Post by Zack Fantana on Jul 29, 2017 3:39:07 GMT
Zack Fantana stood outside the Ryōgoku Kokugikan and observed the workers as they meticulously prepared it for NJFC's super-show event Pride of Puroresu. He didn't need to be fluent to understand what the marquee was advertising as a coming attraction - Madison vs. Scott for the GPC World Heavyweight Championship. Their faces were plastered on a huge banner on the side of the building, with smaller banners of other fan favorites setting off damn near every corner. One poster in particular even advertised Zack's opponent at Pride of Puroresu. Zack didn't understand a lick of what it said but based on the amount of characters on the poster, he presumed it read something along the lines of "Japan's own Toshikazu will be also in action at Pride of Puroresu!" with no mention of his name whatsoever. It was not unexpected. In truth, he wasn't even offended by the omission, because he knew he hadn't proven anything in Japan yet.
Yet.
Safely back within the confines of his lovely hotel accommodations, Fantana studies a duplicate of the very same Toshikazu poster, sporadically holding up his phone to try and get the translator app to work. After squinting at it for ten seconds, he raises his eyebrows.
"Well, damn, he sounds intimidating when they put it like that."
Fantana tosses the phone onto the bed and it springs into the air once before toppling haplessly to the floor. With a camera within sight, Fantana plays it off like it means nothing.
"'The Serpent Warrior Toshikazu'."
He can't help but hide his derision as he announces the name in grandiose fashion.
"Half-human, half-god. Son of a dragon and legendary samurai."
Zack takes a beat to digest it all.
"That's one hell of a byline."
Zack stops to pick up his phone and blows off the dust before taking a seat on the edge of the mattress.
"It would be easy to dismiss Toshikazu by simply saying that I don't believe in fairy tales, but fuck it, I'm intrigued. There must be something to it if he's got such a following. I want to see why it is that the audience is buying what he's selling.
Look, I understand that he's a talented athlete. But is that really all people need to suspend their disbelief on the tall tale that his manager is weaving?
As his manager Sum Ting Wong would tell it-"
Fantana pauses briefly to ensure that all of the subtlety in the room has time to make its way out the area safely after that name drop. Once content that it has, Fantana runs his hand through his beard and continues his thought.
"Like I was saying, as Toshikazu's manager would tell it, my opponent is a warrior inhabiting the human form, competing in NJFC only in the spirit of fun. Now I appreciate the sentiment. I really dig the message it sends to all of the little children of the world, I do. No one should be in this business if they aren't doing what they love, but when you say that he also has no interest in chasing titles and cares not for his win-loss record, that's when I begin to question the man-deity's warrior spirit. I understand that professional wrestling is a mere hobby to him and doesn't compare to his war against his wretched father Uwabami, but Christ, Sum Ting Wong, I'm begging you, give me something to believe in. You're killing me here."
Zack pushes himself from the bed to stand upright once more.
"Just like the NJFC fans, I wanted to believe you. I wanted to believe that the legend of Toshikazu was real, but the further and further I dig, all I discover are more holes in your story.
At first, I thought maybe it's just the cultural divide. You know how folk stories vary in different cultures. It's like a game of telephone. They evolve over time. It could have very well started out as something real and become sensationalized over the years, with that slow evolution over time tempering people to suspend their disbelief little-by-little, generation-by-generation. And maybe, just maybe these people believe in you because they've grown up hearing about the story of Uwabami and Toshikazu and they just want to see it come to life.
I'm willing to accept that as a possibility, because I simply cannot fathom another reason to believe in Toshikazu myself. Sorry, Mr. Sum Ting Wong."
Zack emphasizes the name more and more each time he says it, giving it the exaggerated and derisive delivery he feels it deserves.
"I just don't buy it. What I see when I look at Toshikazu is a clever marketing ploy, no different than a toy running off the Bandai assembly line. Except worse, because the currency you're banking isn't just the yen. Children in Japan are investing their trust in you. And what happens the day the man known as Toshikazu is inevitably exposed as a fabrication? When the people come searching for a 'Sum Ting Wong', looking for a return on their investment, are you going to be anywhere to be found? Of course not. You'll disappear just like Toshikazu did in the legend, and the name Sum Ting Wong will never be heard of again.
God willing.
