Disclaimer: I do not own Rumble Roses or it's characters. Here's the second chapter. Hope it is as good or better than the previous one.
Chapter Two: Sunday: Hidden Feats
Walking toward the stage, Michiro was becoming even more nervous about her match. This time however, she was literally shaking in her boots. "Why did I tell Dixie to watch my match," she thought to herself. "Now I have to try extra hard to win." Michiro sighed deeply at this. She tried to calm herself down; because she knew that she would only do an even worse of a performance if she was scared. She was in eyes view of the curtain that led toward the stage, when she saw a barefoot girl wearing white judo gi. "Hello Ms. Aihara," she said as calmly as possible, which was kind of hard seeing as Makoto was one of Michiro's idols in the Rumble Roses.
"Hi Ms. Kurosaki, are you ready for your match?" said Makoto, she was brimming with passion and energy as usual.
"She knows my name," thought the newcomer whose face had become scarlet once Makoto said her name. Michiro literally had to force herself to not fall down. "Y-y-yes, Ms. Ai-Aihara, I-I-I'm ready."
"Are you ok Ms. Kurosaki? Do you need some water? You seem to have a fever," Makoto reached her hand out to feel Michiro's forehead, when Michiro backed away.
"I'm fine, really!" she lied as she heard her theme song "Do What U Like" come on. "An-anyway, see you later Ms. Aihara!" called Michiro as she ran out through the curtain.
"The following is Fight to the Rumbling Rose Handicap qualifying match, on her way to the ring, weighing in at 124 pounds and standing at 5 feet 7 inches, from Chicago, Illinois, Michiro Kurosaki!" The crowd's reaction was kind of lackluster this time around. It seemed as nobody was paying her any attention as she got into the ring and did a couple of taunting to the audience. Michiro waited patiently until the theme song "Torturer" started playing. "And her opponents, on the way to the ring, the team of Non-Non and Sebastian!" There was a mixed reaction from the crowd for this tag team, because all of the men were booing Sebastian, and all of the women were cheering for Non-Non.
The two of them got into the ring and Michiro could tell that they meant business. As the tag team decided on who would start the match, the referee called for the bell, and Michiro immediately went after Non-Non by spearing him following with an assortment of mounted punches. This of course caused Sebastian to have to stand on the ring apron, and then the match was on.
Following her assault, Michiro went after Non-Non again, but Non-Non countered with a body block and followed it up with a nicely placed elbow drop. When Michiro recovered, Non-Non did another body block sending Michiro to the ground yet again. Non-Non then received a huge pop from the crowd. Taking advantage of the situation, Non-Non tagged in Sebastian, which was disapproved of by the fans.
Crash: "This is smart Cal; quick tags are the way to victory in a handicap match."
Michiro got to her feet, saw that she was behind someone, and immediately executed a devastating German Suplex, which she released after impact. She was about to go for some sort of submission hold, when she realized that she was now wrestling Sebastian. This caused her to flinch, leaving Sebastian enough time to clothesline her. He then followed up with a couple of stomps to the grounded newcomer, before he tagged back out to Non-Non.
Mickey Cal: "Nicely done, they are performing like a well oiled tag team out there."
Michiro was on her feet by the time Non-Non was in the ring. She then grabbed Non-Non, hit him twice in the midsection, and then showed off her strength when she executed a belly to belly piledriver. She then mounted him and hit him with five perfectly placed punches to the sides of the bear's head. The crowd was really booing her now, but Michiro ignored them and placed Non-Non into a seated position and bent Non-Non's arm behind his back, stretching it to his neck, thus applying a Hammerlock. After having her opponent in this position for a couple of moments, Michiro then took both of Non-Non's arms and pulled them back while driving her knee into the small of his back.
Crash: "Excellent transition wrestling by the newcomer. Kinda reminds me of myself back in the day."
Mickey Cal: "Was this when you used to win by illegally choking your opponent out, or when you used foreign objects to pick up the victory?"
Crash: "Har-har, very funny wise guy, but if memory serves correct, which of us has even held a single championship in his career? You got nothing to say? Yeah, I thought so."
