Even though they lost the first time, they needed to come up with some countermeasures… or at least a better group.
The group stood outside, looking up at the building. They had two options standing before them, to recruit better, stronger players or make a plan to circumvent the pirate's abilities. It'll be extremely difficult, but possible.
But given how Kazsule and the others took their loss, they might not be up for another ass beating.
"Why do you guys look like your puppy got murdered? I've whooped your ass plenty of times, across multiple towns… and you were never this miserable."
Kazsule frowned. It's not a matter of what Raphael managed to do to them across town, it's the fact that this quest wasn't possible. Difficulty aside, they can't reapply to the same quest, not without dropping someone.
They doubt picking up a random stranger, re-teleporting back to the town will reset the quest. They will need to drop a team member…
Since everyone would want their whole team to stay for an advantage, nobody will be willing to quit. They'll be back to square one "We can't re-apply without dropping someone. Which, I doubt any team will be willing to make a sacrifice… and hiring someone else, would make them want a piece of the reward too."
Raphael offered a smirk towards the other teams. That would become a problem, but since everyone is aware of what's to come, they should be hyper aware of Nen abilities being fired off without a warning.
If they pay attention to those details, getting eight points shouldn't be an issue. "This is going to be difficult, but it's still possible. We just need a plan and a little switch up. That's easy. Besides, there's plenty of people back at Masadora, who'd want a chance of running away from this game while Genthru is running about."
"Possible…?" Asta found herself glaring at the boy, "You lost on purpose. You didn't even bother trying to get a point. You even had the perfect ability for that fight, yet you threw away your chance."
"Because my ability is a one-trick pony. We were walking into that building completely unprepared to deal with Nen play-monsters. Now I know most of you avoided the more difficult farming areas, the areas that would've prepared you to deal with fights like these. So now we have to come at this fight from a different angle."
Killua found that slip up peculiar. Raphael was about to say players, but switched to monsters. He should push for those details later.
Since Raphael teased them so readily, she was going to have a go at their team. "I bet your team knew they were weak, that's why they threw their matches…"
When Gon opened his mouth to object, Raphael was wagging a finger behind his back. He didn't want them to give away their reasoning. If the pirates knew their true strength, they wouldn't hold back during the next fight, making it a more difficult point to secure.
"We can beat them, if we come at this from a different angle."
"What does it even matter…" The woman crossed her arms. After dealing with the teen on multiple occasions, she knew he was hiding something. But even if he did tell them the truth, it's not like as a team, they'll be able to win. "It's not like, even with a little bit of planning, we could beat those monsters."
"Aww, you're giving up. You're usually a glutton for punishment."
Asta looked at the teen, frowning from the accusation. He, of all people, should've known better. Getting #2 is impossible, "Genthru has no chance of getting the card, he has threatened way too many people to be able to scrounge up enough victims to beat those pirates. And that's fine by me. Give up. There's not enough players on this entire island that could beat those pirates. We fought long enough to figure out their abilities… while you threw away your matches."
You mean for us to figure out their abilities… you didn't even see them. He thought to himself. There was no point pouring salt on the group's wounds, "I see… your criticisms are valid, but we refuse to give up." She saw no potential in any of them.
Kazsule and the others turned away, walking from the group.
Then an idea occurred to Raphael, "You know… you're right to a degree, Asta."
"About what?" She turned to the boy, questioning his call-out as the other teams left. Now it was just them, Goreinu and Raphael's team.
"There's no way we can get enough players to beat all fifteen. But we only need to score eight points, right?"
"He did… So what? It's not like anyone on your team could score a point."
Killua pulled Raphael in, "What are you doing? Drop the noob. We'll find the rest of the players to make up the numbers on our own."
"We still need players to make up the fifteen. Trust me…"
"Fine…" As much as he hated the idea of letting Asta continue to follow them around, especially a player so weak… they did need the numbers.
"First, I want your honest answer." Raphael turned to face the older woman once more, expecting an answer from her, "Why did you suggest my name to Kazsule?"
"Huh?" She was mortified by the teen's question. He had no reason to ask her. If anything, she didn't really want to give him an answer… nor did she want him to know about that. But if she was going to continue working with him, she needed to tell him the truth, "Fine. It's because I thought if anyone had a chance to get this card, it was you. But I see I was wrong to put my trust in you. You gave up so easily…"
"I did…" He gave a small smile, "But, I didn't get the Secret Cape on the first try either. I attempted it two times. Not all cards are meant to be gotten on the first try. Sometimes it takes a few attempts. You of all people should know that."
