ANIMOSITY | hxh

six

As they reached the end of the hall, it opened up to a makeshift arena. Their ledge was cut off, and in the center of the room was a large platform that was surrounded by a deep pit. 

On the opposite side, was a ledge similar to the one they were standing on. It had 5 cloaked individuals, each semi-distinguishable from the other. One of them stepped forward, and spoke with a rough voice. "They're here. Remove my handcuffs." The cuffs on his wrists fell to the floor with a heavy clang. He rubbed his wrists, "Alright," he grunted, and roughly dragged the cloak from over his head. "I'm finally free." He stairs forward to reveal his muscled and scarred figure. The rags his was wearing ripple over his large muscles. He smirked at their group. 

Tsuno could hear Leorio gulp from behind her. And then Lippo's voice rang through the intercom. "Allow me to explain," He said, they could feel his grin through the speaker. "Before you all are a few of Trick Towers prisoners." Tsuno snapped with realization. "That's why he called himself a warden!"

"The Hunter Exam Committee had officially hired them as examiners. You will be fighting against five of them, equal to the amount of you. The fights will be one-on-one and each you may only fight once. There will be no draws, and a win is declared depending on the rules of the battle. You get to decide what battles conduct." The room still echoed with his voice as he turned off the intercom. The prisoner spoke, "You all may decide what order you go in. You win by majority. In other words, secure three wins and you may pass." He held up three fingers. 

Leorio put his hands on his hips, "Majority rule again?" He complained. Tsuno deadpanned at him. "It's literally called the path of Majority rule." He gave her a light glare. 

"Oh, one more thing!" Lippo's voice returned. "For every hour they keep you here, that's a year off of their sentences. So their goal is also to buy time." 

"I see," Kurapika put his hands to his chin in thought, "And then there's also the matter of racing the bottom of the tower before time runs out. Time is critical." Kurapika's words caused Tsuno to check the timer on her wrist, they had 71 hours left. She cracked her knuckles. "Then let's make this quick." She grinned.

The uncuffed prisoner stepped forward. "I'm up first, so decide who's going to fight me." The five of them turned towards each other. 

"What should we do? He says we can fight with any method, so anything goes." Killua stated. Leorio scratched his head, "We don't even know what they'll try to pull!" He said anxiously. Kurapika nodded,  "There's too much at stake with so little knowledge." He paused for a moment, "In that case I'll—"

"Wait, wait, let me go!" Tsuno's voice bubbled. "The four makes turned to her. She had a grin on her face, and bright eyes. She didn't look nervous at all. She looked utterly ecstatic.  Leorio have her a worried glance, "Are you sure? We don't know what he's capable off." Tsuno nodded confidently. "It'll give us a clue of what the battles will be like. Plus, it's been a while since I got to do anything fun!" He grin turned feral as she flashed her canines. The light in her eyes taking a malicious turn. 

There it was again, Killua thought. The dangerous feeling he got around Tsuno. His muscles relaxed as she walked towards to center platform. He let out a slow breath he didn't know he'd been holding as he narrowed his eyes at her back. He still didn't know what to think about it. On the one hand, they had something in common, even if she didn't know yet. But on the other, he didn't feel like she was an assassin. The feeling she gave was that of a cold blooded killer.

Tsuno reached the platform at the same time as the prisoner she would be facing against. Her lips curled as she gave him a piercing stare. It's showtime!

​​​​​​​