Intermission Arc

Chapter 21: A Heartfelt Gift

Flying across the disjointed and crowded city overhead, Garou reconnected his previously dislocated ankle after freeing himself from the chain rope of that Archer in Red. He stretched out his arms to slow himself down, but it hardly did anything. His hope of saving himself ultimately came when his sling-shotted figure drew closer to a little girl riding on a flying broomstick.

The little girl, Kiki, with her black cat Gigi clinging onto her sleeve, was on her way in making a delivery as she had the packaged tied under the handle of her broom. It was not at all within her delivery schedule when she spotted a fast-approaching Garou heading towards her before she had time to react.

"Kiki! Watch out!" Her black cat warned.

"Whoa-!"

Garou saved themselves the trouble by grasping the stick of the witch's broom, though they spun a bit, they fell relatively gently. Garou used the momentum to swing himself down and toss the girl up, keeping her in the air as she soon regains control.

"Oh no!" Kiki was about to fly down for the man when she saw him catch the edge of the building rooftop and starts leaping towards the ground with amazing ease, as if he were a monkey.

"The nerve of that guy! We're a delivery service, not a joy ride!" Jiji sassed.

"I wonder how he got up here?" Kiki asked, considering asking the white fanged-hair man, especially to see if he was alright. However, she then noticed another speeding figure in red leaping from roof to roof. "Huh? That's Archer!"

She remembered him. He once bought bread at her bakery store. Although he had that hardened look like he'd been though a million wars and more, he was a fairly pleasant customer who liked to tease her cat a lot. Though now, there was only a serious expression on him, a man on a mission.

"Archer-?!" Jiji said, climbing over Kiki's sleeve. "Oh that's not good. We should stay out of his way. It looks like he's after that guy we bumped into." Well, more like that guy bumped into them.

"Really? But why? Should we help?" Kiki asked as she witnessed the Archer drop from the roof and seemingly vanished behind the buildings.

"Better not. He's a guardian, Kiki. Which means if he's after that other guy, that means he must have done something wrong," Jiji informed, "What's more, I heard rumors about Archer. A weaponsmith and weapon. I don't want us to be caught in his line of sights when he's on the job."

"Hmm..." Kiki could only say as she remained watchful of the fleeting Garou from her aerial point of view.

This was possibly the worst way for Garou's morning to start. First, he missed catching his first hero in this place. Second, he gets outed as a troublemaker along with that esper even though Garou was defending himself - at the very least he should be ostracized for something Garou meant to do like hunting that orange-scarfed speedster. Third, he's currently on the run from a hero, which completely defeats the point of Garou's motif and purpose in life.

However, just before, that blindfolded man said something about needing to restrain them. Like he was with one of the police departments who had the right to do so. Guardian of this Competition, if Garou recalled correctly.

Now that he thought about it. If there were really so many strong competitors, there should be as equally strong enforcers of the rules if they want this competition to be done in "fairness." Crap. Was there some kind of system that puts heroes in charge of overlooking competitors? No one told him! That means if Garou gets caught, he'll get a penalty. Or they might even kick him out of the competition.

He absolutely refuses for that to happen. As much as he hated it, he can't let himself be caught, and he can't be sure if fighting back the guy wouldn't just add more penalties to Garou - which really aggravated him how much it reminded him of his schoolyard days, especially when a rich brat bully was involved and Garou was forced to hold back or he'd get into more trouble. Because "blame the ugly kid", of course.

He sped between passing pedestrians and other competitors. Many of them giving their shouts of irritation like he wasn't running for his spot in this competition. More chains suddenly appeared around him, however, and Garou was surprised how willing the red archer was to catch him even in the middle of a busy area - unless the archer was confident enough in his own abilities.

Garou darted around the block, avoiding the chasing ropes of chains, and he decided to try his luck in an alleyway. Upon entry, his path was blocked when several arrows hailed from above, and Garou swiftly leapt back, dodging each and every one of them in this narrow alley.

"Behind you. Hunter."

Garou spun his head around and sees the red Archer there at the entryway. A glowing arrow at his fingertips, aiming straight at Garou with his longbow.

Garou could feel the build-up energy circulating in that arrow. Was this even an arrest anymore?

Archer fired the glowing arrow, and Garou ducked just in time, bending his upper body just enough for the arrow to just pass over his cheek. The heat of the arrow grazing the skin, and Garou knew that this archer meant that shot to burn through.

This guy-! It's a fact now. This isn't an arrest; this is an execution, or at least police brutality, just to cripple Garou enough to take him in by force. Fine. Let's see how you like this then-!

Garou straightened his back with his arms flung forward like streams of water. Preparing to use his martial arts when-

"Hey! Are you guys alright?"

Garou's body stiffened. He looked up and saw, in the sky just above the roofs, that familiar witch girl with the red bow, still riding on her broomstick as she looked at the two men below with a curious look.

"Kiki! I told you that we shouldn't get ourselves involved!" The black cat over her shoulder, Jiji insisted.

