The story focuses on a young boy named Gon Freecss who lives on Whale Island. When he discovers that his father, who left him at a young age, is actually a world-renowned Hunter, he decides to leave the island in search of his father and to become a Hunter himself. Along the way, Gon meets various other Hunters and encounters paranormal and magical creatures.
A Hunter is a licensed professional that specializes in fantastical pursuits such as locating rare animals/magical creatures, treasure hunting, scouting unexplored territories, hunting down lawless individuals, and much more. Specific types of hunters include but are not limited to:
- blacklist/bounty hunters
- gourmet hunters
- ruins hunters
- beast hunters
- botanical hunters
- crime hunters
- disease/virus hunters
- hacker hunters
- music hunters
- sea hunters
- terrorist hunters
- treasure hunters
The Hunter Exam is a yearly event hosted by the Hunter Association in which applicants must pass in order to become a Hunter. These exams consist of several tests and stages which can vary drastically. The exams are extremely difficult and only the best of the best have a chance at passing. In order to become a proper hunter, you need to have learned “Nen” to pass the secret hunter exam
Nen is the fundamental power system in Hunter x Hunter. It allows a person to manipulate their own life energy, also known as their aura, and use it to create Nen techniques that are unique to them as an individual. Depending on the user, their abilities can be incredibly powerful and often dangerous. Anyone in the HXH universe is capable of learning nen but it’s a mostly unknown technique kept secret by the Hunter Association.
There are six types of nen, which ultimately determine what type of powers a user can control:
- enhancement
- transmutation
- emission
- manipulation
- conjuration
- specialization