If this is all just a ruse, I hope your client - the man you've dubbed Toshikazu - understands the risk he's undertaking. He has the potential to be NJFC's next ace. The GPC committee is practically begging for one and he could earn that spot on the merits of his talent alone, but instead he's complicit in your lie."
Fantana shakes his head.
"Don't let me down, Toshikazu. If you aren't who you say you are, if you don't have that warrior spirit, you'd better do your put on that hat, because I didn't travel across the globe to face a fraud. I came here to prove myself against the best junior heavyweights in the world. Now play your fucking part."
Yet.
Safely back within the confines of his lovely hotel accommodations, Fantana studies a duplicate of the very same Toshikazu poster, sporadically holding up his phone to try and get the translator app to work. After squinting at it for ten seconds, he raises his eyebrows.
"Well, damn, he sounds intimidating when they put it like that."
Fantana tosses the phone onto the bed and it springs into the air once before toppling haplessly to the floor. With a camera within sight, Fantana plays it off like it means nothing.
"'The Serpent Warrior Toshikazu'."
He can't help but hide his derision as he announces the name in grandiose fashion.
"Half-human, half-god. Son of a dragon and legendary samurai."
Zack takes a beat to digest it all.
"That's one hell of a byline."
Zack stops to pick up his phone and blows off the dust before taking a seat on the edge of the mattress.
"It would be easy to dismiss Toshikazu by simply saying that I don't believe in fairy tales, but fuck it, I'm intrigued. There must be something to it if he's got such a following. I want to see why it is that the audience is buying what he's selling.
Look, I understand that he's a talented athlete. But is that really all people need to suspend their disbelief on the tall tale that his manager is weaving?
As his manager Sum Ting Wong would tell it-"
Fantana pauses briefly to ensure that all of the subtlety in the room has time to make its way out the area safely after that name drop. Once content that it has, Fantana runs his hand through his beard and continues his thought.
"Like I was saying, as Toshikazu's manager would tell it, my opponent is a warrior inhabiting the human form, competing in NJFC only in the spirit of fun. Now I appreciate the sentiment. I really dig the message it sends to all of the little children of the world, I do. No one should be in this business if they aren't doing what they love, but when you say that he also has no interest in chasing titles and cares not for his win-loss record, that's when I begin to question the man-deity's warrior spirit. I understand that professional wrestling is a mere hobby to him and doesn't compare to his war against his wretched father Uwabami, but Christ, Sum Ting Wong, I'm begging you, give me something to believe in. You're killing me here."
Zack pushes himself from the bed to stand upright once more.
"Just like the NJFC fans, I wanted to believe you. I wanted to believe that the legend of Toshikazu was real, but the further and further I dig, all I discover are more holes in your story.
At first, I thought maybe it's just the cultural divide. You know how folk stories vary in different cultures. It's like a game of telephone. They evolve over time. It could have very well started out as something real and become sensationalized over the years, with that slow evolution over time tempering people to suspend their disbelief little-by-little, generation-by-generation. And maybe, just maybe these people believe in you because they've grown up hearing about the story of Uwabami and Toshikazu and they just want to see it come to life.
I'm willing to accept that as a possibility, because I simply cannot fathom another reason to believe in Toshikazu myself. Sorry, Mr. Sum Ting Wong."
Zack emphasizes the name more and more each time he says it, giving it the exaggerated and derisive delivery he feels it deserves.
"I just don't buy it. What I see when I look at Toshikazu is a clever marketing ploy, no different than a toy running off the Bandai assembly line. Except worse, because the currency you're banking isn't just the yen. Children in Japan are investing their trust in you. And what happens the day the man known as Toshikazu is inevitably exposed as a fabrication? When the people come searching for a 'Sum Ting Wong', looking for a return on their investment, are you going to be anywhere to be found? Of course not. You'll disappear just like Toshikazu did in the legend, and the name Sum Ting Wong will never be heard of again.
God willing.
If this is all just a ruse, I hope your client - the man you've dubbed Toshikazu - understands the risk he's undertaking. He has the potential to be NJFC's next ace. The GPC committee is practically begging for one and he could earn that spot on the merits of his talent alone, but instead he's complicit in your lie."
Fantana shakes his head.
"Don't let me down, Toshikazu. If you aren't who you say you are, if you don't have that warrior spirit, you'd better do your put on that hat, because I didn't travel across the globe to face a fraud. I came here to prove myself against the best junior heavyweights in the world. Now play your fucking part."
