“Wake up.”

HyunJin swatted away HeeJin’s weak attempt at defending her undoubtedly treasured sleep, mercilessly shaking the girl awake. It was half an hour until the time ran out. No matter how peaceful the girl looked while sleeping and how pitiful she would look awake, there was no more time to spare.

During HeeJin’s sleep, a couple more examinees passed the phase, including one that dropped dead immediately after crossing the finish line. 

A total of twenty-six participants cleared the Trick Tower alive.

Over a half passed. Was it more than what examiners expected? It certainly overdid HyunJin’s guesses.

“Wake up,” she repeated as HeeJin’s eyelids began twitching. HyunJin shook her rougher a couple times more for good measure, determined to bring the girl to the land of the awake.

HeeJin slept for as long as could be afforded.

When there was another mealtime not even an hour ago, they put aside HeeJin’s portion. As soon as the girl actually saw what was around her, she would notice it. Despite having gone cold after a couple hours, any food was better than nothing.

HyunJin stared at HeeJin, who slowly sat, blinking away her sleep and massaging her stiff shoulders.

“It is half an hour before the phase ends. You should prepare.”

HeeJin absentmindedly nodded and stood up to head to the bathroom. HyunJin caught her by the elbow, leaning close enough to whisper in her ear. “Don’t forget your lenses.”

That made HeeJin startle, shaking off some of her residual sleep and hurriedly returning for her backpack.

HyunJin sighed and continued working on her half-finished card tower. 

What else HeeJin expected? That they won’t notice it or come to the correct conclusion after seeing her so close both with lenses on and without them?

Impossible.

And, HyunJin had to admit, those bright pink eyes were quite memorable.

Half an hour should be enough for HeeJin to get everything in order. Around them, others were making final preparations too. Before the final stretch of time ran out, contestants busied themselves meditating or making final checks of their equipment.

In contrast, Chuu was glued to her phone, furiously typing something, and so was Choerry. The latter had rapidly shifting emotions throughout whatever conversation she had. She seemed to have fun.

During the past several hours they tried to keep quiet to not disturb HeeJin. Choerry got a deck of playing cards from the laptop pocket of her backpack, resulting in a quiet game with Chuu. Once HyunJin got the hang of the bluffing rules, she joined them.

Chuu won. They tried to go for another round, but Choerry’s phone pinged and the girl, visibly excited, apologized and switched to it. Chuu followed, chirping something along the lines of giving a report.

HyunJin, seeing that all of them switched to private businesses, followed the example and took out her own phone. After staring at it for some time, she sent a message to her mom.

“Very alive, well-fed, slept well, got new friends”

She picked up forgotten scattered cards and began copying Hisoka, who had been building card towers almost non-stop all the time he wasn’t sleeping with a strange smile on his face.

After a couple minutes she got a message with a single thumbs-up emoji. 

It was dull afterwards. 

HeeJin, returning with her more usual look, beelined to her breakfast. “Any news?” 

“Some more people arrived,” HyunJin sent a glance towards a corpse lying some distance away, facing the wall. 

She held her breath as she put the final peak at the second row. Carefully, slowly…

The tower fell.

HyunJin sighed. Oh well.

She moved a mess of cards to the side, cleaning up space in front of her again.

HyunJin leaned two cards against each other, a new beginning of the foundation layer. Added another peak. And another one.

She glanced at HeeJin, who was already halfway through her meal. The girl’s lively appetite warmed HyunJin’s heart.

“HeeJin.” After the girl looked at her, HyunJin smiled. “Haven’t said it before, but I’m really glad that you finished unharmed.”

---

A loud familiar voice echoed in the room as soon as the timer on the watches hit zero. 

“Congratulations! All of you have successfully completed the third phase of the exam. Twenty-seven passed, one applicant is dead.”

A door rose, the same bland-looking one as the ones they went through to finish. In the apprehension, it sounded way louder in HyunJin’s ears than it probably was. Sunlight and smells of nature poured out of it. She inhaled deeply as everybody shifted towards the exit.

Sun-warmed dirt and dust, along with salt in the air, placed her in a tranquil headspace. Those things weren’t what surrounded HyunJin as she grew up, quite the opposite. 

