Hunter × Hunter Chapter 152: Contact

From a high vantage overlooking a quiet hillside town, two large speech bubbles discuss the group's new approach. "From now on, it's necessary that we get in touch with other players," one states. The other adds, "Up until now, we've tried to avoid interacting with other players, but..." In the panels below, Killua, Gon, and Biscuit review their situation. Killua notes there are not many cards they cannot collect themselves and suggests obtaining them from other players. Gon points out that some cards have time limits like those from monthly tournaments, making fights or trades the best option. Biscuit warns that other players may attack them, while Gon adds there are cases where they will need to exchange information or cards. Killua emphasizes they must prepare for an increase in danger if they want rare cards, and that even spell cards are not unstoppable. Biscuit agrees they should negotiate if they meet other players. Killua concludes they should first gather the cards they can obtain on their own. The final wide panel shows Gon and Biscuit's feet as Gon shouts "YEAH!!" and Biscuit asks, "Shall we head to the next town right away?"

A dark forest silhouette fills the top of the page as a jagged speech bubble announces, "A player has used 'Contact' against you." In the next panels, Tsezguerra faces a woman in a clearing. She asks, "You again?" He replies, "It's Tsezguerra." The woman states she does not want to exchange the card "Secret Wood of One Tsubo." Tsezguerra insists, "No way." He questions how many times he must say he will not negotiate. The woman threatens to use "Clone." Tsezguerra, now shown in close-up with glasses reflecting, states he has 92 types of cards according to his information and will not negotiate. The woman retorts she is not an idiot and knows how to do it, while an off-panel voice says, "Hey! Just leave 'Archangel's Breath' in the fixed slot, and..."

The X-scarred man stands before a landscape of scattered buildings and questions the hooded figure holding the GOLDEN book. "AREN'T YOU JUST MISSING THE CARDS THAT OTHER PLAYERS HAVE MONOPOLIZED?" he asks. "EXACTLY 95," comes the reply. In a smaller panel the X-scarred man deduces, "NUMBER 000 MIGHT BE A CARD THAT APPEARS WHEN THE OTHER 99 TYPES OF CARDS HAVE BEEN COLLECTED." The spiky-haired man with glasses listens as another voice explains, "IN SHORT, YOU HAVE ITEMS THAT 'ONLY NEED SOMEONE TO GAIN,' BUT YOU CAN'T TRANSFORM THEM INTO CARDS..." Kukuku urges, "KUKUKU, STOP PLAYING THE FOOL. I'M GUESSING 'ARCHANGEL'S BREATH' IS THE LAST CARD YOU'RE SEARCHING FOR?" The X-scarred man confirms their current shortage: "IN OUR CURRENT STATE, WE ARE MISSING SEVEN TYPES OF CARDS. I KNOW THAT YOU HAVE MONOPOLIZED THE CARD 'ARCHANGEL'S BREATH,' AS WELL AS 'JADE OF DARKNESS'." The spiky-haired man with glasses counters, "PLUS, WE DON'T NEED 'ARCHANGEL'S BREATH', BUT 'JADE OF DARKNESS'." He then proposes a trade: "WHAT IF I TRADE YOU THE FOLLOWING CARDS? 1 'SECRET WOOD OF ONE TSUBO', 5 'HIDDEN SPIRITS' CAVE', AND 51 'HAND RIDING DRAGON'?" The reply comes, "THERE SHOULD ONLY BE FIVE. REALLY? STAY STRONG..."

The spiky-haired man with glasses faces two companions in shadow, one with a cross mark on his forehead. "OKAY, WE'LL CONTACT YOU AGAIN IN ONE HOUR," he says. A voice replies, "GIVE US SOME TIME TO DISCUSS." Another warns, "WE CAN'T CONCEDE MORE THAN THAT. IT'S OUR LAST OFFER." In the forest clearing the group discusses the deal. "IT'S AN EXCEPTIONAL TRADE," one states. "WE'LL TRADE AN SS CARD AND TWO S CARDS FOR ONE A CARD," another adds. The spiky-haired man questions, "TSEZUGERA IS A PRUDENT GUY, HE WON'T RISK A QUARREL... IS THIS A TRAP? THAT STORY IS TOO IDEAL..." The cross-marked man answers, "LET'S ACCEPT. THOSE CONDITIONS ARE BETTER THAN GOOD." From behind, a seated figure with spiky hair listens as the discussion continues: "HE MUST BE CONFIDENT HE'LL GET ALL 100 TYPES... EVEN WITH SUCH A DISADVANTAGEOUS TRADE... ALSO, HE'S NOT THE KIND OF GUY WHO NEGOTIATES IF HE HAS NOTHING TO GAIN FROM IT. IN OTHER WORDS, HE MUST THINK HE'LL BE ABLE TO COLLECT 'ARCHANGEL'S BREATH'..."

