Chapter 319: Kurapika’s Decision—Insatiable

“Yes...” Auren replies to Kurapika’s outburst, confirming his words. “Your eyes. As I said... she gathered a lot of them. Yours are of no particular interest to her, though. In truth, it’s not specifically your own pair; I wouldn’t worry too much in that regard. But it’s your goal to gather them, right? It would seem she wants them all, so if you are challenging her in that regard, a conflict is bound to arise.”

If I could simply rip out Scarlet Eyes and then use Azure Restoration to create a new pair, it would be so simple. But I’ve tried this out in the past. The old body part will vanish... much like Leorio’s finger.

“Why... is she a collector?! Why would anyone collect them all?!” Kurapika asks, clearly having lost his patience and calm.

“No, she is not,” Auren replies. “Trust me, she doesn’t want them because of their beauty or their collective value. She wants them because she has a use for them.”

“A use...” Kurapika says. “What use can they have?!”

“We are now entering territory which you can’t fully understand without knowledge about Nen, so I’ll keep it simple,” Auren replies. “As you know, I collect certain items. To make it as short as possible, they all contain something left behind by Nen users called Aura. Killua... you can attest to that, right?”

“Yes. I can’t explain it, but that necklace has almost magical... no, not almost. It has magical abilities, at least that’s how I’d describe it if I didn’t know about Nen,” Killua explains.

“I see...” Kurapika mutters, his expression complicated.

He knows about his own eyes...

“As you know... when a Kurta dies while their emotions are running wild, causing their eyes to turn red,” Auren continues slowly.

“They maintain their color... for eternity,” Kurapika finishes his sentence. “And you say, Aura is involved?”

“Yes,” Auren confirms. “Those eyes, as you know and as we all saw just a short while ago, have powerful abilities. Your strength multiplied after activating them. Despite not knowing Nen, the Aura you produced was quite similar to that of a Nen user. She wants to harness that power.”

“... I can’t let that happen!” Kurapika announces. “How could I? People who want them for such a reason, I’ll never accept that!”

“Why?” Auren asks simply.

“... Why... why?! Do you even need to ask?” Kurapika yells.

He’s far smarter and better at arguing and reasoning than me... but when it’s about his clan... or the Troupe... he loses his calm and becomes someone surprisingly stupid, unable to clearly think.

“If you kill me, I’d have no problem donating an organ to my friends, or maybe even a stranger. As long as it’s helpful to them, why wouldn’t I? What do I care about a heart... leg... or eye?” Auren argues, completely calm and factual.

“... That is different!” Kurapika immediately rejects the argument.

“As much as it might hurt or pain you they are dead. What difference does it make if their eyes are buried, burned, or harnessed in some other way? I expect they’ll be eventually destroyed no matter what,” Auren continues. “You yourself, don’t tell me you want to just gather them and then keep them in a safe place... letting them rot? Is that what you think they want? To have their eyes eternally stored in some kind of hidden safe, controlled by you? Bury them! Burn them! Harness them! They are dead; let them rest and give them peace.”

Kurapika shakes his head, continuing to protest. “... Even if I recognize your arguments, this is a special case. I can never accept something like that. Those eyes... they belong to the Kurta! They are not resources to be harvested by strangers; nobody has a right to do that! They belong to the Kurta Clan, and they are the Clan’s rightful power and inheritance. Their souls how can they rest if someone foreign uses their eyes like lab animals?”

“Then I suppose you won’t have any issues at all, and the issue is solved. To be honest, I was hoping for you to say something like that. Just... abide by your words, give up, and don’t collect them. They’ll return to where they belong, according to your own statement. As for you, I won’t let anything happen to you... I promise,” Auren says, trying to calm him down.

I hope... he can accept that. It would make things simple... but... I suppose that’s just wishful thinking.

“Huh?!” Leorio yells. “What do you mean?!”

“I don’t get it either,” Killua says, shrugging. “What are you trying to imply?”

“Explain yourself!” Kurapika yells, Auren still perfectly calm, just emotionlessly staring back at the enraged Kurta. “Why wouldn’t I have any issues?! Didn’t you understand what I said?”

“Could it be...? Is that woman a Kurta like Kurapika?” Gon asks, suddenly perking up. “Then it wouldn’t be a problem, according to what Kurapika said.”

“...”

“...”

“Indeed she is,” Auren replies, shocking everyone. “Sometimes you are quite perceptive, Gon.”

“No. That can’t be... another survivor?! That is impossible; I searched everywhere, the forest, up the river, all neighboring cities and villages. I buried every single corpse; nobody survived, and nobody was outside during the time of the attack aside from... me...! I know! No Hunters leaving to hunt some game, no merchants buying supplies from the nearby villages; everyone was accounted for. I’m certain!” Kurapika reasons, his expression unreadable, still completely shocked, unable to believe Auren’s words. “Assuming you speak the truth, then how could she use our eyes like that?! The eyes are sacred! They are... parts of our lost tribe, the only thing left of the Kurta Tribe!”

