Fighting Spirit from Korakuen Hall

[James Peterson]

DATE: Monday 10th July, 2023
VENUE: Korakuen Hall

The scene opens with the president of NJFC, James Peterson, standing up on the podium. 

JAMES PETERSON: Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to this special press conference ahead of the Fighting Spirit series that commences tomorrow night, right here, in Korakuen Hall. It has been my pleasure having New Japan Fighting Championship back in the wrestling landscape, with A New Hope followed by Tag-Team-Tropolis, we've really set the standard for ourselves. But we're far from finished. We've only just started to scratch the surface. 

A smirk plasters over the lips of Peterson. 

JAMES PETERSON: The Fighting Spirit of Juniors is a showcase round-robin tournament featuring some of the best junior heavyweight talents in the world, all competing for the chance to be heralded as the tournament winner. The last and first tournament winner was of course, Mr Craig Anderson and at Fighting Spirit, and a new NJFC FIGHTING Junior Heavyweight Champion. 


The title is displayed for everyone to see, with photographers taking their sweet time as Peterson continues. 

JAMES PETERSON: The winner of Block A will meet the winner of Block B at the tournament finals on July 30th, from Ryogoku. I know that the competitors involved in this years field are some of the best talents in the world right now, which makes me extremely excited for the future of the Fighting Junior Heavyweight division. 

He pauses, clearing his throat before going on. 

JAMES PETERSON: Ladies and Gentleman, next we have one-half of the NJFC World Tag Team Champions, from Block B, The Yosei Princess, Mayumi Tanahashi. 

Mayumi Tanahashi hops up and waves. She is again dressed very traditionally, though her Yukata is a bright teal with gold starburst designs and flying pink fairies. Her geta straps have bright pink flowers along the white fabric. Her hair flows free, the pink and blue streaks almost mixing in with her outfit.

TANAHASHI MAYUMI: KON’NICHIWA! It is very good to see all of you. I am very excited to do a press conference on my own, and even more so to be here as a champion. Everyone who believed in us, dōmo arigatōgozaimasu!

Mayumi smiles and spreads her arms out as if wanting to give folks a big hug.

TANAHASHI MAYUMI: Okay, first question time, and I choose…

Mayumi grins, closes her eyes, and points, when she opens her eyes she claps as she recognizes a middle-aged reporter dressed simply in black slacks, a white shirt, and a simple light blue tie.

YOSHIRO TANO (Puroresu Weekly): Kon’nichiwa. You mentioned being a champion, and I’m wondering if there’s any concern that some opponents might look at a victory over you worth valuable points of course, but also a potential future title match. Within your block, you have quite a few people that have very talented partners, including two people you met on the road to winning those tag team titles.

TANAHASHI MAYUMI: Uhm… I am sure that some opponents will look at a victory against me as an opportunity to secure more. In any tournament, a champion always must be aware that a loss could lead directly to a challenge and there are many talented wrestlers in the B Block. I am sure my first opponent, Yui Watanabe would love to earn a title match for herself and Eimi Matsuda. I know that MYOJIN and his partner Mallory want another match. I am sure that Jessica and Zachary, Weston and Cloudy, Lily & Lyra, wow, there are a lot of folks with good tag partners in this block. I might be in some danger.

Mayumi smiles and looks around before she hugs her title close. She laughs a little and resumes holding it normally.

TANAHASHI MAYUMI: I welcome that challenge, and if a victory does lead to a title shot for any of my opponents, The Tanahashi Twins welcome all challenges. Now, the next question is for

Mayumi again closes her eyes and when she opens them she’s pointing at a cute woman in her mid 20’s wearing simple glasses and a much more practical plain pink yukata

MATSUDA UNAGI (Nihon Pro Wrestling): Arigato. Toru says hello by the way. With all the talent in both blocks, it’s a bit difficult to truly pick favorites or think about the finals too much, but if you were to make it to the finals, who would you want to face from A Block?

TANAHASHI MAYUMI: Oh wow… That’s a super good question. I hadn’t even thought about that. There is like so many good wrestlers over there and some people that I’d really really really like to wrestle, but if I can only pick one of them… I… am… going to… pick… Moonlight Rose. She is new friend and I know she is very talented and tough and hard-working. She has much fighting spirit and is very good at the flying and the striking and the diving and the flipping and all those “oh my god that was so crazy and cool” things. So yea, she would be my pick, but I would fight anyone. First match is focus now, not the finals.

Mayumi nods her head, then closes her eyes, but before she can start moving her finger around to randomly select, an attractive dark-haired woman stands and clears her throat. Mayumi frowns a little as she opens her eyes and points to the woman who smiles.

