Chapter 32 : Secret realm X Training X Start!

After bidding farewell to the trio of Gon and Menchi, Shinji meets Netero, and together they took the special airship of the Hunter Association toward an unknown place.

Inside a simple room in the airship, the two, Shinji and Netero, sat on the ground in front of each other. A table was between them, and on top of it was a chessboard.

Shinji is the white piece, while Netero is the black ones.

The two were playing chess all this time, and Shinji can't count how many N times he lost to Netero.

But he didn't give up, as long as he doesn't lose with two moves from Netero, he will be satisfied.

"Good, the goal now is to force him to make three moves!"

"Sensei, when will we reach our destination?" I'm really excited to see what this secret realm will look like!"

Shinji felt that at least four hours had passed since they boarded the airship, and he couldn't help but ask when they would reach this mysterious secret realm.

Netero said he will take Shinji to a secret realm where he will train him, but other than that, he knows nothing about it.

Netero chuckled and said in a mysterious tone, "I hope you will remain excited like this when we reach there."

Netero took down the white pieces of shinji in two moves.

"damn! How the hell you did it!" Shinji couldn't accept his defeat again, so he said, "Let's have another one!"

"I swear I won't give up until you use three moves!"

but Netero shook his head, refusing.

"Let's stop here, I think we are near our destination."

"huh? Really, let me see!"

Shinji went to the window and looked at the endless ocean below them. After careful observation, he saw the silhouette of something like an island just at the horizon of his sight. After estimating the time, at least half an hour is needed at this speed to reach it.

"Is the secret realm you talked about that island?"

Shinji asked Netero while pointing toward the island.

Netero nodded his head.

"Right, that's your training ground for the next few months."

"I'm looking forward to what kind of surprise is there on that island to make it a secret realm!"

Secret realms are places in the human world that have different ecological systems than the usual ones; for example, the fraudsters' swamp in the first phase of the hunter's exam is also a kind of secret realm.

secret realms are something that ordinary people can't dream of stepping into, even for ordinary hunters. Each secret realm is of great research value to scientists and humanity in general, with all its weird lifeforms, endangered species, and even weird herbs and ingredients that contain miraculous effects.

So this secret realm he will set foot in after a few minutes is like opening a surprise box for Shinji.

…

The airship landed on the coast of the island.

Although the airship is big, the coast was even bigger that if you looked at it from above, you would find that the airship was just like a toy on top of it.

Shinji and Netero steeped out of the airship, and when Shinji saw the scene in front of him, he rubbed his eyes and looked in disbelief.

"so big!" Shinji exclaimed loudly, full of surprise.

This is the only word that Shinji can use to describe everything around him.

From things as simple as huge sea shells to the giant trees that covered the sky and the huge birds flying around, everything is at least three- to five-times bigger than usual.

This is simply the world of giants!

"Don't be shocked now, if you think this is big, then you haven't seen the giant monsters inside." Netero wasn't shocked in the slightest by this scene, he had experienced the true meaning of being insignificant like an ant in that place. Even this island is nothing more than a child's play compared to that one.

"This island is called the giant's island because everything on it is bigger than normal." Netero started introducing the island to Shinji, he continued by saying, "Despite all the research and investigations done by the best scientists in the world, in the end they can't point out the real cause of this phenomenon."

"Using modern technologies, scientists discovered that the island's magnetic field is very special, it's more than ten times bigger than the magnetic field of an ordinary island. They believe as long as they find the reason behind this peculiar magnetic field, they will uncover the secret of this island."

Shinji listened carefully to Netero's words.

"This strong and weird magnetic field made this island rich in life energy, it's as if it attract the surrounding energy toward it, as a result, all the creatures here grew bigger and stronger."

"Scientist found that this island wasn't like this, which means that something is responsible for what we see today, maybe it was done artificially by the ancient civilizations or due to certain natural phenomena." Netero seemed to remember something he added.

"Well, enough introductions, let's talk about the plan for your training!"

Shinji, who was shocked by the amount of information he received, became excited after hearing Netero's words, his blood is boiling with full expectation and a yearning to get stronger.

