HunterxHunter: Reborn With Crazy Potential

After my time in Meteor City, I set my sights on Whale Island. I arrive at the docks just as the Kaijinmaru is coming into view, and I can feel the excitement rising in my chest. I know exactly where the exams are held but I want to if I'm lucky, maybe get to know Gon and the rest of the original cast on the Kaijinmaru. As the boat docks, I step on with him and a few others. The sea breeze stings my face as we board the passenger ship.

I glance around the deck and see Gon, practically vibrating with energy, waving like a madman at someone on the side of the coast. It takes me a second, but then I realize it's his Aunt Mito. I watch him nearly topple over from the exaggerated way he's flailing his arms, and I can't help but smirk. A couple of other passengers shoot him irritated glares, but Gon's too oblivious to notice. His smile is so wide and genuine, it's like he's trying to send Mito a signal from the heavens.

It's almost contagious. I can't help but grin, too. The kid's got a charm to him, that's for sure.

The Kaijinmaru rocks gently in the waves, and I decide it's as good a time as any to introduce myself. I've been watching Gon interact with everyone around him, and there's this warmth to him that's hard to ignore. I take a deep breath, gather my thoughts, and walk over just as he finishes waving.

"Hey, what's your name?" I ask, trying to keep it casual, but there's a spark of curiosity in my voice.

Gon turns toward me, and that grin of his only gets wider. He's got that look like he hasn't seen anything bad in the world yet like everything is new and exciting. "I'm Gon!" he says, almost like he's announcing it to the whole ship. Then he tilts his head, studying me. "And you're…?"

"Lucas," I reply, trying to keep it light. "I couldn't help but notice how enthusiastic you are. So that woman is she your mom?"

Gon's eyes go wide, and he shakes his head with such an innocent look on his face. "No, that's Aunt Mito!" He sounds so proud of that fact like it's the most normal thing in the world.

I chuckle, amused by his energy. "Ah, got it. So, you look young, what made you decide to go for the Hunter Exams?"

The question barely leaves my mouth before Gon is off, spilling his story like it's the most natural thing in the world. "My dad's a Hunter," he starts like that's all the explanation anyone would need. "He left when I was little, and I don't even know where he is, but I'm gonna find him. I want to be a great Hunter, just like him!" His words come out quickly, but there's so much fire in them that it's impossible not to believe him.

I blink, taking in the raw determination in his voice. This kid doesn't have the faintest doubt in his mind that he won't find Ging.

We stand there for a moment, and I notice the hours passing. The ship starts to pitch, the waves getting rougher. The sky darkens, and I can feel the storm coming. No way this trip's going to be smooth sailing. I decide I'll sleep up on the Mizzen Mast. It's quieter there, and the higher I am on the ship, the less water I'll get splashed with. Plus, it's surprisingly comfortable, despite the storm brewing.

When I wake up, the storm's still in full force. I look around and realize it's just me, Gon, Kurapika, and Leorio still on their feet. The rest of the passengers must've either been knocked out by the storm or given in to seasickness. Katzo, the guy I saw earlier, is hauling buckets up the stairs to the hull, struggling like he's about to collapse, but he's still at it.

A few minutes later, the captain steps onto the deck, his eyes sharp as he surveys the situation. After a long look, he gives us a nod of approval. "You four handled the storm well," he says. "The others? Not so much."

Then he calls out the rest of the crew and passengers, scolding them for not holding it together. When he pulls us into his quarters for questioning, there's a heavy tension in the air.

"Names first," the captain orders. We introduce ourselves one by one, and then he cuts to the heart of the matter.

"Why do you want to become a Hunter?" His voice is steady, but his gaze is laser-focused, analyzing every one of us.

Gon's answer is quick and unwavering. "My dad's a Hunter," he says simply like it's the most obvious thing in the world. The captain's eyes widen, just for a second. He'y recognized Gon's last name. Ging Freecss. The name carries weight, even in a place like this.

When it's my turn, I keep it short, like I always do. "Freedom," I say, and leave it at that.

