(Posted: 08/01/2013.)
I was listening to some of the songs from the *NSYNC Christmas album from 1998 as I was editing this. And it's only August. #noshame
Arabesque
I Can Hear the Sea
10. ALL EYES ON ME
(Godaikoku Championships, part 1)
.
" How can I let you know
I'm more than the dress and the voice?
Just reach me out then
You would know that you're not dreaming."
"Still, if anyone wrongs me, there'll be a battle. And I love my fans for that. Their emotional support is a huge part of my success—so is their financial support. I literally wouldn't be able to afford to skate if I didn't have fans: they have paid for costumes and on occasion coaching bills. That's why I never feel like I give my fans enough, although I work very hard to keep them happy."
—American figure skater Johnny Weir in his autobiography, Welcome to My World
(—Nineteen years-old, mid-February)
(4-6 February, fifth season on the senior level)
"How could they be so careless? Are they not getting paid to do their jobs?!"
Tenten rolled her eyes, sighing as she adjusted the strap of her duffle bag. If she knew Neji was going to be like this, she wouldn't have answered the phone. She waited for Neji to finally stop talking—or at least pause—before quickly speaking.
"Good morning to you too, Neji. Since I've been in Earth Country, my practices have gone well, thanks for asking," she said pointedly.
Tenten swore she could hear the gears in his head struggle to change directions as she silently laughed on her end. Her laugh became vocal as he settled for, "That— that is good to hear."
"Don't you have class right now? Stop worrying about me," Tenten said, walking along the street. "I'm fine."
"No, and that employee's stupidity could have seriously jeopardized your safety," he growled.
"The FCFSA has already taken care of it," Tenten reassured. "They've already contacted Earth Country officials to investigate."
"Still—"
Tenten heard a strange shuffling noise on the other end. "Neji? Hello?"
"Kiba, you bastard! KIBA!"
"Yo, Tenten! It's Kiba. I'm sorry, I was the one who showed Neji the article. I tried to stop him—"
"Hello!" Tenten greeted, grinning. "And really, it's okay. He was going to find out whether or not you told him anyway."
"Tenten!"
"Neji, it's fine, really," Tenten said, shaking her head. "It's not that big a deal. The video was pretty harmless."
"Tenten, people now know where you are staying," Neji said with utmost seriousness. "From the footage, they may be able to figure out the floor or the room!"
"The video's already been taken down," Tenten said, walking towards the practice rink. "And Lee and I have been assigned bodyguards by the Federation."
"Hn, at least someone is doing something right."
"Kami, you sound like my parents," Tenten huffed. "Neji, I'll be okay. With all the security around, nothing bad is going to happen, okay?"
"Tenten—"
"Thanks for worrying, Neji, but I'll be fine. Anyway, I've gotta go. I'm at the main rink for practice."
Tenten heard Neji sigh at the other end. "Alright, do well."
"Of course," Tenten said. "Wait!"
"What?"
"You're going to watch my competition tomorrow right?"
"Really, Tenten? As if that should ever be a doubt."
Tenten laughed. "Just checking."
"Hn."
"Alright then, bye!"
—
Well, this is certainly shaping up to be a week, Tenten thought as she put on her headphones and began warming up for the practices.
For the most part, Lee had been just a little shaken by Tsurugi Misumi's comments—more like character assassination—about his skating and questions about his sexual orientation. Lee was relatively thick-skinned when it came to insults; he'd heard worse from other skaters in locker rooms and even from parents of rival skaters as he was rising up the ranks. Sadly, Tenten also knew how that felt like. Most skaters did. No child should be subjected to that, though it happened all the time.
But even he was not immune to such caustic comments, especially since they came from an official within his own skating federation. It certainly didn't help that he had been put on blast on national television either.
He had tried to hide is disappointment and sadness behind a too-wide smile for about a week, but Tenten knew better. So, Gai-sensei and Kurenai-sensei took some serious action and got him fired up again. Tenten had joined in on the effort as well; all she really had to do was challenge him and get him in a training mood, which was actually quite easy. The rink had also been bombarded with letters of support and love from fans from all over the world, which helped a lot to boost Lee's confidence again.