"As I told you before, you have good fighting skills, but unfortunately your body is very fragile, you can't show their full potential like this. I don't know if it's a genetic problem or due to certain external factors, but no matter what, this weakness must be solved, so the first goal is to temper your body."

"This island with its abundant life energy is a good environment to recover quickly and acquire high-energy food, plus the special potions and equipment in the hunter association, all of which will be resources for you to achieve this goal!"

Then, under Shinji's watching eyes, Netero said something to Mr. Beans, who had been silent the whole time next to them.

The latter nodded his head and returned to the airship.

The two of them stood quietly for a few moments until he saw Mr. Bean coming.

Behind him, a group of men are holding various things in their hands.

After they put the things away, only Netero, Shinji, and Mr. Bean remained.

"Master, what are these things?" Shinji asked curiously.

"These are all the things we need for your training." Netero answered Shinji, he removed the cover, revealing the equipment he talked about.

A set of cloths made from heavy materials, transparent boxes containing glasses of potions of different colors, a tent, dumbbells of different weights, a set of normal training cloths in black, cooking utensils, and various daily life things.

"I'll stay with you for three months, no more no less. the first month we will focus on tempering your body, the second month we will start the baptism, and I'll teach you the basics of nen, the third month will be a familiarization with nen battles." Netero looked at Shinji and said

"So you must seize every second!"

"Now go set up this tent."

Netero sat down on a chair lazily and ordered Shinji to set up the tent.

"Yes sir!" Like an obedient soldier, Shinji didn't hesitate to implement the order.

"Wait, wear these clothes first." Netero pointed to the heavy clothes.

"Ok!"

Shinji wanted to lift the clothes, but he almost fell on his face.

He looked at Netero and found the latter looking at him with a smile.

Shinji thought of something and asked curiously.

"Master, should I wear these heavy clothes all the time?"

Netero smiled and nodded his head, saying, "Right, you're obliged to wear them all the time, even while sleeping, the weight will increase the moment you adapt to it, this is the most efficient way to improve your overall physical capabilities in a short time."

"Now without wasting time, hurry up, you have thirty minutes to set up the tent, if you are late, you will be punished by having to run a lap around the island!"

"What! Are you crazy? a lap around this huge island?"

Netero didn't listen to Shinji's complaining and said with a kind smile, "Only twenty-nine minutes remain."

"Fine!" Shinji gritted his teeth and struggled to wear the heavy clothes. First, it was a tank-top piece that weighed 5 kg, then two arms that were each 2 kg heavy, then legs that were also 2 kg.

A total of 13 kg was added to his weight. Shinji feels as if his body is going to sink in the sand at any given moment, his fragile body is shaking from this load.

But even so, he walked with heavy and slow steps, took the tent, and started setting it up.

The process was as slow as a snail, but Shinji can't get any faster than this. He is racing to do the task before the countdown, or else he would have to run a lap around this island, which is simply a nightmare.

…

"Done!"

*bang*

Shinji fell heavily on the ground; his body was covered in sweat as if he had just come out of water, his legs and hands were shaking nonstop, a sense of powerlessness and tiredness enveloped him, he felt he couldn't move his body even an inch.

"Well, nearly twenty-eight minutes took you to do the task, it seems I underestimated your toughness, how about the next time I give you only twenty-nine minutes, and each day I'll decrease one minute, in this way you will be forced to surpass your limits, well, this is a good idea! right, Shinji-kun?" Netero stroked his beard and thought loudly. Shinji looked at Netero with fear on his face.

"Are you the devil or what? Do you want to kill your disciple?"

"I believe in you, so believe in yourself!" Netero gave Shinji a thumbs up and cheered for him.

"Now you rest for ten minutes, take these buckets and go find any source of clear water on this island and bring back water, you have three hours!"

"Remember the two buckets must be full, or you will redo the task!"

"Also, you can only transform into your leopard form in case you have to confront a beast or run away."

Netero sat lazily on the chair, enjoying a sun bath. I don't know when he got the sunglasses, and even his clothes were changed into beach shorts and a tank top. It seems as if he is on vacation and not to train Shinji.

"If you are late, you will run two laps around the island!"

Shinji, who was lying on the ground like a dead dog, almost fainted after hearing Netero's words. He wants to complain but he can only sigh; now he needs to rest well.

