"Welcome to SHSP!" Mio Naganohara's voice welcomed the audience as the camera panned around the arena.
Inside of the ring was the announcer Tenma Tsukamoto, and just a few steps away was Touko Fukawa, nervously looking around.
"The tournament to crown our champion continues tonight!" Aioi continued. "Once again, we are your commentary team, Yukko Aioi and Mio Naganohara!"
"And starting things off tonight is Touko Fukawa." Naganohara narrated as the camera focused on the anxious Fukawa, both of her hands holding onto her shirt. "Interestingly enough, Fukawa-san actually turned down an entrance."
"Really?"
"Yes, apparently she thought it was embarrassing enough coming down with the audience watching, let alone in front of all the viewers." Replied Naganohara. "Nonetheless, she actually tried to get out of the tournament, but our General Manager, Junko Enoshima, insisted that she participate."
"You gotta wonder what it is that she sees in Touko Fukawa, though." Replied Aioi. "I'm sure wondering…"
Fukawa began to pace nervously in the ring as the bell rang three times. Referee Suzu Hagimura entered the ring, and Tenma picked up her microphone. "The following contest is a first round match in the SHSP Championship Tournament, and is scheduled for one fall! Introducing first, already in the ring, Touko Fukawa!"
Fukawa skittishly turned away from the audience's rather mixed reaction, looking at the floor rather than at the audience.
"Churu churu churu payapa" The words rang out across the arena through the speakers, turning into a the beginnings of a dance beat, the arena's lighting corresponding with colored lights in a bouncy pattern. "Disco lady, disco lady, deep emotion, deep emotion"
The song's beat slowly began to build up, and as it kicked in full-beat, the shape of a young lady came through the curtain. An extremely distinctive head of very long pink hair came into view, on the head of a quite pretty girl, clad in a teal school uniform. She came out with a smile.
"And her opponent, Moka Akashiya!"
Moka came walking down the ramp energetically, a smile on her face as she immediately made her way to the side of the entrance ramp, high-fiving the audience members while making her way down.
Naganohara commented through Moka's entrance. "And here comes Moka Akashiya. We know she comes to us from a school called 'Yokai Academy'."
"Yokai?" Aioi asked. "That's a weird name for a school."
"Yeah, it is." Naganohara replied. "And apparently this Moka herself actually has never been much of a fighter, and that the 'other Moka' does the fighting most of the time."
"'Other Moka'?" Asked Aioi, sounding even more confused. "What does that even mean?"
"Honestly? I have no clue."
The joyous Moka slapped the hand of the last fan on the ramp on the way to the ring as she made her way up the set of steps by ringside. She took a few steps onto the apron, motioning to the crowd, who expressed a bit of excitement.
"And it looks like Moka's already a hit with the crowd." Naganohara commented.
"The difference between the two of them is like night and day…" Aioi added.
Fukawa's expression had change from nervous to almost angry, seeming almost resentful as she watched Moka step through the middle and top ropes, making her way into the ring. Moka stepped onto the second rope, excitedly playing to the crowd once again, unaware of Fukawa's death stare.
Moka hopped off the ropes, heading for the center of the ring, as did both Fukawa and Referee Hagimura, Tenma taking her leave from the ring. The pink-haired competitor's happy look quickly faded as she noticed the spiteful stare in Fukawa's eyes.
Looking between the two of them, Referee Hagimura motioned to the timekeeper Kosaki Onodera, who rang the bell three times.
"And here we go, our first match of the night." Naganohara said.
Referee Hagimura took a few steps back, leaving space between her and the two competitors in the match.
Moka started off, moving in closer to Fukawa, who didn't seem to move much, looking awkwardly at Moka and making a meek attempt to put her hands up.
The two closed in on each other. Moka spun her body around, ending up behind Fukawa, locking in a waistlock, holding onto her by the waist and applying pressure. Fukawa began to flail about, almost as if she didn't know what to do next.
"Moka starting with a waistlock, Fukawa… looks confused." Commented Naganohara.
Moka wrestled Fukawa down to the ground from the waistlock position, switching herself over into a pinfall attempt. Referee Hagimura made the count. "1, 2,—" Fukawa kicked out.
Moka stood up again and stepped backwards, allowing Fukawa a few seconds to recover. Fukawa sluggishly pulled herself back up, looking even more perturbed. Moka looked to her opponent with a bit of confusion.
"I think Fukawa might've been right to not want to be in this." Aioi said as the two in the ring paced slightly. "She is really not cut out for this."
"It's still early, the match just started." Responded Naganohara.
Moka approached Fukawa, extending a hand out in her direction. Fukawa's eyes began to dart around uncomfortably before returning to Moka, as she extended her own right hand out. The two made contact, with Moka immediately springing into contact, grabbing hold of Fukawa's wrist with both hands.
"First a waistlock, now the wristlock." Naganohara commented. "Surprising wrestling knowledge here from Moka."
Fukawa grimaced as Moka held onto her wrist. She dropped down onto one knee as Moka continued to apply the pressure. After only a few seconds of this, stepped over Fukawa's arm with one leg, turning around to face her again, now with Fukawa's arm seemingly trapped. With that, Moka climbed over Fukawa, pulling her to the mat and turning her over onto her back in a pinning predicament.
"Wow, a La Magistral Cradle!" Exclaimed Naganohara as Referee Hagimura went in for the count. "1, 2, no! Fukawa manages to get out of it."
After managing to get her shoulder up with just enough strength to force Moka to break her hold, Fukawa crawled away. She held onto one of the ropes, starting to pull herself up, a look of upset frustration etched on her face.
"It's like they're total opposites." Aioi began, watching the two recover. "Moka's showing some pretty impressive wrestling knowledge, and Fukawa's… um… hanging in there!"
"We do know that Akashiya-san was at the top of her class in Yokai Academy, so it's not much of a surprise she'd have done her homework before competing." Naganohara replied.
Fukawa just started to walk out of the far side of the ring before she saw Moka come running in, making a short hop to hit a dropkick. Fukawa was caught in the stomach and sent through the middle and top ropes, tumbling out to the floor as the audience cheered Moka's athletic display.
"And there she goes…" Aioi flatly commented.
Fukawa got up to her hands and knees, staring frustratedly at the floor, teeth gritted, looking almost as if tears were about to start coming. She stood up again, face turned downwards. The audience watched curiously as she stood in place.
Meanwhile, in the ring, Referee Hagimura began her count. "1! 2!"
"An impressive dropkick from Moka, but now Fukawa's gotta get back in before the ten count." Naganohara said. "Doesn't look like she's in a hurry to, though…"
"3! 4!"
Fukawa glanced up at Moka in the ring, her opponent looking almost concerned. Fukawa turned around, making her way down the aisle.
"What the?!" Aioi shouted. "She's leaving?!"
"5! 6!" Referee Hagimura counted as Fukawa walked away from the ring. The audience began to show their displeasure, booing loudly.
Fukawa paused in her walk, looking around nervously.
"7!" Referee Hagimura called out. "8!"
With a deep breath, Fukawa turned around and backtracked back to the ring, sliding in just as the count reached '9".
"Looks like she changed her mind." Naganohara noted. The crowd applauded slightly at Fukawa's return to the ring.
