Hunter x Hunter: Halkenburg's Nen ability explained

This article contains spoilers for the Hunter x Hunter manga.

Key things

• Halkenburg's Nen ability, Grimmel The Dissonance, is extremely powerful and has an unknown Nen type.
• Halkenburg used his ability to control Might's body, affecting the War of Succession.
• The future use of Grimmel The Dissonance in HxH is uncertain, with questions about awareness and strategy.

Hunter x Hunter is heating up with its latest War of Succession chapters, and quite a few interesting characters like Halkenburg are taking center stage at the moment.

Halkenburg is one of the princes of the Kakin Empire and definitely a character that fans should keep an eye on. He has demonstrated his abilities before HxHhowever, fans finally know the name of this ability after chapter 403 of the series. This ability is extremely overpowered and will have major ramifications in the upcoming chapters.

Who is Prince Halkenburg in Hunter X Hunter?

• 9th Prince of the Kakin Empire
• Son of Nasubi and Queen Unma

Halkenburg is part of the 14 princedoms of Kakin and is definitely one of the most interesting. He is a very ambitious man because he wants to change the Kakina political system from a monarchy to more of a democracy.

At the beginning of the succession competition, v HxHhe was more of a pacifist. However, this slowly changed as he became more content with killing over the course of the story.

War alters hostile institutions by force. Combat destroys the very will of the enemy by force. To have such strength is to be willing to face death! — Halkenburg

Until recently, the story believed Halkenburg to be the son of King Nasubi by his second wife, the second Queen Duazul. That would make Camilla, Tubeppa and Luzurus his full blood siblings. However, as recently seen in HxH 403, Halkenburg had a secret regarding his maternal line. In fact, it turns out that Halkenburg is not the son of the second Queen Duazul, but the first Queen Unma. This makes him a full-blood sibling of 1st Prince Benjamin and 4th Prince Tserriednich instead.

In a letter to Benjamin, from what Kaiser and Fugetsu claimed to be Kacho, it was revealed to him that Halkenburg was Unma's son and that she had the other queen marry him to avoid possible assassination attempts by his other two brothers. However, Benjamin doesn't seem to really believe all of this because he thinks it's just a rumor.

However, Halkenburg is definitely believed to be aware of who his real mother is and appears to have a good relationship with her, unlike his adoptive mother Duazul.

The Boy Who Shoots an Arrow : Grimmel The Dissonance

• Halkenburg's ability Nen
• Nen Type: Unknown

Halkenburg is a character not to be underestimated. His Nen ability, which has two names, The Boy Who Shoots The Arrow: Grimmel The Dissonance, is a currently unknown Nen-type power and is one of the most powerful abilities seen in the Aftermath Wars competitive arc, if not all HxH.

His Nen ability allows him, as the name suggests, to shoot an arrow. By turning his Nen into a bow and arrow, he can shoot this arrow that can break through almost any defense, even through walls and Nen abilities. When an arrow hits a target, Halkenburg can transfer his consciousness or that of one of his supporters into the target that just hit. The body of the person whose consciousness is transferred falls into a coma-like sleep from which they will not wake until the target's body is killed. This ability also creates armor around him to protect him.

However, in order to use this ability at all, Halkenburg must gain supporters. To do this, Halkenburg relies on his guardian animal, which has a symbiotic-type Enhancement ability that marks people on the back of its hand with a pinion. If the designated people are loyal to Halkenburg, then this pinion will remain. Otherwise, it will disappear after 10 minutes. This allows Halkenburg to tap into their aura when he uses The Boy Who Shoots The Arrow: Grimmel The Dissonance.

While the Nen type of this ability is unknown, it is likely to involve multiple Nen types as it is a fairly complex technique. It can include Nen types such as emission, transmutation, and manipulation.

To attack at 26 degrees… I have to step 60cm forward. The Boy Who Shoots an Arrow: Grimmel Dissonance! Fire!! — Halkenburg

The official English translation of this ability uses the term “Grimmel The Dissonance”, however the Katakana name of this ability is Grimal Les Dissonances. This is a reference to a French orchestra that operates without a conductor – which reflects Halkenburg's ability well, as he needs to have supporters around him in order to use Nen's ability and how he wants to democratize Kakina.

However, some things about this ability remain unknown. Togashi will hopefully shed some light on this eventually. One of these questions concerns the fate of the target's consciousness and whether it remains in the original body but lacks control or something else entirely. Another question that could be relevant soon is whether Halkenburg can use this Nen ability when his consciousness is in another body. Halkenburg is currently in Might's body, so whether or not he can use this Nen ability remains to be seen.

Future use of Grimmel Dissonance in HxH

Halkenburg possessed the Body of Power

Recently in HxHHalkenburg used his ability against one of Prince Benjamin's bodyguards, Balsamilc Might. Halkenburg recruited several individuals and with their support was able to shoot his arrow at Balsamilco Might. He could have come up with a plan to assassinate him during his trial with TSK-17, the silent killer.

Now Halkenburg has sent his own consciousness into the body of Balsamilco Might and what he will do in the future remains to be seen. His body is in a sleep-like state surrounded by his supporters.

What he does next will depend on whether Halkenburg can use Grimmel the Dissonance in Might's body or not. If he can, he might switch bodies again, perhaps with the first prince of the Kakin Empire, Benjamin, his older brother. In Benjamin's body, Halkenburg would have access to much more power and that would definitely be a game changer in this succession war.

Alternatively, Halkenburg could choose to remain in Might's body until he takes out his older brother Benjamin. Halkenburg was indeed able to infiltrate Benjamin's ranks and pretend to be Might. Then he could use the same weapon Benjamin planned to kill him with.

This allowed Halkenburg to eliminate Benjamin and possibly some of his men. This mission could cause the death of Might's body as well, allowing him to return to his original body, with no possible evidence that Benjamin's death was connected to him.

Hunter x Hunter is available to read through Viz Media. Fans can officially read the series for free on Shonen Jump and the Manga Plus app. The release date for the next Hunter x Hunter chapter, Hunter x Hunter Chapter 404, is set for October 27, 2024.