He questioned him—why hadn't he saved him, why had he stood by and watched him die? In the end, Leorio was nearly killed within the illusion itself.
Fortunately, Killua arrived in time. Not only did he pull Kurapika—who had been drawn in by his fear of spiders while searching for Leorio—back into reality, he also helped Gon locate Leorio and wake him up.
In the end, with a few bombs generously "donated" by Killua, they blasted open a passageway and arrived directly in front of Examiner Satotz.
Of course, once Leorio regained consciousness, he desperately wanted to beat Tonpa senseless. However, since they were still in the middle of the exam, he couldn't act on it.
As a result, Tonpa suffered no losses at all. On the contrary, he even took advantage of the situation to eliminate Nikru—so he still came away with gains.
As a veteran rookie-killer, Tonpa had always enjoyed smooth sailing. He had no idea how many first-time Hunter Exam candidates he had sabotaged. Lu Ou felt that life shouldn't consist solely of smooth sailing—there should also be confusion in the distance, and failure.
"Uh… this tree can…" Tonpa stammered.
He hadn't expected anyone to know about that tree—much less bring it up at such a critical moment. He froze, unable to figure out what to say.
"Tonpa-san must have wanted Leorio to overcome his psychological barriers," Lu Ou said earnestly, "to break through his inner demons, strengthen his resolve, and unlock his potential—so he could regain confidence and finish the race. Tonpa-san is truly a good person."
Lu Ou's eyes were sincere. His tone was sincere. Even his gestures were sincere—so sincere that he could easily go toe-to-toe with Tonpa, the so-called acting king.
"Yes, yes, that's exactly what I meant," Tonpa quickly agreed. "Although the Mind-Confounding Cedar Forest is a trap, it would actually be very helpful for Leorio in his current state. I believe he can overcome his inner demons."
He looked at Lu Ou as if he were family and immediately climbed down the ladder Lu Ou had handed him, smoothly and without hesitation.
"So this group's backbone really is capable," Tonpa thought. "Mysterious, knowledgeable… and he trusts me quite a bit. That's a good sign. Even if it doesn't work this time, the road ahead is still very long."
Having gained Lu Ou's trust, Tonpa felt much more at ease. With that level of access, manipulating the group later would be far too easy.
"Still," Lu Ou added hesitantly, as if embarrassed to contradict him, "if Leorio goes there now, we might waste too much time and fail to keep up with the examiner. That would be counterproductive."
"Ah… that's true?"
Caught off guard, Tonpa couldn't think of a good response. For the first time, he didn't realize that he was already being led by the nose.
"I do have another idea," Lu Ou said, changing the subject once the timing felt right. "I'm just not sure if it'll work."
Tonpa maintained his usual enthusiasm. "What idea? Say it—maybe it'll help."
"Killua, do me a favor and lend me your skateboard," Lu Ou said. "Your strength is more than enough—you don't really need it."
As soon as he said this, Kurapika, Killua, and Tonpa—those who were quick to catch on—immediately understood Lu Ou's plan.
"It would reduce Leorio's burden quite a bit," Kurapika said after evaluating Leorio's condition. "It should be manageable."
"So, Lu Ou wants Killua to lend the skateboard to Leorio?" Gon asked, catching on. "That'll work, right?"
"Don't worry. It'll be fine," Lu Ou replied.
As for Tonpa, he didn't interfere anymore. There was no good opportunity to sabotage things now, so he might as well behave and watch. After all, he was never truly a good person.
Killua didn't think much of it either. He had only brought the skateboard for fun anyway. Lending it out wasn't a big deal—especially now that something more interesting was happening.
He glanced at Leorio, who was so exhausted he could barely speak. Lending it to him was fine. Besides, Lu Ou had just given him a huge pile of imported candy earlier—hard to refuse after that.
"Mm." Killua replied lazily and handed the skateboard to Lu Ou.
"Thanks," Lu Ou said, taking it.
"Hmph." Killua turned his head away, suddenly feeling a little embarrassed.
Judging that enough time had passed and Leorio should have recovered some strength, Lu Ou tossed the skateboard to him.
"Leorio, try using this. It should make it easier to keep up with the examiner."
"Leorio, try it! This should work—if Lu Ou says so, it must be right!"
That, of course, came from Lu Ou's number-one loyal supporter: Gon.
"It might be worth trying," Kurapika added. He wanted to help Leorio, but his own stamina didn't allow him to physically support someone else. Since this was Lu Ou's idea, it was probably sound.
Under everyone's gaze, Leorio nodded with difficulty. He took a deep breath, steadied himself, and then moved.
He pushed himself up from the ground, gripping the skateboard tightly. Though he still looked exhausted, he had clearly recovered—no longer in that near-death state from earlier.
"Let's use this for now," Lu Ou said plainly. "At the very least, you need to keep up with the examiner until the finish."
Leorio hesitated several times before finally accepting the skateboard—not just for himself, but for the others as well. He couldn't keep dragging everyone down. Even if he already had, fixing even a little was better than nothing.
"Whoosh—whoosh—"
With the skateboard, Leorio immediately conserved a lot of energy. Rolling along behind the group, he no longer fell far behind.
Although they had been delayed for a while, they still hadn't lost sight of the examiner.
More than four hours had passed now, and the exam had reached a turning point. One by one, candidates began dropping out. Judging by the contestants collapsed along the route, Lu Ou and the others were still steadily keeping pace with the main group.
To avoid falling behind, Lu Ou once again began eating continuously, coaxing his body into cooperating.
Having already witnessed this once, Gon, Kurapika, and Leorio were no longer surprised. To them, it was simple:
"He must just be hungry and replenishing energy."
Killua didn't think much of it either. Whenever Lu Ou ate—especially sweets—he'd usually join in without a second thought.
Tonpa, however, found Lu Ou's behavior strange. Still, it was just eating—nothing suspicious. After pondering for a while and finding nothing amiss, he let it go.
"Probably just a glutton," he thought.
Lu Ou, the so-called glutton, suspected this label was one he'd never shake in this lifetime.
"Leorio… you have to pass the exam and get your Hunter License," a voice said.
In a daze, Leorio seemed to see his friend Pietro.
"Only then can you enter medical school… become a doctor. If you can't even save me, how can you save anyone else…?"