The results of the matches from the first round for the matches against the teams that advanced are carried forward to the second round. This is because there are now 8 teams in the Pool as opposed to 6.
As for the travel, coaches will complain about travel. If the teams flew, each city is around 1 hour from Rome. Driving though would be a pain, Bari 4 hours from Rome, Milan 6 hours from Rome, Trieste 7 hours from Rome, Verona 5 hours from Rome and Modena 4.5 hours from Rome.
At least they are not traveling across the continent like a tournament in the USA, which college teams do at the beginning of the season. Could be worse with Hawaii being 5 hours from the west coast of the USA. Makes for really long road trips.
Thank you guys for the answer. Now I get it that it means Japan is at risk of not passing through the final round. A bad news for me 
