Moe Fukuoka (debut) vs Julia Hiroshi

Moe began to crawl for the ropes! She knew that submission holds were the gymnast's forte and that she'd take no issue with putting her through the wringer a second time if Moe gave her the chance! With this in mind, she attempted escape and barely grazed the ropes with her finger before being pulled back slightly!

"Crap!" Moe cried out as she looked back to see that Julia snatched up her leg and applied an Ankle Lock! If she remained in this hold, it would hinder most of her offense and make her easier for Julia to catch! Moe would attempt a makeshift counter in the hopes of escaping before significant damage had been done! The brunette would turn over and try to retract her leg and pull Julia's upper body between her own legs! If successful, the green clad wrestler would try to hit Julia in her skull with repeated forearm strikes!

Julia didn't expect to be able to hold onto her foe for too long. She was much more surpried by getting yanked forward by the rookie who had just managed to pull the gymnast between her legs. "Hey ugh." the bluenette complained as she fell chest first onto Moe's stomach. Julia quickly looked up at her foe only to be met with a barrage of strikes directly to her head.

"Ahh ow oww hey ouch!" She would yell as Moe assaulted her. The first two strikes caused Julia to cringe in pain before she raised her hands to her head to block the rest. While doing her best to protect her head, the gymnast would try to raise back to her knees before countering with a punch right towards Moe's stomach.

While the green clad wrestler couldn't quite make her way to the ropes, Moe was successful in turning the Ankle Lock into an opportunity to come to blows with Julia. She felt good about being able to land two direct strikes. It was the first bit of offense she had ever mustered against Miss Hiroshi. She tried to keep the barrage of blows coming for a while, but neglected to mind her disadvantageous position.

Eventually Julia would find her way to her knees and then aim a well-placed punch at Moe's gut! The blow would connect and promptly stop Moe's offense! The leverage of Julia being over Moe while the brunette had her back on the ground only added to the force of the punch.

"Ugh!! Moe would groan in pain and lay beneath the bluenette for a moment. She winced with one eye open, trying to keep an eye on Julia and be wary of her next move.

"Well, glad that stopped." Julia commented as Moe immediately ceased her offense. She would try to land another quick strike to her opponent's stomach before attempting anything further. The gymnast would grab Moe's legs and stand up with them in her grasp. "Ok, time to twist you into a pretzel!" She teased as she tried to flip the rookie on to her stomach. She would then drop one of Moe's legs so she could wave to the crowd and get them excited for her next move.

If all went well, Julia would bend down and place her knee on Moe's back. From there the gymnast would hold the girl's leg up and bend it slightly behind her back. One hand would be pulling Moe's leg up from the thigh while her other would be tugging at her ankle. "Let's see you slip out of this one." Julia would say with a grin as she applied pressure to the hold.

Moe's resistance was put to a short halt when Julia landed a decisive blow to her tummy. For good measure, the bluenette would hit her once more to stun her for a short moment. The impact of the next punch caused Moe's arms to flop up a bit and left her vulnerable to Julia's next move.

Her opponent would tease her a bit about testing her flexibility again. She flipped Moe over and set her up for what appeared to be a rather painful Muffler Stretch hold! Julia lifted Moe's leg and bent it over, placing the leg slightly behind herself. The knee being driven into Moe's back added to the discomfort! But perhaps worst of all, was the referee, who immediately dropped down to a crawling position and asked Fukuoka if she wanted to submit!

"NO!" She cried out emphatically as she began to reach for the ropes. They were far away, too far for Moe to reach right away. She was thoroughly annoyed with being caught in this very familiar position: within Julia's clutches. She began to ball her fist and wince in pain while contemplating if there was any way for her to escape. And that's when she heard the first instance of what would be one of the most motivational sounds she would hear in her entire career: the sound of the crowd cheering for her to find an escape!

