Phantom Troupe's Web

Chapter 47.

After the news of the Phantom Troupe's death was published, Killua and Gon went to the park and had a feast of different foods when a certain blonde was seen approaching the duo. The spiky-haired, enthusiastic child grins madly and runs over to his friend – greeting him. "I'm so glad! The spiders are dead, so you can finally focus on your main goal. You have to find the eyes of your people," the 12-year-old determinedly tells the Kurta survivor, providing an encouraging nod. "If there's anything we can do to help—" he was cut off by a cream pie being smashed in his face by his best friend. The pair began to chase each other, acting like the children they were and enlisted a pleased chuckle from Kurapika who had witnessed their interaction.

Later, the blonde hunter would call Leorio and inform him about a meeting point where the three Hunters and Killua could meet and catch up on their recent adventures. The quartet met in the apartment the children and Leorio had been staying in, discussing the recent discovery of the Spiders' bodies.

Leorio, Killua and Gon were surprised to learn that Kurapika's Nen ability would only work against the Phantom Troupe which had the innocent Freecss child questioning his friend. "A contract with conditions?" he asks Kurapika.

"Yeah," the blonde stretched out his hand to his friends as he explained. "Nen is strongly affected by your mental state. The stronger your resolve, the more power you receive. However, you also incur a big risk at the same time. In return for Nen power, I vowed to use it against the Spiders alone. And I established a rule for myself."

"What's the rule?" Leorio asks.

"If I use my chains on one who isn't a Spider, I will die," Kurapika reveals, shocking his friends. "There is a Nen dagger pointed at my heart. If I break the rule, that blade will pierce my heart, killing me. This is the rule that shows my resolve. That's the contract with conditions. My ability is the product of pure hatred. It only works on the Spiders," he further elaborates, clenching his fist as he gazes down at the chains. "I'm telling you because I trust you. Don't tell anyone else."

"Why?" the white-haired assassin stands up, glaring and yelling at the blonde with clenched fists. "Why would you tell us something so important?!"

Surprised by the outburst, Kurapika glances around the ground. "I wonder why? Maybe I felt dispirited now that their leader is dead," he looks away sullenly.

"It'll be fine if we keep our mouths shut," Leorio tries to reason with Killua who turns and glares at the older boy.

"It's not good. One of the surviving members can read memories," he thought back to Pakunoda then his sister whom he had seen briefly during his and Gon's capture. "If they find out, Kurapika won't stand a chance!" sweat was dripping from the young boy's temple.

"But she didn't learn anything last time," Gon tells his friend who turns to him.

"That's because we didn't know Kurapika was the chain user," the green-haired child lets out a small noise of realisation.

"Then we just have to stay away from them. They've already checked you, so they think you're clean," Leorio advises, glancing from Gon to Killua who further adds information about Nobunaga but the aspiring doctor assures the duo will be fine since the swordsman was unaware of the children's knowledge of Kurapika. "As long as no one around the memory reader knows Kurapika, then you're safe," the male tells them with a smile.

Kurapika looks down for a second. "Well, I've also been in contact with Hisoka," he reveals, shocking his friends. "He knows that I am the chain user. We made a pact, but his target, the leader of the Spiders, is now dead. So I don't know what he'll do."

•••

Thunder rumbles, grey clouds taking over the sky as night falls onto York New and the Phantom Troupe members are alive and awake after their successful group mission. Nobunaga turns and stares at his boss, questioning his command to leave the city and demanding to stay and find the chain user to avenge his friend – Uvogin. Illuki sits beside the coat-wearing ravenette, her legs crossed elegantly with her chin resting in the palm of her hand while the other scrolls through her text messages; she listens in to the swordsman and Chrollo's open conversation.

"Yeah, and an order from the boss is absolute. But are you really speaking as our leader? Chrollo?" Nobunaga asks, staring straight into the man's eyes with a blank expression.

"Nobunaga, knock it off," Franklin tells the swordsman who curses at him.

"Shut up! I'm talking to Chrollo!" the dichromatic-haired woman shuts off her phone, snapping her attention to the man standing beneath her with her other comrades scattered around on crates filled to the brim with auction goods. Her blue eyes lock with the samurai's and she stares into his soul, silently interrogating his intentions while their leader stands from his seat beside her; he jumps down the ledge and approaches Nobunaga.

"Before I can answer your question..," Chrollo trails off, summoning his bandit's secret book. "Nobunaga, I need you to answer my question. When is your birthday? What day were you born?" the swordsman answers confusedly though Illuki hums, a smirk appearing on her face as she witnesses the interaction. "Blood type? Name?"

Frustrated by the unnecessary questions, the samurai begins yelling at the ravenette in front of him. "You already know that! The hell is this about?! What do you wanna know next?"

"No, that's enough. Write all of that on this sheet of paper," Chrollo instructs him, pulling out a piece of paper and handing it to him. The leader takes a seat and opens his book of abilities, using Neon Nostrade's Ghost Fortune to predict Nobunaga's future. "A completely accurate fortune written in verse form. The ability to see the future. Iris suggested I steal this power from Nostrade's daughter."

"A completely accurate fortune?" Nobunaga sceptically asks.

"Each of the four verses predicts what will happen in that week," Chrollo explains. "That is the fortune the daughter gave me yesterday," he handed his notebook to the swordsman and continued to explain the prediction's accuracy to his followers.

"I get it. That explains why the merchandise had already been moved the first time we attacked," Franklin said, understanding the fortune.

"What was Nobunaga's fortune?" Shiuzku asks curiously.

Chrollo turns to the short-haired woman, explaining that his hand wrote the fortune itself and asks the members to have Nobunaga read his fortune out. Together, the troupe decipher Nobunaga's fortune until the petite, glasses-wearing female approaches the pair and requests a fortune from Chrollo.

"I knew it. I'm going to die next week," Shizuku reveals after reading her fortunes, holding up Nobunaga's and Chrollo's fortunes in her right hand. Franklin questions her which causes the woman to hum and turn to where he sat on a rock. "Because I only got two poems. And Pakunoda and Shalnark will die, as well."