The four of us continued to train in maintaining our Ren for three hours. As another training session went, we couldn't get close to an hour, and we got tired and collapsed.

"Come on! What are you guys doing? At this rate, you're never going to defeat Knuckle and Shoot, and the Chimera Ants." Bisky told us, looking up from her magazine.

"No way. We'll never give up." Gon strained to get up, as well as the rest of us. "We will go back inside the NGL. I don't care what we have to do!"

Our auras spiked up all of a sudden, making Bisky hum in amazement.

"We will save Kite!" He proclaimed.

Ten days had passed, and now we were doing better at maintaining our Ren for a long time. As we watched Bisky read her magazine, we were sweating bullets, but we were still standing and producing Ren.

I looked at the timer behind her and knew that we only had a couple of minutes left. If I wanted to be stronger, I had to complete this training. I needed us to go back into the NGL so that we could rescue Kite and forget about everything that happened to him. I wanted Gon to be happy again.

"All done!" Bisky announced, holding up a finger. We stopped using Ren and collapsed on the floor simultaneously, panting and sweating tons. Oh God, that was so tiring! I felt like I was about to die from maintaining my Ren for so long. That was the harshest training I'd ever done in my life.

"All of you finally held out for three whole hours." She smiled, placing her hands on her hips.

"That...was...hard." Gon said between breaths.

"I can...say...the...same." I panted.

"No kidding. I can't even move an inch." Killua replied, catching his breath.

"Me too." Lynn gasped.

"Don't be silly. Get up. We're going out." Bisky said, clapping her hands together.

"Wha—?" I breathed heavily, trying to sit up.

"Going where?" Killua asked.

"To see Knuckle, of course." The blonde replied, and we sat up quickly. "See, you four can move after all. Come on, let's go."

"But why are we gonna see Knuckle?"

"The answer is obvious. You will fight him."

We gasped in horror.

"Now, let's go!"

"What the hell? We still have some time left, don't we? What happens if we lose?" Killua grumbled.

"You can just try again. It doesn't matter if you win or lose. All that matters is who gets the tokens. Got it?" She asked.

"Yeah." Gon nodded.

"You must take theirs at any cost. If it looks like you're going to lose, run away and try again the next day. So, three hours of Ren practice a day, then challenge Knuckle and give it everything you got!"

Oh my God, this would definitely be a hell of a torture.

We had arrived at the park at midnight, ready to challenge the man called Knuckle. I was still feeling worn out from producing Ren for three hours, and here I was producing more aura as I walked towards a man playing with a dog.

"Is that Knuckle?" I asked.

"I think so." Lynn replied.

The man turned to us with a frown and glared at us. "Well, well, well. They don't show any respect."

We stopped in our tracks and stood face to face with Knuckle. He released a murderous aura, making me feel terrified.

"If I'm being compared to some kids who don't know how to act right, then they think I'm not strong at all." He growled at us.

Oh my God, he looks very scary with that face and this aura. I think he's powerful!

"Let's make this a battle to the death, kids! I'm being serious! The best time to fight is five hours after a good night's sleep! Y'all look worn out! What the hell is wrong with you? Were you just done with your swimming lesson? Take this seriously! There's no way y'all can defeat me!" He screamed in our faces, and we got ready to fight.

But then, we noticed his eyes watering and heard him whimpering like a dog. We got confused, our auras lessening as we stared at Knuckle.

"Why are you crying?" Gon asked.

Knuckle quickly wiped his eyes and stepped back. "N-no I'm not! Why the hell would I be crying? I'm not upset at all! These are just...they're uh...they're tears of laughter! Don't tell anyone about this or I'll murder you."

"Uh..." We only stood there not doing anything.

"Now punch me." He demanded.

"Huh?"

"I'll show you how much stronger I am, and once I do, I don't even need to dodge your punches! Hit me as many times as you like, but I won't be moving from this spot. If I don't budge, you'll have to leave behind your tokens. This is the best deal you'll ever get! You four are insane to think you can fight me at your age!"

