Sanae Saitou vs. Toshimi Minami - Submisson Match

[CaptainL]

Sanae might have let Minami go from the shame hold, but that didn't mean she was showing her mercy. On the contrary...the shame hold was only the beginning. She had managed to throw the veteran off of her impeccable game by using her fear of humiliation against her, and that had slowed her down ever so slightly, leaving her in a position ripe for Sanae to swoop in and take the advantage. A grin of confidence spread over the aspiring idol's face as she dragged Minami into place, then locked her legs around her own, twisting herself backward to put all the force she could bring to bear against her opponent's legs and back. And Minami was barely even fighting back! She was doing this - she was actually doing this!

The thought of it made a tear come to her eye. After all of this, after all the hard work she had put in to stand up to Minami's challenge, just so that she could prove her wrong...Sanae was finally rising to the heights she knew, almost instinctively, that she was always destined for. She had made it. She'd come so far in her career, and in her life - finding the success she'd always dreamed of as both a wrestler and as an idol, gaining a legion of devoted fans, making close friends among her peers at LAW, and even finding love. In fact, it was the fact that Sanae had used her new girlfriend's finisher on Minami that truly made this feel so special - it was a representation of how far she had come from her humble beginnings in the Young Lioness Program, at first seeing wrestling only as a means to an end but finding the will and the drive in her to succeed at it, and surpassing everyone's wildest expectations, winning fame by her own merits. Now, when Sanae looked out toward the crowd, the smile on her face grew even wider. Of course, she hadn't gone public yet. No one knew the significance of the move she was using. But she did, and that made it all the more personal. She could only hope that Lyra was watching her right now.

Beneath Sanae, Minami struggled harder, beginning to drag herself - little by little - across the mat, to where she would soon come to the ropes! The referee called for a rope break, and, hearing it, Sanae paused, looking down at Minami in confusion. It wasn't that she didn't expect her escape to work, so much as she would never have imagined Minami would go for a rope break in the first place! The former Wrestle Angel had always boasted of her knowledge of submissions, and the expertise of countering each one that came from knowing the ins and outs of every hold. But Minami's vast knowledge couldn't save her now. She had no choice but to make Sanae break the hold by force. When the realization set in, it was one that sent a chill down Sanae's spine. Only now did she realize she had truly done something remarkable.

But she shook herself back to reality. She couldn't lose sight of the match! Minami was free, and she had no choice but to step off of her. But for Sanae, that didn't mean anything at all! As a matter of fact, the Orion Lock wasn't even the move she had planned to end the match with either. Only now, as she settled her gaze on the veteran with a growing smile, was Sanae ready to end things on her terms. She had saved the best for last.

Letting out a roar of defiance, Sanae dropped down behind Minami to grab her by the legs, twisting them back on each other. Then, once they were secured, she kicked up with her own legs to hook them under Minami's arms, and pulled them up to lock into place behind her head, applying a lotus lock at the same time she put pressure on her knees and ankles! It was the same move Sanae had used, in fact, to best Alizeh Midori in her Apex qualifier! And when everyone saw what she was doing...the crowd thundered with applause!

Spoiler

[Bare]

Forced to rely on a rope break to earn her freedom from Sanae's sharpshooter Minami would hang her head in shame for a moment, not able to believe that Sanae of all people had been able to force her into... such a disheveled state. Especially after she had done so much to the girl on the way to the match. Forcing her to face her best student, her own friend, and showing her ruthlessness and flexing the difference in experience the entire time to get in her head. Now though the experience gap was all but pointless, Sanae's ability to adapt and rise to meet, nay surpass Minami's expectations was unlike anything that Minami had expected. All of it was making her think... was she wrong this whole time?

Regardless of Minami's mental anguish however Sanae wasn't through with her yet. The rope break had managed to keep this match going and Sanae wasted no time dragging Minami's legs and pulling her away from the ropes and back to the center of the ring. Looking up as she realized Minami immediately tried to struggle away, but her body was wracked with pain, and her legs especially were nearly numb from the damage that sharpshooter and shame hold had done, and unfortunately they were still the target of Sanae as the girl twisted her legs into what felt like a cloverleaf, but then Minami felt Sanae's legs snaking around her, hooking her arms which immediately made Minami's eyes widen in genuine panic.