This was why she wasn't surprised when a crowd greeted them at the Iwagakure International Airport in Earth Country about a month later. Tenten herself had many fans that were devoted to her skating, and for that she was grateful. Lee, however, hadn't reached her level of fame in the skating world.
Or so he thought.
Both his and her fans greeted them as they exited the airport terminal. There were flashes from cameras from all around them as airport-goers, reporters, and fans (mainly women around their age, maybe a little older) held cameras, banners, flowers, and autograph books.
Lee had been positively tickled at the sight of his fans. He stopped to take pictures and sign autographs and in return for his apparent kindness, he'd been bombarded with all sort of little gifts, from little squirrel plush toys to boxes of Earth Country-style instant curry mix—apparently, his fans had done their research. They reassured him that his current short program was his best yet, and that Kurenai-sensei had created a masterpiece for him.
One fan in particular had shyly approached him after her friend had pushed her towards him. She bowed once to Tenten and then to Lee before approaching him. "My name is Amaru," the red-haired girl introduced herself, "and it would be an honor if you allowed me to give you a gift."
"For me?" Lee asked, wide-eyed.
Tenten's curiosity was piqued.
Amaru proceeded to reach into an inconspicuous-looking tote bag and took out a beautifully lacquered box. For a moment, Tenten thought the fan had made Lee some lunch, which would be sure to make him happy, but when she handed it to him, Tenten noticed that the box had a metal clasp.
Tenten was sure her and Lee's faces were quite comical as Lee opened the box. Inside, nestled in maroon velvet, were a pair of traditional nunchaku crafted from hardwood, the connecting rope of real horse hairs.
"I flew here, to Iwa, earlier this week so I could pick this gift up," Amaru explained. "I had wanted to give it to you during Nationals, but the craftsman said it would not be ready by then."
Lee had been struck speechless. "How did you … How—"
"You mentioned that your grandfather's set was destroyed in a fire a long time ago. And you've always said you wanted during a few interviews," the red-haired girl explained. "I knew that Earth Country had the best craftsmen for these, so I located one and commissioned for a set around the time of the Grand Prix events. It was just convenient that the Godaikoku Championships were here as well."
"I can't possibly accept this gift," Lee said. Tenten could tell he was getting a little emotional. She only hoped he wouldn't scare the fan away with his declarations of youth.
"My sister had been depressed for a long time," Amaru began. "And she's already had a few suicide attempts. But then your Swan program came along, and it was just so beautiful … and I don't know how, but it inspired her to get better. I cannot possibly thank you enough; so I ask that you accept this gift from my entire family as a sign of our gratitude."
"Then it would be my honor to accept this gift," Lee said, unusually subdued.
(But then he had to ruin the moment by flashing a blindingly white smile, giving her a thumbs-up and winking creepily at her.)
With that, both Tenten and Lee and their skating teams had departed for the airport, the mood around them considerably lightened. They'd been driven to a publically undisclosed hotel—forgoing the "official hotel" of the event due to security and privacy concerns—where they checked in and were taken through the employee route to their hotel rooms.
Once a skater got to a certain competitive level (i.e. winning shiny things), it was just too hard to stay at the "official hotel" of the event. The hotel's name would be published online on the event's official website and fans and reporters alike would swarm the lobby.
All in all, it wasn't much of a surprising day for Tenten, who had grown used to the routine of landing at an airport, greeting fans who had been waiting for quite some time, and then being driven to the hotel in which she'd be staying over the course of the event.
What happened the next day, however, was quite unexpected. In short, the young employee that had helped them check in and shown her and Lee their rooms had hidden a camera somewhere on his person and uploaded the footage online. She and Lee had been notified by Gai-sensei, who had been told by the FCFSA skating officials, who had been alerted to the situation by concerned and outraged fans.
The footage contained nothing scandalous. It was two minutes in length, and looked as if they were two clips mashed together, the first was of her and Lee checking in and the second was of them walking along a hotel corridor. There was no indication of which floor her room was in, so she was thankful for that.
