The spirit world is broken and in desperate need of a restoration. True heroes and ancient beasts that once walked are now a thing of the past. Between the empty spaces of forgotten treasure halls there are whispers of one who has returned. One lege...
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Before we head on over with Ritsu and Bodhi to the Lunch Hero, we need to take a step back to the night before. Don't you want to know why Bodhi was up so late? They really were going hard on some research. Yes, they could have taken the opportunity to sneak out into the far reaches of the Dog Province and perhaps scraped together a drink or two. But after getting a taste of how this competition was going to go, Bodhi had become completely absorbed in getting Ritsu to the next phase. You could even say that this was their new obsession.
Bodhi the monk sat criss-cross applesauce on one of the hotel's lounge chairs. Atop the low coffee table before them was a shiny spread of magazines and crate of peach soda pop *smooth*. This was the caffeinated variety of peach soda that carried an extra kick. Bodhi had become quite fond of it in spite of the fact that it greatly reduced their capacity for sleep.
"Are these all the ones you can find?" the monk asked when Seven dropped off another short stack of magazines.
The gold-toothed sun clone pouted. "These are from my own personal collection! The rest is what I could find inside the waiting room at the dentist."
Bodhi glanced over the covers of the popular monthly magazine Upward Dog. It was known to feature credible Suns in the competitive scene. Some of the eight finalists had been featured several times among the ones Seven had brought. The features included Sun Zhaoling, Sun Tie Quan, Sun Terra, and Sun Yong Kid.
Seven asked if Bodhi needed anything else. The monk said they would be all right for now. Once Seven had left and they were finally alone, Bodhi opened their first can of peach soda pop *smooth* and got down to reading.
First on the list was Sun Yong Kid, who happened to be featured the least in the collection of magazines. The youngest contestant in the Sevenfold Peach Championship was fresh out of the Rat Province. There he was considered a local celebrity, much in the same way the citizens of the Rabbit Province regarded Sailor Sun.
In fact, in the Rat Province, Yong Kid wasn't called the Rookie. Rather, he was known as the Little Genius. He had earned this nickname by winning every ranked tournament held in his own province. Bodhi didn't find this surprising. Based on what their old cell mate, Billie, had told them, the Rat Province was bursting with young, up and coming talent. The more Bodhi read up on Yong Kid, the more it appeared that the sun clone's genius stopped right there at the border. Despite having competed in several events in other provinces, Sun Yong Kid hadn't made it to the finals of a single one.
"So the little brat has a chip on his shoulder," Bodhi mumbled to themself as they skimmed through Yong Kid's interview in Upward Dog.
Next on the list was Sun Terra. Her rise to popularity was pretty straightforward. She had been around for a while now and was considered a veteran in the competitive scene. Sun Terra's style was very direct and rooted in ancient martial arts. She was one step beyond what many would consider a traditional fighter, but at the same time, her style was capable of stealing the show. With those hard, punchy moves combined with the ability to make the earth bend to her will – not to mention how much experience she had performing under the pressure of an arena battle – Terra was an absolute force to be reckoned with.
