The girl twisted and squirmed in her bonds, an endless horizon of white fabric her only sight. The white cloth jammed between her teeth muted her desperate groans and grunts into low whimpers, inaudible to anyone more than ten feet away from the furiously struggling young woman. A thin rope crushed the cloth between her lips, and the girl felt as if she could choke at any moment if she wasn't careful. Despite this, she kept struggling, never forgetting her despereate desire to be free once more.
"How did I get myself into this?" thought the girl, as she struggled against the numerous loops of rope wrapped around her wrists and upper body, molding her to the large yellow chair that was now her prison. "I guess it all started when I decided to join the school wrestling team..."
I-I-I-I-I
The Juuban High School wrestling team never had a female member. It hadn't even had any girls try out, for fear of being embarassed and ridiculed in such a male-dominated sport.
That was until Kino Makoto showed up.
Coach Kentashi immediately loved Makoto's spirit, and her strength was unmatched, even by any of the males on the team. After cutting through some administrative red tape, Makoto was on the team in a heartbeat, and ready for her very first meet.
It took place on a warm, fall Saturday. Juuban would be up against the team from Nakado High School, on the other side of Tokyo. Nakado's team was tough, and Juuban hadn't beaten them in six years. But with Makoto Kino as first-string wrestler for the 50-59 kg division, Coach Kentashi was confident of a victory... and so were Makoto's friends, Tsukino Usagi, Mizuno Ami, Hino Rei, and Aino Minako, standing with her outside the girls' locker room as she got ready for the match. Usagi, Ami, Rei, and Minako were wearing their usual red, white, and blue high school uniforms, while Makoto was dressed in her brown and white outfit from middle school, which she would replace with a grey tanktop and blue pair of shorts once she got changed.
"I know you're going to kick butt out there today, Makoto!" said Usagi, enthusiastically cheering her friend on.
"Just remember not to be too over-confident," said Ami, with a warm smile. "You're really good, but-"
"Don't listen to Ami," said Rei, clasping a hand over her blue-haired friend's mouth. "We ALL know you're going to win!"
"That's right," said Minako. "Now, the only thing I know about wrestling is from watching it on TV... my advice is to grab a chair when the ref's not looking, and-"
"Trust me, this is NOTHING like wrestling on TV," said Makoto. "It's all about a combination of strength and agility... wrestling close to the mat and getting your opponent pinned before he pins you. And I am a little nervous..."
"About the match?" asked Usagi. "Trust me, I've seen the other team... they're a bunch of wimps! You'll beat them for sure!"
"Not about that," replied Makoto, glancing back and forth down the hallway and observing some of the spectators as they filed toward the gym. "I'm the first female wrestler in Juuban High School history... what are people going to think?"
"Mako-chan, it doesn't matter that you're a girl," said Ami, putting her hand on her friend's shoulder in a show of support. "All that matters is that you get out there and do the best that you can! If you can do that, people will respect you, no matter what your gender is."
"That, and hit the other guy with a chair," said Minako, winking in her friend's direction.
"Well, we'd better go and let you get dressed," said Usagi. "I've gotta find where they're selling snacks..."
"Bye, Makoto!" said Rei, as she, Usagi, Ami, and Minako jogged off down the hall.
"Bye, guys!" Makoto replied, turning toward the girls' locker room door and cracking it open. "I'll do the best I can!"
"Hey, Makoto..." whispered a male's voice from a nearby classroom. Makoto immediately recognized the voice as belonging to Juruna Kato, the second-string wrestler in Juuban's 50-59 kg division. He was dressed in his wrestling gear, despite the fact that he wasn't going to be wrestling that day, thanks to Makoto. Kato was slightly shorter than Makoto, with short, slightly spiked black hair and a fairly muscular build. His lips were curled into a nervous smile.
"Yeah, Kato?" asked Makoto, closing the door to the girls' locker room and walking over to her friend. "What's up?"
"Well... I, um... I kinda want to talk to you," said Kato, looking down at the floor and frowning. Makoto could see the sadness in his eyes.