But nature felt like home to her more than any building would, wherever it was in the world.

The examinees, squinting at the bright, almost to a hostile level, light, spilled on the outcrop overlooking the sea.

HyunJin smiled. Hopefully she’ll get a chance to swim before the next phase begins. 

She faced the sun and closed her eyes, lips turning up in satisfaction.

Facing the crowd, considerably smaller than the one that arrived at the top of the Trick Tower, stood three men. A box on a small table stood in front of them.

“Congratulations on your successful descent,” light reflected off of the short man’s large round glasses. He nodded, putting hands in deep pockets of a baggy black coat. As he moved his head back in a jerking movement, his purple iroquois stayed completely unruffled. “Only two more phases lie ahead. The fourth phase will take place on Zevil Island. And the first step,” he snapped his fingers at the box on the table, smirking, “is for you to all draw lots.“

“Lots?” repeated a tall black man with a weird big pipe some distance away from her.

Another, an elderly man, echoed. “What will that decide?” 

Examiner smirked, viciously. “Who to hunt… And who will hunt you .” 

In a single sentence, a dense atmosphere fell on the gathered examinees.

The examiner (HyunJin was confident his voice was the one announcing those who finished) unhurriedly pointed at the box again. “In this box there are twenty-six cards corresponding to all of the remaining applicants. You will now draw one card each, in the order in which you cleared the third phase.”

Hisoka stepped forward and HyunJin squinted, hoping to see what was on the cards, but his figure blocked the view. His wounds caught her attention once again - she wanted to look more closely while she was out of his field of vision, but he didn’t give her an opportunity. With an audibly smirk, he turned around almost immediately, the card flicking between his fingers and disappearing like in a magic trick.

Chuu stepped next, drawing a surprised grunt from HeeJin next to her. Yes, that is amazing! They have a remarkable friend. 

One by one the applicants went up to a box and pulled out small cards, hard like tiny plates, clear on both sides. Chuu charitably showed them hers, and HyunJin noticed that there was actually a film glued to one side.

When her order came, she walked up, a box making a soft beep as the card left it.

After the last person returned to the crowd, holding a card, the examiner smiled. “Does everyone have a card? Good. Now take off the cover.”

HyunJin tugged hers, and saw in a corner of her eye that a couple of the quicker examinees’ hands flew up to their chests. 

A number was written on the card. One hundred twenty-four.

The smug examiner laid his hand on the box. “This tabulator has recorded the number each of you drew. You may therefore dispose of the cards, if you wish. The applicant whose ID is specified on your card is your target.”

Barely audible, to her left HeeJin breathed out something akin to “feesces the boot”.

More hands flew up, covering their tags, as applicants began glancing around. Who was their target? Who was their hunter? Anybody looking too intently specifically at them? Examinees hungrily looked around, searching for any traces of directed interest or hostility.

Among four of them only HeeJin and HyunJin covered theirs - Chuu and Choerry had their arms by their sides, tags free for all to see. Both of their hands were empty, too.

“Your objective is to collect other applicant’s ID badges,” continued the examiner, clearly amused. He held up three fingers. “The badge of your specified target is worth three points. So does your own badge, if it stays in your possession.” He closed two of the fingers. “All other badges are worth one point. To advance to the final exam phase, you must acquire a minimum of six points.”

“Now,” said a wall of a man next to him, who previously kept quiet. “Get going. A boat will deliver you to the island, where the phase will officially begin.” He pointed at a steep slope downwards and immediately began rolling the box away, seemingly done with them.

Still covering their tag, one examinee slowly unpinned it, watching their examiner. Was it allowed to take off your badge?

The Hunter watched their cautious movements and merely smirked.

“Enjoy your stay on Zevil Island.”

---

The ship was rocking gently from side to side. Their guide was talking in the front, a professionally cheerful voice struggling in the gloom atmosphere. Congratulations, something something, invitations for the next year’s Hunter Exam, something something, good luck.

Choerry drowned it out, for the most part.

What should she do regarding her target?..

She bent backwards, over the rail, facing the sun, and stretched her arms over her head.

