Where should life return to?
Chrollo had never cared about such things.
For him, the survival of the Troupe was paramount.
To that end, he wouldn't hesitate to sacrifice his own life.
But to abandon his comrades here and flee alone...
He found himself unable to make that decision so decisively.
From the moment the Troupe was founded, they had established their rules.
Yet only now, at this life-or-death juncture, did he realize that no matter how cold those rules were, they couldn't override the remnants of his humanity.
In this instant, Chrollo seemed to truly see his own heart for the first time.
All this time, he had believed he was already on the path to becoming a monster, gazing down upon humanity with a godlike indifference.
But in truth...
He had never truly shed his human shell.
He was still swayed and bound by those fragile emotions, those laughable human weaknesses.
Chrollo's eyes gradually turned cold as the pages of Skill Hunter stopped flipping in his hand.
Before Hisoka could attack, he cautiously swept his body with Gyo once more.
Only after confirming that no traces of Hisoka's pink adhesive remained did he feel assured.
Still, Hisoka's earlier act of retracting his ability had surprised him.
Or rather, he had underestimated Hisoka's obsession with a "one-on-one fight", and he knew full well that Morrow, watching from the sidelines, would seize any opportunity to strike.
To reverse the situation, he had to deal with Hisoka as quickly as possible.
Even severely wounding him would suffice.
The chance... comes only once.
Chrollo glanced sidelong at the frozen page of Skill Hunter, already preparing to cripple Hisoka in their next exchange.
If he failed...
There would be no coming back.
Hisoka looked at Chrollo, who had already taken his stance. Though the fire in his heart had dimmed, even to the point of boredom...
He still couldn't bring himself to abandon this apple, ripe beyond measure.
Like a magician, he flicked a playing card between his fingers, staring at Chrollo as he reluctantly hardened himself with Ko once more.
At the edge of the battlefield.
Morrow glanced at Hisoka's rekindled aura. Though he could still sense Hisoka's lingering desire within it, the intensity was undeniably weaker than before.
Hisoka's enthusiasm had indeed been affected.
He considered reminding Hisoka to take things seriously, but in the end, he said nothing.
Morrow shifted his gaze to the other battles.
Kanzai and the others had already engaged the remaining Troupe members.
But unsurprisingly, the Troupe's side was at a disadvantage.
Morrow's eyes settled on the clash between Kalluto and Amanda.
The earlier large-scale star rain had only injured Amanda and Kortopi.
Judging by the extent of their wounds, however, it wasn't enough to significantly hinder their combat capabilities.
For a Manipulator like Amanda, the real issue was her lack of mediums to activate her ability.
This was equivalent to stripping Amanda of her sharpest weapon.
Kalluto's side is basically secure.
Morrow withdrew his gaze and turned toward Kurapika's battle.
Kurapika had chosen Pakunoda as his opponent, undoubtedly the correct decision.
As Morrow watched, he saw Kurapika calmly flicking his Dowsing Chain, effortlessly deflecting every bullet Pakunoda fired at him. These bullets, materialized with Nen, possessed greater kinetic penetration than conventional ammunition.
Yet, before Kurapika's Dowsing Chain, no matter how extraordinary Pakunoda's bullets were, they couldn't breach his defense.
Their fate was to press against the chain's links, spinning rapidly like tops before dissolving into Nen floss.
Had Kurapika not developed his Dowsing Chain, Pakunoda might have leveraged her "infinite ammo" ability to gain an advantage through sheer firepower.
But there were no "ifs."
The current Kurapika, though still growing, was more than capable of defeating Pakunoda.
The only thing to watch for was whether Pakunoda had combat methods beyond conventional shooting.
Kurapika should be fine.
Seeing Kurapika hold the upper hand, Morrow shifted his gaze to Kanzai's side.
His opponent was Machi.
Compared to Troupe members like Pakunoda, Kortopi, and Amanda, Machi was undoubtedly stronger.
Her innate ability to see aura aside, she could effortlessly see through an opponent's In.
But Machi's true strength lay in her refined and solid technique, something Morrow knew all too well.