"What's wrong?" Makoto asked, her voice lined with concern. She walked into the classroom, and Kato closed the door behind them. "Are you... mad about-"
"No, no, of course not!" said Kato, walking over and pulling up a tall, yellow plastic classroom chair and sitting down. Makoto pulled up a similar chair and sat down across from him. "I just... wanted to wish you luck."
Though Kato tried his best to seem cheerful, Makoto could tell from the look on his face at Kato was deeply, deeply distressed. He had every reason to be. Before Makoto had arrived, Kato was the star wrestler on Juuban's team. He had been undefeated last year in the regular season, and had made it all the way to the individual regional finals, where he lost in a heartbreaker to a slightly better wrestler. That particular wrestler had graduated from high school last year, leaving a path wide open for Kato to take the championship.
That path, it seemed, slammed completely shut on Kato when Kino Makoto had arrived. She truly was the better wrestler in every way. Stronger, more agile, with even more of a will to win. She'd beaten Kato several times in practice bouts, which had persuaded the coach of Juuban's team to promote Makoto to first-string, forever relegating Kato to the reserve squad.
"Kato... I... I guess I've never said this to you before, but... I'm sorry about-"
"There's nothing to be sorry about, Makoto," said Kato, smiling and shaking his head. "You're the better wrestler, you deserve that first-string spot... you deserve to be wrestling today."
"Thanks, but... I can tell that you really enjoyed to wrestle, Kato," said Makoto. "You're really good, and if there's ever a time that you really, really want to go in, I can take a day off, okay?"
"You mean like today?" Kato asked, his eyes lighting up.
"I'm... sorry, no," said Makoto, shaking her head. "All of my friends are here today... I wouldn't want to disappoint them... but maybe next time, alright?"
Next time would be against Yokohama Technical High School, one of the weakest teams in the region. Kato didn't want to wrestle in a match where it wouldn't matter. He wanted to wrestle against Nakado, a team Juuban hadn't beaten in more than a decade. He'd won his match against Nakado's wrestler last year, but his team had still lost... this year would be different. This year, Kato would be the hero.
Until Kino Makoto showed up, that is.
"That's alright, Makoto... maybe next time," said Kato.
"Thanks for understanding," replied Makoto, standing up and smiling. "I promise, next time I'll pretend to be sick or something and you can go on in my place! I know you'll win your match, Kato. Well, I'd probably better go and get dressed... wouldn't want to be late for my-"
"Before you do, Makoto... could you get something out of my wrestling bag?" asked Kato, pointing at a small black gym bag in the corner of the room. "It's a pair of sunglasses... they're at the bottom of the bag, so you'll have to dig for them."
Makoto nodded, then turned around and walked over to the gym bag. Sure, Kato probably could've gotten his glasses himself, but Makoto figured that helping Kato out was the least she could do after taking his spot on the team.
"Besides," thought Makoto, "it'll only take a few seconds..."
But as Makoto walked over to the bag, she didn't see Kato walk to a nearby table and pick up a thick white cloth and a small brown bottle. He poured out some liquid from the bottle onto the cloth and slowly tiptoed over to Makoto as she rummaged through the gym bag, searching for Kato's sunglasses.
"I'm having trouble finding them..." said Makoto. "Are you sure they're in here? All I can feel is a bunch of rope..."
"Yes, I'm sure," said Kato, now right behind Makoto with the liquid-soaked cloth. "Keep looking..."
Makoto continued her search. She didn't notice Kato behind her until it was too late. He reached around and pressed the cloth over her mouth and nose, immediately muffling the loud scream that issued forth from the stunned girl.
"Whmmph ammph mmmph dmmph?" Makoto shouted through the cloth, struggling to escape from Kato's tight grasp. "What are you doing?"