The crowd began to do a typical slow clap in the attempts to help Non-Non break free from the hold. It apparently worked, seeing as the bear wasn't in the hold for fifteen seconds before he powered out of it. Michiro, who was not surprised by her opponent's strength, locked on a side headlock and took Non-Non to the mat, giving her the leverage advantage. Michiro kept up the hold for over a minute before releasing it and letting her opponent get to his feet. She then locked up with him, but Non-Non easily pushed her away and onto the mat. The bear tried to go for an elbow drop, but Michiro avoided it. Once the two of them were on their feet, Michiro locked up with Non-Non again, but this time she hit him with a toe kick, while continuing to be locked up with him. Then she grabbed him around his abdomen and did a modified sweeping hip throw (known as Harai Goshi in Judo, and a Judo Throw in wrestling) wherein she fell on top of her opponent throughout the throw. The crowd still wasn't impressed by her efforts.
Mickey Cal: "Judo Throw, maybe she's been getting lessons from the Judo Babe."
Crash: "It's actually a modified Harai Goshi dimwit, and I don't know about the lessons thing, but that was definitely a nicely executed Judo move."
Non-Non was wobbly on his feet after the move, which gave Michiro the opportunity to do a spinning heel kick which connected square on Non-Non's chin. Non-Non seemed to be unconscious, so Michiro went for the cover. "1… 2…" Sebastian came off the ring apron and pulled Michiro off of Non-Non, breaking up the pin. This gave the duo a huge pop, even though the majority of the fans didn't like Sebastian. Michiro had goose bumps from the Men's Lib's actions, and was getting irritated with the match. "Let's see if I can finish it now," she said as her opponent struggled to get to his feet.
Mickey Cal: "What an illegal, but effective save by Sebastian. The referee needs to keep a closer eye on the in ring competitors."
Once Non-Non was on his feet, Michiro attempted a spear, but Non-Non countered with a weak and off-balanced boot to the face. Non-Non was about to go for the tag, when he heard footsteps up behind him, causing him to instinctively turn around while executing a clothesline, which he thought connected. Unfortunately for the tag team, Michiro ducked under the move, ran over to Sebastian, and hit him off of the ring apron. Non-Non, confused about why Michiro wasn't laid out on the ground, turned around yet again, so that he could go for the tag… this would prove to be the most detrimental moment for his team, because in the instant that he turned around, Michiro connected with three alternating jabs to Non-Non's head, starting with her right, followed by two to his midsection, with another three punches to Non-Non's head occurring subsequently.
Crash: "Whoa! That was a hell of a barrage by the newcomer. Was that her finisher?"
Mickey Cal: "I don't know, but it seemed to have no effect on the big guy."
The crowd still not acknowledging Michiro's abilities, started to get behind Non-Non, who seemed to be unphased by the onslaught. The beast got into an offensive stance and was about to go for a bell clap, when he suddenly fell to his knees and then to the mat. The newcomer took advantage of this, and stunned the crowd when she went for the pin, hooking the bear's inner leg. "1… 2… 3!" The crowd was blown. They couldn't believe that a newcomer could beat two wrestlers on the roster, whoever they might have had been, in their debut match. But yet and still, it was Michiro who was the last one standing after the match.
"And the winner of the match, and the first Rose to qualify for the Fight to the Rumbling Rose, Michiro Kurosaki!" The audience gave her a mixed reaction when the referee raised her hand into the air.
"I guess some people like me," thought the victor, as she promptly left the ring and headed toward the backstage area. Once she made it back to the locker room, she locked the door behind her and collapsed onto the floor, while laughing hysterically. "I-I guess I'm still a s-scrapper after all," she cried, not caring if anyone heard her. This hysteria kept up until there was a loud knock at the door. "Y-yes, who is it?"
"Ms. Kurosaki, you must see what is happening on the television," said a sweet and energetic voice.
"Mako… er, I mean, Ms. Aihara, what are you talking about?" Michiro was extremely embarrassed about her demeanor right now, and was happy that she had locked the locker room door.
