Norirou

Norirou remembered the taste of the ramen after their first race—too salty with defeat. Their rival, a chimp who moved like a blur, had already finished and was leaning back with a satisfied grin. That race to the top of Waterfall City’s great stone stairs set the tempo for their lives. From then on, everything was a contest: who could map the treacherous currents below the falls, whose blade form was sharper, who could find the rarest ingredients for the local noodle shop. But the rivalry was a strange, unspoken partnership. When Norirou’s specs were knocked into the churning water, their rival dove in without a word. They still race each other on every journey, but neither has started an adventure alone since.