"But-" Kiki was about to say until Garou sensed Archer preparing another arrow to fire. Garou pounced away from the arrow, grasping the wall of the alley with his back against it. More and more arrows were sent, and Garou resumed his leaping.

"Whoa!" Kiki was surprised by the onslaught of arrows that was destroying the alley, barely controlling the flight of her broom as she felt the vibrating force of the exploding arrows below.

In a single, powerful leap that broke the surface of the alley wall, Garou jumped to the roofs. With his arm, he grasped the witch girl around her waist who was startled by his hold.

"-!" Archer was startled by the abrupt action before his eyes narrowed and swiftly makes chase. Ceasing firing his arrows as he, with a single motion, leaps straight up to the roofs.

With Garou, upon landing on the rooftops, he drops the girl on her rear, hearing her let out an "oof!" before he resumed his sprint across roof to roof like a rabbit that ran like a train.

"Th-that was a close call! I thought for sure he was going to kidnap us!" Jiji said. Kiki on the other hand was not as frightful, looking at Garou's fleeting figure with her curious eyes blinking.

Did he wanted me away from those arrows? She couldn't help but wonder as Archer made it to the roofs, taking a brief gander at the girl before he rocket-launched himself after the fighter. Kiki's and Jiji's hair were blown back by his force, though they were unharmed as they watched him continue his chase after the white-fanged hair man.

He didn't seem so bad... Kiki thought as both men were soon gone from her sight.

Garou resumed his rush across the building rooftops. More arrows chased after him, and he swiftly dodged, pounced, and ducked every shot that landed in a cloud of small destruction around him. To avoid the arrows, Garou drops back down once more, though he was met with more civilians in the streets who were startled by his presence. He rushed between a group of friends, not even sparing a second glance at a small kid with by far the craziest hair he's ever seen that came in three different colors.

"Hey! Watch it!" A blonde guy with a Brooklyn accent shouted, raising his fist at Garou. "The heck is that guy's problem?"

"Looks like he's running from the police, or something," the other guy with brown pointed hair said, as he and his companions never noticed Archer rushing overhead at the rooftops.

With Garou, he made a sharp turn around the block when he nearly bumped into a brown-haired teenager carrying a toddler in his arms. "Gah!" The teen shouted.

Garou stopped just in time as the teen held what seemed to be his baby brother closely and protectively in his arms. The dark green-haired toddler wearing a shirt that had a picture of a tiger on it eyed Garou curiously.

"Tch!" Garou turned his head into another pathway he could take and rushed right through it. There's too many people out here. It's throwing off my game!

And not at all because he was concerned for their safety if the red archer would decide to rain arrows on Garou, a villain wouldn't care about something like that. Without finding a proper and vacant ground for him to fight, Garou spotted an open dumpster sitting against the wall. Without a second thought, he jumped right in and shuts himself in with the slam of the cover.

Unintentionally diving into the gross pile as if he dipped into a pool, everything reeked with rotten food and other questionable junk, but Garou bared with it. He held in his breath to avoid the stench as he steadied his heartbeat after all the running he did, trying to silence his breathing so not to expose his hiding spot.

Unbeknownst to Garou, his body had emitted a dark, suppressed aura outline as he went completely still. He hears the swift landing of Archer. Garou sweated lightly as the heavy boots of the archer began to walk past the dumpster.

"003. Can you track the whereabouts of the competitor I was chasing?" Archer requested outside the dumpster as he surveyed the alleyway.

"He... He was just there a moment ago. I can't seem to find him at all. His file didn't state him having the ability to disappear like that. Did he use a Support Card to escape?"

Archer narrowed his eyes as he takes a long look at his surroundings. I can't pinpoint him. His presence completely disappeared...

He takes a look at the dumpster that was in the area. Surely, someone who would be willing to escape by any means would make a desperate attempt to hide themselves. No matter how humiliating. With this in mind, Archer went up to the dumpster and flipped up the cover.

Only trash bags and other rubbish that filled the dumpster. Too crowded for anyone to fit in here, anyone shameless enough to do so anyway. He drops the cover back down and once more looked back at the area. In any case, 003 informed that Garou didn't have the sort of ability to just erase his presence - perhaps a surprise attack but it wouldn't have worked with Archer's sharp senses. So how did Garou give Archer the slip then? Perhaps the Hero Hunter did use a Support Card.

Something came up! 003 suddenly announced in Archer's head. Archer! I need you at the East Side of that district you're in. Another fight broke out.

"Understood," Archer said, though he takes one last glance at the alleyway, he jumped back up to the roofs and left the area completely.

For a few minutes, the alleyway was silent, and then the side of the dumpster was sliced from within. Garou pushed open the metal walls of the dumpster as he crawled out. His body covered in filth and reeked with trash. "Damn. I hate having to hide like that."

Not so much with the choice of hiding place, but that he had to hide at all. He wanted to fight that archer, but if the archer really was a part of the competition's staff, then Garou can't let himself be caught and get penalized for something that he didn't even do wrong. It sucked. It completely sucked.

