After all the hectic preparations, when the calendar turned to a fresh page and spring of 1990 arrived, the KOF tournament officially began.
This KOF tournament received the full support of Japan's government. Not only did they arrange hotels for the competitors, but they also provided dedicated transportation, closed roads for the opening of the KOF tournament, and broadcast KOF promotional advertisements on television around the clock.
Put simply, Japan's government was putting in the kind of effort normally reserved for hosting the Olympics.
It was not because Japan's government was particularly hospitable. In 1990, the bubble economy completely burst, real estate collapsed, and Japan's stock market plunged, marking the beginning of the Lost Twenty Years. Naturally, Japan's government was unwilling to sink into decline, so they set their sights on this international KOF fighting tournament. To them, if this tournament could be as successful as the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, then perhaps it could pull Japan's economy out of the mire.
Thus, Japan's government had specifically approached Shizuku's company to lobby them, displaying a sincerity no different from domestic officials courting foreign investment during the early days of reform and opening up.
If Shizuku had been from Japan, she would surely have declared her loyalty and vowed to devote herself to the Emperor until death. Unfortunately, Shizuku was not from Japan. Taking advantage of the government's need for her, she squeezed them hard and still made them thank her profusely. After all, Shizuku also hoped to turn KOF into a regular event. Holding it annually was unlikely, but once every two or three years could make it something like the European Championship, the Asian Cup, or the World Cup.
And given Japan's current economic predicament, holding an international tournament here could only benefit them. They could only beg her to