"Just turn on your T.V., quick!" called Makoto, she really seemed ecstatic about this.
Michiro sprawled about on the floor until she reached the remote and turned on the T.V. A big grin appeared on her face as she saw what Makoto was talking about.
The "Rising Sun" theme rang through the arena as the crowd went wild over the up incoming match. "The following is Fight to the Rumbling Rose Tag Team qualifying match. On their way to the ring, at a combined weight of 266 pounds, Reiko Hinomoto and Dixie Clemets, they are Tequila Sunrise!" The tag team received and even bigger pop, as camera angle focused on the duo's entrance for about a half a minute before focusing on the commentators.
Mickey Cal: "Hello this is Mickey Cal with Crash at ringside. And with us for the match on guest commentary is the Rose of Roses Aigle. How are you doing today Champ?"
Aigle: "Aigle doing well Mickey."
Crash: "Of course the Champ is doing well; she IS the champ after all. But anyway, what are your thoughts about the two newcomers who had back to back victories here tonight?"
Aigle: "Aigle no think too hard about them, but Aigle challenge little sheep to match next week. But Aigle want to fight stronger sheep, so sheep will have to find out which one is stronger. And since Aigle is strong and proud champion, if sheep can beat me next week, Aigle will fight sheep again at Bleeding Thorns for Championship!"
Mickey Cal: "Bold words from the Champ, but if you end up fighting Michiro Kurosaki and she beats you next week, won't this put Michiro in both an advantageous and disadvantageous position at Bleeding Thorns?"
Aigle: "Aigle no care about that. If sheep want to be warrior, then sheep must beat warrior!"
Crash: "You heard the Champ Mickey. It doesn't matter if-"
Michiro toned out the rest of the commentary as thoughts rushed through her head. "I can possibly qualify to win two championships next week?" "This has got to be the single best moment in my life!" "How am I going to prove if I'm stronger than Ayake?"
Thoughts like these kept coming into Michiro's head until Makoto called out, "Isn't that wonderful Ms. Kurosaki? You can possibly win two championships in your first month with Rumble Roses. Isn't that exciting!?"
"Y-yes Ms. Aihara, it-it is… hold on! How did you know that Aigle was going to do this?" Michiro was now speaking in a tone that she would to any other person.
"She kind of let it slip after we watched your match together," said Makoto embarrassingly. "She said she was especially intent on fighting you, or as she said it, 'Aigle want to right girl who beat bear of Makoto, as much as Aigle want to fight Makoto!' I think you really have her blood boiling now. Anyway, congratulations with your win and stick with it!"
Michiro, who was really overwhelmed now with everything, was barely able to let out "Y-yes," before fainting where she was laying down.
"Okay then Ms. Kurosaki, I'll see you around." Makoto waited for a response but none came. "Ms. Kurosaki, are you okay? Did you hear me?" Still no response. Makoto, worried, ran off to find someone who could open the locker room, all the while Michiro slumbered in a euphoric blissful state.
The next match was already underway, and the crowd was really pushing for Tequila Sunrise to beat The Balance of Terror, which was one member short. Reiko had just finished pummeling Anesthesia with an array with mounted punches and had helped her opponent to her feet, when Anesthesia blatantly poked Reiko in the eye. The arena filled with boos, as the referee told the wicked nurse to watch her conduct. The nurse shoved him away from her, got behind Reiko and did a Schoolboy Rollup, grabbing Reiko's shorts for extra leverage. "1… 2… thr-" Reiko barely was able to kick out of the pinning predicament. Once Reiko was on her feet, Anesthesia grabbed her arm, twisted it and performed a back to belly hip toss. The nurse then taunted to the crowd and was met with boos. When she finally faced her opponent again, Reiko was up and executed a toe kick on the nurse, followed by a Suplex which put a hurting on Anesthesia's back.
Aigle: "Aigle never do stupid things in ring. Aigle always stay focused."
Crash: "Strong words from the Champ."