Patting away the filth off from his shoulders and arms, Garou pulled off the banana pill from his hair. He stiffened when he felt eyes suddenly upon him. He instantly clenched his fingers into fangs as he heard footsteps heading towards him. It couldn't be archer, since the red archer would just fire at him, so then who-

"Excuse me?"

Garou was about to swing back with his arm when he peeked just enough to see who it was.

A familiar man with black hair. Instead of his doctor's uniform, it was a casual outdoors's wear of a simple blue shirt and khaki pants. He held a brown paper bag in his arms as the doctor's eyes widened at the sight of Garou.

"Ah. It really is you! Garou, right?" Kenzo Tenma asked. "Are you alright? You look like you've been hurt."

Garou blinked at the man and then turned to him fully, relaxing a bit. He takes a look at himself and his dirtied up outfit before shrugging, "It's nothing I can't deal with."

"You shouldn't say something like that. It could be serious. Here. Let me have a look," Tenma walked up to Garou and held out his hand. Garou only gave him a peculiar look that was like an estranged glare before deciding to let the man do his thing. Tenma began to closely examine Garou while still holding the giftbag in his arm, taking a note of the scrape that was on Garou's forehead. Nothing too serious, but a little infection would be enough to make this seemingly harmless injury be so much worse.

"Come with me. There's a store nearby that sells some medicine and bandages we can use.

Garou stared at the man for another brief moment before giving another shrug, and proceeded to follow out of the alleyway after him.

After they found a store, Tenma bought a few necessities such as disinfectant and a good sized Band-Aid. "You have to buy that?" Garou asked as he witnessed Tenma make a purchase at the counter.

"Well, I'm not a competitor. And all the businesses here have to make a living somehow," Tenma answered. "Let's find a seat somewhere outside."

They do so. Stepping out of the store, they found a bench close by and sat there. With the gift bag Tenma had set aside, the doctor started tending to the scrapes around Garou.

"I know you mentioned before that you have a good healing ability, but it wouldn't hurt to use medicine when you can," Tenma said as he placed a bandaid over Garou's forehead.

Garou hummed, observing the doctor do his work, "You're pretty generous to take on a patient outside of work."

"As a doctor, I firmly believe in helping anyone who needs it, not just those who happen to be my patients," Tenma answered, applying medicine to the next scape on Garou's backhand. "Do you mind telling me how all this happened?"

Garou scoffed lightly, "Some guy decided to pick a fight with me. I didn't even do anything." Not yet anyway.

"There has been a lot of commotion lately," Tenma said, frowning, "There was even a murder that happened last night. A defenseless boy was attacked in his own home. He was a competitor too. Be careful, okay? Some people are just willing to do anything to win."

A murder huh? Damn. Some people really are desperate for that wish, Garou though before he remembered the words of a certain, hopeful little girl.

Shouldn't we help each other instead? Was the question of that orange haired girl. A bitter taste settled in Garou's mouth. As much as he gave that kid a hard time, he hoped she doesn't get preyed on by some murderer on the street. It was kind lucky he met up with her that night then, especially after finding her with that weird blonde man in the red coat, even though he looked kind of goofy.

After finishing Tenma's treatment of Garou's scrapes, the doctor made a gentle comment on Garou's odor, "You should get washed up while you can. It's fine to do so after cleaning those scrapes."

"Mmm." Garou rolled his shoulders as he stood up. "Yeah. Probably. Know any bath house around here?"

"Let me see..." Tenma reached for his phone and uses it for a bit, "Bear with me. A nurse gave me this as a present and it's a little too advanced for my taste."

Garou didn't minded and waited as Tenma was able to search up the closest bathhouse around here. "There. It looks like the closest one is just several streets down. I have the map here. I can take you there if you want."

Garou considered for a moment then shrugged. There was a lot of shrugging he was doing, but that was because hardly anyone was ever this nice to him back in his world. Well, there was Bang, but he would rather not remember him right now. Not because Bang beat the absolute hell out of Garou that it almost killed him, but that there were some pleasant memories of the past that Garou would rather not mull over at the moment.

At his unspoken indifference, Tenma only smiled and started walking towards the direction of the bathhouse. "It should only take us fifteen minutes to reach it."

With that, they set out their way for it. Garou looked at the giftbag Tenma was holding. "Is it someone's birthday?"

Tenma looked down at the giftbag he held, "Not really. There was a patient I helped out last night. She should be recovering well, especially with how advanced our people are and the medical equipment we use."

He opened the bag a little and Garou takes a curious look inside. "She had a special friend with her the whole time she was asleep," Tenma added.

From what Garou could see, the gift looked to be a dark brown wooden box, with small golden emblem on top. A music box?

"She was humming this melody, and I came across this music box that sounded just like it," Tenma explained, "I figured it'd be a nice present after her successful surgery."

"Hm," Garou only said, kind of intrigued how nice this doctor was being.

After walking for the estimated time, making small conversation that Garou mainly only listened to, Garou and Tenma reached the bathhouse that was a little distance away from the taller buildings of the city.

