A short while later, Xiang Nan fixed his gaze on Kaito's moving lips.
The guy was clearly talking, but Xiang Nan couldn't hear a thing—yet from the looks on Garo and the others, they could hear him perfectly.
It was directed solely at Xiang Nan.
Soon, his hearing returned to normal.
"…My mastery of Nen isn't all that high. Before, Selena wanted me to help open up her aura nodes and forcibly awaken her Nen… but I didn't dare risk it."
Sure enough, anything not involving major plot characters came through just fine.
This was a total restriction on how much information players could glean about the current world and its timeline.
Xiang Nan narrowed his eyes.
What Kaito said matched Selena's dying words.
To become a Nen user, you first have to sense your "aura," the life energy within your body. There are two ways:
1. Active Training – steadily learning to perceive and control your aura.
2. Another Nen User Forces It – a risky process; if the person being awakened can't quickly control their aura, it can drain their life energy in a short time and go out of control, plunging them into critical danger.
Regardless of which route you pick, it demands real talent. Even with a Nen user's assistance, you can still fail if you're not personally capable enough.
In the original story, Wing had used the second method at Heaven's Arena to help Gon and Killua awaken their aura.
But Gon and Killua were the protagonists, freakishly talented. They could handle it. Plus, Wing—Biscuit's student—was plenty skilled himself. If he'd been less capable, forcing open Gon and Killua's aura might have ended in disaster.
Bottom line: Forcibly awakening Nen places high demands on both teacher and student.
"I'm a Conjurer… The name of my ability is 'Hippocampus of Memory.' It lets me manifest any object I can clearly picture in my mind through Nen…"
Kaito kept talking, disclosing more about himself. Xiang Nan listened intently, cross-referencing his knowledge of the manga as he pieced everything together.
Several hours later, Kaito had said everything he could, and Xiang Nan gained the intel he wanted. Apart from the "silent spots" whenever the conversation veered near story characters, he was satisfied.
"Your conjuration's actually pretty good," Xiang Nan said, leaning back in his seat and stroking his chin. "It's just that you, personally, are too weak."
"Yeah…" Kaito dropped his head in dejection.
"First, you lack combat training. Even if you've got Nen, you can't wield it effectively under pressure. Second, your aura capacity is too low—Nen is basically your life energy, and you haven't developed yourself enough. Lastly, your conjuration depends heavily on your brain's functions—memory, mental calculation, and how well you grasp certain objects. If you'd trained those aspects, your ability would be far stronger."
Kaito's eyes went wide with shock. His teacher had said nearly the same thing before their parting.
"You're really not a Nen user?" Kaito asked, stunned.
"Of course not. Otherwise, I wouldn't be asking you all this," Xiang Nan answered with a faint smile.
"If I were you, given the crisis you just faced, I'd simplify the items you conjure mid-fight rather than trying to replicate them 1:1. That way, you'd spend less aura completing each manifestation. For example, when blocking bullets with a shield or conjuring a bulletproof vest, you could focus on the simplest functional structure. Yeah, it'd weaken things a bit in size, weight, and quality, but you'd be faster at summoning them and wouldn't burn through your aura so fast. You'd have enough juice left for prolonged battle, giving you time to find an opening.
"But of course, that demands sharp judgment about the environment and the enemy's threat level—enabling you to use simpler, more efficient conjurations. Otherwise, you'd just be committing suicide.
"That's basically how top-tier Hunters diversify their own Nen usage. But your thinking's stuck in a little box. You're way too rigid."
He tapped his temple with a finger.
"Take the moment you and Selena were surrounded by the cops. Your first instinct was to shield her, leaving your back wide open to their guns. Sure, you had Nen defense, but you still got hurt. If you'd 'simplified' your shield, given your reflexes, you might have time to quickly conjure a bulletproof vest for yourself as well—or at least something for your back. That would've protected you from handgun fire, preventing injury. Then your stamina and aura wouldn't have been wasted.
"For a Nen user of your level, even if I had the advantage of numbers, taking you down shouldn't have been this easy."
Listening to Xiang Nan's analysis, Kaito hung his head, shamefaced.
"All that… depends on personal battle instincts, mindset, on-the-spot reflexes. Everyone's upbringing, environment, experiences differ. I'm just offering thoughts." Xiang Nan shrugged. "Anyway, thanks for telling me everything."
He rose from his chair. Kaito stared at him, dazed. Before now, he couldn't imagine a non-Nen user with such clarity about Nen's workings.
"Kaito… You may have gained Nen, but I see something in you that says you'll never become an outstanding Hunter."
His teacher's words resurfaced in Kaito's mind—those parting words still echoing.
"Why?"
"You wouldn't understand at this point. Go, grow stronger. Take the Hunter Exam, earn your License, then explore the fields you're good at or drawn to—look for teammates. Time and experience will answer you. Once you see a truly outstanding Hunter, you'll understand what you're missing."
In that instant, Kaito's eyes reddened. He still hadn't taken the Hunter Exam or honed himself as a real Hunter. But encountering Xiang Nan now brought some glimmer of understanding to those mysterious parting words. Even though Xiang Nan was just a "normal guy," Kaito had a strong hunch: Xiang Nan would definitely master Nen—no, become a Hunter—and probably one beyond his wildest imagination. He saw a certain glow in Xiang Nan.
"I enjoyed our conversation," Xiang Nan said. "But I'm sorry to say… I'm about to conduct some experiments on your body, so I can deepen my grasp of Nen as life energy."
Snapping his fingers, he gestured for Garo and the others to lower Kaito, who was hanging from chains. Then they attached more restraints. Meanwhile, someone wheeled over a cart stacked with surgical instruments.
"It's to test my theories. I hope you'll cooperate in the name of research," Xiang Nan added, putting on his doctor's face and slipping a fresh pair of gloves over his hands with a gentle smile.
Kaito had just been thinking deep thoughts, but Xiang Nan's smile brought him crashing back to reality. His expression twisted in horror.
"No! No!" he screamed, voice cracking, as he watched those blood-stained gloves wield a small blade, sliding it toward his flesh.
~~~
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