As the referee signals the start of the fight, Hisoka wastes no time and launches himself at Kai with blinding speed, the card sharpened with Shu in his hand already in play. Kai dodges the initial attack, feeling the edge of the card cutting through the air at his side as he prepares to counterattack.
Kai responds with a flurry of slashes, using his sword covered in Shu to try to cut Hisoka down, but he counters his onslaught strike for strike with his cards covered in Shu in each hand. The arena echoes with the sounds of their clashes, with Kai pushing Hisoka attention and efforts to his limits thanks to his superior weapon.
In a side cut, Kai takes the opportunity to unexpectedly attack Hisoka with his Barrier orb formed into a giant fist, and Hisoka quickly dodges it by jumping upwards, taking the opportunity to throw his sharp cards at Kai, who also dodges them by jumping in the air.
'It seems he intends to outwit me in physical confrontation by using a sword, as in our last encounter, in conjunction with the use of his Hatsu ability. I'd better snatch it from him and keep my distance to incapacitate him with a trap.' Hisoka thinks preparing to fire his Bungee Gum at Kai, who stands in the air on a Nen platform.
However, alerted by seeing Kai static in the air without trying to chase him, Hisoka also quickly runs to the side and narrowly dodges several dust explosions on the floor. Alerted by this sudden event, Hisoka uses Gyo and quickly realizes that there is an aura sphere that fires projectiles like a machine gun above Kai's head, so using the contraction of his ability, Hisoka propels himself so he can catch Kai in the air.
Kai reacts in time and quickly jumps through the air on his Barrier Orb to try and slash Hisoka from behind, but Hisoka again uses a strand of his Bungee Gum to move aside and dodge. With both of his attacks having failed, the two fighters land on the ring.
'I almost caught him with my Barrage Orb, but he noticed I didn't try to chase him. That ability to react to even the smallest out-of-place details is what makes him such a lethal fighter.' Kai thinks.
"I must admit I'm surprised you can fire your aura with that much power. You almost got me with that. If it's not a problem for you, could you tell me what your Nen class is?" Hisoka asks in guard.
"Oh? Can't you guess it with that personality analysis of yours or whatever? And besides, what do you expect to gain by knowing my Nen category? That won't help you get past my abilities." Kai asks also in guard, and checking his body and surroundings with Gyo to make sure Hisoka hasn't set any traps.
Hisoka lets out a chuckle before answering. "I'm just asking out of curiosity. I originally assumed you were either an Enhancer or a Specialist, but throughout your battles in the Heavens Arena, you've shown incredible skill in Transmutation and Enhancement, and now you can even fire an aura with enough force to shatter the ground. So you must be either an Enhancer, Emitter, or Transmuter like me. I simply want to know which of the three you are.
"Yeah. Sorry, but I'm not interested in telling you anything about my private life." Kai says, looking somewhat annoyed.
"Don't be so surly. Maintaining a conversation to establish a connection with your opponent is part of the beauty of... FIGHTING!!!" Hisoka shouts as he assaults Kai with his arms covered in Bungee Gum.
Kai wastes no time and stops one punch with his Barrier Orb, but Hisoka uses his other free hand to attach his aura to one of the ring's flagstones and swing it at Kai.
Kai uses his Barrage Orb to blast the flying flagstone into pieces, and as a cloud of dust and debris forms, he activates his En at a diameter of 3 meters, noticing that Hisoka has moved behind him to try to attack him with his Bungee Gum. At this, Kai tries to swing his sword to cut him, but upon noticing that Kai notices him, Hisoka stretches his Bungee Gum back, shrinking it to narrowly dodge the attack and go out to stick to one of the walls of the stands.
'Incredible. He's even learned to use a technique as difficult as En. I'm amazed at how much he's grown in just 6 months of training. Every time I try something, he has a countermeasure ready. And he saved it all for me.' Hisoka thinks in delight as Kai launches himself into the air and fires more aura projectiles at him.
'I was right to let him go. I'm so happy right now. More. I want to see more. I want to taste all the power hidden within him.' He thinks walking along the wall as Kai continues shooting at him with his Barrage Orb before deciding to jump into the crowd, forcing Kai to stop. 'Just like I suspected. Let's see if yor´re as delicious as I think you are.'
'Getting involved with the public, he prevents me from attacking him from the distance, and if I decide to approach to confront him on his turf, I won't be able to swing my sword without putting people at risk, so I can only opt for normal physical combat. But that's okay.' Kai thinks landing in the stands too and going after Hisoka.
'I knew this fight would come sooner or later, so I have prepared several strategies to confront him.'
