The day had finally arrived.
The day of Yoshi and Luciana's big match.
The day the two wrestlers finally settle their long-standing rivalry.
Who will win? Who will lose? No one knows yet, but that question will be answered tonight.

"We are now one match away from the main event!" the announcer said. "Tonight, two wrestlers will settle a long-time rivalry that began way back in Mexico! Luciana, an ace of the Cutthroats, versus Yoshi, a young wrestler who's skills became known to Japan after a video of him facing off against Ayane, another ace of the Cutthroats, went viral!"

In the locker room, Yoshi was getting himself dressed for the match. His attire was given to him by Ichiro and Sakura.
He wore a red sleeveless top with an orange hawk-like mark on the front, red bands on his biceps, red sleeve-like covers on his forearms with yellow stripes on the end and yellow tassels, a red sash, white pants with a red stripe at the end of each leg and red tassels, and red boots with orange sections.

At the moment, Yoshi was trying to calm himself down. His heart was thundering against his chest, his hands were shaking, and he was sweating. But Yoshi was confused; he had fought in matches several times before, so why is he getting nervous now? Maybe it was because he has been out of the game for so long. He did not know, but he knew one thing; it was too late to turn back now.

"How's it going?" a female asked from behind. "Are you nervous about your big match?" Yoshi looked up and over behind him and saw Sakura. His eyes grew wide and he felt a lump form in his throat when he saw that she was clad in her wrestling attire. He had seen her in it when he saw her matches on TV, but seeing her in it first-person, it had a completely different effect on him.
"...A little." he told her. But inside, he was a nervous wreck. "...Actually, big time." he corrected. "I don't know if I can do this. I mean… I haven't wrestled for so long, I've forgotten what it was like to be in the ring, having so many eyes on you, and… just the feeling of your insides practically doing gymnastics. Have you ever felt that way before?"
"I'd be lying if I said no." Sakura admitted. "I felt the same way you are when I first become a pop-idol, then I felt it again when I became a wrestler. It's something that happens to all of us. So it's nothing to be ashamed of." she told him as she placed a hand on his shoulder. Yoshi suddenly tensed up and looked away at the sudden skin contact. Her hand was so soft and warm.

Sakura noticed his reaction. She wondered why he kept doing that. Over the days that lead up to tonight, any time she would get near him or touch him, he would lock up like he is doing now. She decided to get an answer to it.

"Why do you keep doing that?" she asked as she sat down with him, making him tense up more. "Why do you always become as stiff as a board whenever I'm near you or touch you?"
"… It's just a thing of mine." Yoshi replied. "I do this any time when around girls. Especially pretty ones."
"Well, you don't have to worry about me. You can trust me." Sakura told him.
"Well… you see… it's not that I don't trust you. I mean, you seem like a good girl. But, I'm just still trying to get used to being around girls without locking up." Yoshi explained.
"I understand." Sakura said.

"So, how's our new rising star doing?" another female voice asked. Both looked back and saw Rio, who was also in her wrestling attire.
"He's a little nervous right now, Rio." Sakura said. Yoshi scoffed in a "that's an understatement" manner.
"I'm sure he'll be fine." Rio said as she sat down with them. "I've come to learn to keep an open mind about newcomers. I've also come to learn that looks can be deceiving."
"How so?" Yoshi asked with a chuckle. Rio buried her face in her palms, shaking her head.
"I had no idea Moe was a black-belt karate champion." she said. Yoshi did a double-take.
"Wait… what?" he asked.
"That little brat took me down with one kick." Rio explained. "I didn't even see the kick coming, but the next thing I knew, Moe had one leg raised, and I was knocked out." At this point, Yoshi was covering his mouth, fighting the urge to laugh. "It's not funny!"
"Yeah it is." Yoshi replied nonchalantly. Rio's face flushed red with embarrassment.

