SD III: Mariko Ishii vs. Ninjette

Preceded by: SD III: Simply Superior vs. Heart and Passion
Followed by: SD III: Adam Lynch, Babba Coldway & Sandy White Vs. Gnarly Charlie, James Wright & Reva Devonport



VS.




Match Type: Smother match
Winning Condition: Best 2 of 3 Smothers, whoever smothers their opponent to KO 2 out of the 3 times wins
Special Conditions: none

...holy shit, this was Kozue's first solo match at a PPV.

It was a weird thing to think of as she waited in the guerilla position, passing time with some light stretches to limber up. Sure, she’d been in a Pay Per View before, with that crazy shitshow of a match against King and his harem. And the battle royal, too...which was another one of King’s fuckups.  But that was a different sort of thing. This time, she didn’t have Johnny or Clyde backing her up, with the latter doing his thing with the championship and the former who-the-fuck-knew. It was one-on-one. Her and Mariko.

She was nervous. She could feel that as she stood there, bouncing on her toes, and she had a hard time understanding why. Despite the way the crowd had gotten behind it, this was pretty much the definition of a filler match. No belt was on the line, no months of build up, no grand rivalry. Pretty much every Tensio belt was on defense today, and her match was filler, stuffed into the dead spot. It was a match that revolved around a fan poll, of all things, and a promo she’d done on a lark.

Yet, she was more nervous about this than any match she could remember off the top of her head. More than when she took on King in her first match, when she tangled Black Dragon, when she’d fought for the goddamn belt

All because of Mariko Ishii.

”Ugh, come on.” She paced back and forth, wishing they’d call her name so she could get this on the road. She’d spent the past couple of weeks watching every Mariko Ishii match she could get her hands on, and it was enough to paint a vivid picture.  Mariko was good. Damn good. Future champ good. She was sexy, sure, but she had skill, way more than Kozue did. She boasted one of the best singles records in Tension, and Kozue….well, she couldn’t remember what her record was, exactly, but if it was high enough for her to break even, she’d be surprised.

She tried to think about the fun of it all, how this was just some playful fluff, but something about Mariko and the way they’d parted ways put her on edge. She wanted to win. She couldn’t explain exactly why, but she craved it.

So when her music started and she was ushered out of the guerilla position, she came out like a bullet from a gun, dashing down the ramp at full speed. Hands were slapped and left stinging in her wake as she flew, with her ponytail flinging about behind her. She slid into the ring with enough momentum to reach the center of the ring, then popped up to her feet with both fists held high.

The crowd, of course, gave her a warm response. They seemed eager  to see this match go down, for some reason. Couldn’t imagine why.

The thought hadn’t occurred to Mariko as it had to her foe, but tonight was going to be her first singles match at a pay-per-view too. In her three ppv appearances, two had seen her team with Yamato for tag matches, and the other had been a 6-man tag. Had the fact come to her attention, maybe she would’ve realized what felt so different as she waited backstage in her ring gear. No one was waiting there with her. Not Yamato, nor anyone else. Strange how such a small detail could feel so big. But that wasn’t something Mariko was going to be focusing on tonight.

Kozue Kaburagi. A.k.a “Ninjette.” She was a woman Mariko had only met once in her entire career prior to tonight, but she was also a woman who bore more significance to Mariko than she could possibly know. Waaaayyy back at the beginning of of her AFW journey, Mariko had been asked in an interview who she’d like to face. There were lots of people she’d considered naming, but she’d only listed two of them. The first of them she faced soon afterward in an intense bout for the Tag Team Championship, a match many still argued was the best of Mariko’s career thus far. But fate had prevented her path from crossing with that of the second.

Until tonight.

Mariko hadn’t blurted the name out without consideration way back then. No, Kozue wasn’t a former world champ, and no, her record wasn’t necessarily the most stunning thing on paper. But she was a wrestler who possessed certain qualities a lot of wrestler either wished they had or pretended to have. Mariko knew that, sexiness of the stipulations for tonight’s bout aside, this was all but sure to be one of her biggest challenges yet. And that thought excited her to no end.