He was set to face Hisoka, a notorious and formidable fighter known for his sadistic love of battle and carnage, so of course he wasn't going to take risks, and covering his feet and fist with his Barrier Orb, he starts launching an array of punches and kicks at Hisoka, who counters them with his own brutal attacks.
The exchange of blows continues for a while, with Hisoka starting to run through the crowded hallways in an attempt to gain distance while Kai persistently pursues him and continues his assault.
During this chase, Hisoka throws his cards at Kai, who blocks them with his barrier instead of dodging them, and seeing Kai's reaction, Hisoka quickly moves to an unprotected side and launches several Bungee Gum strands from his fingertips towards him.
Kai manages to doge them, but the strands weren't really directed to him, but to the people behind him, and with a strong swing Hisoka lifts five spectators from the audience and with a malicious smile throws them into the air out of the stands.
Alarmed by this, Kai instantly jumps in their direction, using his Barrier Orb to try to grab them and bring them to safety. Meanwhile, utilizing his Bungee Gum's capabilities, Hisoka also propels himself in the same direction to try to deliver a decisive blow to Kai with his sharppened card, and although Kai gets to avoid a lethal blow, Hisoka still manages to land a big cut on Kai's chest.
'Kai!' Ponzu suddenly thinks shocked and scared at seeing the blood blast from Kai's chest as he lands in the ring with the people safe despite his serious injury.
"Are you okay? Did you suffer any injuries during the shaking?" Kai asks the group.
"We're fine, thanks to you coming to our aid." One of them says.
"I really thought I was dead right then, but it seems you got the worst of it in the end." Another one adds with a worried look.
"You mean this? Don't worry, it's just a superficial cut. If you're truly unharmed, get out of the ring right now. You can leave the stadium if you're afraid. This might happen again." Kai warns.
"Leaving the stadium? That's out of the question!" The first one says.
"You saved our lives, so we'll stay to cheer you on and watch you defeat that bastard! Go for it, Kai-sama!" Another in the group (a woman) adds.
As the group confirms their loyalty to Kai in this fight, he narrowly blocks Hisoka's flying cards with his barrier, turning around to watch him grinning at the other end of the ring as the five spectators quickly flee the ring.
"This brings back memories of our last confrontation. Do you remember it? That time I left you with a wound exactly like that, and it was for exactly the same reason: you were protecting someone else." Hisoka says remiscinding the past.
"Yes, but that time your target wasn't me, and you attacked me head-on, not using other people to try to catch me by surprise. What's wrong, Hisoka? Since you can't beat me alone, you're now seeking the help of the public to defeat me? It's a bit of a disappointment after agreeing to a one-on-one fight. Don't you all think so?!" Kai asks loudly despite the pain, mocking Hisoka and exalting the audience.
"I think you've misunderstood it. The public isn't helping me; I'm using them as fighting tools, just like my cards and the ring flagstones. The real question here would be why do you bother doing something so pointless like protecting people you don't know? I don't understand it." Hisoka asks, trying to understand this behavior that directly conflicts with his self-indulgent way of thinking.
"Isn't it natural to help saving people if you can? After all, all lives matter." Kai states as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, leaving Hisoka and the rest of the stadium stunned with his statement.
Kai had certainly always been guided by higher values and moral principles than the rest of the Hunter x Hunter world due to both his previous life on Earth and his upbringing and teachings on Gu Island.
This didn't mean that he wasn't willing to commit evil deeds or kill people, as he's not a complete fool and in this world having a flexible morality is something that has been proven numerous times to be necessary, but as long as it wasn't a threat to the things important to him like his friends or goals, or was completely against his personal principles, he would do what he could to help and save people, even if they weren't well-known characters from the original work.
At Kai's declaration, among the crowd in the stands, Nicholas begins to recall the first time he met Kai. Back then, he was an arrogant and pretentious boy who believed everything in life would come easily to him, until he had to take the Hunter Exam and realized how pitiful and insignificant he really was.
But when he was at his lowest point and about to break, Kai came to help him, despite not knowing him at all. At first, he was frightened by Kai's straightforward, nonsensical way of acting: going out of his way to help complete strangers, issuing warnings and death threats as if it were no big deal, and even killing someone in cold blood.
