Hunter × Hunter Chapter 254: Dispose of the Opponent

The lion-like beastman continues his analysis: "AND THE THIRD...? IF YOU WERE USING IT TO ENHANCE YOUR ABILITY BY SEALING YOUR HEARING, THEN THERE'S NO WAY YOU'D BE ABLE TO HEAR WHAT I'M SAYING." A masked figure with sunglasses appears, identified as "THAT 'TUBE' IS THE ABILITY OF A HUNTER NAMED GURA-CHAN...!!!" The surfboard rider is shown mid-action on the waves. The beastman questions whether the tubes are unrelated to the ability and guesses the rider defeated a Chimera Ant named Gurachan. He threatens "YOU ARE GOING TO PAY FOR STEALING MY FRIEND'S ABILITY WITH DEATH!!" while large sunglasses are shown as a symbol. The lionman defends himself saying defeating a hunter who came after him would be self-defense and that he only borrowed the ability temporarily. The surfboard rider is struck and sent flying as the beastman shouts "OF YOUR LIFE!!" and "TODAY IS THE LAST DAY..."

The long-haired man grips his pipe and declares with determination, "I definitely desire this guy's smoke ability but it's more important that I defeat him...!" Beside him, the bandaged figure replies, "...Well, there really is no use in me trying to relieve your suspicions. That's the most common of excuses used by thieves. Just borrowing it for awhile... huh?" A wide shot reveals a tiny figure perched on a distant rocky hill rising from the sea as bold SFX "Z" "Z" "Z" "Z" "Z" echo across the water. A speech bubble emphasizes, "For both of us... The most important part of our mission is to dispose of the opponent standing before us, right!?" In the lower panel, a massive cliff face looms under a dark sky. A figure on a floating cloud platform brandishes a staff and shouts upward, "Unfortunately, your turn will never come!!" while another voice answers from above, "Like I said."

A close-up shows the bandaged man's face twisted in strain as rain streaks down and a small "hyuu" SFX appears. Massive black Japanese characters "ドドド" and "ドドド" dominate the panel alongside the declaration "BIG WALL!!!!" An underground church sealed with water is described in a bubble: "AN UNDERGROUND CHURCH SEALED WITH WATER!! YOU HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO BE SWALLOWED BY THE WALL OF MY WAVE!!" The staff-wielding man on his cloud platform is shown amid churning seas as he yells, "TRY YOUR HARDEST TO COME BACK UP!!" Enormous wave effects and impact lines fill the lower panels with heavy motion SFX "ドドド" and "ドドド" as the water surges violently.

Turbulent waters churn violently as massive black impact shapes and swirling motion lines fill the upper panel. A surfer clings to his board while a threatening voice demands, "SHALL I SPLIT YOUR HEAD IN TWO WITH THE BOARD!? DRILL A HOLE IN YOUR STOMACH WITH THE HARPOON!? WHICH DO YOU WANT!?" The surfer dives sharply downward. Another voice calls out, "NOW, CAN YOU COME UP!?" The surfer continues descending as the unseen speaker warns, "EITHER WAY... THE NEXT TIME YOU SHOW YOUR FACE ON THE SURFACE WILL BE YOUR LAST...!!" The board and figure plunge deeper amid heavy SFX and spiraling currents. At the bottom of the page the ocean surface shows only faint ripples and scattered impact marks.

A close-up reveals the surfer's strained face covered in sweat drops, eyes wide with tension. Internal narration questions, "NO... HE HAD ABSOLUTE CONFIDENCE IN HIS LUNG CAPACITY... COULD HE HAVE DROWNED...?" On the right, the surfer remains submerged on his board amid rushing water and impact marks while a caption notes, "IT'S BEEN AWHILE, AND HE STILL HASN'T SURFACED..." Another box states, "THEN 10 OR 20 MINUTES... WAIT. IF THERE'S NO ONE SURPASSING HIS LUNG CAPACITY IN THIS WORLD..." A black panel shows only the surfboard silhouette with the text, "IN THE MOST EXTREME CASE... IT COULD EVEN BE POSSIBLE FOR HIM TO REMAIN SUBMERGED LIKE A WHALE...?" The final wide panel depicts the calm ocean surface with the tiny figure of the surfer still floating on his board far below the horizon line.

On the dark water surface, small bubbles rise as a figure on a surfboard-like platform hurls a harpoon. "DON'T MOOOOOVE! WITH ONE STRIKE OF THIS HAR-POON..." the attacker shouts while aiming. "THERE...?" comes the surprised response. A close-up reveals intense, narrowed eyes glaring forward. From the opposite direction another harpoon flies toward the same target. "FROM THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION ALSO...?" the spiky-haired fighter on the board reacts. The long-haired observer scans the water and declares, "AND OVER THERE, TOO...!!" while the bearded man on his board stares into the night sea.