"Here it is. You should be allowed free admission as a competitor. Just be sure to keep using that medicine for those scrapes when you remove those band-aids," Tenma instructed as he handed over the medicine and box of band-aids to Garou. "I'd better get going now. Take care of yourself, okay?"

Garou nodded and gave a simple wave as the doctor soon departed for the route to his patient's home. The Hero Hunter then takes a look at the bath house and then proceeds to enter it. Nice guy. Glad he's not a hero or a competitor.

Because niceness wouldn't be enough to keep at bay the ferocity of the Hero Hunter.

It was with much debilitation that Emma made her choice. With the point of her finger, she chose the Copycat Card.

"Oh? You wouldn't want to get any of the A-Ranks Support Cards?" Solomon asked.

"Well, it's true that some of these other cards look really interesting," Emma said, looking over to the A and B-rank cards, "The Dancing Fairies card, and the Solar Trap card looked really useful, but I think that this card would be a lot more helpful to me. There's a lot of strategies I can do with Copycat."

"Well said," Solomon commended, nodding his head.

"Do you want to use the Clone card to make another Copycat card?" Gon suggested.

Emma shook her head. "It might be better if we hold onto it for now. There could be another card we can clone instead if we come across it, or at least, before the next event begins."

"A wise move," Solomon said before leaning over the counter, "Let me offer you a bit of advice. Having the strongest cards doesn't always mean victory. Rather, it's your faith in these cards that can get you far. Having a strategy is certainly a good approach, but more importantly, the bond you share with these cards is what ultimately decides your fate in the battlefield."

"Isn't it like using them in a game though?" Gon asked.

"Now don't go thinking that these cards are simply tools for you to use and throw away," Solomon lightly chastise with a wink, "They're all very special in their own ways, regardless of how rare or powerful they are. Each of these cards hold a piece of life, and to bond with them is to know them by heart."

Emma takes another look at the Copycat card in hand. "These cards are... alive?"

"In a way, yes," Solomon answered with a smile, "The more you collect these Support Cards, the harder it may be to keep track of them all, and to pull out the right card is a gamble on its own. When it seems like you're in a hopeless situation, believe in the Heart of the Cards, and they will surely answer."

There was a sudden glow that appeared in front of the man. Emma and Gon, startled by this, jumped back right away as the small glow hovered over the counter. The old man didn't seem surprised at all, as the small glow dispersed, and a new card appeared floating in the air.

An E-Rank Card: Heart of the Cards. A shadowy figure with spiky hair, rays of sunshine at his back as he held up a card in his hand, and a wing-like device on his other arm. There was an upside-down pyramid artifact, with a symbol of an eye at its center, hanging as a chain necklace around the figure's neck.

Emma and Gon expressed their surprise as the card slowly floated down. Emma was the first to react, running and catching the card quickly. "I-is this... for us?"

"It certainly is," Solomon informed, "You'll find other instances of gaining E-Rank Cards by through "special events" within the Wired. Go ahead and keep that card on you, unless you're willing to trade for it now?"

Emma examined the card for a moment. With a decided look, she held the card close to her chest along with the Copycat Card. "I'll keep it for now. I want us to get more E Cards before we trade anymore."

Solomon nodded in understanding then reached down something from behind the counter. "Here. These are specially given items for competitors like yourselves."

He shows them two clear-plastic cases, the exact same size as the cards she held. "Normally, I would have offered we play a little game for you to earn these. But, I think I'll make an exception this time. It's been far too long since I've met other impressionable people such as yourself. Aside from my grandson and friends of his, I believe you two have what it takes to understand what it means to have faith in the Heart of the Cards."

"Thank you!" Emma and Gon said, taking the cases and putting their respective cards in each of them. Emma holding two and Gon holding one. "Mmm. I kind of want to see what else you have. Not just cards, also. I've never been in a place like before. It's all so really interesting!"

"Well then, feel free to stay in my shop for as long as you like!" Solomon said happily with a small laugh. "I'd be happy to show you more of what I have in store."

Emma looked to Gon for his approval and the boy quickly nodded, reading her mind. "Sure! We can stay for a little longer. I'm kind of interested too!"

With that declared, the children began to window shop and even made a mental note of all the Support Cards they could trade with. All the while, Emma and Gon continued to enjoy their conversation with the old shopkeeper as they hear him explain each puzzle, game, and cards of interest.

An hour of window shopping passes, and the children, satisfied and curiosity satiated, they leave the store while assuring the old man of their return once they gain enough E cards. Solomon thanked them for their time and looks forward to seeing them again.

"That was a lot of fun!" Emma said, "It was also really informative. Now we know what we'll need to look out for while we're here."

Gon nodded in agreement, adjusting the backpack on his back. "Where do you want to go next?"

Emma considered for a moment. "Well, we still need to find a gym. Let's try to find one now."

They proceeded to locate one as walked down the sidewalk. Searching each and every building, they once more became sidetracked as new attractions started to show themselves. Intrigued by all these game machines, especially at an arcade they arrived to, Gon saw the wonder in Emma's eyes and with a smile, ushered her to them.