YAMASHITA KAIRI (Tokyo Sports): Arigato Mayumisan. Your brother Minoru, his reputation outside of the ring notwithstanding, has quite a bit of tournament experience. Single elimination, round robin, singles, tag, trio, especially singles tournaments. He has a decent success rate as well. You, on the other hand, don’t have much tournament experience, much less singles experience. Add in that you have recently been focused on tag teamwork, and I’m wondering if you see that as a detriment.

TANAHASHI MAYUMI: Uhm… that is something I wasn’t trying to think about. It is true, I don’t have much singles tournament experience. I do however have plenty of singles match experience and I’ve done matches three, four, five days in a row, day to travel, and back to it. I would not be here if I didn’t believe I could succeed. I would not be here if I didn’t believe I could win. I would not be here if the people running NJFC did not think I can handle it. I enjoy being nice and cheery. I enjoy smiling and having a good time. I enjoy entertaining the wonderful fans that come to see us. I also love to compete, and I love to win. I love to show my wonderful fans that you should be nice when you can, and fierce when you must. Once the bell rings, I will fight with all that I have until the bell has rung once more. My friendliness ends when we are opponents.

Mayumi nods and gets a bow from the reporter, which is returned. Mayumi smiles and looks around then nods.

TANAHASHI MAYUMI: Thank you very much for the time and the wonderful questions, I have one last thing to say before I step aside for the next great competitor. To all of my fans, I am going to fight with all my heart, skill, and fire for you all. I will show everyone just how high I can fly and I hope that you will all FLY WITH MEEEEEE!

Mayumi raises her hand high with a peace sign before she brings it down and poses, the tag team title hanging in her other hand as she smiles for pictures before she exits.

TJ TECHNIQUES:: Yo, microphone check, 1-2, what is this? Allow me to formally introduce myself. My name... is TJ Techniques. For those who you not in the know... for those of you that ain't up on game, I go by a few names. The Funky Technician... The Meaning of Dope... Kool G. Grap. And in about a couple of week's time, you gon' add "2023 Fighting Spirit of Juniors Winner" to that list. You know, when a lot of cats from the U.S. go overseas to wrestle, they do it for the check. They do it to take in the sights and sounds. They treat it like it's a vacation.

TJ wags his finger.

TJ TECHNIQUES: Ain't no vaycay over here. I'm here to put in that work. I'm here to build somethin'. To have my name etched in history and that's exactly what I plan on doin'. Comin' here to Japan, it ain't just some notch on my belt. It ain't an item I get to scratch off the bucket list. This opportunity is serious business. Trust and believe, business will get handled.

Rachel Kenshin: Hi, Rachel Kenshin here for NJFC online. How does it feel to be competing in Japan for the first time for an opportunity like this?

TJ TECHNIQUES: Quiet as kept, this ain't my first tour of Japan. See myself, Myojin and a couple of other cats on the roster were a part of a company that was based out in the UK last year. And I wanna say it was arrund this time last year where they ran a show or two in Japan. Bein' in Japan was somethin' that I never thought I would experience. I'm just a kid from Staten Island, New York, man. Only time I ever saw Japan was on the flicks, you know what I mean? So to have been here last year and to come back again now? It's a blessin', man. It's all a blessin'. It also les me know that hard work pays off. See, James Peterson did his googles. He peeped the technique and felt that I was good enough to compete in an event like this. So I'm very appreciative of the opportunity.

NJFC Magazine: What are your thoughts on the field of competitors as a whole?

TJ TECHNIQUES: You look all up and down each block and all you see is quality. There ain't no easy outs in either block. Ain't no such thing as a "trap game" in this round robin tournament. This field that was put together... you're lookin' at some of the best junior heavyweights in all the world. They all came here to show up, show out and show & prove that they're worthy of the crown. But there's gon' be a lot of broken hearts cause in the end, only one of us is makin' it to the top and it's the man that's talkin' right now.

Grapple Talk TV: What do you make of your first opponent, Eimi Matsuda?

TJ TECHNIQUES: Well, you know, I'm not gon' talk too crazy about here. She's approached this match on the respectful tip, so all I can do is show that same respect in return. You know, Eimi is someone that is very professional. She don't allow herself to get distracted by all the noise. She's focused. She's poised. This is someone that's takin' this opportunity very seriously. She's knows the task at hand. She knows what a win over me will do for her. So I gotta be ready for anything and everything.

JAMES PETERSON: At this time Moonlight Rose will be taking questions.

Moonlight walks into the conference room, her masks chin strap loose as it bobbles as she walks. She completes the outfit with purple and black sneakers, black dress pants with a sweater wrapped around her waist and a black T-Shirt. She sits down adjusting her mask. She looks out to the sea of reporters and points out one.

MOONLIGHT ROSE: (Love that Tie, you have a question?)

YOSHIRO TANO (Puroresu Weekly): (It’s definitely not your first day back in Japan as you’ve been living in the country since you signed, but you haven’t been to one of these before so let me be the first to say welcome back to your home.