The hotel employee who had uploaded it had also made some comments in the video clips, nothing negative of any sort—it was more admiration and awe of the two skaters. But nonetheless, it had been serious enough for her fans to alert her federation and for the FCFSA to take action against it.
The FCFSA had lodged a formal complaint to the Earth Country Figure Skating Union, which had promised it would cooperate with authorities to formally investigate what had occurred and the video had been immediately removed from the website.
Predictably, her parents had called her, both concerned and outraged that their little girl's privacy had been invaded so casually. She had learned that they had bombarded the federation with complaints as well—and had been promised that all of them would be answered. Tenten reassured them that there had been increased security at the hotel and that she hadn't encountered any problems.
She tried to shake it off as best she could. She had a competition to prepare for, after all.
Tenten let out a big sigh as she tried to keep a steady pace around the halls and increased the volume of her music. As she passed the section where Temari, her coach Baki, and a few skating officials were situated, she caught the older skater's glance. She and Temari nodded in polite greeting before the other skater went into a double axel from the ground. The Wind Country skater bounced a little as she landed; such was the case when it was not smooth and slippery ice beneath their feet but concrete.
Being from two different countries, many expected the two skaters to be distant and cold towards each other, especially since Fire Country and Wind Country had been at war with each other nearly a hundred years prior. (Grudges were passed down from generation to generation, it seemed.) Even hardcore figure skating fans were still surprised to learn that they were on such friendly terms.
But there was really no reason not to be.
Any animosity between their countries due to the War had long been settled, but there were those who still expected Tenten to beat Temari—the victories were a source of national pride for their respective countries.
To have been competing against each other for so long, it was all the more reason to be on amicable terms. It was easier that way, to be fueled by a sort of friendly rivalry rather than by animosity. It would have been exhausting enough to try and keep up the enmity throughout the years.
They walked over to the boards as they were getting ready to take the ice. "This is our fifth Godaikoku Championships together," Tenten remarked off-handedly, making sure her skates were laced up properly.
"Don't remind me," Temari made a face and discreetly motioned around them. "It's just us and these little girls," she whispered quietly.
A few feet away, a young girl of about fifteen contorted her body and walked on both hands, eager to show that she had what it took to play with the big guns. These days, female skaters were practically required to be flexible. Some sacrificed aestheticism to achieve new and bizarre positions—Kin was one of them. Her flexibility belonged in a circus act.
If asked, she wouldn't lie; most of the newly invented "difficult" positions were pretty ugly, but they were rewarded handsomely in points.
"Honey," Tenten started, "we are not that old."
Even as she said this, Tenten knew what Temari meant. She would turn twenty soon; Temari would be twenty-two in the coming August. They were at the age where most of the women they'd looked up to in their junior years were going into their thirties and had retired. Her own idols, the legendary Senjuu Tsunade and the fierce ice queen Mitarashi Anko, had both retired before they hit twenty-five. So as young as the two of them were, they were already veterans of the sport; both had numerous international medals between them and were fortunate enough to have had valuable Olympic experience.
Temari merely laughed and stepped onto the ice. The conversation was over.
- - - x - - -
(7 February, fifth season on the senior level)
Prelude to the World Championships, the Godaikoku Championships was an international event that allowed skaters from the Five Great Nations (Earth, Wind, Fire, Water, and Lightning Countries) to participate in one final international senior-A competition before gearing up for the event of the year. (There was separate international competition for other countries.)
But for Tenten, this event was particularly significant because she'd be competing against Sabaku Temari for the first time this season after Temari had pulled out of the GPF due to an ill-timed injury. But seeing Temari speed off onto the ice for the final flight's short program warm-up, it was pretty obvious that the Wind skater had long since recovered from whatever had plagued her.
The five-minute warm-up period passed by in a blur. During that time, the audience applauded whenever a skater was introduced or when a skater did a particular jump well, like when Temari did her money jump: the triple axel—the hardest triple jump of them all.