"Something I should've done a long time ago!" shouted Kato, barely able to keep the strong Makoto in his grasp. Finally, after a few seconds of struggling, the chloroform took its effect, and Makoto drifted into unconsciousness. She slumped against the wall, her eyes closed. Kato smiled, dumping the contents of the bag on the floor. Several long lengths of narrow brown rope, as well as two more pieces of white cloth, fell at his feet. "Sweet dreams, Mako-chan..."
I-I-I-I-I
When Makoto awoke, she opened her eyes and saw nothing but a sea of white, pressed tightly against her face. She turned her head back and forth and could still see nothing but white. Then, she felt the warm of the cloth against her head, tied in the back by a small, tightly-tied knot.
"Unnh... what the... where am I?" asked Makoto. She tried to move, an action countered by countless tight cords seizing her form and pressing her tightly back into the chair, which Makoto recognized as the one she'd sat in while talking to Kato.
"Well, you're not wrestling in the gym, for starters."
"Kato?" asked Makoto, her head throbbing as she tried to see who was standing next to her. Then she realized what had happened just before she was knocked out. "You... you chloroformed me..."
"Bingo," replied Kato. The cloth that was tied around Makoto's eyes was tightened over her ears as well, but that didn't do much to drown out the sound of Kato's voice, and she had recognized it immediately. "I hope you're comfortable."
But of course, Makoto wasn't comfortable. The thin rope had been looped around Makoto's body numerous times. It was around her neck, around her shoulders, twirling around and around her upper body above and below her breasts, around her stomach and around the chair itself, connecting to rope tied seemingly endlessly around her wrists, knotted once, twice, thrice, four, five, six times, Makoto could barely tell, it didn't matter. Her wrists were completely immobilized, helpless behind her back, melded to the chair.
Her legs were tied slightly apart, rope binding her legs to the chair at several places. Her knees were wrapped no less than three times each, rope connecting them to the top of the legs of the chair. Her shoes had been removed, with rope looping around the ankles of her gray and black nylon socks, her right ankle secured to the right leg of the chair, while her left ankle was suspended between two chair legs, a tight knot securing each tie.
"You're not going to get away with this, you know," said Makoto, her teeth gritted tightly in anger. "My friends know I'm here. The coach knows I'm here. They'll be expecting me to wrestle today.
"I'll just tell them you got nervous and threw up," said Kato. "There's a lot of pressure on the first female wrestler in Juuban history... it was just too much for you to handle."
"Oh, like they'll believe that," said Makoto, clenching her fists as Kato tightened some of the last knots to the chair. "They know I'm not scared of anything! They know I- mmmph!"
Right in the middle of Makoto's sentence, Kato had jammed a large, thick cloth between her teeth, muffling her protests.
"Now now, Makoto... don't get mad," said Kato, smiling and patting his bound, blindfolded, and gagged captive on the cheek. "You're the one who wanted to give me an opportunity... and when you fell for my little ruse, you gave me the perfect opportunity. Thank goodness my dad's a doctor, huh? I couldn't have possibly subdued you without that chloroform, you're just too good."
Makoto squirmed within her bonds, becoming more and more furious by the second.
"I guess you're not all that good... if you were, you wouldn't be tied to that chair, now, would you?"
With a burst of rage, Makoto spat the cloth out into Kato's face.
"You're nothing but a worm! A dirty, dirty worm who only knows how to use deception and trickery to get what he wants!" shouted Makoto. "I can't believe I was actually willing to let you wrestle in my place, you son of a- mmph!"
"Well that's not very nice," said Kato, shoving the cloth back in Makoto's mouth and cutting off a length of rope from the one roll he had left. "I thought we were friends, Makoto..."
Before Makoto could spit out the cloth again, the rope was looped tightly around her head, pushing the cloth back into her mouth and preventing any chance Makoto had of spitting it back out. The rope around her mouth was extremely tight, and Makoto was worried that it would cut off her circulation... or worse, that she could choke on the cloth being pushed so firmly down into her mouth.
"Well, I've got a wrestling match to win," said Kato. "I'm sure someone will find you eventually... if not, I guess I'll see you on Monday!"
