Chapter 5: Boon X Bonded
"Give me the ball or I'll kill the boy," Sinbad demanded.
"No!" Chairman Netero replied in a goofy manner. He shook his head and the sunken skin on his face jiggled back and forth.
Sinbad's sword applied pressure on Gon's neck. The sharp blade barely cut into the skin, a small tear of blood traveled down his neck.
Chairman Netero sighed as he picked his nose. "You people take everything so seriously."
Sinbad smiled, keeping the steady blade against Gon's neck. "Depends on what I want."
Chairman Netero flicked the green booger he picked. "I wouldn't kill him if I were you."
"Good thing, you aren't me." Sinbad shifted his gaze onto the sleeping Gon. "The Tides of Destiny are conflicted with this one. An uncertain storm."
"What do you really want, Sinbad?" Chairman Netero asked. "I swear, you are just like your father."
"Tell me everything you know about Nen," demanded Sinbad. As the Chairman of the Hunter Association and of older age, Sinbad was confident in this man's ability, knowledge, and experience in Nen. Once he fell from the airship, he knew immediately, to get him to teach him and he wouldn't find anyone better.
"Everything?" Chairman Netero asked in a depressed manner.
Sinbad flashed a glance at the clock hanging on the wall. "We got time."
"Only if you tell me where your brother is," Chairman Netero replied. "You people create unspeakable horrors and havoc in our world and then go back to your Kingdom like nothing ever happened."
"I don't have his exact location but he should be going to a place called Heavens Arena," replied Sinbad.
Chairman Netero nodded and then began bouncing the ball between his legs. "Nen is life energy, everyone has it flowing within them but only few are able to manipulate it and utilize it to their own will, giving them extraordinary abilities."
"Wait a second," Sinbad interrupted. Carefully, he positioned Gon to lean against the wall. He returned as he sheathed his blade. "I've had it this whole time?"
"Not necessarily, it must be…" Chairman Netero cut himself off as he watched Sinbad close his eyes and concentrate.
In Sinbad's mind, he envisioned himself to be sailing on a small boat which could only fit himself. Above him was the heavenly sky and the bright sun. Around him was a calm golden sea and it was calling to him.
Sinbad leaned over the hull and looked into the yellow iridescent waters. He saw a reflection of himself but this version of himself wasn't wearing his standard outfit but regal robes, expensive jewelry, and a royal crown.
King Sindbad of Magi Kingdom.
This was his birthright, his future, and his Destiny.
Sinbad dove into the golden sea.
Standing directly in front of the concentrating Sinbad, Chairman Netero's expression tensed. He used an advanced technique of Nen called En to envelope the boy in his own Nen to understand the changes going on inside his body. 'Impossible! This boy is ripping his own Aura Nodes open through sheer will alone.'
Chairman Netero focused deeper onto the boy's body. 'If I didn't know about the rules and regulations about the Contest of Kings, I would have believed the boy already knew about Nen because Sinbad was always in a state of En. I felt his oppressive En the moment I got closer than fifteen feet from him. He was born with some of his Aura Nodes already opened?'
Unbeknownst to Sinbad and Chairman Netero, Sinbad understood his destiny to be King and the persistent dangers of being a King, his body subconsciously developed En to perceive any danger within a fifteen feet radius. Over time as he grew older and learned about the strategic ways of assassination, Sinbad's En evolved to perceive the latent dangers within his En. This includes present threats and future ones, murderous intent and hidden threats, being able to distinguish between the right and wrong paths, these are all necessary to be a King.
A white glow hummed around Sinbad's body which subconsciously fought back against Chairman Netero's invading Nen. Chairman Netero couldn't contain his excitement as his lips expanded into a goofy smile. 'He is pushing back against my Nen. This kid is a monster.'
Sinbad opened his eyes as the chaotic Nen overflowing from his body transformed from a white spiky chaos to a still, serene, and golden light. The pressure of his powerful Nen shook the room and then the whole airship trembled.
"Suppress your aura!" Chairman Netero shouted over the quaking.
"What do you think I'm doing?" Sinbad snapped back but the unsealed container of his Nen was overjoyed to be finally released. He closed his eyes and focused, demanding his Nen to bend to his will and relax. Slowly, the overflowing golden colored Nen only enveloped a few inches around his whole body and then it lost its color, returning to a clear white color. The airship stopped shaking.
