Go East, Young Ninjette

Kozue rubbed her shoulder with her free, taking care not to move too much and screw up the position. "I can't talk too much on gimmicks, I got the ninja thing going on. But at least I don't walk around in the outfit 24/7. I do have normal clothes. I bet he doesn't wash that shit, either. Probably smells like dead rats and ass."

She took the screwdriver and thanked Jackie with a nod, going back to work and having a much easier time of it now. "And I didn't win. Not by myself. I took him on, yeah, but King's kind of a freak. He's, like, seven feet tall, weighs over three hundred. I mean, Jesus, look at me." Kozue just shook her head. "I took him on, got some decent hits in, but it was like trying to hit a rhino. Just not happening. Beat him the second time we fought, but that was a tag match. Me and this guy I know, Johnny, we took him down. Came down on him from the top rope, splashed him, got the three count, crowds went wild."

Then King got the jump on them, and Kozue got saved by Taylor Parker of all people, but that was a subject she was not ready to get into without some serious coaxing.

As Kozue busied herself in her act of petty theft, Jackie gave a shrug, "In my mind, if an arsehole like that needs taking down, doesn't matter how you do it or whose help you need to make it happen. Some people just need a beating so badly that you can't afford to hold back anything to get the job done. Back on the indie circuits, there were plenty of big heavyweight guys looking to show off a little by toying with someone smaller than them, and I made damn sure that win or lose, by the end of the match they damn well respected what I could do to them. There's a whole lot of things you can do to another person that doesn't take an extra hundred pounds of muscle to pull off and still leaves them hurting," she grinned a little as she pulled out a second cigarette, "I'm sure you've got a few tricks of your own for people like that, we'll have to compare notes sometime."

Jackie strolled closer to Kozue, watching her work. She clearly had experience in this kind of thing, which was interesting in and of itself, but she didn't raise the point - it didn't matter to the Irish woman how or where Kozue had learned to do it. "Guess it's just another cautionary tale for the AFW though - there are some people out there you just need someone else to handle, even if it's just to watch your back in case they pull some shit. Guess I'm fucked then, I was never much of the social type," she chuckled, following it up with an arched eyebrow as she looked down at Kozue work, "Seriously though, a ninja? Not exactly a gimmick I'd expect with an accent like that."

Jackie seemed to be a wee bit more enthusiastic about beating the shit out of guys than Kozue usually was. Not that she  couldn't appreciate the general gist of it. There was something satisfying about getting the edge of over a braying jackass like King who thought she didn't have the tools to take him down. She hadn't come across too many guys like that in Tension, but she knew they were out there.

"Yeah, I got a few tricks." She smirked, but kept her eyes facing forward as she finished up. "I try to stay one step ahead, you know? Be the smartest one in the ring. Like, this one guy I took on, had me on the ropes. He moves in, tries to spear me. Big guy, six feet something, he'd break me in half. I see him coming at the last second, I drop down, and he goes sailing over me right out of the ring. Won it easy from there. Good times."

The machine clicked, whirred, and dropped a KitKatBar. Payment for months of never giving her correct change and sugary confections lost. "And the ninja thing is a long, long story that I'm not nearly drunk enough to tell you about." She groaned and shook her head. Sometimes she wished she'd gone for something less ironic. "Yet. The day is young."

She crouched down and snatched the Kit Kat Bar out, looking back up at Jackie. "Want anything?"

Jackie hook her head, declining Kozue's offer, "Thanks, but I never had much of a sweet tooth, I'll stick to alcohol and cigarettes as my vices. As for the story behind your ninja gimmick, I might be able to help you get to the necessary level of drunkenness needed to tell it. That guy I was telling you about, the one with the sister? Yeah, I threw in a stipulation that the loser would pay off the winner's bar tab for a year," she flashed a pearly white grin, equal parts satisfaction and mischief, "There's a trick for you right there - you can be as big and tall as you like, but hitting someone's pride always hurts."

Jackie jerked a thumb over at the nightstand, "So anyway, do you have somewhere for this to go? Hope it's the last of the heavy stuff, otherwise I might start charging."

Jackie was offering Kozue free booze. That alone made her a strong contender for 'Kozue's Best Friend'. Not that there was too much competition in that category...

"I do, yeah, but fuck it, I'll come back for what's left later. Not like my new place is going anywhere." She snapped off a KitKat and shoved the rest in her pockets, looking far brighter and cheerier all of the sudden. It had been a while since she had the chance to drink with someone. It would be nice not to be that creepy gaijin sitting at the far end of the bar by herself for once. They could those creepy gaijins.

She moved back to the nightstand and bent down, taking up the edge one last time. "Just help me get this out to my car. We can head to the bar and I'll tell you any story you want to hear. Maybe even some you don't."

As Kozue took up position at one end of the nightstand, Jackie moved to the opposite side, crouching as she got a secure hold. "Sounds good to me, between this and the gym I think I've earned a drink or two. So where are you moving to?" She asked, giving a light grunt as they hefted the heavy piece of furniture between them and walking it towards the door, "I mean considering this is where you've been staying, it's either a better apartment, or crashing with friends or family."