Makoto heard the door to the classroom open, then close and lock behind her. She immediately began squirming in her bonds, angry at Kato, and even more angry at herself, for letting him get the best of her.
"Mmmph... hmmph gmmph!" Makoto shouted through the cloth. "That bastard... he'll pay when I get out of this!"
I-I-I-I-I
The Juuban High School gym was packed for the day's wrestling meet, the stands awash with hundreds of spectators, eagerly awaiting the day's events. The meet had remained close throughout the day, and after five classes had wrestled, the score was tied at 2 1/2 to 2 1/2. It would be the 50-59 kg division that would decide the winner of the meet, and Kato was ready to wrestle, knowing that he would be the one to end Juuban's losing streak.
High up in the stands, Usagi, Ami, Rei, and Minako were becoming bored with wrestling. The only reason they'd shown up was to watch Makoto's match. Now, the match she was scheduled to appear in was about to start. No one, including Makoto's friends, knew of the events that had transpired just a little while ago.
"Mako-chan's match is just about to start!" squealed Usagi excitedly. She looked at the various snacks laid out in her lap. "Popcorn... check. Nachos and cheese... check. Large box of cookie dough candy... check. Large soda pop... check. We're ready to go!"
"How about sharing some of that, hmm, meatball-head?" asked Rei indignantly, reaching over to grab some of Usagi's popcorn. "I thought we bought that stuff for everyone!"
"Guys, we do need to share the food," said Ami, "so why don't you give Rei a little bit of popcorn, okay, Usagi?"
"Nuh uh!" Usagi said, snatching the box of popcorn away from her raven-haired friend and continuing to munch it down, even as Rei's hands grabbed for Serena's own. "Gmmph ymm omph, Rmmph!"
"Don't talk with your mouth full, Usagi..." said Minako.
"Yeah, you're such a pig!" shouted Rei, grabbing the popcorn from Usagi. "I'm keeping this until you learn some manners!"
"Hey... I don't see Makoto down there anywhere," said Ami, looking down toward the gym floor. "There's one of her teammates, but Mako-chan isn't there..."
"Really?" asked Rei, looking down to the floor, allowing Serena to snatch up the distracted girl's box of popcorn. "Hmm... that's weird..."
Down on the Juuban team's bench, Coach Kentashi was thinking the same thing.
"Kato, have you seen Makoto anywhere?" asked the coach. "I'm sure I saw her here today..."
"I think I saw her throwing up a few minutes ago... I think the pressure's gotten to her," said Kato.
"Are you serious?" the coach stammered, a hint of disbelief in his voice. "That doesn't sound like Makoto to me."
"Well, it is tough to be the first female wrestler in Juuban High School history... I'd be throwing up too if I was her," said Kato.
"Well, where is she?" asked the coach, looking around. "I'm going to go see if I can talk to her..."
Kato's eyes widened. He began to sweat, and his entire body began to shake. Was the jig up?
"Well, you see..." Kato began before a man in a referee's outfit walked over to the Juuban bench.
"If you don't send out your wrestler, your team will forfeit the point, and the match," said the referee. "You have twenty seconds."
The coach sighed, obviously disappointed with Makoto's absence.
"Well... I guess you're just going to have to go out there, Kato," said the coach.
"It's too bad Makoto isn't here... but I guarantee victory!" shouted Kato, turning and smiling enthusiastically as he walked onto the mat. His opponent was a tall, slender-looking young man, with long black hair tied back into a ponytail behind his head. A confident smile was on his face.
"Hello," said the boy, extending his hand to Kato. "I hope we have a good match."
"This isn't the guy I beat last year..." Kato thought. "Looks like they got a new wrestler too..."
Kato smiled, shaking the boy's hand.
"Before we begin," said the boy, "I'd like to ask you your name."
"It's-"
"It doesn't matter what your name is!" shouted the black-haired boy, erupting into laughter as he walked back to the edge of the mat in preparation for the match. "My name's Hakade Nenji. Prepare to lose."
