"I wanted to be as human as I could. But every time I'd finish a show my blood would run so hot, so wild... I couldn't calm down until I'd broken someone." — Moritonio to Hisoka Morow in "Hisoka's Past" |
Moritonio (モリトニオ, Moritonio) was a character appearing only in the spin-off, Hisoka's Past. He was the director of a traveling circus company, as well as its most acclaimed performer. However, he was also an infamous serial killer known as "Hundred-Face John Doe" (
Appearance[]
Moritonio was a moderately tall man with long hair, a mustache, and a goatee. Before meeting Hisoka and for a period afterward, he wore glasses with small, round lenses and a thick frame, an overcoat over a shirt, light-colored gloves, knee-high boots, and a tall magician's hat. He occasionally used a walking stick. At the time of the troupe's exhibition at the Royal Glam Hotel, his mustache and goatee became thicker. He also changed his attire slightly, wearing glasses with larger lenses and a thinner frame, and a shorter hat.[1]
As John Doe, he would modify his face with one of his Nen abilities by covering it with a handkerchief decorated with small hearts. He would change and use a new face for every murder he committed. When he was seen by Hisoka and Abaki, he looked like a horse-faced man with a big nose, round, blank eyes with black irises, and dark hair slicked to the side.[1]
Personality[]
Moritonio was generally composed and level-headed. He had a kind side, nursing Hisoka when he was injured and accepting him into the troupe without asking anything in return. After taking the Hunter Exam, his spirit was crushed by the sheer superiority of an applicant. He started nurturing talents in the hope that his disciples would succeed where he failed, and he was always ready to acknowledge a person's skills. He performed out of his love for the expressions of amazement and surprise of the audience. However, the shows proved inadequate in quenching his thirst and caused a void in him which he believed could only be filled through murder. As John Doe, his signature method of murder was crushing his victims to death through Nen. He also enjoyed letting cameras capture his face, due to his capacity to change his appearance. Against a worthy opponent, he liked to partially reveal his Nen abilities.[1]
Background[]
Moritonio had always been fascinated by the expression of marvel on the faces of others. For this reason, while still young, he learned magic tricks. However, his fascination developed in a morbid need, to the point he murdered his own sister. He later founded a traveling troupe of performers and invited a homeless Borizoi to join him. At some point in his life, he became capable of using Nen and took the Hunter Exam, but failed. The overwhelming talent demonstrated by an applicant scarred him deeply. He took Abaki under his wing as his student while also managing the troupe. Wherever the troupe went, however, Moritonio ended up murdering someone after their shows by crushing them to death with his Nen ability. This way of killing was seen as his signature, but since the murderer was always intentionally recorded and seemed to have a different appearance every time, he was given the moniker of John Doe.[1]
Plot[]
Hisoka's Past spin-off[]
The following is content from a one-shot written and illustrated by Sui Ishida and recognized by Yoshihiro Togashi, but may or may not be considered canon.
Moritonio finds a young Hisoka unconscious on the ground in Glam Gas Land. Hisoka's skills in prestidigitation astonish him, and he encourages Hisoka to hone his talent.[1]
Sometime later, he and his performer Abaki are walking through the marketplace, where they come across a picture of a serial killer "Hundred-Face John Doe", unbeknownst to the latter that Moritonio is actually the killer. Moritonio explains that the consistent manner of deaths among murder victims by different people led the public to believe that it was the same person with a different appearance each time.[1]
After Hisoka makes his debut at a circus performance, Moritonio teaches Nen to him, finding that the youth possesses a high amount of talent. Moritonio finds out Hisoka is a Transmuter, just like he is.[1]
Disguised as John Doe, he attacks Abaki while she shops. He nearly manages to kill her, but Hisoka saves her, managing to find out that John Doe's "face" is just a mask.[1]
After a performance at the Royal Glam Hotel, Moritonio is confronted by Hisoka outside where Hisoka accuses him of being John Doe, citing his experience with the killer. Moritonio confesses to being John Doe, revealing his insatiable lust for blood. He and Hisoka get into a fight, where gains the initial upper hand with his invisible crushing Nen ability. However, Hisoka has deduced the fundamental elements of his Nen ability: Blood Magnet and while utilizing In. Hisoka uses his Bungee Gum to bludgeon Moritonio with the source of the crushing, magnetic poles, killing him.[1]
Abilities & Powers[]
Moritonio is a skilled performer who incorporates Nen in his most famous trick. When fighting, he uses deception to land sudden hits on the opponent, either using In to hide his abilities or creating diversions. He claims that it is his style to reveal part of his abilities to the opponent during the fight.[1]
Nen[]
Moritonio is a capable Nen user and a Transmuter. His teachings seem to be the same as the Shingen-ryu school. He is knowledgeable enough to mentor Abaki in Ten, Ren, and Hatsu. He was able to recognize Hisoka's Gyo, but his main offensive style is a combination of Hatsu and In. He was able to develop three Nen abilities, and to use two aura types: Transmutation, his natural category, and Conjuration.
