In HxH with Doraemon Pocket

Morin silently accepted the prop with a slight smile, conveying his meaning through his gaze.

He trusted that Shalnark would understand.

Shalnark gave him a sunny smile in return, leaving Morin with a meaningful look before motioning to Kortopi. The two of them then departed.

Morin followed Shalnark's gaze and noticed that Pakunoda had left at some point, her figure fading into the horizon, leaving only a vague silhouette behind.

Morin's eyes flickered briefly. He turned his head slightly to glance at Machi, who remained standing with her arms crossed.

After a moment of contemplation, he decided not to take any action.

"Morin, how about joining us?"

The others had all left, leaving just Morin, Uvogin, Machi, and Nobunaga.

Uvogin, no longer restrained by formalities, casually but eagerly extended the invitation to Morin.

After all, the four of them—originally a close-knit group from Meteor City—were reunited after so many years. Such moments were rare and precious.

Uvogin earnestly hoped that Morin would continue to accompany them.

Nobunaga shared the same sentiment.

"I can't. I have my own matters to attend to," Morin shook his head in refusal.

"Really?"

Disappointment flickered in the eyes of both Uvogin and Nobunaga.

Machi's hand, which had been smoothing her hair, paused slightly before she resumed her casual gesture.

"Alright then. Since you have your own plans, we won't press you, but..."

Uvogin clapped his fists together with a resounding smack!

"It's been so many years since we've seen each other, and I'm eager to show you how much I've improved!"

A grin stretched across his face, brimming with excitement and battle lust.

"Since we met, I've sparred countless times with Nobunaga, but I've never had the chance to fight you, Morin!"

His voice rose to a shout, loud enough to make small rocks tumble from a nearby hillside.

"You..."

Caught off guard by the volume, Nobunaga's ears rang, and he instinctively wanted to scold Uvogin. But seeing the burning anticipation in Uvogin's eyes as he looked at Morin, Nobunaga held his tongue.

Having fought alongside Uvogin for so many years, Nobunaga understood all too well Uvogin's longing to spar with Morin.

In fact, over the past three years, Uvogin had trained tirelessly, day and night, with an unmatched determination.

This effort wasn't just fueled by his passion for battle or a desire for victory.

It was more than that—he wanted to prove himself to Morin, to face him in a proper fight.

Over those three years, Uvogin devoted himself entirely to mastering the enhancement techniques Morin had taught him. His relentless training had only one purpose: to see if he had closed the gap between himself and Morin, if he could keep up with his pace.

For Uvogin, this battle was a long-awaited dream.

"You want to fight me?" Morin asked with a smile.

"Absolutely!" Uvogin nodded fiercely.

Morin rubbed his chin thoughtfully, then smiled. "I don't see why not."

"Huh?!"

Uvogin's eyes widened instantly.

But before he could burst into a cheer, Morin cut him off.

"However, I have a condition."

"What condition?!" Uvogin blurted out.

"You and Nobunaga have to leave this place for now and let me talk to Machi alone," Morin said, pointing off into the distance. "I'll call you once I'm ready."

Machi, who had been silently observing, frowned the moment Morin pointed at her.

"What do you need to say to me that you can't say in front of others?" Machi protested.

Unfortunately for her, her opinion carried little weight at the moment.

"Deal!" Uvogin exclaimed, ignoring Machi's frosty glare. Without a second thought, he grabbed Nobunaga and began dragging him away.

"Sorry, Machi," Nobunaga said half-heartedly, as he let himself be hauled off.

He figured that whatever Morin wanted to discuss with Machi, it wasn't anything harmful. If Morin said it was important, then it probably was.

Besides, if Nobunaga refused to comply, Uvogin's pestering would drive him crazy.

As for Machi's feelings...

Well, considering how she had worked them to the bone at Heaven's Arena, Nobunaga wasn't about to worry too much about her opinion.

Uvogin and Nobunaga wisely made themselves scarce, disappearing over the horizon in no time.

Now, only Machi and Morin remained.

"So? What do you want to talk about?"

Machi raised an eyebrow, her expression cautious as she faced Morin.

This was the first time since the Troupe's reunion that Machi had spoken to Morin of her own accord.

"You seem to have lost some weight," Morin said suddenly, stepping closer to her.

His movement made Machi's eyelids twitch, but she remained silent.

"It seems you've had a tough time recently," Morin said gently, reaching out toward the strands of hair on her forehead.

"Not as carefree as you, I'm sure," Machi retorted, leaning her head away from his hand, her tone edged with sarcasm.

"With all your tools, I'm sure you've been living comfortably outside," she added.

"Care to elaborate on what you mean by that?" Morin asked with a chuckle, his eyes gleaming mischievously.

"You know exactly what I mean," Machi snapped, her irritation growing as she struggled to maintain her composure.

Before she could say more, however, she felt a firm grip on her chin, and her perspective shifted abruptly.

"Are you complaining to me?"

Morin's handsome face, faintly smiling, was suddenly very close.

His black eyes, serene and deep like a starry night, held her gaze.

"What are you doing?!" Machi demanded, her voice trembling slightly despite her best efforts to stay calm.

"You're too close!"

She tried to push him away, but Morin stood firm, unmoving.

"Nothing," Morin said softly, leaning in even closer.

"I just wanted to have a proper conversation with you."

"This is what you call a proper conversation?!"

Machi's ears reddened as her composure began to falter.

"You've been cold to me these past few days," Morin said with a feigned look of confusion. "I'm just curious—did I offend you somehow?"

"You—! Stay away from me! I don't want to talk to you!" Machi exclaimed, her tone growing colder as she redoubled her efforts to push him away.

Both of them knew why she was upset, though neither brought up Pakunoda.

"Is that so?"

Morin sighed lightly, finally releasing her.

"But ignoring me was still wrong. And mistakes deserve punishment," he added with a sly smile, taking another step forward.

Machi's eyes widened in shock as a ripple of emotion broke through her usually calm demeanor.

Bonus: Uvogin and Nobunaga's Wait

"Why is he taking so long?!"

Far off on a hill, Uvogin paced restlessly, his fists clenched.

"Can't you sit still?" Nobunaga complained, rolling his eyes. "The fight's not going anywhere, so what's the rush?"

"You wouldn't understand how I feel!" Uvogin said passionately, his eyes ablaze with excitement. "I've been waiting so long to fight Morin!"

"There was even a time when I thought I'd go crazy waiting!"

Nobunaga sighed and shook his head, deciding to let Uvogin ramble.

After all, he wasn't the only one feeling anxious. Nobunaga's hand tightened instinctively on the hilt of his katana before slowly releasing it again.

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