Asta scoffed, now crossing her arms at the accusation. She knows not all cards are possible to get on the first try. But she saw the pirates. They weren't normal… They were going to be impossible to beat. "Just give up. Genthru has no chance, and that is all that matters. He won't be getting this card…"
"Help us make up the fifteen, and I'll make it worth your while."
"Oh, you'll give us a card just for participating?"
"No." When the woman frowned, he waved off her expression, "There's a possibility that it's a three card maximum."
"Then what could you possibly offer us in return?"
"A cut of the reward money."
"What is wrong with you?" Killua grabbed Raphael's shoulder "If we beat this game, that's a cut of our money, for just participating? It's not worth-"
"Then a cut of my cut."
"Huh?" Killua was baffled. So if they refused to give them any money, Raphael was willing to sacrifice some of his cut?
"I can't deny that there were things that you knew about, that I didn't. Besides, if you hadn't suggested me to Kazsule, I would've never figured out we needed at least fifteen players to start the quest. You help us make the fifteen, I'll give you a cut from my side of the deal."
"Are you an idiot? We could've offered a couple of desperate players Leave cards to make up for the rest of the group."
"Killua, you may not trust her… but I trust my peers, no matter how many times they tried to rob me." The teen offered a smile at the woman, "It's better to have someone besides myself, who knows their way around the cards. Especially, when they have multiple Restricted card slots."
"Thanks…" Asta looked away, "I guess. Then you should get Kazsule in too. He's a decent player. Screw the other groups though…" She unfolded her arms to look directly into the boy's eyes, challenged him into a little banter, "They got beaten so easily, whereas Kazsule and I at least lasted in our fight.
"No, I'm extending this offer to only you, since you helped me more than he did." While it's true, in terms of strength, when it comes to pitting Kazsule to her, she'd lose easily. But what Asta lacks in strength, she makes up for it in information gathering. She offered way more than that man could scrounge up.
She also led multiple attacks on him, with multiple teams, all with their own agendas in place. That must have taken some serious convincing, given his skills.
They also did it in a way to block him off in the alleyways. So it was a planned attack, and not some ragtag random team up.
"Alright, I'll team up with you. But it better be a good deal of Jenny, and not a mere pittance."
"Deal! Any objections?"
Gon shook his head, "Since it's Raphael's offer, I think it'll be good to have assistance with spell casting. Killua?"
"Whatever. As long as it's not our cut, I'll be happy."
Gon turned to the other man, "Goreinu?"
"I just want one of the cards. And it's in our best interest that we obtain this card."
"I agree!" Killua muttered out loud, smirking at the older woman, "Something you were willing to gloss over, Asta."
"Whatever…"
"Since we need at least fifteen people to participate. Even with Clone, we most likely can only obtain three copies of Patch of Shore. This event would be designed to incite fighting. Isn't that right…" Killua offered a sly grin at the only two players who knew what was up, "Raphael and Goreinu?"
Asta scoffed in annoyance. She should've seen that coming. She was merely hoping that, like Blue Planet, there would be a five card limit. Whoever's team lacked in securing points, should've been left out from gaining a copy.
"Infighting, certainly, but that leaves us with one huge problem. We need at least three more players to secure those eight points. I know of a team who could get those points… Tsezguerra."
"We also know someone, Chrollo. Well, since we know it's not Chrollo… it's likely someone who at least knows him. They could help us secure a point."
Goreinu hummed at the options. Tseaguerra did hire them, so surely he must be stronger than the average person he hired. But he did hire a lot of weaklings, so maybe he's not as strong as he's letting on, "How many are there in Tsezguerra's team?"
"At least four. The problem is with Chrollo, and any allies he may have. Do you trust them?"
"Not really…" Killua hummed to himself, "If it's members of the Phantom Troupe, we aren't exactly on friendly terms. Also, Kurapika says they're a fake. I highly doubt it's an actual member of the group, they'll probably feel like it's sacrilege to take his name and persona."
"Then who could it be?"
"Would the members want anything from this game?"
Killua thought long and hard, "I think so. If they won, they could technically steal Angel's Breath. That could cure Chrollo… but there's this whole issue with the members being unable to see Chrollo due to his Judgement Chain, so I doubt they would be here for that…"
"But if they were here to beat the game, why wouldn't they use their actual name?"
Killua frowned. That would also be true. If they intended to beat the game, surely they would've found the other members. However, none of the other Phantom Troupe members were on Gon or Raphael's list.
"Hm…." Raphael thought about it for a bit, before looking up at Goreinu, "There is one way to tell. You or Asta wouldn't happen to have a Sight Vision on you?"
"Sight Vision?"
