In HxH with Doraemon Pocket

Chapter 376 - 377

"Why did it come to this, Jed?" Netero closed his eyes, a complex mix of emotions and a touch of pain washing over him.

Back then, when he had to cleanse the Shadow Organization and send off his old comrade with the Hundred-Type Guanyin Bodhisattva, it was already hard enough. But who would have thought that his old comrade would be resurrected, only to end up like this?

And now, it had come to this point again. He had to use the Hundred-Type Guanyin Bodhisattva against him once more and watch him leave this world with his own eyes again. Witnessing his old comrade walk down a path of no return twice, ending in such a tragic way, made it difficult for Netero, even at his age, to find peace in his heart.

It was like reopening an almost healed wound from the past, violently tearing it apart, sprinkling salt and chili on it, and then stitching it back together with sharp needles. The bitterness of it all was something Netero could fully feel now.

Morin couldn't sense the turmoil in Netero's heart. He shook his head as he listened to Jed's increasingly weak and unpleasant laughter, a result of his life force slipping away.

The concept of resentment is a self-imposed restriction and vow to complete a specific task, drawing power from it. The more demanding the task, the stronger the power. If the task isn't completed within a set time, death follows.

Clearly, Jed was unable to complete his own task. In his heart, he had already marked this mission as a failure. Without his own conviction, the resentment power within him rapidly dissipated. Along with it, the life force that barely revived him and kept him going also faded away.

"Victory and defeat, such is the way of the world. Let me send you off one last time, then?" Morin shook his head slowly, saying little more as he retrieved another item from his four-dimensional pocket. Even though Jed's life force was quickly fading, Morin couldn't rule out the possibility that he might be gathering strength for one final, desperate move. Better safe than sorry; Morin had no intention of being caught off guard.

"Let the heavens decide your final fate, Jed," Morin said, flicking the whip in his hand.

Item: [Heaven's Punishment Whip].

Effect: When someone commits a wrongdoing, a flick of this whip will bring down the appropriate punishment from the heavens.

Whoosh!!

The seemingly ordinary long whip was swiftly wielded by Morin. In the blink of an eye, it struck Jed.

Boom!!

The next second, thunder roared above the entire Heavens Arena!!

Crack!!

In the astonished eyes of everyone, massive blue-white lightning bolts descended from the sky, striking the top of the Heavens Arena tower!

"Why is there lightning?!" someone muttered, watching the relentless, terrifying bolts of lightning descend, making their scalp tingle with fear.

"Isn't the Heavens Arena equipped with lightning protection measures? How could such massive lightning suddenly strike it?!"

As one of the world's tallest buildings, the Heavens Arena certainly had measures in place for lightning protection. But now—those so-called lightning protection devices were utterly ineffective.

One after another, destructive lightning bolts fell from the sky. The blazing, crashing lightning made countless hearts race with fear, as if the heavens themselves were furious, roaring, and determined to cleanse the world of all evil. The relentless barrage of lightning descended upon the tower top as if it cost nothing.

"What on earth is happening at the top of the tower?!"

Gon and Killua, who had just run out from the entrance of Heavens Arena, stared in shock at the scene. The power displayed by such a natural disaster would make anyone keep their distance out of respect.

"President Netero and Morin, they should still be up there, right? Are they okay?!" Gon thought worriedly. The current power of the thunderstorm was truly unsettling.

"They should be fine," Biscuit said, crossing her arms. "With the items Morin has at his disposal, this is just a minor issue for him."

"In fact, I have a feeling this lightning might even be caused by one of his items."

"Agreed," Killua chimed in. He had a similar feeling to Biscuit. Not only was Killua not worried, but he was also particularly calm.

Yes, Morin's usual antics, they were all too accustomed to them.

Jed's demise! Not a trace left, not even a final word of farewell.

Biscuit and Killua weren't too worried about Morin's situation. And there were others even more unfazed than them.

