♡

"All that remains now are the fourth phase and the final phase. The fourth phase will take place over there on Zevil Island." - the emaniner pointed at an island a couple of miles behind him - "Let's proceed. To behind with, I need each of you to draw lots. It will decide who you hunt and who hunts you."

A cart with a box was brought over by an assistant.
"In this box, there are exactly 25 numbered cards. Which means, that one of the numbered cards will correspond with your badge. Now, pick the cards in the order you exited the tower. All right, which one of you is first?"

Aph let out a yawn and stretched arms over her head. An audible crack came from her back, making Gon, who she stood next to, flinch. The cracking continued with her neck and hands, until she let out a relieved sigh.

She went up to the front and picked one of the cards. The suprised glaces that she managed to exit the tower right after Gitterackur were ignored as she glanced at the card while taking her own badge off. The number was still covered with a sticker and she was having a hard time not taking a peek already.

The examiner continued once everyone had their cards.
"Has everyone drawn? Very well, now if you would, please go ahead and remove the sticker."

Aph pursed her lips and blinked at the number.
'Guess who didn't look at the other's numbers once. Who the hell is nunber 91?'
Still pouting, she smacked the white sticker against her forehead and pressed it down gently so that it would stay on.

"You're free to dispose of your cards if you like. It makes no difference. The ocjective is to steal your target's ID badge." Rat guy was definitely her least favourite examiner.

"The method is up to you. Procure the bagde however you see fit, but if you kill your target, you can take their badge easily." Too much work. It would be much easier to just snatch the badge quickly and leave before they realize.

"Listen carefully," Oh boy "collecting the ID badge of your specified target will earn you three points and so does your own badge. All other badges are worth one point. You need to collect six points by the end of the week to pass the fourth phase."

'So when we're 25 people, the most that could pass would be 12. Eh...'

╬╬════════════════════╬╬

Turns out that Gon's target was Hisoka. Good luck buddy, he's gonna find a new UnRIpE fRuIt.

"Good luck my folks, don't die, stay hydrated, and dear god Oreoguy, use some deodorant."

Kurapika, who had his arm linked with hers, lowered his head to try and conceal his laughter. Leorio gasped like he had just been personally attacked.

"I was locked in a tower for 72 hours, young lady!"
"Aw, you called me lady. But even I managed to smell good. Here!" She pushed her arm under his nose, but he just pushed it away without even considering gracing himself with her immaculate scent.
"Why is that thing even on your face?" He glared at the sticker still on her forehead.
"It's fashion. You wouldn't understand."

Aph was called up, to which she grinned at the group.
"Have fun!"
Kurapika's hand lingered on her arm and followed it until he couldn't reach anymore. It took all of Aph's mental strength not to squeal.

╬╬════════════════════╬╬

Quietly humming to herself, Aph made her way away from the boat, but not without tripping and cursing her shoes for starting to fall apart in the middle of the hunter exam. These things had been loyal for the last three years, despite all the dirt and torture they had to endure, and now the soles decided they were done?

As soon as she reached a point where the boat was out if sight, she jumped onto a thick branch and sat with her legs criss-crossed.

'Finally! En-time~'

With a pleased sigh, she released her Zetsu and started using En. In was one of her favourite standart uses of Nen, since she used it so often that its reach and abilitys were close to those of a master, not to mention that she could manipulate it just like the rest of her body.

'Okayyy so Hisoka and Gitterakur are over there together... Oops, they noticed me. Oh god oh god please don't attack me I don't want to end up impaled by needles. That's right Hisoka, hold him back, good boy. You deserve a head pat. So there's one guy tailing me, he noticed too, must be an examiner...'

Aph continued rambling in her head until she was sure no nen user would try to attack her. A skilled Zetsu user could easily enter her En once she thinned it out to spread it further like she was right now. Soon, the whole island was withing her reach and she could easily feel the location of everyone. Even the soft, undisturbed life energy running through the trees and grass didn't go unnoticed.

