Gourmet Hunter (HxH Fanfic)

In response to Machi's invitation, Law sighed and fell into a contemplative silence.

The Troupe was formed faster than Law had expected. After all, before he left, the only known members of the Troupe were Chrollo, Pakunoda, Uvogin, Nobunaga, and Machi.

Now that Machi had joined the Troupe, could he still persuade her to leave?

"This was Chrollo's idea, and we all agreed to it. After we found out you were alive, the first thing we decided as a group was to look for you. It's not just me, Uvogin and the others also want you to join the Troupe."

Machi didn't understand why Law sighed, but she continued to explain.

Feitan was the only one who objected to Law joining the Troupe.

Currently, there are only seven members in the Phantom Troupe. In addition to Chrollo, Pakunoda, Uvogin, Nobunaga, and Machi, there are Feitan and Franklin who they only met after Law's supposed death.

On the day of the Troupe's establishment, their first priority as a group was to find Law and recruit him. At that time, Franklin, who didn't know Law, had no objection, but Feitan strongly objected.

In his words, before they met, he would not agree that Law was qualified to join the Troupe. And the key still lies in strength.

On this point, Uvogin was unable to convince Feitan even with the fact that he had been defeated by Law a hundred times.

In short, Feitan just insists that seeing is believing.

His objection was naturally ineffective, as the decision was made by majority rule.

But would Law agree to join the Phantom Troupe? The answer was obvious: no.

Even if the Phantom Troupe was known to have enough freedom, Law had no interest in being bound by its structure.

Furthermore, he disliked the direction the Troupe would take in the future, which was a fundamental ideological difference.

This wasn't about the Troupe as it stood now but about what it would become.

Law viewed the Troupe through the lens of its actions ten years later, and while the current Troupe still had room to change, he had no reason to alter its course, nor any desire to do so.

His goal is to explore this vast, boundless world, and he doesn't want to be confined by the Phantom Troupe.

"I won't join the Troupe." After being silent for a while, Law gave Machi a firm reply.

"Why?" Machi suddenly became anxious, which could be sensed from her sudden change in tone.

Law found it difficult to answer this question for a moment. Should he say: I don't like what the Troupe becomes in ten years?

But judging by Machi's reaction, it would be difficult to deal with this matter without giving an answer.

In fact, even if an answer is given, it will probably be inadequate to cope with.

"Why? Well..." Law thought for a moment, then said seriously: "The world is vast, and I want to see it all."

Machi was stunned when she heard this. Even Sanbica, who was observing silently from the side, felt that Law's answer was a little too perfunctory.

In fact, this was indeed Law's true thought. When he was on Earth, he had harbored a simple yet lofty dream, which was to set foot in the humanity's ten forbidden zones. As a result, he came to the Hunter x Hunter World inexplicably before it officially started.

This world is a hundred times more dangerous here than on Earth, but Law has also become powerful and has reason to continue his dream on Earth in this world.

"I don't care. You have to join!" Machi came to her senses and didn't care about Law's reasons. She just took a hard approach.

Law let out a bitter chuckle and said, "I'm really not interested."

Machi did not give in and looked at Law with determination. She really wanted Law to join the Troupe. Not only did she think so, but Uvogin and Nobunaga also thought so.

Facing Machi's unwilling gaze, Law rubbed his temples and said, "If you want me to join, you have to beat me first."

Hearing what Law said, a hint of helplessness flashed in Sanbica's dark eyes. She knew Law's strength very well, 'Wasn't this just bullying?'

Machi, however, was no fool. She didn't accept immediately, but instead asked provocatively: "Do you dare to say this after everyone is gathered?"

She didn't think she could beat Law, which was a correct judgment. But with the rest of the group involved? Things might play out differently.

"You don't need to provoke me. If you want to test the results, anytime will do… but not tonight." Law said with a faint smile, effortlessly seeing through Machi's intentions.

Even if Uvogin and the others had grown significantly stronger, Law was confident they still wouldn't be his match.

He didn't plan to stay in Meteor City for too long. Tomorrow, he would go directly to the East District's Elder to snatch Shin. There might be a fierce battle afterwards, so he wanted to conserve his strength tonight.

He was planning to confess this plan directly later to see the attitudes of Uvogin and the others.

Hearing what Law said, Machi nodded. She didn't push too hard anymore, but her resolve to make Law join the Troupe remained unshaken!

As an outsider, Sanbica could see how much Machi valued Law from her persistence. She can also see Law regarded Machi as an important friend, and probably the same was true for several other people she had never met.

'Law should have no reason to refuse, but he refused so bluntly.'

Sanbica wondered about this, but after remembering that it has nothing to do with her, she stopped thinking about it after a while.

The topic of invitation to join the Troupe came to a temporary halt, and Machi silently walked ahead.

Seeing this, Law sighed silently, picked up the cloth bag at his feet, slung it over his shoulder, and followed behind her, with Sanbica trailing alongside.

He could feel Machi's firm attitude that would not allow him to refuse, and that she really wanted him to join the Phantom Troupe. Despite this, it was impossible to shake his decision.

If their roles were reversed and he asked Machi to leave the Troupe, would she agree? And if she refused, would he use the same stubborn resolve to persuade her?

The two walked one after the other, their thoughts diverging further apart. They were already at odds in their respective beliefs.

There is no doubt that Machi will not quit the Troupe, after all, the people she cared about were there.

There is no doubt that Law will not join the Troupe, though his reasons couldn't be fully explained.

No matter how much Machi, Uvogin, or Nobunaga wanted him to join, there was no room for compromise.

After a while, the trio arrived at Uvogin's house.

Machi seemed to want to give Law a taste of defeat, so she asked him to knock on the door.

Law saw through Machi's thoughts, and sighed helplessly. But he didn't hesitate and knocked on the door.

Moments later, the door swung open forcefully.

The person who opened the door was naturally Uvogin. After seeing Law, he was stunned for a moment. It was obvious that his thoughts did not catch up immediately. He was very surprised at Law's sudden appearance.

"Yo." Law greeted, raising his hand casually in a familiar gesture.

Uvogin's expression gradually shifted as he processed the scene. A grin spread across his face, revealing a row of neat white teeth. The way he responded to the greeting was consistent with what Law and Machi had thought before they came, which was a fist cloaked in Aura aimed straight at Law.

This was no impulsive attack, as Uvogin had deliberately gathered his Aura in front of Law, giving him ample time to react.

Under the watchful eyes of Machi and Sanbica, Uvogin, who had not gathered much Aura, punched Law without any hesitation.

The act of charging his aura was Uvogin's way of giving Law a choice: to block or dodge.

No matter which option it is, Wo Jin will accept it.

Either outcome would have satisfied Uvogin. After all, this punch wasn't just about venting, as it was also a way of expressing his joy at seeing Law.

Boom!

The sound of impact broke the stillness of the quiet residential area.

Uvogin's half-strength punch was easily caught by Law using his left hand. It's because he was still holding the cloth bag in his right hand.

Seeing Law catch Uvogin's fist so easily, Machi's eyes narrowed and she immediately thought of what Law had just said.

'The condition to make him join the Troupe is to defeat him... Could any of us actually win against him?'

As the person throwing the punch, Uvogin knew exactly how powerful this punch was. Although he did not completely gather the Aura, the punch still carried about fifty percent of his power.

"Haha."

Uvogin silently retracted his fist and let out a hearty laugh of joy.