A Contest

Since they can't rely on the Hunter Association, Oboro has no choice but to find a solution on his own.

Assassinate the king?

No... Although East Gorteau is a small country, the king must be surrounded by many Nen user. Like the Enhancement user in the beast tide in the town before, his strength is remarkable! There can't be just one such expert... especially since he is in the king's palace.

Even if Oboro could do it alone, whether he could escape safely was another question... Furthermore, East Gorteau is a closed country, and there shouldn't be many people entering the country recently... Their entry records are still there, and if they are exposed... Even if the mission is completed, they will inevitably be harassed by V5.

This is the most annoying thing about having an identity and a stance.

So... no matter how you look at it, getting rid of the Botswa Tribe is the better option...

"Have you made a decision?" Hisoka asked with a smile as he sat to the side.

"Botswa Tribe".

Oboro provided the answer.

He then left Dangrui and the other two at the base.

The four of them used their Nen to secretly re-enter the country and headed towards the Sawtooth Mountains.

A week later, a four-person team led by Oboro stood at the foot of a vast and majestic mountain. As far as the eye could see, there were steep cliffs and dense forests. However, behind them, on the ground, lay piles of white bones...

They were weathered corpses, some of them wild animals... and some of them human.

In just a few days, the battlefield expanded again... The small town where they had previously stopped was now a desolate burial ground, bearing the marks of the war's end, a scene of utter devastation. They saw no more troops from East Gorteau along the way...

"Stay close to me and don't break formation... If you spot any parasites, conceal your presence to avoid being detected... Although these inanimate objects are imbued with Nen, they are controlled by insects. These things don't have a complete mind and their senses are relatively weak..." Oboro was mainly speaking to Kaji and Lance.

"We came here for the Botswa Tribe. If our presence is leaked... we will be targeted by some kind of rule."

"Clear."

The two nodded.

Immediately, the four of them turned into black shadows and disappeared from the spot.

High in the mountains, Oboro took the lead, swiftly weaving through the canopy of trees, with Hisoka behind him, while Kaji and Lance flanked him, keeping a distance of less than ten meters.

Oboro and Hisoka were intentionally slowing down, otherwise it would be difficult for Kaji and Lance to keep up.

"Did you mark it?"

Oboro looked at Kaji.

"I did it."

Kaji landed on a tree trunk, nodded, and pressed one hand against a piece of bark.

As the thought was conceived, the bark of the tree split open, turning into an eye, which then closed again.

This is Kaji's Nen, 'Patch'! It allows him to create his own sensory system on objects, but the number and range are limited, though it is very useful for surveillance and reconnaissance.

Seeing this, Long nodded, and the team continued on their way.

Compared to the ground, using tree branches as footholds high in the air is undoubtedly safer...

A moment later, they reached the edge of the forest, where a flat expanse of land lay before them.

The Sawtooth Mountains are a vast area with diverse terrains... Once they lose the cover of vegetation, their figures will be completely exposed to the sunlight and easily spotted.

Long stood in the shade of the tree, extending a hand to signal the three not to make any rash moves.

He lifted his eyelids and, through the gaps in the trees above, could see several birds circling in the air... The birds' postures were somewhat strange; their wing flapping movements had a noticeable pause, as if they might fall to the ground at any moment, like broken toys.

But it still maintained the most basic flight path...

"There are some parasites nearby, but not many... and they don't seem to be clustering together." Oboro turned to look at Kaji, who was using his Nen. He closed his eyes, then opened them and whispered.

"These birds must be the defensive line set up by the Botswa Tribe ... All insects are of the same origin, so there must be some kind of connection between them. Once we show our faces, they will know."

Long explained.

Then he looked at Lance and said, "Go and lure them away."

Upon hearing the sound, Lance strode out of the woods, then unleashed his Nen, using his legs to create a deep crater in the soil before speeding away like a cannonball.

The birds in the sky spotted him immediately, making strange cries as they swooped down towards him.

Lance's Nen is 'Time Trade'.

To put it simply, from his current timeline, he can borrow the energy or physical attributes of his 'future self' to temporarily boost his own strength. Each time he activates his Nen, he becomes Exhaust during the 'borrowed time period'.

The ratio of present to future time is three to one.

It is a means to unleash the greatest potential in times of crisis.

Similarly, the drawbacks are also obvious.

After a short while, confirming that there were no other distractions, Oboro and Hisoka continued their rapid journey across the surface... After passing through this flat area, they came to a towering cliff, a dead end. With their abilities, the three of them could easily climb to the top.

However, on that cliff top stood hundreds of parasites... The Botswa Tribe used these parasites to create a physical wall to protect their settlement!

This also means that... they are not far from the Botswa Tribe's homeland.

"Move back!" Long said coldly.

Kaji wisely stepped back, giving the two people in front of him some space.

"Want to have a contest?" Hisoka asked, glancing sideways at Oboro.

He's looking for fun...

To Kaji, the restless Nen energy emanating from their bodies resembled two raging, powerful flames...

Even the grass beneath their feet was affected by the energy, rippling outwards from the two of them.

