#269: Loan

Knuckle launches a powerful strike that connects with his opponent, sending shockwaves through the air. "KNUCKLE GETS IN A MIGHTY BLOW, BUT...!" the narration declares as debris and impact lines explode across the tiled floor. The enemy reels from the hit but remains standing. A close-up shows Knuckle's intense glare and gritted teeth. "THAT PUNCH SHOULD HAVE SENT HIM FLYING INTO THE DISTANCE, BUT..." he thinks, sweat visible on his face. Below, a massive cloud of smoke and tendrils erupts as the ability activates. "NGUH" escapes the opponent's lips. The narration explains: "HAKOWARE TAKES ANY ADDITIONAL DAMAGE AND USES IT TO CALCULATE INTEREST AS TIME ELAPSES." In the corner, Knuckle's small creature companion displays "590" on its visor and announces, "590 IN TOTAL...!! THOSE TEN SECONDS ARE GOING TO LAST AN AGE...!!" The creature smiles confidently amid the chaos.

Youpi's massive face twisted in fury, veins bulging as he roared into the stormy sky. A single glimpse of a shadow through one of his many eyes snapped him back to his senses. "WHERE IS HE......?!!!" he bellowed. "WHY, YOU......!!!!" he snarled next. Though his right leg had been destroyed, the damage barely registered. Below, Shoot stood balanced atop Youpi's own enormous arm, his long hair and cloak whipping in the wind. His right leg was gone, yet he held the pose with perfect control. Narration explained that Shoot had seized Youpi's momentary lapse to plant himself there. Though he had never tried the move before, Shoot held an unshakable conviction that this was his ultimate technique.

Close on Shoot's face, he calmly ties his long hair back with a headband, his right eye covered. Narration notes he was simply caught up in the flow of power brimming within him and had no particular reason for covering his right eye. The scene erupts into violent motion as Shoot soars forward. Black impact shapes, debris, and energy lines explode across the page. Youpi's grotesque form twists in the background amid the chaos. A text box reads "FEEDING ON ADVERSITY ..." as Shoot launches himself with explosive force.

Explosive motion lines and crackling energy fill the page as a fierce assault unfolds. His terrific speed and vigour... A text box notes that the attacker succeeded in shifting Yupi's attention to his defences for several seconds. All with the aim... A massive gloved fist surges forward in a powerful strike. Below, a chaotic battlefield erupts with debris, smoke, and crackling energy. In the center, a figure is hurled amid the blasts while another character maneuvers through the fray, pressing the attack relentlessly.

A massive impact erupts with radiating speed lines and crackling energy. Of restoring another!!! A huge weapon-like arm swings through the air. Below, a reaching hand extends desperately. Shoot... Knuckle... Two circular speech bubbles appear near the hand. The background explodes with motion lines, smoke, and debris as the fierce exchange continues.

Pouf hovers dramatically against a backdrop of radiating speed lines and swirling clouds, one hand thrust forward with fingers splayed and a fierce grin on his face. "ONCE THIS IS ALL OVER...." he declares. In smaller inset panels, Shoot glares with intense focus, his head wrapped in bandages. Pouf continues his internal monologue: "AFTER ALL, NORMALLY YOU'D HATE IT IF I TRIED TO EMBRACE YOU WITH ALL MY MIGHT...." A lone figure leaps through the air wielding a long weapon, striking downward. Narration explains the situation: "PUFU WAS IN THE THRONE ROOM.... SO I CAN'T THINK OF ANY OTHER WAY!!" Another box reads: "WE'RE GONNA DROWN OURSELVES IN GOOD DRINK AND GET DRUNK OUT OF OUR MINDS." A final narration box states: "THE HUGE QUANTITIES OF DUST THAT HAD BEEN KICKED UP BY BOTH SIDES ALLOWED MORAU TO SPREADING HIS AURA THROUGHOUT THE PALACE, AND GRASP THE SITUATION MORE CLEARLY."