| Moritonio's Nen Type: Transmutation | ||
|---|---|---|
| Type: Transmutation | Sky Swimming ( | |
| By giving magnetic properties to his aura and making it react to the steel plates in his boots, Moritonio can walk on vertical surfaces and stand on ceilings. The magnetic field may cause metallic objects from the audience to be attracted. He uses this ability to perform his most famous magic trick.[1] | ||
| Type: Conjuration | Scarf Ace (継ぎ接ぎされた真実 Sukāfu Eisu, lit. "Patchwork Reality") | |
| Moritonio can apply his aura to a regular, normal handkerchief and by covering his face with it, he can assume the face of anyone he can imagine. He uses this to hide his identity as the serial killer, John Doe.[1] | ||
| Type: Conjuration, Transmutation | Blood Magnet (鉄塗りの双極性 Buraddo Magunetto, lit. "Steel-Plated Dipoles") | |
| Moritonio can transmute his aura into magnetic steel pillars that strongly attract each other. His primary use of them was to crush his opponents, which became his signature way to kill his victims as John Doe. He also used them in his circus act, sky-swimming, where he wore steel boots to stick to the magnetic pillars and, to the untrained eye, it would appear as if he was walking in midair.[1] | ||
Quotes[]
- (To Hisoka) "For a long time, now, I've loved the face that people make when they're surprised, loved engulfing another with an overwhelming power, presence. I used to show my family my tricks all the time. I wanted to see their faces. Oh so badly. I ended up killing my little sister for it."[1]
- (To Hisoka) "So. I'm John Doe. What will you do about it?"[1]
Trivia[]
- As also hinted at in the spin-off, his alias comes from the name "John Doe", used as a placeholder name for a third party whose identity is unknown.
- When Moritonio takes the Water Divination test, the water turns bitter.
- It is believed that the man with astounding talent and the ability to copy other Nen user's Nen abilities who crushed Moritonio's spirit during the Hunter Exam, is Ging Freecss. This would mean Moritonio took the 267th exam; however, at the time Ging was 11, and his appearance was different from that of the man shown from behind in Moritonio's flashback, being shorter and more slender.
- Moritonio's Scarf Face can be seen as a tie-in made by the Hisoka's Past one-shot to the Hunter × Hunter's main story, implying that Hisoka may have also taken inspiration for his Texture Surprise from the said ability.
Moritonio's hat
- The symbol on Moritonio's top hat is the sign for も/モ (mo) in the Hunter × Hunter Alphabet, the first syllable of the character's name. Coincidentally or not, both kanji used in "Hundred-Face" (百面, Hyaku-men) have も (mo) among their possible readings.
Intertextuality and References[]
- The name of Moritonio's Scarf Ace ability may be a reference to either of the "Scar Face" films (1983 or 1932) or to the novel of the same title.
Miscellaneous[]
- Coincidentally, the American crime thriller film Seven (1995) also features a serial killer character called John Doe.
Translations around the World[]
| Language | Name | |
|---|---|---|
 Arabic
|
موريتونيو | |
References[]
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