Ten minutes later, Shinji stood up, took the two big empty water buckets, and entered the jungle.

Looking at the dense trees and plants, Shinji walked casually, without fear of being suddenly attacked by beasts or monsters.

It should be said that since he verified his immortality, his courage grew; the only thing that may scare him now is facing an opponent stronger than him and getting imprisoned or sealed for a lifetime, or getting sliced by a crazy scientist.

But the disadvantage brought by this increase in courage also leads to the dropping of his guard, which is a fatal mistake for him. The instinct to survive is very important to keep on getting stronger.

"Damn, where can I find a water source on this vast island?" Shinji complained, He is walking with difficulty, and now he has to search for water, this task isn't easy at all.

Shinji can only rely on luck, he has zero experience in this kind of thing.

Choosing a random path, Shinji was walking for a while before he heard a noise coming from far away.

*bang*

*bang*

*bang*

*bang*

*bang*

The earth under him was shaking like an earthquake, and the trees around him swayed left and right.

"What the heck is happening?" Shinji managed to prevent himself from falling with difficulty.

He is curious—what is the source of this noise and what caused this earthquake?

As the saying goes, curiosity kills the cat, but even so, Shinji can't help but step forward.

Getting near the source of the sound, Shinji witnessed for the first time the meaning of "the law of the jungle"!

hundred meters in front of him, stood at least a ten-meter-tall black Gorilla full of explosive muscles; its huge fists kept on hammering the opponent.

The enemy of the giant Gorila was a huge brown turtle as big as Dinosaurs.

The turtle was hiding in its shell without moving.

The shell was extremely hard, only God knows how many times it got hammered by the gorila and still remained intact.

The gorila with red eyes kept on bombing the turtle nonstop like a machine.

This damned turtle came out of nowhere and swallowed his little gorilla, he must tear it apart and let it regret what it did!

Shinji looked at this scene with amazement, especially at the furious gorilla. He couldn't help but wonder why this gorilla is desperately hammering the "poor" giant turtle.

After all, in Shinji's cognition, turtles are kind creatures that only eat plants, and otherwise they are harmless. But this is in his previous world, in this world, everything is twisted!

*crack*

Suddenly, the scene in front of him changed.

The poor and weak giant turtle in the eyes of Shinji suddenly stretched its head out of the shell and snapped the gorilla's throat at a lightning-like speed.

Shinji even heard the broken neck bones of the gorilla from far away, that bite was so powerful that it almost tore the gorilla's entire head from its body.

The gorilla struggled hard but to no avail, slowly, his body became weak, and he slumped on the ground.

This plot twist left Shinji dumbfounded in his place.

Then the turtle showed Shinji another lesson, the strong eat the weak. It started biting the corpse of the gorila, and each bit took a lot of meat from his body.

"Aren't turtles herbivorous?"

Shinji shook his head and decided to change the road, this giant turtle is not something he can face now, he needs to find water, or else he will run two laps around the island.

Suddenly, Shinji stopped.

"Turtle…water…Damn! I almost missed this perfect guide!"

Shinji hid behind the tree and waited patiently for the turtle to finish eating.

A few minutes later, with a mouth full of blood, the turtle slowly turned around and walked away.

The speed at which the turtle eats is simply incredible, but its walking speed is so slow that Shinji didn't need to put in a lot of effort to follow it.

*bang**bang**bang*

Whenever the giant turtle takes a step, the ground will tremble from its heavy footsteps.

Weak and small beasts will run away the moment they see the giant turtle. Shinji even saw a giant long-armed bear who doesn't lose to the previous gorilla in height but didn't attack the passing turtle. Fortunately, it doesn't notice Shinji, an ant-like creature.

The speed of the turtles was so slow, Shinji doesn't know how long he had been following it; after such a long time he didn't see the shadow of water, and even the idea of giving up starts rising in his heart.

Suddenly, Shinji heard a familiar noise nearby.

"This is... the sound of water hitting the ground, it's a waterfall!"

Sure enough, after walking for a while, bypassing the tall grass and trees, they come to an open space.