The water is dotted with many glowing bubbles rising from below. "THERE ARE MULTIPLE BUBBLES FROM BREATHING...!?" someone realizes. Underwater, a figure lies prone while thinking, "HE WOULDN'T GIVE AWAY HIS POSITION TO ME EITHER..." and "IT'S POSSIBLE IF HE TRANSFORMED HIS SMOKE INTO HOSES AND BRANCHED THEM OUT...!!!" On the surface Morel stands firm on his board and calls out, "YOU DON'T THINK I'D GIVE UP AND RETRACT THE ABILITY, DO YOU...?" He then shouts toward the depths, "HEY!! HOW LONG ARE YOU PLANNING ON STAYING DOWN THERE!?"

Even navigating through the maze-like stairs that lead up to the surface would be possible for a guy confident in his hiding capacity. Underground Church. A figure thinks, "NO... AM I WRONG!? The bubbles are a diversion...! Is he planning on escaping!?" Morel appears, declaring, "I already told Werefin not to do anything... (In order for me to reap all the rewards). I can't let him escape from here...!!!" The scene shifts to turbulent water and bubbles. Suddenly, "POISON...!?" Morel clutches his chest in the water, thinking, "It can't be..." as he gasps, "Dizzy...!? My chest... a little..."

Morel reels from the attack with heavy impact lines and sound effects. His board disappears, leaving him questioning if his unstable physical and mental state caused it. He coughs violently in the water, body convulsing. The ability was retracted but the water won't recede. Morel realizes, "I wanted to make it seem like I was the one cornered, but in reality, cornered him... However... NOT ONLY DID IT SEEM LIKE IT, BUT THE ONE WHO WAS TRULY CORNERED WAS... ME...!?" as the water swirls around him and he struggles to breathe.

A close-up shows a wide eye and a sudden impact. The spiky-haired man’s face twists in shock as he is struck, mouth open wide with jagged sound effects bursting around him. In a stark black panel his white silhouette hunches forward while large white text reads “ME... IN A PLACE LIKE THIS...” on the left and “DIE...? IN A PLACE LIKE THIS?” on the right. Below, a tiny round-headed figure stands on cracked ground beneath a massive, smoke-filled cavern. An exclamation mark pops above the distant figure as it gazes upward at the enormous shape sprawled across the terrain.

Morel grips his massive pipe, smoke pouring from its end. A close-up of his face shows surprise as he realizes the smoke has spread everywhere. Text reads “JUST AS I THOUGHT, HE CHANGED HIS SMOKE INTO A HOSE AND EXPANDED IT OUT EVERYWHERE...” and “BUT... WHAT IN THE WORLD... WAS THAT... POISON...?” In the next panel Morel kneels in the cavern, pipe extended, muttering “FASTER THAN I EXPECTED.” A final close-up reveals his shocked expression behind sunglasses as he shouts “IT’S CO₂!!!!!” while another balloon states “WHAT YOU INHALED WAS A DEADLY POISON!! BUT IT EXISTS NORMALLY IN AIR...”

A large scientific diagram fills the upper half of the page, showing a profile of a human head exhaling a stream of carbon dioxide particles against a black background. Explanatory text details how rising CO2 levels affect breathing and can become lethal. Below, a close-up panel shows a determined face with sweat drops as narration explains that Morau increased the concentration of carbon dioxide through breathing. The text continues: "Morau used his amazing lung capacity to inhale all the air in the sealed chamber of the church..." In the next panel, a figure is hurled backward with impact SFX "!!" "!!" "!!" A final panel reveals a long-haired character with completely blackened eyes, sweat on his brow, thinking: "IF HE WAS TELLING THE TRUTH, GURACHAN SHOULD HAVE HIS ABILITY COMPLETELY RESTORED." A speech bubble from off-panel states: "BY THE MOMENT YOU ATTACKED, I HAD ALREADY BEEN ATTACKING."

A dark cracked ceiling panel opens the page. Subsequent panels show an empty hallway with double doors and a small barred window in a concrete room. A short-haired woman stands in profile, thinking she will be able to move freely for a few hours within that time. In a large room filled with surveillance monitors, a large man floats inside a massive spherical restraint while a small girl watches from the floor. The woman declares she will see them with these eyes no matter what. She stands before a door labeled "AUTHORIZATION COMPLETE," reasoning that the man inside cannot report to the royal guards because he has been committing these acts without their consent. She further notes that even if she were to escape from here, she has already observed the actions with her crystal ball and figured out how to escape.

Palm's face is tense and covered in sweat, her eyes wide with fierce determination as she stares upward. She raises a sign that reads "GIVE" while a deep rumbling sound echoes through the space. From behind, Palm sees another sign reading "WAIT" and realizes "ABOVE HERE...!!! THEY ARE..." In the vast, empty stone hallway lined with arches and doors, Palm stands small and alone far down the corridor, putting her life on the line as she prepares to meet the King.