The teen gave a nod, "Yes, Gon. It's a way to find out how many cards are in their binders. If they have Restricted cards, they're here to beat the game, which probably means we should avoid them."
"Well, I don't have Sight Vision…" Asta frowned, now looking at Goreinu "Do you have one?"
The man smiled, pulling out a card from his book "I do…"
The eight frowned as they looked at the player's journal. He had nothing… no Jenny… just a bunch of meals.
"Is this guy even trying…?" Killua pouted. This couldn't be a member of the Troupe. They would have way more than this, especially if they were trying to beat the game, "Food and Water… What is he trying to do? Wait until the game is almost beaten to do anything? Not even an Accompany or Return card? This makes his book completely useless."
"Or informative…" Raphael pondered the situation. It's impossible to completely hide certain cards from the system. Since it's not reporting Chrollo has any Restricted cards, and he doesn't have any Spell cards, he's not playing the game to beat it.
He's here for other reasons… but what though?
"If Chrollo is not here to beat the game, and he has no cards we should be worried about. It should be fine to take a peek, at least to see who they are…"
Killua was still a little apprehensive, given their last encounter with the Troupe. But unless they speak to or see who Chrollo is, for themselves, it'll remain as an enigmatic situation.
"Fine, let's deal with this person… at least to see who they are?"
"Why not invite them as well? If they're as strong as you say they are, they could be beneficial to the team."
While Goreinu makes a decent point, he says it like he has no idea who the Phantom Troupe are. But he supposes he probably doesn't know what… the Phantom Troupe are capable of.
"If they are a member of the group, we should just ask questions."
"Dude, they are using the leader's name. Of course, they're gonna be a member or at least know of them. What's the chances of TWO Chrollo Lucilfers existing in this world?"
"Yeah, but we should be finding out why they're here!"
"Are you an idiot!" Killua started to yell in Gon's face, "What makes you think, you can just walk up to them and be like-" Killua changed his temperament, acting like Gon would casually do in this conversation "Phantom Troupe member, what are you doing on Greed Island?" He changed character, immediately starting to yell in his friend's face, "And get a response like you just hadn't just helped your friend ruin, their chances of ever meeting their boss or seeing their friend because she committed suicide, just so she could bring the Phantom Troupe up to speed on why they can never meet Chrollo again! They aren't telling us shit!"
"So what if I'm an idiot?" Gon fired back, "That's still not going to stop me from asking!"
"Fine then…" Killua turned away, "Then ask your dumb question! I hope you're met with stunned silence, just so you can see how dumb that question actually is!"
"And I hope they answer, just so I can see how dumb you look when they admit their plans!"
The group could only stare at them during this argument, completely stunned by their friendship.
They were bickering like an old married couple, wanting to prove to each other how dumb the other sounded to them.
Goreinu eventually turned to Bisky and Raphael, wondering if this fight was going to completely destroy the group.
"This is absolutely normal for them." Bisky offered a sweet and innocent smile.
Raphael sighed in defeat, "This is a disaster waiting to happen…"
Asta had enough. They're acting like toddlers "Stop wasting time!" The woman pulled out her book, "Here's an Accompany card. I trust that your argument hasn't made you forget how to use one."
"Drop the sass, woman!" Killua passed the card to Gon, "We wouldn't want you to fall off your pedestal, and hurt your ego on the way down…"
As she ground her teeth together, Gon could only smile apologetically, "Sorry about that. Accompany on, Chrollo Lucilfer!"
"~"
The group of eight leaned low in the foggy location, unable to see Chrollo in the mist. It was the perfect place for a trap which they easily fell for, if that was the case. But there were no movements, except for the calm sound of slightly shifting waters.
Raphael felt like he should've known this place…
It felt familiar, probably somewhere north of Bunzen… possibly even somewhere east of Aiai too, since both areas had familiar surroundings.
Raphael opened his mouth. Ready to question the situation. But Killua held a finger to his lips, pointing towards the silhouette in the mist. The person wasn't moving towards them, which was strange since the whistling and their landing should've alerted them.
What was going on?
As the mist started to clear ever so slowly, Raphael started to recognise the figure. Although, he vaguely remembers them having blue hair… not pinkish-red.
It was Hisoka, the guy that failed the exam the same year he went "Wait, it can't be…" Raphael let out an irritated click of his tongue, "Oh great. It's this fucking…" The teen pauses once he realises the man was naked, "Guy…?"
"Wait, you KNOW HISOKA?!"
