Chapter 80

A large crowd gathers in a brick-walled hall around a raised platform where a small boy sits cross-legged on a table, clutching a sparkling diamond. A man tumbles backward through the air after an apparent defeat. Two enormous speech bubbles announce the rules: "TO OBTAIN IT, THERE'S ONLY ONE WAY : ARM WRESTLING!!! THE ONE WHO BEATS THIS BRAT TAKES AWAY THE DIAMOND!!" and "WELCOME!! TODAY, YOU CAN WIN A DIAMOND WORTH 3 MILLION JENIS!!" Spectators murmur and point from the floor below. In the next tier of panels the crowd discusses the boy, calling him a "monkey-man" who may have been raised by a gorilla and noting he defeated over twenty people the day before despite his broken arms. One man exclaims "Brouha Brouha" while another wonders if they should try against the brat. Leorio, wearing round sunglasses and a dark suit, stands in a black panel thinking that such auctions began illegally and that the organizers must still operate in dark places. In the final wide panel Leorio pushes forcefully through the dense crowd, shouting "GET OUT OF MY WAY!" as onlookers turn and react with surprise.

A large man in a double-breasted coat towers over the crowd, adjusting his tie while Leorio stands beside him holding up a card and replying "I'M TRYING." Onomatopoeia "TADAN" and Japanese characters appear above them. In the next row Leorio, now in close-up, tells Gon "GON, SWITCH. I'LL REPLACE YOU." Gon, seated at a table opposite the large man, asks "HOW ARE WE GOING TO HOLD FISTS?" with a puzzled "HM ?" while sound effects "ズ ゥ ゥ ン TAC" rumble. Leorio answers from behind that he knows the rules will not be broken. Gon and the large man lock arms across the table as the crowd watches intently.

Stacks of yen bills and a glittering diamond rest on the table as the wager is revealed. Large letters spell out TAP beside the diamond, with 5 MILLION marked on a bill stack. Leorio stands opposite a broad-shouldered opponent. In close-up panels the opponent’s face remains impassive while Leorio asks, SO? Leorio then states that if the opponent wins against him, the money and diamond are his. The two men lock hands and brace their elbows on the table. Leorio’s expression hardens as he says READY … The opponent’s arm muscles tense. A large speech bubble at the bottom declares GO!!

With explosive force the opponent’s arm is slammed down onto the table. VLAM letters and radiating speed lines fill the panel as the table cracks and splinters. The pompadour-haired man is hurled backward through the air, his body shown small against a burst of impact lines and debris. In a separate panel a curly-haired spectator reacts with shock, raising one hand to his head while three exclamation marks appear beside him.

Leorio stands among a restless crowd, adjusting his sunglasses as he speaks. "Don't tell me we're stopping here?" he asks. A voice replies, "I remind you that the earnings have increased." Nearby, a large man in a suit lifts another fighter off the ground, who groans "Ah... argh..." as someone shouts "Who's next?" Leorio continues, "Say, guy, you're really strong," while a suited man responds, "I like you." In the background, Gon and Killua watch closely. Leorio adds, "The two behind me are much stronger than I am." He then holds up a business card and says, "Please stop by, around 5 PM. If you have some time today..." A close-up shows his intense gaze as he mutters "Oh..." The scene shifts to a bustling hallway filled with people. Leorio, now in the foreground with Gon and Killua behind him, examines the card and declares, "The big fish? Haven't we discovered..."

An empty corridor with closed double doors and a blank signboard leads into a vast, brightly lit auction hall packed with hundreds of people. The crowd surges and chatters loudly. Leorio stands with Gon and Killua at the edge of the balcony overlooking the mass of bidders and spectators. A man with slicked-back hair and another in a suit appear in smaller panels, reacting to the noise. Leorio points forward with a grin. Someone says, "It's going to begin." A stern-faced man with short hair instructs, "Take the lift, last basement." The massive audience fills every level of the hall as the event is about to start.