Moka approached Fukawa slowly, dropping her arms to her side as she did. "Are you okay?" She could be heard asking as the arena quieted down.
Fukawa turned her body slightly, glancing at Moka from the corner of her eye. She raised her right hand, delivering a chop to Moka's clavicle area. Moka let out a gasp, turning around and putting a hand over the area that had just been hit.
"Fukawa finally gets into this!" Naganohara exclaimed.
"Looks like her chest got hit hard, she's holding onto it pretty tight…"
"No wait, look!" Naganohara replied. "She's not holding her chest, it looks like… she's holding onto the rosary?"
Indeed, Moka's hands were over the rosary, clutched tightly.
"I guess she doesn't want to lose it?" Aioi's confused voice continued.
Moka looked back at her opponent, seeing her approaching, a bit of aggressiveness now showing in her. Fukawa walked towards Moka with energy that wasn't present previously. In doing so, she walked right into Moka as she threw out a kick from her sideways facing position, her side kick catching Fukawa hard in the stomach.
Fukawa let out a heavy breath, clutching her stomach and doubling over. She couldn't react and only watch as she watched Moka run to the other side of the ring, bouncing off the ropes and coming back fast. She made a leap into the air, raising her right leg high above the air and bringing it down onto the back of Fukawa's back, dropping her to the mat.
"What a scissors kick by Moka!" Naganohara excitedly exclaimed. "Will this end it?"
Moka dropped onto the mat, turning Fukawa onto her back and hooking her leg for the pinfall. Referee Hagimura counted. "1, 2, 3!"
The bell rang three times and Moka's entrance theme filled the arena once more.
Tenma picked up her microphone again. "The winner of this match, Moka Akashiya!"
Moka smiled happily as Referee Hagimura raised her arm in victory, albeit with some difficulty due to the referee's small stature.
"Well, that was a weird match." Aioi commented.
"It was, but an impressive showing for Moka Akashiya." Replied Naganohara. "She's gonna join Rias, Taiga and Satsuki in the second round!"
Moka looked down, putting her hands over the rosary over her chest, looking down on it, making sure it was still attached. She let go with a satisfied look, running over to the corner to hop onto the second rope. She waved happily to the cheering crowd.
A groggy Fukawa rolled outside of the ring, falling from the apron to the floor.
"You gotta wonder what General Manager Enoshima was thinking though." Naganohara said. "She said she saw something in Fukawa, but… that wasn't good."
"No, it wasn't."
Moka climbed out of the ring, running to ringside to once again give high-fives to the audience.
Aioi continued "Still, Moka looked great here, regardless of who she was up against."
Moka made her way back up the entrance ramp, high-fiving the last few fans on the way up. Upon reaching the top, she smiled, waving to the cheering crowd.
The scene cut to the backstage area, showing the duo of Rias Gremory and Taiga Aisaka standing around and chatting. Taiga's arm was out of her uniform, applying an ice pack to her elbow joint.
"So, who do you think would win if we end up against each other in round two?" Rias asked, giving Taiga a playful smirk.
Taiga removed the ice pack from her elbow, crossing her arms while glancing to Rias. "You really need to ask?"
Rias chuckled. "Yeah, me of course." She laughed, recieving an unamused look from Taiga. "Anyway, hey, I meant to ask, but do you know what the deal is with that Takanashi girl?"
"What deal?" Asked Taiga. "She's just a nut. Everyone who's ever met her knows it. I just saw her earlier going on about some horizon and something about magical contracts."
"Hm…" Rias looked a bit perturbed. "I don't know, she kinda weirded me out last week."
"Who cares? You already won the match, it's over. She's not the only one, though, that Senjougahara seemed kind of—" Taiga stopped mid-sentence. The attention of the two of them turned to Satsuki Kiryuin walking by them. Noticeably, there was a small bit of bruising above her nose.
"Hey, there." Rias greeted her.
Satsuki responded with a slight nod. "Rias Gremory."
"So, that was impressive last week." Rias continued.
"I don't compete for praise." Satsuki replied coldly, turning away from Rias. "I compete to become a champion."
Taiga gave Satsuki a somewhat irritated look from the corner of her eye.
"Oh, hey." The attention of the three turned to see the arrival to Chitoge Kirisaki, who was wearing a small bandage over her nose.
"Chitoge Kirisaki." Satsuki greeted her.
"So, I was wrong." Chitoge replied. "Even without weapons and a power suit, you're pretty strong. Well, I guess you need to have something going for you, I mean, you're not going to be a draw for SHSP with a face like that, right?" Chitoge concluded with a devilish smirk.
Satsuki turned around completely. "Excuse me?"
"Well, I mean, who's gonna buy T-shirts with the face of someone with eyebrows like that?" Chitoge laughed loudly.
An angry stare came to Satsuki's face. She reached out and grabbed Chitoge by the shirt, immediately bringing an end to her laughter.
"Hey, hey!" Rias shouted, she and Taiga immediately rushing in to separate the two of them.
Satsuki stared angrily at Chitoge. "You're awfully arrogant for someone I stomped into the ground last week. Be glad our match already happened."
"Yeah, yeah." Chitoge replied dismissively, waving her hand. She turned and walked away from the others.
"Well, that was uncomfortable." Rias commented, stepping away from Satsuki after having been keeping her from Chitoge.
"Geez, talk about a tsundere." Taiga commented, shaking her head.
The camera now focused on SHSP's backstage interviewer, Eru Chitanda.
"Hello, everyone!" She greeted the viewers. "Please welcome my guests at this time, Saeko Busujima and Saya Takagi!"
Two girls in the same white-and-green school uniform walked into the frame. The taller of the two had a head of long, purple hair, and was holding a wooden sword in her hand. Her associate had pink hair tied into a pair of pigtails, adjusting her glasses as she walked to the opposite side of Chitanda that the other girl stood on.
"Busujima-san, Takagi-san, I'm curious, what are your thoughts on the tournament and participating in SHSP?"
The pink-haired girl leaned into the microphone. "First off, let me just clarify something for the viewers at home. I'm Saya Takagi, and I'm Saeko Busujima's manager. And just for the record, she and I aren't friends. This is business. The Takagi family is successful because we know good opportunities when we see them. And there was no better one than this one here." She continued in her serious tone. "Saeko was unbeatable in kendo. And I know she can't use a sword in the ring, but she's tough regardless. Her reflexes are incredible. And I know she'll easily beat anyone."
"Ooh." An impressed Chitanda replied. "Busujima-san, do you have anything to add to that?"
Saeko paused momentarily while glancing down at the microphone Chitanda held for no. "Hm… no, not really."
"I see." Chitanda continued cheerfully. "Well, do the two of you have any thoughts about Saeko's match tonight with Yurippe Nakamura?"
"I have a thought." Takagi pulled Chitanda's microphone over to her. "What makes her think she's so great? She founded some club full of weirdos called the SSS? Really, who cares? Doesn't matter though, she's just gonna be a small speed bump on the road to Saeko Busujima becoming the first ever SHSP Champion."
"And Saeko, do you have anything to add?"
Saeko shook her head. "Not really." She looked up to the camera with a half-smile that almost looked cordial. "See you in the ring, Yurippe."
With that, the duo walked off.
