knowing groans hit the air.
"Damnit. Not this crap, again."
"Really? Now? It had to happen now? I thought you could control yourself better, Killua?"
"Hehe. Oops. I'm just that strong I guess."
"'I guess.' You're so damn cocky, Killua. Don't go oops either because no one is buying it! You did that on purpose didn't you!? Smug asshole!"
"Oi, what makes you think that, Leechio."
"That doesn't even make sense!"
"I think I'm the one who's really surrounded by idiots, in all actuality."
There was some shuffling, then.
"Hey! Leorio, Kurapika, Killua! I think I found the door knob! Let me just turn it and-"
Then, an inhumanely girlish squeal.
"OH MY GOD. SOMEONE'S GRABBING MY ASS."
"Serves you right, haha!"
"Gon, you do know door knobs are really small objects, right?"
"Uhm, well, yeah."
"And what you're probably grabbing right now is really big, right?"
"Yeah- ...Ohhhhh."
"LET GO OF MY ASS YOU FREAK."
"Is that what I'm touching then? Because it's really squishy-"
"FUCKING CHRIST. GON. STOP SQUEEZING IT."
"HAHA I'm going to bust a lung here! HAHAHA."
The nearby door slammed open suddenly, blasting the room ablaze with the light filtering in from the hallway. The group of four all cringed and shared a simultaneous hiss in the afterglow, unable to face such bright light so soon and eyes not remotely prepared to adjust this early. There, in the entryway, stood Hanzo; the biggest of snickers on his face.
"Hey, you guys, you'll never guess what I-!"
He stopped, pausing to glance between the four of them until his eyes finally landed on that fateful bronzed pair of hands squeezing hold of a small, plush round rump held out in full display for the room's spectators to see.
Right in the center of everything.
Hanzo opened his mouth once, moved it up and down a few times in silence, and then promptly slammed the door shut without a word. They went straight back to darkness.
"FUCK YOU TOO, HANZO!"
Kurapika and Leorio certainly did bust a lung or two thereafter and Killua; in all his infinite, cherry-red flushed glory, beat their comrades black and blue and added on another list of injuries they successfully acquired in one sitting. It still didn't stop them from laughing however.
Gon was the only one who, strangely, thought the whole incident was somehow worth it.