Hunter × Hunter Chapter 294: Break Down

Palm leaps through the air in her transformed state, arms outstretched and body clad in flowing black hair that has hardened into armor. Her wide-brimmed hat casts a shadow over her intense expression as she descends toward her target. Text explains that Palm's "Black Widow" ability armed her entire body with hair altered according to her emotions, but that duty was solely defensive. What was truly dreadful was her ability to entrust all defense to the strength of the hair armor and completely devote herself to attacking. With a powerful strike, her hair lashes out as "STRIKE!!!" echoes across the page. The sound effect "GUGUGUGU" rumbles as impact shapes burst around the massive hair tendril slamming forward.

A massive impact erupts as Palm's transformed body looms over the scene, her long hair whipping wildly and her face twisted in strain. The enormous SFX ZUDON crashes across the page while FSH marks the sudden motion. Below, Gon stands frozen in shock, his spiky hair standing on end and eyes wide as dust and debris swirl around him. Palm's silhouette appears from behind, her new form towering and menacing. In a distant panel, a figure crashes through the side of a building, shattering glass and concrete. Palm's face fills another close-up, mouth open in a fierce cry as the SFX GIIIHH! bursts outward.

Narration boxes detail the shift: "HER ABILITY WENT STRAIGHT FROM BEING JUST WHAT I WANTED IT TO BE TO THIS...!?" and "PALM IS ORIGINALLY A REINFORCEMENT TYPE..." Gon stares in disbelief, sweat on his face, as he processes the new threat. Further narration warns: "IF THIS BECOMES A DRAWN-OUT BATTLE IT'LL BE AT A COMPLETE DISADVANTAGE!" and notes the perfect guard Palm now possesses. Palm lunges forward with the SFX HYUU, her body stretched in attack. Gon clenches his fist, declaring internally that his heart is at its limit and he cannot let Palm meet Pitou. Close-ups show Palm's determined face and Gon's resolve. The final panel explodes with light as Gon shouts: "RIGHT NOW IT'S A BIG MINUS!!"

Palm stands with a serious expression, declaring, "ANYHOW, HE'S CLOSE BY, RIGHT? I'LL FIND HIM MYSELF." She continues, "I DON'T HAVE A REASON, I JUST WANT TO SEE HIM." Gon reacts with shock, shouting, "HUH? WHY AFTER ALL THIS?" Palm replies, "DEPENDING ON YOUR ANSWER I MIGHT TELL YOU WHERE HE IS." Gon yells desperately, "PALM!! WHY'RE YOU LOOKING FOR GON!?" A massive explosion erupts as a dark, long-haired figure with clawed limbs lunges forward, striking with tremendous force amid SFX: ZAH ZAH and SHAH. The attacker smashes through the environment with powerful blows, sending debris flying. Gon is hurled backward by the impact, crashing through walls and rubble as SFX: ZA ZA ZA, DOKUH, and ZAZAH mark the violent exchange. The floor collapses in a cloud of dust and broken concrete under the relentless assault, with SFX: DOGYAH echoing through the destruction.

Gon leans forward with a strained expression, asking, "BUT THOUGH YOUR OUTSIDE'S CHANGED, YOU'RE STILL 'PALM', RIGHT!?" He apologizes, "I'M SORRY! I KNOW I GOT ANGRY AND CALLED YOU AN ENEMY." A close-up shows Gon's profile as narration states someone changed Gon to become cruel and heartless. Palm's face appears with a cold, piercing gaze. The scene shifts to Gon standing in a ruined corridor facing Palm, who wears a hat and dress. Narration explains that the person who took Gon's heart is now confronting him. Palm's silhouette looms as Gon calls out, "GON" with a desperate "......!!!" Palm urges, "SO PLEASE!! FIRST I HAVE TO HEAR YOU SAY HIS NAME." She warns, "GON WILL REALLY LOSE IT." Gon looks up with wide eyes, realizing, "IF YOU SUDDENLY APPEARED THERE AS YOU ARE NOW."

