Nami Shinjo vs. Stone - Ton Of Heart

Match Type: Standard
Victory Conditions: Pinfall, Submission, or KO.

***

Stone stood in the Tension ring, leaning against the pads in the far corner, leaning back as her wild hair draped against the post, staring straight up at the ceiling. The crowd was giving her the usual jeers, such a part of her life these days that she barely noticed them anymore. She wasn’t even sure what they were booing about specifically, since she hadn’t done much to deserve any of it in the past few months, since BTM took over the gang and they made a play at going ‘straight’.

But that was more than a little silly, wasn’t it? She knew exactly why they were booing here, and it all came down to one name - Makoto.

The former Valkyrie leader and now regular Valkyrie member had done her level best to try and stick to the group’s old ways, resisting the change with all her heart. She wasn’t being overt about it, but word of her antics had spread far enough through the locker room for her to catch wind of them, and she wasn’t liking what she heard. Still bullying other girls, making them pay their ‘dues’,  messing them up when they tried to resist. Too many horror stories.

She wanted to pretend it wasn’t happening, that she could finally make Makoto turn over a new leaf - or, at least, stop her from going further down the hole she seemed determined on going down. She’d hoped that bringing Blue Thunder Mask on board would help her see what she could be, and become a better person. But that hadn’t happened, and she was starting to have doubts it would ever.

As her music began to fade, she eased back down and slid off her jacket, tossing it off and letting it hang on the  rope. For now, she just had to focus on the match - she needed the stress relief at this point.

"Three…. guesses… where… I… am… exclamation mark." Nami sat hunched over her phone like a gargoyle, tapping away at the digital keypad as if it were strange new technology from a far off place. She wasn't huge into texting, actual works anyhow, preceding to string together emojis instead for the sake of "simplicity". Today however, she needed some words to accompany the selfie she had taken of herself in the backstage area of the tension arena, waiting to make her big debut. Once she had it all set up, she sent it all to Natsuko with a winky face.

Theme:

Nami Shinjo:

Nami burst from the curtains with a cheer of her own, catching the audience off guard by her excitement. Some people where confused by who she was but other just bought in right away as the young martial artist danced a bit to her own music, unaware of the possible cringe factor involved. She just seemed excited to be here, following in the footsteps of her bestie… now she just needed to land this match and it was all good. Natsuko had taken her first opponent back down in record time and that was a pretty jacked dude. Looking down the ramp to her own opponent, Stone didn't look so tough.

She jogged her way down the ramp, twirling as she went with arms spread wide. Reaching the ringside area she dashed up the steel steps, clamoring up onto the turnbuckles to perch herself in a heroic pose. She threw a finger out towards Stone, a declaration that she was the next ( also first) person she was about to beat! There was a bit of unstable wobbling in place as she held the gesture for dramatic effect, trying her best to look serious.

With a small hop she dropped down from the turnbuckles, bouncing on the balls of her feet as she inched closer, throwing out a few quick punches and kicks out at the air before ending with a heavy thrust palm forward.

"Ori-yah!" She held her palm out, quivering as if the force behind it was a challenge for her to hold at bay. She slowly brought it back with a serious expression as if she could have easily ended Stone's existence with one punch. Her hands dropped to her belt, giving the ends a hard tug to snug it up around her waist as she kept an intense stare dead in the eyes of her opponent, even despite their size difference. It didn't last long though, as Nami broke the moment with a deep cheerful bow.

"O-kay! I'm going to kick your butt now, I can't let my friend leave me in the dust. Hope you're ready for all of this!" Without warning, Nami came running even before the bell, a choice that left the referee just as surprised as she fumbled backwards while the young brunette came charging though. The official franticly signalled for the bell just as Nami brought her right arm around in a swift punch, reaching up to try and clip Stone upside the head.

Throughout all of this - all the excitement, all of the joy, all of the energy that Nami radiated like a blazing furnace - Stone stayed true to her namesake and didn’t budge a single inch. She didn’t smile. She didn’t laugh. She just stood there with a hint of a grimace and had a nice, long sigh.

”Damn it.”

The second she saw Nami, she knew what this was all about. She’d seen these sorts of matches all the time in AFW, where they took some young, innocent girl whose bodyweight barely cracked the triple digits and put her against a woman twice her size, just so the audience could watch the carnage of the poor thing getting mauled in the middle of the ring. She’d been lucky enough not to have been in the executioner’s role before, but she should’ve known it was only a matter of time. So much for stress relief.