The moment her music began to play, gold and purple lights flashed from the stage, and seconds later Mariko came strutting out onto the stage for the second time tonight. But the entire vibe was different this time around. This time she was all business. Her trek down to the ring couldn’t have been more different from Kozue’s. She walked at a brisk pace, neither looking toward the crowd nor slapping any of their hands, though as usual she did give her hips a subtle, extra shake with each step she took. That was the closest thing to “attention” she’d be giving to the crowd. Her eyes were focused on Kozue the entire way, never shifting anywhere else even for a moment. And once she arrived at ringside, she climbed up onto the apron and stepped through the ropes, then rested a hand on her hip while smiling at Kozue.

“I can already tell you’re going to make a wonderful seat~”

Kozue could feel her heart beating as Mariko’s music began. She wasn’t sure whether that was a good thing or a bad thing.

She found herself fidgeting as her opponent came down the ramp, nervously bouncing from toe to toe like a schoolgirl on prom night, and she was glad that every eye in the arena was focused on the sensual beauty making her way to the ring. She took one deep breath, then another, trying to remind herself that this was not the biggest deal, that it was just a fun match, that there was zero pressure to do anything but put on a good show and do her best. Mariko was good - hell, she was great, but Kozue had her moments, too. At the end of the day, the temptress was just a human being.

A human being with a great ass.

And a fine, blooming chest.

And smooth thighs.

And a great, glistening smile.

And shimmering green eyes.

...shit. This was what she got for watching all that footage of Mariko’s more sensual matches for scouting. Should have stuck to the tag team stuff.

Kozue shook it off as Mariko made her way into the ring, pushing all those thoughts out of her mind. They’d be back, she was sure, but for now she was going to face this woman on even ground. Her smirk grew when her foe spoke, throwing out the customary taunt. She couldn’t let that go unanswered.

”Me? Nah.” Kozue waved her hand in front of her face. ”Got small cheeks, no padding, forehead isn’t slopped right. You, though? Nice, smooth, soft…” She held up her fingers to frame Mariko’s head. ”Yeah, yeah, that is a face I would sit on.”

She chuckled and stepped forward, extending her hand as she met Mariko in the center of the ring. ”Let’s do this right, have a good match.” She raised an eyebrow, ever-so-slightly. ”Maybe drinks after? At the loser’s place?”

Though she also chuckled after Kozue’s reply, she didn’t quite believe it. At least, not the first part. There wasn’t a single feature on that pretty face of hers that wasn’t perfect. The real shame in a match like this was that there wasn’t any real way to sit on it and look at it at the same time. But fortunately there’d likely be plenty of time to do both of those tonight.

Mariko was a bit surprised by Kozue’s proposition as she came toward her with an extended hand. She hadn’t considered the possibility of anything happening between the two of them after the match. It had been a while since Abby had to go back to the U.S., and her absence had left something of an awkward void in Mariko’s life. Of course she still had Yamato, and was occasionally dragged to get-togethers involving various combinations of the White Gale members. But aside from that, she really hadn’t had much in the way of company lately. She could certainly do with some change in that regard.

“Sure, but only if you don’t mind me staying over for the night,” Mariko replied with a wink, stepping forward to shake Kozue’s hand. And just as she did, she heard the bell ring in the background, and the crowd once again came alive as the match officially started!

Kozue took Mariko’s hand and gave it a firm shake, taking the opportunity to feel her opponent’s palm. Nice. Supple. Deceptively soft. But there was a firmness in her hands that Kozue wasn't expecting, a strength she found herself liking. And respecting.

This woman was a fighter. Maybe she didn't look like it or show it all the time, but that was part of the charm.

She was a bit surprised when Mariko wanted to take the offer of drinks to the logical next step, though. Not that the idea wasn’t one Kozue could wholeheartedly get behind, far from it, but she’d expected a woman like her to already have someone to help warm her bed every night. A woman like this, single? Even for Japan, that’d be weird.

Questions for later. More smack talk and fighting,now.

”Got it wrong, I’ll be staying over at your place.” She gave Mariko a poke in the chest. ”And sure, I’ll stay over. Watch movies, make Smores, Truth  or Dare. Fun sleepover.”

That was about all Kozue could take of being coy for one day, so she stepped back and moved into position as the referee stepped away...but she didn’t stay there for long. Kozue had a plan for this match, and for starters, it involved taking the fight straight to Mariko from the outset.

With that in mind, she hopped forward and kicked things of with an actual kick, coming at Mariko’s thigh with a low roundhouse.

