I’ve said in the past that both Gon and Killua have their moments (and that “ripple” moment was one, for both) where they reveal themselves to be the fragile children they still are. This is a ripple radiating outwards from the moment Gon said those cruel words to Killua – a moment, it seems, that will make its effects felt in many ways subtle and gross, for a long time to come. But for Ikalgo a major problem remains – he knows now that “Hagya” (which Borovda himself uses to refer to Leol after he blasts Flutter to scraps) is wrong, but not what the new name is.Īs Killua silently (that silence is quite conspicuously showcased) strides towards Youpi he tells him “Sorry, but what’s about to happen is just me blowing off some steam.” As much of a badass as Killua is I wonder if he’s taking Youpi too lightly here, but given than Knuckle was able (thanks to Kil) to land eight blows, Youpi should be in dire straits indeed at the moment.
He does “kill” Flutter, not realizing the real turncoat remains behind – and Borovoda seems to have made a huge mistake in descending Bizeff’s elevator without knowing about the passcode system. The more immediate problem is Brovoda, who unwittingly tips off Ikalgo to the mistake he’s made because he assumes it doesn’t matter, as he’s about to kill Flutter anyway.
The quest for Palm nets nothing more than a message from Palm ( written in Nen) that confirms she’s fled Area B and headed for the palace – the most-expected result, but not what Ikalgo was expecting to see. Ikalgo has no way to know where he slipped up, so he’s really flying blind here. Ikalgo continues his quest to locate Palm, and Brovoda has followed him to the basement to confirm his suspicions. On the other side we have Ikalgo and Knuckle, who’re so alike in many ways – so human despite the fact that one of them isn’t actually a human. What goes around comes around, and old themes repeat themselves. Still – one could argue that it was Youpi’s inexperience in deception that allowed him to be deceived in the act of deceiving – and it’s impossible not to think all the way back to the Hunter exam, when Gon (still new at all this himself back then) was ambushed while in the act of ambushing Hisoka. I thought to myself that the fact that he was so new at this subterfuge business might be his undoing, but I’m not sure anyone could have anticipated the attack that thwarted his plan. But here he recognizes an opportunity that requires a skill that’s completely different than his usual repertoire, and he actually pulls it off brilliantly. Youpi has always been the most direct of the Royal Guard, never asking too many questions and intentionally avoiding overthinking. Could any human go from being controlled by their own rage to controlling it for purposes of deception as quickly as Youpi has? Of course not. What did this episode tell us about Youpi? Well, for starters I have to give him credit for adapting with incredible speed – obviously a frightening hallmark of his species.