"Come on! Let's see what else this city has!" Gon said as he ran up to the arcade.

"Is that okay?" Emma asked, running after Gon.

"Sure it is! Maybe we could win more E cards this way. Let's try this one out!" Gon stopped at a car race game machine, and pressed on the start button. "I remember playing this with Killua when we were in Yorknew City. I'll teach you how to use it."

Although Emma felt they were getting sidetracked, she couldn't help but feel intrigued by these wonders of the city. With a steady nod, she climbed up onto the seat and sat on it.

"So you just turn the steering wheel to keep the car in the center of the screen on the road. The road will curve left and right, and you'll have to watch out for any obstacles you'll need to avoid."

Gon then suddenly went on his knees, looking underneath the game machine in front of the seat. "It looks like you can also use the gas pedals and breaks too. It'll be kind of like driving a real car, but really different."

"I've never driven a car before..." Emma said. "The only time I've ever seen a vehicle was a truck, and..."

She suddenly froze up when she recalled the moment she founded Connie's body, doing her best to hold back the horror of such a memory.

"You don't have to know. It's only a game anyway," Gon said as he pulled his head back up, and Emma had to force herself to stay calm. However, Gon seemed to have noticed something changed in Emma, and he looked at her curiously. "What's wrong?"

"A-ah. It's nothing! Don't worry," wanting to divert the subject, she then asked Gon, "So, you don't need to drive a real car to know how to play this game?"

"Um, yeah," Gon nodded, not seeming to believe Emma's assurance though he returned his focus to the game. "Here, the pedal on your right is to make your car go faster, and the pedal on your left makes the car go slower."

With a nod, Emma tried to stretch her legs out to reach the gas pedal, but being a small child, her feet were too far away from them. "I can't reach them..."

"It's okay! I'll handle them for you!" Gon offered with a wide smile. "Just tell me when you want to go fast or slow, and you can handle the steering, okay?"

Emma nodded, "Yeah. That sounds like a good idea."

With their plan declared, Emma started the game. For the first few tries, she had difficulties controlling the car in the screen, but after getting used to the controls and overall mechanics of the game, she started to get the hang of it.

"Fast-! Slow-! Fast-!" Emma constantly uttered her requests as Gon answered each of them, hitting either the accelerator or brake.

"Yes! I made it to the finish line!" Emma cheered with the raise of her arms. Gon met up with her and smiled widely.

"Awesome!" He then waited a bit, but seeing nothing coming out of the game machine, he then looked at her. "I guess this card doesn't offer E cards."

"Hmm..." Emma thought it over. Although it was certainly fun to play this game, she wondered if there was a certain criteria to be met to win an E card. "At that other game machine, I was only able to win a card after completing ten sudokus under a certain time frame. Maybe it's something like this?"

"This game doesn't offer time frames, though," Gon said, then an idea came to him, "But maybe it counts how many laps you can do!"

"Let's try that!" Emma said, enthusiasm bubbling inside her as she and Gon return to the game machine.

With Emma completely adept in her use of the game machine, after completing the fifth lap, there was a new screen that popped up. [New Record: Five Laps. Collect Your Reward!]

A slot machine suddenly popped up from the dash board, and a card was pushed out. "We did it!" Emma said triumphantly.

"Yes!" Gon cheered with her, high-fiving each other. "So all we have to do is make or break a record in all these games, and we'll get plenty of new cards to trade with."

Emma nodded at Gon. "Let's do that then! Come on!"

They then proceeded to play all the available games that weren't occupied by either NPCs or Competitors. They went through video games, throwing basketballs into their hoops, played hockey, and all sorts of games that either earned them cards or not. Although some games were a bust, it was nonetheless so immensely fun for Emma and Gon.

"Oh! A shooting range?" Emma said as they stopped by what appeared to be so, with a target at the far end of it. Gon looked at it for a moment and the devices it had in front of them.

"It's not a real one.," Gon said, "It looks like these guns uses fake bullets. Maybe if we hit a bullseye a bunch of times, we'll get another E card?"

Before they would start to play it... "Um, excuse me?"

Another voice cuts in, gaining the two children's attention.

"I'm sorry to bother you guys, but is it okay if I ask you a question?"

Emma and Gon looked up at what appeared to be a boy. 'Appearing' being that he had pigtails over his head. A pale blue hair with blue eyes. He looked like a meek boy though a little older and taller than Emma and Gon. He wore a thin black vest with a white undershirt of short sleeves, and pale brown khaki pants.

"Mm. It's fine," Gon said, the first to answer as Emma was busy curiously looking at the boy.

"Thanks. I was noticing that you guys were getting a lot of those cards," the boy pointed at the case held between the children's hands. "Are those Support Cards?"

"No. These are E cards," Gon answered honestly, holding up the case and seeing the dozens of cards he had already won alongside Emma, "You can trade these cards in for Support Cards. If you get enough E cards, you can trade them in for a higher-rank Support Card of whatever you like."

