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Hunter x Hunter chapter 398 was officially released on Sunday, December 11, 2022, for most international readers around the world. With its release, the issue brings a return to the series’ contemporary events in the Succession Contest arc, unfortunately ending the fan-favorite storyline that is the Phantom Troupe’s backstory.
Nevertheless, Hunter x Hunter chapter 398’s density makes this transition a worthy one, moving the plotline of finding the Heil-Ly family hideout forward in a very meaningful way. The issue also teases the budding relationship of one of the Phantom Troupes with someone outside of the group’s ranks, which is incredibly rare and always great to see.
Hunter x Hunter chapter 398 sees Hinrigh and the Phantom Troupe team up to find the Heil-ly hideout
Hunter x Hunter chapter 398: The trap’s functionality discovered
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Hunter x Hunter chapter 398 begins by unfortunately returning to the present, seemingly concluding the Phantom Troupe’s backstory for now. Nobunaga, Phinks, and Feitan are telling the afro-haired man from the previous room to open up the door to the next and head inside.
Phinks explains that he thinks the old man is a Conjurer’s clone, serving as a lookout and the center point for the trap’s radius. Nobunaga retorts that Conjurers can create special areas with specific rules, but the act of teleportation is too close to Emission techniques. Nobunaga says, however, that it’s a different story if the old man is the Nen user himself, rather than just a clone.
Nobunaga continues that the old man could just be a lookout, with the trap being someone else’s power. Phinks retorts that the Nen user could just be a specialist, but Nobunaga calls him a moron and says that’s a reach. The afro-man tells Feitan that the door is locked from the outside, prompting Feitan to threaten the afro-man to not stall again or he will get hurt.
As the man opens up and peeks inside, he reveals that there’s no one in the room, before saying that the next door is locked from the outside as well. Feitan begins to hurt the afro-man, but he says he’s opening it. Meanwhile, Phinks points out that this is the only entrance to the room, questioning who locked it. Nobunaga suggests that if the old man is a clone, he would be able to exit a locked room.
Hunter x Hunter chapter 398 then sees Nobunaga explain that the clone would just have to disappear after locking the doors to both the toilet and the hidden room. Feitan agrees that it’s possible, but questions the point, with Phinks suggesting that they needed to buy time to set the trap. Since they knew about the same and the old man ahead of time, they burst in from the hidden chamber.
However, if they entered through the front doors, then they would’ve been more cautious for thinking that someone was hiding in the toilet. Feitan rejects this premise, saying that the doors are the trap, while Nobunaga says that the purpose is for the wall. Nobunaga says it’s to buy time in case someone figures out the door is a trap and decides to go through the wall instead like he did.
Phinks says he’s convinced, with Feitan adding that if you reverse the logic and enter through a wall, the trap won’t activate. Phinks says it’s the same for the bathroom door, prompting Nobunaga to tell the afro-man that it’s safe to enter the next room. The afro-man goes to the center of the room, but nothing happens, prompting Phinks to tell him to leave through the main door.
Feitan tells the afro-man to come back in if nothing happens when he exits, which ends up being the case. Instead of coming back into the room, he sprints down the hallway, prompting Feitan to ask the man to pick between right or left. The afro-man has no idea what he’s supposed to do, with Nobunaga warning him to get back before he loses both ears.
Phinks comments that once Feitan gets going, he never stops at the ears, as Hunter x Hunter chapter 398 sees the afro-man try to walk back into the room, but disappear upon doing so. Feitan comments on how the trap triggers even without the old man’s presence, prompting Nobunaga to point out the lack of support items nearby. Nobunaga concludes that the trap is more of a landmine-type than a boundary-type.
Phinks explains that with landmine-type traps, the stronger the compelling force means the closer the user must be to the entry or exit point. Phinks concludes that the Nen user they’re after is in the same place those caught in the trap are being teleported to, which is most likely their hideout.
Nobunaga points out how getting sent there purposely is one option, but they’re not facing just one enemy, suggesting that this trap leads to another. Phinks responds that they have to discover if this trap is single-use or if it can be triggered multiple times, pointing out that if the trigger needs to be reset each time, they can just wait in the room.
Hunter x Hunter chapter 398: Hinrigh’s plan
Hunter x Hunter chapter 398 then sees Feitan grab yet another passenger, pushing him into the trap, which prompts him to disappear. Nobunaga deduces that the trap is not single-use, with Feitan agreeing with Nobunaga that it’s quicker for them to go themselves. Feitan offers to go first but is stopped when Hinrigh Biganduffno appears.
Hinrigh says that he has information that may help them find the Heil-Ly family’s hideout. Hinrigh and the Char family official explain that they’re tailing two suspected Heil-Ly members, with Hinrigh adding that he has nothing against the Phantom Troupe, and only seeks balance. Nobunaga says he’s fine to charge in, but Phinks disagrees, while Feitan asks for more information.
Hinrigh reveals that he has a transmitter that can reveal the location of the Heil-Ly family’s base, but Phinks points out that there’s a massacre going on wherever the other side of the trap is. He explains that sending a civilian in with the transmitter will result in the individual being killed and searched immediately, and the device will be found within five minutes.
Hunter x Hunter chapter 398 then sees Hinrigh reveal his ability, turning the transmitter into a raw oyster, meaning the civilian just needs to swallow it. By doing so, the transmitter won’t appear even during a cavity search, adding that the transmitter will return to normal once the Nen is depleted.