"This guy's wacko..." thought Kato, stepping back to the opposite edge of the mat. "This should be a piece of cake."
I-I-I-I-I
After twenty minutes of struggling, Makoto had gotten nowhere fast. Kato was great at wrestling, and apparently, he was great at tying ropes as well. Makoto emitted a muffled sigh and slipped back into her chair, taking a short break and allowing the sweat that had accumulated on her forehead and palms to slowly slip down her skin, cooling her overexerted body.
"I can't give up," thought Makoto, "but it seems like the more I struggle, the tighter these stupid ropes get... I'm going to hurt myself if I'm not careful..."
Her head drooped downward, and the sweat continued to drip down her face, falling off the tip of her nose and onto her lap.
"Alright, Makoto... let's try this again."
She twisted and turned her body against the ropes, hoping that the force of her frame would provide her with the critical slack that she would need to slip free. Her arms and wrists strained just as furiously, Makoto paying no attention to the damage that rubbing against the tight ropes would cause to her skin. She just concentrated on getting free, getting to the match, and getting revenge. She wouldn't let her team down.
Suddenly, Makoto thought she could hear voices outside the door. She stopped struggling and began to scream through her gag, hoping someone, anyone could hear her muffled cries.
"MMMMMMMPH!" Makoto shouted. "Mmmph mmph hmmmph omph ummmph! Let me out of here!"
But it was no use. The cloth and rope combined was too effective of a silencer for Makoto's cries to be heard. The voices faded, and she slumped back down into her chair, gazing down into the endless sea of white that was the blindfold tied tightly around her head.
"I just hope my team's doing alright..."
I-I-I-I-I
The match began, and Kato and Nenji quickly locked up, their arms tightly clasped around one another's as they fought for space at the center of the mat.
"Damn," thought Kato, barely able to keep his footing as Nenji pushed him back. "This guy's a lot stronger than the guy I faced last year..."
"Tiring out yet?" asked Nenji tauntingly, smiling as he pushed Kato back toward the edge of the mat.
"No... way... in... hell..." Kato groaned, pushing Nenji back toward the center. "I'm just getting started!"
Nenji slipped out of Kato's grasp, sweeping his leg under Kato's feet and knocking the shorter boy to the ground. The agile Nenji then fell to the ground beside Kato and locked the boy's arm in a tight hold, wrenching his elbow back behind his head. Kato grimaced his teeth in pain as Nenji continued to apply the hold, tightening his grip on Kato's arm in hopes that he would submit.
"Let me... ask you a question," said Nenji. "What'cha gonna do... when Nenjimania... runs wild... on you?"
"This!" Kato shouted, pulling his arm free from Nenji's grasp and crawling behind him, locking his arm around Nenji's neck.
"Not...a bad... chokehold," said Nenji, smiling. "But you applied it completely the wrong way.
Seemingly effortlessly, Nenji escaped the hold, leaving Kato wide open to be rolled over and pinned.
"1! 2!" counted the ref, before Kato got his shoulders up off the mat and worked his way back into a standing position. Nenji smiled, and the two locked up yet again.
"This guy's REALLY good..." thought Kato as he was once again pushed toward the edge of the mat. Nenji focused his strength downward, forcing Kato onto one knee. A huge amount of pressure began to build up in Kato's left leg.
"What's the matter?" asked Nenji with a sneer. "Scared?"
"Not... likely..." groaned Kato. Nenji pushed harder, and Kato collapsed to the ground. He clutched his knee tightly, letting out a loud cry of pain. "Agh!"
Up in the stands, Makoto's friends looked on in disdain.
"Mako-chan could so kick that guy's butt if she was out there," said Usagi. "Where the heck is she?"
"We just saw her a while ago," replied Rei. "I can't believe she'd pull out of a match like this..."
"I'm a little bit worried," said Ami, beginning to stand up. "Maybe I should go to the locker room to check on her..."
"You do that, Ami," said Minako, her gaze completely focused on the wrestling match down below. "Get the tables!"