What fell into his eyes was a view that can be described as mesmerizing.

a white, frothy cascade of water falling into a pool, slippery rocks, moss; lush grass, plants and flowers of various colors, butterflies and birds flying all over the place, animals drinking from the pool, fish swimming leisurely.

Shinji marveled at the beauty of nature. Smelling the water-saturated air and the fragrance of flowers, he felt refreshed and relaxed all of a sudden.

The arrival of the giant turtle didn't scare away the other animals, and no beast made a move, as if all of them had reached a tactical understanding: fighting is forbidden in this place!

"Should I wait until they leave or fill the buckets now?" Shinji looked at the two buckets of water in his hands and hesitated.

He doesn't want to get attacked by all these beasts, nor does he want to waste time.

Suddenly, Shinji's eyes lit up, and he got an idea.

He took the two empty buckets, transformed into his hybrid leopard form, then slowly walked toward the pool.

All the beasts stopped their drinking movements and turned their heads back, looking at Shinji.

Shinji stood in his place, ready to run away if they showed any aggressive reaction, but fortunately, although the animals were a little puzzled by his complicated smell, their little intelligence made them immediately ignore this complicated problem, and moreover, they can smell the scent of beasts similar to them on Shinji, which is enough to prove he is a friend, not those monkey-like monsters who killed a lot of their race and kidnapped their relatives years ago.

The monkey-like monsters in the minds of these beasts refer to humans who discovered the giants island years ago, before the V5 and Hunter associations intervened. The creatures on this island were either hunted and sold in the black market, or sliced by scientists who wanted to uncover the secret of their size. Their hatred toward humans is engraved in their blood.

Seeing the beasts resume their action, Shinji was relieved, so he walked toward the pool and started filling the buckets.

…

At the coast, Netero was lying leisurely and comfortably, reading an erotica magazine, besides him was a table with an orange juice on top of it.

"I didn't expect he would finish the task before the time limit I gave, almost two hours had passed, it seems I underestimated his strength, well, next time I should be more strict!"

With his monstrous perception, he already sensed the coming Shinji.

Soon, Shinji appeared on the coast in his human form, he was holding the two heavy water buckets in his hands.

In order to not spill a lot of water he walked slowly and steady, that why he wasted a lot of time, and when he encounters attacks from animals, he put them and then transform into half leopard to kill them, in order to protect the buckets from being destroyed by the aftermath, he let the black ghost guard them, as for why he didn't put it in the pocket dimension, because it won't be called a training if he cheated.

And like this, he managed to complete the task.

"Good job, Shinji-kun." Netero looked at the two buckets full of clear water and praised Shinji.

"Now you have thirty minutes of rest; after that, you have to bring firewood and hunt something to cook for dinner, this is your last task!"

Hearing Netero's words, Shinji wants to complain: "Are you sure you brought me here to train or to be your nanny?"

Seeing the clear dissatisfaction on Shinji's face, Netero chuckled.

"Do you have any objections, Shinji-kun?"

Shinji lying on the ground said politely : "sensei I don't have any objection it just… I hope we start the training soon and not do these housework-like tasks."

"Oh, it turns out like this, haven't you noticed yet?"

"We have already started the training, Shinji-kun." Netero smiled and comforted Shinji.

"Huh? If you mean wearing these heavy, weighted clothes, I don't think this is enough." Shinji seemed to guess what Netero was referring to, but Netero shook his head.

"It's true the heavy load on you is the core of this training, but the two tasks I gave you, the first to set up the tent in a limited time, its objective is to let your body adapt to the new weight."

"the second one is to combine various trainings, such as walking a long distance, running in case you faced beasts, or even fighting, and improving the body balance so to not waste water, and many more, as long as you become able to do these things with the heavy load on you then slowly your body will get stronger."

"In this way, your body will be forced to adapt to the heavy weight in order to survive, so just follow my instructions, I promise you the results won't disappoint you!" Netero, after finishing these words, resumed reading the magazine.

Shinji's mood was also improved after getting Netero's explanation, now he had no complaint toward these seemingly ordinary tasks, and he said to himself that he should just listen to Netero's words and not think too much.

After a rest, Shinji dragged his tired body, holding an axe in his hand, into the forest, where his figure was covered by the tall grass and huge trees.

