Kukuroo Mountain, a Tourist Attraction

Republic of Padokea Central Station.

A bus emblazoned with "Kukuroo Mountain Sightseeing" stood beside the platform. Its body was painted dark green, with a cartoon-style volcano and a slogan on the side—"The World's Greatest Tourist Attraction, the Zoldyck Family Welcomes You." The female tour guide stood by the door holding a little flag, handing out brochures featuring Zoldyck Family scenery. The cover bore a photograph of the Gate of Hades, with the words "Trial Gate: Seven Heavy Doors" written below in ornate script.

Gon, Kurapika, and Leorio boarded the bus. Gon's arm was still wrapped in bandages, but it was no longer bleeding. Leorio kept his Hunter License in the inner pocket over his chest and reached over to touch it every few minutes. Kurapika found a window seat, opened the Zoldyck Family brochure, and carefully read through it page by page from the beginning.

Saitama got on last, his hands in his pockets, his T-shirt still carrying the scent of sesame sauce from the hotpot.

Netero walked beside Saitama, wearing that T-shirt with the character for heart printed on it and holding a cup of tea he had bought at the station. "After living this long, this is still my first time taking a sightseeing bus to the Zoldyck home. In the past, their family always came to pick me up. Quite the grand reception."

"Aren't they assassins? Why are they running tours?" Saitama sat down beside him.

"Assassination is their main business. Tourism is a side business. I hear the ticket revenue is quite good." Netero stroked his beard. "No one dares provoke them anyway, so it doesn't matter if their address is public. 'The world's greatest tourist attraction'—Silva came up with that slogan himself."

The tour guide lifted her microphone and began introducing the scenery outside in a sweet voice. "To your right is the Forest Sea of Kukuroo Mountain, private property of the Zoldyck Family. Please do not attempt to climb over the fence. Mike patrols inside it. Mike is a giant multi-headed demon hound, large enough to swallow an adult in one bite." The tourists let out nervous gasps and raised their phones to take pictures. Maintaining her smile, the guide continued on to the next stop—the Trial Gate observation deck. They would stop for twenty minutes, and admission was included in the bus fare.

Gon had been staring out the window. Deep within the Forest Sea, several enormous paw prints slowly moved beneath the canopy.

Saitama yawned.

The bus stopped at the sightseeing platform before the Zoldyck Family's main gate.

The tourists hurried off to take pictures. The guide stood before the Trial Gate with her flag and began explaining the history of the Gate of Hades in a polished tone—the seven door panels corresponded to seven trials, and each required greater strength to open than the last. To date, only members of the Zoldyck Family had opened beyond the third door. She pointed to an inconspicuous little door nearby. "That is a side entrance for intruders. Mike will be waiting behind it. We advise everyone not to try it."

Gon stood before the gate, looking up at the seven enormous door panels. Blue-black reliefs of coiling dragons wound from the lintel all the way down to the base. The eyes of every dragon were cast in bronze, glinting dark gold in the sunlight. This was what stood between him and Killua.

"I'll push it," he said.

Kurapika and Leorio stood beside him. The three took a deep breath together and placed their hands on the first door. Gon gritted his teeth. The muscles beneath his bandages tightened, and a fresh trace of blood seeped from his wound. Leorio shouted, and the three exerted themselves at once. With a dull rumble, the door slowly opened. Dust accumulated in the carvings shook loose in streams, while loose stones on the ground were dragged into a deep furrow by the bottom of the door. The first door had opened. The three panted heavily, their arms trembling, but it had opened.

A middle-aged man in a gray work uniform emerged from the guardhouse and adjusted his cap. Gotoh, the cleaner responsible for dealing with intruders' corpses. He looked over the three teenagers, his gaze lingering on Gon's bleeding bandages. His tone was cold and appraising. "You're so young, yet you've come looking for Young Master Killua too? This gate has no key. You must push it open yourselves. When Young Master Killua returned last time, he opened the fifth door by himself. The three of you managed to open the first door together. You have some strength, but that is all."

"I'm going to push again," Gon said.

"Ho ho ho—let this old man give it a try." Netero stroked his beard and handed his teacup to the guide beside him. The guide accepted it instinctively. Just as she was about to resume explaining the history of the Gate of Hades, she suddenly recognized who the old man before her was. Her entire body froze. The little flag slipped from her fingers, and she staggered back two steps before steadying herself. Gotoh stood there with his mouth open, about to say something, then swallowed it.

Netero did not approach the first door. He passed through the shadows cast by the seven layers of doors and stopped before the innermost one—the seventh door. The coiling dragon carvings spiraled upward from its base, their eyes gleaming dark gold in the shadows. He extended his right hand, thin and wrinkled, the same hand that had been holding a cup of hot tea moments ago. He pressed it against the door.