I-I-I-I-I
"Mmmph... mmph... mmph!"
Makoto had resumed her struggling, tugging and pulling at the ropes around her body fiercer than ever.
"This is useless... these ropes are too tight, I'm just going to hurt myself if I keep going like this," thought Makoto. "But I can't give up... I can't let my team down..."
As Makoto continued fighting the ropes, she realized that the sweat around her arms had made them slightly more slippery than before. Maybe, she thought, this would reduce the friction between her arms and the rope, allowing her to pull free. After five more minutes of fierce tugging, and after working up even more of a sweat, she realized that the ropes were just too tight, and too numerous for something like that to work. She could pull free of one or two ropes, but these were looped around her wrists at least a dozen times. She wouldn't be slipping free of these.
"Damn you, Kato..." Makoto thought. "I would've let you wrestle a few matches... just... not this week... all my friends came here to see me... they're probably worried about me... they were so excited about seeing me wrestle today, to do something I've always wanted to do, and now..."
And now they wouldn't get to see her, thought Makoto, sadly hanging her head as tears slowly formed in her eyes. She felt ashamed, helplessly tied to the chair and unable to escape. She was Kino Makoto, the toughest fighter in her neighborhood... how could she be rendered completely helpless so quickly? These thin, tiny little ropes were holding back all her strength, and there was nothing, nothing Makoto could do about it.
The thought was enough to make Makoto struggle even harder. She pulled and tugged as hard as she could.
Snap.
One of the cords around her shoulders, which had become slightly frayed during her struggling, suddenly broke from the stress of holding back the strong, young girl. Makoto began to struggle again, this time furiously straining against the ropes around her wrists.
Snap. Snap. Snap.
Three more cords fell away.
"The ropes... they're too thin... they're breaking!" Makoto thought. With all her might, she tugged harder at her bonds.
Snap. Snap. Snap. Snap.
Several more cords had given way, falling from her wrists to the floor. Now, Makoto had enough slack to get free. Within a few seconds, she'd completely liberated herself from her wrist bonds, and a few seconds later, the ropes around her elbows fell away as well. Now, only about two dozen ropes tied around her shoulders and chest kept her from blessed, blessed freedom.
Snap. Snap. Snap. Snap. Snap. Snap. Snap. Snap. Snap. Snap. Snap.
With determination and strength matched only by the demi-god Hercules, Makoto broke free of the ropes connecting her shoulders to the chair. Three minutes after she'd broken the first of her ropes, she removed the blindfold from her eyes, ripped the rope around her head, and tore the white fabric from her lips. Kino Makoto was a free woman.
Well, except for her legs. Reaching down to the ropes tied around her legs, she fumbled at the numerous knots, but realized that her fingers weren't dextrous enough to untie them. She tried ripping them apart. No luck. Unlike the ropes around her arms, Kato had used a different thickness of rope on her legs... it didn't look much thicker, but it was certainly stronger, even strong enough to keep Makoto from breaking it. She was still stuck to the chair, and it seemed, she wouldn't be getting free for quite a while.
A knock at the door brought Makoto quickly back to reality. She lifted her head.
"Who's there?" Makoto cried out, a luxury unafforded to her by the gag she'd worn just a few moments ago.
"Mako-chan?" replied a voice that Makoto immediately recognized as Ami's. "Is that you?"
"Ami!" Makoto shouted.
"What happened, why is this door locked?" Ami asked. "Are you alright?"
"Kato tied me up and locked me in here... you can't get in if you don't have a-"
Suddenly, the door opened. Ami smiled, holding a plastic credit card between her fingers.
"...if you don't have an IQ of 300," Makoto said, the smile returning to her face. "Way to go, Ami!"
"Oh my gosh, are you alright?" Ami asked, running over to Makoto and quickly untying the knots holding her legs to the chair.
"Yeah... my arms are kinda tired, though... quick, hurry before the match be-"
"It's already started," said Ami. "Kato's in the ring... he's getting beaten pretty badly. I think his knee might've been sprained."