Leorio, on the other hand, doesn't give a straight answer or any answer at all. Instead, he throws his arms up, practically yelling. "If you aren't an examiner, you can't tell us what to do!" His voice has that fiery edge to it, and I can see he's just itching for a fight. He looks like he wants to charge at the captain.

Kurapika, silent as ever, just sits there, eyes narrowed. His expression is hard to read, and I can tell he's not ready to share his reasons yet.

When the captain finally tells us he is a pre-examiner and if those 2 don't answer he will fail them Leorio and Kurapika start spilling out why they want to be hunters. Leorio says "Money" and kurapika talks about the phantom troupe and his clan.

Leorio gets mad about Kurapika's "disrespect" because he doesn't call him Mr.Leorio and makes a very rude comment about how the Kurta clan is filthy and should die out. The fight escalates and they take it outside.

While the two idiots fight the ship hits a water spout, throwing us into a rush to keep the ship afloat hoisting the masts. Katzo ends up almost falling off the ship because he got flung by a rope when all the others on his side couldn't grab it. Gon, Kurapika, and Leorio save Katzo just like in the manga allowing us to pass and all be friends again because they saved Katzo we all pass the captain's test.

As we dock in Dolle Harbor in Kukan'Yu Kingdom the old captain tells me and gon that he wants to talk to us for passing the test legitimately. We go next to the ship for the private conversation but an ugly, teenage-looking kid tries to eavesdrop on our conversation. I've never liked peepers, so I kick the crate he is standing behind right onto his head. Just like that, he fails the exam.

Gon asks "Is he going to be alright?" and I reply with "He is only passed out don't worry Gon" but I know that any normal person who has a crate that heavy dropped directly on their skull should probably be dead and it's not like I'm trying to get him medical care.

The captain tells us to head to the cedar tree at the top of the hill behind the city, which will lead us to the exam site. As we go find Kurapika and Leorio, Gon starts telling me his life story again. Even though I already know it, Gon doesn't realize that he has said it more than once already, so he repeats everything as if it were the first time again.

As expected, Leorio doesn't believe the captain's warning about the buses to Zaban City until he hears another applicant mention that none of the buses actually made it there.

We walk only about 200 feet before Leorio comes running back toward us, yelling, "Wait! Wait!" trying to make excuses like he didn't want us to be alone.

We keep walking, but I use the time to explain a bit about myself. I explain that I've been training in martial arts since I was a kid, and I'm a floor master at Heaven's Arena. Both Leorio and Kurapika look surprised by that, clearly not expecting it. "You're a lot tougher than you look," Kurapika observes, giving me a careful once-over.

I chuckle, a small smirk tugging at my lips. "Well, looks don't always equal strength."

We eventually come across an abandoned town, eerily quiet, but not for long. As we move through the streets, I hear a crow caw, followed by the creak of a door opening. Out of nowhere, people in white robes and strange masks step forward, pushing a wooden stage in front of them. Standing on the stage is an old woman, hunched over with gray hair tied back. Her face is a maze of wrinkles almost as if she might collapse to dust if you breathe in her direction.

She grins at us, revealing only two teeth. "Exiting…" she murmurs before suddenly screaming, "Time for the Exiting 2 Choice Quiz!!!" After saying this stupidly annoying music blares to life, honestly, it is horrible and to top obnoxiously loud, and she glares at us. "Are you boys going to the cedar tree on top of the hill?"

When we don't immediately deny it, she grins like a predator. "To get there, you must go through this town. And to do that, you must pass my quiz!"

"Quiz?" I hear everyone mutter.

She leaps to her feet, shouting, "The question is If your mom and your true love were both captured by the mafia, and you had to choose between saving one or the other, who would you save? Answer 1 for mom, or 2 for your true love. You have five seconds!"

I know The answer is silence so I lean in, my voice barely above a whisper, and say. "Stay quiet." to our grou.p

The others hesitate, looking at each other, but no one speaks. The old woman's grin falters, then widens again in approval. She opens a door to a dark room. "Walk for two hours, and you'll reach the cedar tree," she says cryptically.