Palm's wide eyes fill the top panel as she realizes the truth. "THAT'S... THE CONDITION!" she exclaims. Below, she responds with a quiet "OKAY..." while two close panels show a dark, textured shape. A voice urges, "SAY IT'S..." In the next tier, Novu stands in his tall hat and striped coat, telling the person ahead of him, "COULDN'T STOP WORRYING ABOUT YOU." The back view of Gon in his dark shirt appears beside him as Novu continues, "RIGHT BEFORE WE BROKE IN HERE, GON.." Farther down the page, isolated text boxes and tiny figures convey the hidden thoughts: "PEACE OF MIND," "GIVE GON," "HE HAD NO INTENTION OF LETTING THEM MEET," and "STALLING FOR TIME."

Killua's face appears in close-up, sweat visible, accompanied by the narration box "OR THAT AT LEAST WAS HIS PLAN." In the following tier, small panels show feet and hands: "THE ONLY ONE LEFT THAT CAN DO THAT NOW," "YOU'RE...," "PUT HIM AT EASE," and "PLEASE, JUST A LITTLE." The next row continues with clenched hands and the lines "ELSE CAN" and "NO ONE..." A lone bubble reads "I..." The final panel shows Killua from behind, head bowed, shoulders tense, and motion lines indicating strain.

Heavy vertical lines of rain slash across the scene. A small figure in a wide hat and dress stands motionless on the left. In the center a massive distorted head rears back, mouth stretched wide as jagged black letters explode outward: A A A A A. The creature howls 'CAN'T DO IT ...!!' A rectangular caption states 'AS IT CAME OUT OF HIS MOUTH'. The next panel is solid black with a small white box reading 'BURST OUT.' Beside it another caption declares 'WHAT KILLUA HAD BEEN CARRYING FOR SO LONG'. At the bottom a narrow panel shows a small, indistinct object tumbling through empty space amid motion lines.

A close-up shows Killua's face with wide, intense eyes and a slight smile. A speech bubble reads 'CHANGE OF PLANS' on the left and another states 'HE'S WIDE OPEN.' on the right. The next panel reveals a stern woman in a wide hat with long dark hair and vertical markings on her face; a bubble says 'NUMBER 1.' while another commands 'KILL HIM NOW'. Two small close-up panels at the bottom display her hands: the left fist is tightly wrapped in bandages or cords, the right hand is open with fingers extended in a claw-like posture.

A lone figure approaches the exit Novu set beside the central staircase as Palm infiltrates the palace. Within the aura so fiendish it made her body feel like it would fall apart from how much it trembled, Pitou's "En" returned. She realized exactly the same outcome Novu had. She disguised herself to appear as a woman in despair, having been raped by Bizef, and killed herself. When she saw Pouf slowly and silently drawing near, she resolved herself. This plan was thwarted, she was revived by Pitou. But...

They showed interest in that aura. To obtain forgiveness from the king who was not eating anything, Palm stands protectively with her aura while trembling intensely from the fiendish aura. It was just as impossible to stop trembling as if shivering in intense cold. No one could blame Palm reflexively protecting herself with her aura the moment she was exposed to this fiendish aura. Made her into experimental soldier number 1. Memories of their pasts was closely related to soldiers' development. They brought both good and harm. And above all those who had already learned Nen ability had that tendency remarkably so. Those with stronger forces of will tended to have more memories of their pasts. The two ants reached that conclusion.

A massive close-up of a human brain dominates the top of the page. Text explains that using Pitou's Doctor Blythe, the part of Palm's brain that connected emotions and memories was destroyed. Below, two panels show rows of silhouetted figures. One panel states it would be best to let the memories remain while also subjugating them, in order to quickly and quietly take control of mankind. The adjacent panel depicts a creature emerging from a cocoon-like structure, noting that experiments such as those with Zitu and Leol had established that those which retained their memories were reborn from the cocoons quickly. At the bottom, a soldier in a helmet and uniform grips a rifle amid swirling smoke and impact lines. Text boxes declare that as a suitable test subject, Palm had been selected.

