"Still, how exactly does raising one's Nen via 'spreadability' work?"
From what Ron had heard Zeno say before, Nen essentially consisted of life energy, which could be roughly divided into physical and mental/spiritual energy. Most humans had a limit to their physical energy, but the upper bound for their mental energy was much higher.
Then Ron recalled the disaster the KUTO Thieves had caused in Meteor City.
"Spreadability, popularity… so this is basically about collecting the audience's mental energy? Right, it must be. If emotions like resentment, fear, and dread can be harvested, then so can fondness, respect, and reverence. But in that case, wouldn't highly popular celebrities have an easy time becoming powerful Nen users? Yet we haven't heard of such things. There must be something else I'm missing."
"Ron."
Ron snapped out of his thoughts and looked at Gon and the others.
"It's over?"
Gon nodded.
"We've won."
Out of five matches (best of three), three victories were enough. Ron's presence had changed some of the details compared to the original storyline, but the outcome remained the same:
- Killua had beaten the bald convict.
- Leorio lost to Johnny.
- Gon and Kurapika both secured wins.
Compared to before, Kurapika was calmer—possibly because he'd already seen Killua display surprising strength and ruthlessness.
Ron stood up and glanced at the blue-skinned young man slumped in the ring—a con artist who looked big and intimidating but actually lacked any real strength, not even knowing how to fight. All his tattoos were fakes.
"Congratulations, you've won."
The bald convict eyed Ron and the others.
"You can move on to the next stage now."
They continued onward. Kurapika lowered his head, seemingly shaken by what had just happened. He knew very little about the Kurta Clan's slaughter; what meager findings he did have all pointed to the Phantom Troupe, so he treated them as his greatest enemy. Even just seeing a spider symbol was enough to plunge him into memories.
Time trickled by, full of traps, choices, and lessons in human nature. Eventually they neared what ought to have been the final test.
Ron recalled that in the original storyline, the last choice offered two routes:
1. A passage for all five to go together, taking dozens of hours.
2. A shortcut for only three, meaning the other two would be left behind.
But the final test before Ron now wasn't like that. Instead, there were five separate corridors—one person per route. The monitor overhead read:
"Even with the best companions, you must eventually part ways. From here, the journey is yours to walk alone."
A flicker passed through Ron's eyes.
"This must be a specifically altered setup because of me… arranged by Chairman Netero?"
That was the only explanation he could think of. The warden of Trick Tower—the examiner for this third phase—wasn't someone Ron knew, nor did they owe him any favors. They wouldn't have changed the test just for him.
"In that case, it doesn't really matter which door I pick—they've surely assigned them to us in advance."
He and the others exchanged glances, then made their choices. Each walked to a door, pressed the switch, and—
Click!
They went through. A narrow, dim corridor lay beyond. All Ron could hear was his own footsteps on the floor—nothing else. After walking for what felt like several hundred meters, he finally spotted a faint glow ahead.
A large chamber opened up in front of him. Inside it sat a single man, middle-aged, wearing prison garb. His hair and beard were a tangled mess, and his eyes were half-closed as if dozing. Only when Ron's footsteps drew close did he open his eyes.
"You've finally arrived."
The man stood up, radiating an aura completely different from the earlier convicts.
"A Nen user!"
Ron's face turned serious.
"And not just an ordinary one, either. His aura is definitely at the A-level. Isn't having someone like this in the Hunter Exam a bit too much?"
"Chairman Netero… you really have that much faith in me?"
Based on what Ron knew about Netero's relationship with the Zoldyck family, Netero wouldn't be trying to eliminate him. Even if Netero had a grudge against the Zoldycks, Illumi or Killua would have been likelier targets. So putting this convict here meant Netero must believe Ron was capable of handling him.
Ron frowned.
"Still… why does he feel familiar?"
The convict seemed to sense a similar familiarity in Ron.
"Kid, have we met somewhere before?"
Ron studied the man intently, comparing him to people in his memories. At last, he remembered.
"The KUTO Thieves? Old T?"
A rush of recollections came over him. Ron had never seen Old T in person, but he had sent Hanma Baki to watch the battle back then, so he could recognize him.
The KUTO Thieves. Four people, all A-level Nen users—extremely strong, each with unique abilities. Together they had earned an S-level bounty:
- Old K wielded a Beast ability.
- Old O controlled lava.
- Old U manipulated water.
- Old T's power was trees.
Years ago, for the sake of obtaining high-grade Nen materials, the KUTO Thieves came to Meteor City and sacrificed millions of lives to create four major disasters…
Because of Ron, Zeno discovered their plan early and informed the Hunter Association. The elders of Meteor City also got wind before it was too late. They dispatched their elite team, the Wild Beasts, to fight the KUTO Thieves, but were completely outmatched. In the end, the elders had no choice but to hire Zeno and Silva.