"Thank you!" Chitanda called out. "Back to you at ringside!"
The camera went back to the ringside area, which was now very dark, the lights apparently having dimmed significantly.
Tenma's voice filled the arena. "Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the girls of 765 Pro!"
The audience cheered momentarily through the darkness and silence. And then, the sound of music filled the arena.
"Are you ready? I'm lady! Hajimeyou! Yareba dekiru, kitto, zettai, watashi number one!"
The bang of pyrotechnics went off on either side of the stage, bringing the lights on, showing a group of twelve girls in matching green-and-yellow outfits on the stage, dancing in unison to the music. The audience clamored in appreciation for the show they were seeing as the song continued.
"Start hajimaru kyou no stage " They sang while they danced in time. " Check maiku meiku-ishou it's show time! Try challenge! Stardom hikari hikaru spotlight! Mabushi kagayaki massugu debut!"
The idols' routine went on smoothly as the song went to its next part. "Yume wa kanau mono, watashi shinjiteru! Saa ichi tsuite let's go!"
With a shout of "YEAH!", the girls changed formation, leaving one idol standing in front. She turned around, waving to the others as she started down the entrance way, her long, navy blue ponytail waving behind.
The song continued on as the one idol pranced down the entrance way. "Are you ready? I'm lady! Uta wo utaou! Hitosu hitotsu, egao to namida wa, yume ni naru entertainment!"
The one competing idol looked into the camera and sang along with the others during her entrance. "Are you ready? I'm lady! Hajimeyou! Yareba dekiru, kitto, zettai, watashi number one!"
The blue-eyed idol entered the ring as the song's instrumental portion came to an end. She struck a pose in the center of the ring, the idols on the ramp doing the same, as the pyrotechnics went off in one burst again, this time both on the entrance ramp and in all four corners of the ring.
The audience erupted into cheers and applause at the conclusion of the song. The idol in the ring hopped up onto the second rope, motioning to the crowd with a big smile on her face.
The following contest is a first round match in the SHSP Championship Tournament, and is scheduled for one fall! Introducing first, representing 765 Pro, Hibiki Ganaha!"
Hibiki raised her arms high in the air to more cheers. The camera cut to show her fellow idols on stage cheering for her.
Hibiki hopped down, jogging over to the far side of the ring.
The speakers started again, this time starting with a chorus of "Yeah yeah yeah, yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah".
The idols separated into two groups on either side of the entrance way to make room for the next entrance. Out from the back stepped Ichiko Sakura, looking as confident as ever, arms out at her sides, almost as if she was expecting a big hero's welcome. And despite her arrogant demeanor, she seemed to be well-received, cheers emanating from the audience.
"And her opponent, Ichiko Sakura!"
Ichiko strolled past the idols without so much of an aside glance, big smile on her face as she walked down towards the ring.
"And our next match, Hibiki Ganaha going one-on-one with Ichiko Sakura." Naganohara commented. "What an entrance for Hibiki though, you'd expect as much from a group of idols, though."
"The people don't seem to love Ichiko quite as much though." Aioi noted, referencing the lukewarm reaction the narcissistic Ichiko received.
Ichiko took her time ascending the steel steps, her self-assured smile seemingly stuck on her face. She took a few steps across the apron, climbing through the ropes. She stepped up onto the middle turnbuckle in the corner, attempting to play towards the crowd.
She jumped down, and out of the corner of her eye, saw Hibiki walking over to the side of the ring with the steps. Ichiko, along with the rest of the audience, watched curiously as Hibiki reached onto her head, and proceeded to pull a hamster out from her hair.
"What the?" Aioi asked curiously.
Hibiki kneeled down, placing the hamster on the steel steps. She said something inaudible to the rest of the audience, before giving her hamster a wink.
A moment later, Hibiki felt herself being knocked to the mat, courtesy of a kick to the midsection from Ichiko. The young idol turned over, hand over the spot she got kicked, looking up angrily at Ichiko.
"Oh, now that was uncalled for!" Naganohara criticized, the audience seemingly thought so as well, judging from the boos emanating from them.
Referee Nagase promptly got between the two, pushing Ichiko towards the center of the ring. "Come on, Sakura, back off! The match hasn't started yet!"
"She's bringing vermin in the arena!" Ichiko shouted, pointing to Hibiki's hamster.
Hibiki stood up, an angry stare fixed on her face. She went running across the ring, past Referee Nagase, tackling Ichiko to the crowd to a loud pop from the crowd. Ichiko found herself on the end of onslaught of strikes from Hibiki, doing her best to guard against them.
"Ring the bell, ring the bell!" Referee Nagase shouted, motioning to Onodera at the timekeeper's table. The bell rang three times.
"And I guess now we're officially underway." Naganohara commented. "Hibiki's pretty mad, now. She does love her pets a lot, so, hearing them called vermin probably made her angrier than that kick did."
Hibiki continued to rain blows on Ichiko, who continued to try to guard against them. She raised both legs and used them to push on Hibiki, successfully managing to push her angry opponent off of her. Hibiki sprung back up quickly, but Ichiko was already in the process of rolling out of the ring under the bottom rope.
Taking a deep breath, Ichiko took a few steps away from the ring, one hand on her hand. She looked up to see Hibiki standing by the ropes, staring down at Ichiko.
"Come on, Sakura, back in the ring!" Referee Nagase shouted out to her. "1! 2!"
Ichiko grumbled angrily, walking back towards the ring apron, glancing away from her opponent. As she reached for the bottom rope, she failed to notice that Hibiki was making a running start, dropping to the mat to slide into Ichiko's face with a kick, to the delight of the crowd. The 'Good Luck Girl' tumbled backwards, hitting the barricade on the outside. Hibiki, meanwhile, held up her arms, playing to the cheering audience.
"What a sliding kick by Hibiki, she's taking control quickly." Naganohara commented. "Ichiko getting on Hibiki's bad side probably wasn't a good choice."
Meanwhile, Nagase was still continuing the count. "7!" She called out. "8!"
Gritting her teeth angrily, Ichiko dashed back to the ring, sliding under the bottom rope again. She began to stand, only to see Hibiki coming close again, and promptly fell onto her bottom. Ichiko quickly crawled towards the corner as her opponent came in after her. Ichiko grabbed hold of the rope, pulling herself up just as Hibiki came in close. Ichiko managed to bring her leg up to land a kick to Hibiki's midsection. Taking advantage of her brief opening, Ichiko followed with a backhand slap to the face, sending Hibiki reeling back a few steps, and eliciting a loud 'Ohhh!' from the crowd.
"Ooh, that looked like it hurt." Aioi said.
Hibiki put one hand over her face where she had just been slapped, looking at Ichiko, whose confident smile had now returned, a sharp contrast from how frustrated Hibiki now looked. The darker-haired girl immediately charged in towards Ichiko, Ichiko bringing her arm up and swinging on Hibiki, almost on instinct. Hibiki ducked this blow, turning to bounce off the opposite rope and come running back. Hibiki made a small leap into the air, turning her body into a diving cross-body block, taking Ichiko down to the ground.
Referee Nagase dropped to the mat to count. "1, 2—" Ichiko kicked out.