MOONLIGHT ROSE (Thank you very much, it’s been almost half my life? I left Japan when I was 7 and I’m 18 now so yeah, more than half my life since I moved away. I loved Canada, I learned so much working in the West but nothing beats that feeling of home. It’s odd though, I was born and raised in Nagoya but my parents live in Canada together now so I really don’t have a “home”)

YOSHIRO: (You have any desire to go back west?)

MOONLIGHT ROSE: (No… not right now at least, I’ve bought an apartment in Nagoya recently I’m pretty keen to stay… Plus I’ve got nothing left to prove for myself over there, Western wrestling puts too much emphasis on championships and money. It waters down the business because you just get people coasting by to collect a paycheck or people who can’t decide if they are football players, pornstars or wrestlers. If you wanna become the best wrestler in the world you do it right here, nothing will substitute.)

Yohiro sits back down as his line of questioning is over. James picks another random reporter out of the shadows.

?: Hey, Zach Piggozo from Northern Wrestling News.

MOONLIGHT ROSE: How are you Zach.

ZACH: Great thanks for asking… ummm… You said on social media that your first round match is a layup? What did you mean by that?

MOONLIGHT ROSE: That I have an easy first opponent, no offence to Katrina but I’ve already got her beaten 1-0 and she hasn’t exactly improved since we last squared off it’s only been like a month, Katrina is great she has the ability to be right up there with the best in the block but I’ve already seen everything she has. So in this case it’s a layup.

ZACH: Is there anybody you are excited to lock horns with?

Moonlight mulls it over.

MOONLIGHT ROSE: Damn that is a great question… well let’s just start with A Block, I’m excited to see how the match with Cloudy goes, she seems like a very busy wrestler and I’m worried she’s gonna burn herself out too quickly with all these bookings, I’m well rested and sharp whereas she might be tired and sloppy but your never know till the bell rings… Vega is HUGE. The photos she posts on socials are very impressive, I think she has the advantage just of the size front but… all those muscles slow you down so she might be big and strong but you can hit what you can’t catch. Block B has a lot of killers as well; Mayumi, Eimi, Yui is really good, I would be lying if I said I would mind meeting MYOJIN in the final, they are one of those wrestlers you hear SO much about even stateside, but I think I can genuinely beat everybody so… I hope that answers your question.

Moonlight looks out at the reporters, no one looks to be wanting to ask anything, then she looks at James who confirms her leave.

MOONLIGHT ROSE: (Thank you everyone.)

She poses for some pictures then leaves toward the back.

Just like that, the entrance doors are kicked wide open; a means of forcing the attention on the trio that walks through. First is Tony Russo in his large blue suit. He makes his way towards the podium. Following Tony is The Mad King Michael Kelly, dressed in a pink fur coat and matching pink ushanka, he channels his inner Cam’ron. Obnoxiously large shades hide his eyes as the cameras flash for the ridiculous menace known as The Mad King. Trailing behind, about a step and a half away, was Lily Blaise. She was a bit more demure looking, but still arrived presentable in a black summer dress with a dark grey blouse covering her, a matching purse draped over her shoulder.

REPORTER: Philip Lindsey of Bleacherreport.com. I was wondering just h—

The reporter is cut off by the obnoxious and repetitive tapping of the microphone.

MICHAEL KELLY: AHEM.. If I may, allow me to bring your attention to THE EYECATCHER here, huh? That alright with everyone? Yeah? Okay! So, everyone with eyes, I need you all to see my vision; I want you all to focus on what Michael Kelly sees as not only the future, but THE PRESENT of professional wrestling. Leaving those dogs on the ground where they belong, The Regime was formed. A faction of my most loyal and trusted associates. Students who’ve eaten off of the learning tree of yours truly. A group of individuals who all have the same mindset as yours truly. THE Mad King and The Regime plan on controlling all things wrestling on this side of the sea.

Michael sits back in his seat, kicks his feet up and lets out a loud cackling laugh. Tony Russo knows the deal and follows along, laughing with MK so that he doesn’t feel alone in the act.

MICHAEL KELLY: Now now now, this is not all about me. Well, no, it is. I lied. BUT, for today, for this entire tournament, Lily Blaise of The Regime will be sharing the spotlight with YOUR Mad King.

There was a bit of pause, few flashes surely capturing the sight of the conference shown as the focus shifted towards Lily. It was clear the young woman was quite uncomfortable and wishing she was anywhere else. Her eyes darted around the room, a few hands up looking to ask her questions, but still she was silent. Only when she turned to look over at Tony was she fed a few inaudible, yet seemingly encouraging words. She looked down towards the purse, opening it and rummaging around until she found a pair of shades she quickly put on. Soon as she did, a sigh left her with a smirk gracing her features soon after.

