Prologue

City life was pretty loud and busy. That was why Japan had decided to live on the outskirts of Tokyo, in the countryside. Each nation usually lived in their own capital, and Japan was still pretty close. Although every once in a while, he would feel the need to take a walk outside of his old, Japanese-styled house.

Being a Nation came with many perks that most humans didn't have. For one, they could live for a really long time, longer than any human. They each possessed the traits and characteristics of a stereotypical citizen, and they were gifted with the knowledge of every single one of their citizens, from the moment of their birth, untill the day they die.

Having all that knowledge would be overwhelming for any normal human, but Nations were built to know these things. Of course, there were also downsides to being a nation. First, there was the fact that they were almost immortal, and second, each one of them had been exposed to war and bloodshed, times which every one of them wanted to forget. Japan himself would never forget the war he'd fought with himself during the Sengoku era. Those were indeed dark times.

But these days, war had become much easier to bear, because he fought alongside his two best friends. When he had first met Italy and Germany, he thought that the two were a...unique pair. Overtime, however, he had gotten closer to them and became good friends with them. Although it was back in the war days that they actually fought. Nowadays, they only hung out together, but that didn't mean that he and Italy were excused from Germany's training sessions.

Being a nation, Japan knew the whole country like the back of his hand. He knew where everything was, as well as buildings and street names. Today, he chose to take a walk in the Beika district of Tokyo. It was very beautiful this time of year.

He could see gingko leaves falling from their trees, matching with the sunset. He took a second to stop and stare at the lovely scene before him. He had honestly missed the beauty and tranquility of Edo, but in places like these, he knew it still lingered.

The peace was quietly interrupted by a small noise scraping across the dirt ground. Japan looked at his feet to find a stray soccer ball having rolled to him. In the distance, he could see two small kids, a boy and a girl, running towards him.

"Hey Onii-san! Can we have our ball back?" The boy asked him.

Japan smiled. Kudou Shinichi, age 7, a student at Teitan elementary. His parents were mystery writer Kudou Yusaku and former actress Kudou Yukiko.

Just as well, the girl was Mouri Ran, age 7, also a Teitan student. Her parents were police officer Mouri Kogorou and aspiring lawyer Mouri "Kisaki" Eri.

Smiling, Japan gave him the ball. "Here you go. Be careful."

Shinichi nodded. "Yeah, we will."

Japan turned back to his sightseeing as the two of them ran off. It was amazing, really, how much time had passed. He would have to take some more pictures to remember these moments. "Um, Onii-san."

Japan turned to find the young Ran staring at him with eyes full of concern. "Are you okay?"

He smiled. "Yes, I am okay. Just reminiscing is all."

She stared at him a second longer. "Ran! Hurry up!"

Quickly, she turned around. "C-Coming!"

Ran went off in the direction of her friend. Well, there was one thing Japan was certain off. No matter how much time went by, there would always be a new generation to make the future better.

Japan sighed. Today had been rather stressful, and to top it all off, he was now the prime discoverer of a murder victim.

He hadn't meant for it to happen, really. He was walking home on his way from the manga store when he felt something off about one of his citizens. By then, he was passing by an alley. Once he looked that way, he found a man beaten to death. As the primary discoverer, he had to stay for police questioning instead of binge-reading manga at home like he had originally planned.

Megure-keibu, the inspector in charge, was supervising the case. The officers were asking various questions, trying to get everything in order. Japan was merely waiting on a bench on a cold day approaching the New Year. "So, was there anything else you noticed, Honda-san?"

Japan looked up to acknowledge the one who had spoken to him. Kudou Shinichi, now a famous High School Detective, was investigating this case the way a shark would search for it's prey. The little boy he had once met long ago had grown to become a famous detective, although he was a bit cocky and arrogant. Not to mention, he loved the media attention.

"Oh, well I did notice the sound of metal hitting the ground, but I do not know how it pertains to this case."

Shinichi took that bit of information into account as he thought hard about it. A small smile soon formed, and turned into a smirk. "Thanks. Now I know who the killer is."

Japan was left in the dark, but still wished to know which one of his citizens had murdered another. The deduction show had begun, and Shinichi, with his flair for the dramatics, pointed out the killer. "The culprit is none other than you! Ashita-san!"

A young man froze, but smirked. "Oi, Oi, I couldn't possibly have done it, remember?"

Shinichi continued. "While you say you have an alibi, the truth is, you faked it. You changed the footage of the cameras, came out here, and murdered the victim!"

The man tried hard to keep his resolve. "How do you know that? Do you have proof?"

Smirking, Shinichi stepped forward. "Of course I do."

He lifted the man's hand, revealing blood on his wrist. "You thought you could hide it by wearing this long-sleeved shirt, but that's what had me suspicious of you in the beginning. Not to mention, I finally knew it was you after the results of those footprints near the alley trashcan came back."

The man broke down and admitted to the crime. Apparently, the victim had been stealing funds from the company and pinning it on him, getting him fired. Japan wanted to go to sleep, so he packed up his manga and got ready to leave.

"You were a real help today, Honda-san." Japan turned and found the detective smiling at him.

He smiled back. "It is not a problem. I am always happy to help the police with whatever they need. Thank you for all your help on these tough cases."

He shrugged. "Of course. That's what detectives do."

Japan nodded. "I see. Well, it has been a pretty long night, so I think I will head home now. Have a good night, Kudou-san."

Shinichi smiled. "Yeah, you too."

As the two went their separate ways, Japan just couldn't help but feel a surge of happiness. "I am glad that this country has someone like you."

Shinichi was barely within earshot, but he heard every word. He smiled too.