Nakahara watches Ryoma disappear from the stage with Hayakawa following behind him. For a moment, he simply stands there, surrounded by the awkward silence left in their wake.
His eyes then move toward Nikolai and his team, who are still gathered nearby, and he lets out a quiet sigh. Whatever Ryoma's reasons might be, someone still has to deal with the mess he has left behind.
"Kurogane, come with me," Nakahara says.
Kurogane raises an eyebrow. "Where?"
"I'm going to apologize."
"For Ryoma?"
"For all of this."
Kurogane sighs, but follows him across the stage.
The Bulgarian team is still gathered around Nikolai, their equipment and belongings spread across the area after the weigh-in. Viktor Sokolov, Nikolai's head trainer, is speaking quietly with one of his assistants when Nakahara approaches.
The broad-shouldered Bulgarian turns toward him, his expression already somewhat guarded.
