Tenulan sighed in relief. Not because the First Phase wasn't over yet, but because Orin was steadily recovering from dehydration. Whatever Leorio gave the boy was working. Tenulan stood next to Orin, while Leorio and Kurapika stood on the opposite side. Just past them sat Gon and Killua.

Tenulan scanned the area around them. Besides the exit of the tunnel and the concrete platform laid out in front of it, the young adult (though technically a teenager, as he said) couldn't make anything out in the dense fog. He could barely make out the shrouded form of Satotz standing at the edge of the crowd of applicants.

Suddenly, though, the fog began to disperse. Kurapika also noticed. "Look, the fog is lifting."

Gon stood up. "Really?"

Orin craned his neck to try and see around the other applicants while remaining seated. Tenulan, meanwhile, had a clear view thanks to being taller than the majority of the applicants. As the fog thinned, he noticed the tops of trees begin to come into view. The tunnel exited into a clearing at the top of a hill somewhere, though the precise location was unknown.

Tenulan wiped the sweat that had been collecting on his forehead. This place is much warmer than the tunnel we were just in. It is also much more humid. Tenulan began to grow worried. This environment is one that I am the least acclimated to. Running in this place will take much more energy than before. I suppose I can only hope our destination is close.

In the distance, a small flock of birds took flight out of the dense canopy.

"The Numere Wetlands. Or as it is also popularly known, the Swindler's Swamp," Satotz announced to the applicants. "We must cross through it to reach the site of the Second Phase." Tenulan had a look of wonder in his eyes as his eyes looked across the low hills beyond. The young man, in all of his wandering up to this point, had somehow never been in a wetland such as the one he now found himself in.

Meanwhile, Satotz continued his explanation. "This place is home to many rare and bizarre animals not found anywhere else. Many of them prey on humans by tricking them. These creatures are as crafty as they are voracious. So please, be careful to follow me closely."

The Examiner turned to face the crowd of applicants, pointing a finger skyward for emphasis. "If you get tricked, you will surely die." The statement weighed on the applicants. Dread began to creep onto many of their faces. Tenulan, on the other hand, had a determined look on his face. Death? So be it.

A creaking noise behind him made him turn around to see the exit of the tunnel begin to close. A metal shutter of sorts began to roll down from the top. An applicant approached the top step as it continued to descend, crying out to the crowd outside. "No! Wait for me!"

The words did little to change the man's fate. The tunnel was sealed off with a dull thud as Tenulan shood his head. That man had reached his limit. He would have surely died in this swamp. Behind him, Satotz once again continued his explanation. "These wetland creatures will use all sorts of tricks to capture their prey. This is an ecosystem in which all creatures hunt using the art of deception. That is why this place is known as Swindler's Swamp." The Examiner turned away from the crowd. "Now then. Be careful not to be tricked and follow me closely."

Tenulan looked down at Orin, who had remained seated during the explanation. "Orin, are you ready?"

Orin gave a look of confusion. "I guess."

Tenulan chuckled as adjusted his bag across his back. The young man then suddenly lifted Orin off of the ground, the boy yelping in surprise. Tenulan held the boy in front of him, one arm held under the knees, and the other supporting the back. "Very well. Until you have recovered completely, I will carry you."

Orin blinked. "O-okay."

Leorio grinned. "Good plan, Tenulan. I'm sure you're well enough to carry him. And besides, that Examiner guy must be messing with us. I mean, if we know they'll try to trick us, who's gonna fall for anything now?"

"Don't fall for it!" A voice shouted from behind the exit of the tunnel somewhere.

"Didn't I just say that we won't?" Leorio grumbled as he turned to the voice, the other applicants following suit. In the shadow of the concrete structure, Tenulan saw a man leaning against the wall. The man stepped forward into the view of the crowd. His face was battered and bruised, and his clothes were similarly tattered. The man's dirty blond hair was matted with dirt. Tenulan raised an eyebrow. What happened to this man?

