"Word is this entire mountain belongs to the Zoldyck family."
"That's some real wealth!"
"No wonder they're known as the world's top assassins. So Ron and Killua grew up in there?"
"Amazing."
Leorio was clearly impressed by the Zoldyck's fortune, but in his case, money wasn't just for personal enjoyment. Once he became a doctor, whenever he came across someone who needed treatment but couldn't afford it, Leorio wanted the freedom to help them without worrying about medical fees. That was his real goal.
"Killua once told me a bit about his training as a kid. It was seriously grueling—he practically never had any downtime. It was way tougher than anything I went through." Gon sighed. "That's why Killua's skills are so advanced now, definitely stronger than me."
"I bet it was the same for Ron when he was little," Kurapika added.
"Maybe they are so strong because they lived and followed the rules of the jungle" Leorio joked.
"Remember at the start of the Hunter Exam, that old man gave us a few bottles of suspicious drinks?" Gon recalled.
"To be on the same level as Killua and Ron, mere physical training alone isn't enough," Kurapika said.
Gon spoke again, "Leorio, Kurapika, do you think that 'trial gate' they keep mentioning is some kind of test site? Since it's described as a gate for training, there's no way it'll be easy to open."
Kurapika nodded. "Ron told us not to climb the walls like those overconfident trespassers. That means they might have run into something bad."
"And maybe those troublemakers can't even pass the trial gate," Leorio added as the bus rattled.
The road uphill wasn't smooth. The driver and tour guide were used to it, but any first‐time tourists were clearly uncomfortable—some even got car sick. Plastic bags were at the ready, and before long, that sour stench began to spread through the bus.
For Gon, Kurapika, and Leorio—who were all physically fit—riding in a stuffy bus wasn't really a problem. Still, it was unpleasant. Gon and Kurapika were fine, but Leorio kept wrinkling his nose, looking annoyed.
At last, the bus ground to a halt.
The door hissed open, and everyone couldn't wait to get off. Gon, Kurapika, and Leorio practically dove out the windows.
"Ah!"
"Fresh air!"
Leorio took a huge breath. Their attention was soon drawn by the colossal wall before them. It towered impressively. In the center loomed a massive gate, decorated with a precise, orderly design. The gate and outer wall alone made it clear how wealthy the Zoldycks were—they'd turned the entire perimeter of their home into a fortress.
Tourists milled about, snapping photos and chattering, while guides used megaphones to keep the groups moving along. Because the Zoldycks didn't particularly mind random tourists gawking outside their walls, the main entrance had become a tourist attraction of sorts. On the flip side, if any of these onlookers truly stepped out of line, the family's response would be swift. They wouldn't even need an official family member to deal with petty threats. Even a single housekeeper or gatekeeper was enough to handle most trespassers.
A janitor sweeping the grounds, or a single guard on watch, would be more than sufficient in these parts.
Over in a nondescript corner, you could spot a side door labeled "Side Entrance." Gon and his friends went to a small nearby room.
"Some more intruders today?"
An old man inside glanced at them briefly, then looked away. Zebro lifted his teacup, took a small sip, and muttered,
"Another quiet day."
Leorio looked straight ahead.
"So that's the 'trial gate?'"
"Gon, what do we do next?"
Kurapika said, "From what Ron told us, that should be the gate. But it doesn't look much like a trial—nobody's around."
Just then, the door to the trial gate creaked. A figure stepped out—it was Zebro, the watchman. He walked right up to the gate, both hands resting on it and opened it.
Gon ran up and tried to hold the door open before it closed. However, with one of his arms being injured while sparring with Hanzo, Gon wasn't in the best shape. He could only exert partial strength with one hand, so he gathered as much power as possible into the other.
Gon noticed and directed most of his attention to that arm.
But the massive door remained defiant.
Gon looked disappointed as the door continued to close. A nearby tour guide noticed Gon's actions and ran over in a hurry.
"Hey, kid, what are you doing? This is private property. You're not allowed in. If you try to break in, you could get into big trouble."
Gon withdrew his hand, turning to face the guide.
"I have a reason I have to go inside."
Kurapika looked to one side. Two men who looked like martial arts practitioners appeared at the entrance to the gate and one of them grabbed Gon's wrist with a firm grip—easily prying his hand away from the gate.
"Get back to the bus kid"
"Gon, Leorio,—step back."
Hearing Kurapika call out, the martial artist glanced over, moving closer.
With a lurch, they squeezed themselves through the gate without having to touch it. Using Zebron's earlier opening.
Leorio blinked.
"That easy?"
Kurapika shook his head. "No. There must be a catch. Otherwise, Ron wouldn't have reminded us not to rely on trickery. Clearly, sneaking in is a bad idea."
"But they really went inside."
Leorio frowned. "We could just follow them."
Right then, a chilling growl echoed from inside, sending Leorio's expression into shock. Gon hurriedly ran over to help an elderly tourist who had toppled in surprise.
"You okay, sir?"
"Y-yeah, I'm fine. Thank you."
Suddenly, something lurched in the shadows. A huge set of claws emerged, clamping down on two of the intruders. Or more precisely, two monstrous pincers snapped shut on them, slicing bone. Their blood and flesh vanished in an instant.
Everyone's eyes darted toward the gate. An intense wave of fear spread among the crowd.
"Help!"
They scrambled back onto the bus. The driver started the engine and fled, but Gon, Kurapika, and Leorio stayed put, pinned in place by shock.
"You three…aren't you leaving?" Zebro asked.
Kurapika and Leorio didn't respond.
Gon, remembering Ron's advice, felt more certain than ever.
"We can't leave. We're friends of Killua. We're here to see him. We haven't found him yet, so we're not leaving," he said firmly. "And Ron gave us permission—though he warned us not to rely on cheap tricks."
"Friends of Killua?" Zebro's gaze sharpened. Gon nodded. Kurapika added, "Ron told us we can come inside the Zoldyck estate, but not by being sneaky. If we can't sneak in, there's only one way—push open that gate ourselves and walk in."
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