LILY BLAISE: Much, much better. Now before you all go crazy with tired questions of oh what is your strategy or who do you see as your toughest competition in the series, I’m going to stop you and state that this isn’t going to be one of those conferences for me either.

She looks away a moment, nodding although it’s not known what it is exactly. Turning her attention forward again she chuckles for a sec.

LILY BLAISE: Respectfully, of course. What I’m going to do is put my mission statement out there and then give the floor back to the king. Nothing more, nothing less because all the real talking? It’s done out there, not here. Anyone who believes otherwise is a fool and if there’s one thing The Regime isn’t full of, it’s fools.

Lily pauses, the smirk returning while she does her best to gather up her thoughts quickly and continue.

LILY BLAISE: I’m sure there will be a good number of my fellow competitors in the Fighting Spirit of Juniors who will come up here, talk about what this means to them, spill half their guts out while trying to convince all of you that they will be the one to win and become champion. Some will take the respectful route, others talking down the opposition like they’re nothing. I won’t bore you with the verbal dissection of nineteen other people, that’ll drone on far too long. I won’t go into agonizing detail about how much I’ve studied them either. I won’t complain about the hardships or present myself as some bubbly happy to be here type. No. I’m going to tell you one thing and leave it at that because once you hear it, once you see it you’ll know it to be the undeniable truth.

Taking a deep breath, she exhales shakily and goes on to remove the shades, putting them back into her purse. Lily then brings her gaze over to those watching, listening. While clearly uncomfortable in her current setting, her look was one of pure determination.

LILY BLAISE: I’m ready for everything.

Keeping her gaze with those in attendance for another moment, she lets the message sink in; then sitting back so proceedings can continue, having returned to her previous state.

REPORTER: Can I just get your thoughts on Shimada’s recent success? As of late, he’s seen a resurgence and it’s safe to say that the person you’ve been talking about, well, he’s back.

MICHAEL KELLY: Sure. Why not? Hey, make sure camera A is on me. Mitsuo Shimada, all of this time you’ve been gone, it’s been a soothing hum to me. I used to hear about the gatekeeper of NJFC and it would intrigue me. It would bother me as well, because while YOU were getting the adjulation and love of these people, whether or not you wanted it, I WASNT. I WORKED AND WORKED AND WORKED TO BECOME WHO I AM! THE MAD KING OF PROFESSIONAL WRESTLING. THE PATRIARCH. THEEEE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND. And just like Scotland, I am going to plant my flag above all. You, you will be but a taste of what’s to come here. JAPAN, YOUR MAD KING HAS COME TO LEAD YOU!!!

MK laughs for a bit before sitting straight up. Clearly, just the name of Mitsuo Shimada was bothering him. Slapping that microphone off of the table, The Mad King gets up and storms off, leaving in a loud, thunderous storm of anger.

Trey Bouchet enters the scrum dressed in a black and gold tracksuit. After introducing himself off-mic to his translator, he sits to take questions.

REPORTER #1: What are your thoughts on NJFC so far?

TREY: I respect the company’s vision. Fans are super supportive. And the Road to Tag-Team-Tropolis gave me opportunities to work with wrestlers I didn’t know before. It was a learning plexperience.

The translator is understandably confused at the unplexpected pseudoword in the Cajun Catapult’s answer, but does his best to interpret for the media members.

REPORTER #2: During the finals of Tag-Team-Tropolis it was revealed you joined the Violent Style faction. How’d that come about?

Trey: They offered. I accepted. It was an honor just to be considered. Bryan Williams and Owen Gonzales are pillars of the industry. Brogan Levandrier has impressed me both here and in Queen City Pro Wrestling. And Weston Lovejoy is the future. Violent Style is plexpanding, and will be a real force here in NJFC.

REPORTER #2: You mentioned your stablemates’ bonafides. What do you bring to Violent Style other than suplexes?

TREY: Aren’t those enough? *laughs* For real, though: other than my suplexpertise my greatest assets are power and professionalism. I might be a ‘Junior Heavyweight’, but they aren’t many people pound for pound stronger than me. And, yeah, despite the jokes and word suplay, I take my job seriously. James Carville said the most important thing you can give someone besides your love is your labor, and wrestling has earned both from me. It’s why I only have one gear when competing. Doesn’t matter if I’m facing my best friend or a scumbag that should be blackballed, I go all out to win.

REPORTER #3: You say you take wrestling seriously, but how serious are you really when statistically ninety percent of your offense are suplexes? What chance do you have winning the Junior Heavyweight Title against more well-rounded opponents who made the effort to properly learn their craft?

Trey’s smile evens out. He shrugs.