Following the Suplex, Reiko dragged Anesthesia to her corner and tagged in Dixie, who immediately began pounding Anesthesia with punches. Anesthesia eventually was able to roll to the outside of the ring in an attempt to catch a break, but then Reiko came down from the ring apron as the ref began his count. "1… 2… 3…" Anesthesia went for a clothesline, which Reiko ducked under. However, she was then speared, lifted, and slammed onto the ground by Dixie, who had rolled out the ring at the same time that the nurse implemented her move, which in turn broke up the 10-count. "1… 2…" Dixie was back in the ring waiting for the Latina babe to get back into the ring. "3… 4… 5… 6…" Anesthesia was able to use the ring apron to get herself to her feet. "7… 8…" Anesthesia rolled herself back into the ring, and was met with roaring boos from the crowd.
Mickey Cal: "She's doing everything that she can to stay in this one… But I wonder where Benikage is?"
The cowgirl helped Anesthesia to her feet just so she could Scoop Slam her back down to the mat. This caused Anesthesia to let out a little cry in pain. Dixie made the best of this opportunity by placing the nurse in a kneeling reverse Fireman's Carry hold, delivering even more pain to Anesthesia's back. Dixie held the hold for quite some time before transitioning into the Reverse Fireman's Carry Takedown. Once Anesthesia got back to her feet, Dixie Irish Whipped her into the ropes, and when the nurse came back towards Dixie, she executed a hard Tilt-a-World Side slam. Dixie went for the pin, but barely got a one count. When the two Roses got to their feet, Dixie Irish Whipped her opponent to her corner and Reiko applied a Hammerlock onto Anesthesia. Dixie went over to her corner and executed five punches simultaneously with Reiko, the last one having more force behind it.
Aigle: "They pretty good tag team, but Great Beautiful Strong Pair is best tag team."
Nothing was working for Anesthesia, and it only got worse as Dixie locked on the Dixie Buster. Anesthesia couldn't find a way out and her back was hurting too much to take the pain, not to mention momentum was not on her side, but luckily for her she was close enough to the bottom ropes for her to grab it, forcing Dixie to break the hold. Frustrated, Dixie went for the pin, but again wasn't able to even get a one count. She then tagged in Reiko, who was immediately taken down by a flying forearm smash. The nurse followed up with a seated Full Nelson hold, and was about to get Reiko to tap out, if Dixie didn't run in and break up the hold by kicking Anesthesia in the back. When the two legal women got back to their feet, Anesthesia delivered a Lou Thesz press to Reiko, followed by an blitz of punches. The nurse proceeded to stomp on every appendage of Reiko's body before going for the pin. "1… 2… thre-" Reiko was barely able to raise her shoulder off the mat for yet a second time. Anesthesia then mounted Reiko and started to wail on her with closed fists.
Mickey Cal: "Anesthesia might not need a partner if she can keep this pressure up on Reiko!"
The referee had to separate the Roses, due to Anesthesia's repetitive use of closed fists. Once everything was set, the two of them locked up and Anesthesia grabbed Reiko's arm with one hand and short clotheslined her with the other. The nurse pulled the Zero Fighter up and short clotheslined her again. Anesthesia pulled her up one last time and went for a hard clothesline, but Reiko ducked underneath and countered with a German Suplex Pin which connected dead on the nurse's neck. The crowd was elated and believed that the match was about to be over, as the referee counted, "1… 2…" however, the nurse was amazingly able to muscle out of the pin on the count of two, but she didn't seem to be getting up anytime soon. Reiko took advantage of the situation and went to the top turnbuckle in preparation for her finisher, the Angel Dive. However once she got to the top ropes, the entire arena went black.
Boos echoed throughout the arena as members of the crowd chanted "Bullshit. Bullshit. Bullshit." The blackout lasted quite a while, with the jeers getting louder with each passing moment. Finally when the veil of darkness was lifted, everyone was in awe of the sight in the ring. Dixie was knocked out with her back against the barricade surrounding the ring; Reiko was writhing in pain on the floor right in front of the announcer's table; Anesthesia was laid out in the center of the ring; and a beautiful, white haired woman was standing over the nurse, her eyes filled with hate and disgust.
