Author's Note: That awkward realization when you're barely 17 years old and everyone is expecting you to have all your college shit planned out already yet here you are posting fanfiction... 0_0

Anyways, hey guys! It's been a while, huh? Hope most of you have been doing well! I finally decided to stop procrastinating and got this chapter out so please enjoy!

Hell's Playground, otherwise known as the Red-light District, was where the young silver-haired boy found himself in. It was well past midnight, and bright red and neon lights illuminated the area as plenty of adults were going about their nightly business.

The area itself was known for, other than the obvious, its many underground dealings that either the heroes or the police manage to overlook. Things like drug dealings, small-time theft, or illegal use of quirks were one of many crimes that frequently took place in the darker side of the city. And this also happened to be an area where Killua could find a certain information broker.

This world may have had heroes, but it didn't mean shady people with good intel on the place were suddenly nonexistent. And underground fighting rings, assassination, or other modes of money making (illegal or not) was what Killua was after.

In the heart of Tranto* Ward Killua approached what looked to be a bar. This was where he was told the person would be. Reading the sign out front, he couldn't help but snort at the name as he entered the building.

"The Midnight Siren."

It was kinda tacky if you asked him.

A few minutes before...

"Oww! Dammit Zero! What part of 'be gentle' do you not understand!?"

Inside an empty bar sat a blonde man who, at the moment, was dealing with a couple of arm injuries.

"Well, I'm sorry! But how else am I supposed to treat your gunshot wounds?" A dark-haired man with glasses replied back as he was dressing the other man's injuries. "And seriously, a bullet in each arm! I mean, how did that even happen!?"

Hearing that comment, Rei had never felt more bitter.

"I don't know Zero, why don't you ask yourself that same question since you were the one holding the damn gun in the first place!" The man needed a drink. Badly.

Zero felt himself recoil at his sarcastic reply. "In my defense, I was aiming for the other guy..."

All he received was a glare in response to that.

"Oh for god's sake, are you two almost done here? I'm not exactly paying you to sit on your asses and whine till your teeth fall out. ."

The two men looked in the direction where the older voice came from. Behind the bar counter was Aoki Tsuru*, a gray-haired woman in her mid-sixties taking a sip from the glass of bourbon being held in her hand.

"You know, you could show a little more concern." Although Rei completely doubts that she will.

"And you could show a little more responsibility," the old woman bites back. "You're the one who needs both arms to do his job, after all." Taking another sip of her drink, she laments, "Though it's not like you were any good at it in the first place."

Rei rolled his eyes at the harsh remark. "Nice to see you're still the same even as I'm bleeding to death."

"Oh keep your comments to yourself, Mister."

Finishing up his treatment, subpar as it was, Zero spoke up. "Okay, before you two start throwing insults at each other, can we talk about who's gonna take over Rei's shifts?" Gesturing to his colleague, he continues, "He's not exactly in the best condition to act as an agent right now."

"And who's fault is that?"

"Oh for the love of- I'm sorry, okay! I've never exactly handled a gun before today."

"What's the point of keeping a gun under the counter when you don't even know how to use it!"

"I...don't know. I went this long without ever having to use it so I thought that maybe-" Zero would've continued trying to defend himself, but the glare he was receiving from his colleague made him fall silent.

Watching the two men finish bickering at each other, the old woman sighed as she swirled the drink in her hand. Listening to the satisfying sound of ice clinking together in the glass cup, Tsuru turned her head towards the doorway where her eyes were met with a young boy.

Upon entering the building, Killua was met with a rather sophisticated looking bar. The floors and walls were lined with wood. Across the ceiling were low hanging lamps that gave the surrounding room an almost ethereal golden glow. Various tables big enough to seat two to three people were placed on the outer edges of the bar. And in the center was the long island countertop where the supply of alcohol was put on display.

Though what caught Killua's eyes in particular were the three individuals seated by the counter. Two men wearing a bartender's uniform, one of which was bleeding a lot, and a middle-aged woman. From what he had gathered, alongside the fact that the place looked close for the night and that she was the only woman in the bar, Killua could safely assume that she was the owner of the place, and hence the one who he was looking for.

Walking up to them, the silverette was about to speak. Too bad the old woman beat him to it.

With a level of vexation that even he hasn't felt in a while, she shamelessly voiced her thoughts aloud. "I swear to god, if this child claims one of you two to be his father, I might literally commit murder." She could already feel a migraine coming.

The three males staggered as they heard her statement.

The hell's up with this old hag! Killua wasn't entirely sure what reaction he was expecting to see (he's a fourteen year-old kid inside a bar for fuck's sake) but this- this wasn't it.

Zero was the first one to voice out his objection. "Wha-No! Of course he's not! He doesn't even look like either of us! Right, Rei?"

"Oh, don't bring me into this. You know I don't exactly swing that way."