"Everyone, don't fall for it!" The man repeated. He took another step forward as gasps rippled through the applicants. The man pointed in front of him. "That man has been lying to you!" Tenulan followed the finger's path to find… Satotz. The crowd of applicants parted, creating a clear path between the two men. "He's not the Examiner! He's an impostor!" The man pointed a thumb at his chest. "I'm the real Examiner!"

"Impostor?" Leorio said as his eyes jumped between the two "examiners." "What's going on here?"

"But then, who's the real one?" A man in the crowd asked. Tenulan hummed in thought. I do not understand. Satotz brought us from the tunnel to this place. How could this other man be the real Examiner?

"I'll prove it," The blond man grunted. "Look at this!" He dragged something out from behind the wall. As it was dragged out into the sun, it was revealed to be a creature with long and thin limbs, with brown fur growing over its body. The most notable feature was the monkey-like creature's head. It looked nearly identical to Satotz's own head, though Tenulan noted the hair color was slightly darker and was not kept as well as the suited man. The other, perhaps more important, difference was the fanged mouth that hung open, a long tongue rolling out.

Whatever it was, Tenulan figured it had been killed by the man. Gon noticed the similarities as well. "He looks just like Mr. Satotz!"

The man stepped the rest of the way out from behind the wall to stand before the applicants. "This here's a Man-Faced Ape that dwells in the Numere Wetlands."

"A Man-Faced what?" Leorio gawked.

"Man-Faced Apes love human flesh. But their limbs are really long and thin, so they're quite weak. That's why they disguise themselves as humans to lure us into the wetlands, where they work together with other creatures to kill and eat us!" The man pointed again at Satotz. "And he intends on catching all the Hunter Exam applicants in one go!"

"Oh, boy." Leorio leaned forward.

"Indeed, it's not normal for a human to have legs like that," The man from within the crowd noted.

"Tenulan," Orin whispered.

"Yes?" He replied in a low voice.

"I think that guy's lying," The boy said before sighing. "I mean, if Satotz was a fake examiner, why would he show up at the beginning of the Exam? That green guy who gave us our tags must've been with the Hunter Association."

"So?"

"So he could've warned us that Satotz wasn't the examiner right away. He probably wouldn't just let every single applicant get lured to their deaths."

Tenulan nodded, almost missing the whistle of blades flying past him. He quickly turned his head to see the weapons embed themselves in the blond man, one piercing his skull as he fell backwards. On closer inspection, Tenulan noticed that the "blades" looked like regular playing cards.

He looked the other way to find three more cards held in between Satotz's fingers. Who threw the cards? It couldn't have been Satotz… Through the stunned silence of the crowd, Tenulan could hear the sound of someone shuffling cards.

He found the source: A man dressed like a clown, with pale skin and red hair slicked back to a point. His eyes were closed as he chuckled softly. "I can see it now. Isn't it obvious?" He opened his eyes to look at Satotz, narrow slits with small, yellow irises. "You're the real examiner."

"Hisoka?" Orin muttered under his breath. Satotz casually tossed the cards in his hands to the side.

The man called Hisoka elaborated. "A so-called 'examiner' is really a Hunter, hand-picked by the Exam Committee to serve for free. Anyone holding the title we are vying for ourselves could have deflected that attack easily."

"I'll take that as a compliment," Satotz replied. "However, if you lay a hand on me again for any reason, it will be considered a violation against the examiner. You will be immediately disqualified. Is that clear?"

"Yes," Hisoka answered with a smug smile.

Meanwhile, vultures had descended on the corpse of the fake examiner. "It may be the law of nature, but that's just too cruel," Leorio said with a hint of pity.

"So he was really a Man-Faced Ape," Kurapika concluded. It would appear so. But what happened to the other Man-Faced Ape? It seems to have disappeared…

Satotz explained, "He accused me of being an impostor to confuse you, the applicants, and lure some of you away."

