Target X Target

Whoosh-

A piercing rush of air came hurtling down!

Baishi, at the very back of the group, suddenly raised his head and looked up at the imposing figure of an old man. A flicker of fervor flashed in his eyes.

Was he here? The chairman of the Hunter Association... Isaac Netero!

Even now, more than a decade later, his memories of the 100-Type Guanyin Bodhisattva remained as vivid as ever!

If he could use Advent Emulation on it now, he would not hesitate for a moment!

Unfortunately...

Thinking of the awkwardly low quality of his current Advent Emulation, then estimating the level the 100-Type Guanyin Bodhisattva might require, Baishi regretfully suppressed his restless excitement, though his gaze grew even more fervent.

Whoosh, thud-

Netero landed on the ground, upright yet light on his feet. His spectacular arrival left everyone present momentarily dumbstruck.

Swish!

The instant he landed, Netero's bright, aged eyes swept across the crowd and settled on Baishi. Once hailed as the strongest man in the world, he had long since noticed the unusual gaze.

When he met Baishi's fervent gaze and saw the intense anticipation on his face, Netero pondered in puzzlement. He did not seem to have met him before.

Old and vigorous!

That was Baishi's first impression of Netero after he landed.

He wore a loose martial arts robe, and his white ponytail seemed to glow faintly. Most striking of all, there was not a single wrinkle on his seemingly kind and helpless old face. His thick white beard concealed the movements of his mouth, while the elongated earlobes on either side, like those of a Buddha, inspired solemnity in those who saw him.

Just as I thought... Though the nourishment of Nen Aura can't grant eternal life or everlasting youth, it can keep someone full of energy even after a hundred years. Even if aging causes their strength to stop growing or even decline, they can still maintain the dignity a strong person should have!

Advent Emulation, Advent Emulation, Advent Emulation...

Baishi had never longed for a chance to use an ultra-high-quality Advent Emulation as much as he did now. Even as he met Netero's gaze, he was still thinking about how to trigger a weighted task from him.

The ball game!

All at once, Baishi recalled Netero's test of Gon and the others in the original story. He looked away from Netero and lowered his eyes in thought.

Perhaps... there would be a chance to trigger a weighted task then?

Tap, tap, tap~~

Seeing Baishi look away, Netero gave him an interested look up and down before walking toward Menchi and Buhara, who both looked a little nervous.

"Chairman!" they both cried.

Menchi and Buhara hurried forward to meet him.

"What brings you here in person..."

"Yes, how could we trouble you to come over such a small matter..."

Chairman?

The puzzled examinees stared in shock as the previously overbearing female examiner assumed an obedient, respectful manner.

Was this really the same arrogant, domineering examiner from before?!

A small number of examinees who knew something about the matter had already guessed Netero's identity. Their gazes grew serious as they watched the old man.

Hisoka in particular had concealed his presence among the crowd. His narrow eyes watched Netero's back, a glimmer of fighting spirit flickering in them.

Hmm...

"What happened this time is no small matter, Menchi..."

Netero stopped in front of the two, his expression turning solemn. His even words carried a sense of authority.

"You said you wanted to test whether they had the courage to challenge the unknown, but in the end you decided there was a problem with every examinee's attitude, so you failed them all..."

"Isn't that right?"

Uh...

How long has the old man been eavesdropping?

The thought that he might have heard every word she had said left Menchi terribly embarrassed. She stood ramrod straight and, after a brief, conflicted silence, spoke with a trace of stubbornness.

"It was because the examinees looked down on cooking so much that I got more and more irritated. Most importantly, afterward, every examinee learned how to prepare the dish..."

"And then... then I lost my head and..."

"Letting your emotions control you isn't a good thing."

Seeing Menchi admit her mistake with a stubborn, endearing expression, Netero's long eyebrows twitched. He calmly looked away and spoke in a mild voice.

"When all is said and done, you also feel your judgment of this test was unfair, don't you?"

"...Yes. I'm sorry!"

