Chapter 28: Bounty x Mafia
While the group of four was still executing their scheme, forces around York Shin City were moving. The mafia kept entering town for the action, and the rest of the spiders gathered outside in the ruined city where Jett had seen them enter. Kurapika himself also joined a mafia group to find the eyes of his clan that the spider had taken.
Everything happens just like in the original story. An auction was held with members of various mafia families. The spider also entered the action in disguise, killing all the mafia members inside the auction house, leaving no trace of anyone ever being there. Not even a spec of blood was found. Of course, the spider left empty-handed, not knowing that their action was already predicted.
"It looks like he didn't show up to this auction," said the voice of a woman three buildings away, looking at the auction house through the scope of her gun. Her long pink hair swayed with the wind. This woman was Jess; she hadn't contacted Jett and the rest yet because she still hadn't found any information about the spider or where Lurks would appear. She knew he would participate in an action, but the information on which auction wasn't available. Although she was sure he would show up in the main auction, she wanted to find him before the action happened.
She also didn't know that the mafia was connected to someone with prophetic abilities, and the Lurk could have used that information to avoid attending the auction. This also made her lose her chance to warn Jett and the rest about the people approaching them. She would have recognized the seemingly ordinary man as part of Lurk's group.
While Kurapika and Jess were trying to deal with their troubles, the group of four was still trying to catch the attention of a big fish. "That's about eight million Jenis total!." Leorio proclaims.
"I know we'll have to gather a lot more of that money to reach the minimum value of nine billion for the game," Leorio said.
"It won't work, nine billion won't be enough," Jett said.
"What are you talking about? That's the prize of the game," Leorio shouted.
"Are you an idiot or something? Do you know how auctions work? You have to be the highest bidder to get the item. People who are going after the game will bid high," Jett said.
"..." Killua, Gon, Leorio.
"Wait, Jett, didn't you say that you had a way to get the game," Gon remembered Jett telling him having a way to get the game. Jett had indeed had a way to get the game; in the original timeline, Gon would have come up with the same idea, but for Jett, who thought more about things, it was easy for him to connect some dots and figure out a way to get to the game.
"Yeah, it's easy if you think about it. If we can't buy the game, all we have to do is contact someone who does have the game and..." Killua finishes for him.
"Of course, all we have to do is ask them to let us use the game! It can one hundred percent work," Killua almost shouted.
"Then does that mean we no longer have to gather money?" Gon asked.
"No we should still gather money as much as possible, it could be useful to pay for that woman that Jess contacted last time," Jett reminded.
"What are you guys talking about?" Leorio asked. Jett ignored Leorio and continued with his explanation.
"I did some research in some pass auction..."
"Hey! Don't ignore me!" Leorio shouted.
Still ignoring Leorio Jett, Jett continued, "Where the game was also sold, the hunter website was a great help with that. A man named Battera bought the games in past auctions," Jett said. I also obtained a list of those participating in the auction. Battera will also attend the Southern Piece Auction this year. It also seems that he hires hunters to challenge the game."
"Then all we have to do is get him to hire us," Gon was quick to the uptake this time. "Exactly, and with that plan figured out, we can focus on dealing with the people coming after me and capturing Lurks before the auction happens," Jett said. The discussion continued after Leorio couldn't take it anymore and was about to attack Jett. Gon and Killua had to explain what was happening.
The next day, the group of four was again on the street. People were still coming up to challenge Gon, but after a while, it seemed no one was coming up to challenge anymore. That was until a tall man over six feet tall pushed the crowd apart. "Get out of my way! I'm trying," he said as he stepped forward.
"Hm? How are we going to hold fists?" An embarrassing moment happened. The man was three times the size of Gon, making Gon look tiny. It also made Jett chuckle for the first time. It was soft and short, and he was close to Gon and Killua, so both heard him. They both sharply turned their heads, looking at Jett, especially Gon, but he stopped as he heard Jett's next words.
"Gon is Tiny," Jett said, chuckling again, turning on his feet so they wouldn't see him laugh. This made Gon pout, but he was happy inside that he had made Jett laugh.
"Gon switch. I'll replace you," Leorio said. Gon didn't complain because he jumped at Jett in retaliation as soon as he was free. Killua also joined in on the fun, hitting both of them. Their rough play didn't last long because as soon as Leorio started to up the bid of the bet, a strong presence called their attention.
All three of them turn to the dark alley behind them. A beautiful woman with long pink hair is leaning against the wall at the alley's entrance. The woman is Jess. She has projected her presence so that the trio will notice her.