The spiky-haired man with the forehead mark leans forward, eyes narrowed. "If so, they're only waiting for a gain of 'Archangel's Breath'." Beside him the long-haired man replies, "It's possible... Those guys have already gathered the set of 40 spell cards? ...Perhaps..." In the next panel the three stand together in the forest clearing. The spiky-haired man continues, "If one of us were mortally injured, we would use it. We have the monopoly of 'Archangel's Breath' after using 'Clone.'" The long-haired man adds, "We have enough extra stones for ten cards to counter the 'gain' method. Besides, we hold the monopoly of 'Jade of Darkness' by our own means." The spiky-haired man holds up a glowing card labeled "Jade." "If they have already traded their 40 spell cards for an exchange ticket in a shop... In that case, according to the order of acquisition of the items, the unused ones would automatically transform into cards. It would be one of our Jades that would automatically transform. If any of the 'Jade of Darkness' were destroyed by a 'stone throw' or a 'shot'... That exchange ticket will immediately transform into 'Archangel's Breath' when we gain it." At the bottom of the page the long-haired man concludes, "That must be why those guys are more interested in the A-rank card 'Jade of Darkness' than in the SS card 'Archangel's Breath'....! They know about our counter-measure of 'awaiting a gain'."

The long-haired man continues, "And we know how to get two of those four cards. If we exclude the card #000, out of the B remaining cards, 4 are a gain." The spiky-haired man replies, "If we accept the three cards from these guys, we would have 91 cards. ...It's a gamble..." The long-haired man adds, "Even though we managed to locate the area they're in with 'Guidepost' we couldn't find them. The problem is that we don't know how to get #2 and #75..." Close-ups show the spiky-haired man noting, "#75, 'Alexandrite Luck', is an A-rank card... we must have overlooked something..." The long-haired man states, "#2, 'Coastline of One Tsubo', has yet to be discovered by anyone. It's an SS-rank card, that's why it's hard to get." In the lower panels the group reaches a rocky shore. A black-haired boy in a vest and the spiky-haired boy in a hoodie dig in the sand while a figure watches. The spiky-haired man says, "For the A or less rank cards with a little luck, that should do it... Yeah... We should collect S or higher ranked cards as soon as possible. Anyway, let's do the trade."

The X-scarred man with glasses holds up a twelve-sided die and commands, "SHAKE IT." He adds, "LET'S HOPE IT WORKS," counts "HM... FIVE," and asks "HOW MANY LEFT?" The desperate black-haired man, face drenched in sweat and tears, pleads on his knees, "I'M BEGGING YOU... P... PLEASE... NOT THAT..." The X-scarred man insists, "IT'S ONLY YOUR THIRD TIME, ISN'T IT? YOU WON'T DIE... SHAKE IT!" The black-haired man shouts back, "NO... YOU'RE WRONG!! YOU'RE WRONG!!" He continues explaining his theory: "I'LL RECEIVE ALL THE SORROW CORRESPONDING TO THE 'EXCELLENT LUCK' THAT THE OTHER PLAYER WHO SHOOK THE DICE RECEIVED... IF 'BAD LUCK' COMES OUT FOR ME... I'M SURE OF IT! IT'S ALL LINKED!! I KNOW IT! I SAW IT ONCE WITH MY OWN EYES... 'BAD LUCK' CAME OUT ON THE FIRST ROLL, AND THE GUY DIED!!" The X-scarred man leans in close and repeats firmly, "SHAKE IT. I DON'T CARE."

The desperate black-haired man clasps his hands together and cries "PLEASE!!" The die bounces and rolls across the floor with motion lines. The X-scarred man grabs him by the collar, sparks flying around his head, and threatens, "OR DO YOU WANT TO DIE RIGHT NOW?" The die lands showing a face. The X-scarred man states, "YOU'LL BE FREE. IF THE CARD WE'RE SEEKING COMES OUT..." while the desperate man is thrown to the ground. The X-scarred man continues, "BAD LUCK DOESN'T COME OUT THAT EASILY, YOU SEE!" The desperate man, still on the floor, screams "PLEASE!!" and "PLEASE..." The X-scarred man holds up a card. With a dramatic burst effect the desperate man activates his ability, shouting "'LOTTERY' ON!!"