However she could no nothing about it all the same. The hold was in tight and all her limbs were being twisted and torqued back painfully, beyond the limits any human's limbs should go in leaving Minami in quite the distressed state as she did the only thing she could in this position. "AGHHHHHHHH!!! GAHHHHHH!!!" Scream in pure and utter agony as the pain in all four of her limbs continued to climb higher and higher, beyond what she could bear as she all but buried her face in the mat, continuing to scream turn her head side to side, trying to bear it, but Minami was well beyond her limits now, the only thing keeping her in this being her pride yet... even pride had its limit.

Starting off slow at first Minami's hand began to tap weakly on Sanae's leg. Too weak however, not enough to get the ref's attention with how focused they were on her... which meant Minami would have to do the unthinkable, but at this point Sanae had done that already herself, it only figured Minami would be forced too as well. "I... Agh... I... I..." She let out, her hand waving more and more before another spike of pain shot through her body, finally breaking the damn so to speak as Minami began tapping out with much more vigor and force on Sanae's leg! "I GIVE UP! I GIVE UP!" Minami yelled, verbally submitting before Sanae's hold!

[CaptainL]

As she moved herself into place - pulling Minami back, locking her limbs into place around her own - Sanae could feel her heart pumping faster and faster with each passing moment. Her face flushed, and her breaths quickened. This was it. She was really doing this! To even have gotten this far felt unbelievable - it meant she had not only overcome all the obstacles and opponents Minami had set in her way, growing stronger and stronger to surpass each one, but she had managed to fight the Venus of Submissions herself to a standstill if it was even safe for her to get into such a position at all. And yet, she was doing it! No one could have expected Sanae to make it as far as she had, but she had proven everyone wrong. With each qualifier she won, Sanae silenced more and more of her doubters, but there would always be those out there who scoffed at the idea that her beating Toshimi Minami was even worth entertaining. Even at the outset of this match, the veteran was still favored to win in the eyes of many. But here she had met Sanae with the peak of her offense, striving harder than ever to succeed, and Sanae hadn't just risen to her challenge...but beyond it!

Now she was moving into place. She had her hands clenched around Minami's legs, while her legs forced her arms into position. She clenched her teeth, feeling every bead of sweat running down her brow. Sanae could hear Minami's screams, which made her heart quicken; they told her she had rattled her foe, and that meant she was a step closer to success. She could hear the cheers from all the fans, and she knew that now, she was under more pressure than she had ever been faced with before. Everyone was counting on her to win now - everyone who had followed her career to this point, and who had put their faith in her to succeed, knew that she was on the cusp of the greatest victory of her life. Now, she was using the most devastating submission she knew; the one that had managed to best Alizeh Midori. If Minami got out of this one, Sanae surely couldn't top it. It was now or never! If this didn't work...she'd have let down everyone who believed in her! She simply couldn't fail!

But in the end...it happened. Minami could take no more. She cried out with her submission. For a time, the whole arena went silent. It seemed impossible to believe that the unbeatable Venus of Submissions herself could ever be brought to tapping out. Even Sanae wasn't sure what she was hearing at first, and she stared back at her opponent in wide-eyed disbelief. But a moment later, the referee gave the signal to the timekeeper. And the bell rang.

"The match is over! And your winner, by way of submission - and now in the running for World Openweight Championship - SANAE SAITOU!!"

With that, everyone knew it to be true. The miracle they'd all been hoping for had happened. At once, the crowd burst into a deafening symphony of cheers! Letting go of Minami, Sanae fell over onto her back. She panted slowly for breath, staring blankly out into space as she reminded herself that, yes, this really was happening. The victory she had dreamed of, the one that would prove herself as worthy of the path she'd taken, that proved she had a future...it was now a reality. She had fought hard, she'd trained hard, and she had earned every bit of it with her own hands! And now, the whole world was rejoicing right along with her! The more she thought about it, the wider her smile grew, and the higher she held her head. She had every right, she knew, to be proud.

Sanae simply couldn't help herself. The match had been a long, hard, and grueling one - but riding off the rush of her victory, she was able to find energy she didn't think she had, and she sprung back to her feet, throwing her fists in the air. As her face alighted in a bright grin, Sanae jumped into the air, pumping her fists over her head. She had been faced with the chance to make this the greatest victory of her career...and she had done it!

"Yes! YES!!" She turned to face the still-cheering fans, her eyes twinkling with cheers. "Thank you! All of you! For sticking with me this far...I couldn't have done it without all of you!"