"Aiyah! Where is that ball, aru? It had to be lost here!"

Crunch. Stomp. Stomp

In a bamboo forest on a bright, sunny day . . .

Spotting a red object dead ahead in a small clearing, the young, frustrated Chinese man made his way there, muttering a couple of curses under his breath.

"Finally! I found it after searching for the damn thing for hours, aru. Never shall I lose a ball in a place like this ever again. . . "

In front of the red sphere stood a small boy clad in a light blue, loose-cloth garment. His eyes and hair were pitch black, yet had a small shine under the sunlight.

. . . two Asian countries met . . .

For what seemed an eternity, both the unknown boy and the Chinese man held each other's gaze, not daring to break the silence that had formed between them.

The man was at a loss of words to say to the boy verbally. Mentally, however, there was plenty of things running through his mind - all phrases he could say to the boy was racing through his head.

"How did this boy get here, aru? Did he walk away from his parents and got lost? Wait, this is a bamboo forest, aru. Why would anybody come here? But, the way he is looking at me, it's like he is already highly intelligent for his age. He must be 'that'."

"Wow! You are new nation, aren't you, aru?" he excitedly asked, the small ball forgotten. "So tiny, aru! You must have had trouble living in such a small place, aru."

Brimming with happiness, he began to walk slowly away from the clearing, motioning for the boy to follow him. Seeing that the youngster began to walk beside him, he proudly exclaimed, "I'm China, aru! And if there's something you don't know, just ask me."

Realizing he has yet to call the other nation by name, he asked, "What's your name, aru?"

The boy looked up the older nation and, in a monotone voice, replied, "Hello China-san, where the sun sets in the west. I am Japan, where the sun rises in the east."

Stopping in his tracks with his mouth agape, China watched Japan walk ahead, as if the little nation had never insulted the other. "T-This kid is so rude, aru!" he stuttered before briskly walking forward to catch up to Japan.

. . . and from then on, their destiny began to intertwine, so tightly bound that neither could escape the other . . .

***Many, many years later ***

"Doitsu! Doitsu~!"

Although Germany was supposed to be used to Italy glomping him whenever they see each other, it still came with the occasional bruising. Feliciano might look weak, but he did weigh the same pounds as a normal, healthy man.

Ludwig was ready to scold the Italian, but when he saw the bright and happy glow around the guy, he just sighed and patted the other on the head.

Normally, Italy would feel a bit insulted because of their height differences, but the carefree guy had something specific in mind to ask his 'all-knowing' friend.

"Doitsu? Do you know if and when China and Japan will get along better?" he asked, a little impatient for the answer.

Caught off guard by the spontaneous question, he replied, "Where did this question come from?"

"Well, Romano and I don't get along, yet we still love each other," Italy explained. "So why is China and Japan so unfriendly towards each other? Ve~?"

"They don't get along because of . . . many things that happened before. Sometimes, it's hard to get over past fights and such," Germany slowly replied, trying to not bring up any specific issues.

"Ve~! That's so vague Doitsu!" Feliciano whined. Looking out the nearby window, he saw the two Asian nations together. At first, it seemed that they were conversing, which in moments later, turned into a loud argument, with China exhibiting a frustrated face and Japan cloaked in an cloud of irritation. In the Italian's mind, he imagined China as the overprotective mother and Japan as the child.

"See!" he exclaimed, directing the German's attention to the window."Fighting is bad, especially when they obviously care for each other."

"I agree, they really should stop with this fighting nonsense already, Italy. But again, sometimes it's hard to forget past brawls."

Seeing Yao and Kiku's fight escalating into something more intense, Italy and Germany began to intently observe them, really wishing they could hear what they were saying, or rather yelling.

Pressing against the glass, both nations struggled to eavesdrop into the Asian's argument. Hearing nothing, Italy and Germany pulled back, both disappointed.

"Waahhh! I can't hear them!" Italy complained.

Ludwig continued to observe the two outside. Even if he looked composed and uninterested, inside, he was crestfallen, curious to what was being said outside. "Why did the house had to be soundproof? If only we can hear what they're saying, although, we shouldn't be eavesdropping in the first place."

By now, China and Japan's beet red faces were closing in. If an innocent passerby saw the two, they would have thought the two were going to kiss. Sadly, they were just so mad at each other to the point they got into each others faces and yelled at each other until they lost almost all oxygen in their body.

Just when Feliciano and Ludwig were going to look away, Japan's face grew even redder than Romano's ripest tomatoes (if that's even possible), and abruptly pushed the elder nation away. China, surprised by they younger's sudden action, staggered back a bit before falling down with a loud thump. Kiku, seeing Yao struggle to stand up, looked away in embarrassment while holding out his hand.

China stared at the empty hand for a couple of seconds before chuckling and happily grabbed on to the others palm and pulled himself up. After exchanging some unheard words, they walked away from the window, neither letting go of the others hand.

Widely smiling, Italy looked up at Germany. "I think they'll get over it, Doitsu."

Nodding, Germany stared at the Asian nations before whispering, "I think so, too."

"Vee~! Let's go get some pasta!" Feli exclaimed, feeling famished.

"Sure," Ludwig agreed. Grabbing the Italian's empty palm, both walked hand in hand over to the kitchen, where they ate some of the best pasta made.

Slurping a long pasta strand in his mouth, Italy looked over at Germany and grinned widely. "You know how they say food tastes best when you eat it with the person you love? Well, I'm sure China and Japan will feel that one day!" he lightheartedly stated before devouring another spoonful of pasta.

Notes:

I finally got inspiration to write this fic! *Does a happy dance!* Like it? Hate it? Well, review it so I know your thoughts. I don't care if it is flames, harsh criticism, happy comments, or like that sort.

And randomlvr1, this fic is dedicated for you. Gomen that it took 3 months for me to get inspirations for a ChinaxJapan fic. Well, here you go! :D