TREY: I’ve seen wrestlers with plextensive movesets go nowhere and while others whose only real plexperience was fighting Groypers in the streets plexcel. There’s no plexact formula for success. In my time competing I’ve realized the trait most greats do share is that they know who they are. I have that same self-awareness. Yeah, there might only be one tool in my toolbox, but you can get a lot done with a good hammer. I am the John Henry of the suplex set. I’m skilled, I’m stubborn, and I’m going to stay on the course that brought me here. That’s why I’ll win the Fighting Spirit Tournament. I’m going to keep hammerin’, keep drivin’- until I tear down those mountains and touch the sky.

Trey, proud of his answer, leans back in his chair. It falls on the translator to burst Bouchet’s bubble.

TRANSLATOR: I’m sorry, but who is John Henry?

Sheepishly realizing his metaphor was lost in translation, sets about to plexplain.

Anticipation for the next arrival was high but many were surprised to see Sara Yamamoto, the manager of Eimi Matsuda. The athlete herself is nowhere to be seen as Ms. Yamamoto takes a seat, adjusting the microphone so she’s able to speak without problems.

SARA YAMAMOTO: Thank you for being here today. My friend and client sends many apologies but because of a personal matter is unable to be here and take questions today. We have worked together to give you the following statement about the upcoming Fighting Spirit of Juniors which Eimi is very excited about.

Ms. Yamamoto stops in order to pull out a small piece of paper from her suit pants pocket.

SARA YAMAMOTO: First I would like to thank New Japan Fighting Championship for the opportunity to be a part of the 2023 Fighting Spirit of Juniors series. It is a chance I cherish and have been training very hard for since it was announced. I know this will be a very tough challenge not just for myself but all twenty of us who are taking part. I hold high respect for all my upcoming opponents and those in the other block. Please know each match will be taken equally as serious and that despite what is presently happening personally, my performance will not suffer as a result. Thank you for your time and I look forward to seeing you all at the next event.

Offering thanks herself, Ms. Yamamoto then gets up and makes her exit from the conference room.

Japan, the home of the Yakuza which had tried to kill Cannon once already, and now he had to come back. He was nervous about the press conference but he had Avalon with him, and she would protect him from them for sure. It was all under way and they were up next.

Avalon leads the way to the podium, wearing more clothes than she typically did on the Twitter timeline. The muscular woman gives her microphone a single tap to ensure it’s working as the two slide in their chairs.

AVALON: “For those who have been living under a rock, or are willfully ignorant my name is Avalon Vega and this here in Cannon Cairns. You don’t need to worry about what you can call us because we are under the umbrella of the fastest growing, most dominant factions NJFC has seen, Devlin-gun. From here on out there are only two sides in this company. You are either Devlin-gun, or you are dead and gone.”

Cannon looked over at her, then to the microphone. He paused as he scanned the audience of press and so on watching them.

CANNON: “Hey I’m Cannon I enjoy long walks on the beach and…”

Avalon gazed up at him for a moment then leaned over and whispered something to him, and he smiled at the crowd.

CANNON: “Serious, got it. Listen people of NJFC, specifically the Juniors, I know all of you think you might be this or that. You’re tenured from going here or there in the wrestling world, some of you are up and comers just like us too, and I take all of this into consideration when I say… to some of you, winning this whole thing is another notch on your belt, another thing for you to tout on your way to the next thing and the next. For me and Avalon, no matter who wins, whether it’s me, whether it's her. It’s THE thing to tout, it is the claim to fame it is the reason she’s here and the reason I am here. What amounts to a payday for some of you, it’s our day, to us.”

With that, Cannon and Avalon would make their exit, introductions and mission statements for the evening out of the way…

YUI WATANABE: Hello everyone… I am Yui Watanabe! Of course, I can't deny that I was really excited to attend today's press conference. Of course I see the importance of this tournament. Of course, this is my first time joining a tournament. I may be new to tournaments but I definitely see it as a challenge for me. Because I was going to be able to fight various opponents and of course they were skilled, that made me very excited. Okay this is my second year of being a professional wrestler. And I'm looking to continue my career success so being able to participate in this tournament is a good thing for me. And will allow me to develop my abilities to the next level. I definitely had a good first year in pro wrestling and of course I absolutely fell in love with it. This tournament means a lot to me, it will definitely advance my career. Therefore, I look at my struggles in this tournament, no matter which match, every match is my struggle. Of course I know myself that I might not be good enough to win this tournament. But I will try my best in my own way. Whoever my opponent is that I will face, I will do the best I can. I look forward to my future here so this will be another path for me. I know how difficult it is to fight in a tournament. But I won't give up easily. I know it's an obstacle that will challenge me. It will definitely make me a better person. And I want to thank everyone who has supported me throughout my career. I will do my best and I will definitely not disappoint anyone. I know it's a great future for me. But I'm going to make everyone keep an eye on me in this tournament.

