The moment the hidden map was revealed, Joey couldn't help but feel a little awkward.
But things had already come this far—he could only bite the bullet and press on.
"How did you know it was there?"
"Learned it from an archaic text hunter," Kite answered succinctly. After giving the map a once-over, he said, "Let's go."
Kite's lack of questions actually made Joey sigh in relief… until the older man shot him a glance—calm but penetrating—that left a fresh tangle of doubt crawling under his skin.
Kite knew something. Something about Joey.
Maybe even more than Joey himself.
But… how?
Because of the possibility that Chimera Ants were still nearby, all four of them switched into Zetsu, nullifying their aura.
Joey's running speed slowed them slightly, but not by much, and they easily made their way into the base after a few minutes of careful advance.
Blood trails—thick, sticky, dragged bodies—lined the halls. The stench of death saturated the air.
As they ventured deeper, machines for drug production began to appear, along with crates of raw materials.
The filth hidden beneath NGL's eco-friendly mask was being unveiled—layer by filthy layer.
In a large hall where three tunnels branched off, the group paused, slowing their steps.
"No one's here," Killua noted. "Looks like the ants wiped everyone out."
"Against people only armed with guns, they probably didn't need much effort," Kite muttered, eyes scanning the gloom.
"So what now—"
"Shh." Kite raised a hand, motioning for silence. "There are a few Chimera Ants up ahead. They're moving through the center tunnel toward us."
Even with the base's built-in lights, the tunnels ahead were cloaked in shadows, oppressive and silent.
"You're using En!" Killua said, instantly catching on. "What's your range?"
En—a combo technique of Ten and Ren—spread one's aura in a spherical field, detecting intruders within its range.
Joey turned to look at Kite too, clearly curious. This technique was far beyond what he could do right now.
"Over forty-five meters. Depending on stamina and focus, give or take two or three meters," Kite answered flatly.
That made Joey suddenly wonder…
Had Kite been maintaining En this whole time?
"They're coming."
As Kite finished speaking, two men crawled into view—on all fours, naked except for metal collars. Their clothes had long been torn away.
They looked like broken dogs, barely clinging to life.
The moment they saw the group, one of them cried out in a hoarse, cracking voice.
"Help—!"
But before the word finished leaving his lips, the rope around his neck jerked—and a Chimera Ant stepped into view.
With a dull thud, the Ant's hoof crushed the man's skull like a watermelon.
"Who the hell are you people? You think you can—"
The Ant never finished its sentence.
"STOP!!" Gon shouted and burst forward.
The sudden outburst caught everyone off guard—Kite's eyes narrowed with disapproval, though his hands moved instantly. A clown face appeared in his palm, chattering nonsense as it transformed into a jester-headed rifle-lance.
Killua was already gone—his aura exploded, vanishing in a blur as he shot forward after Gon.
Joey, furthest in the back, didn't move.
Was this another deviation from the canon?
Had his proximity to Kite prevented the older man from stopping Gon in time?
Frowning, Joey drew his handgun and summoned Killer Queen, posting her defensively by his side.
From the shadows, the horse-like Ant licked its lips, revealing a serpent-like tongue and a smirk full of cruel triumph.
Then—ambush.
From the tunnel walls flanking Gon, two Chimera Ants lunged.
One: a bizarre woman with wings and a nurse's outfit. Her segmented insect body was tightly wrapped in fabric. A strange mask obscured her mouth.
The other: a hulking, bald male with over a dozen muscular arms.
The nurse's arm lashed out at Gon. He deflected it, barely avoiding a punch from the multi-limbed brute. Twisting on his heel, Gon kicked hard at the nurse's leg.
Crack!
Her lower limb shattered under his Nen-charged kick.
But in that instant, her head jerked toward him. From her mouth—hidden beneath the mask—a venomous needle shot out.
BANG!
Gunfire split the air.
Kite had pulled the trigger.
The nurse's entire lower body, along with her hidden tail stinger, vanished in a silent explosion.
Gon reacted instantly—twisting backward, snatching the venom stinger with his aura-hardened hand.
It didn't pierce his skin.
He yanked—slamming her to the ground.
And then—BOOM.
His fist, packed with aura, came down like a comet.
All that remained was a mangled heap of limbs and blood.
Behind him, Killua blurred past.
He appeared on the back of the multi-armed Ant, twisted its bald head in a clean 180°—but the thing still wasn't dead.
Its arms whipped around, trying to strike Killua—
BANG!
A second gunshot rang out—not from Kite.
A bullet streaked past the boys, piercing into the left tunnel.
Ding!
The round was intercepted—but a second later, a massive explosion lit up the cave.
Killer Queen's bomb.
Joey had fired once, and walked forward a few steps, getting closer to Kite.
That's when he noticed—
The horse-ant was already dead.
Headless.
Blood pooling around its twitching legs.
Kite stood nearby, rifle still smoking.
Joey ejected his clip, touching each bullet—charging them with Killer Queen's power.
Ordinary bullets wouldn't cut it anymore.
"A good Hunter," Kite said flatly, "must remain calm and observe the battlefield. Gon—you're still the same as always."
Without missing a beat, he thrust his weapon into the multi-armed Ant's chest—boom—ending it completely.
"And never assume your enemy is dead just because their head is gone. These things can survive for days, even like that. You have to make sure they're completely disabled."
Killua shrugged, standing over the crushed skull of the Ant.
"Lesson learned."
"Also—if we're being thorough," said a voice that definitely wasn't Kite's.
It came from the jester head on the back of his weapon.
"Kill fast. Kill quiet. Hee hee."
"Annoying… but solid advice," Kite admitted. "Let's consider this your warm-up. One tunnel per person."
He aimed his weapon back at the path they'd come.
The other three tunnels were left to Gon, Killua, and—
"Wait, I—" Joey started.
But when he turned—the other three were already gone.
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