It’s no secret that Neferpitou, one of Chimera Ant King Meruem’s 3 Royal Guards, is one of the strongest characters of all time in Hunter x Hunter.
Pitou was the one who pushed Gon into his adult form and indirectly caused him to lose his ability to use Nen. Pitou’s combat skills and strength were much above most other characters, and watching them fight against Netero was a real treat.
Unfortunately, Pitou was decapitated and killed by Adult Gon’s punches, despite their infinite Hatsu, impressive Nen abilities, and knowledge of Nen after death.
In chapter 373, Camilla, the 2nd prince of the Kakin Empire, uses post-mortem Nen in the form of Cat’s Name. It can revive her from death – making her invincible. Being a cat humanoid, Cat’s Name would’ve been the ultimate Hatsu for Neferpitou, more useful than Terpsichora.
What exactly is post-mortem Nen?
Post-mortem Nen or Nen after death is a property of Nen that makes the user’s Nen abilities persist after death. Not just that, the abilities even become stronger than when the user was alive.
The concept of post-mortem Nen was first introduced in the third arc – at the end of the Yorknew City arc, where Phinks explains that the most common cause of the post-mortem phenomenon to occur was if the dying user harbored a strong emotion, like hatred. The hatred would cause the user’s Nen to seek out the object of hatred and cling on to it.
But as we see in the following chapters, hate isn’t the only emotion that can result in post-mortem Nen.
There are also instances of post-mortem Nen where there aren’t any explicit emotions that might be triggering it. Like, for example, in the case of Hisoka, he is able to somehow program his Bungee Gum to restart his heart and lungs after his demise.
Although – you can infer the emotion Hisoka utilizes to be tenacity, or his will to continue to fight, become stronger, and never back down from a challenge.
Pitou’s Post-Mortem Nen
In chapter 307, Pitou’s corpse is controlled by their Hatsu, Terpsichora. Out of their literally undying loyalty to Meruem, Pitou’s strongest offensive Nen ability takes over after their death in an effort to kill Gon.
Pitou was driven even after death by their extreme desire to protect Meruem.
Pitou’s power was magnified after they died, and had Killua not pulled Gon out of the way, their power would have consumed more than just Gon’s arm.
Camilla’s Post-Mortem Nen
In chapter 373, Camilla is revived by her Hatsu, Cat’s Name, which is essentially a counteractive Nen ability that activates after the user takes damage, and then returns that damage to the assailant. Except in this case, that damage is death.
Camilla likely used her knowledge of post-mortem Nen to activate the counteractive Nen Beast – “the can who lived a million times.”
Her death triggers this Hatsu which revives her in exchange for the life of the attacker. When Musse confronts Camilla, he senses that she is in a state of Zetsu and has a counteractive ability.
Most counter-type abilities activate once the user takes some damage, so if the attacker lands a one-shot lethal blow before the counteractive ability is activated, they can win.
Musse does just that, but unluckily for him, Camilla’s counteractive ability is activated only after she is killed and not after she’s merely damaged.
Cat’s Name squeezes Musse’s life force and uses it to resurrect Camilla.
Why Pitou should have gotten Cat’s Name
Pitou is a cat and cats have 9 lives. Cat’s Name has a million. Hatsu often reflects the character and personality of the user, and Cat’s Name would have perfectly suited Pitou.
Shaiapouf was a butterfly humanoid and two out of his four Nen abilities directly were indicative of this.
The Cocoon echnique could envelop others in a cocoon to bestow Nen abilities unto them. When used on humans, Cocoon could metamorphosize humans into human-Chimera Ant hybrids. His other ability, Spiritual Message, allowed Pouf to use the scales on his body and butterfly wings to hypnotize opponents.
Same goes for Menthuthuyoupi. Youpi could transform his body into various forms naturally. His Hatsu was Metamorphosis, which allowed him to freely manipulate any part of his anatomy to grow, expand, and increase them.
Pitou was the only one whose Hatsu didn’t represent who she was. There’s not much cat-like about Doctor Blythe, Puppeteering, or Terpsichora.
Many believe that Doctor Blythe had more cons than pros – this giant doll surgeon could treat any injury but when it was active, Pitou was susceptible to attack since they could not use En or other Nen abilities. Doctor Blythe also limited their movement, along with itself being vulnerable to attacks.
Although Puppeteering and Terpsichora were efficient, how awesome would it have been if Pitou had Cat’s Name instead?
With Pitou’s control of Nen shown by her massive En, the Cat’s Name Hatsu would’ve made them overpowered. Definitely a missed opportunity.
About Hunter x Hunter
Hunter x Hunter is a Shonen anime adapted from manga of the same name.
The story follows the adventures of a young boy, Gon, discovering that his dead father wasn’t dead but was a legendary Hunter. Instead of feeling dejected, Gon decides to follow in his father’s footsteps and become a great Hunter himself.
The job of a Hunter isn’t an easy one, and Gon needs to pass an exam to become an official hunter. He makes friends on this journey, and they all must help each other overcome any obstacles.
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