Amidst the chaos and the confusion engulfing the fans, General Manager Clive Richards appeared on the titantron. "Hello Benikage, oh should I say Yasha. If this is the road that you are choosing to take now, then I will be forced to do two things that you might hate me for later."
A crew member at ringside handed Yasha a microphone. "You are the General Manager, so whatever decision you decide to make shall be sufficient in my mind." Yasha said the last part rather coldly.
"Very well Yasha, due to your action there are two things that I must do. First, seeing as you are no longer known as Benikage, I am 'regrettably' sorry to inform you that The Balance of Terror must forfeit their titles to me and is hereby disbanded." The audience cheered wildly at this, and the camera crew was able to get a shot at Yasha smirking due to the news. "Also… would everyone please quiet down? Thank you. Also, since you are not Benikage anymore, thus not a part of The Balance of Terror, thus not a part of this match, I am sorry to say that Tequila Sunrise has just won the match via disqualification." The crowd booed ferociously at this, mainly because had Yasha not interfered, Reiko would have connected with her finisher thus effectively ending the match. "I know this sucks. Anyway, while everyone heads to the back, this is probably be the best time to get refreshments in preparation for the main event. You won't want to miss it. Also, all Roses who haven't participated in a match tonight come to my office stat."
The Roses gathered in Clive's office as directed to find him in an uneasy state. All the Roses who were assembled held their tongues, until the Roses of Roses spoke up. "What wrong General Manager? Are little weak sheep annoying you?"
"What's wrong? What's wrong?" Clive was obviously frustrated. "Well first off, I just had to disband the Tag Team Champions due to Yasha. Then, I don't have a number one contender for the Roses of Roses-"
"Aigle will fight one of the sheep at next 'Big Show' if sheep beat me next week," proclaimed Aigle. She stuck out her chest as to show her superiority to the other Roses.
"Aigle, though it seems nice on paper, if you happen to lose, nobody will feel as though the 'sheep' would have earned the title opportunity. Then again, since there are so many Roses who could qualify as number one contender, I can't just hand it off to the winner of a single match. And in dealing with more pressing matters, I don't have a main event in store for tonight!"
'Mr. Richards, in all due respect, most of our weekly events are only three matches long, so you have already done-"
"I haven't done anything! I knew that I should have just played it easy. Now the only way I'll be able to garner the crowd's attention again is by…" Clive paused for a moment, as a brilliant idea struck him. "Well since Noble Rose isn't here, and I can't afford the Champ to be injured two weeks before a Pay-Per-View, this leaves me with only Aisha, Miss Spencer, and Makoto Aihara, but apparently Makoto isn't cleared to wrestle after yesterday's match with Reiko… Heh, I really should have thought of this earlier!" The Roses looked at their GM in bewilderment. "No need for the funny looks ladies; I know the perfect main event now! It's gonna be between Aisha and Miss Spencer. And ladies, do wear something that you won't mind possibly getting ripped. You are all dismissed."
Five minutes passed before the sound of the ring announcer was heard again. "The following is a Fight to the Rumbling Rose Ultimate Humiliation Queen's Match, wherein there is no disqualification, the match can only be won after a Rose is completely humiliated, and a post-match 'game', which was decided on before the match, must be carried out by the loser of this match." Miss Spencer's theme song "I'm too virtuous" blared throughout the arena, as the sexy teacher made her way down the ramp. "On her way to the ring, weighing in at 110 pounds and standing at 5 feet 9 inches, from Canada, The Task Master, Miss Spencer!" The crowd gave the schoolteacher a very positive response, and many of the guys whistled as she bent over to get into the ring. Soon afterward, "Fate" began playing and Aisha came down the ramp, receiving the second largest pop of the night, the largest was given to Dixie. "And her opponent, weighing in at 140 pounds and standing at 5 feet 11 inches, from San Antonio, Texas, Dancin' Sista No. 1, Aisha!"
