Questions and Concealment

Never underestimate a Hunter's powers of observation, especially a Conjuration user!

When someone suddenly laid bare all his secrets, that warning flashed through Joey's mind unbidden.

His mind was a mess, countless questions swirling through it. He even wondered whether Kite had already seen through his identity as someone from another world!

But when everything settled, he answered with just one name: "Joey."

His name, and who he was now.

"Then was Yoshikage Kira the person whose soul you devoured? Was he also the wanted serial killer?" Kite's words stabbed straight into Joey's heart like a knife.

"I don't know. All I know is that when I woke up, I had the identity of Yoshikage Kira."

Joey gave his answer, but concealed something within it: he did know who Yoshikage Kira was.

He was probing, testing just how much Kite knew about his situation. He couldn't possibly reveal everything.

He didn't believe Kite understood souls all that thoroughly, nor did he believe Kite could fully grasp his identity as someone from another world. There had to be things Joey still didn't know. What he needed to do now was uncover that missing information.

Only with enough information could he make the best judgment and choice.

"If he was the serial killer too, then all I can say is that I'm no longer him. If you know what's happening to me now, you should know I'm not lying."

Joey tried his best to remain calm, but sweat kept seeping from his palms.

Kite studied Joey intently, then nodded after a pause of over ten seconds. "Could you let me examine that unusual piece of skin, and describe exactly what the ugly bug looked like?"

Without hesitation, Joey reached into his cloth bag and pulled out the Wallet, which glowed with a soft white light.

Gon and Killua both turned to look at it. Nen covered their eyes; they were probably using Gyo.

Joey also tried to channel his aura into his eyes, but Gyo was clearly not a technique he could manage with his half-baked Ten.

So even with Nen covering his eyes, Joey saw no more than before when he looked at the Wallet. He couldn't discern anything unusual about it.

Judging by Gon's and Killua's expressions, however, neither of them had noticed anything abnormal about the Wallet either.

The Wallet felt more like a special object imbued with Nen.

It was like an antique into which a craftsman had poured endless effort. Aura lingered on it, but to someone who could sense that aura, it would merely seem like an object worth collecting.

Someone particularly perceptive might even sense, within that trace of aura, the emotions its "creator" had poured into it during its creation.

Gon and Killua, for instance, both sensed a strong vitality from the Wallet, as though its creator had wanted to bring it to life.

"He seems to have made this Wallet with the belief that he could create a living wallet," Gon offered his assessment.

Killua nodded in agreement beside him, but had a nagging feeling that something was wrong. Hearing terms like "soul" in Kite and Joey's earlier conversation had only strengthened that feeling.

Without more knowledge or information to draw on, though, he couldn't make any further judgments.

"If I had a choice, I really wouldn't want to remember that hideous bug again." Joey's expression practically spelled out one word: disgust.

"It was a fleshy, hideous bug. Its whole body was wrapped in white light, but even that couldn't hide how ugly it was. It had a face like a skull, only much more disgusting, and the only thing on that face was a round mouth lined with rings of sharp teeth. That was where the strange cries came from."

"From your description, it doesn't sound all that ugly. Just an ordinary caterpillar, except without the hairs. Other than being gross, there's not much to it."

Gon considered it seriously before offering that somewhat uncertain conclusion.

"Isn't being gross enough?" Joey was at a loss for words. He had always hated those soft, squishy bugs.

Whenever he came across an unsprayed, bug-infested tree in summer, he would start wondering whether a caterpillar had latched onto him without his noticing. The thought alone gave him goose bumps.

Especially when something so repulsive came in an extra-large size. One look felt enough to give him nightmares that night.

Still, after more than a day in the forest, Joey had grown somewhat accustomed to the onslaught of bugs. He had no choice. When his life was at stake, what were a few measly bugs?

Besides, he intended to take good care of the Wallet, which was clearly quite possibly made from bug skin. That had unwittingly dulled his disgust considerably.

But once he was out of this environment, Joey would probably still take a detour whenever he encountered those squishy bugs.

As for the Wallet, he had no choice. It was too useful, and he had no intention of throwing it away. He would probably give it a new covering, though, at least to conceal the aura that constantly enveloped it.

"Then where were you before you heard the cry?"

Kite didn't care how disgusting the bug was. Joey's description had lent further weight to his suspicions, and that was what mattered most.

"I was asleep at home. After that sound woke me, I found myself in this body."

Joey didn't conceal anything on that point. If Kite had a theory that could help him understand his situation, he didn't mind sharing some information.

Learning why he had crossed into this world would also resolve a question that had been weighing on him.

"Then where is your home?" Kite continued.

"The East Gorteau Republic," Joey answered quickly.

East Gorteau was another country in the Mitene Union of the Balsa Islands, and it too was a country where information was tightly restricted.

As for why Joey hadn't named Meteor City, a haven for people with no official identity and a favorite origin for people from other worlds, that would have sounded far too fake. It also clashed badly with his demeanor.

People from Meteor City weren't exactly good people, and he didn't think he could imitate that sort of villainous air.

Besides, being seen as a bad person would count against him.

The wilderness survival experience supplied by the other soul he had devoured, on the other hand, made him seem more like an ordinary hunter who had spent years in the mountains and forests.

It could also explain why he moved through NGL's mountain forests so comfortably. It was the most suitable answer he could think of.

Of course, that answer also contained plenty of inconsistencies and details that would fall apart under investigation.

For instance, where exactly had he lived in East Gorteau? Its census recorded everyone, even newborn babies. If anyone looked into those records, there was a very good chance Joey's identity would be exposed.

But none of that mattered to Joey. He had another excuse: time.

Souls were already mysterious enough. Once time entered the picture, the scope of any investigation would become enormous.

Without enough to gain, who would waste the time, energy, and connections on something like that?

Of course, even if someone really did investigate, that would be a problem for the future.

Joey could even claim that something had gone wrong with his soul while he was devouring the other one, leaving him unable to remember everything.

He had excuses. The question now was whether Kite thought any of this mattered.

Confusion flickered in Kite's eyes, but he didn't dwell on the matter. Instead, he handed the Wallet back to Joey and began explaining the basis for his conclusions, along with the inconsistencies Joey had exposed.

Clearly, Kite was ready to lay his cards on the table.

And that allowed some of the tension in Joey's heart to ease.