Phinks says that it’s a solid compromise since he doesn’t want to go in directly, but Nobunaga and Feitan want to charge in. He asks his two Troupe-mates which of them will swallow it, but Nobunaga says he had a bad experience with shellfish once and can’t eat them. Feitan says he doesn’t eat anything others have touched, and definitely won’t eat something that was spoken over.
Hinrigh says he didn’t expect to be trusted right away, seemingly unbothered by the Troupe’s apparent lack of trust. He then reveals that he already has a stooge, prompting Hinrigh to reveal that he’s the one who will swallow the transmitter in Hunter x Hunter chapter 398. He then gives the others the receiver, pointing out that it isn’t precise but will give them a general idea of distance and direction.
Hinrigh explains that the maximum radius is 1 kilometer, but that the device doesn’t take altitude into account, so they need to be mindful of the same. He also says that the more frequent and high-pitch a noise will be, the closer they are to it, adding that if the noise says they’re close but the direction is unclear, it’s likely above or below.
Hunter x Hunter chapter 398 then sees him say he will try his best to hide the transmitter somewhere beforehand since his being killed and dissected would be a massive failure. Hinrigh then walks into the trap, as Nobunaga comments on how he likes Hinrigh based on what he’s seen so far.
The Troupe members then deduce the distance to be somewhere in the 500-1000 meter range, reminding each other that the ship is 1500 meters long, 800 wide, and 800 high. Feitan suggests heading to the center of tier 3 since if the hideout is on tier 3, the bar will get redder. Phinks retorts that if it’s on the other side of the boat, the color won’t change.
Hunter x Hunter chapter 398: Nobunaga and Hinrigh team up
Nobunaga then specifies that it would make the distance over 1 kilometer from the spot they’re in currently, so it wouldn’t have been picked up in the first place. Feitan then tells the two that one of them needs to go along with Hinrigh, as Hunter x Hunter chapter 398 shifts perspectives to where Hinrigh was teleported.
He appears to be in an empty, dungeon-like room and is shocked to see nobody present. Hinrigh does, however, point out that the blood on the floor is fresh, and that he must remain vigilant. He wonders if they interrogated the other victims and found out about their efforts, as someone begins materializing behind him.
Hinrigh jumps back out of caution, but it’s revealed to be Nobunaga, who says he didn’t expect the place to be empty. Hinrigh asks Nobunaga why he’s here, to which the Spider responds that he’s here to help Hinrigh since the odds of survival go up in pairs. In Hunter x Hunter chapter 398, he says that Phinks and Feitan each had doubts, so they were against the idea, warning Nobunaga to cut Hinrigh down on the spot if it ends up being a trap.
However, Nobunaga shares that he never thought it was a trap, to begin with, adding that one which required the Troupe to trust him immediately would be very naive. He asks Hinrigh if he wants to observe or take action, before asking him for his name again since he couldn’t be bothered to remember it earlier.
Hunter x Hunter chapter 398 then sees Hinrigh reintroduce himself, prompting Nobunaga to respond by once more asking what Hinrigh’s decision is. He chooses action, which Nobunaga says he also would’ve chosen, prompting him to approach a wall and touch it. He confirms that this is their hideout without a doubt, telling Hinrigh to wait and see what happens.
Nobunaga then slices up the wall, but the marks quickly fade away, revealing that it’s being guarded by some sort of Nen barrier. Nobunaga speculates that it’s either a Conjurer, Transmuter, or Specialist’s doing, saying that there’s a strong limitation since even his katana couldn’t cut it. He deduces that the rule is that the closer the user is, the stronger the barrier.
A panel of Morena Prudo appears here before Hinrigh deduces that this place is used as a passage based on the footage he gathered. Nobunaga infers that security is likely tight, meaning they need to go directly for the ringleader. They decide to start by opening the doors, but not going through them yet, with Nobunaga heading to the doors on the left to begin.
However, Hunter x Hunter chapter 398 sees Hinrigh say he will open them and that Nobunaga will keep watching, explaining that he wants to avoid one vanishing without the other seeing. Hinrigh then opens all the doors but one, seeing nothing suspicious inside.
Nobunaga points out that if they wait, then eventually someone will come to use the bathroom. Hinrigh responds that he picked action, saying that he’s sure Nobunaga can protect the transmitter if he dies. Hinrigh then opens up the final door, revealing a room with various clothes inside on the walls as Hunter x Hunter chapter 398 comes to an end.
Hunter x Hunter chapter 398: In summation
Hunter x Hunter chapter 398 is, overall, a fairly exciting issue. While it is somewhat disappointing to see the story departing from the Phantom Troupe’s backstory after the last two riveting issues, fans will likely see the backstory’s continuation later on. Additionally, the issue is fairly eventful to make up for the departure from a fan-favorite storyline.
Hunter x Hunter chapter 398 sees Phinks, Nobunaga, and Feitan all work out the specifics of the Heil-Ly family’s room-based trap, eventually deciding to use it to infiltrate their base. While the exact plan doesn’t end up being executed in the way it was initially conceived, the Troupe nevertheless invades the Heil-Ly hideout by the issue’s end.
Hunter x Hunter chapter 398 also sees Nobunaga and Hinrigh begin to bond, being the two who elected to infiltrate the Heil-Ly family’s suspected hideout. While their interactions are brief in the issue, it’s always nice to see the Spiders interacting and forming relationships with others outside of the Phantom Troupe, in part due to how rare this is.
Follow along for more Hunter x Hunter manga news, as well as general anime, manga, film, and live-action news as 2022 progresses.