YUI WATANABE: I'm in block B and of course my opponent is someone I respect a lot like Mayumi Tanahashi! I am now speaking directly to you. Of course, although I respect you a lot, when the time comes for me to face you. I won't let you beat me easily. Even though I know how much better you are than me I don't have any personal issues with you so I really hope you understand. I'm glad I had the opportunity to face you. So let's make this match the best and Mayumi I will prepare for this match as much as I can. I know even though I'm new And haven't been as successful as you can be. I would like to fight with you once and when I have the opportunity to do so I want to do as much as I can. I had the opportunity to surprise everyone who watched this match more than you. I walked into this match as an underdog, but I won't let those words take the best out of me. You are about to face the best version of Yui Watanabe. I already said that I know how difficult this match is to encourage me to practice more, and of course I will do the best in my way. It will definitely be a great fight. I appreciate you having to put up with this nonsense I'm saying. I really hope you don't feel bad about me. It's just a fight that can happen between friends. And of course I still have the same respect for you. You are a lovely person and I hope it turns out to be a good match. I know you can make me grow I will grow up to be a stronger Yui Watanabe. For today, thank you very much for giving me the opportunity to come out and say what I want to say.

Yui Watanabe bowed to everyone before turned her microphone off and slowly sit on her chair.

We are in a room with a lot of people sitting in front of a stage with a table on it. It has the NJFC logo behind the table on the stage. Waking Lions by Pop Evil plays as Leo Lions wearing a pair of black jeans with a red t-shirt as he walks out onto the stages and waves to everyone in attendence and takes a sit behind the table.

LEO LIONS: Hello everyone, my name is Leo Lions and I’m happy to finally introduce myself to you all. I know you all saw me win my first two matches here in New Japan Fighting Championship but now this is going to be the longest time you will all see me so let's get some questions.

A few people in the small crowd raise their hands. Leo points to a Lady in about her mid 20s.

LADY: Hello my name is Yua Fujii from The Japan Times.

LEO LIONS: Hello Yua.

YUA FUJII: We all know you are in the Fighting Spirt of the Juniors Tournament. How is this different then anything you have done in America?

Leo smirks a little bit.

LEO LIONS: I mean not really anything different at all. We do have matches like this format but don’t see them a lot. I mean it will be tough as we have to fight someone different like every day, where is America it might happen like every week or it is a small bracket with a one elimination format and the winner moving on all happening in one day, so that is the only really differences I see with it, the other thing is I actually have been training to be in top shape for this because I know if I don’t keep my stamina up I might end up being the biggest lose in this thing and I don’t want that to happen, so I hope that answered your question but next person.

Leo again point to a middle age man.

MAN: Hello Leo, my name is Jake Addams from ESPN.

LEO LIONS: Hello Jake.

JAKE ADDAMS: You have been getting pretty friendly with a lot of the other companters in the tournament. I want to know if this is an issue.

Leo chuckles a little as he shakes his head.

LEO LIONS: Actually no not really, I mean it is nice that I actually made much friends here in Japan as I’m not from here and a lot of them have helped me out, so being friendly is not much of a problem, I mean yes I might have to face them later down the line in this thing or maybe even be in the finals with them, but it is a respect thing and no matter what happens we know that we will give it one hundred, so there is no issue and I really hope that all my new friend that I made do really well and if I can’t win this thing, I will be cheer for them. I mean I know not all of us can in but I will be happy for whoever wins, even if it is not me, but thanks for that question, but that is all I can answer right now but if you have anything else to ask me you can send them to me over my tweet account @leolions2004.

Leo’s Music hits as he stands up from behind the table and waves at everyone as he walks off the stage.

Flicking and twisting his wrists, Weston comes out for his part of the press conference. The hood on his black and red Danganronpa zip-up hoodie was up, obscuring his face along with peaks of black and purple hair. He had headphones in which led down to his pocket and as he took his place at the podium there was a moment of silence as Weston bobbed his head to whatever song was playing in his ears. After a few moments, he whispers something under his breath and pulls out the earbuds, pulls back the hoodie, and grins at his audience.

WESTON LOVEJOY: “ Alright, let’s do this folks. The names Weston Lovejoy, The Broken Heart Kid, Polterfight! I could on, but none of that really means anything yet. At least not to you all, but make no mistake that this will be the only time I will have to introduce myself to you all. Because from here on out? You’re looking at the next Fighting Junior Heavyweight Champion. “

GummyGordysWrestlingCorner: “ Now that sounds a bit like arrogance, maybe from you’re lack of experience. This leads me to my question. How does it feel being maybe the youngest competitor in this tournament at only nineteen years old? “

