Chapter 240: Reforms—Netero’s Logic—Auren’s Path

Easily blocking Auren’s strike, Netero swiftly shoves him back before stepping away gracefully, positioning himself in the center of the room inside a small ring resembling one commonly used for boxing.Amused by Auren’s cheeky attitude, Netero waves at him playfully. “Come at me then, your little accessories should make for a fine handicap,” he says, briefly inspecting his hands, feet, and forearms.

“Sure,” Auren replies, pressing forward and jumping into the ring. He immediately attacks, of course, not transforming his hands into claws. Instead, he uses normal punches and kicks, techniques partially taught to him by Buno and Bunu, and partially learned on his own.

“Hmmm,” Netero mutters, easily dodging and parrying his strikes.

Auren ducks, then quickly spins on the ground before delivering a powerful kick. Netero blocks it with both hands, yet still gets pushed a few meters into the air.

“Oh?” Netero reacts, clearly studying Auren’s fighting style.

Unbothered, Auren keeps going, focusing not only on his Aura but also on his decisions during the fight, trying to fight with as much cunning and logic as he can, his Faerie’s Tear on his neck, granting him unnatural clarity and insight.

“Such a waste...” Netero mutters as he stares at Auren’s neck, seeing the unnatural glow of his Deep Green treasure. “This necklace could have bought me a hundred lovely ladies, what a waste to wear it yourself. You are spoiled and wasteful.”

Shut up... perverted old man.

Despite Auren’s impressive strength and speed, Netero doesn’t seem to have any trouble keeping up with him.

After a few minutes of constant exchanges—dodging, parrying, and blocking—Netero finally counters, though not with full force, allowing Auren to avoid any direct hits.

“You see...” Netero begins to talk, acting like this spar is just a little exercise to avoid getting bored. “The Hunter Exam is the most important examination in the world. Hunters are an elite group... Nen, and the privileges that come with the license can’t be granted to just anyone.”

“Is that so?” Auren asks, blocking a rapid series of punches from Netero, who smirks at him.

If things progress... We’ll have more Nen Users than Hunters exist in just a few more years. I get why Rakshala wanted our own Nation. The V5 will never accept a group like ours. A country is the best disguise.

“Do you disagree?” he asks, following up with a kick aimed at Auren’s stomach, which Auren barely manages to block by raising his leg.

“As long as someone passes the exam, which is quite easy, especially for a Nen user, you hand out the license. With no real obligations afterwards. You’re giving it to anyone competent... frankly, you’re rewarding those who are already strong enough. Criminals, evil people, terrorists... those are the people who need it the least, yet they receive the most.”

“Indeed,” Netero says with a wide smile, continuing his assault while Auren blocks. “Strength itself is a privilege, boy! We want Hunters to be the absolute elite. Without strength, you can be anything—but not a Hunter. In fact, I want strength to play an even bigger role, while many of the Zodiacs think the opposite... especially Pariston, whom you seem to get along with quite well. Also, the license is not only a boon... it also serves to rein in anyone who joins and gives them something tangible to survey them. It’s bait!”

Annoyed by constantly being on the defensive, Auren presses forward, countering Netero’s punches with his own. Instead of aiming for his body, he targets Netero’s fists, relying on his Regalia to aim for injuries instead of surpassing Netero in technique. His Aura reinforces his gauntlets, making them durable and sharp enough to scratch and tear even into Netero’s unnaturally tough Aura-enhanced hands.

Suddenly, Netero stops attacking and steps back.

“That stings, you brat,” Netero complains, now focusing more on dodging Auren’s attacks instead of blocking and parrying them. He whistles, somehow impressed. “How shamelessly cheap... I like it!”

“I half agree, and half disagree with the Zodiacs,” Auren says, continuing to press forward. “Of course, you want Hunters who are at least somewhat loyal to the Association and actually contribute... Pariston seems to value that quite a bit. But I also agree with you. Only the strong should be taught. It needs to be a reward. A necessary step and a reward for hard work... a passing point. Basic physical strength is a requirement to become a capable Nen user in the first place. The only thing you should really rethink is pitting Nen users against non-Nen users... it’s like letting rabbits fight tigers. I don’t see the point in that.”

“Do you want to treat people differently based on their knowledge of Nen?” Netero asks, disagreeing, his face twisting into one of annoyance. “That wouldn’t be fair.”

“Do you want people to die pointlessly, fighting Nen users?” Auren asks him, not relenting. “They might be incredibly strong and talented, with immense potential... even so, they’ll be at risk of dying by fighting someone who knows Nen, even someone pathetic who just knows the basics. Just because of an information gap.”

“That’s just fat—” Netero tries to say, but Auren unleashes kick after kick.

“Don’t say fate. As an examiner, you can make sure these unfortunate accidents don’t happen. It’s not fate, it’s this cruel, unfair world, turning even something such as Nen knowledge into something only the privileged ones are allowed to learn... such as your school!”

“Hmmm,” Netero hums, seemingly not offended, but smirking, looking deep in thought while blocking Auren’s attacks with his arms, his Aura slowly but steadily rising, growing so strong that Auren is almost blinded by it.

This damn geezer...

Auren raises his own Aura to the maximum and keeps attacking, desperate to compete.

“Aren’t you unexpectedly kind?” Netero wonders. “How unexpected....”