A loud metallic CRRRRR +!! echoes as something heavy slides open above the arena. Below, a raised fighting ring stands empty under bright lights while the surrounding crowd murmurs with overlapping chatter: Ouais ouais, Tac Tac, Brouha Brouha, Bla Bla. Leorio stands in the foreground wearing a black suit, white shirt, black tie and round sunglasses, his expression stern as he scans the room. In smaller panels, three stern men are shown in close-up: one with a prominent nose, a long-haired muscular man, and a spiky-haired man with a scar. At the bottom, Gon and Killua stand side by side looking toward the ring. Killua speaks, 'Say, there are some who aren't here to joke around.'

A muscular woman with spiky hair stands on stage under spotlights, one hand raised as she shouts, 'LET'S START WITHOUT WAITING FOR THE CONDITIONAL AUCTION!!' and 'WELCOME, EVERYONE!' A spotlight illuminates a small figure labeled '1st Flash' while a digital timer counts down from 5:00. A large pointing hand dominates the next panel as the same woman declares, 'HIDE-AND-SEEK!!' and 'TODAY, THE RULE IS SIMPLE...' In the audience, several people react with surprise, including a man with sunglasses and spiky hair who questions, 'HIDE-AND-SEEK?' The woman with face paint and pigtails leans forward holding a microphone, announcing, 'THOSE SEVEN PEOPLE ARE TODAY'S TARGETS!!' and 'LOOK CAREFULLY AT THE PICTURES YOU WERE GIVEN!!' Three men in dark uniforms stand on stage holding signs.

Gon stares forward with wide eyes while Killua leans in, mouth open in shock with two exclamation marks hovering beside him. In the next panel a girl with pigtails and a blindfold clutches papers and watches the scene. A large hand holds up a sheet of eight photographs showing various targets, each labeled with names and rewards. The hand then forms a peace sign as the muscular woman on stage grips a microphone and declares the bounty. She announces that the girl who appeared at the arm-wrestling event yesterday is one of the targets. The condition is simple: capture them and deliver them. Anyone who succeeds will receive a check for two billion jennies per head. The crowd erupts with a roaring cheer as the woman finishes her announcement.

Killua exclaims that catching all targets would yield fourteen billion jennies. The muscular woman continues explaining that there is no time limit and that the targets may be brought in dead or alive. A wrestling ring is visible behind her with spectators. Leorio reviews a document while Gon and Killua listen. The woman adds that participants must pay a five-million-jenny tax and return the photos upon exiting. If a target is captured, contact must be made at the bottom of the page. In the final panels Gon and Killua stand beside Leorio, who clenches a fist, while the crowd below rushes a table covered in photographs that scatter across the floor with loud impact SFX.

A group walks along a city street at dusk. One man declares they must gather information on the net since they only need to pay once they are ready for useful details. Another voice shouts agreement, vowing to fax it right away. In the next panels a suited man with a mustache questions the meaning of the plan while a boy with spiky black hair insists the whole situation smells bad. Gon, the white-haired boy, explains that the mafia treats its own failure as a failure of its ways and will seek other solutions. He recalls that a while ago the group was supposed to be a conditional auction but it felt like a real investigation with a reward. Night falls over the city as narration continues that the initial project was surely to organize fights or something similar. Gon points out that the reward is a check rather than a high-value object and wonders why that is strange. Leorio agrees the five-million tax gives the impression of a real conditional auction. The spiky-haired boy concludes that whatever the time or money cost, the mafia must have decided the ring in the middle of the room made it necessary to find the thieves.

Gon tells Killua they know a bit about those guys. Killua replies that they have to be dumb to steal mafia treasures. Gon simply answers yes. In a dramatic close-up the suited man with sunglasses reacts with shock, realizing the main auction objects could only have been stolen by one group. He declares the only remaining solution is to launch an investigation notice on the thieves with a reward. The scene shifts to a ruined building interior where the same man stands with his back to the viewer, dramatically announcing the name of the culprits. Gon and Killua stand behind him looking up at the destruction. Three final close-up panels show the man glaring intensely, Gon with a serious expression, and Killua staring forward with wide eyes.