'There comes the next one! I'll just snatch three badges while people are still entering the woods, that way I'll be done before it even really started. Should be easy enough, but Hisoka's bUngEe GuM would be real useful now...'

Silently, she drew back her En and concealed her presence to not be spottet. The person she felt approaching was headed her way, so all she did was jump to a higher branch and hide. And then she waited.

...

'I hate waiting...

Ugh...

Shut up brain, it's been like five seconds

UGHWJSISJSNNS'

When finally, after a long minute, a man came running through the trees, she squattet down and quickly analysed the situation.

'The badge is off, but he doesn't have a bag... Back pocket! Yeah yeah, good job me, but that was kinda obvious. Doesn't he know how to hide stuff? Stupid person, what's the big head for if it's obviously not a brain? Snacks? Oh gosh now I'm hungry...'

Without making a sound, she jumped from brach to branch naruto style and followed him. He seemed to be in a rush to get away from the rest of the appliciants, and didn't notice as Aph slipped onto the ground behind him. In one swift motion, she lightly let her fingers rest on the white badge and retracted them. Living off pick-pocketing for years payed off.

The poor guy kept on running as Aph bounced back onto a tree and let out the breath she had been holding.

'One down, two to go~'

╬╬════════════════════╬╬

"Who's there?"

Aph had to supress a giggle at the sight below her. She had decided to use the good old 'throw a rock as distraction' technique and it was working suprisingly well. The guy she was targeting turned to the tree she was crouching on, from where she had dropped a stone.

Hidden behind the leafes, she watched as he warily stepped closer and waited for the right timing. When he focused on a different branch for a split second, she quickly threw a second rock behind him, making him turn around.

"Show yourself! I'll snap your toes in half!"

Now, with the guy basically right beneath her and his attention in the opposite direction, she had an easy game. Silently and with concealed presence, she slipped onto the ground right behind him. It was absurd, really, how she could easily manouver her arms around and basically hug him, yet he didn't seem to notice a thing. Even as she took off the badge from his chest, which he felt confident enough not to take off, she stayed undetected.

After not longer than a second, Aph was back on the tree and inwardly grinned. The examiner tailing her must have been impressed, that was an achievement.

Thirty minutes into the phase and she already had two badges. They may be from easy prey, but hey, that's life. We fight dirty and we fight efficient.

"Wha- WHAAAAT?! NO! FUCK!" The guy on the floor began screaming like a toddler once he realized his badge was gone. Aph bit down on her collar to stiffle her laughter.
"WHEN DID THIS EVEN HAPPEN?!"

Before she could start snorting, she turned around and jumped to the next tree, and the next, and the next. Soon she was far away from the still yelling man (yes, she could still hear him and was pretty sure the others could too).

╬╬════════════════════╬╬

Time went by, day turned to night. Aph didn't end up getting her third badge right away, but was still happy with the ones she had.

Right now, she was stalking through the woods slowly, completely relaxed and messing around with one of her throwing knifes. Her free hand scratched across her shoulder and neck, back and forth. She knew she was being followed, not only by the examiner, but by an appliciant as well.

In the middle of a clearing, she stopped walking and slipped the knife  back into the pouch on her thigh. She rolled her shoulders and cracked her fingers.
"⭐You can come out now~💧" The Hisoka imitation was a must.

A figure emerged from the deep shadows covering the woods. Leafes rustled and sticks cracked under their now carelessly placed feet. A wild gush of wind pulled at their body, pushing them slightly off balance.

A blue bucket hat and the high collar of their black shirt covered most of their face, leaving only their eyes to be seen. The short strands of black hair sticking out from their hat reminded Aph of Feitan, yet their eyes seemed much more younger than his.

"Sooo... I'm your target?" Aph twirled a loose strand of her hair around her pinky.
'I haven't taken out my hair or washed it in five days... That's not that bad!"