Mariko couldn’t help but giggle at Kozue’s response. For all her other talents and beauty, the girl was fun, energetic and playful too. She imagined it was probably very difficult to have a dull conversation with Kozue, and she could only imagine how thrilling a whole night with her had the potential of being. Mariko had no idea how things were going to go from here, but she couldn’t have been more excited about it.

Once Kozue stepped back, Mariko did the same, then crouched down a bit and took a deep breath. The bell rang, and it was time to get to work. Unsure what to expect from the wildcard Ninjette, she figured the best approach would be the safe one, and started to outstretch her hands while moving toward her foe to initiate a lockup.

Problem was, Kozue had a different idea.

Instead of her foe’s arms interlocking with her own, Mariko was met with a sharp kick right into her thigh. She hissed and jolted back a step, but tried not to linger on the pain. It was evident that Kozue had no interest in going through the basic “feeling out” process. She wanted to get right down to business, which meant Mariko would have to try to match her pace if she wanted to keep up. Certainly not a simple task, but she had to try.

In retaliation, Mariko attempted to lunge forward and throw her own leg out, aiming the sole of her boot toward Kozue’s abs in hopes of momentarily stunning her. If her foe was quick enough to prevent being struck, Mariko would likely find herself briefly in a rather vulnerable spot. But if the kick connected, it just might be the start Mariko needed to prevent Kozue from running wild on her.

The audience gave Kozue a brief burst of boos at her surprise attack, but if they were trying to throw some shame her way, they shouldn’t have bothered. She’d never claimed to be the cleanest wrestler, and while she never outright cheated, if she saw an opportunity, she was going to take. Each time, everytime.

Besides, she’d watched enough of Mariko’s matches to know that, if the roles were switched, she would’ve done the exact same thing. This was not a battle of saints.

The attack wasn’t even really meant to hurt Mariko all that much, being honest. It was great that it did, but what Kozue wanted was for her to strike back in a similar way, trade kick for kick. And, wouldn’t you know it, that was precisely what occurred.

The kick came in, but Kozue didn’t dodge it. She could have, but she had a much better plan for that lovely leg. Instead, she let it collide against her side. That hurt, sure, she had to clench her teeth hard to suppress the yelp, but it was worth the pain. Before Mariko could pull it back, Kozue reached out and wrapped her arms around the leg.

”Gotcha.”

In one smooth, swift motion, Kozue fell to her side, pulled Mariko over her as she swung beneath, and tried to send her flying with a dragon screw leg whip.

Mariko was a bit surprised at the boos thrown Kozue’s way. No, it wasn’t the most technical start to a match ever, but her speed was undoubtedly her greatest ally, and an undeniable advantage she held over Mariko. To not put it to use as soon as possible would have just been foolish. In fact, the violet haired vixen was inwardly kicking herself for not seeing it coming.

At least Mariko had gone back after Kozue, rather than hang back and possibly leave herself wide open for something. But there was a risk to responding the way she did, and this time that risk seemed to considerably outweigh the reward. Her leg was caught, and Mariko immediately knew what was coming. It was a move she’d done several times herself, and one that had always proven effective. But understanding the situation wasn’t enough to save her from it.

“Gah!” Mariko cried out as her leg was twisted with the dragon screw, sending her her down to the mat on her back with a thud. She winced and hissed in pain and clutched at her leg, but rolled over onto her hands and knees and started to push herself back up anyway. She couldn’t afford to let herself become a sitting duck. She had to keep moving.

Dragon Screw. Fun to watch. Fun to do. Surprisingly effective for what seemed like such a flashy move - once your opponent started twisted around, there really wasn’t anything he/she could do but go along for the ride.

In other words, it was exactly the kind of move Kozue adored.

It did its job, too, sending her Mariko reeling, dropping her right on that award-winning ass of hers. It wasn’t enough to keep her there for too long, she was already making her way up, but that wasn’t the point. The move wasn’t about dealing damage, it was about paving the way.

Now, her next move, that was all about dealing damage.

She waited for Mariko to started pushing herself up, and then she went into action, running towards her opponent’s side and dashing past her. She bounced off the ropes right in front of Mariko to help build up steam, then came right back towards her as a human-shaped blur, closing in with wicked speed. At the last moment, she leaped at her kneeling opponent and swung her leg out in the same motion, coming at the violet vixen with a sliding kick to the face.