"We can't let our guard down," Killua said.

Gon nodded. "Right."

"Did you just realize that?" Orin teased.

Killua silently glared at the brown-haired boy while Satotz walked through the crowd towards the Man-Faced Ape. "There will be life-threatening tricks like this day and night. Some of you must have almost fallen for that trick and began to suspect me, am I right?"

"Not me!" Leorio lied. Another man, the one who commented about Satotz's identity earlier, laughed nervously. Tenulan saw the bald man was clad in black armor and had a red scarf tied around his neck.

Satotz faced the crowd once again. "Let me be clear. The fog will be much thicker up ahead in the Numere Wetlands. If you lose sight of me even once, you will have no hope of reaching the Second Phase. So, be careful." He paused. "It's time we moved on. Please follow me."

The crowd of applicants followed Satotz down the hill and into the Swindler's Swamp. As they ran, Leorio complained, "Oh great, another marathon?"

"Except this time, we're running in a wetland," Kurapika noted. "Running on wet ground requires significantly more energy."

"It is humid, too," Tenulan followed up. "In a place like this, we will grow tired much faster than running in the tunnel." His feet pounded into wet earth. He was glad he had been given a new pair of boots by the first mate of that ship just a few days before. The boots seemed to be somewhat waterproof, helping to keep his feet mostly dry.

As the crowd ran further into the swamp, the world around them grew a bit darker as the fog grew thicker. It became difficult for applicants to follow the person in front of them, let alone find the Examiner.

"Hey! Leorio! Kurapika! Tenulan!" Gon called out somewhere ahead. "Killua says we should all move up to the front of the pack!"

"You idiot! If I could reach the front, I'd already be there!" Leorio answered. He and Kurapika were running side by side, with Tenulan carrying Orin a few feet to Leorio's left. Tenulan clenched his jaw slightly. Yes, perhaps if I could run faster, I would be able to follow more closely. But then, I would not be able to carry Orin. I will have to make do from this position in the crowd.

"Don't worry about us. We'll meet you guys ahead," Kurapika called out.

/\/\/\

Orin sighed as the First Phase continued. He was glad that Tenulan was able to carry him, but the boy felt a bit conflicted. I'm just being a burden for Tenulan… I think I've rested long enough. He looked up at the young adult. "Hey, can you put me down? I think I can run for a bit now."

Tenulan nodded, slowing down slightly as he let the boy get a footing on the muddy ground. The two sped back up slightly to run alongside Leorio and Kurapika. By now, the fog had become so thick that the applicants in front of Orin had become little more than misshapen blobs. He frowned.

"This is bad." Kurapika had a similar feeling. "If we can't keep up, we won't be able to tell which way we're going."

"It's okay. As long as we don't lose sight of the guys ahead of us," Leorio tried to reassure the blond applicant, but his own voice was shaking slightly.

Orin focused on the applicants in front of him as he ran. He couldn't make out any features of them, so he couldn't recognize any of them. Then, all of a sudden, one of their heads just… fell off.

Orin's eyes widened as the heads of the other applicants followed suit. Huh?

Leorio was just as confused. "What just happened?" The teenager (by technicality) was practically screaming as the four stopped running. New shapes started to filter through the fog. These weren't human-shaped, though. Rather, giant berries floated in front of the applicants.

Orin rubbed his eyes. I've got to be seeing things. Another applicant slowly approached the berries. His expression was vacant as he put one foot in front of the other before he was quickly swallowed by the fog with a scream. The boy could just make out the applicant's form fly into the air before some of the fog parted to reveal that he was in the jaws of a giant turtle. The berries that Orin saw were attached to its crimson shell. The turtle's light brown neck stretched high above the applicants as the man in its jaws continued to scream.

The other applicants that had crowded around suddenly started running in every direction, desperate to get away from the monster before them. That only revealed a second giant turtle waiting in the fog as it snatched applicants away.