Once Makoto was untied, she stood up and began rubbing her wrists and ankles in an attempt to get her circulation back. Then, she quickly wrapped her arms around Ami's back in a tight hug before walking out of the room.
"Makoto, are you going to the gym?" asked Ami. Makoto smiled and shook her head.
"I've got a better idea," said Makoto, opening the door to the girls' locker room. "I just hope they'll still let me compete..."
"Huh?" said Ami, holding the locker room door open and peering inside. "But Makoto-"
"Just go back to your seat and pretend like you didn't find me," said Makoto. "I'll be out in a minute..."
I-I-I-I-I
Kato screamed in pain as Nenji's grip on his injured knee tightened. It seemed as if Kato could submit at any second.
"Tap out!" shouted Nenji, in a tone that strongly resembled a certain Olympic gold medalist's. "Tap out!!!"
Kato lifted his arm above the mat, tantalyzingly holding it up for several seconds as he pondered every possible way to escape Nenji's powerful submission hold.
"I... I cost my team everything... I shouldn't have kidnapped Makoto... I deserve this..."
"Ami, where have you been?" asked Rei, scooting over and allowing the blue-haired girl to sit next to her. "And did you find Mako-chan?"
Ami frowned and shook her head.
"Geez... well, I guess Juuban's gonna lose to these guys again, then," said Usagi, taking a big handful of popcorn and shoving it into her mouth. "Thith guyth sukth."
But just before Kato was going to tap out, a loud female voice sounded from the entrance of the gym.
"Hey!" shouted Makoto, running toward the mat, dressed in her wrestling gear, consisting of a grey tanktop, blue shorts, and a red headpiece. "I'm here!"
"Geez, it's a little late now, isn't it?" said the coach annoyedly. "Kato's about to lose out there!"
Suddenly, Nenji released his grip on Kato's knee and glanced over at Makoto.
"Hey... aren't you that girl they've been talking about in the paper? The first female wrestler to ever compete for Juuban high school?" Nenji asked. Makoto nodded. "Hmm..."
"Ma...Makoto..." Kato groaned painfully, barely managing a nervous smile. "It's... good... to see.. you..."
Makoto looked down at Kato with a glare that, if looks could kill, would have been a deathblow for the misguided young man. Then, she looked back up at Nenji.
"So... how about a real challenge?" Makoto asked. Suddenly, the ref blew his whistle.
"I won't allow it!" shouted the referee. "No mid-match substitutions!"
"I'm okay with it," said Nenji, smiling and stretching out his arms. "Makoto's the person I really wanted to fight anyway. I was disappointed when I found out I had to fight this wimp."
Nenji nudged Kato with his foot, knocking him off the mat.
"I'll wrestle Makoto for the point," said Nenji. "Because to be the man, you've got to beat the woman."
"That's not even the real quote!" Minako shouted. "I mean... go Mako-chan!"
After several minutes of conferring with both coaches, the referee finally gave his verdict.
"Since both coaches and both players agree... the match will restart with Hakade Nenji versus Kino Makoto!"
"How good can she be?" said the opposing team's coach, smirking as Makoto and Nenji walked to the edges of the ring. "I mean, she's only a girl."
Kato watched from the bench, an ice pack taped tightly over his injured knee.
"If she can escape from all those ropes... there's no way she can lose!"
"I'm going to send you down Jabroni Boulevard, down Know Your Role Avenue and Shut Your Mouth Lane, and check you right into the Smackdown Hotel," said Nenji as the buzzer rang to signal the start of the match.
"Oh, know your role and shut your mouth," Makoto replied quietly. She and Nenji ran to the center of the mat and locked arms, pushing each other back and forth, trying to feel each other out.
"Get him, Makoto-chan!" cheered Ami from the stands, in a display of emotion not really typical for the shy young girl.
"Geez, Ami... a little eager today, aren't we?" asked Rei, smirking up at Ami, who had stood up to watch the match.
