Chapter 6 – Osren the Good Guy
A familiar setting. A familiar line.
"It has to be Kurapika." Osren stared at those crimson, blood-red eyes and muttered to himself.
Truth be told, before transmigrating, Osren had liked Hunter x Hunter—but Togashi, that damn troll of an author, made it so frustrating to follow that he'd only read it twice. Still, maybe due to this whole transmigration thing, his memory of it all was now crystal clear.
He rubbed his chin thoughtfully and suddenly had a lightbulb moment. Looking around, his eyes landed on a fish shop nearby—and with it, the perfect idea.
"Should I just buy all the fish? Or only the one I need?" Osren mulled it over. "I've got to go with something effective and affordable."
Having made up his mind, he strode over toward the fish stall.
He positioned himself nearby—where he could keep both his ears and eyes alert for anything out of the ordinary.
And just as he settled into his lookout position, a sharp yell pierced the air.
"Thief! Somebody stop him!"
The thin, lanky fishmonger bolted out of his stall, chasing someone down the street.
In his wake, he left behind an unmanned stand filled with fish—fresh, raw, and reeking of the sea. For someone who hadn't eaten all day, the display was more tempting than a chest of gold.
But Osren shook off that thought. That might be true for most people, he mused, but for Leorio? That guy would still choose money over food, even if he was starving.
"Osren? What are you doing here?"
Gon's sharp eyes had spotted him by the fish stall. Ignoring the people trailing behind him, he quickly bounded over.
"No big deal, just happened to wander this way. You get anything useful out of your search?"
Osren glanced at the person Gon had brought along—immaculate suit, tiny eyes behind glasses, the kind of guy who screamed 'shady professional.' And wasn't this the same guy who had just swiped one of his apples earlier?
Well, well… it's Leorio after all. Looks like Gon ran into him by pure chance.
"We've got a solid lead. We're getting close," Gon nodded earnestly.
As they talked, Leorio suddenly darted toward the fish stall like a monkey, grabbed five fish in one fluid motion, and sprinted off as if his life depended on it.
Osren calmly pulled out his wallet and took out 2,000 Jenny. Waving the cash in the air, he shouted after him:
"Hey! The guy in the suit! We meet again! Times are tough, so let's help each other out. Consider those fish on me—no need to run!"
Leorio didn't even look back. "I'll take your word for it—thanks for the meal!" he shouted as he ran even faster, like a rabid dog was chasing him.
Muttering under his breath, Leorio grumbled, "Sure, he says times are tough, but what kind of scam is this? Apples for free, now fish too? What does he think, that money just falls from the sky?"
From Leorio's perspective, this was clearly a con job.
In Hunter x Hunter, the value of currency (Jenny) was always kind of vague, but some hints existed—for example, winning a match on the first floor of Heavens Arena netted 152 Jenny, which just happened to be enough to buy a bottle of juice.
So by that logic, Osren had just spent money to feed a stranger he barely knew. In a world like this one, that was a pretty big deal.
But Osren wasn't your average guy.
He was a man of culture—and of higher moral taste.
"You're really a good person, Osren," Gon said sincerely. "You even paid for that uncle's fish."
"Hard times call for helping hands." At that moment, Osren practically transformed into a living, breathing Bodhisattva.
Gon nodded in agreement, eyes full of admiration.
"Gon, go on and see what more you can find out. I'll meet you later at the port," Osren said.
"Okay, see you there!" Gon waved and ran off after Leorio.
Watching the trail of dust left behind, Osren gave a low whistle.
"Man, that guy really can run."
Osren stayed put, quietly waiting. Before long, Kurapika finished eating and left. Over twenty minutes later, the tall and thin owner of the fish shop trudged back, looking completely dejected—like a rooster who'd lost a fight. One look and it was obvious: he hadn't caught the thief.
Osren quickly stepped forward to meet him.
"Boss, here's 2,000 Jenny for the five fish. Please take it. You weren't around earlier, and my friend had an emergency, so he took the fish first."
He placed the money directly into the fishmonger's hands.
The man blinked, still in a daze, mechanically accepting the bills and placing them into the cash box. His mind hadn't quite caught up yet.
As he watched Osren walk away, he muttered to himself, "He's... really a good person."
With that resolved, Osren decided to take a precautionary detour to the beach near the port. Just in case. There, he reserved a small boat—fast enough to catch up with the ship. He wasn't planning to change how Gon and Leorio would board the ship—with a fishing rod and guts. No matter how many times he watched that scene, it never failed to fire him up. After all, listening to an album could never compare to a live performance.
Still, making a few preparations in advance was always wise.
At the port, Osren paid a deposit to rent the boat and finalized the details with the skipper. When the time came, he'd pay the rest; the boat would be on standby, ready at a moment's notice.
"Next... find a supermarket and pick up a few things. I haven't—"
Just as that thought crossed his mind, an all-too-familiar anime scene unfolded right before his eyes.
"Hey, punk! What the hell do you think you're doing? Wanna fight? You got no idea who I am? I'm a Hunter!"
A scowling man with blond hair and a green cap barked at Gon menacingly.
Osren instantly recognized him—it was that fake Hunter from the diner, the one he'd treated to a meal earlier.
"Looks like Gon's already freed the foxbear family," Osren murmured. Standing on higher ground, he had a clear view of Gon, Leorio, the fake Hunter, and the crooked shipowner. The confrontation was heating up.
The story had gone as expected: Gon boarded the wrong ship and ended up on a shady vessel that charged people to view rare animals. Many of the animals had been captured by the fake Hunter and sold to the greedy shipowner.
Among them was the foxbear family. While it wasn't Kon's family, Gon, with his extraordinary sensitivity, had sensed the foxbear's desperate desire to save its cub.
But Gon was still too young. Before he could help, he too was locked in a cage. Luckily, Leorio—who'd snuck onto the ship to steal from the corrupt owner—stumbled across Gon and broke him out.
Gon hadn't forgotten the foxbear family. So he'd set all the animals on the ship free.
Osren couldn't help but think the shipowner's biggest mistake was putting Gon and the animals in the same cage.
The shipowner took a huge loss, and the fake Hunter did too. Now, they'd caught Gon and Leorio again, and tensions were high.
"You're no Hunter," Gon said firmly.
He ignored the threatening aura radiating from the green-capped man. Gon just spoke from the heart.
"Oh yeah? You've got guts, kid. Let me show you what happens when you defy a Hunter."
The fake Hunter raised his rifle, the dark barrel now aimed directly at Gon and Leorio.
The shipowner cheered from the side while Leorio tensed, ready to counterattack.
Osren figured this was his cue.
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