Gon and Killua sprint across a slanted rooftop, having changed direction to dodge Youpi's attack. Their goal is to leap from the second floor of the right-hand tower directly to the third floor of the central tower where the throne room is located. Below them, Ikarugo, controlling dead bodies as "living dead dolls," evades the Dragon Dive unharmed by using compound eyes. The boys overtake Ikarugo, who had headed straight for the elevator to the basement from the start of the invasion. Gon and Killua land in a burst of motion lines, eyes wide with focus as they continue their charge.

From a high vantage point, the grand palace complex lies in total ruin after a massive explosion. Craters scar the ground around the central domed building, its roof cracked and debris scattered everywhere. A digital timer in the upper right reads 0:00:04:87. In the lower-left crater, two figures lie amid the rubble, one wearing glasses. Another crater nearby holds a prone figure with dark hair. To the right, Killua and Gon huddle together in a blast hole, both looking battered. Near the center, a small hooded figure stands alone while a skeletal form with multiple arms floats nearby. Smoke and dust still rise from the impact sites as the timer continues to count.

Killua's face fills the top panel, eyes wide with shock. His hair spikes wildly as he reacts. In a series of quick panels, Killua turns and begins running down a long, damaged hallway. Narration states: "AND THEN IN THE CORNER OF KILLUA'S VISION..." Killua skids to a stop and stares ahead. The final panel shows him facing two soldier ants standing in the ruined corridor. Narration continues: "HE SAW TWO SOLDIER ANTS." The ants stand ready, one with a long snout and robes, the other muscular with a dark collar, both positioned amid scattered debris on the cracked tile floor.

Killua leaps forward with explosive speed, his spiky hair flaring wildly as he positions himself directly in Ikarugo's path. The motion lines emphasize his urgent dash. In the background, Gon continues running away from the scene. A thought bubble reads, "THEY'RE STANDING..." Below, tight panels capture close-up reactions: a sharp profile of a determined face with flowing hair, another intense close view of an eye and mouth set in concentration, and finally a heavy boot slamming down onto the ground with a sharp impact effect, dust and lines radiating outward from the step.

In that instant, Killua turns sharply at a run, his body twisting mid-air with intense focus as he hurtles forward. A box states, "KILLUA TURNED AT A RUN." Below, a strange creature with a long snout and antennae appears, its clawed hands clasped. Narration explains that Killua has been more adamant than the others that each person must concentrate on their own task and deal with their own obstacles. Killua's face fills a panel, eyes wide as he internally screams, "AM I CRAZY?!" and "WHAT THE HELL AM I DOING?!" The creature reacts with a startled "ジキ" sound effect.

In the ruined hall a body lies motionless on the debris-strewn floor while a lone figure stands in the foreground. His reason was suspended entirely. Smaller panels show three figures near a pillar as one races toward the elevator; a close-up reveals Killua’s wide eyes and open mouth. Killua?! someone shouts. A tight shot of an eye follows, then Killua’s running form and clenched hands. But he had not fallen into a panic; quite the opposite. His body was acting under a pure logic.

Swiftly the insect-like fighter lashes out, a black creature clinging to its arm. He struck. A massive impact erupts as the blow lands with pinpoint accuracy. Keeping his aura under perfect control, wasting as little as possible, Killua extends a glowing fist from the right side of the frame. The two figures are hurled backward by the precise strike while Killua maintains his stance. And with such precision.

In the ruined corridor, bodies lie scattered amid smoke and debris as Ikarugo watches the aftermath. Narration states that the combat capacity of the two soldier ants, as well as any action they may have taken, were instantaneously eliminated. Gon appears in a small panel, body low and ready. A fierce dragon-headed Chimera Ant looms in the next frame. The text adds "AND ONE MORE ANT." The right side erupts into a massive dynamic panel of Gon leaping forward, hair spiked wildly, eyes sharp with determination. His extended arm and forward momentum fill the space as the narration continues about the eliminated threats.

Gon stands atop the massive domed roof of the palace under a starry sky, smoke billowing around the structure. He understands at once what the cloud of smoke engulfing the throne room means. His only goal is to take Pitou's head. A timer at the bottom reads 0:00:06:52. Gon leaps from the dome and races through an interior corridor at high speed, motion lines streaking the panels. Additional frames show him sprinting through doorways with intense focus as the palace shakes.