The dark-haired man looked at him in disbelief, then sighed.

Deciding that he's heard enough, the blue-eyed boy composed his otherwise unsettled expression and spoke up for the first time since entering the building. "I'm here because I need to make money. And I was told that a woman named Tsuru knew a couple of ways to help me with that." He was casual, but straight to the point.

Upon hearing that, Tsuru's expression hardens, boring her sky blue eyes into his slightly darker ones.

"And might I ask from whom did you get this information from?" Her voice was sharp, but Killua wasn't easily intimidated.

"People tend to talk." Not really, but the guy he "interrogated" sure did.

Not believing him in the slightest, the old woman studied the young boy. He didn't seem too bothered being in the bar and he held a confident aura around him. He talked as if what they were discussing was normal, but what really grabbed her attention was how he managed to find out about her. Tsuru was a well-informed woman who knew many secrets that goes on in the underworld, so someone like her finds it necessary to keep a relatively low profile. Not many knew of her and those that did were tight-lipped. She made sure of it. 'So just who in the hell was this kid...'

Continuing the conversation, she asked, "So what do you want to know in particular?"

"Are there any underground fighting arenas in this area?"

So the little brat knows how to fight. Her mind couldn't help but make the observation. "There are," she said, watching his eyes lit up in the slightest, "but if a runaway like you is looking to make a living, don't bother."

Killua raised a brow at that. Looking at his nails (did that not hurt him?), Rei was the one to elaborate. "What she means is that the most you'll get is chump change for each fight."

That...was disappointing to hear.

Looking towards the blond man-he looks foreign- Killua asked, "Why is that?"

Tsuru was the one to answer this time. "Why else? Tranto Ward is a hot spot for sex-oriented businesses, bars, and drug deals. Most people would rather waste their small paychecks getting laid, drunk, high or all of the above than watch mediocre fights."

That was a fair point. But Killua wasn't convinced yet.

"You say that as if Tranto Ward is the only place where illegal fights occur? Aren't there other cities where the prize money is worth it."

The old woman sighed. Her glass was starting to empty. "You know, for someone who just showed up in my bar, you have quite the list of questions, and with no money to compensate me."

Killua frowned. He was hoping to get a little more info from her. But unfortunately, nothing in life comes for free. Killua saw sound reasoning in that thought, but there was a small prickle in the back of his mind that didn't go away. Why do I get the feeling that she's avoiding the question? He didn't think an answer to that would warrant a lot of information, much less sensitive ones. So why?

The young hunter let out a small sigh. He needed intel but he was really hoping to not resort to drastic measures again (I mean, how else did he find out about her). But before Killua could so much as twitch, he was met with a gun* aiming right towards his head.

For as long as she could remember, Tsuru has worked in the underworld and forged connections with individuals that many policemen could never hope to capture. She's dealt with countless deadly people over the years and has developed the instinct to recognize even the slightest hint of hostile intent. So it comes with no surprise when she instantaneously points the gun towards the fourteen year-old boy in front of her.

"Don't move," she demands. Her eyes narrowed with caution.

"What! Tsuru, what the hell are you thinking!"

"Yeah! He's just a kid!"

Ignoring the two men's opposition towards their employer's actions, Killua eyed the gun she had in her hand. Noticing that there was a laser, he followed its trail to what he could only assume to be his forehead. He whistled in amusement. He'll admit he was a little surprised. For one, he didn't expect her to pull a gun on a kid and two, for a normal person, she was a quick draw. But even so...

"Bullets won't work on me," was all he said.

Rei and Zero looked relieved . He must have had a defensive quirk, they thought.

"Really now?" Tsuru wasn't convinced, "Well, why don't I try it out then..."

And without a moment of hesitation, the trigger was pulled. Her employees flinched at the noise, but Tsuru never took her eyes off the blue-eyed boy. And, suffice to say, she was impressed. There he stood, completely fine and with some smoke coming out of his hand.

Dropping the bullet onto the ground, he gave the old broad an unamused look. "Told you so."

"What the f-" Zero didn't know what to say. He'd never met anyone fast enough to actually catch a bullet. He cast a glance over to Rei, and going by his reaction, he knew they were both thinking the same thing. Unbeknownst to anyone though, the blonde was a little jealous of whatever quirk the young boy had. Just a little.

"Do you shoot every kid you meet?"

"No, not necessarily. Plus, I wanted to test whether or not your little statement was true." She lowered the gun, but never let her guard down. He's a strong one.

Suddenly, the grey-haired woman was hit with an idea and she couldn't help the small, callous smirk making its way onto her face.

"Say, apart from that little display of yours, just how proficient are you when it comes to fighting?" she questioned the boy, eyeing him up and down.

All three males threw her a wary look; Killua more so out of suspicion than Rei and Zero, who were only concerned.

"Why is that relevant?"