WESTON LOVEJOY: “ Am I the youngest? I feel like that’s something we could probably confirm. But to answer your question, I know this is a learning experience for me, I know that I’m going to be going up against people who have toured the world, been there, done that. But this is my moment to make my mark! To prove not only to myself, but to my trainer Josh Kennedy, to everyone who has supported me up until this point! To prove that I’m worth it. So what if I’m young? I’m hungry! I’m determined! If you’ve already counted me out because of my resume, then you’ve messed up! This isn’t arrogance, it’s confidence… Confidence in myself, and those around me. I wanna’ inspire people you know? Even if I’m not sure what that looks like yet. “

Get The Graps: “ You’ve recently aligned yourself with Violent Style, care to comment on that? “

WESTON LOVEJOY: “ Whats there to say? When I hit, I hit hard. I strike fast, I leave it all out there in the ring every time. I wanna wake up tomorrow and do better than I did the night before, and with the help of people like Bryan Williams and Owen? I know that I have all the tools at my disposal to do just that. If I fail at my goal of winning this tournament, it’s because I failed - no one else. But when you’re hanging out with the best this business has to offer, some of that greatness has to rub off on ya kid right? It’s not my place to say what Violent Style is going to be in the space of NJFC… But I will say, is you all better stay down. “

Letting off a charming grin and flipping some hair from his face, Weston moves on to the next question.

4CWs Not Dead: “ Any comment of Devlin-Gun?”

WESTON LOVEJOY: “ Once a deadly sin, always a deadly sin… Am I right? “

4CWs Not Dead: “ Care to elaborate?”

Ruffling through his hoodie pocket, Weston puts one the earbuds back in his ear.

WESTON LOVEJOY: “ Not really. “

He places the other in, and stands up - the hood the goes back up and he walks away from the podium, seemingly having his fill for the evening.

Hiroki Omigawa walks into the media room, slightly different from his previous NJFC conference visit during A New Hope. Gone is the stoic, monk-like persona, and in its place a man with movie-star looks. Wearing dark sunglasses and several gold chains around his neck, he takes a seat and addresses the media.

HIROKI OMIGAWA: “A few weeks ago, I made it known that Hiro Omigawa was a top player in New Japan Fighting Championship. In front of a packed house, I came out and let Brennan Devlin know that I want what he currently has, the NFJC Global Championship.”

“During these last few weeks, I had a chance to reflect on my career. Although I’ve only just begun, I was doing what my trainer, Koji Murakami, instructed me to do. He wanted me to show strength, not through emotion, but by action. He wanted me to be The Glorious Weapon.”

“But that’s not me.”

“What I am, is a man who is ready for the SPOTLIGHT. I am a man who has paid his dues in puroresu and deserves the world. I’m not going to sit back and watch others thrive while I sit under the learning tree. My time will come in HyperFight, but in NJFC Hiroko Omigawa wants the gold.”

WEEKLY PURORESU: “Some will say you had your opportunity at the NJFC Global Championship at A New Hope in a four way match against Devlin, Ricky Valero, and Takashi Shinobu and failed to capitalize. Brennan Devlin was able to come out of that match victorious and the new Global Champion. What do you say about that?”

HIROKI OMIGAWA: “Honestly, they can think whatever they want, to be honest. You all watched the match, you all saw what Devlin’s girlfriends did to help their boy win. I was not offered a fair shot at that title and now at A New Hope I get that shot, one on one. Devlin is strong, and with Devlin-Gun at ringside, there’s no telling how fair of a shot I’ll be getting. That being said, Murakami Office is strong… and I may have a few allies that are ready if Devlin-Gun decides to get too involved.”

JAPSGRAPS: “You talked about Koji Murakami earlier and how he helped guide you once you started your career. Murakami Office has seen some success here in NJFC but you thrive as a singles competitor. Are you planning to cut ties with Murakami Office?”

HIROKI OMIGAWA: “Not at all! Murakami is like a father to me. I respect what he’s taught me and I give my appreciation for helping me start off in this sport. What Murakami doesn’t understand is that I am more than capable of being more than The Glorious Weapon. I had success in the states, winning championships, but I have yet to achieve success here in my country. You watch Murakami when he used to wrestle and I see myself more like that: an excited go-getter who can do it with style. I still represent MURAKAMI Office wherever I go. I just have to do it with my own flair.”

WRESTLING INQUIRER: “Brennan Devlin is truly one of the best professional wrestlers in the world. Some find his choices for victory aren’t the best, but he is hands down able to go up against anyone and everyone. What is your strategy against someone who has all the tools in the world?”

HIROKI OMIGAWA: “You must understand something about me, I have been in the ring with some of the best already in my rookie year. I’ve fought world champions. I’ve fought Japanese legends. I respect what Devlin-san has accomplished, but this is my time now. It’s the time of Hiroko Omigawa. I will bring Hyper FORCE to NJFC and I will take the Global Championship away from Brennan Devlin…. Thank you!”

With that, Omigawa walks off.

