Five figures emerged from the forest. At the center walked a tall, slender man with waist-length white hair and a blue beret.
On either side of him followed a spiky-haired, cheerful-looking boy, and a striking silver-haired youth dressed in black.
Both were around twelve or thirteen, but regardless of their age, all three visibly tensed upon seeing the carnage in the fields and the ruined village.
Trailing behind them were two familiar faces—Pokkle and Ponzu.
Their appearance surprised Joey, but not unpleasantly. In fact, it worked to his advantage. Their presence made it easier to explain himself if he decided to step out voluntarily.
He was already familiar with the three leading figures. They were the very reason he had stayed in this village, waiting.
The tall man was Kite, a One-Star Biological Hunter. The two boys by his side were none other than the main protagonists of Hunter × Hunter—Killua and Gon.
Without hesitation, Joey made a calculated noise from inside the house as the group approached the village. Then he slowly pushed open the door.
He wasn't concerned that Pokkle and Ponzu would reveal his affiliation with the narcotics group. He had no intention of hiding that.
Because honestly? Joey didn't think he could lie his way through a conversation with Kite, not with that kind of sharp intuition watching him.
As expected, the moment he made a sound, the entire group tensed. Only when he stepped fully into view did the reactions vary.
What brought Joey some comfort was Ponzu's expression—genuine surprise, yes, but also visible relief.
Pokkle merely furrowed his brow and gave Joey a curt nod.
Kite and the boys, however, remained cautious. Even after sensing the ordinary, scattered aura Joey gave off, they didn't relax.
Their eyes drifted subtly toward the handgun holstered at Joey's waist—intentionally visible.
"Didn't expect to run into you here," Joey said, keeping his tone casual and directing his gaze toward Pokkle. "Looks like you managed to take down that big croc?"
Everyone glanced at Pokkle, waiting for confirmation.
But Joey could feel it—if he made even the slightest wrong move now, Kite and the others would strike. The goosebumps rising on his arms confirmed it.
"No," Pokkle said, shaking his head. "It mutated—became even harder to deal with."
Then, after a short pause, he stepped forward and offered an introduction. "This is Kira Yoshikage. Resident of NGL, also a member of the narcotics organization."
Joey's expression darkened.
He'd opened with small talk as a gesture of goodwill. He didn't expect Pokkle to immediately out him like that.
Did I offend this guy somehow? he thought, brow twitching slightly.
"I'll introduce myself," Joey cut in, calm but firm. "Name's Joey. Fifteen years old. From a small village in southeastern NGL. Unmarried."
"I did work for the drug organization under Zaiyelo, but only in raw material cultivation and transport. Not exactly by choice."
He didn't elaborate. Frankly, he'd considered giving a whole speech, but now wasn't the time.
"Last night, I got separated from Pokkle and the others during a surprise attack. I reached this village around 4 a.m. and hid in that house, waiting for a chance to get out. But there's been constant Chimera Ant activity nearby, so I've been trapped here."
He gestured toward the house, then toward the dark forest outside. "Too many monsters out there."
"You've seen Chimera Ants around here?" Kite spoke for the first time.
He didn't question Joey's identity or story. Instead, he zeroed in on the most important point: intel.
"Chimera Ants?" Joey echoed, then nodded gravely and glanced around.
"First was one with fiery red hair and green armor, who played with its prey like it was a game. Then came a leopard-like humanoid, so fast I couldn't even track him with my eyes."
"During my time hiding, I also heard gunfire and what sounded like animals screaming in pain coming from the woods."
He pointed in the direction Kite's group had come from, and then toward the path leading to the base—where those dreadful sounds had come from earlier.
"There's definitely a strong smell of blood from that direction," Gon added, sniffing the air.
"Should we check it out?" Killua looked toward Kite. His hands were behind his head, eyes briefly sweeping across Joey, Pokkle, and Ponzu as if measuring how much they'd weigh the team down.
"Not yet," Kite said after a moment. "Joey, right? Before we came here, we found a bunch of Chimera Ant corpses near a stream. That was your work?"
Joey nodded without hesitation, and Killer Queen materialized silently at his side. "Yeah. That was me."
"A Nen beast?" Kite raised his hand to his lips, his gaze keen and probing as it lingered on Killer Queen.
"I'm not sure what a Nen beast is," Joey said, taking the opportunity to ask a question. "Is that similar to Pokkle's power—the arrows he shoots with different effects, even though he's empty-handed?"
He made sure to drag Pokkle under the bus with him.
Even if they didn't care much about Pokkle's abilities, Joey wasn't the kind of guy to take all the blame alone.
"You can see it?" Kite asked, pointing at Killer Queen. A shimmering "3" made of aura appeared at his fingertip.
Joey nodded. "Yeah, and I can see the '3' you just made. You put that there for me, right?"
Kite nodded. "You can't use Nen consciously, but you've formed a Nen beast and can see high-density aura. That suggests you awakened Nen by accident and, for some reason, your tenketsu (aura nodes) closed again."
"But you still instinctively mastered Gyo (focusing aura into the eyes), likely under some Restriction or Vow. Fascinating case—would make a good research subject."
"Stick close," he added, whether to Joey or the group at large. "Let that creature protect you."
It sounded like he was talking to himself, but the message was clear.
Joey furrowed his brow, filing away the information Kite had just revealed. But he could tell—the man didn't like him much.
Understandable. It was hard to like a drug runner, even a low-level one.
He nodded quietly and followed.
Joey didn't know why Kite, who had clearly gotten intel from Pokkle, wasn't returning to the border. But in this situation, he had no say.
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