"Only a two count on the crossbody." Naganohara narrated. "I think Ichiko underestimated her opponent, probably due to the fact that she's an idol. But apparently Hibiki Ganaha is considered one of the most athletic of 765 Pro, other than a member by the name of Makoto Kikuchi, who, unfortunately, was initially denied entry into SHSP because… they thought she was a guy."
Hibiki hopped back up after her pinfall attempt. Her opponent attempted to do the same, only to be interrupted as Hibiki immediately hopped into the air, turning to drop an elbow onto the prone Ichiko. Hibiki went for a second pinfall.
"1, 2—" Another kick out.
Hibiki sprung up again, dropping a second elbow drop. She went for a third pin.
"1, 2—" Yet again, Ichiko got the shoulder up, looking more pained.
And once more, Hibiki was back up. She made the leap up again, this time her elbow hitting the mat as Ichiko finally managed to roll away. The missed elbow left Hibiki on the ground, gripping her right arm. Sensing her chance, Ichiko hopped onto Hibiki for a pin attempt of her own.
"1, 2—" Hibiki kicked out quite energetically.
"Ichiko dodges the trifecta of elbow drops." Naganohara began. "Hibiki's definitely got an energetic in-ring style that it's probably gonna be tough to keep up with."
With a sigh, Ichiko stood back up, pausing to map out her next plan of attack. She reached down, grabbing Hibiki by the left wrist and pulling her back up. Her next move was immediately thwarted, as Hibiki gave her an irish whip into the corner immediately, despite her hurt arm. Ichiko landed back-first in the corner, and before she knew it, looked up to see Hibiki barreling across the ring towards her, jumping up to land a high dropkick right on Ichiko's chin.
The dazed Ichiko stumbled out of the corner, right to the waiting Hibiki, who reached down, seizing Ichiko's legs and pulling forward, sending Ichiko dropping back-first to the mat, with Hibiki holding onto her. Hibiki turned her body around, pulling Ichiko's with her, so that now she was facing away from the corner, still holding onto Ichiko.
"And what does she have planned here?" Aioi wondered.
Hibiki looked out to the audience, who cheered. Hibiki dropped backwards while still holding onto Ichiko's legs, letting go as the momentum brought Ichiko back up, sending her platinum-haired opponent face-first into the turnbuckle. Ichiko teetered out of the corner, one hand on her temple. Still on the mat, Hibiki reached up, pulling Ichiko back down onto her back for a roll-up pin.
"1, 2—" Yet another kick out from Ichiko.
A look of confusion started to cross Hibiki's face. She stood back up again, searching for what to do next.
"Hibiki's high-energy in-ring style has kept Ichiko on the ropes, but she can't seem to keep her down." Naganohara observed. "And—wait, it looks like she's gonna go for a high risk maneuver!"
Hibiki ran to the corner, turning her back to it to face back towards her opponent, hopping up to the middle rope. The audience clamored in excitement to see Hibiki go high up. She looked down for a moment before hopping off, dropping down towards Ichiko. Ichiko's eyes shot wide open, and on instinct she rolled away, leaving Hibiki to crash hard onto the mat.
Ichiko crawled away, trying to catch her breath. She saw Hibiki turn over, managing to get onto her knees, with both hands on the sides of her head, her face grimaced in pain.
"That looked like it really hurt." Aioi commented, noticing Hibiki struggling to recover after the missed move.
"That really wasn't a small fall, Aioi." Naganohara responded. "That could've ended the match if it connected. What's Ichiko's next move here?"
Still watching Hibiki attempt to pull herself together, Ichiko stood up again, readying herself for her next move. Hibiki began to groggily pull herself up. Ichiko backed up a few steps, springing off the ropes and charging in, throwing her arm out for a clothesline, catching Hibiki across the chest and knocking her unprepared opponent back down. Ichiko wasted no time going for another pin.
"1, 2—" Hibiki rolled her shoulder up before Referee Nagase counted three.
"She stays in it!" Naganohara exclaimed.
Ichiko got up again, her opponent struggling to do the same. Ichiko took a few steps back and forth, her confident seemingly drained. She found herself behind Hibiki, who was attempting to step back up. With a loud yell, Ichiko threw herself forward, wrapping her left arm underneath Hibiki's chin, interlocking it with her right, which was now pressed against the side of Hibiki's head, using both arms to apply pressure to the struggling idol.
"Ichiko locks in the sleeper hold!" Naganohara shouted. "This move has been used effectively in wrestling for many years, and with Hibiki still hurting from that dive, this might be enough to finish things!"
Hibiki struggled as Ichiko cinched in the hold, the 'Good Luck GIrl's eyes shut tightly, teeth gritted and face straining as she used as much strength as she could muster into her sleeper hold. Hibiki's energy level began to falter with each second of feeling the pressure from the sleeper.
The view of the camera cut to the entrance ramp, showing the rest of the 765 Pro girls shouting out words of encouragement to Hibiki.
"The other members of Hibiki's group are cheering for her, but I don't think that's gonna pull her out of that move." Aioi commented.
"Ichiko's really cinching it in, I think she realizes this is her best chance to get the win!"
Hibiki continued to fight against Ichiko's sleeper hold, despite her energy fading and her reduced breaths. Referee Nagase made her way closer to the action, checking in as Hibiki's attempt to break the hold slowed. She reached out, picking up one of Hibiki's arms. She let it go, the arm dropping limply to her side. "1!" She called out.
"if she can't respond to three consecutive attempts, the match will be called in Ichiko's favor!" Naganohara exclaimed. "I'm not liking Hibiki's chances here."
Nagase raised Hibiki's hand a second time, it fell again. "2!"
Everyone watched intently as Nagase reached over a third time, the audience watching quietly, and the other idols shouting their cheers from the entrance way.
Nagase lifted Hibiki's arm up for a third time, and let it go. It fell slightly, only for Hibiki to raise it up. The audience began to cheer loudly at this.
"She's still in it!" Aioi exclaimed. "Hibiki's not out yet!"
Ichiko's eyes opened wide in disbelief at this. Hibiki let out a yell, and with what strength she had, lifted her legs off the ground, throwing Ichiko off-balance, sending both of them to the mat with Hibiki crashing down on Ichiko.
Hibiki rolled off, crawling on her hands and knees to a distance away from Ichiko. Breathing heavily, she reached for the ropes, using them to pull herself up. She saw Ichiko pulling herself back up, one hand on her mid-back, right eye wincing slightly. She went in immediately, heading directly for Hibiki to follow up. Still holding onto the ropes, Hibiki used them to pull herself up, delivering a kick straight to the side of Ichiko's head as she approached, knocking her to the mat again.
The crowd popped at the resourceful move as Ichiko hit the mat, holding onto her head. Hibiki stumbled over into the corner, looking over at Ichiko.
"What's Hibiki got planned next?" Naganohara wondered.
She looked out upon the arena for a moment, before raising her arms up and down, motioning for noise from the crowd, noise which they promptly gave. For that moment, it seemed like the pain she was feeling had faded. Going through the top and middle ropes, she stepped onto the apron, then began to climb the turnbuckles fromt he outside.
"Is that smart?!" Aioi asked. "She already got hurt on one top rope move!"