In a lively card game, players react with shock and excitement as a massive Loitering Ruby card appears. Someone shouts 'SO?!' while others demand 'GIVE IT!' A man with a scarred face grips his cards tightly, veins bulging as he stares intensely at his hand. The ruby card displays its description: the owner receives great fortune but cannot stay longer than a week anywhere. The crowd cheers 'IT'S NOW MOTARIKE-KUN'S TURN!' and 'YES! YES! ONE MORE TIME!' as a player draws. 'WHAT A PITY...!!' someone laments. Off to the side, a figure mutters 'AH... AAH...'. The scene shifts to a forest clearing where Gon, Killua, and Biscuit stand among open boxes of cards. Gon looks puzzled, saying 'HM?' while Killua states 'SOMETHING'S STILL WORRYING ME...'. Biscuit points ahead, declaring 'WE CAN STILL GO AND BUY OTHER SPELL CARDS. IN THE END, IT DIDN'T WORK.'

The X-scarred man discusses the situation with his companions. He recalls meeting a group of three children—two boys and a girl—in a card shop in Masadora. They have mostly A- and B-rank cards according to 'Sight Vision'. The group is around rank 20 and moving quickly. Other characters note that the group will likely scatter once they reach rank 65, so there is no need to worry yet. The X-scarred man lists hostile groups without many cards: the Berama Brothers, the Tokumarone Group, and the Hagakushi Group. He emphasizes paying attention to Tsezugera’s group. Gon adjusts his hair while listening. The X-scarred man concludes they must not be surprised by odd circumstances and that it is almost time to negotiate.

The long-haired man with the forehead mark insists they need a fresh approach. 'I MEAN A STRATEGY WE HAVEN'T USED YET.' His companion replies firmly, 'NO.' From the side, another voice declares, 'BATTLE SHOULD BE THE LAST MEANS OF GETTING CARDS. IT'S STILL TOO SOON.' and 'I'VE ALREADY TOLD YOU.' The long-haired man is shown the Tax Collector's Gauntlet card, its rules explained in detail. He proposes, 'WE USE THE "TAX COLLECTOR'S GAUNTLET".' and adds, 'THAT AND THE "RISKY DICE"...!' The spiky-haired man with glasses questions, 'REALLY? WHAT KIND OF STRATEGY?' The group discusses the consequences: using the card will end all negotiations and amount to a declaration of war, carrying a major accompanying risk. After a black divider, the bespectacled man warns that bad luck would mean certain death, the curly-haired man agrees the risk is high, and the short black-haired man stresses they cannot entrust the eight cards to their targets because the odds of obtaining them are too uncertain.

The spiky-haired man with glasses wipes his face and declares they have reached the moment to act. The long-haired man with the forehead mark agrees, 'LET'S DO IT.' A new arrival with slicked-back hair reacts in shock, 'EH?! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING, GEN?' while the short black-haired man demands the dice. In a dramatic black panel, the bespectacled man raises his hand and rolls the glowing die, which flies with a 'shuu' sound effect and brilliant light burst. The die tumbles violently with motion lines and impact symbols. He states, 'I'VE ALWAYS TOLD YOU. WHEN WE HAVE TO OVERCOME DANGER, WE DO IT TOGETHER, THE THREE OF US.' The die lands showing 'EXCELLENT LUCK' in large stylized letters, confirming a favorable result.

In a forest clearing, a spiky-haired man in a bat-symbol shirt stands with hands on hips, facing a smaller spiky-haired boy who holds up a small round object. A long-haired man with a forehead marking stands beside them. The spiky-haired man says, "YEAH." The long-haired man replies, "IT'S EASY." The boy adds, "I'M SURE IT'LL GO FINE." In close-up panels, the long-haired man and spiky-haired man exchange tense looks. The long-haired man warns, "HM... DON'T WORRY. THAT'S NOT HOW IT WORKS." The spiky-haired man retorts, "YOU'RE LIN-REASON-ABLE! REALLY..." A larger panel shows a hooded man with glasses holding an open book-like device as a large speech bubble declares, "A PLAYER HAS USED 'CONTACT' AGAINST YOU." The spiky-haired man and long-haired man react with surprise. The device screen displays a message: "IT'S TSEZUGERA. YOUR ANSWER?" In the final wide panel against a dark treeline silhouette, a voice states, "NEGOTIATIONS COMPLETE." Another voice answers, "OKAY."