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Hunter X Hunter is one of the most beloved shonen series ever to be serialized in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump. The story by Togashi has cemented itself as one of the greatest manga of all time, and it has achieved this despite the long hiatuses that it had to undertake due to the worsening health of the author since 2006. In June 2026, Hunter X Hunter officially made its return, and we're all excited to see where the Succession Contest Arc heads, with new manga releases every week.
On July 19, 2026, Hunter X Hunter chapter 414 was officially released at 11 AM EST on Manga Plus, and the end of the chapter left us off at a shocking cliffhanger. While the vast majority of the chapter was exciting, the end of HxH Chapter 414 saw Togashi bring back his two most iconic characters — Gon Freecs and Killua Zoldyck, after over 10 years of absence. We can't wait for these two to be back in the story and be fully involved after such a long split-up.
Gon And Killua Officially Make A Comeback in Hunter x Hunter Chapter 414
Hunter x Hunter went on a hiatus two years ago in December 2024. Luckily, in early 2026, Togashi revealed the story would be returning in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump. Finally, on June 28, 2026, Hunter x Hunter made its return with Chapter 411 in Weekly Shonen Jump Issue #31, which marked the continuation of the Succession Contest arc.
Since then, we have gotten three new chapters, and the most recent one, Hunter x Hunter Chapter 414, was released this weekend on July 16, 2026, in Weekly Shonen Jump Issue #33. This new chapter might just be the most exciting one in the batch yet. In Chapter 414, fans could not believe their eyes as, after over a decade-long absence, Gon Freecs and Killua Zoldyck finally made their return.
The last time we had seen Gon was in Hunter x Hunter Chapter 345, which was released on June 30, 2014, in Shueisha's WSJ Issue #31, almost exactly 12 years ago. For Killua, his last proper chapter appearance came in Chapter 339, so he has been absent since March 12, 2012. Killua was seen leaving with his sister, Alluka, to explore the world, while Gon returned to his home. Undoubtedly, nobody saw this return coming, but it's one that we're all incredibly excited by, especially when the future of the story is concerned.
For context, previously in Hunter x Hunter, it was revealed that Prince Woble, the 14th Prince that Kurapika was asked to protect, was actually swapped by his mother with her cousin to prevent her involvement in the Succession War. Despite Woble being absent from the Black Whale, however, her life is still in danger, and that is where Kurapika thinks of Gon and Killua. Kurapika tells Queen Oito that he has two friends who will take care of Woble. After he says that, panels of Killua and Gon are shown to us. Kurapika plans to contact them and ask them to handle the task of protecting Prince Woble, while he handles the events of the Black Whale. While we have only seen Gon and Killua through brief panels in the latest chapter, we expect more of them soon.
Gon and Killua Finally Enter The Succession Contest As The Protectors Of Prince Woble
Prince Woble is an extremely important character in Hunter x Hunter. She was first introduced in HxH Chapter 349, released officially in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump Issue #37-38 on August 11, 2014. Kurapika was contracted to protect the 14th Prince, and he isn't one to fall short on his job. Because of that, he knows that the two most skilled people who could protect Prince Woble, who aren’t on the Black Whale, are none other than his trusted friends Killua and Gon. Killua is currently traveling with Alluka, and Gon seems to still be on Whale Island. In the new chapter, he was seen with Noko, the character Togashi revealed in one ending of HxH would end up being his wife.
Regardless, these two will surely hear Kurapika's call and help him out. At the moment, Gon does not have his Nen powers, which could be troublesome if he were to be involved in a conflict against Nen users. However, he is still a force of nature, and with the support of Killua and Alluka, he will manage whatever is thrown his way.
Meanwhile, Killua has electrical transmutation Nen powers, and Alluka is basically a God of the Hunter x Hunter world with the powers to turn anything into reality. There are no better people Kurapika could trust with the task of protecting Woble. In the next chapter, we could potentially see more of Gon and Killua, with them being brought back into the picture.
Gon And Killua’s Future Role In Hunter x Hunter
We're definitely excited to see the two most beloved main characters of Hunter x Hunter back in such a sudden manner, and now, this brings back the discussions about their future involvement in the story. Currently, the story is heading towards the Dark Continent, as the Black Whale sails there, but both Killua and Gon are still on the mainland. With the Black Whale having long departed, it might seem that the two of them cannot be involved in the Dark Continent arc anytime soon. However, Togashi has already set the perfect opportunity for them to come to the Dark Continent whenever that story needs them.
Right now, they're likely to be busy with Woble, but once the Succession Contest is over, they might join Kurapika and the others to head to the Dark Continent. This could all be made possible with the help of Alluka. As previously stated, Alluka is one of the most broken characters in HxH. She has unlimited Nen reserves, and anything requested by Killua can be turned into reality thanks to her. Transporting Killua and Gon to the Black Whale or directly to the Dark Continent would not be a hard task for her. With her help, we could have the two most iconic characters of the story back. For now, that is still far from happening, as the Succession Contest arc is still raging on, but the climax is definitely getting closer, with each passing chapter.
All the latest manga releases of Hunter x Hunter by Yoshihiro Togashi are available to read via Manga Plus and Viz Media.