"Sorry for the unexpected turbulence, the rest of the trip should be smooth," said Beans, the green person Sinbad met earlier. His voice boomed from the overhead speakers in the halls.
Thrilled from this new experience, Sinbad jumped and ran in place. The Nen surrounding his body granted him enhanced physical boosts.
"What you are doing right now is called Ten. One of the four main principles of Nen, it is basic but extremely crucial in fights amongst Nen Users. It works like a barrier but if you are hit by an attack of greater magnitude of Nen, it will smash this basic barrier and shatter everything within it," said Chairman Netero.
"Go it," Sinbad replied, he began focusing and shifting his Nen throughout his body. His face slightly tensed from the difficulty. "So, in theory, different body parts can be increased with Nen to either block and strike."
Chairman Netero nodded and decided against telling him the name of that advanced technique. "The next technique is called Zestu, suppression of the Nen to go invisible from being detected by other Nen Users."
Sinbad acknowledged the information but didn't bother putting it into practice. If he was able to increase and enhance the aura from within his body, he was able to do the inverse.
"The next technique is called Ren. It is enhancing and releasing your Nen. Unknowingly you were doing this earlier, releasing your Nen at large magnitudes but sustaining it is very difficult. However, practicing this endurance test will increase your Nen and allow you to fight prolonged battles," said Chairman Netero in a monotone voice. He threw up the ball, folded his hands, and hit the ball with his forearms. The ball rose into the air and then struck the ball again, knocking it back into the air.
"It will be hard for me to practice that," Sinbad said, starting to feel somewhat fatigued from his Nen outburst and sustaining Ten. He shut off his Aura Nodes, entering a state of Zetsu before sitting on the wooden floor. "How do Nen battles function?"
"That is the next and last major principle of Nen. It's called Hatsu, it is your own personal expression on Nen. You must force your Nen to act and it will function upon your will, this allows for a Nen Ability to manifest. It is vital to develop a flexible but strong Nen Ability that matches your personality and is versatile to compete against other Nen Abilities."
Sinbad contemplated his own Nen Ability. Before he could dive deeper into his own personality and will, Chairman Netero tossed the ball at him.
"Here, you won the game," Chairman Netero said in defeat. In reality, he wanted Sinbad far away from the Hunter Exam and especially him learning of Nen, there was no point in him participating in the Exams. And out of spite, he refused to tell him about the various Nen Categories and the dangers of developing a Nen Ability without understanding the limits and restrictions of the Nen User's category. "That is all I will tell you about Nen."
In quick succession, Sinbad unsheathed his sword and executed four slashes, cutting the ball into tiny ribbons. He resheathed his blue ornate sword.
"Oops, I cut it into pieces," Sinbad said, becoming performative, expressing his false misfortune. It was too early for him to leave the Exams. There was much more for him to accomplish in the Hunter Exams. "Looks like I lost the game."
'This brat is more cunning than his father.' Chairman Netero thought. "Why do you wish to stay?"
Sinbad turned away, stepping for the exit. "Tell me what you are hiding about Nen and then I will answer your question."
Chairman Netero remained silent, watching Sinbad leave the room. His gaze fell onto the snoring Gon as he retrieved a communication device from his pocket. "Yes. Beans? Tell the pilot to slow our pace."
…
The sun had risen for an hour and a half before the airship reached their destination of the Third Phase of the Hunter Exam. The remaining thirty five applicants of the Hunter Exam got off the airship, standing on the top of an enormous pillar called Trick Tower. The tall pillar rose to touch the clouds.
Ten minutes had gone by and Sinbad noticed the numbers of applicants had reduced. He walked around on the tile floor with Killua but stopped to tap his foot on the square brick tiles. "Our task for the third phase is to reach the bottom of the pillar, it seems like we go through these tiles."
Killua jumped onto a tile to see if anything were to happen but the tile remained firm. "How?"
"I'm not–"
"Sinbad! Killua!" Gon called out to them as he approached. "Kurapika, Leorio, and I discovered a way down, we watched someone fall through the tiles and we found a way down. Follow me."
They followed Gon and discovered a tile for each of them to fall through. On Gon's count, they jumped onto the loose section of their individual tiles and fell through the floor.
Sinbad landed on his feet and found himself all alone. He stood in a dimly lit ten by ten box. On the wall directly in front of him was a display screen and beneath it were a single handcuff resting on a metal cylinder platform.
