Greetings everyone, it's me, Gon Freecss, now at the tender age of 8.

I must admit, I'm quite perplexed by an unexpected turn of events.

"With such delicious home-cooked meals every day, it's no wonder Gon-kun is growing so well."

"These young people nowadays are so good at flattery, it's embarrassing. I might start getting a big head if I'm not careful."

"Flattery? Not at all! I mean every word of it. By the way, if it's not too much trouble, could I stay here for the rest of my visit?"

Kaito, you're not trying to hit on Aunt Mito, are you? I know she doesn't like Hunters much, especially with that Jin influence. [Au: I prefer jin instead of Ging, let me know if you guys want to change it]

This home visit by Kaito, a character not mentioned in the original story, happened just a few hours ago. Here's how it all began:

On Whale Island, a small, sparsely populated island that rarely sees tourists, an unusual visitor arrived, a man other than a fisherman.

His name was Kaito. A professional Hunter with a proven track record and enough experience to call himself a veteran, he had been trained by Gon's father, Jin Freecss. Kaito had come to Whale Island, Jin's birthplace, to complete his master's final task: "Find Jin."

However, Kaito himself didn't expect to find any significant clues here. He couldn't imagine that the elusive Jin would leave any traces of his whereabouts simply by visiting his hometown, and there was no evidence of him returning in the past few years.

Still, he had visited Whale Island for two reasons: he happened to be nearby during his travels, and he had a rather touristy desire to see the hometown of his respected master, Jin. However, he was already starting to regret his visit due to the island's extreme quietness.

"Well, I guess I'll just take a quick look around and then kill some time in the forest."

Kaito put on his trusty hat, thinking it was a complete waste of time. But he didn't know that his prediction was about to be turned upside down in a good way.

Having quickly given up on finding any clues about Jin, Kaito ventured deep into the forest, an area rarely visited even by the islanders. The dense forest was enough to deter intruders, and the dangerous beasts and venomous insects made it a deadly area even for experienced hunters.

Yet, Kaito strolled through the forest as if he were taking a leisurely walk. As a professional Hunter, he had worked as a Chimera Hunter, specializing in hunting rare animals, and had experience staying in far more dangerous areas than Whale Island. From his perspective, the forest on Whale Island, which had no deadly toxins, curses, or dangerous rival poachers, was nothing more than a pleasant stroll.

However, Kaito, being an experienced man, couldn't help but notice something strange about this forest.

(That's strange. There are ecosystems similar to this one all over the place. There are no particularly noteworthy species here, and there shouldn't be any abnormal environmental factors.)

From Kaito's perspective, this forest was the epitome of peace, and as a Chimera Hunter, he was even moved by the natural beauty of everything that remained unchanged.

(That's why it's strange. Most of the creatures here are familiar, but they all seem to have abilities that are a step above what their species normally possesses.)

The fast ones were even faster, the strong ones were even stronger, and the timid ones were even more cunning, each one taking their species' inherent abilities to the next level.

(If there's this much of a difference, there must be some kind of cause. There must be something here that's promoting their growth. If it's a mutated wild animal, that's fine, but if it's a human with bad intentions, that could be troublesome.)

In the natural world, there are plenty of cases where the ecosystem changes due to environmental factors. This in itself is not something to be particularly avoided, but in Kaito's experience, if it's done by humans, it usually doesn't lead to anything good.

(Well, if it looks like it's having a negative impact on the island, I'll deal with it. For now, let's get to the bottom of this.)

What started as a mere time-killer had turned into an unexpected Chimera Hunter mission to delve deeper and deeper into the forest. Unable to find any environmental anomalies, he finally reached a  clearing, where a sight unfolded that would leave even a seasoned pro Hunter like Kaito speechless.

Two figures clashed with a thunderous roar, each throwing themselves at the other with the intent to overpower their opponent. Surrounding them, a multitude of beasts cheered them on, each letting out their own excited cries.

One of the combatants was a massive brown bear, its build more muscular than any other Kaito had seen on Whale Island. The other was a young boy, seemingly in his early teens, with a physique equally honed and trained. 

Both combatants repeatedly clashed, astonishingly utilizing one of the Four Major Nen Techniques – Ren. The sheer amount of aura emanating from them was enough to send a less skilled Nen user flying with a single blow.

Aura, the source of Nen, is a life energy that all living beings possess. In theory, wild animals tend to have a more instinctive understanding of manipulating their aura than humans. Humans rarely control their life energy in daily life, such as by suppressing their presence, and they live surrounded by inanimate objects that lack any life energy. Nevertheless, it's incredibly rare for a normal beast to achieve any of the Four Major Nen Techniques. This meant the boy either learned it from someone else or mimicked it.

If that were the case, the bigger mystery was the boy's ability to use Nen. Kaito had already confirmed there were no Nen users on the island when he entered the forest. This meant the boy either trained himself to this level or received instruction from a third party that Kaito had somehow missed.

The situation was shrouded in mystery, but one thing was clear: the boy's aura was exceptionally pure, and he seemed to be admired not only by the surrounding beasts but also by the brown bear they were fighting.

As the saying goes, a good Hunter is one who is liked by animals.

For Kaito, a seasoned Chimera Hunter, this scene before him embodied an ideal, something he wouldn't dare disrupt.

(That's all well and good, but at least I should talk to him.)

As the boy finally defeated the brown bear, intensifying the cheers of the surrounding animals, Kaito approached them. He couldn't help but feel a strange connection to the boy, perhaps due to a bloodline resemblance to Jin. He wondered how to start the conversation...