Sam's brother, Satchi, the messy-haired examiner, was using "Ten" as he ran. His pace was noticeably faster than Sam's on the other side.
Most people would struggle to keep up with him, and to make matters worse, he was slowly accelerating.
In contrast, Sam was adjusting his speed to match the candidates following him.
Yuu didn't know if this was intentional, but one thing was clear...
Knowledge of "Nen" wasn't a requirement for the Hunter Exam.
"So the choice shouldn't depend on whether the examiner is a Nen user or not," Yuu reasoned.
Still, after a moment of thought, he decided to follow Satchi, the Nen user.
He activated his "Cursed Ten" technique, blending his Cursed Energy with his aura, and quickly caught up to Satchi's pace.
---
Meanwhile, still standing in the center of the dark tunnel, Hisoka watched Yuu's retreating figure with great interest.
With his sharp sensitivity to Nen, Hisoka noticed that the boy's aura had grown significantly since their last meeting. His "Ten" was also much more refined than it had been on the ship.
Excitement coursed through him. He licked his lips, murmuring to himself in the dark.
"It's only been a few days... and he's grown this much."
"Truly..."
"Surprising~"
Hisoka didn't follow Yuu. Instead, he leisurely turned and walked toward the other examiner, Sam.
"I can't wait for the day I get to taste that fruit..."
"...Yuu."
---
At that exact moment.
Yuu felt a sudden, cold chill crawl up his spine. He shivered involuntarily and stopped, looking back into the darkness.
He was currently at the tail end of Satchi's group. Behind him lay endless blackness.
Using the Six Eyes, he scanned hundreds of meters back... but sensed no one.
"Imagination...?"
Yuu shook it off and ran to catch up with the group.
As he rejoined the pack...
Under the dim light cast by the examiner ahead, a chubby, middle-aged man running at the back of the group noticed Yuu's strange behavior.
"What's wrong, rookie?"
The man sidled up to Yuu as they ran.
"Feeling sick?"
Yuu glanced at him. It was Candidate #16, Tonpa.
The self-proclaimed "Rookie Crusher." In the original series, he pretended to be a helpful veteran while secretly getting off on destroying newbies' dreams. He used dirty tricks to sabotage and eliminate them.
A truly nasty piece of work.
"Why does the Hunter world have so many psychopaths?" Yuu thought to himself.
Unaware that Yuu had already pegged him as a threat, Tonpa launched into his friendly act.
"I'm Tonpa. This is my 31st time taking the exam. You could call me an 'Exam Expert'."
"If you have any questions or run into trouble, feel free to ask me for help."
"The reason I haven't passed in all these years is because I just love helping people too much. Whenever I see a rookie in trouble, I can't help but lend a hand... I guess I'm just hopelessly kind like that," Tonpa said with a smile.
Yuu didn't know whether to laugh or gag.
"..."
You don't become a Hunter because you don't want to? That's a hilarious excuse.
Tonpa pressed on. "What's your name, kid?"
"Yuu."
The cold response didn't deter Tonpa. He reached into his bag and pulled out a can of orange juice, offering it with feigned concern.
"Here. Want some juice? Every year, tons of candidates collapse from exhaustion in the first phase. You need sugar to keep going."
"No thanks."
"You should keep that poison-laced laxative juice for yourself."
Yuu didn't want to waste another second on him. He sped up, leaving Tonpa behind as he moved toward the front of the pack.
Watching Yuu disappear into the crowd, Tonpa dropped the friendly mask, his face twisting into a scowl.
"Damn rookie."
The kid was sharper than he expected. But that just made Tonpa want to crush him even more.
---
Five hours flew by.
Yuu was still running at the front of the pack. The group, which had started with one or two hundred people, had dwindled to a few dozen.
Ahead of them, Examiner Satchi was running while muttering a constant stream of gloomy complaints.
"Ugh, I'm so tired."
"It's already past clock-out time..."
"Why aren't we at the end yet?"
"Should I speed up...?"
"But if I leave all the candidates behind, the Chairman will say I was too harsh... and make me do it all over again..."
"Sam, you idiot... why did you pick this test?"
Satchi's voice was incredibly quiet, a stark contrast to Sam's booming projection earlier.
If Yuu hadn't been running so close—and if his senses weren't heightened by "Ten"—he wouldn't have heard a word.
For some reason...
Listening to the examiner's depressed rambling made Yuu feel like the guy was actually kinda relatable.
---
Several more hours passed.
Even Yuu was starting to feel the fatigue. His legs moved mechanically, repeating the running motion like a robot.
"This isn't just an endurance test. It's a test of willpower..."
Staring into the darkness that seemed to stretch on forever ahead of the light, Yuu felt a rare pang of despair.
He started to doubt himself. Did I pick the wrong path? Was Sam the right choice?
Many candidates had already broken down with that same thought and turned back.
But...
Yuu knew that turning back meant walking alone into that deep, crushing darkness without the examiner's light. That would be torture for the mind.
Finally, unable to hold it in, he called out to Satchi.
"Mr. Satchi... does this road actually have an exit?"
"Eh... are you asking me?"
Satchi slowed down slightly and turned his head.
He looked at the white-haired boy running just a meter behind him. Ignoring the bandages on the boy's eyes, he thought for a moment before giving a vague answer.
"Probably."
"Also..."
"Don't yell at me. Keep it down, or I'll fail you."
With that, Satchi turned back around.
Yuu sighed. Hopeless.
Fortunately, after gritting his teeth and pushing through for another few hours...
Yuu sensed the exit was near.
However, the path ahead was still blocked by darkness. The exit seemed to be completely obstructed by something heavy.
---
Soon, Examiner Satchi slowed to a stop.
Staring at the blocked tunnel mouth, he pulled a cigarette from... somewhere... lit it with a lighter, and took a drag.
"Sigh... it's blocked."
"Just my luck," Satchi muttered.
"..."
Yuu stared silently at the obstruction. After a moment, he walked forward and placed a hand on it.
A distinct chill travelled through his palm.
Feeling the texture, Yuu realized what it was.
"Is this... snow?"