At the sound of his own name being called, Hisoka turns to face the intruders invading his private time. At first, he didn't recognise the first voice, just considering it to be just another weak peeping tom observing him. But his name being called, now that's a voice he wouldn't mistake. That one jogged his memory. He'd never forget that voice…
"My… My…" Hisoka's eyes fell onto the two boys' faces, recognising them immediately. He stood proudly, uncaring of the others who surrounded them, "I never expected to have some peeping toms, especially ones so young." He turned to face the group, completely naked, "What brings you here?"
By now they could clearly see he was naked, not even a towel to give him any decency.
Amana covered her eyes, completely flustered with the imagery before her eyes, while Asta, alongside Manheim and Goreinu were unable to look away. They were just completely caught off guard by the situation.
Poor Killua and Gon were greeted to the full view of Hisoka's naked form, his leering gaze only focused on them.
The man tested the waters, flooding the area with a gentle test of Ren. The moment he did that, Gon and Killua's protection were up. Two of the eight threw up their Ten on instinct. He savoured the moment, smiling at their growth, "Oh, how wonderful…" They have certainly matured…
Hisoka stifled a moan, the fruits before him budding wonderfully. His member bopped, belching out a glob of pre. He just had a mind-blowing orgasm in front of a bunch of strangers, but to be fair, those boys' growth paled in comparison to the last time they met.
And it only had been a couple of months. Within a couple of years, at this rate, he'll be sinking his teeth into the juiciest fruits, and he could only imagine what they'd taste like.
He felt aroused, his groin hardening from the attention, "How you, fruits have ripened over the months…"
Then the man's eyes found a third protection go up, his eyes squinting at the figure behind them. Another boy, one he hadn't recognised. But this one… he was staring right at him, at a peculiar spot on his body. He found himself licking his lips in anticipation. There was a peeping tom, two of them to be exact. And who are you?
Raphael's eyes remained glued to Hisoka's lower region, the shaft bopping rapidly, remaining rigid, throughout the situation. The teen was horrified at the action.
He stared at it for far longer than he anticipated, questioning everything about the situation in his head.
Why was the man naked in a pond?
Why did he have a raging boner while people were looking at him…?
And most importantly, why did he look so handsome with his hair down? He could remember the man having his hair up, looking so creepy as he did his magic tricks.
But now that his hair was down, he was… kind of beautiful?
Bisky on the other hand, was taking in the eye candy, enjoying her treat.
Raphael slowly reached over to cover Gon's eyes, covering the poor boy's eyes. He shouldn't be forced to hold the gaze of a man who was clearly getting off on the thought of having voyeuristic watchers.
Gon did the same for his friend, covering Killua's eyes too. He shouldn't have to witness Hisoka's weirdness.
When Killua's eyes were covered, he saw that Raphael couldn't stop gawking in surprise. Since he was covering Gon's eyes, and Gon was covering his, he might as well help the poor boy who was stuck staring at the man's junk.
He reached over to cover Raphael's eyes.
The trio had effectively become the trifecta of see no evil.
Raphael felt like he could finally breathe once more, he never expected to have his eyes just zero in on another man's junk. But to be fair, he was caught off guard by another player out in the middle of nowhere, bathing.
But a question did linger on his mind. Why was he openly staring at another person's junk, a man no less? Let alone get enraptured by his looks.
He didn't have time to ponder the situation, not with that freak in the vicinity oozing intrigue, especially in his direction. It's probably not only due to them covering each other's eyes, there was also the fact that both of the boys know Hisoka by name.
"I wonder…" Hisoka's eyes fell on the first adult, the taller man in the purple vest. Are you their teacher…? His gaze lingered for a second, causing the man to become uncomfortable. No… Moving his gaze, he looked towards the young lady ogling him. Maybe… When she turned away, acting all embarrassed, his smile faltered a little. Can she really be their teacher?
The man redirected his eyes to another man. Definitely not! Not the young lady covering her eyes, either… Moving his eyes one last time, he took in the woman glaring right at him. She was ready to throw hands with him at a moment's notice, "So disappointing…" He looked away, annoyed that the only one ready to throw hands with him was the weakest of the group.
"HEY! Take that back you naked clown!"
Hisoka Held a finger up, ignoring the woman's aggression to instead focus on addressing the third boy, the one a little older than the others "You, I don't recognise…"
Asta's eye twitched in annoyance, a vein bulging from being completely ignored by the perverted clown, "For fuck's sake!" She blew up once more, addressing the massive elephant trunk in the middle of the forest, "Why are you naked?"
"I was having a bath…" Hisoka casually remarked, a pout now etched across his face, "I don't know many people who bathe with their clothes on."
Raphael finally built up the courage to address the situation, only for his voice to betray him, cracking during his question "In t-the middle of no-nowhere?"
