I know you already know this but then again, Hunter X Hunter is not mine. This wonderful anime story is owned by Yoshihiro Togashi

CHAPTER 5: THE TUNNEL

BRIIIIIIING!

"Ow." She gasped. The noise surprised the girl and immediately pressed her palms against her ears. The shrilling sound bouncing around in a closet space makes it worse. She cursed under her breath.

The room vibrated and a wall rolled up to the ceiling, revealing a much longer, dark tunnel. A guy with a purple suit and purple hair holding some object that's making a shrilling noise.

"I apologize for the wait. The entry period for Hunter applicants has ended." The man began. "The Hunter Exam will now begin."

Tension weighed them. They readied themselves. Some gulped, dreading what may come. Some remained the same, beaming with confidence. Others looked around to watch out for anyone they needed to avoid.

Sam faced ahead, her heart beating with anticipation mixed with a feeling of uneasiness.

"A final caution." The crowd was alarmed. "If you're short on luck or ability, you could very well end up seriously injured or even dead." He warned as he scanned every candidate's face. "Those who accept the risks, please follow me. Otherwise, please exit via the elevator behind you."

None of his words made anyone take one step toward the elevator. "Very well... All 405 applicants will participate in Phase One." His back now faced the crowd, extended his arms and legs, and started to run.

They notice the quick increase in pace. Leorio asked if this was an endurance test. Kurapika was not too sure, but best let himself be prepared for what was coming.

The examiner introduced himself as Satotz, the Phase One Examiner and he'll escort them to the Second Phase. This earned him confused stares.

"Second Phase? What about Phase One?" One of the participants asked.

"It already started."

An endurance test? Possibly. But they were only tasked to follow him. She just silently hoped that the marathon would end before she lost all her strength and stamina.

Two hours passed since the start of the exam. The applicants have traveled over thirty kilometers from the starting point.

None of them knows how far they must go. They are forced to run at the judge's pace, with no specific goal. It's a monotonous course with no end in sight.

One by one, candidates collapsed on the floor, some lost consciousness, and some were heavily catching their breath and couldn't proceed any longer.

And for those two hours, tiredness started to plague Leorio. His breath became heavier and his face filled with sweat. His footsteps started to slow down.

Next to him was Sam, still fine. But she wasn't sure how long will her body keep it up.

Her head shifted to her right, where a sound of rolling, small wheels passed by.

Must've been a skateboard or skate shoes.

"Hey! Wait up, kid!" Leorio called angrily. The girl could only catch someone 'humming'. "You should show the Hunter Exam some respect!"

"What do you mean?" The question came from another young voice. It was from a boy the same age as Gon or maybe a year older.

"Why are you using a skateboard?!" The older man yelled. "That's cheating!"

'So it was a skateboard.'

"Why?" He asked.

"Why... this is an endurance test!"

Sam just sighed at this.

"No, it isn't," Gon said. "The examiner just said to follow him."

"Yep." Sam chirped.

"Gon, Samara! Whose side are you on, eh?"

"It's Sam." She pressed. The brunette just rolled her eyes at him. "And I'd very much pick the other side where there is no YOU, Leorio." She said as she quickened her pace a little.

The new boy ignored their bickering and slowed down to have the same pace as Gon. He then initiates a conversation by asking Gon's age, and it turns out they're the same. He thought for a while before doing a flip of his skateboard and running with Gon.

"Wow!" Gon exclaimed. "That was awesome!"

"I'm Killua." The boy introduced. He had silver hair, wearing a lavender shirt with a dark purple, turtle neck shirt beneath it, and was holding the skateboard.

"I'm Gon! And this is Sam."

"-mara." The girl added. "It's Samara."

"He said 'Sam'." Killua pressed as he faced the brunette.

"I just shortened it. My name is still Samara, so call me Samara." The girl emphasized so he would get the point.

But Gon ruined it all.