Gon and Killua stand together at night. Gon looks to the side and says, "That's true. He must be here, but he hasn't called us yet." Killua replies, "By the way, I wonder what Kurapika could be doing..." A large multi-story building rises against the dark sky with palm trees in front. Repeated "Torurururu" sound effects echo across the night skyline and empty stairwells inside the structure, indicating an unanswered phone call. The ringing persists through the quiet corridors and steps.

Inside a spacious room, a short-haired figure in dark clothing stands with arms crossed as "Torurururu" rings echo around them. The figure mutters "Toru..." while staring forward. Two adjacent panels show an empty lounge area with a "Clic" sound from a door or latch. A close-up reveals the figure's serious face with wide eyes. The final panel zooms in on intense, glaring eyes filled with tension and resolve.

Uvogin stands with a fierce scowl, one hand raised near his mouth as he glares ahead. Nearby, a figure in formal black-and-white attire stands with their back turned, hands clasped behind them. In a close panel, Kurapika stares forward with wide, serious eyes. Opposite him, Uvogin’s scarred face twists in a menacing grin as he leans in. Kurapika speaks first, voice calm but firm: “Somewhere you won’t cause any problems to anybody.” Uvogin retorts sharply, “Where do you want to die? I’ll let you decide the place where you’re gonna get killed.” He adds with a mocking edge, “You’re alone… you’re brave.” Kurapika replies without flinching, “I suppose your death throes must be loud.”

Under a cloudy sky, two speech bubbles ponder why someone is not answering calls, suggesting he might be busy working. Leorio, adjusting his glasses, notes that the man is searching for the Scarlet Eyes and must be working for a VIP from the shadows. Gon and Killua listen nearby as the suited man continues, explaining the target is likely a bodyguard hired by a VIP. He adds that if the man had been in front of the Ryodan he would have attacked without hesitation. The group discusses the possibility that the bodyguard may already have been arrested two or three times for bad business at the auction. Suddenly Leorio reacts with shock as the man reveals the bodyguard killed one of the Ryodan members for work. Gon and Killua react with surprise while Leorio exclaims, “You know, my father…”

In a quiet flashback panel, a woman with long dark hair stands with two small children nearby as narration recalls, "WHAT HE TOLD US AT THAT TIME..." Killua, his expression serious, speaks about a past encounter: "I RARELY SAW HIM IN THAT STATE. HE EVEN SAID, 'SURPRISINGLY, IT WASN'T AN EASY TASK'... I CAN TELL YOU THAT IT'S QUITE A EULOGY TO HIS OPPONENT, BUT..." A close-up shows Killua facing a scarred, long-haired man whose intense gaze fills the frame. The man warns, "DON'T EVER TOUCH THE RYODAN." Killua adds, "IT WAS TWO OR THREE YEARS AGO..." The scene shifts to the present. Killua turns and replies, "SURE." Gon looks up with wide eyes. A small spiky-haired figure blurts, "BAH... NOPE. WHY SHOULD I HAVE?" Leorio, adjusting his glasses, asks, "DID YOU TELL THAT TO KURAPIKA?" Gon clenches his fist with determination and declares, "LIKE THE PROVERB SAYS: NOTHING VENTURED, NOTHING GAINED. I'M GONNA DO IT."

Against a vast white background, a lone silhouette of a spiky-haired figure leaps dynamically in front of a large full moon. The character is captured mid-air in a powerful, crouched pose with one arm extended, legs bent, and hair bristling outward. Below, the dark outline of a building ledge and railing anchors the scene, emphasizing the height and isolation of the jump. The image conveys a moment of solitary action under the night sky.