A tall woman in a long dress and wide hat stands with arms outstretched against a smoky background, a small winged creature hovering near her head. Text boxes state that the success of the experiment would signify the destruction of mankind. Below, a dramatic close-up shows a young girl with wide eyes, open mouth, and pigtails, her face filling the panel with radiating speed lines. She shouts aggressively, declaring to beat that brat in front of you to death and ordering Number 1 to act now.

A close-up reveals a woman wearing a wide-brimmed hat, her eyes wide and intense as sweat drips down her face. She glares sharply to the side and shouts "SHUT UP...". In the next panel a small, child-like figure with oversized eyes and a wide grin waves one hand cheerfully against a stark black background. Below, a character with messy spiky hair is shown in profile, head tilted downward with a tense, focused expression.

Palm Siberia looms large, hat casting dramatic shadows, her face twisted in fury as she yells "NOT NUMBER 1!!" and "I AM PALM SIBERIA!!". The small child-like figure tumbles through the air toward her. Massive impact lines and a huge stylized "X" explode outward from the center, with debris and motion streaks filling the lower half of the page while Palm Siberia's intense eyes remain visible amid the chaos.

Palm stands tall with her long dark hair whipping around her, her right fist clenched and raised as she glares forward with fierce determination. "YOU GUYS CANNOT BECOME THE ANTS' PUPPETS," she declares in a large speech bubble, followed by a second bubble stating "NOR DIE!!" A smoky panel below shows a large stylized SFX reading "ギャママ..." Palm then appears in a calmer stance on the left, her arms marked with scale-like patterns and a dark flower design on her dress, facing Killua who stands amid swirling energy lines around his legs and feet. In the bottom panels, Palm's clawed hand is shown as she says "IT'S THANKS TO YOU." Killua stares back with wide eyes and a slightly open mouth, sweat drops visible on his face.

A profile view shows Palm with a circular mark on her forehead, her eyes closed as narration explains the mental boundary that once separated her feelings from her body. In a series of close-up panels, Palm continues speaking while facing slightly away: "BUT DON'T FORGET," "IF THERE'S SOMETHING I CAN DO FOR GON, I'D DO IT GLADLY," and "DON'T EVER THINK YOU'RE POWERLESS." She then tells Killua, "YOU REMOVED THAT BOUNDARY FOR ME." A large close-up of Palm's face reveals her intense eyes as she states "IS YOU." and "THE ONE MOST IMPORTANT TO GON." Killua's face fills the bottom panel, his eyes wide with shock and mouth slightly agape.

In a hospital room, a short-haired girl sits beside a bandaged patient lying in bed. Medical monitors and equipment line the walls. A text box states that in clinical pathology concerning the brain, this is a frequently occurring and accepted fact. Another box explains how love from family members and friends and other things that can stimulate a patient's own zeal can very significantly undermine medical physicians' objective diagnoses and promote recovery. The scene abruptly shifts to a dark, cloudy sky where large butterflies flutter. A voice asks "WHAT'S WRONG?" followed by a dismissive "HMPH." Close panels show a figure in profile and a massive butterfly creature. A speech bubble declares "...A FAILURE. THAT'S ALL IT IS." The final panel reveals a close-up of a long-haired character with a stern expression, sweat on the face. Speech bubbles read: "FOR SOLDIERS, THINGS LIKE MEMORIES AND EMOTIONS ARE UNNECESSARY, AREN'T THEY?" and "RUSHING WILL ONLY CAUSE PROBLEMS ........"

Palm stands in the foreground with arms crossed, facing the muscular King who stands in a fighting stance inside a ruined building. Narration states Palm has come back and questions whether the Hunters will recover from their disadvantage in numbers. The King declares he can produce soldiers even alone and finish without aid from Pitou's doctor Blythe. Palm replies "CONVENIENT. IT'S RATHER..." The King answers "ALL RIGHT." Palm firmly states "I WILL OPPOSE YOU." Large butterflies carry text about building a kingdom before that and the King's and my opposition. The page ends with the Hunter x Hunter logo and chapter number 294.