"This is bad," Kurapika stated the obvious. Orin would have pointed this out if he wasn't in danger of being eaten by giant turtles. Instead, he took a step back as the crowd of applicants that had once been around him vanished into the fog.

With thunderous steps, the two beasts slowly approached Orin, Tenulan, Kurapika, and Leorio. The four shuffled back into each other. The giant turtle's forms were just out of view in the fog as they circled. The applicants were surrounded.

Leorio picked up a large stick off the ground, brandishing it as a weapon. Orin shuddered as he tried to hide behind Tenulan, who had already drawn a pair of knives. Shit, shit, shit! What the hell are those things?

The giant creatures inched closer, the ground shaking beneath them. Leorio tentatively swung his stick as if he could scare the beasts away. This did not have the intended effect, as one of the turtles lunged forward suddenly, rocketing towards Leorio.

The fanged jaws of the turtle latched onto the stick as it pulled its head back into the air, taking Leorio along with it. The creature tossed the tall man in the air before biting down on either end of the stick. Were it not nearly as thick as a log, the stick would have surely snapped in two and allowed for the turtle to sink its teeth into Leorio.

Kurapika quickly leapt into the air, pulling out a pair of wooden swords in the process. The blond applicant cleared the beast's head before beginning to fall back to the earth. Kurapika raised both arms as they landed on the head of the turtle, thrusting both swords straight into one of its eyes. The creature closed its eyes in pain, letting out a roar. In doing so, it released the stick from its jaws, Leorio still attached.

The tall applicant landed squarely on his rear with a grunt. Kurapika softly landed a few feet away. "Now's our chance! Let's get out of here!"

Leorio nodded as he scrambled to his feet. Behind him, Orin and Tenulan began running after the blond applicant. Don't have to tell me twice! The applicants ran forward to find themselves face to face with the other turtle. Or at least one of its legs.

Orin's eyes widened. Tenulan jumped forward, a knife sinking into the leg of the beast, though the attack did little to stop it. The man then stabbed into the leg with his other knife, higher up than the first. Is he going to climb the damn thing? While Tenulan ascended the leg and then the neck of the turtle, Orin and Leorio ran along the side of it to get around.

Once they reached the other side, the boy yelled into the fog, "Tenulan! Get off of it! We have to run!" He heard the sound of something heavy squelch into the ground before Tenulan cut through the fog, running towards him. The boy turned around to run alongside the man, who swiftly wiped the blood from his blades in practiced motions before sheathing them.

The two caught up with Leorio and Kurapika, and the group of four ran like hell. They ran as fast as they could until the booming steps of the giant turtles faded away in the swamp behind them. Once they finally felt they had gotten far enough away, they slowed their pace to a regular running speed as opposed to a full sprint.

Orin's breath was quick. "We must've lost those things by now."

Kurapika frowned. "I hope so. But, more importantly, we've completely lost track of everyone else."

"Damnit. Which way do we go?" Leorio asked.

"No, we are not lost yet. There are tracks here. Other applicants must have passed through this area." Tenulan pointed to the shallow imprints of boots in the mud.

Leorio looked around him as they ran, desperate to find any other signs of a path. He mumbled, "Who's to say the tracks aren't a trick. Damn swamp…"

Orin also looked around, trying to make anything out through the fog. The boy kept looking until he ran into Leorio's outstretched arm. What the hell, Leorio?

"Stop!" He whispered to the other three with gritted teeth. He pointed into the fog. "Look over there!"

Standing in a clearing just ahead of them was the silhouette of a tall applicant with hair gelled back. A silhouette that Orin recognized from right before the Exam started.

Hisoka.

Shit. Orin froze as he stared at the clown. What's he doing here? The boy then noticed the shapes of a handful of other applicants surrounding the man. Orin counted ten, nine of which had weapons drawn on Hisoka, and all in blue uniform-like outfits. Despite that, the clown stood calmly.