"Well, Makoto's been through a lot," said Ami, continuing to watch the match. "More than you know..."
Nenji quickly got Makoto into a headlock, forcing her to her knees at the edge of the mat, much like he'd done to Kato earlier.
"You're even weaker than he is," said Nenji, smiling as he sensed victory getting closer and closer to his grasp. "I thought you only got to be on the team because you were stronger than other guys."
"I am," said Makoto, a smile appearing on her face. "But strength is only part of what it means to be strong."
"Huh?" asked Nenji, confused by Makoto's words. "That doesn't make any..."
In a display of great agility, Makoto wrestled free from Nenji's grasp and worked her way behind him. Now, Nenji was the one in a tight headlock.
"Kato tried this exact same manuever on me..." said Nenji, his lips curled into a smile. "And now... I'm going... to escape... just... like I did... last time..."
But Makoto's grip was much, much stronger than Kato's. She'd applied the headlock exactly the right way, and Nenji knew there would be no way to break free.
"Too much for you, Nenji?" asked Makoto, a sly smile on her face. Nenji nodded, and within seconds, he was furiously tapping out, signaling his submission to the skillful manuever. The buzzer sounded again, and Makoto released her grip on Nenji's neck, victoriously raising her fists in the center of the ring.
"Match winner... Kino Makoto!" shouted a loud voice over the PA system. "Meet winner... Juuban High School!"
Hundreds of people, including Makoto's friends, poured out of the stands to celebrate Juuban's victory.
"You did it!" shouted Ami, hugging Makoto tightly.
"Awww... I wanted you to hit him with a chair," said Minako. "But congratulations anyway!"
"Yeah, way to go, Mako-chan!" said Rei, high-fiving her friend.
"You fought like a true champion... and you showed everyone that girls rule, and boys drool. Except for Darien, of course," said Usagi, a bright smile on her face.
"Thanks, guys," said Makoto, embracing her other friends, while trying to search out Kato in the crowd. "But right now, I've got a bit of unfinished business to take care of..."
I-I-I-I-I
Kato sat alone on a bench in the boys' locker room, his head buried in his hands.
"I'm gonna be in big trouble... Makoto's gonna tell everybody what I did, and-"
"Now, why would I do something like that?" asked Makoto, walking into the locker room. "Wait... there's nobody else in there, is there?"
"Everybody else left," said Kato, ashamed to look at Makoto after what he'd done. "Geez, if you're gonna tell on me, go ahead. I acted like a complete jerk... you could've been hurt, and-"
"You didn't act like a jerk... you were a jerk," said Makoto, her angry tone returning. "And yes, I could've been hurt. What you did was very dangerous."
Kato sighed.
"But," said Makoto, tapping the ice pack on Kato's knee, "I think you've learned your lesson. In fact, if you still want to wrestle next weekend..."
Kato looked up at Makoto and shook his head.
"No, no... you are the better wrestler, and you've earned the right to compete," said Kato. "I'm quitting the team."
"Don't do that," said Makoto. "You're a great wrestler... besides, you'll still get the chance to compete in individual tournaments. Who knows, we might face each other... if you want me to help you train, just ask."
"Really?" Kato said, looking up at Makoto. She nodded.
"Just don't EVER try to pull a stunt like the one you pulled today," replied Makoto. "In fact... I don't think you've learned your lesson. Not entirely, anyway."
I-I-I-I-I
"Well, bye, Kato!" said Makoto, smiling as she walked toward the door of the boys' locker room.
"Makoto, wait... get me out of here!" Kato shouted. Makoto had hung him up by his jockstrap inside one of the lockers, and he was already starting to get uncomfortable. "I can't get out by myself!"
"I'm sure someone will find you eventually... if not, I guess I'll see you on Monday!" Makoto said, closing the door behind her and walking back to the gym, where her friends were patiently waiting for her. "You can always count on your real friends to get you out of anything... but first, you have to be able to count on yourself."
THE END