…

Three hours later, the sunset is nearing, and Shinji, who went to hunt and collect firewood, finally came back.

He was dragging behind him a fat round wild pig, and on his back was the firewood he collected; he tied them together so he could carry them easily.

The reason why he took so long is because he didn't find a suitable small beast, although relying on some tricks and his leopard devil fruit, paralyzed scream and his other abilities he can kill some of those big monsters, but he can't bring them back unless he used his pocket dimension.

Netero, who was sleeping soundly, woke up, stretched, and yawned lazily.

"Well, you spent three hours and ten minutes, so you will get twenty minutes of rest; after that, you have to prepare our dinner yourself."

Shinji slumped on the ground weakly; his energy was all consumed this day, and to be able to stand up this whole time was in itself a miracle.

He cherished this little bit of rest time he got, closed his eyes, emptied his brain of the negative thoughts, and kept encouraging himself.

"It's all to get stronger; to get Menchi! for a better life!"

With these positive ideas and emotions, Shinji entered a magical state of mind.

In this state, shinji felt an endless comfort; all his pain and tiredness were little by little removed, as if he were being embraced by his mother. He worried about nothing, did nothing, just receiving the endless love of mother nature.

"Huh?" Netero noticed something; he removed the sunglasses and condensed aura in his eyes.

He saw the aura that was leaking out of Shinji's body start returning inside.

'Hoho! His body is instinctively learning Zetsu to heal itself and relieve fatigue. It seems my judgment wasn't wrong, this boy is a monster!"

Netero took something from his pocket.

"Beans-san, bring me that thing in the airship." Netero ordered Mr. Beans through the walkie-talkie.

"Yes, sir, I'll send it to you immediately." Mr. Beans replied instantly.

A few moments later, a man in a black suit was holding a huge cauldron on his head. This cauldron was as big as a normal car, it looked very heavy, but the man seemed to carry it effortlessly.

*bang*

The heavy cauldron weight made it produce this impact noise even if the man placed it carefully and slowly.

"Sir, is there anything else I can help with?" The man in the black suit bowed slightly and respectfully to Netero and asked.

"Thank you for your hard work, you can go back." Netero shook his head and sent the man back.

The man saluted Netero, then went back to the airship.

Netero stood up, went to the huge cauldron, and lifted it with one hand easily.

He walked toward the sea, filled the cauldron with sea water, and returned to the base, still lifting the water-filled, heavy cauldron with one hand!

"Done." Netero patted his hands and sat on his chair, waiting for Shinji to wake up.

One hour later

Shinji, who was in half-sleep, opened his eyes and stood up nervously. He forgot that he still had one final task, which is to cook dinner, and instead he slept!

"Are you finally willing to wake up?"

Netero's voice reached his ears, and Shinji followed the sound and looked at Netero.

Netero was sitting in front of a bonfire roasting the pig's meat.

"I'm sorry, master, I accidentally slept, I couldn't control myself."

Shinji hurried to apologize, he was really tired and couldn't resist the temptation of sleep.

Netero waved his hands and said, "Forget it, now the important thing is to replenish your energy, so hurry up, come, and eat."

"Okay!" Shinji's saliva already overflowed, his stomach had been protesting the whole day, now he can't wait to eat quickly and fill his hunger.

"Itadakimass!"

Shinji bit the roasted pig like a savage man without caring about his appearance.

While eating, Shinji pointed at the conspicuous huge cauldron and asked Netero: "Master, what is that?"

Netero replied casually, "It's just a big cauldron."

"I know it's a cauldron, but why is it here? Are we going to use it to cook? But isn't it too big?"

"We won't use it to cook, it's specifically prepared for you."

Shinji pointed at himself and asked with surprise, "For me?"

Then he said with shock, "don't tell me…you want to cook me?"

"Don't worry, I'm not interested in Your flesh that is as thin as a paper."

He added, "This cauldron will be used to hold the specially prepared potions that will heal and temper your body, each day before you sleep, you will have to soak in it!"

"Will it be put on fire? Don't tell me I'll be inside that thing while it's boiling?" Shinji looked at Netero and asked.

"Don't worry, I'll ensure the temperature is at the right degree."

Netero patted his chest and replied with a confident smile.