"Really? That's... really useful to know," the boy pulled out a pencil and notepad from his pocket and started to write in it. "Can you tell me more about it?"

"Sure! So we found our first E card at a game machine-" Gon then proceeded to explain everything as Emma waited aside. She found it neat how friendly and open Gon was being, even when - as it soon came to Emma's understanding - this is probably another competitor they were talking to.

Suddenly, Emma felt it. The feeling of another pair of eyes on them. It sends goosebumps down her back and Emma turned around immediately. She saw nothing however, no one looking their way as many people were busy playing the other games in the arcade.

Was someone staring at us just now? No. Not just now, she still felt that they were being watched...

"So you can win these E cards by either playing these games, or coming across a special event in the Wired," the blue-haired boy comprehended, reading through his newly written notes. He muttered to himself, "I see. This is a pretty good way for competitors to stockpile on new Support Cards for the next event. The Intermission isn't just for us to relax, but also to prepare."

"Are you a competitor too?" Deciding to ask it up front, Gon asked him this as Emma turned her attention back to the blue haired boy. The boy with pigtails flinched, clutching his notepad closely as he nodded.

"Y-yeah. I am. Sorry, I guess I should have mentioned that first. Are you guys...?"

"We're competitors too!" Gon said, surprising the boy.

"Really? How old are you two?"

"I'm twelve!" Gon said, looking to Emma.

"Ah, and I'm eleven," she answered, feeling the piercing set of eyes no longer on her, though she still can't help but want to look for them. Did their observer leave?

"That's really young," the boy said surprised before glancing to the side in deadpanned admittance, "Then again, I'm in Junior High. But still..."

"Do you want to try this shooting range with us?" Gon offered, surprising both the boy and Emma, "If you want to win E cards, you'll have to make a new record or a high score. It's something we've figured out a while ago."

"I-I see. Would it really be okay that I join you?" The blue haired boy asked.

Gon looked to Emma for her permission. Emma looked back at the blue haired boy. He seemed really harmless, even friendly if perhaps a bit of a quiet presence. He seems nice. I don't really have a problem with it.

Although they are in a competition, Emma didn't want to deny helping anyone. She nodded to Gon, "Sure, I don't mind."

"Ah. Thanks. My name is Nagisa Shiota, by the way," the boy now named Nagisa answered, relaxing a bit.

"I'm Gon! This is my friend Emma."

Emma nodded at Gon's introduction, "Hello. Have you ever used something like this before?"

She lifted the rifle that was part of the arcade shooting range. The boy reached out for the fake weapon and Emma handed it to him.

"I think I can handle it," the boy said obscuring.

"Great! Let's give it a try then!" Gon said and started pushing the start button on his end of the shooting range. Emma takes her spot beside Gon, and Nagisa stood beside Emma.

The circular-striped targets ahead of them lit up, and with a timer set counting from three. At one, the three competitors started shooting.

All three of the competitors were hyperfocus to get the perfect shot. For a full minute, it was only this. Not a single word spoken, nor nonchalance of having fun. It was a serious standoff, not to compete with each other, but simply to refuse missing a single shot.

Gon was unused to the use of a long rifle, so his shots were a little wonky. Emma took pause as soon as she noticed Gon's struggle. He must have only been used to using his fishing rod...

Emma sets down her rifle and goes to Gon, "Here. Try pressing the end of the rifle against your shoulder. Hold it like this..."

After helping Gon with his handling of the rifle, Gon smiled appreciatively at Emma. "Thanks! I'm not used to weapons like this."

"That's okay! I can teach you a bit about it later if you're interested."

"That'd be great!"

Nagisa smiled at the sight of the two children happily discussing their agreement, pausing his shooting until Emma returns to her rifle, and together, all three continued their firing.

Emma looked over to Nagisa's scoreboard. She was amazed to see that he was doing really well. Like he once held a rifle before. Was he something of a hunter in his world too? He seemed really thing to be one though.

The first round of the shooting range came to an end. And everyone's scores was declared above the fence of the range. Emma won first place. Nagisa won second. Gon won third.

"Wow. You're a really good shooter," Nagisa said with amazement in his eyes, "Where did you learn how to shoot so well?"

"Well..." Emma started slowly, shifting her footing as she looked down at the rifle in her hand, "I learned it by watching someone."

"You watched someone use a rifle?" Nagisa's eyes widened, "That's really amazing. Ah! Your friend was amazing too!"

Gon laughed, "Thanks, I don't use a rifle that much though. But wow! You got a perfect score Emma!"

Emma blushed a bit at the compliment, her hands grasped together behind her back, "It was nothing."

There was a sudden ding of the shooting range behind her, and an E card was popped out from the slot in the middle of the machine. Emma takes the card, reading it as a reward for getting a perfect score.

"You really did win an E card, only for perfect scorers it looks like," Nagisa said as he looked down at his rifle for a moment. "Hmm. Let me try it again."

Nagisa returned to the shooting range, scratching his earlobe briefly before pressing the start button again. Upon the countdown, Nagisa started shooting once more.