Unlike the five other jumps (lutz, flip, loop, salchow, and toe-loop), the axel required an extra ½ revolution due to its forward entrance. With the other five jumps, the skater skated backwards into the jump and landed backwards. With the axel, the skater skated forwards into it and landed backwards. So the triple axel was actually 3.5 revolutions in the air and not 3 like other jumps.
It was so difficult that the vast majority of female skaters didn't have one—Tenten included. Temari was in an exclusive club of three women in figure skating history to ever have successfully completed a ratified triple axel in international competition.
And while Tenten was the first and only woman to complete a quadruple jump of any kind, Temari was more successful at the triple axel than Tenten was at the quad toe-loop. The skater from Sunakagure consistently scored a +2.00 grade of execution (GOE) from the judging panel—positive GOE was like extra credit, negative GOE was punishment—and, on a good occasion, even an average of +2.29 GOE out of a total of +3.00.
It was hard enough getting anything above +2.00 (averaged among judges) for a well-executed jump.
Temari was that good at triple axels.
(It went without saying that Tenten was a little bit jealous. Just a little.)
Tenten's only saving grace, jump-wise, was that Temari was incapable of doing a triple loop—the fourth hardest triple jump—due to an old hip injury that was better left alone as it had taken the older skater quite some time to heal from it. (Prior to the back injury, Temari's loop jump had also been spectacular.) In addition to being solo jumps, both the loop and toe-loop jumps were commonly used in jump combinations—an example being Tenten's triple lutz-triple toe and triple lutz-triple loop combinations.
While many skaters did a triple jump-double loop combination, triple jump-triple loop combinations were rare; but they were major point-getters ... if one managed to land one that was actually ratified. Temari's back injury had forced her to skip out on that chance. It really was a shame that Temari had lost her loop jump. Many skating analysts considered her edge jumps (axel, loop, salchow) better than Tenten's, while they considered Tenten's toe jumps (lutz, flip, toeloop) superior to that of Temari's.
But even then, Temari's lack of a triple loop made her and Tenten very closely matched in terms of jump content because Temari's jumps were the closest to textbook quality (execution, technique, height, speed, flow and ice coverage) compared to any female amateur skater today—Tenten was a close second.
A very, very close second.
But people usually forgot about the spins, spirals, and everything in between—Tenten was arguably stronger in those aspects.
With the warm-up over, Tenten skated back to the boards to wait with Gai-sensei until her turn. She listened to music to keep calm as she was the fourth and penultimate skater—Temari would skate right after next twenty five-or-so minutes passed by in a blur. She endured cheers from the adoring crowd for other skaters. Some of the loudest ones were for Miyahara Kurotsuchi, the home favorite.
… and before she knew it, it was her turn.
"Please welcome, Ryū Tenten of Fire Country!"
Skating to Spring Breeze, she'd opened with a triple lutz-triple loop combination, the highly-anticipated upgrade from the triple lutz-triple toe combination to stay above and beyond the level of the upcoming jumping beans. It had been rumored for so long that people doubted Tenten would ever perform it in competition, even doubted her ability to perform one. Next had come the triple flip and double axel, and of course the spins and the spirals—all with her own little flourishes.
Tenten laughed and shook her head as she came out of her ending pose, in disbelief over how she performed; the audience's delight had been so infectious from the start of her program to the very end. They had cheered and cheered throughout her performance—with a complete standing ovation and all after she finished her final spin.
She bowed one, two, three times and half of the 10,000-strong crowd didn't stop cheering until she'd skated to the rink boards and took her blade covers from Gai-sensei.
"That was wonderful! Wonderful, little lotus!" Gai-sensei complimented as he gave her a hug.
"Thank you, Gai-sensei," Tenten said, huffing. She tried to catch her breath as she and Gai made their way to the Kiss & Cry.
The crowd, for the most part, had calmed down as slow-motion reels of some of her jumps and spins played on the arena's screen. She and Gai-sensei exchanged a few words as the cameramen lined up in front of them, eager to capture the looks on her and Gai's faces when her scores were announced.