The audience cheered wildly as Hibiki stood up on the top rope. She began to shake, suddenly,though, and a loud 'Pop' went off. The turnbuckle Hibiki was standing on snapped off, falling onto the mat, sending the idol falling off of the top rope, crashing into the mat below.
"What the heck?!" Shouted Naganohara. "The… turnbuckle broke?!"
Ichiko sat up, looking over as Hibiki lay flat on the mat. She immediately dove onto her opponent. Befuddled by the entire scene, Referee Nagase reluctantly went over and made the count. "1, 2, 3!"
The bell rang three times and Ichiko's theme filled the arena once again. Tenma lifted up her mic. "The winner of this match, Ichiko Sakura!"
The smile returned to Ichiko's face as Referee Nagase raised her arm. The other members of 765 Pro could be seen, watching in various states shock and disappointment.
"Well, um, I have no idea what the heck just happened." Aioi said. "It looked like the turnbuckle broke off just as Hibiki was about to hit a top rope move."
"Were… were the rumors of Ichiko Sakura having ridiculous amounts of good luck true?" Naganohara thought aloud, watching Ichiko prance around the ring victoriously.
"I can't really think of how else something like that could happen." Aioi replied.
"Either way, Hibiki put on a great effort tonight, and you gotta wonder if she was about to win there if it wasn't for… well, that stroke of luck."
Ichiko stood up on the middle rope, motioning to the audience happily, and receiving a lukewarm reaction in return. She climbed back down, walking around the fallen Hibiki, who was in the midst of being checked on by Referee Nagase.
"Either way, though." Naganohara continued. "Putting aside in-ring skills, if she continues to have supernatural luck like that, it's gonna be pretty hard to take her down in round two."
Ichiko stepped through the ropes and onto the apron. She paused, looking over at Hibiki's hamster on the steps before shaking her head in disgust and hopping down onto the arena floor.
"So we now have 5 out of 8 entrants in round two decided, with one more to go tonight." Naganohara said. "Still to come, it's Saeko Busujima and Yurippe Nakamura."
Ichiko reached the top of the entrance ramp, once again paying no real mind to the other 765 Pro members. She turned around, looking at the arena again before taking a bow in celebration of her victory. With that, she turned around, disappearing behind the curtain. Her music came to a stop within a few seconds.
Back in the ring, Hibiki sat back up, heaving a sigh. She got up, walking slowly to the edge of the ring. She climbed out and kneeled down by her hamster, picking it up. She gave a half-smile to her pet, though not hiding her disappointment very well.
The sound of applause interrupted her, though. She looked out to see the audience cheering for her effort.
"And respect for an excellent competitor from the SHSP audience." Naganohara said.
Hibiki's smile went from forced to genuine as she made her way up the entrance ramp. She was greeted by the other members of 765 Pro with hugs and kind words.
The camera now switched to backstage once again, showing Junko Enoshima in her office, once again sitting at her desk. There was a knock at her door. "Come in."
The door burst open, and in came Touko Fukawa. "Enoshima-san!"
"Oh, Fukawa." Junko greeted her. "What brings you here?"
"Why did you put me out there?!" Fukawa cried. "That was so embarrassing! I don't want to do this anymore!"
"Fukawa-san, relax." Junko replied. She put on her glasses, switching into her 'sophisticated' voice. "We see much potential in you here as SHSP, and surely there's the potential for greatness in you."
"There isn't!" Fukawa replied desperately. "The other girls in the tournament are athletic, they're pretty, some of them were already famous! I don't belong here! Plus, so many others from our school could've been better than me! Oogami-san's a martial artist, Asahina's athletic, she's a swimmer, even Kirigiri and Celes would've been better than me! Why did you pick me?!"
Junko removed her glasses. "As much as I like to see despair, I don't want to see it in you. Just relax, your next match won't be for a little bit, so just calm down." Junko's tone of voice switched into her 'cute' self. "There's some nice sweets and tea in the catering room, go and help yourself!"
Fukawa groaned, putting her head in her hands. "I don't want to do this anymore!"
The door opened again. "Oh, hey, you wanted to see me?"
The happy face of a short-haired brunette came in. She walked into the room. Clad in a navy blue jacket, grey-blue skirt and pair of stockings, the happy girl walked up to Junko's desk beside Fukawa.
"Ah, Yui Hirasawa, thanks for coming." Junko replied. She went back into her 'sophisticated' mode with her glasses back on. "I'm glad you could make it. I just want to double-check that you're sure about participating in this tournament."
"Of course I am!" Yui responded cheerfully. "I can do this!"
Junko removed her glasses, now going into her 'despair' mode. "It just seems like this kind of thing wouldn't be your forte, Hirasawa-san. You kind of stick out like a sore thumb."
"Mm… I know I'm not much of an athlete, or a fighter…" Yui began. "But I can try! I wasn't much of a guitar player at first either, but I gave it my best shot and now with my band After School Tea Time, I can really rock!"
"I'm just concerned, that's all." Junko's normal tone of voice returned. "I think something like this might be a little rough for you."
"I'm gonna do my best, though!" Yui called out. "Even if I don't win, I'm gonna try! Besides, if Fukawa-san got in, I can do it too, right?"
Fukawa groaned loudly, turning away from the two.
"Alright, Hirasawa-san. Good luck, then."
The door burst open. "Hey, what the heck is the deal?"
The three in the room looked up to see another girl enter. In a blue-and-white school outfit, she had a distinctive look of orange-brown hair with a hair clip. She pushed the door shut behind her, crossing her arms indignantly.
"Kirino Kousaka." Junko greeted her. Any positivity she might've held immediately faded. "And what, pray tell, brings you here?"
"You know what brings me here!" Kirino exclaimed. "I was invited to be a member of SHSP, but I'm not in the championship tournament?! What gives?!"
Junko returned her glasses to her face. "You see, this tournament will decide our champion. Our champion will be the face of the promotion, and will represent us a group. And you see…" Junko lowered her glasses. "I can't just have a brother-lover competing for that position."
Kirino immediately let out a gasp, her face turning red immediately. She glared in Junko's direction. "What does that have to do with wrestling?!"
"Honestly? Nothing." Replied Junko, removing her glasses. "But it's disgusting. Everyone knows about it, and it's what they'll be thinking about when you walk down the aisle." She looked up at Kirino's furious face. "Look, you're a model, you're good-looking, you're very athletic and you're decently well-known around the Tokyo and Chiba areas. So obviously you would be of value here. But as a champion… no."
"I don't care!" Kirino pounded her hands on Junko's desk. "I want in! If Fukawa here could be in, and you put the happy-go-luck guitarist next to her in, too, I should have a spot!"
The look on Kirino's face seemed to affect Junko the more she looked at it, her face starting to soften. She let out a sigh. "Fine, Kousaka, you want in that badly? You're in."
Kirino removed her hands from Junko's desk, not looking much happier.
"Actually, this is even better." Junko continued. "Because once you have a terrible performance in the tournament and get eliminated, I can bring your contract to the board of directors, and have it terminated!"
"What?!" Kirino exclaimed.
Junko laughed loudly at Kirino's outrage. "Like I said, your traits made you valuable, but once it turns out you insisted to be added to the world title tournament only to get yourself eliminated, it probably won't take much to get your contract killed."
