Ross's voice took on a sharper edge. "That could be the opening Kairi has been waiting for. Maya has had the upper hand up until now, but once this fight spills outside the ring, all bets are off."
Kairi circled the ring post, with Maya hot on her heels, clearly intent on taking her down before she could catch her breath. Just in the nick of time, Kairi dodged to the side.
Maya's shoulder crashed hard into the steel post.
The crowd let out a collective gasp.
Kyle jumped up in his seat. "Yes! There it is! That's the chance she needed!"
Maya stumbled back, cradling her shoulder, and Kairi seized the moment, delivering a swift kick to her side before rolling her back into the ring. Once they were inside, Kairi wasted no time, targeting the injured shoulder by twisting Maya's arm behind her and driving her knees into it.
Ross nodded in approval. "That's some clever wrestling. Kairi knows she can't go toe-to-toe with Maya Hart, so what does she do? She capitalizes on a mistake and makes it her target."
Kyle pointed at the ring, excitement in his voice. "And Maya has no one to blame but herself. She got too greedy."
Kairi kept the pressure on, keeping Maya down, yanking at her arm, and landing quick kicks whenever Maya tried to get back up. The crowd, sensing the shift in momentum, began to rally behind the IRW champion.
Ross raised his voice to be heard over the cheers. "Listen to this crowd! Maya Hart may have come in with mixed feelings, but right now, they're all rooting for her to get back in this fight."
Finally, Kairi dragged Maya toward the corner and started climbing the ropes, clearly plotting something big to finish it off.
Kyle leaned in closer, excitement bubbling over. "If she lands that hit, Ross, NPJW snags the first point."
But Maya, still on one knee, sprang up and delivered a punch right to Kairi's midsection. The crowd went wild. She followed up with another blow and then climbed up after her.
Ross's voice shot up with the intensity of the moment. "What in the world is Maya Hart thinking right now?"
Kyle was quick to respond. "Something fierce!"
Maya wrapped her arm around Kairi and, to the astonishment of nearly everyone in the arena, pulled the NPJW champion off the top rope with a superplex.
Both women hit the mat hard.
For a brief moment, Ross was speechless, simply staring in disbelief.
Kyle was the first to break the silence. "She just pulled off what I call a superplex! Maya Hart just came off the ropes with Kairi Rin and folded her like a pretzel!"
Ross snapped back to reality. "I've never seen Maya Hart try that before. Not once. And if she can take advantage of this, IRW might be just seconds away from scoring the first point in Promotion Wars."
Kairi lay flat on the canvas.
Maya rolled over, grimacing, then crawled across and hooked Kairi's leg.
"One!" Ross shouted, counting.
"Two!"
"Three!"
The bell rang.
The Golden Arena erupted in cheers.
Kyle jumped up from his chair. "IRW takes the lead! Maya Hart survives the opening match and gives Vince Maston's company the first point of the night!"
Ross nodded as the referee handed Maya her title and raised her arm in victory. "It wasn't clean, it wasn't pretty, and it sure wasn't easy. But it was enough. Maya Hart has kicked off Promotion Wars with a win over the NPJW Women's Champion."
Kyle chuckled as Maya held the belt high. "If this is how the night's starting, Ross, we might need seatbelts for the rest of the show!"
----
The celebrations for Maya Hart's victory had just kicked off when Yoichi's mood took a nosedive.
He watched as Kairi Rin was escorted backstage, her expression suggesting she had personally let him down rather than just lost a wrestling match. The defeat gnawed at him far more than the opening score on the board.
Ross announced, "Ladies and gentlemen, IRW has drawn first blood in Promotion Wars, but we're diving straight into our second contest of the evening."
Kyle Crews flashed a grin, "And this one promises to be a real showstopper."
Ross nodded in agreement.
"Representing IRW are the newly crowned Tag Team Champions, the Road Warriors—Hawk and Animal."
The crowd erupted as the champions made their entrance.
Fresh off their victory over the Apex Predators just a week ago, Hawk and Animal looked like an unstoppable force. Their imposing physiques, painted faces, and purposeful stride toward the ring instantly commanded attention.
Kyle chuckled, "Honestly, I wouldn't want to be the one standing across from those two. If I were, I'd be questioning every decision that led me here."
Ross smiled before moving on. "And representing NPJW..." He glanced toward the entrance, "...Bob Orton and Kyle Sanders."
Vince leaned in slightly.
Bob Orton.
That name instantly grabbed his attention.
In a previous chapter of his life, Bob Orton was known as the father of Randy Orton, one of wrestling's biggest stars in later years. Whether this Bob would ever reach similar heights was still up in the air, but Vince couldn't help but smile faintly at the familiar surname.
The NPJW duo received a noticeably softer reaction.
Bob appeared calm and collected, while Kyle Sanders exuded a clear sense of arrogance. Even as they made their way to the ring, he ignored his partner, fixated solely on the Road Warriors waiting for them inside.
Yoichi spun around sharply to face his assistant.
"Why was Bob picked for this?" he demanded, his voice sharp.
His assistant adjusted his glasses, choosing his words carefully. "Well, he was the only one willing to step up for a tag team match."
Yoichi's frown deepened.
"The only one?"
The assistant nodded, looking a bit uneasy. "You see, NPJW has never really had a solid tag division. Most of our wrestlers prefer to go solo. Bob was the first to volunteer, but no one wanted to partner with him. I had to practically twist Kyle Sanders' arm to team up with him."
Yoichi clicked his tongue in frustration.
Vince, sitting a few seats away, listened intently.
That made a lot of sense.
He had already picked up on the awkward vibe between the two NPJW wrestlers backstage during the introductions. It wasn't the confident energy you'd expect from seasoned partners; it was more like two guys who were reluctantly thrown together.
It was clear that Yoichi wasn't a fan of Bob either. Vince could sense it just from the way he said the guy's name.
Ross chimed in, "I'm not seeing much chemistry between these two, Kyle."
Kyle Crews nodded in agreement. "You'd think a tag team would have some communication before the match starts. But these two haven't even glanced at each other."
The official called both teams to the center and signaled for the bell to ring.
Hawk and Bob kicked off the match.
To everyone's surprise, Bob showcased some solid technical wrestling right from the start, managing to keep Hawk grounded for a moment with wrist control before tagging Kyle in.
Kyle entered the ring with a swagger that bordered on arrogance.
Instead of capitalizing on Bob's groundwork, he immediately tried to take Hawk on by himself.
That turned out to be a big mistake.