"Hi, everyone at home!" she greeted when the cameras finally turned their attentions back on her; her scores would be announced soon enough. "Hi Mom, hi Dad! Sakura, Ino, Hinata, Shiho! Neji, everyone! Thanks for watching!"
"Oh, look at that combination!" Gai exclaimed, pointing to the monitor in front of them, "The fire of youth coursed through that!"
Tenten's stomach was just fluttering everywhere as she anxiously waited for the scores to be announced. She'd never get used to the waiting time. "Just like you taught me," she grinned, fist bumping him. "Wasn't sure on the double axel when I was in the air, but I think it was okay, yeah?"
"Absolutely," Gai-sensei nodded.
"The scores please, for Ryū Tenten."
Everyone, especially Tenten, eagerly listened for the scores that were only seconds away …
"With a technical score of 41.63 and a program component score of 34.21, she has earned 75.84 for the short program, which a new personal best. She is currently in ... first place!"
The arena went crazy over her score, Gai-sensei cheered and clappedwith the audience as she clapped her hands to her mouth in pleasant surprise. Never in her wildest dreams—even after she'd become a world champion—did she think she'd ever match up to Kazahana Koyuki's world record score, but here she was, a point and a few tenths past the world record.
Which meant that she now held the new world record for the ladies' short program.
In her periphery, she saw Temari—who didn't even look the least bit fazed by the cheers for Tenten—speaking with her longtime coach, Baki, who was giving her some last-minute reassurances before the older skater would skate away to center ice. Tenten and Gai left the Kiss and Cry area just before the announcer introduced Temari once more to the crowd, choosing to watch the competition backstage on the monitors.
With a short program to the jazzy sounds of the musical film Chicago, the Wind Country skater was determined to get the crowd going. It wasn't something that Temari usually skated to; her short programs were usually along the lines of dramatic and alluring. This program was more fun, flirty, and sassy; so this was a bit of a departure from her regular.
Tenten actually really, really liked Temari's dress. The Wind skater was obviously going for a vaudevillian-flapper style with her hand-beaded silver and white dress. It was made with nude-colored illusion fabric with intricate and gorgeous sparkling beaded patterns woven all over and making up the details of the dress. Tenten was sure that the costume was heavier than it looked with all the beads and the rhinestones, especially the fringed skirt; but it was very like the aspiring-showgirl character of Roxie Hart, who was the protagonist of the film.
Despite her fun musical choice, Temari definitely all business when it came to the technical content of her programs. She opted this season include a triple axel in her short program, something that she'd never done in the past. The Wind Country skater had chosen to do two triple axels in competition, one in the short program and one in the free skate—she'd actually done three two years ago (one in the short, two in the long), but for some reason unknown to Tenten, Temari had scrapped that.
Temari had opened with the triple flip-triple toe combination, in which her rotations were quick and high in the air with plenty of room to spare as she came back down on the ice. If she were to compare her own jumps with that of Temari's, Tenten grudgingly admitted that while her own jumps were considered by many to be textbook quality, Temari's was pushing the boundaries of perfection. Temari had tremendous height on her jumps and rotated much faster in the air, allowing nearly a 100% guarantee to have fully rotated her jumps with several inches to spare before her foot even touched the ice.
After the choreographed spiral sequence which had been arranged unconventionally early by CoP standards, came a very strong triple axel with an impossibly soft knee-bend as she landed the awe-inspiring jump. The audience had roared with delight as they lay witness to such a remarkable element in her skating. Tenten herself had even felt breathless—not that she visibly showed it, of course.
Temari followed up with layback spin that was a bit lacking in both speed and stretch (likely due to her old back injury) which preceded a triple lutz. She then breezed right through her flying sit spin that was a bit lacking in speed (Temari wasn't exactly known for her spins anyway), her straight-line footwork sequence (Temari looked like she was having the time of her life), and the final spin, a change-of-foot combination spin that ended with an I-Spin.