Fuming, Kirino glared at the smug Junko. "And what if I don't just get beaten in the tournament like you think?"
"Please, with the level of talent here? You're going down sooner than later." Junko replied. "Oh, and by the way, your opponent in the first round? She's gonna make things a little… unpleasant."
Junko laughed angrily in the face of the enraged Kirino.
"WHERE IS SHE?!"
The occupants of the room suddenly looked around upon hearing a furious voice. The sound of footsteps approached.
The door burst open again, showing the furious face of a girl in a distinct black-and-red uniform that showed her midsection. Similarly distinct was the streak of red across her medium-length dark hair.
"WHAT THE HELL?!" She exclaimed.
"Oh, Ryuko Matoi, do come in." Junko mumbled in annoyance.
"Why did you leave me out of the tournament but put in that Satsuki Kiryuin instead?!" Exclaimed Ryuko angrily.
"Do you even need to ask?" Replied Junko. "You're a loose canon, Matoi. And I need this tournament to go smoothly. That's not to say you won't be asked back, but I can't have you going crazy and attacking everyone if you lose or someone says something to you or… you think that one of the 765 Pro girls was the one who killed your dad."
"What does that matter?" Snapped Ryuko. "Isn't this tournament supposed to decide who's the best? How can you say that without me in there? I would've gladly destroyed Kiryuin before I claimed the championship!"
Junko sighed. "Look, Matoi, we had only two possible spots for next week's final tournament matches with a few girls being considered, but it looks like these two filled them." She motioned to Kirino and Yui. Ryuko turned and looked at them, causing them to both flinch immediately.
"Take them out." Ryuko ordered.
"Damn it, Matoi, the answer's no!" Junko shot back. "If you want to compete here at all, you're gonna need to cool it down, alright?! We'll call you in a few weeks!"
Ryuko stared at Junko, their eyes locking in a meeting of angry stares. Finally, Ryuko turned around. "You don't know how to run this company, Enoshima." She said. "Kiryuin didn't know how to run an academy, either, but I taught her a lesson. I might have to do that again."
"Yeah, yeah." Junko replied dismissively. "Now, all of you, please, leave."
Kirino, Yui and Fukawa all followed Ryuko out of the room, Fukawa closing the door behind her as she left.
Junko shook her head. "I probably should've checked which of them would be a pain in the neck before I contacted them…" With that she returned to her paperwork.
The camera returned to the ringside area, this time showing Aioi and Naganohara behind the announce table.
They looked into the camera, Naganohara beginning. "We're back at ringside now, and the turnbuckle has been reattached and checked, so we are all ready to go with our main event."
"Y'know, I kinda wanted to see that Ryuko Matoi in action." Aioi replied with a shrug. "She seemed pretty cool. More exciting than Satsuki did."
"Well, either way, looks like she didn't quite make the field for the tournament." Naganohara replied. "Next week, the tournament wraps up, and it looks like Yui Hirasawa and Kirino Kousaka will be in the final two matches."
The view switched to the ring, with the ring announcer Tenma inside of it, along with Referee Nishizumi. The timekeeper Onodera rang the bell.
"The following contest is a first round match in the SHSP Championship Tournament, and is scheduled for one fall!"
The sound of a cymbal ushered in a guitar riff, the song building slowly for a few seconds, the guitar recurring throughout. With another cymbal sound and a drumroll, the song playing exploded into a hard rock jam.
Saya Takagi stepped out from the back, pausing to adjust her glasses as Saeko Busujima followed her out, holding her wooden sword.
"Introducing first, being accompanied to the ring by Saya Takagi, Saeko Busujima!"
Saeko smirked slightly as she gave Takagi a nod. She turned and began the walk down the ramp, her manager following closely behind.
"Here we go, main event time!" Aioi excitedly said.
"And starting with Saeko Busujima." Naganohara continued. "What we do know about her is that she was a star on the kendo team in her school. Apparently she was involved in an altercation outside of school once that was… um, well, let's leave that for another time."
"Geez, what did she do?"
Saeko hurried her pace slightly, making her way up the steps and through the ropes, with Takagi still a few paces behind. In time with her song coming to a brief pause, she jumped onto the middle rope as it kicked back in again, holding her sword over her shoulder with one arm and looking over the crowd with a small smile on her face. The crowd cheered a bit at Saeko's attempt to play to them.
Takagi ascended the small set of steps and stepped through the ropes to join her client. She walked over to Saeko as she stepped down, speaking some words to her that were inaudible to anyone else. Saeko dropped her arm to the side, holding her sword more casually now.
"Yknow, this is the second week in a row someone brought a sword." Aioi pointed out. "Imagine if she and Satsuki get matched up? They'll probably have a sword fight instead of a match!"
"Actually that does sound pretty neat, I'd like to see that." Naganohara replied.
The two girls in the ring stood, facing the entrance ramp. Saeko's entrance theme quieted down, eventually turning silent. The arena quieted down altogether.
The sound of piano notes broke the silence. They rang out for four measures before coming to a brief stop. The sound of a dance beat came in soon after, the piano returning after a few moments. The lyrics began, "Mezamete ha kurikaesu nemui asa ha"
In time with the lyrics beginning, out from the back came the next competitor. Dressed in a white-and-blue uniform similar to that of Kirino's, long maroon hair and a hairband with a grown bow at the end completed her distinct look. She took a few steps out, hands on her hips as she looked out at the arena with a smile.
"And her opponent, Yurippe Nakamura!"
With a small salute to the crowd, Yurippe began her trek towards the ring. As she moved slightly towards the side to head more directly towards the ring steps, she high-fived the fans she passed by. Upon arriving in front of said steps, she took a few steps back, standing in front of the barricade, striking a pose for the camera, the excited fans behind her in the frame happily cheering.
"It looks like she knows how to work a crowd, that's for sure." Aioi commented, watching Yurippe make her way up the steps and into the ring.
"Not a surprise, she is the leader of a group that goes by the name of the SSS, if you note the badge on her arm."
The camera focused in on Yurippe's arm, showing a gold and red badge with the letters 'SSS' emblazoned diagonally across it, the words 'rebels against the god' written underneath.
Naganohara continued. "Though, interestingly enough, she doesn't care much for her nickname Yurippe, though apparently it seemed troublesome to our promoters to have a girl billed by the name of 'Yuri' competing in a grappling contest."
Yurippe ran to the edge of the ring near the center between turnbuckles, raising her hands into the air, receiving another cheer from the audience. With that she turned around, catching view of Saeko, who looked almost like she was enjoying the entrance, and Takagi, who on the contrary, seemed irritated.
Takagi whispered something to Saeko before exiting the ring, standing by the side of the ring Saeko was preparing herself on.
The music playing lowered in volume before coming to a stop moments later. The two competitors made the way to the middle of the ring with Referee Nishizumi nearby. They looked to each other, each with a sort of half-smile.
With one motion from the referee, the bell rang three times.
"And here we go!" Exclaimed Naganohara. "Saeko and Yurippe, final match for tonight! Who goes onto round two."
Referee Nishizumi backed up a few steps and left room between the two opponents, who circled around each other for a few moments. They took a step forward, locking up into a collar-and-elbow tie-up.