"What's going on up there?!" Uvogin lifted his head from a table full of food, his face still smeared with bits of meat. "Who knows? Maybe it's just Morin using some large-scale item again?"

---

Nobunaga took a sip of his drink, seemingly unconcerned. After dealing with the committee members of Heavens Arena, they found the private kitchen that catered to those members and began to feast.

Well, although the taste couldn't compare to Morin's [Gourmet Tablecloth], some unique ingredients, like the "Grand Nose Wild Boar Roasted Snout," were incredibly delicious.

After a round of fighting, the two of them rarely took the time to rest and enjoy a hearty meal here.

"Morin, huh?" Uvogin nodded, somewhat understanding, and then buried his face back into the food, continuing his feast.

When it came to Morin, they had almost no worries at all. Morin always managed to handle everything, didn't he?

Outside, on an airship some distance from Heavens Arena.

"What do you mean we can't get closer?!" Phinks grabbed the pilot by the collar, lifting him from his seat.

"Well..." The pilot swallowed nervously, feeling the murderous aura from Phinks, and stammered, "Lightning is striking down like crazy there right now. If we get too close, we'll likely be caught in it and get shattered into pieces."

"Especially since we're a target in mid-air, we're even more conspicuous and prone to accidents..." The pilot tried to explain, even under Phinks' threatening fists, he still refused to fly closer.

In his eyes, flying straight into that was basically a death sentence.

"Can't you find a place nearby to land?!" Phinks snapped.

"There's no suitable airstrip for an airship on the ground, and the nearby tall buildings face the same risk of being struck by lightning," the pilot continued, trembling.

"Then find me a place that's not too far but safe enough to land!!" Phinks threw him back into the seat, his fists twitching with impatience.

Having come all this way only to be unable to proceed was truly frustrating. Especially after seeing those two idiots, Uvogin and Nobunaga, get into the action, he was itching to join in.

"If Morin's involved, it'll probably be over quickly," Feitan said quietly, sitting nearby with a book in hand, his words meant to dampen Phinks' spirits.

"Who knows, maybe the lightning up there is caused by one of his items."

Phinks: "..."

He grimaced.

Though he didn't want to believe it, Feitan's words had a ring of truth to them. And the possibility was quite high.

But there was nothing he could do; he could only wait sullenly for the airship to land. Hopefully, by then, he might not get to enjoy the main course, but at least he could have a taste of the soup... right?

The sky was filled with lightning, intertwining and illuminating the heavens. This grand display of power continued for a long time, until everyone was almost numb to it.

Only then did the dark clouds begin to disperse, the lightning ceased, and the starry sky emerged once more.

At the top of Heavens Arena—

"It seems even the heavens don't want you to continue living," Morin remarked, looking at the spot where Jed once stood, now empty except for the scorched marks on the ground.

[Heaven's Punishment Whip] brought down divine retribution upon him. Morin hadn't expected Jed to summon such a massive storm of lightning. It was more terrifying than being struck by five bolts of lightning.

Before his death, Jed's extreme actions had brought the wrath of the Hunter Association and the V5 upon him. His organization, the Shadow, dealt with unsavory cleaning of trash and filth. The blood on his hands was evident from his Nen ability, the Hundred Ghost Curse Grudge.

And now, having crawled back from the depths of hell, he was tainted with filth once more. Not to mention the countless acts of vengeance he committed. Meeting such an end was truly his own doing.

"This is truly being obliterated, not even a trace left," Morin said as he walked forward. "Not even a final word or farewell."

"He shouldn't have appeared in this world in the first place," Netero, who had stayed clear of the danger, approached, clogs clacking like stilts as he stroked his beard and sighed. "Life and death are irreversible matters; otherwise, great disasters will follow. You never saw it clearly, Jed."

Netero lamented briefly.

But soon, he put Jed's death behind him. The sorrow he felt for him had been dealt with sixty years ago. Now, for Netero, it was merely like waking from a long nightmare.