Julia was surprised to hear Moe yell so loudly. She was fairly impressed by the girl's spirit. That alone wouldn't save her from the hold though and only caused the gymnast to increase the pressure she was putting on Moe's leg. "Yes!" She would yell back, determined to get her opponent to submit. It was early in the match but Julia knew sometimes all it took to win was one well timed move.

As the gymnast continued to stretch her opponent, she would hear something she wasn't prepared for. The crowd was actually cheering for her foe to escape. It seems they were sympathetic to the resilient rookie. She was a bit disheartened to find out that she was now the villain, but Julia would try not to take it to heart. How could she blame the crowd when she too wanted to see her knew friend put up a good fight.

"Come on Moe, she me what you've got. Everyone's cheering for you." Julia told her foe. She would loosen the hold slightly only to pull back harder on her leg so she could see the rookie react. With the ropes so far away, the gymnast was genuinely curious to see if her opponent would try to crawl all the way too them or if she had some new trick up her sleeve.

Moe didn't perceive Julia to be a villain of any kind. To her, the bluenette was still the very first friend she had made at AFW and still someone that she could turn to for help, advice, a spar, etc. Even if it came with the occasional teasing. But right now, Julia was more than just those things. She was someone that she needed to prove herself to.

Moe continued to scratch and claw her way towards the ropes, and when the situation began to seem bleak, she'd hear the crowd chant her name. With their energy and desire to see her prosper resonating with her own, Moe would let out a yell as she began her counteroffensive!

"HRRAAAA!!! IKUZOOO!!!Moe would place both hands on the canvas, at her side and try to power out of the hold by pushing herself upwards! If she did manage to push her upper body a few inches off of the ground despite Julia's knee being driver into her back, Fukouka would flip forwards to eliminate the pressure on her leg and lower back! She'd then immediately swing her free leg towards the side of Julia's skull, and attempting a Roundhouse Kick from her position on her back.

Once again Moe had slipped out of Julia's hold. This time she was able to retaliate with a perfectly placed kick that connected with Julia's skull. Julia reeled back, holding her head in pain. "Ugh! Slipped out again!" the gymnast yelled. She was beginning to get a bit frustrated. During their spar she had completely dominated the rookie but it seemed Moe had learned from her mistakes. Not only was she able to get out of Julia's grasp, but she capitalized on her opportunities too.

The crowd went wild as Moe landed her kick. They were all getting behind the underdog. Julia on the other hand wanted nothing more than to bend the underdog into a pretzel. For now though she would keep her distance from the rookie. The blue haired girl was not eager to receive another kick to the face. She would back up and make her way to her feet, taking a moment to shake her head and get rid of any residual effects from the kick. "Ok...round ummmm... next round!" She said with a smile.

Moe had pushed herself hard to find a way out of yet another one of Julia's debilitating holds! With the unforeseen help of the crowd giving her energy, and an unwavering desire to prove herself, Moe would find her way onto her back to eliminate the pressure and force Julia back with a kick to the head! That kick brought her the time she needed to find her way back to feet, albeit she held a hand on the small of her back the entire time. She felt great about the brunette was reminded of he fact that win or lose, Julia wouldn't let her leave this arena in one piece.

After making it to a standing position, Moe would begin to circlr the ring to buy herself a little time before she approached the bluenette to lock up with her. "Mhmm! And during this round, I won't let you bend me!"

Julia watched Moe circle her for a bit. She was in no rush to get kicked again and would make sure to watch out for that in the future. The two wrestlers quickly locked up with each other, both of them looking to move into an advantageous position. "You never LET me bend you. I just kinda...do~" Julia giggled. She wondered what shape she would bend her foe into this round. She had a few ideas but seeing that Moe had been anything but cooperative they might end up being hard to pull off. "Well I mean I could always choke you, but that feels a bit mean right?" Julia asked, as if Moe had a choice.

If the rookie gave her an opening, Julia would try to quickly grab her around the waist. From there she would quickly attempt to push her opponent and spear her. "Back down we go!" She yelled. One way or another, someone was going to find their way to the ground again.