They grappled with one another for a moment, each attempting to overpower the other. To no avail, they remained in the lock-up. Saeko took a step forward, forcing Yurippe to take one back. She continued walking, pushing Yurippe back towards the ropes. With one big step, Yurippe reversed Saeko's progress, now forcing her to move backwards. Yurippe continued moving forward through the lock-up, forcing Saeko back towards the other side of the ring.
Saeko quickly pulled herself from the lock-up, grabbing hold of Yurippe's wrist and taking a step forward, locking both of her hands on Yurippe's in a a wristlock. The former kendo star locked in the pressure on her opponent, bringing a wince to Yurippe's face. Taking heaving breaths while attempting to endure the pain, Yurippe swung her free hand up, grabbing Saeko's left wrist. Yurippe twisted her body, pulling her hand free and locking it onto Saeko's on wrist with her other hand, now locking her own wristlock.
Yurippe now applied the pressure to Saeko, who struggled briefly with it, before throwing her arm out in Yurippe's direction, locking it around her neck with enough force to break the hold. WIth her other hand free, Saeko locked both arms around Yurippe's head in a headlock. She cinched in the lock as Yurippe struggled against it. Yurippe wrenched her body around in the whole, both hands grabbing onto Saeko's arms. Dropping down, Yurippe managed to slip out of the hold, avoiding Saeko's futile attempts to keep it in. She looked up to see Yurippe's arm coming towards her, grabbing hold of her own and giving her a hard hip toss to the ground.
She hit the ground with a thud, remaining down only momentarily before turning over onto her hands and knees. Saeko crawled away from Yurippe for a few steps, standing up again. On opposite sides of the ring again, the two paced back and forth. Each one of the two girls looked almost as if they enjoyed the previous exchange.
"And a back-and-forth exchange to start this match." Naganohara commented. "They went move-for-move in that one."
"Is it just me or does it seem like they had fun doing it?" Aioi asked.
"Seems like they both have a competitive spirit."
Both Saeko and Yurippe circled around the ring, facing one another, seemingly not rushing into anything. They began to approach one another slowly, hands up in front of them. Yurippe threw out the first punch, one which Saeko blocked. Saeko responded in kind with a chop, this one connecting into Yurippe's upper chest, stunning her briefly. She follow this up with an immediate kick to her stomach, doubling her over. Saeko immediately turned around, throwing her arms back around Yurippe's head and neck, and dropping to one knee, using the momentum to flip her opponent over her shoulder and back first onto the ground.
Yurippe sat up quickly, but was greeted with a swift kick to the back from Saeko, the audience clamoring in response to the loud attack. Yurippe grimaced, her hand going to her back, Saeko leaped over Yurippe, running back towards the ring ropes. She turned and bounced off, coming back towards her opponent, who, to her surprise, hopped back up to her feet. Saeko continued her charge, but her her surprise, Yurippe hopped into the air, managing to clear Saeko's slightly-ducked head. She spun around while Saeko continued running, springing off the opposite rope. The former kendo star threw her arm out for a clothesline, which was promptly ducked by Yurippe, who answered with a short jump into a dropkick, dropping Saeko to the mat.
Yurippe immediately hopped onto her opponent. "1—" Saeko pushed Yurippe off before Referee Nishizumi could even reach 2.
Saeko pulled herself from under Yurippe's pin and crawled away a short distance to where she could stand again. Her opponent did the same, and once again, the two were facing off from opposite sites of the ring.
"It's been totally back-and-forth so far!" Naganohara exclaimed. "Neither one of them has let up, and it doesn't look like either one's gained much of an advantage."
The two circled one another, and judging from their faces, the competitive spirit that fueled them hadn't gone anywhere. They walked in towards each other, locking up into the tie-up once again. This time they didn't remain in it long, as Yurippe slipped out, spinning around Saeko and going into a waistlock. Yurippe began the process of trying to wear Saeko down with the hold. Saeko wisely dropped to the ground, turning and using the leverage to push Yurippe off. They both sprung up immediately, Saeko catching Yurippe off-guard with a chop to the chest, an audible blow which rang out quite loudly.
Yurippe's hands went over her chest, as she wandered over towards the corner. Saeko folloewd in pursuit, throwing a forearm to the head. Yurippe stepped backwards as Saeko continued, finding herself stuck in the corner. The SSS Leader found herself on the end of several boots to the gut now, Saeko taking advantage of having Yurippe in the corner.
Referee NIshizumi rushed over. "Come on, out of the corner!" She shouted out to them.
With an aside glance, Saeko took a step back, obeying the referee's words. She turned back around, only to see Yurippe spring herself up while holding onto the ropes, throwing a single-footed thrusting kick into Sakeo's face. Saeko stumbled backwards, hands on her mouth while Yurippe stepped up onto the middle turnbuckle.
"Yurippe's going to the top rope now, even though it didn't work out too well in the last match." Aioi commented.
Saeko turned around, hand still over her mouth, seeing Yurippe standing on the middle turnbuckle. She leaped off, turning her body perpendicular for a cross-body, dropping down towards Saeko. Her body collided with Saeko's, but to her shock, it didn't take her down - Saeko managed to catch her.
"Oh my gosh, look at that strength!" Gasped Naganohara.
The crowd clamored at the sight of Saeko holding her opponent up with little difficulty, likely as it was the first real show of strength. Saeko stormed back towards the corner, tossing Yurippe back-first and upside-down into the corner.
"Oh, gosh, a slam into the corner, that looked like it hurt." Naganohara continued on commentary.
Yurippe crawled over onto her knees, hand on her back, grimacing slightly. Saeko paused, watching her opponent start to get up, then went running off to the other side of the ring, springing off the ropes. Yurippe stood up and was immediately met with a diving clothesline, sending her back down again. Saeko crawled over into the cover.
Referee Nishizumi counted. "1, 2—" Yurippe kicked out.
"Impressive show from Saeko Busujima!" Naganohara raved. "Can she keep it going?"
Saeko rose up, reaching one hand down towards Yurippe, grabbing her by her collar. SHe began to pull Yurippe up, and then immediately found herself thrown off guard as Yurippe used both her hands and feet to push Saeko backwards, sending her tumbling through the middle rope to the outside.
Saeko went over the apron, falling onto the mats on the outside. Inside of the ring, Yurippe pulled herself back up, struggling slightly as she did, most likely the effect of the corner slam. She stood, watching Saeko start to recover. With that, she turned and ran to the opposite side of the ring, springing off the ring ropes.
"What's she doing here?!" Aioi asked.
Yurippe went running across the ring, and as she closed in on the edge of the ring, leaped clear over the top rope, diving onto Saeko, who was sent flying into the barricade, Yurippe bouncing off and landing on the mat a short distance way. The crowd erupted at the aerial maneuever, applauding in appreciation.
"What a dive by Yurippe!" Naganohara exclaimed. "Both of these girls are going all-out in this match!"
Both now lay on the mat outside of the ring, slowly making their way back up, the match clearly taking its toll on both of them. Saeko began to pull herself up with the barricade, Yurripe doing the same with the ring apron. Saeko sprung forward suddenly, tackling Yurippe into the edge of the ring apron. The fans cringed at the sight of Yurippe's neck bouncing off the corner.
"Oh, gosh!" Naganohara commented. "Yurippe's body went down at an angle, it looked like her neck slammed hard into that apron."
