Netero had no idea what Moses was thinking, so he stroked his beard out of habit and asked, "Let's hear it."
"Alright."
Moses nodded, but did not state his request immediately. Instead, he raised his bandaged right hand.
[Illusion of the Thousand Changes]
At his will, a black Nen emitting an ominous presence appeared out of thin air above his right hand, and it looked no different from Post-Mortem Nen.
Netero, already familiar with this side of Moses's abilities, showed no surprise at the sight of the ominous black Nen on Moses's right hand.
The key to solving the Swamp Man Incident back then was this ability of Moses, which is related to 'death'.
The black Nen swirled and surged, and under Netero's gaze, slowly transformed into a white faceless human skin mask.
The transformation, from the ominous black Nen to the pure white mask, was stark and filled with contrast.
"Another single-use Nen Tool?"
Looking at the white faceless human skin in Moses hand, Netero asked curiously.
Moses nodded again, and without any intention of concealing anything, he took the initiative to explain:
"This is called the Illusion of the Thousand Changes. By covering a target's face with it for eight seconds, it can copy the target's appearance. However... during the copying process, the target must be in Zetsu state."
"A successfully copied human skin mask can allow the user to perfectly transform into the appearance of the copied person and even access their Nen Abilities."
"This is the effect of this Illusion of the Thousand Changes. The limitation is that the copied mask cannot be worn for too long, otherwise, the user will be swallowed by the mask. In addition, while copying the appearance is not worth mentioning, the accuracy of the copied Nen Abilities will be influenced by the user's own Nen Category."
"That is to say, if the person being copied is an Enhancer, then only an Enhancer can fully utilize the Nen Ability of the person being copied."
Out of respect for Netero, Moses revealed everything about the Illusion of the Thousand Changes.
After listening to Moses's explanation, Netero felt a ripple of shock, as if he had returned to the moment when he first learned about Moses's Surprise Magic Box ability.
The Post-Mortem Nen had given Moses the power to create these single-use Nen Tools.
And each of these Nen Tools was remarkable.
The potential of this young man before him, along with the scope of his talents, was beyond anything Netero had seen.
As he mulled over this, Netero came to understand what Moses's request was.
"You want to copy me?"
Netero looked at Moses, his eyes glinting with curiosity.
Moses said frankly: "Well, this is the way to maximize the value of the Illusion of the Thousand Changes."
What Moses means is: You are the strongest among everyone.
Netero, however, wouldn't let such a veiled compliment sway his judgment. Though he was bound to honor the wager, he took a moment to consider it.
Finally-
Netero agreed to Moses's request, a testament to the depth of his trust in Moses.
Perhaps, deep down, Netero saw Moses as a future pillar of the Hunter Association.
"Before we begin the imprinting, would you indulge this old man's curiosity?"
Netero closed his Aura Nodes for the first time in a long time and looked at Moses with interest.
Moses was stunned for a moment, then nodded and said, "Of course."
"Did you copy me with this mask as a precaution, or do you have some other agenda?"
Netero then asked what was on his mind.
Upon hearing this, Moses stated his motive for copying Netero without hesitation:
"I want to take down the A-class criminal group, the Phantom Troupe. And your mask is the most critical piece to achieving that goal."
"Hoho…"
Netero's mouth curled slightly.
'It turns out that it was prepared to deal with A-Class criminal groups.'
'Well, this little guy is the youngest Double-Star Blacklist Hunter in history, so it's no surprise.'
"Then why don't you just call on me for support? You might save yourself a Nen Tool that way."
There was a clear hint of teasing in Netero's tone, though his words held some truth.
"…"
Moses's eyelids drooped, and he said speechlessly: "We are Pro Hunters no matter what. Besides, I'd prefer not to be looked down upon by you."
"Hoho."
Netero chuckled even more heartily.
Moses, of course, couldn't allow himself to rely on Netero.
In fact, as long as he is willing to use the 'Call Friends' ability, he can call Biscuit, Cheadle, Pyon, Kanzai, Liz, Sanbika, Ging, and even Netero...
If he did that, eradicating the Phantom Troupe would be as easy as drinking water.
But doing so would mean forfeiting any rewards from Perception.
Now, as his strength increases, it becomes increasingly difficult to get rewards from Perception...
Thus, Moses didn't want to waste the most precious reward opportunity associated with the Phantom Troupe.
So he had to approach it as he always did-
To get what he wanted, he'd have to pay a price.
High rewards necessitated high risk.
This was his Vows and Limitations.
A short while later, Moses began the imprinting process, placing the smooth, white mask on Netero's face.
Eight seconds quickly passed.
The originally smooth white human skin mask directly turned into Netero's appearance.
Moses immediately took off the mask, rubbed it a few times with his fingers, and said with a smile: "The feel of this mask is much better than the one you prepared for me before."
The silicone mask for the Hunter Exam had been something Netero prepared for Moses.
Now, a human skin mask with a more perfect restoration has been made using the Illusion of the Thousand Changes. There is really a strange connection between the two.
After hearing what Moses said, Netero just stroked his beard and smiled without saying anything.
As Moses handled the freshly imprinted mask, he felt a wave of gratitude.
This human skin mask is both light and heavy.
Light, because of its weight.
Heavy, because of Netero's trust.
Now that he had this trump card, the next step was to step onto a 'stage' where he could take down the Phantom Troupe.
.....
Time passed quickly.
Half a month later.
After a total of twenty days, Moses's injuries had finally healed.
It can be seen how ruthless Netero's attack was at that time, but he was able to control himself very well to not kill Moses directly.
Shortly after being discharged from the hospital, Moses received an assignment from the Hunter Association:
"Teach newcomers the basics of Nen."
Netero had mentioned this matter when Moses was recovering from his injury.
Since it was a direct request from the Chairman, Moses had no room for refusal. He could only take this opportunity to suggest Kurapika as the student he'd instruct.
Originally, the Hunter Association wanted him to be responsible for teaching Hanzo.
This was due to Hanzo's exceptional performance during the Hunter Exam, which made the association keen on his training.
However, Moses didn't want to waste time on Hanzo and was intent on rejecting the assignment.
After accepting the teaching task assigned by the association, Moses had not yet started to move when a fifth green bead suddenly condensed on the stone tablet of [Path of Legend] deep in his consciousness, and then merged into a corresponding cornerstone.
Regarding this-
Moses wasn't surprised.
The reason he was able to condense the fifth green bead was because the news of his promotion to the Double-Star Hunter had spread.
'Counterpoint Keystone...'
Moses's gaze sharpened slightly.
The ability of this so-called Counterpoint Keystone is to 'cultivate' an ability that can target a [Phenomenon].
But the word [Phenomenon] covers too broad a scope and is even a bit abstract.
And Moses suddenly had a thought——
He might be able to harness this Counterpoint Keystone to counter a particular… phenomenon that had been on his mind!