Hunter X Hunter is a legendary series by mangaka Yoshihiro Togashi. It made its debut in 1998, and since then it has cemented itself as an iconic series, and that's despite its long and endless hiatus. Hunter X Hunter endured a two-year hiatus, but in 2026 it finally returned with chapter 411, published in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump Issue #31. Since then, we've had weekly releases of the manga, with significant developments in each chapter. IN Hunter X Hunter Chapter 413, which covers the Succession Contest Arc, saw fans see some of the biggest developments, especially focusing on the first prince of the Kakin Empire, Benjamin.
Benjamin was already strong, but Togashi has set him up to become a new God Hunter X Hunter the world with a massive power-up through his Nen Beast. Although Benjamin may fail in his ascension, whoever becomes the Kakin King will receive a tremendous boost of strength and powers to conquer the entire world. Because of that, even characters like Meruem can be surpassed in the current ongoing arc.
Hunter x Hunter sets up Prince Benjamin to become a new god
Hunter x Hunter first started in 1998, but it's still running today, in 2026, albeit with slower serialization due to hiatus. Since 2014, we've been featured in the Succession Contest arc of HxH, which began with chapter 349 of Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump Double Issue #37-38. Right now, with Hunter x Hunter's back, we recently saw the release of Chapter 413, which was published on July 12, 2026, in Weekly Shonen Jump Issue #33.
This chapter definitely shocked many with some of the revelations that were made, especially since it put the spotlight on the first prince of the Kakin Empire, Benjamin Hui Guo Rou. Earlier we had been told that Benjamin was dying and in this chapter we got the confirmation that it was due to the TSK-17 poison. This poison was administered to him by one of his allies, Furykov, but not out of disloyalty, but because of a greater plan to protect the prince from the curse of Beyond Netero.
Based on the information in this chapter, if he hadn't poisoned Benjamin, he would have activated the curse and killed Benjamin while getting rid of his Nen Beast. They can't let that happen, because Benjamin's Nen beast is the key to his next power-up, which he claims will turn him into a God in the HxH world. Benjamin specifically claims that he could become the guardian deity and God of the entire world, a being that surpasses even the Kakin King. With Furykov's Nen ability Combo Master, Benjamin's Nen animal powers can finally be deciphered, and in addition, a special weapon will be created to enhance it. We don't know what this Nen beast can do yet, but it's set up to be a powerful ability that can allow Benjamin to win the Succession competition.
Benjamin is still dying, but he believes he will become immortal thanks to his Nen animal. The details of how this happens are still unclear, but we have seen Nen Beasts survive after their user's death, as in the case of Kocho, whose beast is still alive and helping her sister. Benjamin's Nen animals were able to survive and even absorb him after his death, guiding his lineage forward as the unbreakable succession of the Kakin Empire. To achieve this level of power, he must win the Succession Contest, and in hopes of achieving this, he plans to exterminate all the other Princes, with Tserriednich and Camilla as his next two targets.
“My guardian animal's ability that Furykov deciphered, in conjunction with Benjamin's baton, will make me the spiritual core of the Kakin Tree, and take the place of the ritual of the seed urn! I will be its leader's protective spirit! It will make me the supreme power of Kakin, a supreme authority that surpasses even the king's surviving battle!! The Kakin will soon rule the world as a nation, and the Hui Guo Rou lineage, unbroken for all eternity, will lead it. — Prince Benjamin in Hunter x Hunter chapter 413.
Benjamin is powerful, but he could be stopped before his ascension
To become the new God of the world, Benjamin must win the Succession Contest arc. However, this is easier said than done. Benjamin, as the first prince, is powerful, and he has quite a lot of influence, so much so that he could even declare martial law. That said, Benjamin isn't exactly the first choice that comes to mind when it comes to who will win the competition, and that's pretty clear from Togashi's setup. Benjamin could manage to kill some of the princes, most notably Camilla, whose abilities he has figured out, but it is unlikely that he will be able to kill them all in time. Benjamin only has a few hours left before the poison takes full effect, and it's definitely not enough to reach his goal.
Halkenburg is also still on the move, and when he uses his Nen ability, Possession Arrow, it's hard to predict what his next move will be. As it stands, it could lead to Benjamin's downfall. At the same time, this downfall may also come through his brother Tserriednich, whom he has planned as the next target. Tserriednich's Nen ability and Nen beast make him very hard to kill, and trying to kill him could be the end of Benjamin. Regardless, while Benjamin's ascension may fail, whoever wins the Succession Contest is promised a major power-up that can make them the new God.
The next Kakin King will rise to unprecedented levels of power and become a god
When we think of powerful Hunter x Hunter characters, we often think of Meruem, the Ant King, or Nanika, a creature trapped in Alluka Zoldyck's body. Each in his own way has displayed tremendous abilities. Meruem's growth rate was like no other, and his Aura Synthesis power allowed him to gain a wide range of abilities. Meanwhile, Nanika could grant any wish for a price, and her Nen reserves are basically infinite. The Succession Contest arc may reveal a new character that is even stronger, so much so that they may be a god in this world. To understand why the Succession Contest arc can give a character such a large power-up, the concept of Post Mortem nen, as well as strict conditions with great sacrifices and their impact on Nen, must be understood.
It was revealed that 14 princes are involved in the Succession Contest, and whenever one of them dies, they are taken to the burial chamber, where their bodies are placed for their nen to be used. For the competition to succeed, only one prince must survive, and the rest must be used to propel them. The amount of sacrifices used for this ritual is what makes it as powerful as it is. With the Seed Urn ritual, the winner can keep the prosperity of the empire.
The base power levels for so many of the Princes are already high. The deaths of characters like Halkenburg and Benjamin, for example, would only reinforce their siblings. We don't know how strong the current King of Kakin, King Nasubi Hui Guo Rou, is, but he is surely already one of the strongest in HxH, and whoever succeeds him will be even stronger and a character capable of ruling the entire world. Of course, Kurapika also revealed that there is a way to avoid the death of the rest of the princes, but it would lead to the fall of the Hui Guo Rou family and the failure of the ritual. If that were to happen, no new God would be born, but the Kakin Kingdom itself would crumble.
Hunter x Hunter
- Release date
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2011 – 2014
- Directors
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Hiroshi Kojina
- Author
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Atsushi Maekawa, Tsutomu Kamishiro