"After that slam in the corner, she might not have much left now." Added Aioi.
Yurippe remained in the same spot she made impact, a grimaced look crossing her face. She was rolled into the ring by Saeko a moment later. Saeko crawled in after her, moving in for a pinfall attempt.
Referee Nishizumi counted, "1, 2—" Yurippe managed to kick out.
Saeko got up to her knees, wondering what to do next while she looked down at her injured opponent. Yurippe was breathing heavily, her face still looking full of discomfort. She moved one hand back to her neck for her support.
She was yanked from the ground by Saeko, who stood up along with her. She moved so they stood face-to-face, and bending her slightly, Saeko threw her arm around the top of Yurippe's neck, using her other hand to lift her up for the vertical suplex. Once again showing strength, Saeko lifted Yurippe up vertically into the air. However, she immediately began to teeter, as to her shock, Yurippe managed to slip out. Both of Yurippe's hands grabbed onto the right arm Saeko was using to lift her, as she wrapped both legs around Saeko's left arm. Using her body weight, Yurippe forced Saeko onto the ground, her shoulders down and caught in a cruficix pin.
"Reversal into the crucifix!" Naganohara called. "1, 2, NO!"
Saeko managed to get her shoulder out before the third count could be made. Yurippe rolled out, but it was clear she was still feeling hurt, as she didn't rush to get up again and capitalize. Saeko got back up sooner. She circled the dazed Yurippe, who remained on her hands and knees, body shaking slightly. Saeko made a small jump, dropping her knee directly into Yurippe's upper back and neck area, dropping her down to the mat.
"Knee drop!" Aioi exclaimed. "To the same area Yurippe got slammed into the apron in, that's definitely not good."
Saeko dropped her knees and turned Yurippe over. She hooked one of her legs for the pin. "1, 2—" Yurippe managed to kick out, and judging by noise that came from the audience, it was a shock that she did.
"No, she's still in it!" Naganohara called. "Yurippe is not out just yet!"
Saeko got back up onto her knees again, heaving a sigh. Frustration was visible on her face.
The sound of pounding on the mat caught Saeko's attention, as she looked to see Takagi banging her hands on the apron. "Come on, Busujima, you can put her away!"
With a brief nod, Saeko once again stood up again, and with both hands, grabbed hold of Yurippe's uniform to pull her up as well. A quick backhanded chop caught Saeko off-guard, sending her stumbling backwards. Yurippe took a step back, still panting, standing on wobbly legs.
Saeko turned around and charged back at Yurippe, and for her trouble was greeted with a forearm to the side of the head.
"It looks like Nakamura's doing her best to stay in this fight!" Aioi commented.
Yurippe charged forward, throwing strikes at Saeko as she guarded against them. A right hand, a left hand. Saeko raised a hand, blocking one attack, and countering with a hard backhand chop of her own. This brought a stop to Yurippe's attack, turning her away as she attempted to recover. Saeko moved in, hands up again. To her shock, Yurippe turned around and in the process threw a kick straight to the ribs. Saeko moved a hand over her sides. Yurippe moved in again, but was greeted with a punch to the stomach, followed by a hard right to the face.
Yurippe raised her hand again after the attack, but the fatigue had set in at this point, her hands dropping to her side soon after. Saeko moved in, driving her knee into Yurippe's stomach. Her eyes widened as she dropped onto her knees, hands over her midsection.
Saeko closed in again, raising her hands for a clubbing blow to the back of the neck. She followed with another. And another. And another. Saeko began raining down blows with both hands on Yurippe, which increased in speed and frequency. Something strange seemed to come over her, her facial expression changing, to a wide-eyed half-smile. Yurippe futily tried to guard as Saeko began to add in kicks, pummeling Yurippe with all of her strength.
"Oh my gosh, I think she's losing it!" Gasped Naganohara. "She's just going nuts with those strikes on Nakamura!"
Yurippe was soon on the ground, Saeko pounding away on her, the disturbing look remaining firmly in place. Saeko dropped onto the mat beside her, raising her arms to drop her elbow onto the back of Yurippe's neck over, and over, and over. Yurippe was defenseless, trying to fight it off to no avail. She grabbed hold onto Yurippe's upper body with both hands, angrily driving her knee into wherever she could land it, two, three, four, five times.
She was back up on her feet again in an instant, dragging Yurippe over to the corner. Hands on Yurippe's neck, Saeko continued her aggressive assault by slamming Yurippe head-first into the turnbuckles continually.
Finally, Referee Nishizumi rushed over, pulling on Saeko. "Come on, that's enough, that's enough!"
Referee Nishizumi had gotten Saeko away just enough to put a stop to the onslaught. Yurippe dropped onto the mat, holding onto her head, but moving very little otherwise. Saeko suddenly stood still. The maniacal expression that came to her face was gone, replaced with a horrified one. She began to shake, looking at both of her hands, and then at Yurippe.
"What the?" Aioi asked. "Is she… what's going on here?!"
Saeko turned away, putting a hand over her mouth.
Takagi banged on the ring apron again. "Busujima!" She shouted. "What are you doing?!"
Saeko wandered to the other side of the ring, moving her hand onto her forehead, shaking her head.
"It looks like… she… feels bad about that?" Naganohara asked.
Referee Nishizumi ran over to Saeko. "Do you want to continue?"
Saeko turned away from her, the worried look on her face still there. She took a deep breath, making her way across the ring where Yurippe was still down. She stood above her opponent, looking down at the injured Yurippe with what appeared to be concern.
Saeko reached down slowly, lifting up Yurippe, soon standing face-to-face with her. Saeko reached for Yurippe's arms, crossing them over each other before spinning around, the position of her hands causing Yurippe to do the same, leaving them back-to-back with Yurippe's own hands underneath her head, the top of her head balanced on Saeko's arms. Saeko dropped backward onto the mat with a thud, the position of the move banging Yurippe's head hard against the mat.
"And that was a straitjacket neckbreaker!" Naganohara commented.
Saeko crawled over onto Yurippe, who was now clenching her neck with both hands. Referee Nishizumi counted the pin. "1, 2, 3!"
The bell rang three times, and Saeko's theme played on the speaker again.
"The winner of this match, Saeko Busujima!"
"And Saeko gets the win and advances to the second round." Naganohara stated as Referee Nishizumi's raised Saeko's hand. Saeko looked away from Yurippe, the sorrowful look back on her face.
"But what the heck happened here?!" Aioi asked. "She lost it on Yurippe and just beat her down and then… she looked like she felt bad about it?"
Takagi entered the ring, applauding Saeko, who shook her head upon seeing Takagi. She rushed to exit the ring, her confused manager following her out.
"Well, this was a strange way to close out the show for sure." Naganohara continued. "But nonetheless, Saeko Busujima is one dangerous competitor. I wouldn't want to be whoever gets her in round two."
"Tell me about it." Aioi agreed.
Saeko rushed towards the backstage area, Takagi attempting to catch up to her to no avail.
"Well, in any case, next week, round one finishes!" Naganohara continued. "The debuts of Kirino Kousaka and Yui Hirasawa, not to mention we find out who else will fill out the field of sixteen! Thank you for joining us, everyone, see you next week!"