Under the startled gazes of the crowd, Menchi bit her lip, sighed, and closed her eyes. "Whenever cooking is involved, I become extremely obsessive! I... am not qualified to be an examiner!"

"I ask the chief of the Hunter Exam Examining Committee..."

Menchi took a deep breath, her expression gradually calming. "Please accept my withdrawal from this exam's panel of examiners!"

"Since I'll no longer be an examiner, the results of this test should be invalid, shouldn't they?"

Hmm~~~

"You shouldn't speak so lightly about matters concerning an examiner's authority..."

Netero looked around at the crowd and glanced at an examinee struggling to get up after fainting. Then he changed tack. "An examiner is an examiner. Their qualifications can't be taken away casually over a momentary problem..."

"You'll remain in charge of the next test, but given that the dish you chose before was too difficult..."

"How about this!"

"The previous test results will be set aside and invalidated for the time being. As for the challenge you set next... you must be able to attempt it yourself with the status and abilities of an examinee!"

"How does that sound? That way, the examinees will accept the test results too, won't they?"

With that, Netero turned his seemingly kind gaze on the crowd.

Those he looked at all nodded instinctively.

"..."

Hearing this, Menchi's beautiful eyes widened in surprise.

She had not expected the chairman to let her continue overseeing the test after such an incident.

After a moment of silent thought, Menchi turned to the crowd and slowly nodded.

"I agree!"

At those words, the examinees' faces lit up, and they all looked relieved.

Thanks to the chief coming in person, they had another chance to take the test!

"A cooking challenge?"

A faint smile appeared on Netero's lips.

"Do you need some time..."

"No, we'll do boiled eggs!"

Pointing toward the distant silhouette of a mountain towering into the clouds, Menchi said softly, "Chairman, could we borrow the airship to take us to that mountain?"

"Mount Mihara..."

Recalling the unusual creatures that lived on the mountain, Netero smiled and nodded, pressing the airship call device hidden in his sleeve.

"Of course~"

As soon as he finished speaking-

Whoosh! Hummm~~

Amid a fierce rush of wind, the Hunter Association's private airship, dozens of meters wide and hundreds of meters long, slowly descended from high above.

The airship landed steadily, and its hatch opened.

The examinees returned to the warehouse one after another to collect their belongings, then boarded the airship.

Baishi, bringing up the rear, saw that everyone was about to leave. He immediately ran over to the gong stand that no one had paid any attention to, drew his sword cane, and cut the gong's rope. He then hurried to a cooking station in the warehouse, found a piece of white cloth, and wrapped the gong in it.

As he picked up his coat, he spotted some slender fish bones he had cleaned. They were well suited to serve as temporary vessels for Nen Needles, so he grabbed a large handful to take with him.

He also took some pointed boning knives from a nearby cooking station.

Netero, Menchi, Buhara, and the others still outside the airship noticed him stripping the place bare, and their eyelids twitched.

It was the first time they had seen an examinee walk off with props from an exam site and not even spare the fish bones.

Heh, heh, heh!

Satisfied, Baishi wrapped everything he needed in the white cloth and walked out of the warehouse. He gave the somewhat odd-looking examiners a cheeky grin and slipped aboard the airship.

Since no one had spoken up to stop him, he would simply pretend he had not seen them!

Tap, tap, tap!

"How did he perform?"

Netero, looking quite interested, turned his head and asked.

"He appears to have awakened recently. He has good potential," Satotz said calmly.

"Bold and meticulous!" Buhara praised him in his simple, good-natured way.

Menchi looked conflicted. "He has a talent for cooking! If I hadn't announced the end of the test, he would have been the only one to pass!"

"Oh~ You all think highly of him."

Netero, now even more interested, nodded and stepped into the airship.

The three exchanged glances and followed close behind.

Looks like number 108 is going to have quite a bit of trouble.

Whoosh, whoosh~

The hatch closed, and the airship slowly took off. After rising high into the sky, it sped toward its destination.