Hunter & Assassin (No. 25)

Hope x And x Ambition

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"Now, let's see how many made it this far," Satotz ponders and makes it to the top of the stairs when the boys jump past him, unaware that Gigi beat them.
"Goal!" The boys cheer with a chuckle.
"Yay! I win," Gon exclaims.
"What are you talking about? I was faster...." Killua argues.
"I was," He argues back as Satotz looks at them, and Gigi stands up his long legs with her arms crossed with a huff.
"No, I was!" The silver-haired tween argues.
"I was faster, so you have to buy dinner!" Gon replies.
"Nope! I was faster! So you buy me dinner," Killua argues.
"But I was faster," He argues back. "Hey, who was faster?" He asks the examiner.
"I believe that she crossed the finish line, while you both crossed the finish line simultaneously. A second later," Satotz informs the boys, who look at Gigi as she sticks her tongue out at them.
"Oh..." Gon ponders.
"You both have to buy me dinner," Gigi tells them, surprising the examiner. "Then you both can buy each other dinner."
"I don't get it," Killua questions.
"Hey, Mr Satotz. Is this where the Second Phase of the exam takes place?" Gon asks him.
"No, we still have quite a way to go," Satotz answers and the rest of the applicants join them; even Leorio and Kurapika make it though one of them is badly breathing.
"Hey, Kurapika!" Gon greets him.
"Is this our destination?" Kurapika asks after waving them hello.
"No, it isn't," He replies.
"I see," The blond sighs and looks around. "The fog is fading.
"Really?" The younger twin beams and gets to his feet, knowing if Gigi runs in those conditions, she'll struggle.
"The Numere Wetlands, also known as Swindlers Swamp," Satotz announces as the fog rolls away, revealing the landscape. "We must cross these wetlands to reach Phase Two of the exam. This place is home to many bizarre animals, many of them being cunning, insatiable creatures who deceive humans and prey upon them. Be very careful. If you let them fool you...you're dead," The shutter for the door that they all came from begins to close, and all of the applicants look in shock as another tries to reach the top before they are locked inside.
"Wait for me!" The failed applicant cries, but the shutter completely shuts, leaving them in the wetlands.
"These wetland creatures will use every trick in the book to fool their prey," He explains, gaining the applicants' attention. "An ecosystem in which creatures obtain food through deceit... Hence the name Swindlers Swamp. Stay close to me so you won't be deceived," The examinees all look in shock.
"What a joke," Leorio says. "How can they fool us when we're expecting it?"
"Don't let them fool you!" A voice shouts from behind the large group.
"I just said that they can't," He argues, turning to see a beaten-up man walk out of the shadows.
"D-Don't fall for it...." The man warns the examinees. "He's lying to you!" He points at Satotz. "He's an imposter! He isn't an examiner... I'm the real examiner," All the examinees look around in shock, but Gigi tilts her head, not buying it and looks down at her shoes; Killua follows her as she takes them off.
"An imposter?" Leorio gasps.
"Then who is he?" Hanzo questions, looking at Satotz.
"Look at this...." The dishevelled man says, pulling out a strange-looking beast.
"He looks just like Mr Satotz!" Gon exclaims.
"It's a Man-Face Ape, one of the creatures that dwell in the Numere Wetlands!" The man informs the group.
"A Man-Faced Ape?" Leorio repeats.
"Man-Faced Apes love the taste of fresh human flesh. However, their limbs are long and thin, so they're quite weak. That's why they disguise themselves as humans. They trick humans into following them into these wetlands, where they team up with other animals to kill and devour them. He intends to trap every single applicant!" The imposter points his finger at the examiner, who doesn't say a word, wanting to see what the applicants will do on their own.
"Bastard..." Leorio grumbles.
"He certainly doesn't walk like a human...." Hanzo agrees, but Gigi opens her eyes, having felt the steady rhythm of Satotz's heartbeat, but the imposter is erratic; she goes to tell her brother when several playing cards hit the man in the chest and more fly toward the examiner, who catches the cards. Everyone looks shocked and turns to the clown in the middle of the group playing with his cards.
"I see, I see... That settles it... You're the real one," Hisoka confirms, to the shock of everyone as Satotz throws the playing cards away.
"What? He's the real examiner?" Hanzo gasps, and the Man-Faced Ape looks around; seeing that they've been found out, he jumps up and runs away.
"Examiners are Hunters selected by the committee to perform this duty without pay. Any Hunter, bearing the title we seek, would have been able to block that attack," Hisoka explains.
"I shall take that as a compliment. However, should you attack me again, for any reason, I will report you for turning on an examiner. And you will be immediately disqualified," Satotz warns the clown. "Are we clear?"
"Sure," He replies as vultures come down to feast on the dead body of the imposter.
"Nature really can be brutal to watch...." Leorio remarks.
"So he was a Man-Faced Ape, as well," Kurapika comments.
"He was attempting to confuse the applicants, to lure some of them away." Satotz tells them.
"We cannot relax our guard," Killua says as the examiner walks through the crowd.
"Yeah," Gon agrees.
"You will be encountering such deception on a regular basis. I believe that a number of you were fooled into suspecting my identity?" Satotz guesses, making Leorio and Hanzo blush in embarrassment, but Gigi shakes her head. "Do you understand? If you lose sight of me in the Numere Wetlands fog, you will never reach the exam's Second Phase. Do bear in mind. Then let us be on our way. Please follow me," They set off into the wetlands.