This guy's got some nerve. I don't we can defeat him. All that training with Bisky was meant to improve our stamina. I can't rely on my second ability to defeat him, because what's the point of an easy victory if you don't grow any stronger? Looks like we'll have to use our physical attacks to try to beat Knuckle.

Gon walked towards the man with determination painted on his face.

"I'll won't stop punching you until you move, all right?" He told Knuckle.

"Just shut up and let's get this over with!" Knuckle demanded.

The boy got in a stance and began charging up his attack. "Show me Rock!"

I noticed Knuckle acting strange when he sensed the immense power of his aura. He began sweating nervously, internally panicking.

"Jan! Ken! Rock!" Gon yelled, punching Knuckle in the gut with everything he had.

I covered my eyes with an arm to block the light since it was so bright. When I saw that Knuckle had been knocked down, we walked over to him.

"Hey, Mr. Knuckle. Are you okay?" Gon asked.

"Mr. Knuckle?" Killua called.

"Did you kill him, Gon?" I asked.

The man groaned in pain, trying to get up. "I knew I could count on you. You didn't let me down. Thanks."

He then closed his eyes and fell back down. I turned to Gon with a pout on my face.

"Look what you did there, Gon! You killed him!" I whined, pointing at the unconscious Knuckle. The boy only sweatdropped.

"Uh, no he didn't. He wouldn't be stupid enough to leave himself defenseless. He must have used Nen to protect the area where Gon would attack. And the impact knocked him out cold." Lynn explained.

"He was just being dramatic. Tch. What an idiot." Killua scoffed.

- The next day -

We trained while waiting for Knuckle to wake up in bed. I heard him groan, and I turned my head to see him opening his eyes and sitting up.

"Good morning!" I chirped.

"You are stronger than I thought. Guess I underestimated you." He reached into his pocket and took out a tile. "Why didn't you take this?"

"Uh..." Gon muttered.

"I don't get it. You should have taken it and ditched me."

"We're not going after that tile. All we want is the strength to beat you fair and square." Gon replied. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Why did you become a Beast Hunter?"

Knuckle sighed. "It's a long story. It brings back old memories."

"Why did you volunteer for the Extermination Team?"

"Simply put, to not get them exterminated. I hate this policy of getting rid of misfits. My teacher says I'm naive, but I don't care. If you've never seen something before, then you don't have the right to judge it. To start, you've gotta exchange some blows."

I smiled along with Gon. Knuckle did have a soft side indeed.

"You're a good kid. I knew it from the beginning." Knuckle returned the smile back at him.

"You too." Gon pointed at a lump on the bed, and a puppy emerged from under the blanket, whining softly.

"It's you!" The man cried seeing it.

"It kept following us after you were knocked out. It wouldn't stop whining, so we had to bring it over here." I explained, and the puppy jumped at him.

"They said that good Hunters are well liked by animals." Gon happily stated.

The puppy whimpered and whined, causing Knuckle to tear up in front of us. I chuckled, seeing the moment as wholesome.

"I'm not crying, okay? Don't go telling everybody what you saw. I'll kill you." He wiped his eyes and sniffed.

What a softie he was. I'd never forget that.

Palm made breakfast for the five of us, including Knuckle. She even made food for the puppy. I enjoyed watching it eat beside me as I ate my own food.

"Wow, this is delicious!" Knuckle complimented her cooking and ate more food.

"I know, right? This brings me back good memories when I was still with my Grandma Millie. She makes really great food!" I cheerfully replied and ate a sausage link.

The puppy barked, and I giggled. Dogs were my favorite animals in the world.

"Fight me whenever you want." Knuckle spoke, and we gave him our attention. "You can fight me as many times as you want. But we only have twenty days left, so it's impossible to beat me in that much time." He took a sip of his tea, and we all agreed.

"Mmm. So good." He mumbled, and we continued to eat our delicious breakfast.

"Three hours. All done." Bisky proudly announced as we finished our Ren exercise.

"Oh my God." I panted, trying to catch my breath.

"Now, go get him!" She cheered for us, and we groaned from the tiredness.

