First Combat Stream
Ryu's appearance caused no small amount of commotion. Outside of Zovaes, Iroh and Junio, who were all smart enough to be aware of what was really going on, most others probably doubted his appearance. In their estimation, Ryu was a young man who had spoken without thinking and happened to be overheard by others, painting himself into a corner. Actually appearing would only cause him problems. While not doing so would cause him a host of problems in the future, if he was at least a decent talent, washing away that shame wouldn't be impossible. However, to their astonishment, he had truly appeared.