Stone opened her eyes as Nami came into the ring, making her admittedly adorable but definitely unwarranted declaration of victory, and…

Wait. Was she charging her before the bell?

Yes. Yes, that was what she was doing.

Stone still didn’t move from her spot, but her eyes widened in disbelief, shock, and mild irritation. Nami was eager, she could appreciate that, but the girl needed to drop down a gear or two. Way too hyperactive.

But how would Stone react to this? Her first inclination was to give Nami a Big Boot, but that seemed a little too harsh, didn’t want to knock Nami’s head off her shoulder. A Judo Throw? An option, but she wasn’t sure she could catch the punch fast enough for a counter.

She settled on something in the middle, and just threw her fist out for a cross to Nami’s face, not unlike the one that was heading towards. The main differences were that Stone wasn’t charging for hers, and she didn't put much power into it - she pretty much just straightened her arm with a fist attached. But, given the size difference, it would be hitting Nami long before her punch could connect and knock her back. She hoped it would give Nami a bit of a better understanding of her current situation, too.

”Slow down.”

Nami was a bit new to this whole wrestling thing. So hyped on getting in there and going she had just flat out forgot there was a bit of process to this all, like the match actually starting for one. Despite this, Stone had been ready for her as she came running, slugging her with a stiff punch across the jaw that halted her advance, making her take a few fumbled steps backwards to maintain her balance.

Nami blinked at the larger woman with clear surprise in her face, reaching up to rub her cheek. Her eyes narrowed in a squint as if trying to deduct what had happened here. Stone was taller… yeah, that meant she had longer reach… right?

"Oh… shoot. Right." The young martial artist murmured to herself, rallying her fractured dignity as she took up a more traditional fighting stance, eyeing the big woman before her with a weary caution of a cat that had just been spritzed with a spray bottle. To her credit, she took the hit pretty well.

"A worthy challenger I see… but can you stand up to this… hoo-ah!" Nami took a step forward, planting her foot firmly before throwing herself into a spin. She whipped her body quickly, putting her back briefly to stone as she pitched her upper body away, throwing a stiff back kick up at the woman's chest, perhaps underestimating where her face was.

Stone was still trying to get a read on this...woman? It was honestly a little hard to get a handle on Nami’s age. She was easily the youngest looking girl she’d seen in this ring, somehow seeming younger than Mako despite being an inch or so taller. It didn’t help that she had the exuberance of a ten year old who’d just discovered the joys of energy drinks. At first, Stone thought it was all a show, but seeing the way she reacted to that punch…

Talking. Not the best idea.

Stone raised an eyebrow and watched as Nami made another proclamation, announcing that she would be making a move several seconds in advance. To her credit, the woman could move fast, had a certain grace to her, clearly wasn’t lacking in skill. But her decision making left a lot to be desired. In so many ways.

She came at Stone again, this time spinning about and shooting her leg back. This time, the blow found purchase, clocking Stone straight in the chest and forcing her to take a step back...but it didn’t stun her. Not enough to keep her from reaching out, grabbing Nami’s foot before she could pull it away, and wrapping her arm around the ankle, keeping the trapped leg tucked tight under her arm.

For now, she just stayed like that, content to see how long Nami could hop about on one leg, she could always transition into something else if she got rowdy. ”Just a thought, but telling me that you’re about to attack? Not the best strategy.”

"Haaaah!" Nami grinned as she felt her sneaker sink into possibly the only part of Stone that had any amount of give. She didn't try to retract her outstretched leg instead losing in mid action for effect. While this made her look pretty cool, it had the downside of making the other woman's task of grabbing hold of it that much easier.

"H-hey, hold on!" Nami hopped in place, nearly falling over when she finally went to bring her leg back in, stuck in an award diagonal positioning. She windmilled her arms in a bid for balance, barely finding her center. She strained her neck looking back over her shoulder at Stone, cheeks puffed incredulously at the "advice" from this "veteran" of the ring who apparently knew how to "fight". Nami had taken a handful of classes, she knew how this all worked.

"Not bad... for an amateur! But I'm not even getting started! Koo-yah!" Nami took one hop back towards Stone then one more, though on the second one she snapped her leg away from the ground, surrendering her footing to try and thrust a kick at the inside of the larger woman's knee at what was one of the weirdest offenses likely to grace the ring. Regardless of if it worked or not, she would try to catch her upper body with her palms to arrest her self imposed fall, or if Stone still held onto her, be left in a strange wheelbarrow race position.

”I am holding on.” Stone couldn’t resist the little taunt as Nami floundered, with a smirk to go along with it. She didn’t want to be cruel, but there was something too funny about this girl, but endearing at the same time. Unwavering confidence in the face of crippling reality. Kind of admirable, in a way.