Without a word, Long bent his knees and leaped up dozens of meters in an instant. After jumping several times on the rocky surface of the cliff, he flipped to the top of the cliff and rushed into a group of parasites. He moved his arms and legs wildly and his moves were fierce. Blood and bits of flesh began to splatter in the riotous wild animals.

"Oh..."

Hisoka chuckled softly upon seeing this.

He followed closely behind and jumped onto the cliff top. The cards in his hand, combined with his posture, made him look like a dancer performing freely in the midst of slaughter... very elegant, yet with the same bloodthirstiness and brutality as Captain Oboro.

Oboro is purely destructive; his fists and feet are incredibly powerful.

Hisoka was cutting... dismembering! Standing below, Kaji's throat bobbed... He was facing a group of parasites head-on, and especially after learning about these parasites, he couldn't help but feel uneasy and oppressed... You know, even if these beasts fall, they are still a threat.

Furthermore, there was the blessing of Nen. Although it wasn't a matter of Nen technique or sheer power, the quantity was simply too great! However, neither Oboro nor Hisoka seemed to be shaken in the slightest.

In less than fifteen minutes, the hundreds of parasites were completely reduced to filth, and the worms inside their bodies were also removed... leaving everything clean.

Too fast...

This method deeply shocked and filled Kaji, who witnessed everything, with a sense of awe...

"You killed a few more than me, you cheated... We agreed to attack together..." In the pool of blood, Hisoka and Oboro's clothes were stained with blood and bits of flesh, the former speaking with resentment.

Long glanced at him, then continued on her way.

Seeing them walk away, Kaji immediately climbed up the cliff and followed them.

The three have been exposed.

As they continued their journey, parasites kept appearing and ambushing or surrounding them... but with Oboro and Hisoka there, this only caused some trouble for the team, not a real threat.

The number of organisms in the Sawtooth Mountains is finite. Even if the insects multiply and parasitize rapidly, the number of wild animals that die during this period will still reduce the total number of species in the entire mountain range.

Moreover, as the battlefield expanded and shifted, Long guessed that some of the Botswa Tribe survivors had to move with the front lines where they were fighting the military, and were ready to be sacrificed at any time... Therefore, the parasites that remained in the Botswa Tribe's habitat only retained a certain number, serving as 'guards'.

The goal is simply to drive the army out of the mountains and prevent the military from capturing our homeland.

The Botswa Tribe's target is the king... With security guaranteed, they will undoubtedly launch a full-scale attack to secure victory in the ritual.

No one could have predicted that Nen user would get involved... and even venture up the mountain.

A few hours later, the sun set.

After countless battles and massacres, Oboro and Hisoka were no longer human, covered in filth.

The clothes were soaked in blood... and there were bits of flesh hanging there, giving off a foul stench.

Compared to the other two, Kaji is in a worse situation...

He couldn't hide behind the two forever; he also had to kill the parasites... But even with Oboro and Hisoka protecting him, he managed to kill most of the beasts that afternoon. The remaining small number of parasites still required his personal attention... Wave after wave, he had lost count of how many he had killed... He only felt sore all over, and his Nen was almost completely depleted.

Right now, he has a paranoid feeling that anything unusual nearby could trigger an attack.

He was severely exhausted, both physically and mentally, and his face was pale.

A few dozen meters ahead, a vast blue lake appeared, its surface shimmering in the sunlight... The scenery was beautiful.

This should be one of the water sources of the Sawtooth Mountains. The presence of water indicates that this area is suitable for habitation and is not far from the Botswa Tribe's settlement.

The three of them walked to the shore. Kaji was parched and was about to kneel down and scoop up some water with his hands to wash himself, but Oboro stopped him.

On a nearby shore, several figures were approaching.

Their faces were blank, their movements were distorted, like toys that were being manipulated and whose circuits were malfunctioning... Just like zombies, except that their flesh and blood were relatively intact, and they were still alive. They were not dead, but had simply lost their independent consciousness.

This includes Lance ...

The team member dressed in a black suit was clearly infected by insects...

The three of them, Oboro, went ahead, thinking that once Lance shook off the birds, they could follow the trail to catch up, but they never saw him again.

No wonder...

There are six human parasites in total... Unlike the previous military soldiers, these two are Nen user.

Behind the six people stood a Botswa Tribe, also with a long braid reaching his waist, wearing a white robe, and with totem-like tattoos on his face.

The Botswa Tribe men were saying something to Oboro and the others, but due to the language barrier, they couldn't understand them. However, they could sense that the men's tone was extremely angry... and murderous.

"How about we have another match?" Hisoka laughed.

As it traveled this far, it seemed to have been counting the number of parasites it had killed... determined to compete with Oboro.

"I have four, you have two."

Long walked past him expressionlessly and went to meet him.

His tone was sarcastic.

It seems they look down on Hisoka...

"They're all mine! Hahahaha!"

This time, Hisoka was clever; he didn't let Oboro get there first. His figure shot up with astonishing speed.

A gust of wind immediately arose beside Oboro, making his excited, manic face, coupled with his wicked laughter, appear particularly morbid.