Even so, against a battle-hardened Enhancement-type like Kanzai, Machi would struggle to gain ground.
Kanzai's side is even less of a concern.
With that thought, Morrow turned his attention back to Hisoka and Chrollo's duel.
This quick scan had taken him less than two seconds.
At that moment...
Hisoka lunged at Chrollo once more.
When it came to bloodshed, Hisoka's aggression was unmatched.
As he closed the distance, a playing card was pinched between his right fingers while his left hand remained hidden behind his back.
Chrollo noticed this small gesture immediately but showed no reaction.
Hisoka narrowed his eyes. When the gap narrowed to a few dozen meters, he suddenly flicked the card forward.
Whoosh!
The card spun rapidly through the air before abruptly splitting into three, flying at Chrollo in a triangular formation.
This was undoubtedly the work of Texture Surprise.
However, all three cards carried traces of pink gum concealed with In, a signature trick of Hisoka's.
But the moment Hisoka raised his hand, Chrollo had already focused Nen into his eyes.
Instantly, his pupils burned like torches, revealing the hidden adhesive on the cards.
Without hesitation, Chrollo flicked several pebbles forward, ones he had casually picked up after Hisoka abruptly halted his earlier assault.
Since he had already decided to aim for a decisive strike in the next phase of their battle, there was no time to adjust after locking in his ability.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh...
The pebbles shot through the air, striking each card with precision.
Snap, snap, snap.
The cards recoiled from the impact, flipping backward.
Hisoka yanked his right hand back, using Bungee Gum to retrieve them. At the same time, his legs erupted with explosive force, propelling his body like an arrow loosed from a bow toward Chrollo. Along the way, he narrowly brushed past the three playing cards being pulled back.
Chrollo focused his gaze, taking in every subtle movement of Hisoka's, his mind already mapping out all possible actions Hisoka might take next.
It wasn't hard to predict.
Because they were on flat ground, everything was clear.
The only terrain feature that could provide Hisoka with any advantage was the ruined warehouse not far away.
Had they been fighting inside a warehouse cluttered with various objects, Chrollo would have been far more cautious.
Just as Chrollo had anticipated, the only environmental factor Hisoka could utilize in his offensive was the nearby warehouse ruins.
Whoosh!
A flat piece of sheet metal, connected to Hisoka's left hand hidden behind his back, suddenly sliced through the air under the maximum contraction force of Bungee Gum. It flew past Hisoka's left side, heading straight for Chrollo.
Chrollo remained calm and leaped into the air.
The sheet metal, shrieking as it cut through the air, passed harmlessly beneath him.
But to dodge this large piece of metal, Chrollo was now airborne with no way to change direction.
Though Hisoka found Chrollo's decision to jump into the air somewhat reckless, in the heat of the moment, he seized the opportunity without hesitation. He threw a powerful uppercut aimed at Chrollo.
With no way to brace himself, Chrollo bent his knee to block the punch.
Boom!
Fist met knee, sending a visible shockwave of aura rippling through the air.
Unable to disperse the force behind Hisoka's punch, Chrollo was sent flying backward.
Hisoka, however, made a sharp pulling motion with his fist.
During the uppercut, he had already attached Bungee Gum to Chrollo's knee.
With this sudden tug, he yanked the airborne Chrollo back toward him.
Faced with this maneuver, Chrollo's expression remained unreadable. He allowed himself to be pulled back, only adjusting his balance midair.
Truly composed, Hisoka mused to himself, preparing for his next attack. Abruptly, he bent his knees into a low stance, resembling a horse-riding posture.
As he lowered his head, the three playing cards he had pulled back earlier, propelled by the rubber-like rebound force of Bungee Gum, shot past his head at an even faster and more ferocious speed.
The trajectory of these three cards was perfectly aligned with Chrollo, who was being dragged back by Hisoka.
Through this series of seamless maneuvers, Hisoka demonstrated the full tactical potential of Bungee Gum.
However...
Limited by the open terrain, these seemingly brilliant moves were all within Chrollo's expectations.