“I don’t believe in fate and luck. It’s unfair that capable people fail just because they get unlucky and are matched against Nen users. That’s a terrible and pathetic exam that doesn’t test anything but luck. You can’t punish Nen users for participating... but as an examiner, you should be sensible enough to avoid encouraging a one-sided slaughter,” Auren says. “Someone is not worthy to pass the exam just because he knows Nen!”

Sorry, Neffi... maybe that also applies to myself as well, as to many others. A Hunter is just something... vague.

“It isn’t too common that Nen users participate in the first place,” Netero notes.

The spar continues, Auren now visibly stressed as he must do his utmost to just keep up and not get pushed back, his Aura blazing out of him, yet still not fully able to compare to Netero, who still seems to be holding back.

“How about limiting Nen abilities to only Ten and Zetsu?” Auren suggests, huffing. “At least during the early phases... and when not pitted against other Nen users. That way, nobody will die, and Nen users still have an advantage.”

“Nen is supposed to be a secret,” Netero says. “If you make rules mentioning it, it would defeat the whole purpose of that secrecy.”

“You could tell that to only Nen users,” Auren counters, breathing hard. “There is also a rule from spreading Nen in the first place, which the Association enforces. Why are you against rules now?”

“An exam must be even and fair. Judges examine based on their results, not their backgrounds and abilities,” Netero states slowly.

Stupid old man, going in circles.

The fight continues, and after an hour, Auren is lying in the middle of the gym, breathing hard, fully soaked in his own sweat, his Aura completely drained.

“Hmmm, you raised a few interesting points. Much like I plan on doing myself, I suggest that you come up with one exam on your own while carefully inspecting the other examiners. This time, obviously, you need to take a good look from the view of an examiner,” Netero says, still playfully jumping up and down, though a few drops of sweat are now visible on his face and arms.

“The others will arrive in a few days. I’ll tell you what you need to do. Until then, how about you keep sparring with me? It’s rare that I have a sparring partner who can actively challenge me... to some degree at least, hoho. In return, I might as well teach you some basics of the Shingen-ryu Kung-Fu. While your kicks are impressive, I think some of your movements, and especially your punches, need work. They are beyond pathetic. You seem to prefer fighting with your sword or relying on your hand-claw transformation, how twisted and unhonorable. A man should be able to properly use his fists. This other kid I know is a master at that body transformation technique... well, by now he’s an old man himself... how time flies.”

Zeno? Kid? Guess he is just that old...

“I accept...” Auren says.

Might as well take him for all he’s got.

“Good... in return... keep getting stronger. You might be the one who’ll give me the thing I am desperately seeking. You just need a little bit more training and experience. You are the first ray of hope in a long time... a Hunter who seeks combat strength above anything else... just like me... only with a slightly different and more greedy approach.”

“Really?” Auren wonders. “I think our goals and alignments are more than a little different.”

He slowly gets up, his body aching all over.

“Of course they are!” Netero says, slapping his shoulder. “While I am in pursuit of true, uncorrupted strength, only attained through spirituality, martial arts, and Nen, you little power-hungry weasel, rely on weapons and your fancy, so-called ‘Regalias’ you seem to value so much. Your pursuit couldn’t be more different from mine. Though the end goal... is similar.”

“Just say that I am smarter than you,” Auren replies, not accepting the man’s judgment. “It’s silly to rely only on yourself and on your fists... humans stand above beasts because they learned to use their minds and craft tools. How stupid to reject advancement. You are like a caveman.”

“Heh,” Netero smiles widely. “ I am enlightened, like a monk. It is the path I’ve chosen... the pure path of martial arts. Your path is just as common as mine... though it’s different. Many people use weapons to build their martial arts around, and many more use equipment to cover up their weaknesses. Admittedly, I look down on such cheap ways to obtain power, but maybe you are the exception? It’s the easier path, nonetheless, so you’d better make sure you grow strong enough. Or perhaps you’ll realize that relying on these seemingly logical shortcuts will leave you at a dead end, unable to ever progress. It seems like a shortcut... that might end in a dead end, with a perfect view towards the truth path of martial arts... the one you’ll be forever denied entry.”

He laughs, “We shall see, won’t we? In any case, you have no excuses to lose against someone old like me, who fights you without weapons or equipment and is already way past his prime... and has been for many decades.”

When he says it like that... he is right... in principle... he’s unarmed and not wearing any protective clothes. So what he is saying is true... with my weapons, most importantly Eternity and my Regalias, I should have a major advantage... which is undoubtedly true.

Still, he’s that much ahead of anyone else that such things don’t even seem to matter. To him, they really are just toys... that’s what makes him a monster. His Aura makes anything else look like an ineffective plaything. Still, I am not wrong to focus on my own path.

If I had his experience and Aura... and my equipment, I would destroy him...

Wrong path? You are on the wrong path! He just hasn’t looked far enough to see the true treasures out there. Eternity can become so much more powerful... powerful enough to shatter this damn Nen statue of his into a thousand pieces.

I’ll prove it to him and make him despair, realizing the path he’s chosen is simply inferior—not just harder. He’ll die realizing what he could have gotten instead.

“I’ll beat you soon enough...” Auren says. “Five years... no, four!” he declares.

Maybe sooner...

“Ho, I’ll make sure to teach you seriously then,” Netero says, stroking his beard, a wicked smile appearing on his face. “You seem to want to prove me wrong... I applaud your insanity. Give it a try.”

Auren then spends his time with Netero. His sleep is reduced to just a few hours, and the old man hounds him almost nonstop, constantly training, talking, or sometimes just messing with him, his intentions completely unclear.

Is he... just a nasty, bored old man?!