Gladiator [K.Zoldyck X fem!Reader] (HxH)

44-Good luck trying

↜3rd Person Pov↝

"You were right... I've never seen so many zeros before... And just a week ago, I was totally broke." said Gon, looking at his paycheck. (Y/N) was smiling, saying: "Earning money that I can use for myself is fun!"

Killua looked at her with a small smile, then said: "I'm a little annoyed." "For real? Why?" asked (Y/N), meeting his gaze. He answered: "My first time here, it took me two months to reach floor 150. Meanwhile, you're both breezing through."

"Well, of course! There wasn't any real challenge up until now." replied (Y/N) with a shrug, reaching for his hand as they walked. Gon said: "You were only six back then." Killua said: "Well, that's true..."

Gon said: "Oh, right! I saw Zushi on TV earlier." "So did I." noted Killua, with (Y/N) saying: "Me, too. Well, I stayed with Killua in his room, so..." She shrugged lightly as she trailed off, then added: "He's still in the 50s."

Looking over at his friends, Gon said: "I wonder what that Ren you sensed could have been." Thinking for a moment, Killua said: "Maybe if we fight opponents higher up..." "Or we could just ask Zushi." suggested (Y/N), smiling. Killua released a sigh as Gon grinned, saying: "Yeah! Let's go ask Zushi!"

And just a short while later...

"Ren is one of the four major principles." said Zushi, surprising the trio before him. They did not expect him to answer as quickly as he did. "The four major principles for disciplining your mind and body. Fundamental to every martial art!"

(Y/N) looked at Killua in confusion, while Zushi continued. "You must know 'Ten', learn 'Zetsu', achieve 'Ren', and reach 'Hatsu'! This is all part of 'Nen' training! That covers everything!"

Killua immediately yelled: "I've no idea what you just said!" "Zushi." called a voice they have all heard before. It was Wing, approaching the kids. He asked: "Are you sufficiently educated that you can teach others?"

He stopped before the three, saying: "Gon, Killua, (Y/N). There's an old saying that if you learn something piecemeal, you'll end up knowing less than when you started." "What?" asked (Y/N), but Killua quickly spoke up.

"So a little knowledge is a dangerous thing? But I want to know right now. Because it's related to the secret behind my brother's power." he said sternly. Wing's smile faded as he asked: "Then, your brother is able to use Nen?"

Killua said: "I need to know what Nen and Ren even mean! I'll agree to the full learning process rather than a quick explanation! And if you're willing to teach me, I won't try to figure it out myself."

Wing hesitated for a moment, thinking it all through. Then, he said: "I understand. Come with me to my residence." The three of them followed after Wing and Zushi, with (Y/N) saying: "We're gonna get much stronger, aren't we?" "Probably." replied Killua, deep in thought.

↜Time skip: a bit later↝

↜(Y/N) Pov↝

"Nen means to burn your own soul. In other words, it tests your strength of will." explained Wing, writing something on his whiteboard. I stared at the word, quietly turning to look at Killua, asking: "Does that say 'burn'?"

His blue eyes met mine as a light smile appeared on his lips. "It does." he said, ruffling a hand through my hair, causing me to chuckle. I'm glad to see that all of his teaching paid off.

Wing said: "And the four major principles are part of a training curriculum for strengthening your will." "Strengthening your will?" repeated Gon. "Training?" asked Killua. Wing wrote another word, I think 'focus', on the whiteboard, saying: "That's right."

He added: "Ten means to focus your soul to a single point, to increase awareness of your ego and goals. Zetsu means to express yourself in words. Ren means to temper that will. And Hatsu means to act upon that will."

Wing explained all of that while writing the respective words onto the whiteboard. I stared at his writing, trying to read it as he said: "(Y/N), Zushi tempered his 'refusal to lose', during his fight with you."

"Is that what it was?" I asked, to which he nodded. Wing then said: "So, allow me to demonstrate. (Y/N), I think I'm going to kill you now. Are you ready?" I only shrugged, saying: "Good luck trying."

But the moment those words were spoken, Killua tensed up. He immediately put a protective arm in front of me, grimly saying: "I won't let you." Wing only smiled, saying. "Then I'll take this step-by-step."

He took a stance, saying: "First comes Ten. I focus my soul into a single point. Zetsu. You can express yourself mentally or verbally." He smiled lightly as he added: "I will kill you." Right after that, I was able to feel a change in his presence.

And just a second later, the pressure in the room was incredibly high as Wing stared straight at me. I froze, goosebumps appearing all over my skin as I was finding it hard to breathe. But before I could do anything, Killua did.

He grabbed me by my waist and pulled me with him at incredible speeds, away from Wing. I was now standing in the opposite corner of the room we were in, with Killua covering me with his body, my chest pressed against his back.

His breathing was as heavy as mine as I gently placed both of my hands onto his back. "I-I'm fine." I managed to say, swallowing the lump in my throat. That was... intense. Sure, a few hundred- if not thousand- people have wanted to kill me before. But never like this. It's... scary.

"That was Ren." said Wing, back to his usual self. He added: "If I temper my will enough, then I can act. Hatsu. If your will is strong enough, you can make your opponent back down, without moving a muscle. The concept of bluffing derives from this."

Killua released a heavy sigh, stepping away from me. I quickly took his hand into mine, walking back over to Gon. Wing looked at me with a kind smile, saying: "I do have to say, (Y/N), I'm impressed that you didn't move."

"Fleeing isn't something I do." I said, at which Wing had to chuckle. Before he continued, I looked at Killua, saying: "Thank you for protecting me, Killua." He looked at me, then to the side, saying: "Yeah, sure..."