Hunter X Hunter Chapter 401, "Moonlight" Recap & Spoilers (2025)

After two years away from the pages of Weekly Shōnen Jump, Hunter X Hunter is back. Picking up directly from where Chapter 400 left off, Kurapika Kurta remains in the midst of the Succession Contest, attempting to protect Queen Oito Hui Guo Rou and her daughter, Prince Woble. As part of his current strategy, Kurapika is teaching the bodyguards of the other Kakin Princes Nen, and is performing divination tests to determine their Nen categories.

By Chapter 400, the Succession Contest Arc had been running for 60 chapters and 10 years, and it seemed like the story was finally heading toward a conclusion. It's now extremely unlikely for this to be the case. Revelations about Beyond Netero change everything fans thought they knew about the Succession Contest in Hunter X Hunter Chapter 401.

Kurapika Performs Longhi's Divination Test

Day 10 of the Succession Contest Continues

The title page for Hunter X Hunter Chapter 401, "Moonlight," features Moreno Prudo, the illegitimate daughter of King Nasubi Hui Guo Rou, and the head of the Heil-Ly mafia family. The chapter begins at 11:45 A.M. on Tuesday, as Day 10 of the Succession Contest continues. In room 1014 of the Black Whale 1, Kurapika and Bill proceed with performing divination tests on the other royal guards.

Kurapika invites Longhi, one of Prince Tubeppa Hui Guo Rou's bodyguards, into the room. Furykov, one of Prince Benjamin's soldiers, is aware that Longhi already knows Nen, and questions if she'll pretend to have her ability to use it awakened by Kurapika. Behind closed doors, Longhi reveals that she's a Nen user to Kurapika and Bill.

To prove that she isn't the Silent Majority user, Longhi reveals her hatsu and her motives. Longhi's Nen ability is "Transparent Words - Moonlight Act," a condition-based, Manipulation hatsu. Conjuring a transparent pen and paper, Longhi explains that by having someone sign a limited-term contract, she can loan out her ability or restrict the actions of others, but the other person's signature must be given willingly. Kurapika aims his gun at Longhi, and readies his Dowsing Chain to determine if she's lying or not. Longhi isn't afraid of him, knowing that a .22 Caliber can't kill a Nen user.

Longhi tells Kurapika and Bill that her ability requires her to explain the full truth. Rather than just forming an alliance between Kurapika and Tubeppa, Longhi wants to loan her power out to Kurapika, which means she has to tell him about her motives. Kurapika asks what her plan is, and Longhi hesitates to answer.

Longhi Reveals Her Shocking Heritage

Longhi is the Daughter of Beyond Netero

Longhi begins her story by telling Kurapika her original plan. She then drops the bombshell that she is the daughter of Beyond Netero. With Kurapika's prompting, Longhi continues to explain that, thirty years earlier, Beyond had children with at least fourteen Kakin women, and arranged for them to have sham marriages with Kakin military officers, so the children could be passed off as the couple's. He then entered the children into the Royal Military Academy as they grew old enough.

All having been born with Nen because of how powerful their father was, Longhi and her siblings excelled at the Royal Military Academy. The objective was for them all to become the personal guards of Kakin's fourteen princes, and most of them succeeded. Longhi discovered the truth of her parentage when she realized she didn't inherit a trait she should have from the father who raised her. She believed that Beyond's plan was simply to place them all close to the next king of Kakin and that, as her parents told her, his goal was to bring unity to the world. Longhi never questioned her role, as it aligned with the national cause of Kakin conquering the world. However, Longhi then learned the truth about what Beyond had done.

Beyond Cursed Nearly All of His Children

Beyond's First Nen Ability is Horrifying

Longhi reveals that Beyond placed a Nen curse on all of his children. She discovered this when her half-sister, Makaha, became suspicious of her parents, following Prince Camilla Hui Guo Rou's decision to forego traditional royal guards, in favor of surrounding herself with Have-Nots. Makaha was among the Have-Nots selected and, when she saw her parents didn't mirror her disappointment, she investigated until she discovered Longhi also serving Camilla.

Following the Seed Urn Ceremony, the sisters noticed a shared mark on their bodies, and showed them to a Nen exorcist. The exorcist told them that a Nen curse had been placed on them which would only activate after they died. Longhi opens her mouth wide, and asks Kurapika to look into it using Gyo.

Kurapika uses Gyo as instructed, and sees a bulging eye inside Longhi's mouth. Longhi continues to explain that the exorcist told her she was a "strong curse sacrifice." Beyond's true purpose for his, at minimum, ten children guarding Kakin princes, is to die and curse their assigned targets to death. With Beyond unable to know how many princes there would be by the time of the Succession Contest, Longhi reasons he had far more than just fourteen children. Longhi is unaware of the exact nature of the curse that's been placed on herself and her siblings, only knowing that it's powerful, and that the marks on them can't be removed by traditional means.