"...Now, uh… why are you in your wrestling attire?" Yoshi asked curiously.
"We had a tag match not to long ago." Sakura replied. "We won, too. It was tough, but we managed."
"I see." Yoshi said. "Congratulations." he added with a smile.
"Thanks." Sakura said with a smile.

"So… anyways, I realized you never quite answered our question about Luciana." Rio pointed. Yoshi smacked his forehead.
"Sorry ma'am. I completely forgot all about that." he said. "Luciana was a bully when I was growing up in Mexico. She's actually part of the reason I wanted to take up wrestling; I needed a way to protect myself and give myself a fighting chance. But I didn't know she would take up wrestling as well. Since then, we've been locked in a rivalry that has lasted for years. But thankfully, tonight we end that. Whether I win or lose, I aim to give it my all."
"I see." Sakura said. "She must be really desperate to come all the way to Japan JUST to fight you."
"She actually moved here a year before I did." Yoshi pointed out. "But I didn't know that until it was too late."

"Well… anyways… are you still nervous?" Rio asked.
"Yeah." Yoshi replied.
"Do you want one of us to accompany you out there?" Sakura asked. Yoshi chuckled.
"This isn't pre-school." he said with a soft grin.
"I know." Sakura pointed out. "I was just wondering in case it would help calm you down."
"Oh. Well, if you want to." Yoshi replied with a blush.
"Alright. Then I'll tag along." Sakura said as she pat Yoshi on the shoulder.
"Uh... o-ok...T-T-Thank you." Yoshi stammered with a shy smile.

Neither one of the three heard the sound footsteps coming up and entering the room. "The match is almost done. Are you ready?" a male said. All three turned and saw Ichiro. Rio glared and look away, crossing her arms in the process. Ichiro rolled his eyes with an annoyed sigh. "Typical snow-head." Rio bolted up and was about to attack him, but Sakura and Yoshi were there to stop her.
"You need to get yourself under control." Sakura snapped. Rio just glared at her for a few seconds before leaving with an annoyed sigh. Sakura buried her face in her palm. "I swear to my time..."

"So, how ya hanging?" Ichiro asked Yoshi.
"...I'll live." Yoshi said. "Still nervous, but I've come this far, so I can't back out now."
"That's what I want to hear." Ichiro said as he pat his friend on the back. "And just remember; we'll all be rooting for ya. The Animal Squadron, your family, even Berserk showed up."
"Well, Sakura and Rio did have a match today." Yoshi pointed out.
"I know that. But I'm talking about those that didn't even have matches, like Kurea and Chinatsu." Ichiro explained.
"Oh, I see. Never mind then." Yoshi said. "Oh, I know I have to do good now. I have all those people out there supporting me." Ichiro gave a short laugh.
"Good luck bud."

Now that Ichiro had left to rejoin the others in the audience, Yoshi and Sakura were the only ones left. Now Yoshi was nervous for a completely different reason.

"And now, time for the main event!" the announcer said. "Cutthroat vs. Animal. Strength and aggression vs. speed and agility! An epic battle of the sexes! Who will win?! We find out… NOW!"

With wobbly knees and a racing heart, Yoshi stood up, ready to get the match over with. But as he went to walk out of the locker room and enter the arena, he paused. The tension was making his stomach feel queasy and sick. Yoshi started to take deep breaths. But then his breath hitched when he felt Sakura's hand grab a hold gently on his own.
"Are you ready?" she asked him. Yoshi was silent for a while. But with a long, deep breath, he gently squeezed her hand, making her blush a bit.
"I'm ready." he said, his tone now dead-serious and fiery. "Here we go."

*I hate to leave y'all hanging like this. But the next chapter will be the match itself, as well as the final chapter. I will still post more stories featuring Yoshi. He'll mainly be a side character, but I hope to flesh his character out a bit more in other stories.
I've also had one reviewer say he, or she, wanted to see more romance between Sakura and Yoshi. Lucky for you, I had already intended for that.
Anyways, let me k now what you thought, and I'll see y'all next time. God bless, and stay safe.