For a full minute, Emma and Gon were stunned to see Nagisa getting perfect scores now. Though strangely to Emma, Nagisa seemed a bit discomforted, even though he was clearly doing better than before. With the minute up, a new score appears over Nagisa's head. A perfect score. He sighed inwardly before seeing the E card pop out in front of him from the machine.

"I got it!" Nagisa said with a small cheer. Emma and Gon went up to him and congratulated the boy.

"That was awesome!" Gon said, "You didn't miss a single shot this time!"

"O-oh. Well, it was just a fluke, really..." Nagisa said sheepishly, looking aside as if in shame of himself. Emma wondered why he would say that, although she did notice something rather strange about how those bullets were fired. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but it really was incredible how quickly Nagisa adapted into making perfect shots. Was he a quick learner like her?

"You mentioned that I can take these to the nearest card store?" Nagisa asked.

Gon nodded, "Yup! The closest one we've visited is run by this nice old man. I'm sure he'll be able to help you out!"

"Hmm. I guess it wouldn't hurt to check it out now," Nagisa muttered to himself thoughtfully. He then bowed his head to the children, "Thank you very much for helping me. Are you two going to keep playing here?"

"Oh," Emma said, looking to Gon, "We did kind of got sidetracked. We were supposed to be looking for a gym, but then we ended up getting more of these cards. It was a lot of fun too. Time really went by us so fast."

Nagisa smiled, "Yeah. It really did. If you're looking for a gym, I think I saw one about a few streets down that way."

He pointed at a general direction before pulling out his notepad again. "Here, let me draw it for you. They look like they have pretty tough trainers and equipments in there though. Maybe they'll know where the kids gym could be?"

He drew a map with a few written descriptions of directions, ripped the paper out and handed it over to the children.

"This will be perfect!" Gon said, accepting the note with a wide smile, "Thanks so much! Oh! We should write you the directions to the card shop too!"

Agreeing to that idea, Nagisa handed over his notepad and pencil. Gon handled the notepad while Emma wrote in it, remembering the address and directions of the card shop best. After finishing her writing, Emma tore the paper out and handed it out to Nagisa.

"Thank you again," Nagisa said with a happy smile. "Are you going to head for the gym right now?"

"We might as well," Gon said, "We really need to get started on working out, before our friend Killua comes back."

Emma nodded to Gon, then looked back to Nagisa, having warmed up to the boy, "It was really nice meeting with you. Good luck with the rest of the competition."

Nagisa smile grew warmer, "Yeah! I really hope we see each other again. Be careful out there, okay? And good luck to you guys also."

"Thanks! You too!" Emma said, and after offering a handshake to Nagisa, which he gladly accepted. The two children parted from Nagisa, and began to leave the arcade. Looking at the clock on the wall, it was already reaching ten in the morning.

She felt a slight grumble in her stomach and looked over to Gon. "We haven't had breakfast yet, do you want to stop by at a restaurant first?"

"Oh! I completely forgot!" Gon said with epiphany. He sheepishly laughed. "S-sorry. I was having so much fun that we still haven't had breakfast."

"That's alright. Everything we've seen here has been so exciting and new, it's really wonderful to see everything!" Emma said with a happy smile as they drew closer to the entrance.

The chill of being watched once more struck her and she quickly turned around. She still couldn't find anyone, and it seemed like Nagisa has already left. Wow, that boy can disappear quick.

"What's wrong?" Gon asked, noticing her look and followed her gaze.

"Ah..." Emma started, a bit unease, "Well..."

The mysterious gaze on her was gone once more, and she felt herself relaxed a bit. "Did you notice something strange while we were playing?"

Gon looked at her confused. "Like what?"

"Um..." Emma looked around for a moment, then grabbed Gon's hand, much to the Hunter's surprise. "L-let's go outside first."

If whoever is watching them can hear them, it's better that they should make distance from their observer. She ran with Gon right out of the arcade, Gon following without question, and they resumed running until they were far away from the arcade. Just enough.

"What is it?" Gon asked her once more, his curious amber eyes on her.

"It's just that..." Emma started, looking around for the last time before picking up her hand by her mouth, "Didn't it feel like someone was staring at us in there?"

Gon considered Emma's words. "Someone staring? Hmm. I don't really know. But there was something else I did notice."

Emma looked at Gon in surprise, "Like what?"

"It was a little faint. It kind of blended in with the other machines, but since Nagisa was close enough, I was able to tell."

"Nagisa?" Emma repeated. "Wait, do you mean... there was something you smelled?"

Gon nodded, his brows furrowing as if trying to come up with a word for it. "It smelled like it was around him, so it wasn't his original scent."

He takes a gander at the sky, "If I have to say it... I think he smelled a bit like... Iron."

"Iron?" Emma tilted her head.

Gon nodded, "Yeah. It had a metallic scent to it."

He frowned, "Almost like..."

"Like...?" Emma repeated, sensing a bit of dread at the next choice of words Gon will soon reveal.

