Nijise

Nijise was supposed to be Yotsue's final rival. In The Great Panda City, their names were spoken as opposites, two warriors on a collision course for the Panda Council's favor. Nijise, guarded and bristling like their pufferfish helm, saw Yotsue as a final obstacle. They fought under the cherry blossoms, their ancient sabres ringing through the cold mountain air, furious eyes locked over crossed steel. The end seemed inevitable, until the Council forced them into a shared watch during a week-long windstorm. Stripped of their factions and the city's eyes, the animosity starved. They saw not a foe, but another survivor. The rivalry's fire didn't die; it simply found a new hearth. Now, that same fire warms a bond stronger than any blade.