"In Another's Shoes."
Chrollo calmly activated the ability page he had prepared from the very beginning.
His choice of ability had been made even before Hisoka's intricate offensive unfolded.
This foresight stemmed from Chrollo having truly placed himself "in another's shoes", Hisoka's, before making his "decision."
He had considered how to utilize Bungee Gum to orchestrate an attack.
Thus, he had foreseen the "future" battle scenario from a predictive perspective.
And this line of thought had been afforded to him by the opportunity Hisoka gave when he suddenly halted his assault.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
As the ability "In Another's Shoes" activated, Chrollo and Hisoka's positions abruptly swapped.
Hisoka suddenly appeared suspended mere centimeters above the ground, the sudden shift in his vision causing his eyes to narrow sharply.
At the same time, due to the positional swap, the playing cards that should have been aimed at Chrollo's vitals now shot straight toward Hisoka's back.
But Hisoka, after all, possessed razor-sharp combat instincts.
At the critical moment, he sensed the situation through the pink elastic gum extending from his hand behind him and, without hesitation, erected a Nen defense at his back.
Ssshhhk!
Three playing cards pierced into Hisoka's back, embedding only slightly and drawing small splashes of blood.
But what followed immediately was Chrollo's attack.
After swapping positions, to maximize his offensive window, he did not deactivate Skill Hunter and reclaim his aura output.
Instead, he utilized the residual contracting force of the pink gum on his knee, twisting his waist to swiftly circle around to Hisoka's flank.
This timing coincided precisely with Hisoka reinforcing his back to block the playing cards.
In other words, Hisoka couldn't easily divert more aura output elsewhere.
Yet Hisoka's combat instincts were monstrous. The moment the pink gum in his hand suddenly veered backward, he predicted the incoming assault.
Thus, relying on his masterful Ryū, he prepared his next defensive move in advance.
To increase his margin for error, he even calmly controlled the amount of aura output concentrated on his back.
Though the cost was the cards piercing his skin, it bought him more room to react.
Unfortunately...
Chrollo was one step ahead.
His decision not to deactivate Skill Hunter was the key move that defied conventional thinking.
By forgoing a stronger counterattack, he gained a speed advantage over Hisoka.
Before Hisoka could fully reinforce his Nen defense, Chrollo's lightning-fast left jab struck Hisoka's temple like a bullet.
Bam!
Crack.
Hisoka suffered a brutal blow, his brow bone fracturing instantly as he was sent flying sideways.
The devastating impact left his consciousness flickering in an instant.
And as his awareness wavered, the pink gum clinging to Chrollo's knee dissipated.
Chrollo watched expressionlessly as Hisoka was sent sprawling.
Then...
A blinding flash filled the corner of his vision.
Hmm?!
In that split second, Chrollo's heart lurched.
Morrow had teleported beside him using "Astral Step."
His Abyssal Sheath, leveled like the barrel of a gun, was aimed directly at the side of Chrollo's head.
Before teleporting, Morrow had already charged the sheath with Nen.
So the moment he appeared, the Abyssal Sheath was primed for an "instant release."
This would be even faster than a standard Shooting Star.
It was the swiftest, deadliest combination of "Astral Step" and "Abyssal Sheath."
BOOM!
A searing wave of light erupted from the sheath's mouth, swallowing Chrollo's head whole.
Yet, even while locked in battle with Hisoka, Chrollo had never let his guard down against Morrow.
Thus, in the instant the light surged toward him, Chrollo barely managed to reinforce his Nen defense.
And so...
When the energy wave engulfed his head, the Nen barrier mitigated part of the damage.
His skull wasn't directly shattered by the blast.
Instead, under the impact of this energy, he followed in Hisoka's footsteps in an instant, his body flung helplessly through the air.
His consciousness wavered between clarity and haze, the Skill Hunter in his hand abruptly dispersing into drifting Nen floss.
Thud!
Chrollo's body plummeted from the air and crashed heavily onto the ground.
He was still alive, but his entire head was charred black, his facial features nearly unrecognizable.