Engine’s roaring was providing a veil of privacy for anyone who wished to talk. Not many did - alliances weren’t safe at this point, so only few people spoke to each other.

Welp. It was over noon in her timezone - by this point Jinsoul had to be free for a talk. 

Choerry squinted in delight at the sun.

“JinSoul! I am ready to subject myself for another one of your weeks-long ocean stranding! I miss you!~” thought Choerry high up in her mind, wishing her voice to be heard by JinSoul’s second hatsu.

They hadn’t met face to face since early December! For anyone Choerry was best friends with, it was downright absurd to not meet in two months!

“Someone’s eager to suffer,” echoed in her mind, sarcasm dripping from JinSoul’s voice. Choerry turned around, facing the waves. “Somehow you never sing this song after a single week passes!”

“I do!” protested Choerry. She didn’t. After exhausting her nen daily and stuck on the boat with no way out, Choerry was a miserable creature that yearned for some dirt and plants. “We aren’t going to train anyway so I will be fine!”

“Who said you aren’t going to train?”

Choerry audibly gasped. “You won’t !”

“Choerry?” A familiar male voice that was to her right and slightly behind and was definitely not a distancing laughter in her head. She probably caught his attention by that gasp. Oops. “You aren’t going to hide your tag? Overconfident much?”

Choerry turned her head towards Leorio. “Anyone who wants to try their luck is free to do so.” She turned her back to the waves and opened her spread palms with a cheeky smile. “I’ll meet them with open arms.”

“You finished the last phase early, but,” his body slumped a little, a confusion creeping on his face, “aren’t you too self-assured about yourself? It is for sure easier to snatch a visible tag than one in a pocket.”

“Don’t worry,” Choerry laughed. “I know perfectly well where my limits are… But thank you for your concern. Have anything you need help with?”

A thought visibly flashed on Leorio’s face. “Hold on,” he held up a hand and asked suspiciously. “Who’s your target?”

“Not you,” Choerry smiled, staring him dead in the eye, bold and honest. ”I guarantee.” 

Leorio looked at her for a couple of moments, but then exhaled, scratching his stubble. 

“I don’t have a clue what your guarantees are worth, but I’ll bite. For the time being - since I do have a problem,” volume of his voice dropped to a whisper and he leaned forward, covering his mouth, “I have no idea who my target is.”

“What number?” asked Choerry, also dropping her voice to conspirological level, playing along. 

“Two hundred forty-six.”

She perked up. “Oh! I know who that is!” Choerry even exchanged some brief words with her. “A short teal-haired woman in pastel clothes and a tall yellow hat. Her name is Ponzu.” Choerry mulled for a second whether to give more, before deciding, “I heard she uses chemicals,” she added almost dismissively. 

That one she got from HyunJin specifically, despite the girl not being too eager on elaborating. Apparently, she wasn’t as excited as Choerry about that.

Leorio lit up and pumped his fist victoriously. “Hell yeah!” He grinned at her, expression several times less guarded now. “You are a real life-saver! Thank you! Anything I could help you in exchange?”

Choerry smiled. Unfortunately, she still hasn't decided whether she’ll go after her target or gather three random tags. 

“Thank you for the offer, but no.” She nodded, sunshine in her smile. “However I’ll know who to seek if I need a pair of helping hands. Good luck!”

Choerry twirled around and skipped toward the head of the ship, leaving the teenager to his own devices.

---

Chuu was sitting near HeeJin, waiting for the other girl to break the silence. 

Granted, she was the one who approached and sat near the other, but watching HeeJin brood ever since the rules dropped, Chuu suspected it went beyond her overall tiredness. 

They sat like that for half an hour already. 

Chuu was of the opinion that even a silent company helps with moodiness! She’d even wager this will help HeeJin open up - she just seemed like the type that was soothed by this kind of thing. It definitely helped Chuu! And Go Won, until three years ago, when - finally HeeJin spoke, eyes still cast down.

“In your opinion, how difficult is it to get someone’s tag without killing them? And am I able to do that? Honestly, please.”

So that was what this was all about! Whew, and here Chuu thought something drastic happened in the Tower! 