We went to the same park where we met Knuckle last night, and we saw him feeding more dogs like the warm, compassionate man he was.

When he saw us, we all prepared to fight, activating our auras as we stood face to face with him.

"It's on, Knuckle!" Gon shouted.

"Okay! Bring it on. I can take on all of you at once. You guys think you're stronger than me, but I don't care!" He replied.

"We're still happy to accept your challenge!" Killua increased his aura, as well as the rest of us.

"Come on, guys! Let's take him on!" Gon yelled.

"Yeah!" I replied, and with that said, the four of us dashed straight to Knuckle, ready to attack him. Lynn and I got behind him and attempted to kick him, but Knuckle jumped up and blocked our attacks with his bare fists.

Gon tried to punch him, but he grabbed his wrist and swung him over to Killua, who caught him in his arms. I jumped up and tried to kick him again, but he grabbed my leg and spun me around, and I screamed. He threw me at the boys, knocking them down.

Lynn dashed to him as fast as she could to punch his face, but Knuckle had already given it to her instead. She growled and tried to attack him again, only for her to earn a kick to the gut. She landed on the ground, wincing from the pain.

"Give me a break. I could keep playing with you kids, but I don't have that kind of time." Knuckle smirked.

"Yes, you do." Killua bluntly said.

"Get serious!!" He roared, and we charged at him again, our yells filling the air as confidence filled us.

"Now that's more like it!" He said, ready to defend. Knuckle blocked all of our attacks, and we moved back. He rushed over to us and each gave us a punch to the face, sending us flying a couple of feet.

"Come on! Is that everything you got?!" Knuckle shouted.

"No. We'll beat you...so badly." I gasped, feeling worn out already.

"Hah! Let's see if you can try! It's just like fighting kindergarteners as a fourth grader!" He taunted us, and we charged at him once again. I got behind him and attempted to land a kick behind his head. He punched me out of the way, and Lynn made her way to his side. She tried to punch him, but he grabbed her wrist and twisted her around. He sent her crashing into Killua, who was about to tackle him.

"Hey! Watch where you throw, old man!" Killua screamed at him, and Lynn stood up and scowled at him.

I ran towards him along with Gon, both of us yelling with determination as we got ready to punch him with everything we have. Knuckle spun around and kicked us at the same time. I landed on my back and slowly got up to attack him again.

I dashed towards him with my fist out in front of me, and I jumped up to punch his face. He moved out of the way and kicked my back, and I was sent flying towards my friends.

"Come on. Y'all look dead on your feet. Why don't you give up and try again tomorrow? You have twenty days left, and like I said before, you're all welcome to fight me as many times as you want. Go on, rest and we'll continue this tomorrow." Knuckle sternly told us, and I couldn't stand up anymore. I fell down to the ground, my legs very sore from all the fighting.

"Here." He gently threw four sticks to the ground. "These will help you get back. You don't have to give me your tokens now. You'll do that when you lose on the day of the deadline. Now, walk away and get some rest."

I picked up a stick and carefully stood up while holding on to it. Man, I was so drained right now! I couldn't believe Bisky made us fight him just after finishing our Ren exercise! That woman was insane!

The four of us used the walking sticks given to us by Knuckle to walk back to the hotel. My body was extremely worn out, and I could barely stand as I breathed in and out to recover my stamina.

"No use. We're no match for Knuckle in this condition." Killua spoke, his voice sounding breathy.

"Yeah. Maybe he is using only half of his power." Gon replied.

"Who knows how long we have until he finally uses all his power?" Lynn added, trying to catch her breath. "We have no choice but to fight him. That's the only way we'll be going back into the NGL."

I nodded weakly. To save Kite, we had to get used to training like this.

The next day, we continued training on our Ren with Bisky monitoring us.

"Hey guys. Why wasn't Mr. Knuckle good enough?" Gon suddenly asked.

"For what?" Killua replied.

"To go inside the NGL? I mean, he's strong. I just don't get it."

"That's true."

"It doesn't make sense. He would be at the same level as Kite in terms of physical strength."

