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Chapter 45: Crisis
Ronin read the prophecy and understood why there was only one verse.
According to the poem, he would die next week.
So there was no need for the rest of the month.
"The precious scarlet hue shall be lost" likely referred to losing his Sharingan.
"A played fate begins with a gaze" explained how he would lose it.
Ronin tapped his finger on the table, recalling a person.
A Phantom Troupe member obsessed with making dolls. The current Spider #4.
A character who only appeared in the movie Phantom Rouge: Omokage!
The movie was terrible, forcing popular characters into the plot. Even Omokage's abilities were riddled with plot holes.
Omokage was a Specialist.
• Soul Doll: He controls dolls he creates. The dolls have no eyes but possess the memories and some Nen abilities of the original person.
• Soul Call (Retinal Scan): If a doll makes eye contact with a person, it steals their eyes. The eyes only return if the doll is defeated.
• Doll Catcher: Merging three dolls into himself to use their abilities.
Ronin had memories of Omokage from his predecessor. He had the title of "Eye Collector."
He must have been at the Kurta massacre. In the movie, a doll of Pairo stole Kurapika's eyes at the start.
This character was practically created to antagonize Kurapika.
However, his goal was to make dolls of all the Spiders.
That was why he joined the Troupe—to contact them and copy them.
Giving a doll the original's eyes made it stronger, potentially replacing the original.
In the movie, the Troupe hunted him because he dug up Uvogin's grave to put Uvogin's eyes into a doll.
Does that really make the doll stronger? Ronin doubted it.
Real-life Omokage might differ from the movie version.
Regardless, Omokage was a massive threat to him and Kurapika.
Without knowing he was coming, Ronin could easily be ambushed.
The eye-stealing gaze was a hard counter to him!
The last two lines were simple.
"The fiery red" referred to Kurapika. After Ronin lost his eyes, Kurapika would follow him to confront Omokage.
A blinded Ronin and a Nen-less Kurapika against a Spider? Slaughter.
Neon really helped big time!
"Well? See anything?" Neon asked expectantly.
Ronin put the paper away, his tone turning scrutinizing. "Your poem is great, but I have to question your intentions."
Neon froze.
"You said you thought your ability might be a curse. I'm telling you, you're right," Ronin bluffed. "The reason there's no second verse is that I die next week because of your curse."
"This..." Neon was speechless.
"Since it's your curse, you have to take responsibility. For the next week—no, until the start of next month—you're sticking with me. If I die, you're coming with me," Ronin said casually.
"No!" Neon refused.
Refusal was futile. Ronin knocked her out in front of the shocked staff and carried her out of the café.
Police arrived quickly. Besides the kidnapping, they found a corpse in a nearby alley with its heart removed—the janitor.
Light Nostrade arrived soon after, looking impatient.
Confirming his daughter was kidnapped, Light left one instruction: "If the kidnappers call, I'll handle it. If not, treat her as dead."
His tone was indifferent.
A rebellious daughter with useless hobbies who looked like her dead mother? Light didn't care.
He was a pragmatist. Only useful things mattered.
Neon was not useful yet.
Ronin gave the prophecy to Kurapika, along with his interpretation.
He also wrote down everything he knew/guessed about Omokage.
When Neon woke up, Ronin made her read Kurapika's fortune too.
Neon looked at Ronin differently. She realized Kurapika was Ronin's companion.
Seeing the admiration in Kurapika's eyes for Ronin, Neon was terrified.
This man attacks his own friends? He's a devil!
Kurapika's prophecy was similar to Ronin's: dying at Omokage's hands alongside Ronin.
"Can fate be avoided?" Kurapika had a headache.
"Yes," Ronin said with certainty.
In Chrollo's prophecy, the Troupe was supposed to lose half its members. They changed their actions, and the outcome changed.
Knowing Omokage was the threat gave them a chance to change fate.
Neon's prophecy was only valid for the current month.
Once the month ended, it was void.
They had two choices:
• Find and kill Omokage immediately.
• Avoid Omokage, get a new prophecy next month to confirm safety, then hunt him.
Option 1 was high risk. Option 2 raised the question of how to avoid him.
But either way, Omokage had to die!
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