Some of the audience had risen to its feet, much like they had done after the performances of the Earth Country stars and of Tenten's. Wind Country flags dotted the monitor as some in the crowd waved them around. Even Tenten nodded in approval to her rival's near-perfect skate, but she was mostly apprehensive of what Temari's score was going to be. Whatever it was, Tenten knew that it was going to be good.
"The scores please for Sabaku Temari of Wind Country. The short program score please."
"With a technical score of 43.10 and a program component score of 30.48, she has earned 73.58 for the short program, which a new personal best."
Temari had scored 73.58, only about a point short of Kazahana Koyuki's world record-setting 74.56 in the short program of the previous Olympics. Well, shit. She'd done fantastically.
But wait, Koyuki-senshuu didn't have that world record anymore—
"She is currently in ... second place!"
—
Press conferences weren't exactly on Tenten's list of favorite things to attend.
But it was a requirement for the top three skaters of the end of the night at every competition to face reporters and answer questions about how they thought they skated and really, just to talk about themselves.
So Tenten found herself—once again—in a room filled with reporters with their note-taking tools and cameramen holding picture-taking contraptions with those gosh-darn flashes that went off every once in a while. She sat in the center while Temari sat to her right and Lightning Country's Yono Karui to her left.
(But it also felt a little nice to gloat. Not that Tenten would ever publically admit it.)
"Before we begin, will all three of the skaters comment on what they thought about their skating today?"
"Ah, I am very satisfied with how I skated today," Tenten began, "and also really happy that I was successful with the triple lutz-triple loop combination outside of training and practices after talking about it for so long. Even I was starting to believe that it was all talk and no action," she joked. A couple of the reporters in the room laughed with her. "But overall, I felt good about all the elements that I'd done after I got off the ice, so it was really rewarding to see that I wasn't wrong. I feel very good and very excited going into the long program this coming Saturday."
Temari spoke next. "I am definitely happy with my triple axel. Of course, I'm a bit puzzled at the edge call on my triple lutz," she said pointedly. "Nevertheless, it feels pretty good to have a new personal best score, and I think I've got the right momentum heading into tomorrow's free skate." Temari then motioned for the last skater to talk.
"Well, um, I'm very happy with the way I skated today," Karui started in a very excited, but shaky voice. "I'm happy I was able to do my triple toe-triple toe, and of course, the double axel was a little weird, but I think that, um, I did the rest of my program with good quality and I'm really, really happy to be in the top three after the short program."
"The floor is now open for questions. Please immediately identify yourself before you pose your question," the moderator then announced from Karui's left.
"Hi, Tatami Iwashi from the Konoha Times of Fire Country. Tenten, you recorded the highest short program score ever today and really, just have done so much in your time on the senior level so far. What it does it mean for you to achieve this milestone in your skating career?"
"Gosh," Tenten laughed. "I honestly just came here with the intention of testing my left foot after missing the F.C. Nationals because of the stress fracture. Other than that, never did I think I would have the world record here. It really hasn't sunk in yet—I'm very, very happy, because I've felt that I've always had the capability to do so. And I think this also tells me that I still have room to grow and improve before the Olympics next season."
"This question is for both Tenten and Temari: in the past, you two have been capable of free skate scores of 125 and above. The both of you also scored over 70 points today for the short program, which is rare in itself. Do either of you think that you'll break the elusive 200 total-point score in the free skating event two days from now?"
Temari answered first. "Well, I know Kazahana Koyuki was the first—and only—female skater to break 200; and the fact that her both her free skate and overall record still stand three years later is incredible. With that said, I'd love to break the 200-point mark. I mean, I definitely think I'm capable of it, but it's a matter of putting it down and getting the job done."
Tenten nodded as she listened to Temari's words. After the other skater finished, Tenten began to speak. "I agree. For me at this point, I'd love to be able to hit that milestone, but the main thing for me in this event is skating clean, since I haven't skated a completely clean free skate in competition in, I don't know, two years? So that's really, really important to me."