Then under Shinji's eyes, Netero took the huge, heavy cauldron, put it on top of the fire, and then he took a glass full of a blood-like red potion and poured it in the cauldron.

The water turned red, then Netero closed the lid, waited until the temperature reached the requested degree, looked at Shinji, and said:

"Take your clothes off, and when I open the lid, you must hurry and jump in it, then I'll close the cauldron."

The reason why he said this was due to the fact that if the lid remained open for a long time, the potion would escape through the vapor, which would reduce its effect by a huge margin.

Netero doesn't need to worry that Shinji will be suffocated inside because the water inside the cauldron didn't reach the lid and Shinji had enough space to breathe.

"Remember, the longer you persist, the better. If you stayed for five minutes, it will be the best. The potion I used will help you stimulate your potential and temper your body. Be sure to treasure this opportunity! If you're afraid of this mere pain, then I can only say I was wrong in judging you!"

Netero looked at Shinji and said for the first time in a serious tone, using the power of his words to stimulate Shinji.

Shinji ignored Netero's provoking words and directly took off the clothes, leaving only a pair of sports underwear—just joking! how can he be afraid of pain? He, Shinji Kuroda, swore to break his virginity in this world! ahem, maybe I said something that shouldn't be said, anyway, he swore to reach the top of the food chain! how can he not endure this simple pain?

"At my count, 3..2..1...NOW!" Netero opened the cauldron and ordered Shinji to jump in.

"Bring it on!" Shinji roared furiously and jumped like a leopard inside the cauldron.

*splash*

*bang*

The moment Shinji entered the cauldron, Netero instantaneously closed the lid.

…

Inside the huge cauldron, the mysterious red liquid bubbled and churned, steam filled the area without water.

"Ahh! Damn! so hot!" The moment his body entered the boiled water, he felt a burning sensation all over the place.

The heat was intense, and the air was thick with the smell of the potion. Shinji felt as if he were being cooked alive. He could feel the heat searing his skin, and he could feel the potion's effects coursing through his veins.

Shinji hurried and swam to the water-free area on the top of the cauldron, he breathed in the water vapor, his face was red; his eyes were closed tightly to prevent burning them.

After a while, Shinji starts adapting to the temperature. The potion strangely became soothing, even though the water was hot, he felt a weird coldness on his skin and inside his body, and Shinji felt his fatigue and pain start to melt away.

Slowly he starts to lose the sense of time, and he entered again that magical state!

He stayed in the cauldron for what felt like an eternity, until a voice echoed in the cauldron.

"Shinji-kun, it's time to come out."

…

Outside, Netero was looking at the boy inside the cauldron with surprise and satisfaction.

"I really underestimated him! His adaptability is very strong! At least half an hour had passed!

Netero clearly knows that normal people can't endure a normal pot of boiling water, not to mention if it was mixed with this secret red potion. The degree of pain coming from the mixture of the two is something scary, yet Shinji was able to remain in it for half an hour!

"Let's wake him up. At most twenty minutes is more than enough for the body to absorb all the benefits of the potion, so it's meaningless if he stayed more."

The voice of Netero pulled Shinji out of the weird state, where he forgot time and space, where he even forgot himself if he existed, and that wonderful phenomenon is what let him ignore the burning pain!

He doesn't know what it is nor how to use it, but he is sure it exists, he just needs to find out how to trigger it. He already had a guess: maybe reaching exhaustion or extreme calmness is the trigger.

Shinji jumped out of the cauldron, he became like a red tomato.

Feeling the cold wind touch his skin, Shinji quickly wore his clothes.

"How do you feel, Shinji-kun?" Netero glanced at Shinji and asked with a smile.

"I feel…" Shinji put his hand below his chin and thought before he said,

"Comfortable... as if I received an all-around body massage!"

Netero laughed and said, "Good, then that's it for today, you can go to sleep, we will continue the training tomorrow."

"Yes! Finally, I can sleep!" Tears of happiness almost came from his eyes, how much he wants to lay on the ground and enjoy a few hours of sleep.

"But you have to go to sleep with the loads on you." Netero added with a "kind" smile.

Looking at the smiling devil in front of him, Shinji wants to cry.

"AKUMA!!!!"