Stone didn’t do anything to capitalize on the massive opening she’d made - not right away, anyway. She wanted to see how Nami would respond, curious about the escape she’d attempt, and she wasn’t disappointed in that regard, as her opponent went for a...thing. It was hard to really describe, but it involved her jumping up and shooting her leg out, hitting Stone square in the knee. No real damage, but it hurt enough and surprised Stone enough to make her leg, giving Nami the release she craved.

Shame she wouldn’t be able to enjoy it long.

Stone staggered, but only for a brief moment, before she surged forward and wrapped her arms around Nami’s waist, pulling her in tight. ”Brace yourself!”

Those words might’ve come off as a taunt, but they were a legit warning - Stone hoped her next move wouldn’t hurt Nami too much, just enough for her to end this quick. Pulling up, she jerked back and brought her foe up and over with a German Suplex, hammering her in to the mat with a thunderous crash. Stone arched her back after the impact and posted up on her toes for a pin, looking to take a quick win for both their sakes..

Nami cracked Stone right in the knee but she wasn't sure the woman even budged… what gived? Had she been put up against a space alien or some sort of cyborg? This woman was unreal. It left her in an incredibly awkward position as she held herself up with her hands on the mat and Stone's grip on her one leg while the other dangled and flailed.

"You're allowed to fall over or something any time noooooohshoot!" The young fighter was cut off as Stone hiked her backwards, meeting her half way in a tight bearhug from behind. There hadn't even been a pause before she was whipped up and back, slamming to the mat hard on her shoulders with her legs hanging up in the air over her head. The larger woman's word of warning, unsurprisingly, hadn't done much to help with making the move not hurt.

"One!"

There was a soft groan from the girl as she remained motionless, rolled up a bit tighter by gravity when Stone bridged the suplex into a pin. At least she hadn't died, so that was a plus.

"Two!"

"Bwah!" Just before the third count, Nami spasmed to life in a lightly flail, flopping like a landlocked fish to save herself from immediate defeat. It had been enough to get her over onto her side, but not enough to escape the other woman's iron grip if Stone really wanted to keep hold of her. "O-okay… time for me to… guh… get serious…"

Stone figured this was about the best outcome she could hope for with Nami. The girl clearly had some skill, and she probably would’ve been a decent match...if they were anywhere near the same size. But the gap between them was too big, and it presented a problem on both sides. For her part, the trick was figuring out a way to win this without shortening the poor thing’s career.

She figured the Bridging German Suplex was about the best way to do it. High impact, but not the most devastating suplex a woman could take, and the quick pin would knock Nami loopy for long enough to get the pin. 1, 2, and…

...damn it.

Stone grunted as Nami got her shoulder off the mat in time, killing her hopes for an early win. Undeterred, she kept the hold on and rolled the smaller girl to her chest, posting up to keep her pinned down. ”I’d say we’re a little past the time to get serious, baby.”

With Nami still held tight, Stone lifted up and rose to her feet, carrying the woman along with her. She stood up and bore down on her hold at the waist, turning it into a tight reverse bearhug to compress the smaller woman’s innards, hoping she could maybe squeeze out a submission.

She wasn’t too optimistic, though. Nami struck her as the ‘stubborn beyond reason’ type.

"Uugh...oof!" Nami gave another small flop as she tried to get over onto her side but found herself still strapped in by Stone like a jammed seatbelt in a car crash. She was rolled roughly back onto her front, giving a small wheeze as the blond let her weight compress Nami to the mat like a squeak toy. She turned her head, cheek smooshed up against the mat she let out a frustrated huff.

"My name isn't baby, you… bigger baby. I am just getting warmed u-urk!" Nami was dragged up off the mat with thick python like arms drawing in tightly around her, mashing her body in on itself. Nami flailed wildly, kicking her heels back in a panicked attempt to dig them into Stone's legs. Though she ceases to try if the first few didn't get her anywhere.

Her head slowly dipped forward as she let out a few short breaths, her body going limp in Stone's arms. There was something she learned early on in life when bullies came knocking. Play possum. Until Natsuko came along, that had always been a tried and true strategy… but these days, thanks to her friend, she had a new addition to her old tactic.

Without warning she sprang to life, teeth grit in anticipation as she threw her head backwards as hard as she could, trying to bury the face of her skull into Stone's face. While it would know doubt suck for the young rookie, the hope was catching the bigger woman by surprise would do more damage to her.