Bodoro's Choice

Odin thought for a moment, then took badges 61 and 198 out of his pocket.

Ponzu had returned them to him after getting badge 103, and now they would come in handy.

"These two are spares," he said. "You can have them."

With that, Odin tossed the badges to Leorio.

Honestly, Odin had a pretty high opinion of Leorio.

He wasn't very strong and had plenty of shortcomings, but his dream was something Odin wanted to see realized.

Someone whose dream was to give every poor person in the world free medical care was worth investing in.

Odin's gesture stunned everyone present, leaving them staring blankly at him.

"You...?" Leorio stared at Odin in surprise, at a loss for words.

"Great! With these two points, we only need one badge from Bodoro for Leorio to have six!" Gon cried happily.

Kurapika stared at the badges in Leorio's hand, silent for several seconds.

He really couldn't understand Odin's actions.

But asking him to make Leorio return the badges was even more out of the question.

Odin smiled. "Good luck."

Leorio gripped the badges tightly and looked at Odin earnestly. "Thank you. If you ever need anything, come to me. I'll do everything I can to help."

"Sounds good to me." Odin smiled.

The three disappeared into the woods.

Ponzu stood beside Odin, gazing in the direction they had gone without saying a word.

Only after a long while did she speak.

"You seem to think pretty highly of that Leorio guy?"

Odin leaned back against the tree trunk and took a bite of jerky.

"Yeah. He's an interesting guy."

Ponzu frowned. "How do you know?"

"I overheard him," Odin said. "Back in the tunnel, I heard him talking about his dream. How should I put it? It's the kind of grand dream I'd never think of myself. He said he wanted every poor person in the world to get free medical care. Hahaha."

Ponzu fell silent for a few seconds, then sat back down where she had been.

"I still think you're being too casual about this," she said. "This is the Hunter Exam. Every person who fails gives us a better chance."

"No big deal. They won't be able to beat me in the end anyway," Odin said with a confident smile.

Ponzu paused, then gave Odin a speechless look.

It occurred to her that if only one person could pass the final test, it definitely wouldn't be her.

With that thought, Ponzu relaxed.

On the morning of the sixth day, sunlight filtered through gaps in the canopy.

Gon walked at the front, sniffing every so often.

"This way," he said.

Kurapika followed behind him.

Leorio brought up the rear, still carrying his briefcase and looking more energetic than yesterday.

"How much farther?" Leorio asked.

"Almost there," Gon said. "The scent's getting stronger."

The three pushed through a patch of brush, and a cliff came into view.

It wasn't very high, perhaps a dozen meters or so, and vines covered its face.

At the foot of the cliff was a hollow tree, its opening mostly hidden by vines and difficult to spot without a close look.

Gon stopped and pointed at the hollow. "In there."

Kurapika crouched down to inspect the entrance.

The soil around the entrance had been freshly turned, clearly disturbed by someone.

But the vines along its edges had been snapped, and the breaks were still fresh.

"He's inside," Kurapika said quietly.

Leorio clenched his fists. "What's the plan?"

"Call him out," Kurapika said. "It's cramped in there. Going inside would put us at a disadvantage."

He stood and walked to a spot five meters from the entrance.

"Bodoro!" he called.

There was no movement inside the hollow.

"We know you're in there!" Kurapika called again. "Come out and talk!"

They waited a few more seconds.

The vines over the hollow parted, and a man climbed out.

Bodoro.

He wore his martial arts uniform, now torn in several places and stained with mud.

But his gaze was steady as it swept over the three of them, without a trace of panic.

"Three of you," he said. "Do you need that many to deal with one old man?"

"You don't have a choice," Kurapika said.

"I'm not going to hand over an opportunity I've already secured."

Leorio stepped forward. "Fight me. If I win, you give me your badge."

Bodoro glanced at him.

"You're quite direct, young man."

"No point beating around the bush," Leorio said. "Well? Do you agree or not?"

Bodoro smiled. "All right."

After agreeing to Leorio's challenge, Bodoro climbed up the cliff and faced him.

If Leorio and his companions broke the rules and ganged up on him, there was nothing Bodoro could do.

After all, even if he refused, he would still have to face three people who had managed to track him to his hiding place.

He took his stance.

One foot forward and one behind, he lowered his center of gravity and held one hand high and the other low.

Clearly, he practiced a martial arts style of his own.

"Come on," he said. "Beat me, and the badge is yours."

Leorio nodded and had Gon and Kurapika step aside.

Leorio charged, his right hand clenched into a fist as he drove it straight at Bodoro's face.

This time, Leorio didn't use his dagger. Clearly, he had no intention of killing anyone.

Bodoro turned sideways, blocking with his left hand while thrusting his right palm at Leorio's chest.

Leorio pulled his fist back to block, and the palm struck his forearm with a sharp smack.

He stumbled back two steps.

Steadying himself, Leorio moved in from the side and chopped his right hand toward the back of Bodoro's neck.

Without even looking back, Bodoro leaned forward to evade the blow while sweeping his right foot backward.

Leorio jumped over it.

The moment he landed, before Bodoro could follow up, he circled to Bodoro's left and thrust his flattened right hand toward his waist.

Bodoro pressed his right hand down, striking Leorio's wrist with precision.

He knocked the arm aside and spun away, shutting down every one of Leorio's attacks.

Bodoro relaxed his stance and looked at Leorio.

"Your unarmed fighting isn't good enough. Use the weapon you're comfortable with," he said.

Leorio gritted his teeth and drew his dagger. He couldn't lose. He would have to give it everything he had.

He charged Bodoro head-on, feinting with his right hand as the dagger flashed.

Bodoro raised a hand to intercept Leorio's wrist, avoiding the blade.

Leorio's left hand came in from Bodoro's right, once again in a chopping strike.

Bodoro retreated half a step to dodge it.

Leorio immediately pressed forward, slashing his dagger across Bodoro's flank.

Bodoro turned and caught Leorio's wrist with both hands.

But Leorio seized the chance to reverse his dagger, hooking his hand around to stab at Bodoro's wrist.

Seeing this, Bodoro immediately let go and prepared to sweep Leorio's legs out with his right foot.

But it was already too late.

At some point, Leorio had taken another dagger in his left hand, and it was now poised against Bodoro's lower back.

He hadn't stabbed him, merely held the blade against his back.

"You lost," Leorio told Bodoro solemnly.

Bodoro froze.

A few seconds later, he relaxed and straightened up.

"All right," Bodoro said with a sigh. "You did win."

He walked to the hollow's entrance and took a waist pouch from inside.

He opened it and pulled out two badges.

One was his own, number 191.

The other belonged to someone else: his target, number 118.

He tossed both badges to Leorio.

Leorio caught them, glanced down, and let out a long breath.

"Thanks," he said.

Bodoro waved a hand and sat back down at the entrance.

"Go on," he said. "Let this old man rest for a while."

The three nodded. "Take care."

They turned and left.

After a few steps, Gon looked back.

"Mr. Bodoro!" he called. "Thank you for the badges!"

Bodoro paused in surprise, then waved.

The three disappeared into the woods.

Bodoro leaned against the entrance to the hollow, gazing in the direction they had gone.

He rubbed his shoulder with a wry smile.

"Young people these days really give it their all."

Sunlight fell over him as he closed his eyes and continued resting.