"Jess, we tried to contact you, but you didn't answer your phone," Jett said.
"Right, I was investigating the location of Lurks, but he didn't show in any of the other auction locations. I followed one of his men to an auction, but something happened. The mafia started moving; it seemed like everyone inside the auction house disappeared without a trace," Jess explained what she saw while scouting.
"Did you find out anything about what happened inside?" Killua asked in a serious tone. He knew that many people attended auctions, but for everyone to vanish without a trace was serious.
"I'm not sure, but from what I was able to gather the items in the auction house disappeared, I suspect that the Phantom Troupe moved," Jess said.
"Can they make all those people disappear at once," Gon asked.
"I don't know; what I do know is that they are strong and dangerous. I only know the ability of the woman I met, even then someone introduced me to her, the other members didn't show or they could have been hiding in case it was a trap," Jess said.
"Is the guy in the auction the only lead you had?" Killua asked.
"Yes, so far, I know of a few more faces that could lead me close enough to get me near Lurks," she said. Although I haven't been able to find them," it had been hard for Jess to find a single lead. She had noticed the man who entered the auction house only because she remembered that when she escaped, he was there, although she had only seen him in passing while she ran.
"If you don't have any more leads, then all we can do is wait for them to come to us..." Jett said. "Will that even work, just waiting? What if they attack you but you can't contact me, I won't be able to help," Jess complained.
"Yes, that's all you can do, but not just wait for a phone call. I need you to watch us. We already know they are going to attack, so you have to keep an eye on the three of us," Jett explains. "The three of you? Shouldn't I just be watching you?" Jess asked.
"No, you need to watch all three of us. If they are the people you think they are, they will use any means to get to me..."
"Even if it means attacking Gon and me," Killua said. Yes, I'm sure they already investigated. If they think they can use Gon and Killua to get to me, then they will, so I need you to watch all three of us while keeping your distance as a plan B," Jett said.
"That sounds like a good plan," Jess agreed.
"Also, make preparations. If you have an opportunity, capture anyone who attacks us. You have to make sure they remain alive so we can interrogate them," Jett said. I got it; I'll stay in touch," Jess said.
"Contact us every day at three, after three minutes have passed. Send us your location so we know where you are at all times. If you fail to contact us, then it means you are in danger. If you're in danger, then send a message before three," Jett said, making a plan in case Jess was discovered. Jess didn't say anything and walked away.
"What are we going to do, Jett?" Gon asked. We can't do anything; we don't have any information. We can only wait for the other side to make their move first. Don't let your guard down, especially in a crowd," Jett told them. 'Why in a crowd?" Gon questioned.
"Because we may have less time to move with all the people around if the enemy attacks us with a Hatsu ability, then we won't have time to evade," Killua explained to Gon.
The next day, they went to the location from the card Leorio had gotten from the short man who looked like a mafia gagster. The underground arena was full of different people, each with a unique look. Jett could even sense a few Nen users, although they weren't that good at hiding their aura if he could feel them.
"Welcome, everyone! Let's start without waiting for the conditional auction!" The announcer, a man dressed in only underwear, started explaining the event for that day.
"Today, the rule is simple: HIDE-AND-SEEK!" he shouted. "Look carefully at the pictures you were given; those seven people are today's targets." People dressed in black started to distribute papers.
"Jett, these people!" Gon said as soon as he was handed a paper. "Yes, three of them are the ones we met on the street," Jett said.
"You already figured it out, didn't you, Jett? If the mafia is putting a high bounty on them, then they are the ones who attack the auction house; they're the Phantom Troupe," Killua said.
"We should hurry and capture them," Leorio said. Jett couldn't help but look at him blankly as if looking at an idiot.
"We know in what location they are, but capture is impossible. Looking at the three we met, you can tell they are strong. If we fight seven of them, we will die. Maybe between the three of us, we can take on three of them," Jett said.
"What do you mean three should be four of us?" Leorio shouted, and Jett again ignored him. He could tell that Leorio hadn't practiced Nen and was only still a beginner.
"Should we tell Kurapika?" Gon said.
"We should call him; maybe he could help us," Killua said.
"We can try; we should also contact Jess; maybe she can contact them again," Jett said.
"Hopefully, this won't become more troublesome than it already is," Jett said.
"I'm gonna do it like the proverb says: nothing ventured, nothing gained." Gon declared, and there it was trouble. 'That didn't take long,' Jett thought, sighing.