"But you said you prefer called Sam because you hate someone calling you your whole name." Gon innocently talked. "And you said it's not cool."

She urges every willpower to stop herself from face-palming. "Gon, did you forget that I only allow a friend to call me that?" Sam angrily mumbled to Gon. "And I'm a bit picky about who I want to be friends with!" Her voice was still low, so only he could hear.

"He'll be a friend soon," Gon assured her.

"If that's the case, then I'll call you Sam."

Gon and Sam immediately perked up at Killua. The boy smiled approvingly at the silver-haired kid with Sam glaring at both of them. "It's not Sam, it's Samara to you." She repeated. "It's my name, so stick to my rule!"

.

.

.

The marathon kept on. It's been four hours since then. They must have traveled at least sixty kilometers. How much farther do they need to run? The population is now rapidly decreasing due to too much fatigue, and more of them are already at their limit.

One of those people was Leorio. The older teen was so exhausted, completely breathing with difficulty. His steps lagging far away from the others.

Gon and Sam only noticed him away when his suitcase created a loud bump as it fell to the floor. Both younger teens looked back at their friend.

Even if he's nosy, Sam did consider Leorio as a good companion.

Leorio bent forward, both hands on his knees for support.

Together with the two, Killua stared back at him as well. "Just leave him."

"Leorio will come, you'll see," Sam said firmly and put her trust in him. "Leorio! Get up! If not, I'm gonna drag you by foot!"

Taking a large deep breath, he squeezed his eyes shut. "No need to drag me." He started with a whizzing voice. "Because I'm going to be a Hunter!" He yelled with newly found strength and motivation as he ran with a fast speed, passing the three. "Damn it all!"

Gon smiled. He reached for his fishing rod and swung it, hooking Leorio's suitcase. Killua witnessed the trick and was fascinated as he watched how he did it so well.

He wants to try the rod, which Gon allows Killua but only if Killua allows the boy in green to try his skateboard too.

Sam snorted. "What's so cool about it anyway?" She shook her head and muttered something about boys' weird habits.

Even in a low voice, Killua managed to hear what she said. His eyebrow perked up and stole a glance at the girl. "Last time I checked I didn't ask for your opinion." He spoke.

Sam clenched her molars, not liking the way his voice sounded like. She gave him a sickly-sweet smile and replied, "You don't need to because I generously give it away."

They held each other's stares, with no intention of backing off. One was giving a smug face while the other smirked.

Gon looked at them both, having a radiant expression on his face, completely interpreting the opposite. He believed that Killua and Sam were getting along well. But he's too credulous to notice it.

Finally, they reached the 80-kilometer mark. A long stairway was up ahead. The examiner quickened his stride even more as soon as he reached the long stairs.

Not too long ago, Sam caught up with Leorio and Kurapika. She can't stand with that brat, Killua. He was purposely trying to pick a fight with her, trying to cut her off rudely every time she attempted to speak.

So, when Gon was too engrossed in talking animatedly with Killua, she took the chance to leave them and ran ahead.

When Sam finally found the two, Leorio was pumping with energy like it never once strained him before.

Look at that determination he got. Was this all because of money? Now Sam started to wonder.

"Are you trying to become a Hunter for money?" Kurapika suddenly inquired.

This made Sam perked up at his question. Kurapika surely picked a good time at it.

The person on topic grunted and his previously wide grin turned into a thin line. Sam smiled at the silent treatment he was giving. Kurapika just nailed a spot!

"You aren't, right?" Kurapika smartly pressed. "We've only been together for a few days, but I know you better than that."

Leorio still had nothing to say and continued his silence. Samara chuckled. "I believe in the old phrase: silence means yes." She teased the man.

"Sure, you have a nasty attitude and you aren't very bright." The blonde continued, making the man in the suit irked with his frank description of him. Samara hummed approvingly with him.

"But you're not a shallow person. I've seen many who live for money. You're nothing like them."

