Where Winter Meets Summer (Rusame Countryhumans)

Untethered Shadow

It took a second for the smoke and dust to settle but once it did, the crowd exploded in applause and cheers. The match had lasted no more than 10 minutes before one figure stood triumphantly over the other, laying semiconscious on the ground, her body a wrangled mess of burns and bruises. Her eyes watered in pain and embarrassment, cursing the horrible luck that paired her with the reigning champion in the very first round.

She stood no chance.

Though he smiled and waved jovially to his adoring fans and spectators, only she could see, laying somewhere beneath that golden charm, the sheer boredom and apathy that outlined his features. Through her burns and smoldering clothes, she shivered.

The sun hung high and bright over the midday sky as the Tournament picked up its momentum. The Colosseums and their grounds were jam-packed with tourists and visitors, all milling about doing their own business. The mood over there was nothing but upbeat as spectacular displays of power and grit rumbled all throughout the stadium as the three branches clashed in a deadlock.

At this time, the pressure was on. Every contestant from every Branch was hard at work and that included those who weren't currently in the field.

An ear-splitting wail faded with the putrid fog as Japan collapsed again. The world swirled and smudged together like a bad hallucination as her muscles spasmed.

Her brother stood in front of her with a white-knuckled grip on the shining golden mirror. Beads of sweat dappled his pale face as he finally remembered to breathe.

"Japan... *huff* why don't we... *huff* take a break?" he wheezed before collapsing as well. "We've been... training non-stop for 2 hours now!"

"Not yet," Japan groaned as she struggled to push herself back onto her feet. Her hair had been yanked out of her usual tidy bun and now spilled messily down her shoulders. Cuts, scrapes and bruises were more than abundant for both of them and bloody, corroded holes dappled the training grounds to make for an abominable sight.

It had been two hours since she had first summoned the Wrath of Izanami. During the two hours, they had failed to subdue her Awakening a total of 132 times and Japan had to step in every single time, using his Sacred Mirror.

Even though the mirror had yet to fail to ward off the vengeful god's power, they had some pretty close calls and their surroundings clearly showed that.

"Japan, I agree with your brother," Canada peeped as he glanced over the shoulder of Chrysanthemum from where he had been huddling. "I'm running low on energy too."

In truth, Canada was the only reason they were able to push on for so long. They both had run out of energy long ago but thanks to him, they were able to go on nonstop. Even so, manifesting the god's form had taken its toll on all of them.

"Please, Nihon. There's no reason for you to push yourself to such an extent. You'll only grow more and more frustrated," Japan urged as the mirror dematerialized. "The power of Izanami isn't something that can be mastered in a night. Let's go get something to eat and if you feel like it, we can go watch the Tournament together!"

Canada nodded in support of his suggestion and seeing that it was two vs one, Japan sighed and let herself relax. She was a wreck and she desperately wanted a bath after wallowing in the presence of rot and filth for two hours.

"Alright, fine. I guess I was being too impatient," she admitted as they helped her to her feet but she was still itching to go again. EU's words echoed in her head, warning that if she didn't find a way to control her Awakening soon, she would be disqualified from the Tournament without ever starting it.