"But his personality..." Killua started.

"Why does that matter?"

"He's really soft, so that would be a major problem for the mission. And he gets attracted to animals very easily." He explained.

"In that case, he won't kill any Chimera Ants until he's sure they're really evil." Lynn added.

"Good point. And he ended up helping us train, right?" I said, holding up a finger.

"The number of dogs around him keeps increasing." Killua stated.

"Yeah. That must prove he's a really great Hunter. He can be a little aggressive and scary sometimes, but at least he has a big heart for animals." I smiled, thinking about Knuckle's softheartedness towards animals, especially dogs.

My eyes sparkled at the amount of food Palm made for us. This looked delicious!

"Enjoy." Palm said.

"Thank you for the food!" We all started digging in, and I picked out random food and stuffed them in my mouth.

"What do you think?" Palm asked.

"This is so good!" I said with my mouth full.

"Yeah. It really is." Gon replied.

"Not that. We only have ten days left. It seems like you're only two-thirds of the way through your training which is meant to make you all strong enough to force Knuckle to use all of his power in battle." She pointed out.

"Eh? Is that true, Bisky?" Gon asked, turning to the blonde. She only sipped from her cup of tea, completely ignoring him. Then he turned back to Palm.

"It'll be okay. We'll beat him before the deadline." He assured her.

She scoffed. "How can you be so sure? The situation hasn't improved at all."

The rest of us gasped, including Bisky.

"You wanted my opinion, so here it is. You have no chance at beating Knuckle. They didn't even give you enough time. Lately, I find myself staring at my kitchen knife to calm me down. And that means I'm dangerously close to losing it. If you run away now, I probably won't try to hunt you down and kill you." She warned all of us, emitting an unpleasant aura around the room. I gulped, and my hands were shaking while holding the bowl.

"I'm not gonna run away. I'm not saying it again." Gon stubbornly replied.

"I wonder what you'll do. You'll never beat him as you are right now." Palm spoke, her eerie voice creeping me out.

"We will. Pinky swear." He said, holding up his pinky finger. "Here. Give me your hand."

He grabbed her hand and wrapped his pinky finger around hers, making her blush. My hands stopped shaking and I softly gasped in surprise.

"I swear that we will beat Knuckle and Shoot before the deadline! Pinky swear, so if I lie you can stick a thousand needles in my eye."

I couldn't believe it. He was able to control her and handle her violent behavior. Not to mention he was making a promise to her the same way he promised to me.

"Where I'm from, we do this next. Go like this and touch our thumbs together." He told her, and she gasped in astonishment.

"Sealed with a kiss!" He touched her thumb with his, making her blush madly. "There. Now it's a real promise. Say, Ms. Palm, what's in the broth?"

"Uh, it's from chicken." Palm replied.

I put on a pouty face, remembering the time when Gon and I touched thumbs together before I kissed him. I didn't get it. Now a weird feeling that was not love took over me.

"I guess not everyone can handle her, but Gon's getting better." Killua said with his mouth full.

"True, but I think she's handling him." Bisky replied.

"I put a kunai chicken on to simmer overnight, then set it aside for later." Palm told Gon, who smiled from hearing the recipe.

I whimpered and huffed in displeasure, and Lynn turned to me.

"What's wrong, Lizzy? You okay?" She asked, and I sulked.

"I get it. She must be jealous, is she?" Killua taunted me about my weird feeling, and I growled in vexation.

"Quiet you!" I shouted, punching him in the face and making him drop his food.

"Hey! What was that for, idiot!" He yelled, a vein popping from his forehead.

"I'm not jealous! Why would I be jealous over Gon and Palm getting along so well?! You know she will kill us all if we don't beat Knuckle and Shoot by the deadline!" I yelled back.

"Which is ten days left. You better hurry up and get through your training before it's too late." Bisky told us as she sipped her tea.

"Don't make it sound like we're screwed!" Killua yelled at the blonde.

I crossed my arms and closed my eyes in contempt. A bad feeling had filled my heart, and that feeling, like Killua said, was jealousy.