He walked toward the handcuff but sensed a woman falling through the tiles above. Quickly, he dashed and caught the woman princess style. She had cyan colored hair and eyes, wearing a green shirt and a white colored warriors skirt to her knees with black tights. She had an athletic but slender build. In her left hand, she carried a silver spear.
"Don't worry, love. I got you," flirted Sinbad. He flashed a smile, showing off his perfect teeth.
The woman blushed and hesitated before striking Sinbad in the face causing him to release her.
"Why?" Sinbad asked, grabbing onto his bruised nose.
The woman ignored him, walking toward the cylinder pillar. Her face sank into a horrified expression as she looked at the handcuff and read the message on the display screen.
Noticing her expression, Sinbad read the message. "That's not good."
"It's the worst," she replied.
Sinbad switched her gaze to the surprisingly tall woman. "I don't want to be handcuffed to you either."
The woman sighed. "Let's get this over with."
"If we are going to do this, we should know each other's names. My name is Sinbad."
"Yama," she answered, grabbing the singular handcuff. With Sinbad's help, Yama cuffed her right hand to Sinbad's left hand. Once they were cuffed, the wall behind them opened.
"Allow me to try something," Sinbad said while unsheathing his blade. He stepped in front of her. "Let's see if I can cut the chain."
They pulled away from each other to lengthen the twelve inch chain to capacity. He swung the blade in an awkward angle and struck the metal chain, but didn't have the necessary strength to cut it.
"It was worth the try."
Once they awkwardly arrived out of the room, they had a choice to go either right or left.
"Let's go left," suggested Sinbad. He pushed against her but she resisted. Sinbad quickly noted her strength.
Yama thought for a second. "Why?"
"My intuition is telling me to go that way," answered Sinbad truthfully.
"Intuition? Seriously?" Yama doubted him, stepping in front of him.
Sinbad nodded.
Yama shrugged. "Whatever. Sure, let's rely on your intuition."
The two ventured left going down the hall which ended forcing them to turn right into a closed door. Sinbad opened the door revealing stairs which descended beyond their eyes could see due to the dim light and shadows.
The main issue for them was the length of these stairs couldn't fit the two of them if they were to stand side by side.
Yama pouted, knowing what must be done. "I'm going to kill you if you complain."
Sinbad chuckled. "My lips are sealed."
He crouched down as Yama began climbing onto his shoulders while keeping her right wrist which was connected to Sinbad's left wrist. He had to carry her like a backpack but his left wrist was pulled back into his left shoulder. After hooking his right arm around her legs, her soft but muscular thighs pressed against his right cheek. At the same time, Sinbad's right hand held Yama's silver spear.
'Why is she so heavy?' Sinbad complained inwardly.
He started the descent down the stairs. "So, why do you want to become a Hunter?"
Yama ignored him. Not wanting to make things more awkward between them, Sinbad left it alone and continued down the stairs.
After twenty minutes of walking down the stairs, the walls on both sides rumbled. Sinbad's En sensed hostile projectiles were being shot. He picked his speed and from the awkward grip, he nearly dropped Yama's spear but he held on.
"What are–" But before she could finish her protest, dozens of arrows shot at them. Due to Sinbad's speed, agility, and sensing abilities, they managed to descend forty feet of stairs without taking any damage. However, the strain on Sinbad's shoulders did cause him to wince.
Once out of danger from the arrows, Sinbad sensed another oncoming danger and this was coming from directly in front of him. A stone pillar hanging on metal threads swung at them.
'This is getting annoying,' Sinbad thought as he jumped over the threat. The stairs rumbled from the collision but Sinbad managed to land safely. After another ten feet of walking down the stairs, they reached a door signalling the end.
"We probably would have been dead if one of us wasn't being carried," commented Yama, questioning the loose difficulty of the Third Phase.
Yama thrusted her left hand out, demanding her spear back and obliged. Sinbad opened the door and together they entered the next room.
In the brick enclosed room, a metal gate divided the two halves in the room. Two people in prisoner outfits each carrying a large butchering axe rose to their feet. They were cuffed by their ankles. Insidious smiles sharpened on their faces.
"It's about damn time," said the taller one.
The smaller bald one licked his lips as he looked at Yama. "And, they brought us a delightful snack."