At this, Leorio clicked his tongue. "Can you two stop being so smartass?"

Sam rolled her eyes, "We aren't trying to be smartass. What Kurapika said was completely true. If it was for money, then you would have given up from that time you stopped running."

He clicked his tongue once again.

"Scarlet Eyes."

Sam's attention shifted to Kurapika upon hearing another familiar word.

"That's why the Kuruta were targeted. When our emotions are heightened, our eyes turn scarlet, as though on fire. The eyes in that Scarlet state are considered one of the seven most beautiful colors in the world. They command high prices on the black market."

Oh, that's right! She had heard that news before. Scarlet eyes are hereditary amongst the clan. That was the reason the entire clan was wiped out.

"Is that why the Phantom Troupe attacked you?" Leorio asked.

"Yes... and they gauged them out," Sam said.

"... Yes." The blonde answered like it was difficult for him to talk. "I can still hear their darkened eyes crying out in anguish." Kurapika closed his eyes, as he reminisced the day the Kuruta Clan ended. "I will capture the Phantom Troupe! And I will reclaim the eyes of my clan! If I become a Hunter under contract, I'll gain access to black market information."

'What?'

That was opposite to what he just said about Hunters in the elevator. "I thought you hated those types of hunters. I know it would be beneficial to you having access to many things and everything but that would be like selling your soul and your dignity!"

"What is my dignity..." He paused, "In comparison with the pain of my tribe?"

This immediately held Sam's tongue to argue back. Kurapika already planned on selling himself from the start.

Leorio looked up the stairs, his eyes wandering afar. "Sorry, but I have no noble cause. I'm just after money."

"Don't lie!"

"I'm not lying! For the right price, you can buy not only treasures but dreams, hearts, and even people's lives!" Leorio blurted. "Because if I had money, my friend wouldn't have died! It was a treatable disease... The problem was that the operation cost a fortune. I was naïve. I thought I could become a doctor..." Tears formed at the corner of his eyes and his voice faltered. "I wanted to cure kids who have the same disease and be able to tell them it was free of charge! That was my dream... What a joke!" He spat. "Turns out that to become a doctor, you need even more money, got it?! The world runs on money, so I want money!"

How could Sam judge this person without even knowing what he wants? Leorio voiced out nothing but to have money, to become rich. It sounds greedy and very ambitious but no one knows the story behind it. No one knows the factors that made people the person they become.

'Because it's scary how greed could change someone into something nasty... But Leorio isn't one of them.'

The girl closed her eyes, adapting herself to the sudden information she received. The conversation was enough to let them know about hers too.

Sam listened around first. The dropped number of participants helps to widen their distance from one another. "Well, I just want to become a Hunter. I just want to show everyone that even with my condition, I can still be one! That it's not a hindrance!" Sam said as they passed so many candidates down on the floor. She could hear heavy breathing and panting. "You may think it sounds ridiculous. A blind girl like me, aiming to become a Hunter that even a normal person could hardly pass the exam."

There was silence after that until someone decided to speak first.

"What... what's the difference of that to my goal? I'll be recovering my brethren's eyes scattered around the world, and I'll be hunting notorious criminals. You might have thought it was impossible at first, right?" Kurapika said a hint of bitterness in his voice. "But you won't care about it just like I won't care about what others say."

Sam chuckled. "Damn, right. I'm more determined than ever."

Leorio just clicked his tongue. "Still, all I want is money." Sam and Kurapika could only roll their eyes.

"Whatever you say, Leorio."

"Even though you were sentimental a while ago."

"T-That was..."

"Hey old man, we're going ahead first." A voice suddenly emerged from their side. Gon and Killua already caught up with them. They were so preoccupied with their conversation that they failed to notice their presence. Sam wasn't even sure what part of it did they hear.

Leorio looked at both kids, clearly provoked. "I'm not old! I'm a teenager just like you guys! I'm nineteen!"

"NO WAY!"