Control

Emerging from the shadows, it was clearly an Emission-type Nen ability with spatial properties.

However, the intermediary had no knowledge of Nen abilities, so he died without understanding how the opponent managed it.

Only at the last moment of his life, with some remaining insight, did he recognize the opponent's origin and identity from their attire—

A ninja!

But there was something slightly different, or rather, incongruous.

A ninja using a katana?

The intermediary's confusion was buried in darkness along with his death.

Seeing their boss suddenly killed, the subordinates in the room were stunned for a moment before angrily drawing their guns.

Unfortunately, in the face of a Nen user, even with a gun in each hand, they were utterly incapable of avenging their boss.

A few minutes later.

The slaughter ended, with over a dozen bodies lying on the ground and numerous shell casings scattered about.

From beginning to end, the Scarred Man sat in his original position, indifferently watching his subordinates kill everyone the intermediary had brought.

During this time, many bullets were fired at his body, but they were all blocked by his Enhancer defenses.

Amidst the corpses littering the ground, the heavily armored ninja flicked his wrist, shaking the blood off his blade.

He looked at the Senra in the Scarred Man's hand and asked, "Leader, Senra's 'Nen intent' has disappeared. Does that mean..."

"Yes."

Seemingly knowing what his subordinate wanted to ask, the Scarred Man interrupted him. "Without Nen intent, it's impossible to perform Spirit Communication through it. However..."

At this point, the Scarred Man paused, thinking of the Onmyoji gentleman who possessed 'Spirit Communication Power'.

Even though he knew the other party's abilities were unfathomably mysterious, even the most skilled cook cannot make a meal without ingredients.

The prerequisite for Spirit Communication is Nen intent attached to an object. Without Nen intent, there's no way to begin.

The Scarred Man shook his head, picked up Senra, and walked over the bodies.

"No need to worry, the 'Key' we can find... is not the only one."

Approaching the ninja, the Scarred Man's gaze was as unyielding as stone.

Sensing the Scarred Man's gaze, the ninja couldn't help but lower his head, saying with shame, "My apologies, I lost my composure."

The Scarred Man slowly withdrew his gaze and then looked back at Senra in his hand.

His original intention was to take Senra back to his country first, but he couldn't help but be curious about how the Nen intent on the blade had disappeared.

It would be best to figure it out...

Perhaps there was a possibility of restoring the Nen intent. If not, at the very least, if he could obtain the method used to dispel Nen intent, he could use it to weaken the ninjas of the 'Kumogakure Style'.

And also the still missing national treasure of Ryuuou Country, the Dream Scroll...

That damned 'Inheritance' mechanism prevented them from getting their hands on it.

If that's the case, perhaps there will be an opportunity to destroy it in the future.

But the prerequisite is to understand the truth behind the disappearance of the Nen intent...

"Kawahara."

The Scarred Man's thoughts turned, and he suddenly looked at his subordinate.

Kawahara immediately met the Scarred Man's gaze.

The Scarred Man said gravely, "You don't need to return to the country. I want you to do something..."

Upon hearing this, Kawahara's eyes lit up with enthusiasm.

Executing missions was everything in his life, an irreplaceable meaning.

A home invasion robbery case brought many of the wealthy man's collectibles to light, and they were gradually entering the market.

The Famous Sword Senra was merely one of those collectibles.

If it was special, besides the conspicuous Nen attached to it, the other reason would be the inherent risk that came with Senra changing hands.

Moro remembered it very clearly...

A colleague who mentioned Senra to him had once said that Senra might be attached to some kind of curse.

When mentioning this, the colleague's tone was as if joking, or perhaps jealous of the high transaction price.

Now—

Moro largely agreed with that statement.

It wasn't a curse, but rather the inherent risk that Senra possessed.

Moro had been mentally prepared from the beginning.

But the reason he wanted to sell Senra as quickly as possible was that he didn't want to become a focal point himself.

For this reason, he didn't mind a reduced profit, and would even agree to have the selling price cut in half.

His attitude, in turn, shifted the risk onto the intermediary boss.

"What a shame..."

Upon learning that the intermediary boss had been double-crossed, Moro offered a moment of silence.

He had been planning to have the items he found handled by the intermediary boss in the future, but alas, life is unpredictable.

However, regarding the matter of being double-crossed, in this world...

Or rather, within the sphere of influence of the business industry in Yorknew City, double-crossings were actually not uncommon.

Moro himself had nearly died in a so-called double-crossing before he even learned Nen.

After he learned Nen, similar situations became less frequent.

These experiences not only gave Moro a deeper understanding of this world but also made him realize that to survive in it, Nen abilities were an indispensable asset.

After his silent tribute to the intermediary boss, Moro continued with his daily training.

With his upgraded abilities as a safety net, Moro focused his attention on consolidating his fundamentals.

The highest priority, naturally, was the mastery of "Hatsu."

This determined the overall effectiveness of his Nen abilities.

"Deceptive Flying Stars"

Moro raised his palm, and bright Nen gathered within it, then, after a second, condensed and shot out a fluorescent green Nen Bullet the size of a lead ball.

A trajectory suddenly streaked across the air.

At the end of the trajectory, a standing target shattered with a roar.

Moro watched the shattered pieces scatter and slowly let out a breath.

"Too slow..."

"Power and speed still can't be balanced."

"Perhaps it will improve once my 'Hatsu' level is higher."

"For now... I should solidify my foundation. Once I'm ready, I'll consider practicing 'In' techniques."

During his break, Moro pondered his upcoming training plan.

Deceptive Flying Stars wasn't a purely offensive ability; it also possessed a certain degree of mechanics.

Theoretically, the essence of Flying Stars leaned more towards mechanics.

As its name suggested, it carried an element of deception.

Therefore, instead of focusing on power, it would be better to consider its application methods.

For instance, while maintaining speed, increase the stable and controllable quantity of Flying Stars, and then use "In" techniques to conceal their attack trajectory.

However, these ideas were still too far off for Moro at the moment.

But with the sword of Damocles hanging over his head, he knew he had to put more effort into this aspect.

After his break, Moro continued his training.

Before his fundamentals were solid, it was practically impossible to learn advanced Nen techniques in a short period.

However, in terms of application methods, there was one ability he absolutely had to master.

With a thought, Moro extended his palm and shot a Flying Star into the air in front of him, setting a one-second delay.

Then, without watching its trajectory, he immediately closed his eyes.

In mid-air, the fluorescent green Flying Star reached its maximum range and, like a stretched rubber band snapping back, shot back towards Moro at an even faster speed.

At this moment.

Moro's eyes were shut tight, and the Flying Star was aimed directly at his face.

Just as the Flying Star was about to hit his face—

Moro, relying on his sensitivity to the timing of the Flying Star, suddenly turned his head.

Whoosh!

The Flying Star whizzed past his eyelashes.

Moro slowly opened his eyes.

He could accurately track the Flying Star's movement without seeing it.

This was one of his training directions.

In the end, would it be achieved through feeling or by calculating the timing?

It didn't matter.

As long as he could minimize the error rate...

This technique would then become a crucial link in his "tactics."