Bill interrupts Longhi's exposition, reminding Kurapika that people will get suspicious if they spend too much time with her. Kurapika insists on Longhi continuing, wanting to form a Nen contract with Prince Tubeppa. Continuing, Longhi tells the two that, since Makaha didn't make the cut to join Prince Camilla's entourage for the Succession Contest, and Beyond's children don't even know which princes are their respective targets, she realized none of them may have even needed to become royal guards, or to join the military at all; their entire lives were lies. Bill and Kurapika reason that Beyond set the condition of death for the curse's activation to increase its power, and that, with him being in Kakin's innermost circles, he's aiming to put the oldest prince, Prince Benjamin, on the throne.

Beyond Plans on Winning the Succession Contest Himself

One of Kakin's Princes is the Child of Beyond

Longhi shuts down Kurapika and Bill's notion that Beyond's goal is to assist Benjamin. Knowing what she does about her father's cunning and greed, she denies the possibility that Beyond would do all of this for someone not related to him. Rather, Longhi believes one of Kakin's princes is also the child of Beyond Netero.

Bill is shocked by Longhi's theory. Kurapika, digging further into the matter, asks Queen Oito what the requirements were for a prince to participate in the Succession Contest. Oito, to her horror, answers that they must have been born to King Nasubi Hui Guo Rou's lawful wife, but that there was no mention of parental lineage in the rules.

Before the matter can be discussed further, the guards outside the room ask Kurapika if everything is alright. Kurapika exits the room and tells the guards that things were taking a long time because he and Longhi couldn't agree on the terms for a truce, promising to give a more detailed explanation later. Furykov attempts to piece together what's really going on, knowing Kurapika must have realized Longhi was a Nen user and an assassin, with him believing her to be the Silent Majority user.

Kurapika Forms an Alliance with Prince Tubeppa

Kurapika Agrees to Longhi's Terms

Back inside the room, Kurapika aims his gun and Dowsing Chain at Longhi once more, telling her to continue. Longhi finally gets to explaining the exact terms of the contract she wishes for Kurapika to sign. First and foremost, a truce will be forged between Prince Tubeppa, and Queen Oito and Prince Woble. No one aligned with either side will attack the other's prince, queen, or guards until 9 A.M. on the next Sunday, at which point the contract will renew, provided a representative for Tubeppa is inside Room 1014. If Kurapika breaks the terms of the contract, he will be forced into a state of Zetsu for a week, and be left without his Nen.

Kurapika seeks clarification of what qualifies as an attack, per the terms of the contract. Longhi explains that the contract will not be unilaterally terminated unless her faction discovers a genuinely malicious act perpetrated by Kurapika's faction against them. Longhi then adds a stipulation to the contract, asking Kurapika to identify which prince is Beyond's child before either Tubeppa withdraws from the Succession Contest, or only Woble and Tubeppa remain. If her conditions are met, or her suspicions turn out to be wrong, Kurapika will get a reward: a one-time use of Longhi's hatsu.

Kurapika weighs his options, and notes that, going off his Dowsing Chain, Longhi hasn't told a single lie. Before Kurapika makes his decision, Longhi tells him her current objective: if one of Beyond's children is among the princes, she wants to kill them herself. She solemnly admits that, had her father just been honest with her, she would have remained loyal. After making their agreement, Kurapika and Longhi exit the room. Furykov is more confused than ever, noticing that they didn't fight, that the Nen around them both is tranquil, and that Longhi was crying. He notices nothing is different about Kurapika's Nen but, with how strange the circumstances appear, he can't deduce what's happened, and questions his belief that Longhi is behind Silent Majority.

Kurapika tells everyone that he and Longhi are both positive about the truce, but that they're still working out the details of its terms, and that they disagree on how much they're willing to share with the other bodyguards. Before anyone can ask questions, Kurapika invites Tenftory, the final royal guard in need of having his Nen awakened, into Room 1014. Furykov fears that Kurapika will be bringing Teftory into his alliance, and wants to expose what he sees as a conspiracy by Kurapika, but he lacks the necessary evidence. He then asks Babimyna if something is wrong, noticing that something seems off about him, but Babimyna insists things are fine.

Beyond Needs Something From the Zodiacs

Beyond isn't Inactive While Inside His Holding Cell

On the lower deck, at 2:00 P.M., Beyond Netero becomes bored in his holding cell, having finished reading his book. Beyond asks Kanzai, the Zodiac charged with guarding him, if he can get a new one. Kanzai tells him there aren't any other books, and that Beyond should write his own. Beyond is fine with this idea and asks for a pen and paper, but Kanzai declines for security reasons, and tells him to use his blood and his beard.

Beyond taunts Kanzai, saying he could knock his head off with just the book he's holding. Kanzai isn't afraid at all, and asks if Beyond has any other requests. Beyond tells Kanzai that there's someone he needs to speak to, and that he'd like to request a meeting.

Hunter X Hunter

Gon Freecss aspires to become a Hunter, an exceptional being capable of greatness. With his friends and his potential, he seeks out his father, who left him when he was younger.