The Hunter looked back at Emma as he gave his honest answer, "Like blood."

Nagisa walked out of the arcade through the back door, as it was calmly ushered so by his "associate". He walked into a dark and vacant alleyway, with only puddles and a few trashes to accompany it.

"Is there something wrong?" The blue haired boy asked as he held the E card in his hands, looking back at seemingly 'no one'.

"...I may have observed too obviously." The voice of 'no one there' responded. "No, perhaps that girl's instincts were that sharp. She could not pinpoint my position, but she knew she was being watched."

"Um. Why were you staring at her?" Nagisa asked the space between him and the brick wall, concerned, "That's kind of... creepy, don't you think?"

"I observe everyone. The slightest detail on a person could tell you everything about them, and that alone can mean life or death."

"Th-there's really no need for that though! They were just kids!" Nagisa hastily retorted, panicked and disturbed by how serious that statement was.

"They were children. Yes. But they were not "harmless." You saw that rifle on her backpack."

"Ah... yeah..." Nagisa relented. "I don't think they're bad though. There's probably a good reason why she's carrying a weapon like that. Although, yeah, it is kind of concerning."

Though it was likely a different reason for Nagisa than it was for the invisible man here with him.

"What else did you notice?" The hidden man asked, testing to see how observant Nagisa was.

Nagisa paused, grabbing his earlobe which he had touched as a sign for his invisible follower to assist in his shooting at the arcade range. "She had a missing ear... There was also a... bullet scar on her cheek."

Nagisa's eyes turned sad, "She must have lived a hard life. I kind of want to follow her and see if she'll be alright."

"There is no need. That boy with her. I saw him use one of the games that involved boxing. He punched that sack and earned himself a score of nine, nine, nine."

"That high?!" Nagisa yelled in shock. "Th-that's literally the highest score you can get!"

"Yes. I believe that boy might have broken the machine, although he was able to obtain his "E card" regardless. We will have to look into that. If it's true that these E cards are available all over the city, then we will have to acquire them to exchange for more Support Cards. Though not before we see how true their information is."

"I-I don't think they would lie about something like that..." Nagisa said.

"No. They seemed like honest children, though I'm a little wary of that girl. If she is a survivalist, then she most likely knows how to lie in order to live. That boy on the other hand was an open book. So it's safe to assume that he was telling you the truth."

"Well, that's good to know..."

"There was one more thing about that girl. Did you catch it?"

Nagisa looked surprised, then he glanced down, grasping his wrist with a sympathetic expression. "...She had numbers on her neck."

"Correct. If I were to make a guess, she is possibly something of an escapee. Whether a young criminal in her world, or someone who has been sold off."

Nagisa's eyes shot up in appalling, and the voice of the hidden man resumed, "Either way, she knows how to defend herself, and with that strong boy by her side, they should be able to fend for each other just fine. They did, after all, survive the Preliminary. As you and I have."

"It... doesn't seem right though," Nagisa said quietly.

The invisible man was silent for a moment, then Nagisa could hear the faintest jingle from him. Following the man's very calm and steady heartbeat, a heart that's ready to kill at a moment's notice, Nagisa is able to tell that the man is walking past him.

"There's something else I've been meaning to ask you."

"Um, yes?" Nagisa asked, turning his head for the man.

Even now... the invisible man thought, you can tell where I am.

The man's invisibility was lifted. Starting from his black shoes to the black and white stripes of his pants, unveiling his black coat with his chest exposed, crossed by belt straps. The man's revealed gaze, deep red eyes with black sclera as if two drops of blood in darkness, focused on Nagisa. The boy froze under such an intense gaze, as if he was pinned by it.

The man's head fully revealed itself, showing the black jester like hat that hung golden, bell-like ornaments below each fabric arm. Each bell holding a carved initial of a single letter: R. I. S. O. T. T. O. The man lifted a finger and pointed at Nagisa as he said his question.

"Are you an assassin?"

NPC (Non-Participating Competitors) Introduced:

Kiki and Jiji (Kiki's Delivery Service)

Competitors Introduced:

Nagisa Shiota (Assassination Classroom)

?

Risotto Nero (Jojo's Bizarre Adventures: Golden Wind)

A/N: And there you have it! Let us all welcome to our Third Protagonist of this multicrossover story: Nagisa Shiota! And he is not alone! Can you take a guess as to what sort of status is Risotto? An NPC? A Competitor? The hints are already given in this chapter.

I absolutely love the idea of having our leading protagonists be non-powered characters, relying only their skills, though to turn to supernatural abilities is not zero percent in the least bit. In my original idea, I never planned to have Nagisa show up this early, but I was starting to get bored with following Emma and Gon's perspective, even with Garou along, and so I decided to introduce Nagisa early on, whose own plotline in this story is something I'm REALLY excited about. It made it so much more fun to write!

Anyway, I believe that next chapter will involve Nagisa's perspective. Gon and Emma will be finding something to eat first before the gym, and we'll probably see how Garou is holding up but in later chapters. Thank you all for reading and I will see you guys next time!