"Yes, please give me your badge." The person looked even more like Feitan when they got closer, their small height playing a big role. Their voice, however, couldn't be more different. It was high and soft, airy, the complete opposite from the little harsh words Feitan spat out.

"You see, I would, but I kinda need it. Are you more of a fighting person or would you prefer to play rock paper scissors?", Aph asked with an innocent grin.

She could barely make out a frown on the small visible part of their face. The moon made their skin shine in a pale white, rivaling the stars themselves. She couldn't exactly make out their eye colour, yet they shone in shades of pink and brown.

"Let's fight."
"Fair and square, alright."

The small figure moved into a fighting stance and Aph was thrilled when they started covering their body in a thin layer of Ten. It wasn't as smooth as you would see it on an experienced fighter, hinting that they were still a beginner.

Aph decided to ignore all the things her many temporary 'teachers' had taught her in their singular lectures and rushed in to make the first move. She knew she sucked at hand to hand combat, but was honestly feeling a little out of it, so she threw a punch.

As expected, her punch was blocked and immediatly countered with a kick to the side. Aph's brain desperately tried to remember the stance someone had told her about to block it, yet all she could remember at that second was the face of a drunk woman trying to show her the block but ultimately falling due to her balance giving up. Hah, right, she only ended up teaching her theory.

'Ouchie...'

Her body was slammed sideways, almost crashing into a tree if it wasn't for some flashy moves to get onto her feet quickly.

'Right, that's why I usually finish stuff with one move... I hate fighting.'

A nen fighter who only knew the bare minimum of martial arts against a martial arts fighter who only knew the bare minimum of nen. Oh, fun.

'That's gonna leave a bruise. Quick, concentrate! What were you gonna do? Think! Think! Fu-'

She could barely dodge the fist flying her way and quickly moved to the other side of the clearing.

'Dumb me. Gosh, I gotta stop thinking! What the fuck even is this? Why do people fight? Oh gooooosh'

She attempted to block the next kick, yet didn't think about actually putting some stealth into her loose position. It resulted in her getting thrown back across the clearing.

'I'm getting thrown around like a ragdoll. Actually, this is kind of fun!'

This time, she actually put some effort into her stance. Her opponent seemed to be the one leading, rushing back to Aph to deliver the next attack.

'Here we go- wweeeeeeee!'

She internally cheered for the free ride as she flew again.

'So. Much. Fun. Again!'

-kick-

'Again!'

-kick-

'One more time, please!'

-kick-

'It's so fun getting bullied!'

-kick-

'Why am I here again?'

-kick-

'Oh right, Hunter exam.'

-kick-

'Alright alright, I'll stop now.'

She breathed out with a wide smile before finally standing up on her own feet again. The person, again, ran straight back at her, ready to attack with all the confidence they had gathered through kicking her around. What they weren't expecting however, was Aph activating her nen and suddenly appearing right beside them.

'Careful, don't use too much, you don't want to hurt them...'

She quickly conjured a mini version of her usual spear (it looked like a slightly deformed dagger)  and flung it at them with a simple move of her index finger. They did their best to strengthen their Ten, but it wasn't enough. Before they could even move, the dagger stuck in their forehead and their body fell limp to the floor

"Gotcha! That was fun!"

When the small weapon dissapeared again, it left no wound. Only a small bruise starting to form and a knocked out opponent.

Aph hummed a cheerful song while bending down to search for their badge. She quickly found it pinned to the inside of their hat, which she quickly put back on after fixing their hair for them.

'You're so pretty~'

The examiner following Aph sweatdropped. She let herself get knocked around because it was fun.

He watched at she discovered that their badge was actually her own target. It genuinely suprised him when she pulled their body to lean against a tree half-hidden in the bushes, and, to his shock, layed the two badges she had previously stolen into their hands. Now that she had the badge worth three points, she didn't need those anymore, but it was still something you didn't get to see everyday.