"It's cheap and I don't have much on me, unfortunately. Maybe you could lend me some Jenny for a more…" Hisoka flicked his eyes across the teens, "Intimate space?"
Raphael looked to Bisky, hoping she'd intervene, but she was once again staring at the man's junk too. At least he wasn't the odd one out. Although, he was still disgusted with himself for thinking Hisoka was handsome.
But they needed an out.
They needed to get away from this perverted freak of nature. They needed to at least get the man to dress himself for the company he has "Just… please." He was getting a vague feeling like he was nothing more than a piece of meat to devour, "Put on some clothes."
Hisoka's gaze bore into the teen. Even with his face still hidden, he does have an exquisite level of aura.
It was comparable to the other two fruits he's been keeping his eyes on, but he doesn't know why he has a vague sense of familiarity. Even the kid talks like he knows what he's capable of.
Given that he refuses to look, he's not going to figure out much about the kid. He'll just have to pry for more details later. "What a shame…" He sauntered off, hiding behind a tree to dress himself from the ever-watchful eyes of the others.
"So, what brings my favourite lovely little peeping toms to my private time?" Aura engulfed his hand, the man running his fingers through his hair. With a smile, he looked directly at Gon and Killua, "Or should I say, Chrollo?"
"We were just making sure you weren't Chrollo."
Hisoka felt like he got punched in the gut, "That's it…" Gon's lack of filter never ceases to amaze him. It can't just be for confirmation. There must be other stuff as well, "Surely there's more than that."
"I do have one question…" Gon had opened his mouth to bring up a question, Hisoka's eyes lit up, expecting some kind of profound, invasive question to be blurted out of the boy's mouth. But a firm slap across Gon's mouth kept him quiet, denying Hisoka of any relief to his boredom.
"Do not say anything…" Raphael uttered carefully to the boy. Since they know him as well, they should be careful about the man who got a raging stiffy from a Ren challenge.
He's a perverted clown, no matter how handsome he looks without all that makeup on.
Gon pushed the hand away, "But I wanna know what he's doing here?"
"I'm looking for Chrollo…"
"You need aura and a copy of the game to enter here. Last time we checked… he couldn't use Nen." Killua fired back with a sly smirk, catching the man in an obvious lie.
"Well, there are ways to remove Kurapika's Nen from him."
"You can purge it?"
"Not me…" Hisoka let his aura dangle from his fingertip, "My aura has the property of both rubber and gum…" His eyes flicked towards Gon's, "Not exorcisms. But since you said purge, others must have already told you about that. And since you already know, that makes this easier. I'm hoping to find Chrollo, to give him that information, but I can't find him."
"Did you try calling him?"
"I would…" Hisoka pulled out his phone, "but there's no reception here. But, I do remember hearing about some of the spiders being interested in this game. If I find them… maybe I can find out where Chrollo is hiding. And by choosing his name, they… would come to me."
"I get that…" Killua found the situation a little questionable, "But Kurapika made sure none of the spiders could see him."
"Tsk, tsk, little Killua…" Hisoka teased, "Just because you can't see someone, doesn't mean… they don't know how to find you." The man let his eyes linger on the boy's, "Just like a certain brother we know."
Killua froze to the spot. Illumi… of course Hisoka of all people, would know if Illumi is out there, still looking for him. He let out an irritated click of his tongue.
"Alright, so we established the…" Raphael gave the man a look over, the new hairstyle making the hairs on the back of his neck crawl with disgust "clown is looking for a dead end, I say we go… far away from him."
"Why so soon?" Hisoka pointed a finger at the boys, his hip resting to one side, "I want a turn for a question too… especially after being interrogated. You didn't come here just to ask me about Chrollo, did you?"
"Nope, that's it." Hisoka felt like he got slapped across the face, deflating from the situation. He thought they'd leave the area so soon after destroying any hopes of having some fun. But a meek girl's voice gave him hope.
"Um…" Everyone's eyes drifted to Bisky, the woman acting like an innocent child. "Actually, we're looking for people who are really strong. Won't you please join us?"
The forest got deadly silent, everyone now glaring at Bisky… Everyone, except for the clown looking for fun.
"I would love to…"
"No…" Raphael screamed at the woman, "NO! Please, God no! Please…" When she continued to smile, he knew their fates were sealed. No matter what they say, she was going to force them to accept his help, whether they like it or not.
There was no escape from this perverted clown.
"So, why are you looking for strong people?"
There was no escape for any of them. Whether they like it or not, Hisoka was now a part of their team.
A/N: Leave a review, it helps inspire me.