"Hi. I would like to ask Yono Karui: you were on the junior level last year, so how does it feel to currently place third only behind Sabaku Temari and Ryū Tenten on your first year on the senior level while your compatriot Suzuki Samui sits in a surprising sixth place?"
"This question is for Sabaku Temari. What does it mean for you to be here at the Godaikoku Championships after missing the Grand Prix Final because you were sick?"
"This question is for Sabaku Temari …"
As the reporters shot off questions, Tenten blanked out when they weren't directed towards her. Temari was relatively eloquent and diplomatic, as usual, while Karui's inexperience with the media and their questions was certainly showing. Still, her excitement certainly made up for her lack of experience.
"This next question will be the final question of this press conference," the moderator cut in after a question for both Tenten and Temari.
"Hi, this is for Ryū Tenten. Last month, a senior skating official from your own federation made some, uh, disparaging comments about your training mate, Rock Lee. What is your take on the whole situation?"
Yikes.
Tenten took a moment to compose herself before answering. It was not entirely unexpected for a reporter to ask her a question like that—in fact, she'd been expecting it for about a month now. How she'd managed to avoid it for that long, she didn't know, but it didn't help that someone was here, now, and asking for her opinion.
So she took a deep breath, and spoke.
"Ah. Well, I was definitely appalled at the comments Mr. Tsurugi made, especially since there were some pretty baseless claims about Lee's character," she began, swallowing to assuage her now-drying throat.
"In the time that I have gotten to know Rock Lee, I've found that he is someone who is self-assured and certainly very aware of his own identity. I thought he was brave for deviating from his usual style of skating to do something that was completely foreign to him; something not many skaters can boast about. Lee performs The Swan so beautifully, in a way that transcends gender boundaries.
"Saying that Lee isn't relatable or that he's not the "right kind of masculine" because he isn't afraid of doing things differently is something that I will never understand. Personally, I wouldn't mind having Lee represent me or my community, in skating or whatever I am part of. He's hard-working, determined, and open to new ideas, which are some admirable traits. He's also confident without being arrogant, so why wouldn't I want him to be representative of what I am and strive to be?
"Lee and I have talked about this before and we felt that Mr. Tsurugi had a right to voice his opinion, but people also have the right to disagree with it. In this past month alone it's been amazing how many people have stopped Lee in the streets just to tell him to keep his head up—there have been so many letters and gifts sent to the rink by his supporters—it's really heartwarming and great. Those gestures are worth more to Lee than any downbeat comments will ever be and part of what keep him skating. And I'll end with that. Thank you."
(For those who don't understand skating very well, Tenten has only placed first in the short program. There are two programs you need to complete, the short program and the long program (also known as the free skate), and she has only completed the short program. The long program will take place next chapter and will decide the overall score as well as the winner.)
Also, jumps in order of difficulty (assuming that they are the same number of revolutions):
(1) Axel, (2) Lutz, (3) Flip, (4) Loop, (5) Salchow, (6) Toeloop (a.k.a. "Toe")
If you review, perhaps there will be more Neji next chapter. (Oh who am I kidding? Of course there will be.)
New Links in profile: (1) YouTube video of what Temari's short program is based on, (2) Picture of Temari's short program dress.
Note #1: The Godaikoku Championships are based on the European and/or the Four Continents Championships, which are the last major ISU competition before the World Championships. I couldn't call this competition either because Europe and the other continents basically don't exist in Narutoverse. Godaikoku = Five Great Nations.
Note #2: Tenten and Lee's "hidden camera situation" was based on an experience of Japanese skater Mao Asada. She had been filmed using a secret camera checking into a South Korean hotel for the 2009 Four Continents Championships in a similar way. Also, Lee's encounter with the fan of gift-giving was also (loosely!) based on Johnny Weir's experience with a Japanese fan as described in his autobiography.
Note #3: Temari's "Chicago" short program is inspired by Jennifer Kirk's 2003-2004 short program to the same music. Her free skate/long program will be revealed in the next chapter along with Tenten's. However, the inspirations and links for those won't be posted until the World Championships chapter(s).
Song/Theme: "All Eyes on Me" by Faye Wong