“Of course,” nodded Chuu. “You can knock them out, poison them, threaten, barter, try stealing, but unlikely - even the slowest ones will keep the tag on them at all times - form a team as a distraction or to overpower...”

HeeJin groaned in defeat. She hung her head low. “I don’t even know who my target is,” she mumbled quietly, hiding her face in the knees she brought up to her chest.

“What number?” asked Chuu. During the many hours she wasted at the bottom of the Trick Tower, she had more than enough time to memorise each of their competitors. Her memory is rock-solid!

HeeJin showed her plate. One hundred, ninety-nine.

Chuu leaned closer to her ear. “It's one of the Amori brothers. I heard him being called Umori. He is the big one, in yellow.“ She smiled encouragingly.

“Amori brothers? The ones that always keep close?” HeeJin chewed on her lip, frowning.

Well, yeah, Chuu didn’t know what HeeJin’s plan should be here either. Those three were sure to spend a lot of time grouped up. An undeniable advantage.

“I will have to trail him, perhaps. Maybe he will separate from others at some point,” said HeeJin. She sighed, finally facing Chuu. “What about you? Who is your target?”

“Oh, nobody important, it's basically a done thing,” huffed Chuu, flicking her wrist. She foresaw how it was going to be. She will get it in the first hour or so, then it will be a waiting game again. Wow. Riveting. How excited she was.

Chuu glanced at HeeJin from the corner of her eye. The girl was deep in thought. Probably a bit scared, if Chuu had to guess - it was the first time they would be directly opposed to other examinees. And one never knew which one was after them. 

And, not to shy away from the truth, HeeJin was kinda mediocre skill-level among remaining examinees. Not the worst, but far from the best.

Gently, she elbowed HeeJin. When the girl peeked from her ball-up, Chuu smiled at her encouragingly. “Most importantly, don’t be scared. You got to this point all by yourself, didn’t you. You can go further than this.” 

HeeJin snorted.

“No, seriously,'' said Chuu, eyebrows dipping into a little frown. “You did every task on your own merit. Nobody gave you anything for free or carried you through any of the phases. You even got down the solo route all by yourself! That is more than all those pompous overconfident men at the start did and far more than an ordinary civilian could dream of achieving! Everyone who reached here truly deserves to be here. And so are you! And you are sure as hell able to go further!”

“But,” HeeJin helplessly spread her arms, looking at her freshly blistered hands, “I almost died from exhaustion at the first phase. And got lost in the swamp. And barely made it in time back in the tower!”

“But you did it! Nobody held your hand through any of that and yet you are here.” Chuu patted her shoulder, activating her hatsu and tagging HeeJin. “You can’t argue with evidence!”

Silence settled between them again. 

Time passed. Chuu listened to the girl’s boiling feelings, fears and doubts and desperation slowly, one small drop after another, settling down.

When their voyage passed the one-hour mark, HeeJin spoke again.

“Chuu?” She turned to HeeJin. The black-haired girl smiled tiredly, not even looking at Chuu. Her unfocused stare was fixed on the sky. “Thank you. You are a great friend.” 

Chuu shoved down her own worm of doubt and anxiety, raising its ugly head, and silently half-hugged the girl, allowing herself a little smile. 

“You're welcome.”

---

“To pass, gather here by noon in seven days! Now, when I call your number in the order of you clearing the third phase, step onto the island!” The guide, Coco, addressed the crowd, gathered in front of the ramp to the island, with a cheering customer service smile. “Disembarking will happen in two-minutes intervals! Number one, go!” 

As Hisoka leisurely stepped on the bridge, Coco pressed the timer button, eyeing the list of examinees in her hands. 

All of the examinees stared at his unhurriedly distancing figure, until it got lost in the shade of a forest.

Chuu turned to the girls. ”Welp! Good luck!” She encouragingly put her hands on HyunJin and Choerry’s shoulders, tagging them both at the same time. “See you at the finish line!”