The seventh door burst open beneath his palm. Then came the sixth, the fifth, the fourth—one after another, all seven doors opened. The coiling dragon reliefs gave off a deep resonance amid the tremors. Lime dust that had accumulated on the lintel for who knew how many years rained down, and the blast of air swept up loose stones from the ground, shattering a loose tile on the sightseeing platform. Every tourist pressed their shutter. Camera flashes formed a continuous blaze before the Gate of Hades. The guide bent down to retrieve her fallen flag, and when she straightened up again, she found Netero taking his cup of tea back from her hand.

"Taking a sightseeing bus has its own charm. This trip was well worth it." Netero took a sip of tea.

Saitama kept his hands in his pockets. The old man had finished hotpot and taken two airships, yet he still had the energy for this. He did not say it aloud.

The instant the Gate of Hades fully opened, all of Kukuroo Mountain trembled.

The surveillance screens in the butlers' quarters lit up with alarms at once. Inside the main house, Milluki was sitting before the monitoring station eating potato chips when the screens suddenly filled with red alerts—All seven doors open. Visitor: Isaac Netero, Chairman of the Hunter Association, Shingen-Ryu Grandmaster. He choked on a chip, slapped his chest hard, and sprayed crumbs across the keyboard.

Silva emerged from the study. Zeno set down his teacup in the tea room. Even Kikyo's electronic eyes stopped flashing. In a room at the deepest end of the corridor, Maha slowly opened his eyes. A barely perceptible trace of Nen swept across the entire main house, and only after a moment did he close his eyes again.

The butler Wutong personally led the welcoming party, followed by two rows of attendants in black uniforms. His steps remained precise, but the corner of his mouth twitched slightly. Gotoh had already cleaned up the guardhouse and was concealing every trace of intruders' corpses as quickly as possible.

Wutong stopped before Netero and bowed with perfect form. "Chairman Netero, to what do we owe the honor of your visit?" His voice was steady, but a thin sheen of sweat had formed at his temples.

"I'm merely accompanying a few children on a sightseeing trip." Netero stroked his beard. "And visiting an old friend's grandson while I'm at it. Is Silva home?"

"The head of the family is waiting in the main hall. Please follow me."

Silva personally greeted them at the entrance. His tone was respectful, though guarded beneath the surface. "It has been many years, Chairman, yet you remain as vigorous as ever. Opening all seven doors at once made the entire mountain shake."

"Ho ho ho—I'm old, I'm old. Back then, pushing doors never shattered tiles."

Silva's gaze shifted from Netero to those behind him. Three teenagers stood outside the gate—one with a bandaged arm, one silent and blond, and one in sunglasses muttering, "What does seven doors even mean?" His gaze passed over the three and settled on the rear of the group. A bald man in a yellow T-shirt stood there with his hands in his pockets, yawning. Without betraying a reaction, Silva swept Saitama from head to toe with an extremely light, swift wave of Nen pressure—no Nen, no sharp aura, just an ordinary, idle passerby. He withdrew his gaze.

"And this is?"

"Saitama. An old friend of mine," Netero said. "Don't mind him. He's here sightseeing."

Saitama took out an ear of grilled corn he had bought at the station convenience store, peeled back the wrapper, and took a bite. The Zoldyck Family entrance hall was more spacious than he had imagined. Its ceiling was at least ten meters high, and a huge dragon relief hung on the wall, identical to the one on the Gate of Hades. He silently estimated the size of the entrance hall. It could probably fit his apartment's entire living room, plus the kitchen and bathroom.

Silva withdrew his gaze. "Please, come in."

Gon and the other two were led to the training grounds by Wutong—Silva said that if they wanted to see Killua, they would have to pass the family trial first: put on weighted vests and run through the Forest Sea. Wutong placed three hundred-kilogram weighted vests before them. Leorio protested, "We came to find someone, not work out," but after Wutong stared at him expressionlessly for several seconds, he silently accepted a vest. Gon was already putting one on.

Netero was invited into the main hall. Silva personally served tea, while Zeno emerged from the tea room and sat opposite Netero. The two centenarians exchanged pleasantries, their conversation ranging from the borders of the Dark Continent to the lingering sweetness of this year's new tea. Maha never emerged from the depths of the corridor, but his Nen pressure continued to faintly blanket the entire main house like an impossibly thin, silent spiderweb.

Saitama did not enter the main hall. Holding his half-eaten grilled corn, he leaned beneath the dragon relief in the entrance hall and stared blankly at the ceiling. Outside came the sound of Gon dragging a hundred-kilogram vest across the gravel path, along with Leorio's breathless, foul-mouthed complaints. Zoldyck Family butlers occasionally passed through the corridor, and each paused slightly upon seeing the bald man—no one knew why he was standing there, and no one dared ask. The third time Wutong passed by, he finally stopped. His tone was respectful but carried a butler's measured restraint. "Guest, please place your miscellaneous belongings elsewhere." Saitama looked down at the corn cob he had put in the umbrella stand, said, "Oh," picked it up, and stuffed it back into his pocket. Wutong glanced at that bulging pocket. A vein throbbed on his forehead, but he said nothing and turned away.