Aph stood up and dusted off her hands with puffed out cheeks. She felt her left side, where the first kick had been delivered and she had been to unfocused to protect herself. She already knew a colourful bruise was starting to form.

'Man, I would've been fucked without my nen.'

╬╬════════════════════╬╬

She ghostet around for the next couple of hours, sometimes hiding as to not get caught. She already had her needed badges and didn't want to lose them again. Only when her calves started to feel heave did she notice that she had been walking around this whole time.

Without much thought, she conjured her dear pillow she had been sleeping on for almost a year. It was big and fluffy and blue with white dots on it, perfect for when you don't want to go through the process of getting a hotel room.

Aph's earrings bounced and hit her face when she jumped onto it.
'Let's check where everyone is'
The pillow hovered above the ground like magic and with a mere thought of it, it went up higher until it hid between the tree tops. Aph activated her En, though wider and thinner this time as to not let it get spottet and have Gitterackur attack.

Gon was by a river and seemed to be practicing some sort of movement, with someone watching him. Leorio and Kurapika had teamed up to bully Tompa like the old married couple they are. Killua was being tailed by one of the brothers and the Ninja dude with the weird shoulders and 2000 eyebrows. Judging by the amount of power he had displayed when playing the chairman's game and him being a Zoldyck, he should be fine.

Aph took a piece of her bangs and rolled it in between two fingers. The rest of her hair was getting long, hidden in the ponytail-bun crossover. Countless pins, maybe even a couple of screws and sticks were holding it up so that she could keep it like this weeks at a time.

Actually, she liked taking hot, long showers and using more hair products than necessary. But as she had been travelling around in the wilderness for about ten months, that didn't happen anymore and she couldn't carry around this many products.

The hunter exam was supposed to be her chapter divider, after which she would go back to living in hotels or with people she helped out like she had been doing since she left meteor city. Maybe she would go to heaven's arena. If she actually did pass the exam, she was probably set for life with her license.

The sun was already close to rising as she sat above the tree tops. Her eyes were closed, hands crossed behind her head and feet swinging off the edge. A satisfied sigh left her lips. She really loved the nature with all of its bright and dark sides.

She spent the next day eating berries and acting like she was on drugs by a waterfall. It really was a sight to see her giggling and jumping around the moving water for hours. She couldn't care less about people from the association seeing her and possibly doubting her sanity, since "my ability to give a fuck keeps drastically decreasing".

At night, she actually slept for once, laying on her pillow fairly early with just a mere five meters of En around her which she could easily keep up while sleeping. It felt cold to sleep without a fire, but making one would attract too much trouble. When she woke up, it was already midday and the sun was warming her tan skin. It was a nice time.

On the next day, while Killua faught the Amori brothers (one-sided), Aph landed right behind the Ninja dude who sat on a nearby tree watching, startling him when she spoke up.

"Letting the little boy do your work for you, eh?"
"Wha-"

He didn't actually get time to respond, as Killua below them threw the two badges he didn't need across the island. Ninja dude immediatly jumped after one, not aware that the boy had switched the two last second and the one he needed was thrown the other way. Aph stuck her tounge out after him and watched the brothers book it.

With a sly grin, she conjured a small invisible dagger. The fluffball had probably noticed her presence by now as she wasn't even trying to mask it, but at least she could give him a little scare before he called her out.

With a snap of her fingers, the dagger flew right at Killua. The boy turned around after sensing the rapidly approaching presence, but scrunched up his nose when he saw nothing. Aph bit her tounge as the dagger smacked right against his forehead, making sure the flat side of the blade hit him.

Killua jumped and held his forehead. He kept looking left and right to search for the threat, only to find a certain brunette gracefully draped over a branch.
"Hey there~"

He seemed to relax ever so slightly as she slipped onto the ground.
"What was that? I could sense it, but saw nothing."
"⭐Just a