HeeJin batted her eyes at the island. “You too. Be careful.“

“Mmmm no promises,” teased Chuu, lifting her hands off of the girls. Choerry followed the motion with her eyes but stayed silent. Chuu’s hatsu was shrouded in In on activation and Choerry definitely didn’t have eyes blazing with nen to spot anything. She couldn’t figure out what was the problem here. “This exam is certainly a test of my patience, you know? Who knows what crazy thought might hit my head to cope with a this stress?..”

“I have no doubts in your abilities, Chuu, but I worry about your target,” smiled HyunJin. “Know mercy.”

Chuu smiled devilishly, giggling through fingers. Anticipating the lightning-speed completion of the challenge and then wasting the entire week somewhere in hiding, she was grasping the last moments of fun.

The guide called out: “Second person!”

Those moments were always so fleeting.

Chuu waved to the rest, including a small nod at the boys, who all seemed rather stiff for some reason, and stepped on the ramp. She felt the stares of other examinees behind her and sensed a ton of spectators in front of her. This island was crowded ! Good thing it was so huge.

After walking far enough in the forest, she cloaked herself in Zetsu and creeped back, hiding in the tree with a decent view on the beach, catching the third person step on the island, a tall creepy purple guy full of needles, clicking his joints and twitching all the way until disappearing deep in the forest.

Chuu was glad neither him nor Hisoka was her target. Those two were bad ideas from head to toes.

Her’s was much tamer. Bah! She didn’t even need to tag that woman. 

Chuu wasn’t boasting. She really would be done in a matter of hours.

Chuu sighed and switched to her professional mode.

---

HeeJin walked off the boat as casually as she could, beelining to the forest. She felt the stares of two remaining examinees right until their line of sight was cut off. 

It had been nearing an hour since Hisoka stepped on Zevil Island.

Starting zone was littered with footprints - most chose to venture into the forest, some opted to cut through the beach.

And some abruptly vanished as soon as they stepped under the canopy, like Choerry and that cool shinobi! 

Her target, Umori, left the boat ten minutes ago and by now was certainly far from the starting point. She overheard the Amori brothers (why are they named after the oldest one? HeeJin thought it was a family name, but, apparently, not) conversing before they disembarked. Something about their “usual strategy”.

Since they were a trio, the brothers had better chances at both getting their targets’ tags and retaining theirs. They even had the ability to keep a steady watch during night hours, didn’t they.

To say the least, not a situation that guaranteed success.

HeeJin sighed. 

Given how often her bunnies appeared and helped her in the past several days, it wasn’t overly optimistic to expect a bit of a helping hand (cheating) here too. Maybe closer to the end of the week, when she would feel stress ramping up. But not now. She wasn’t anxious for that enough yet.

Could she have imagined it, that she would be too calm!

Chuu was a great friend. Her words rang true and brought up her confidence that seemingly dwindled as the days of the exam passed.

Anyway. Her current objective was to get as far from the starting point as possible. 

HeeJin settled on carefully combing through the forest in search of one of the brothers for the first four days. If she found the wrong one, she should wait for them to reunite - she couldn’t trust seeing just one of them by themselves. It might be a ploy, where another brother - or both - would be waiting to spring the trap on the attacker. 

If she found no trace of them in four days, she would have to assume them non-existent and try collecting other badges.

HeeJin would have to just do her best.  As always.

---

“Okay, so, pros and cons, pros and cons. Pros! Easy win, can clear the phase by tomorrow morning. He doesn’t even need to know it was me! At least until the end of the phase. Cons, I might be dooming him. Depends on who his hunter is… but that is not a tragedy - I’m fairly sure I overheard that he is after money and I can just take him on missions in that case! It’s no big deal!“ pondered Choerry, while observing the island from the top of the mountain on one of the halves of the island, shrouded in Zetsu. “He would just lose compared to his peers and if his goals ran deeper than just monetary gain - which is probably the case, he seems way too virtuous - that might set him back something big. A wasted year and no friends by his side during the next Hunter Exam too.”

There was another examinee stealthily climbing the mountain. He was pretty damn visible from her spot. 

“I will also ruin our chances at friendship. Granted, he won’t catch me in the act, but we have to reveal obtained tags either way. He seems passionate and smart and actually nice!” She scrunched her nose. “But wouldn't that be a mark against me if I don’t bring my target tag specifically ?” 