Aisha wasted no time getting into the ring and as soon as she did, the match was on. Aisha ran at Muriel and took her down with a Lou Thesz press, followed by a flurry of punches to the teacher's head. While going for a grapple, Muriel tripped up Aisha, making her land hard on her bottom. When both competitors were up, Aisha hit Miss Spencer with a knee to the face, a slap on both cheeks, and had planned on ending it with a knee to the teacher's midsection when an idea sprung into the pop singer's head. "All I have to do is humiliate her, then lock on the NHB Combo!" Aisha then slapped the Task Master so hard that Miss Spencer spun around 180 degrees, and in the next moment, with the quickness of a lion, Aisha pulled down Miss Spencer's skirt, revealing the teacher's sexy black string black bikini bottoms. The men watching this match were going wild. However Aisha wasn't done yet.
While Miss Spencer was desperately trying to cover herself from the audience, Aisha crept behind her, gave Miss Spencer a wedgie, then immediately turned around grabbed Muriel's neck and pulled down hard, executing a Reverse Neckbreaker. Aisha then went for the pin and waited for the referee to start the count but he didn't. With Aisha on top of her, Muriel carefully was able to undo Aisha's pants. Aisha then yanked Miss Spencer to her feet, grabbed the teacher around the head, and performed a Double Knee Facebuster. With the teacher sprawled out on the floor, Aisha began to pummel her in the midsection, before ripping off the teacher's shirt. Aisha again lifted Miss Spencer to her feet and ran toward the ropes, rebounded, and came at her opponent with a devastating clothesline, which Miss Spencer not only ducked under, but she countered by tripping the pop star, grabbing the falling foe's pants, and yanking them off of her.
Crash: "I think I died and went to heaven Cal. In the words of a legendary color commentator, 'Puppies!'"
Both Roses were down to their bras and panties, yet neither seemed to be losing ground. The two went back and forth exchanging punches, Irish Whips, Suplexes, slams, drops, kicks, and an array of moves until both knew that they could only win by using their finishing moves. Miss Spencer went in first, kicked Aisha in the midsection, rolled behind her, and attempted her Tricolor Suplex, when the pop star countered with a perfectly place elbow to the side of her opponent's head. While the schoolteacher was dazed, Aisha, swallowing all of her pride, spun Miss Spencer around and kissed her on the lips. The reaction by the crowd was phenomenal, it was so loud that it was literally about to blow the roof off of the arena. However even with this occurring, nobody could have guessed what would happen next.
Miss Spencer, though completely humiliated, decided that the best offense in this situation was to give in. So she started to French kiss Aisha back, while grabbing her but. This totally bugged Aisha out, as she pushed Muriel away from her as though she were something the cat dragged in. The schoolteacher seeing an opening said in her sexiest voice while approaching Aisha, "Well now that was highly inappropriate." She licked her lips and winked at a frightened Aisha, who retaliated with punch that Miss Spencer countered into a German Suplex which she rolled through, followed by a Dragon Suplex which was also rolled through, followed by a Tiger Suplex Pin (Tricolor Suplex). This caused the audience to go into a frenzy. Aisha was out like a light, which was made evident when the referee said, "1… 2… 3!" and called for the bell. "And the winner of the match, The Task Master, Miss Spencer!"
Miss Spencer stood there in the ring with her head hung low. "There's no way that I will be able to teach again after… that!" She said as she made her way to the backstage area. She kept her head down avoiding to make eye contact with anyone. The Canadian schoolteacher was almost at the locker room when all of a sudden, she was hugged around the waist by someone with short green hair. "Listen, I don't know who you are, but I'm not what you think I-"
The person stopped hugging Miss Spencer, and revealed himself to be the General Manager. "Muriel, oh Muriel," he had a stupid grin on his face. "Thank you so much for your antics out there." The Task Master looked perplexed and worried by his words. "What I meant was, your actions out there made the ratings skyrocket! Heh, I'll be expecting other rating raising moments from you."
"Y-yes sir…" Spencer was very depressed, and the General Manager's words made it even worse.
Mr. Richards turned to walk away when he stopped and said, "Oh and next time, try to raise the ratings in a way that'll not make you seem like a promiscuous teenager next time." Miss Spencer nodded. "Okay then, remember the bus leaves in ten minutes."
The schoolteacher sighed, and entered the locker room.