After the Quasi-Raccoon Cuties' rather bad flub with Liao, their credibility has dropped quite a bit. Some people who found their Japanese 'kawaii' style rather annoying relished the chance to mock them. Especially since their video had gone viral enough that it was near impossible to take down from every site on the internet. The trio were soon learning the difference between 'laughing with' and 'laughing at'.
To really hammer home the shame they should be feeling, Amaterasu summoned the three of them to her office. "I'm not angry about what happened with Liao. But I'm...disappointed," said Ami. The three of them shuffled their feet, well-aware that 'disappointed' was mom talk for 'mad'. "I understand that you three have your own unique style for doing your report and many people find it entertaining. But you've started to value entertainment over actual news reporting. And it's starting to make you resemble the livestreaming version of, how do Americans say it, radio DJs." The trio winced at that, familiar with what that term meant and how it applied to them.
"So you three have a choice," said Ami, "You can either completely devote yourself to entertainment and leave the actual news reporting to the professionals, or you can shape up and start doing your jobs as reporters. That isn't to say you can't have fun doing it or not tell the news in your own style. But I expect you to actually do your research before you start streaming and not chase rumors, especially ones that relate to private lives. So I suggest you do your next report more factually, because your journalism and entertainment careers can both be ended rather quickly."
The Quasi-Raccoon Cuties took this lesson to heart. They did as much research as they could on Ryouiki Island. There wasn't a lot they could tell about it considering it has been uncharted for over 800 years. But they could at least tell why it's been left uncharted and what the future plans for it are.
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"Hey, everyone! It's the Quasi-Raccoon Cuties and we're bringing you something special," said Tani.
"We're bringing you your first look at Ryouiki Island," said Naya. The three of them were in outdoors hiking clothes and standing in a forest.
"As you can see, this place is more densely forested that Heiya Island," said Date.
"Enough so that a warlord from the Minamoto clan claimed this island was off-limits so he could keep the resources to himself," said Naya.
"You see, back in 1180 through 1185, the Minamoto and Taira clans feuded over dominance over the Imperial Court and, by extension, control of Japan. Wars require a lot of resources and Japan is notoriously sparse in some areas. So this island was a way for the Minamoto clan to supply themselves with lumber and ore," said Tani.
"Apparently it was so important, the warlord ordered it stricken from the record and forbade anyone else from using the island. And with time, the reason for that became lost in superstition and eventually the island itself became forgotten," said Date.
"How do we know this? Because evidence of the Minamoto clan are still here," said Naya before turning the camera to show the ruins of an old logging camp. The place was pretty thickly overgrown and not a lot remained, but it was clear someone had built cabins here.
"This might be the site of Ryouiki's school," said Tani, "We don't know if it will be built here, but part of the colony definitely will be."
"You think it'll be Ninja Prep?" asked Naya.
"Well, considering it's in a forest, it wouldn't be a bad idea," said Date, "But we can't really confirm anything right now. But there are other things we can show."
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Here the scene cut to the side of a mountain where a large cave loomed in the background. Rusty mining equipment lied at the side of the entrance, though a chainlink fence had been put up across the mouth.
"This is the mine the Minamoto clan used," said Date.
"Japan has small iron ore veins compared to other parts of the world," said Naya, "So an iron mine like this would be invaluable to the Minamoto clan."
"While the mine's still being investigated and maybe used for part of the colony, no one should be going in there yet," said Tani.
"Right, abandoned mines are a lot more dangerous than you might think," said Date, "There's always the risk of cave-ins, getting lost, stumbling across something that made the mine its home..."
"They don't have bears here, do they?" asked Naya.
"This would be a pretty far place for bears to swim to, though there could have possibly been a land bridge thousands of years ago," said Tani, "That's how a lot of animals have managed to settle in Japan."
"Of course, it's not just animals that have been here a long time," said Naya.
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The scene cut to an ancient tree. While it wasn't towering like a sequoia or an oak, it had clearly been here for a long time. As it was autumn, the tree's leaves were changing colors and it was heavy with fruit, peaches to be exact. A shrine had been built up around both to honor the ancient tree and keep people from getting to near it.
"This is the Thousand-Year Peach Tree," said Naya, "And while botanists can't quite measure its exact age without cutting it down, which has become strictly forbidden by both Chinese and Japanese governments, we can determine it's over a thousand years old. Meaning it was here well before the Minamoto clan claimed this island."
"Of course, this tree is legally protected," said Date, "We don't want anyone damaging it, like idiots trying to carve their initials into or careless people picking fruits and breaking branches."
"Of course, it isn't exactly forbidden fruit," said Tani, "You have to have official permission to pick the fruit so that the tree doesn't get damaged. But they're not letting the peaches themselves go to waste. As long as the peach has fallen off on its own or been picked by an expert, it's ok to eat." With that, each of them took a bite out of a peach.
They chewed for a bit before Naya got a funny look on her face. "Uh, guys, I just remembered something," she said.
"What's that?" asked Tani.
"I don't like peaches," said Naya before hurrying offscreen.
Tani and Date exchanged a look before shrugging. "Well, I suppose not everyone likes the same things," said Date.
"True, but there's a lot more coming to this island as the colony is built," said Tani, "So keep watching for updates."
"And also check out the report from Animalia this weekend when the solar eclipse happens in that region," said Date.