And they definitely were evaluated, considering a second shadow that stuck to each examinee - including her. 

She was a nice participant to be assigned to, considering alternatives. While those observer’s jobs weren’t as dangerous as the task examinees got, it still wasn’t completely safe.

Rest in peace those who got stuck to Hisoka or his target.

And whichever fool tries to go hunt the magician - fly high, little angel!

Choerry lightly banged her head against the trunk, glancing down at the dude who was now eyeing the mostly-forest covered island beneath them, opting to hide ten meters below her. His slim figure was clad in a tight grey costume and a low dark ponytail. There was a sickle on his waist.

For a short-lived second, Choerry contemplated what her other friends would do. Her three bestest ones.

They would make her target eat dirt at best and kick dust at worst, that's what! 

Their thoughts wouldn’t even get to the stage where the dilemma rose.

Musing about her long-established friends, Choerry thought of girls scattered around the island. She had absolutely no worries about Chuu and solid belief in HyunJin’s success. HeeJin surely felt out of her element here, but Choerry believed in her triumph too!

The wannabe Hunter dropped a couple meters lower, heading to a hawthorn a distance away for better coverage and a different angle of view. 

Choerry scratched her nose and followed, fluidly dropping down and creeping after him. 

HyunJin might be sad if she targeted her assigned prey. And her opinion was valuable!

Sorry, Sickles, it was either you or Kurapika.

---

Hyunjin was jumping from branch to branch, prioritizing speed over stealth. She was not as noisy as to attract attention of anyone in the general vicinity of her path, but not hiding either. 

The island seemed to be almost split in two halves and HyunJin was planning to spend her night as far away from the starting half as possible.

The trees were old and for a majority of them, in order to hug them, she’d need to call a friend or two. Their numerous branches looked reliable enough to rush through them without hesitation. 

Local nature was on her side.

HyunJin grinned. Running on them was a pure joy.

She would’ve loved to stay near the mountain on the half they arrived on, but it was probably already set as a hunting ground by someone who disembarked earlier. It stung - HyunJin liked mountains the most and felt confident among them (despite everything)… But she also would prefer to not be shot on sight. Whoever has claimed it, have fun, and hopefully you get severely beaten up in a couple days when she goes there.

As for the challenge, HyunJin had no idea where to begin.

She had no clues about her target other than a vague image. She might’ve seen a man in a beige cloak and green hair with the tag she needed, but it wasn’t a solid memory.

Wind from behind her breezed by and-

She stopped, crouching on a branch, looking forward and to her left, as if pondering where to go next. The only things betraying her were an abruptness of the motion and a soft tilt of her head.

There was something giving an almost untraceable synthetic smell behind her.  

Through her nose and opened mouth HyunJin listened to the source. 

It stayed where it was.

Hyunjin tilted her head to the other side and, after a minute of contemplation, lurched forward, racing with the intent of losing her tail.

After another minute or so, she stopped and turned, placing the stranger between her and the wind. 

They knew she knew she was followed. HyunJin had no doubts about that.

And yet…

HyunJin’s nostril twitched. Her pursuer kept the distance, smelling the same as they did before. 

She narrowed her eyes, slowly turning back to continue on her path…

HyunJin made a full circle, facing the stranger again, and dashed at the unknown person at her full speed, head-first.

She caught a glimpse of a black suit before the person nimbly left her field of vision, keeping the distance once again.

HyunJin cocked her head. There were no examinees in black suits.

This person wasn’t her hunter then.

Oh. Well.

She shrugged. Fine by her. She didn’t care in that case.

HyunJin turned around and continued in her goal of getting to the other side of the island.

---

Her target did not even twitch as Chuu landed near and jabbed fingers into her neck, knocking the woman out. The cautious militant half-asleep state wasn’t anywhere near enough to be alerted by her, much less leaving time or reason to react. 

Chuu rummaged through her pockets and a bag (taking all of her better food too) in search of the tag and, when found it, pinned it from the inside of her pelerine-like hooded poncho. 

Putting everything sans food back in the bag, Chuu patted the sniper’s head. “Better luck next year.”

She vanished as if she was never there.