Shikimi Kurokawa is dressed for her part of the press conference in a white blazer and matching dress pants. A black dress shirt and shoes to match, but everything goes perfectly with the pale owl mask she has on hand near the podium. Her head tilts slightly to the left before she clears her throat and taps the microphone. She speaks without any effort to hide her Kansai dialect.

SHIKIMI KUROKAWA: The NJFC Junior Heavyweight Championship is in the sights of everyone who is taking part of the Fighting Spirit of Junior’s Series. That much is obvious to everyone here in attendance. Lily, my opponent in round one, has already decided that she is going to be victorious, that she will be champion. I would feel ashamed of her if she did not have an attitude like this![/color]

There is some laughter in the journalists, and a few snaps of photos taken before The Timeless Wanderer continues on with her segment of the presser.

SHIKIMI KUROKAWA: Only some seem as excited for this tournament as they should be. Perhaps they are more eager to see what comes of the World Heavyweight Championship, or the turns from TAG-TEAM-TROPOLIS have made them weary and they are still recovering. I do not know, but their loss is my gain

American Journalist (muffled speaking): Looking ahead, are there any opponents that perturb uh...You. Mayumi Tanahashi is now...Well she’s a draw obviously, uh...One half of the NJFC Tag Team champions. He uh...Uhm she that is to say...Surely after what she and her brother have proven, you may...have uh...You may have to uh, take your time with an opponent such as that?

Shikimi blinks rapidly at the American journalist before looking around. She clears her throat and her eyebrows go up briefly.

SHIKIMI KUROKAWA: The Tanahashi Twins have made a sentiment known that hardly anyone expected them to be victorious in the finals, or get as far as they did. The way I see it, they can only have such a dark horse victory only once. I do not just speak for myself when I say that I will be bearing down hard on Mayumi. I am sure the other contenders to be featured in the Pride of Purosesu Crown will be zeroed in on Minoru Tanahashi. At this moment in time, I am strictly focused on winning my first bout. It is a matter of numbers in these rounds.

Stuffy BritWres Podcaster: So tell me, what are your plans if any of your opponents know the secrets to counteracting the Tsujigiri-ryu Series?[/color]

SHIKIMI KUROKAWA: That is impossible, as the Tsujigiri-ryu pumphandle maneuvers are without peer or equal. They are the most destructive maneuvers in professional wrestling today. To even conceive such a thing is dangerous. You had better be careful or you may endanger all our lives.[/color]

There’s dry laughter across the conference room, Shikimi’s lip playing up with a slight smile as if to say she knows she knocked that one out of the park. Her shoulders shrug and she holds up her white owl mask.

SHIKIMI KUROKAWA: My final thoughts are that I dedicate my entire tournament performance to Tomoko Ota, one of the toughest competitors I have ever known. I will fight as though it is her spirit being channeled through me, as though her heart beats right next to mine. Thank you. 

Immediately after Shikimi, Lyra Nickols approaches the podium. She looks as though she's about to say something, but before she can, she strikes her signature smirk, before walking away and leaving the reporters in the room bewildered as they look around for answers. 

MYŌJIN: In my last match here, hings haven't exactly gone the way I'd have preferred them to.

The Shining Star sits in front of a microphone, which has reluctantly become an often thing for them since joining NJFC. Despite their words, MYŌJIN seems …not that bothered. Actually, there's a slight smile on their face. They are sporting The World Over Heaven's shirt underneath a leather jacket.

MYŌJIN: The Tanahashi Twins got their win, albeit under shady circumstances, and The World Over Heaven didn't become Tag Team Champions. Though one thing is different, if any of you've noticed- Mallory and I aren't on our own anymore.

MYŌJIN's grin slightly widens.

MYŌJIN: *But* that's not what I'm here to talk about. I'm here for the Fighting Spirit of Juniors, which despite my desire to have become Tag Team Champions, has been my main focus. My end goal. I've been denied twice of championship gold by means out of my control, but I am DESTINED for the Junior Heavyweight Championship.

MYŌJIN: The only issue is that it's going to take a lot more to get to it. I have an interesting history with tournaments. I won the King's Road in 2022 to become the current KRPW World Champion, but otherwise? I've often been a finalist, but rarely a winner. The Young Guns Cup from earlier this year being an unfortunate example. I reached the Global Championship finals in one night, I did the same with Mallory in three nights. This isn't single-elimination, this'll take far longer and far more effort? And you know what? I like that. Because once I am crowned, there won't be any excuses or any doubts.

MYŌJIN: And the first step down this path leads to me… Leo Lions. He's nice; cordial. A very friendly person- but those traits aren't what matters, it's his skill and determination- And I can guarantee neither match mine.

MYŌJIN: Plus… The stars aren't aligned in his favor.

They stand, about to leave, but pause for a moment as they lean to their mic once more.

MYŌJIN: Oh, one more thing: Good luck to ZEN'NO-SHA on the other side.