Orin and the other three applicants stood silently as they watched the scene before them unfold. Who're all these guys?

"I've been thinking since last year," The tenth applicant, the one without a weapon drawn, said with crossed arms. He had mostly short black hair, except for the hair on the back of his head, which was tied into a ponytail. "A person like you isn't fit to become a Hunter."

A bald man with darker skin stepped forward, a staff held in front of him. "We'll spare your life if you swear to never take the Hunter Exam again."

"That's fine," Hisoka replied casually. "I'm going to pass this year anyway, so I won't be returning."

"Oh yeah?" The first man retorted. Orin figured that man was the leader of the small group, since he stood back a few feet farther from Hisoka than the rest. He must've been trying to avoid any danger. "Don't be stupid. Just look at this fog. There's no way you'd be able to find the main pack through all this."

"You're just like us, eliminated because we couldn't keep up," A man with nunchucks added.

Hisoka laughed with his eyes closed. It was high pitched and sinister. "So, you guys failed and now want to play examiner? Hunters require prey, so why don't I play examiner instead? You all claim to be Hunter material," He opened his yellow eyes to stare down the leader. "But I'll be the judge."

Hisoka held up a card between his thumb and pointer finger, showing it to the leader. The man gritted his teeth before yelling, "Enough talking!"

The nine other men all closed in on the clown, who looked around him with a bored expression. Then, with an arm outstretched, Hisoka quickly spun around. It was so fast that Orin could barely make out the movement. A second later, the clown flipped the card around in his hand, shaking something off of it. Then the nine men surrounding him crumpled to the ground.

Wha-? Huh? Shit, are they dead? The leader had completely lost his composure as he stepped back. His breath was uneven, and his eyes were threatening to pop out of his skull. Hisoka slowly turned to the last man standing. "Now then…"

The man in blue fell on his rear as his legs gave out. Panicking, he began to crawl away from the clown. He grunted in desperation as Hisoka took a casual step towards him, then another.

"H-help!" The man pleaded into the fog as Hisoka drew near. "Hel—"

His voice was cut off abruptly as Hisoka's card embedded itself in the back of his head. He fell to the ground face first. It was at this moment that Orin noticed that the surrounding swamp had become entirely silent. Before, there was a constant buzz in the air from creatures out of sight, but now there was nothing. Not even a breeze to rustle the trees.

Orin's eyes were wide. Shit! He had just witnessed Hisoka murder ten people without a care in the world. He was frozen in place as Hisoka calmly retrieved his playing card from the dead leader's head with a soft tug. Kurapika, Leorio, and Tenulan were standing with similar expressions plastered on their faces. Okay! I've seen enough! Let's get the hell out of here! Orin took a tentative step behind him.

"Well?" Hisoka's voice stopped the boy in his tracks. The clown's voice was barely more than a whisper, but it easily cut through the silence to the other applicants. "How about you four? Care to play examiner?"


Yes, I'm ending the chapter here. Yes, that means this is a shorter chapter. Anyways…

Hi, It's Glaive, the author! Thanks for reading!

There are two reasons why I chose to end the chapter where I did. First, it's just such a good point to end a chapter on. A great cliffhanger. Second, I ended the chapter early so that I can post it sooner.

And I want to post this because I want to let you all know that I won't be updating this as frequently, if at all, for the foreseeable future. I'm anticipating that the ol' life train will pick up pretty soon for me, and when I do have free time, I've gotten back into a different project I had sidelined for a while (read: over a year).

No, I won't tell you what it is. Just know that it's a story completely unrelated to this one. It's one I really want to finish, and so I want to focus on that until it's done. I don't have a timeline for how long it'll take, but one can only hope that it is less than, say, a couple of years. Not a dig at Togashi, by the way. It's a dig at myself.

By the way, big thanks to those of you who've favorited/followed this. It's always nice to know other people appreciate what you're making. And with that, I take my leave!

"See you next time!" - Dolce Kamiya, Yakuza 0