“She has no love for the Kurta Tribe; she left even before you were born,” Auren explains. “She simply rejected anything your clan stood for. She wanted freedom. Perhaps you can understand her thoughts. Also... she has given me express permission to share everything I’ve told you. I imagine she wants to warn you. Don’t cross her, is what I’d suggest to you.”

“...”

“...”

“There is no need for you to give me a reply or even do anything. Whatever happens, I won’t let anything happen to you,” Auren reassures the still shocked Kurapika again. “But should you proceed to gather the eyes on your own, when I’m not close by... I can tell you, even I’ll be unable to protect you. You can never escape her eyes, which are quite special, much like your own. Maybe one last piece of information. I suppose they can be located... the eyes. As long as you carry even one pair of them or activate your own, she’ll know every step you take. You can neither hide them nor carry them with you. The most you could do would be to destroy them, but in that case, you can leave it to her.” 

Pausing a little, Auren finishes his explanation, “if you have a problem with the situation I just described... talk to her and come to an agreement.”

“I can?” Kurapika asks. “She’ll... meet me?”

“She does not hide; as I said, she openly told me to inform you about her,” Auren replies. “If you want to, I can introduce you in person and also guarantee your safety. However... if you ever hope to win an argument against her, manipulate her, or use any other trick to gain an advantage or sympathy for your cause... I wouldn’t expect a positive outcome. I’d hate to shatter your hopes, but don’t even try. As for violence, that’s an even more futile attempt.”

“Neglecting violence, at least I can’t ever hope to do that. I don’t like scheming when I don’t have to. It’s not how I want to live my life... you are maybe smart and cunning enough to give it a try... you seem like the type, but I don’t think the result would be any different. Perhaps you can find some solace in knowing that the eyes of your people are no longer displayed as trophies to be ogled by sick, perverted collectors. Even without them and whatever use she has for them, I believe her eyes are already the most absurd and powerful eyes that anyone has ever achieved. Her eyes see so far; their greed is unrivaled.”

“...”

Everyone stares at Auren, not sure how to reply.

“That’s all I can tell you,” Auren says. “Whatever you decide to do, you can still do so after I’ve taught you Nen. Also know that this is her private business; it has nothing to do with the organization or me.”

“Please just tell me what your role is in that organization and what it does?” Kurapika asks. “I need to know you’ve been completely honest with me, and I appreciate it. Just... tell me this one more thing.”

“It’s... hmmm, how would I best describe it without boring you all?” Auren says, not quite sure how to reply. “A revolt against the V5, a haven for anyone seeking to build a safe and different community without corruption and greed, a place where everyone will be accepted and afforded the opportunity to find a place in life, the largest terrorist organization in the world, about to be recognized as its own country, having millions of members, the private army and followers of the last female Kurta.”

“That’s... rather... negative, uhm... this is crazy....” Leorio says. “Although some things are nice. You could have maybe made it sound a little bit nicer.”

“I told you, I have no reason to lie to you,” Auren replies. “Especially since I’m recognized as the Vice-Leader of that organization.”

“Hehe, you still don’t want to act the part, right?” Neffi says, smiling.

“I won’t... I have my own goals, after all,” Auren states.

“You realize if you’d just ask, she’d probably make you the leader. She has larger plans for you; I just know it!” Neffi hints before looking at the others. “If you have doubts about our leader, don’t. She is a fantastic person, and she loves Auren the most out of everyone. If he asks for something, she’d also grant it to him without question. Auren is the only one who’s wary and quite critical of her. I trust her with my life, and so does everyone else.”

“I’m just realistic,” Auren says. “Anyway, enough of that. I believe you can’t reasonably expect me to tell you more.”

“Does that answer your question and... does it affect your decision?” Auren asks.

Completely calm again, Kurapika shakes his head before he smiles. “Yes and no. If I think about it for now, they’re safe. While I can’t condone what she’s doing, for now... I’ll have to accept it until I meet her and learn more.”

Has he calmed down?

“Well... enough about me. I’ve talked too much already. We’ll leave tomorrow, so you’d best prepare yourselves and say goodbye to anyone. Killua, that goes especially for you.”

“Fine...” Killua mutters.

Just as Auren is about to leave, the little snake softly begs again.

“This... are you serious right now?” Auren wonders, his eyebrow twitching.

“It must have drunk at least thirty liters earlier...” Neffi remembers. “This is indeed a little crazy.”

“I need to come up with a solution for this...” Auren states as he and Neffi leave the five learners alone.