"Because I have a job opening." From the glint in her eyes, the two men didn't like where this was going. Killua, however, looked interested.

"She can't actually be thinking about it, right?" Zero muttered to his colleague.

"With her, I don't know anymore..." replied the blonde.

"So what's the proposal?"

The young boy watched as she placed a hand on her hip. "As you know, society has become saturated with the notion of heroism and its proponents of justice. Good guys defeat the villains, save the civilians, receive rewards, you get the whole spiel."

He did, but Killua couldn't help but wonder where she was going with this.

"However, what happens when neither the heroes or the authorities are able to capture said villains? After all, they come in all kinds of shapes and sizes. They can't possibly catch them all. That's where I come in."

Ah. Now he was beginning to understand what her intentions were. Putting both hands into his pockets, he glanced around the place. "So I'm guessing this bar acts as a front to conceal your-"

"-clandestine assignments. Precisely correct," she finished for him.

In other words, they were what you would call modern-day bounty hunters. Many may not know it but even criminal syndicates like the yakuza want unhinged murderers, rapists, and thieves off their territory, if not for business then for reputation.* Though, there were others who were wanted for slight.

So like the opportunist she was, Aoki Tsuru took advantage of her connections in the underworld and hired capable individuals to capture wanted criminals in exchange for payment. Whoever was the highest bidder got to execute the person themselves (if they wanted to).

It was dirty business. Almost as dirty as assassination, Killua mused. Though, he wasn't sure if he should take the offer. The only comfort he could find was knowing that his targets mainly consisted of criminals and that he was only turning them in. Might as well do something productive in my spare time. Plus, he really did need the money.

So with that thought in mind, he agreed to take the offer. "I'll do it."

"Excellent." Tsuru was glad to hear it.

"Wait! You're really going to hire him!"

Turning towards her injured employee, she responded. "Well, why not? Work doesn't get itself done and since somebody decided to go and get himself shot-"

"Wha- How is it my fault!"

" -a replacement was going to be needed anyways."

"And you're just fine with the fact that he's only a child." Honestly, Zero didn't think she would actually resort to child labor.

"Zero, if I cared about your opinions-"

Blue eyes watched the scene unfold before him. All three were bickering with each other, completely forgetting that he was even there. Letting out a small yawn, he called out to them. "Hey! When do I start?"

"Tomorrow. Ten o'clock sharp," she said, narrowing her eyes, " and if you're late, I'll gut you like a carp."

He snorts at the lame warning. "You could go ahead and try."

In all honesty, this wasn't how he imagined this meeting to go, but at least something came out of it so he wasn't complaining.

Walking out of the bar, Killua couldn't help the small shiver go down his spine as he met the cold, crisp air once again.

Author's Notes:

*Tranto Ward: Following the tradition of naming cities after Star Wars planets. It's one of the many non-canon districts located in Musutafu.

*Tsuru's Gun: For anyone who wants to know what gun she specifically uses, its an S&W Model 629 .44 Magnum Hunter. It's a little old fashioned, but I like it. Plus, it's totally illegal to own handguns in Japan so shhh...

*Yakuza's Reputation: Despite being a criminal syndicate, the yakuza are notorious for having very strict codes of conduct and will (at least in this story) eliminate anyone who disturbs their territory so as to not associate themselves with dishonorable criminals, if that makes sense.

It's not really relevant right now but here is a list of the actual character's names if anyone is interested.

*Aoki Tsuru: Her name is actually a reference to Tsuru Aoki, a 1920's silent film era actress. Her go-to style of clothing is the 40's O'hara cocktail dress.

*Reimund "Rei" LeBlanc/Kawasaki: Surprise, surprise. He's part French! LeBlanc translates to "Blonde" and Kawasaki roughly translates to "River edge."

*Takeshi "Zero" Yamamoto: Takeshi roughly translates to "fierce warrior. Funnily enough, he earned the nickname "Zero" due to his complete lack of combat capabilities (or anything physical, really). But he's good with numbers at least! "Yamamoto roughly translates to "Mountain Base."

I know this may not have been the most interesting chapter, but I hope you guys enjoyed it anyways. I honestly didn't know how this was going to play out and I wanted to do something different from what some other authors do (like him going to fight rings) but I still wanted to find a way for him to interact with some villains later on. I know it kinda sounds silly, but if you're willing to suspend your beliefs for just a little bit, I think this sounds like a fun idea to toy around with.

Questions of the day:

1) What might Tsuru be hiding from Killua in regards to the underground arenas?

2) What kinds of villains will Killua be encountering during his new job?

3) What kinds of connections does Tsuru have in the underworld.

And that's all I have to say for now. Thank you to everyone who's read and reviewed my story so far! Please don't be afraid to let me know your thoughts, comments, or criticisms on this story. Have a great day guys and see you in the next chapter.