Yet he also admired Kai's strength and intellect, as if he were someone who truly had the potential to reach the top and was worth following as a superior. As time passed, he saw how his acts of kindness, altruism, and willpower took shape in helping others and himself advance, and once Kai helped him overcome the limits the world had placed on him using his Development Orb, Nicholas understood the truth:
Kai wasn't just destined for greatness; he is the light that lights the path to a new bright future for everyone he meets, and this new potential he had bestowed him was not to seek his own fame and success, but to serve and help this chosen one of destiny achieve everything he set out to do and more. Faced with these memories, Nicholas clenches his fists as tears begin to slide down his face as he watches Kai and reaffirms his conviction to follow him.
Likewise, Ponzu at his side becomes somewhat uneasy and blushes as she remembers how Kai had selflessly risked himself to save her too when they met Hisoka on Zevil Island despite hardly knowing each other, and how Kai had been helping her ever since to get to where she is now.
At the time she didn't realize it, but now she sees that the moment Kai shouted that she was someone special to him while giving his all to stop Hisoka from chasing her was the exact same moment she fell in love with him, and now that they had officially become a couple, she was happier than ever to be with someone as wonderful as him.
Meanwhile, in the ring, Hisoka puts his hand over his eyes and begins to chuckle for a while, surprising everyone watching him except Kai. When he stops laughing, he runs his hand back through his hair and stares hungrily at Kai.
"That was truly funny to hear. Though I suppose it's something to be expected coming from you. You've got spirit, Kai, but is it enough to save you and the rest of the audience?" Hisoka says, his voice filled with dark amusement as he prepares his Bungee Gum.
"If you really want to find out, then stop talking and come for me." Kai states covering his fists and feet in his Barrier Orb, and in the next second, both fighters close the distance with a burst of speed to start fighting again.
Once the physical confrontation resumes, Kai starts launching a barrage of strikes at Hisoka, each one aimed at exploiting perceived weaknesses in his defense, but Hisoka parries and counters with his own, their movements becoming a blur of speed and power. However, despite blocking them, Hisoka notices how Kai's incredibly strong strikes are gradually accumulating damage on his body, forcing the magician to try dodging most of Kai's attacks.
In the same way, Hisoka's Bungee Gum is a constant threat, and Kai has to stay on his toes to avoid being ensnared o tricked by it or Texture Surprise, using his Nen ability creatively to reinforce his body and alter its shape to keep Hisoka at bay.
Furthermore, knowing his inclinations, Hisoka begins to launch himself more and more frequently into the stands to try to attack the audience or use them as melee weapons in conjunction with his Bungee Gum, forcing Kai to immediately chase him down to block his attempts and force him back into the ring.
But Hisoka is relentless, his excited grin widening with each exchange and attempt as Kai accumulates wounds from his blows and the cards that get stuck in his body when he tries to defend the spectators. Even so, the spectators don't move from their seats to flee the stadium, motivated by a still self-unnoticed faith in Kai to continue watching the fight and start cheering for Kai more and more than Hisoka.
The fight reaches a fever pitch when Kai uses "Rhythm Echo" to quickly surround Hisoka with his afterimage clones and assault him from all directions at once. Obviously, with his heightened senses and combat instincts, Hisoka distinguishes the real Kai among the fake ones behind him and prepares to throw a punch with all his might to his chin.
However, knowing beforehand that this technique would not bypass the guard of someone of Hisoka's caliber, Kai is prepared beforehand to move out of the way of his attack, managing to grab the punching arm and landing a critical hit with his left elbow against Hisoka's face that sends him flying beyong the arena floor to crash in one of the walls.
The crowd erupts in cheers at this achievement, but Kai knows better than to let his guard down, and activating his Gyo to check the surroundings he observes Hisoka rise to his feet, wiping blood from his mouth and nose with a dark and twisted smile.
"Pretty impressive, Kai! I knew it was worth waiting for you! You've got incredible potential! But... potential isn't enough to defeat me!" Hisoka taunts, his eyes gleaming with malice as he flares his aura and unleashes his Ren at full power.
The intensity and malevolance of his Ren is overwhelming, and Kai feels the weight of Hisoka's killing intent bearing down on him. Still, Kai refuses to back down, and focusing on his own Nen, he also flares his Ren to withstand the pressure.
As both fighters prepare to continue, among the audience, agitated by the fight's progress, Wing is staring intently at the ring, gritting his teeth and with a serious but trembling look.
'It's incredible. Since the fight started, I've been witnessing Kai displaying a variety of skills I'd never seen him use before, either in Heavens Aren or in his fights against me. It means that even though he's a rookie with less than 6 months of training and I'm a veteran who has grown even stronger thansk to recent training, I wasn't up to the task of forcing him to give his all against me. That makes me wonder... How many more abilities does he still have hidden?' Wing thinks to himself as he experiences an emotion he hasn't felt in quite some time: Frustration.