The Upper Ranks (KNY X HxH)

Chapter 7

"I'm back!" Gon shouted cheerfully, slamming open the door. It was currently 10:30, he'd been dropped off at the top of the mountain at 5:00. Tanjiro and Zenitsu both jumped, they had been sitting on chairs and talking. Tanjiro looked half irritated half impressed, Zenitsu was confused and shocked. "I-It's only been five and a half hours! You must've cheated!" Gon blinked, then glanced at Tanjiro. Tanjiro shook his head, standing up. "No, I went with him to the top. You didn't go down the way we went up did you?" Gon shook his head, "No, how long was this supposed to take again?" these didn't seem like very hard challenges, just a few pitfalls and swinging branches and other traps. "The first time I went it was 14 and I was covered in scratches and out of breath, you did it in 5 and a half and with no injuries or signs of being tired"

Gon beamed, "I usually run 5 Kilometers every morning, I just had to use En and I could sense the traps" Tanjiro sighed. "En?" Gon nodded. "It pushes your aura out into a bubble shape, you can sense anything inside it in an instant. I'm not very good and I can only do 10 meters, my friend could do 50" neither of them inquired about the friend, once again when he talked about 'a friend' it was usually Killua. Gon didn't say his name all that often though, when he did he usually got emotional. "You can literally count leaves as they fall, or hundreds of grains of rice in a second. It's really useful, I-" Tanjiro pointed back out the door. "You rely too much on your 'Nen'. Do it again tomorrow and without any special techniques." Gon huffed. "I lost my Nen doing something stupid like nearly a year ago and it sucked. I could only use Zetsu and I cut and bruised my hands so many times because I kept forgetting I can't enforce my hands so they don't sustain damage from hitting too hard"

Tanjiro nodded. "Exactly, if your ever in a position when you can't use your Nen you need to be able to-" Gon waved a hand. "Whatever, I'm still relearning my Hatsu" Tanjiro paused, he hadn't heard that term before yet. Gon didn't really feel like explaining this one all that much. "Unique super move thing, I had to start from square one when I lost my Nen and I only got it back around half a year ago. I should be practicing my Nen, not wasting time on these easy as hell challenges!" Gon snapped the last part, turning to the door. "I can't waste my time on pointless crap that won't help me get stronger. The exam's in two weeks, I'm going to improve on my Ren and Hatsu. This 'training' isn't making me any stronger, I have to get stronger" On the last part his voice wobbled a little, and tears stung at the corners of his eyes.

He wasn't getting any stronger, and he wasn't any closer to finding Killua. He'd spent the last week and a half following Tanjiro's instructions and trying to be patient with him, but it just wasn't helping him. Every day that passed without progress, he felt himself getting more and more agitated. It was hard not to snap, or raise his voice, or grit his teeth. "Gon, I know it seems pointless but I promise it'll be worth it." Tanjiro said softly, coming up behind him and placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. That wasn't what Gon wanted to hear right now, he was clenching his fists and fighting tears of frustration. "You are getting better. It took me two years of training to prepare myself for the exam." T-Two years? Gon gritted his teeth. "I don't have that kind of time, you haven't even let me face a demon yet! You just make me watch you, I won't learn fast enough unless I experience that kind of danger."

Tanjiro's hand tightened a little. "Gon you're not ready-" he shoved Tanjiro's hand off him, then stormed out of the house and into the woods. "AND I WON'T BE UNLESS I GET SHIT DONE! DON'T FUCKING FOLLOW ME, I'LL TRAIN ON MY OWN!" he yelled, then the tears kept coming as he ran faster into the trees. He heard footsteps and activated Zetsu, then took to the trees. Leaping from branch to branch he shifted directions, heading further down the mountain. "Gon wait!" Tanjiro yelled. He doubled back for a moment to tell him one last thing. "See you in a week, I can catch my own food" Tanjiro's eyes widened and he made his way back to the cabin. Gon snagged his bag and his fishing rod, as well as his katana. After that he made his way back down the mountain, in search of a place he could train without being in constant Zetsu.

Tanjiro tried to catch Gon's scent but he must've used Zetsu because there wasn't a single trace of it beyond where he stood. Damn it, why didn't I notice? He'd known that Gon was getting a little restless, trying to fight his overwhelming sadness with a cheerful attitude. But he hadn't expected this. I don't want to be too harsh on him, but I don't want him to die in the exams. He's only 14, he's been training for a week. He's not ready yet. It was...strange though. How a kid that young could survive on his own in the woods for that long, and cut down a tree with his katana without knowing how to swing the sword. What even is Nen? Tanjiro couldn't figure it out, early on he had asked if he could learn it and Gon said he didn't have any aura nodes.

The tests are too easy for him, but I don't know how to gauge strength except the way I was. He was worried, Gon was impulsive and didn't think things through when he was driven by emotion. The only way to make sure he was ready...is to pit him against a real demon. But I can't do that! He'd die, he's too young and hasn't trained enough. Then...He remembered. That hunter exam, he was 12 right? And he passed. Tanjiro remembered seeing very strong similarities to the hunter exam and final selection, but surely the death rate wasn't as high. He's only 14, Gon probably has no real grasp on how dangerous the world can be. Sure that exam was tough, but he hasn't faced man eating monsters that used to be human before.

Tanjiro turned, and started walking back towards the cabin. He's carrying so much pain, worry, fear that he won't be able to see his best friend ever again. He'll try to rush it and get himself killed. But he couldn't do anything to stop him from taking the exam in two weeks. That kid was stubborn, no matter what anyone said if he had a goal stuck in his brain he'd either reach it or die trying. Even if he refused to tell Gon where the exam was, he knew that he'd find his own way there somehow. There's nothing I can do to get him to wait, not even another year. Tanjiro stood outside of the doorframe of his cabin, it had been his old teacher's before him. All I can do is train him as fast and teach him as much as I can. Tanjiro thought, taking one last look out into the forest. And hope he makes it back alive.

1268 words

To be continued...