Sanae Saitou vs. Alizeh Midori II: Submission Match

[CaptainL]

It might have looked as though Sanae was in control in the match's final moments, but in reality, she was at much a victim of her own hold as Alizeh was. She had to exert considerable energy just to maintain it, and the awkward position she was in put strain on her back, the same back that had grown sore and weary from all the times she had borne Alizeh's weight on her shoulders. She had to tense every muscle just to keep herself distracted from the burning sensation taking hold of her entire body. With Alizeh's legs and back twisted in the hold while Sanae fought hard to keep the position, the match had come down to this moment - it would all be determined by whoever's determination broke first. Neither Alizeh nor Sanae wanted to give up. But, eventually...Alizeh would have no choice.

Sanae's body was moving automatically. Her muscles went slack as she let go of her opponent, her arms and legs flopping at her sides. Instinctively, she knew she had to let Alizeh go - but she couldn't do much else. As though she fell into a daze, she stared up at the ceiling through glazed-over eyes and panted for breath, her face red and her brow glistening with sweat. She could barely find the strength to lift a finger when everything hurt as much as it did.

But, eventually, she was able to bring her head up, looking back at the middleweight. Through the haze that surrounded her thoughts, Sanae was able to voice just a few words. But when Alizeh answered those words in the affirmative, it was as though Sanae had come back to life. She shot up straight, rolling onto her knees with a gasp. "WHAT!?" The pain barely registered any more - only the thrill of knowing she had taken on a challenge that seemed far beyond her reach, and still come out on top! Sanae would never have believed she was capable of doing it. In any other situation, she probably couldn't have. But when it was the promise of living up to Minami's demands that stirred her, she knew she couldn't afford to lose. When the challenge was staring her in the face, Sanae had the motivation she needed to push herself that much further. And tonight...it had worked.

She all but pounced on Alizeh, springing across the ring to close in on her with a burst of adrenaline. There, she threw her arms tightly around the girl, pulling her into a hug. In fact, she was practically shaking her. "I won..?! I WON!! Oh my god, Alizeh, I won!!" She squealed with delight at the thought that she had finally beaten her friend, the same friend who had faced her in her very first match and encourged her to reach for the stars - but a moment later, the aches and pains caught up to Sanae, and she was forced to release Alizeh in order to rub at her sore back. "O-Ow, oww..."

[Bare]

Alizeh panted and groaned in pain after being released from the hold and left to try and push herself up, the most she was really able to get being a sitting position on the mat. If nothing else though the look on Sanae's face that she had managed to win was heart warming and definitely helped the bitter pill of loss get swallowed for the older green haired girl. After all Alizeh had been Sanae's first official opponent in LAW, not to mention someone that had taken the girl under her wing and pushed her to whole new levels with her training. So there was something just so... gratifying and proud at seeing how far the smaller girl had managed to come, and how much further she still had to go as well.

Though all the mushy thoughts would be forced down when Sanae's shocked expression gave way to the sheer excitement that came with the realization.. leading the girl to all but tackle hug Alizeh in a way that DEFINITELY made Alizeh's painful areas... which was everywhere, flare up in a lot of pain. Despite it though Alizeh still found it in her to bring her arms up and hug Sanae back. "Owww yeah.. it definitely hurts." Alizeh said jokingly once the girl was reminded of her pain and was forced to let go.

Looking up at Sanae though Alizeh would flash her a smile. "I'll save all the congrats and mushy mentor speech for later when we get celebratory drinks." Alizeh said simply while looking at Sanae in the eyes. "For now though, what I wanna say is.." At this Alizeh would reach out and place her hand affectionately on Sanae's head. "That insane move you used to finish me off? You HAVE to add it as a main finisher..." Alizeh's grin would then turn a shade evil at the thought of what she would say next. "And you should use it against the bitch that pitted us against each other... Hell even call it the Venus Slayer I say." Alizeh said with a wink to the girl at the name idea for the move, feeling confident about the idol's chances against the Venus of Submissions with a move like that in her arsenal.

[CaptainL]

Sanae had come full circle. Alizeh had been her first opponent since she graduated from the Young Lioness Program, and now she was her most recent one as well. When she first faced the middleweight, it had been in a pitched match where the tension rose higher and higher with each move, the ever-escalating stakes forcing Sanae to stretch herself to new heights in the name of landing a blow that just might keep Alizeh down for good. It had been a match no one could forget, and a match that had proven Sanae was more than capable of going toe to toe with the main roster, and one that silenced any doubts anyone could have had about her. But no matter how great it had been, Sanae had still lost, in the end.

Now, though, she had taken on Alizeh once again. She'd applied everything she had learned since that first match, showing everyone once again how much she had grown. Until, at last, it had come to a head in the last few moments of this match, those moments that would determine the outcome, and that would make all the difference in determining whether or not Sanae could rise above the challenges that once kept her down. And then...she did.

The crowd hadn't let up even a little bit in its cheering, even after the bell had rung. Sanae and Alizeh had once again put on an incredible performance, proving the depths of their commitment to wrestling and the potential they could achieve. But everyone knew it was a monumental occasion for Sanae as well. Alizeh had been the one to see the potential in her, and that fact had motivated her to put her heart and soul into bringing that out. Ever since that match, the aspiring idol had sworn that one day, she would be strong enough to take her down. Now, that time had finally come - and knowing that fact was enough to fill Sanae's eyes with tears of joy.

Breaking away from their embrace, Sanae scooted back from Alizeh on her knees. She still panted for breath, her shoulders rising and falling with the force of each exhale, but she looked back at her opponent with a grin on her face. She would ask if she had made her proud...but she already knew the answer to that would be a resounding yes! "I really did it..." was all she said instead; she tingled when she heard her own words, unused to the very idea.

It was then, though, that Alizeh mentioned the move Sanae had used to finish her off. And at that, the lightweight took in a gasp. "You...really think so? I just improvised that on the spot, you know...that hold you used against me almost took me out, so I just figured that if I changed it up a little, it'd be unstoppable!" Sanae was surprised that that little change had made all the difference. But when Alizeh went on to discuss how Sanae would need to put that move to good use when she finally made it to Apex, and took on Toshimi Minami...she nodded her head, and a confident grin flashed across her face.

"Well, it worked on you...and you're the toughest person I know. So if that's the case..." She chuckled. "...Minami doesn't stand a chance!~"

[Bare]

Winner by Submission - Sanae Saitou