As they manoeuvred the bulky object out of the doorway, Jackie considered he position. It had been relatively easy to get Kozue talking, and the girl seemed pretty content to gab at length, especially once the promise of alcohol had been made. She certainly didn't seem like someone who was strictly on the straight-and-narrow either, given her talent for petty larceny, and the Irish woman was willing to bet she'd tried that on more than vending machines in her time. Still, her attitude was still largely a mystery, although the vitriol with which she'd spoken of King sounded promising - the girl had buttons that could be pushed, and Jackie knew how to coax people like that. Moreover, she needed to see her fight. Jackie had a pretty good eye for judging an opponent's skill, and everything about Kozue suggested their styles were very similar, but she wasn't willing to take the next step of her idea before she could see this girl really, seriously throw down with somebody.

"Friends and family." Kozue had a little laugh at that, as they started to move back towards the entrance. Getting this thing and all the rest of her crap into her car was going to be almost as much of a pain in the ass as getting it down was, but she'd figure it out. Somehow.

"Family, I'm sort of done with. Don't have any here, don't want any here." She backed up towards the car and looked over her shoulder, gauging the distance. It took a little doing, but she managed to bring up her leg and open the door with just the right twist of her foot, getting some use out of her flexibility. "Friends, I'm working on. Don't have any in the city I'd want to crash with, though."

She stepped to the side and started to force the nightstand into the backseat, squeezing it past the cushions. "Just moving into a better place, about an hour from. Making better money now that I've been wrestling a while, figured it was time." Kozue adjusted the seat, allowing for more space. "I did have this other thing planned, maybe. But that hasn't panned out yet. Not the Ritz, but this'll do for now."

Jackie replied with a non-committal grunt, adding her own efforts to Kozue's as they squeezed the nightstand into the car, inch by reluctant inch. Finally however, it was far enough in that the door could be slammed shut with a triumphant bang. "Well, seems we're in the same boat then - no family, no friends, in a strange city from a strange land that keeps getting stranger by the day," she said, stretching herself out a little as her weary arms throbbed from the extra workout they'd just received, "But fuck sounding mopey about it, it's drink o'clock. Know anywhere good around here? So far I've found one place that sells Guiness and it's the kind of place that does snobby wine tasting classes. Guiness shouldn't be served in a place like that," she said gravely, shaking her head in mild disgust.

Jackie paused, her eyes rolling after a second as she remembered something. "Shit, I left my gym bag on the stairs," she growled with frustration, "And I suppose I really should get changed out of this stuff first. Gimme a few to get showered and changed, and I'll meet you down here? Gives you time to change too, not that the wife-beater, cut-off shorts and work boots image doesn't work for you," she added with a smirk.

Kozue being Kozue, she had, of course, scoped out the bar scene in Kyoto, making note of a few noteworthy places. Japan wasn't as bad for bars as she had thought it would be when she first stepped foot on the island. There were good places, the kind you wouldn't expect in Japan. You just had to know how to look.

"Broken Shellelagh." It was the first place that popped into her mind, and the exact last sort of bar you'd ever expected to find in Kyoto. Tracking it down had been a bitch and a half, but she'd pulled it off. Well worth the effort, too, for many reasons that Jackie would appreciate.

Kozue gave her a little wave as she went off, stretching the straps on her shirt out. "Don't be jealous."

It wasn’t long before Kozue came back down, dressed in something a little more appropriate. Boots, but these looked shiny and fit enough for the public eye. Pants, cut off just below the knee, tight and hugging her hips. And, of course, her t-shirt: black, with a few ninja stars around the words ‘Ninjas Do It Stealthily’, as a pair of eyes popped out of the darkness.

Ready for the town.

She waited downstairs by her car for Jackie to come, blowing some bubble gum while she passed the time.

With the work done, Jackie ascended the stairs once more, scooping up her gym bag on her way to her apartment. As soon as she had entered the cramped living area, she tossed it onto the solitary seat that offered a modicum of comfort, and busied herself showering up, thinking all the while. She had an easy enough time playing up the rough-cut-but-amicable Irish girl, but it was still bothersome to have to maintain a masquerade like that for any length of time. Still, it was good practise to hone her skill at maintaining that level of cover, especially if she intended to keep projecting such an image to everyone, and Armando and Carmen made it all the more necessary. It wasn't as though she had nothing to gain out of this either - Kozue seemed to have experience, competency and a matching style to Jackie's, if lacking a little more in the killer instinct department. If Jackie needed a partner, she needed one who could fight the way she worked in the ring - fast, blitzkrieg tactics that wouldn't permit an opponent any room to counter. One opponent like that could be a real issue to deal with - two would be more than even most of the real heavyweights out there could take on alone.

But before all of that, Jackie would have to do some research on Kozue, look over her style, her prior matches, see whether she was the right stuff. Her matches with King seemed a good place to start - the Irish woman needed a partner who, at the very least, wouldn't frown on her tactics in a match, and if Jackie could get Kozue to apply her hatred to some of the traits King had rather than simply the man himself it would make it easier in the long run.

She quickly dried off and pulled on fresh clothes - a pair of denim shorts that showed off her muscular thighs, black boots, and a plain lightweight black t-shirt. It was Fall and there was a chill in the air, but Jackie knew after a few drinks she'd be suitably warmed up. The last item she snagged before leaving was her purse - it was probably the last item most people would imagine someone like Jackie to carry, but hell, she needed to carry her wallet somehow and the pockets on her shorts weren't going to cut it.

Suitably prepared, she headed downstairs and pushed open the door, seeing Kozue waiting for her. "So, you mentioned a Broken Shellelagh? That is a name with a whole lot of promise," she said with a grin, "Lead the way."