(NOAH) Chronology - Kenoh (GHC Heavyweight Championship)

Won: ABEMA presents DESTINATION 2022 - Nippon Budokan, Tokyo, Saturday 16th July

Number of title reigns: 1

Number of defenses: 0

Lost: GRAND SHIP 2022 in NAGOYA PRO-WRESTLING & KEIJI MUTOH RETIREMENT ROAD - LOVE FOREVER.2 ~OUT BREAK~ (Sunday September 25th, Dolphins Arena, Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium, Nagoya)

Total number of days held: 72

Challengers

1. Kaito Kiyomiya

TITLE MATCH: GRAND SHIP 2022 in NAGOYA PRO-WRESTLING LOVE FOREVER.2 ~ OUT BREAK (25th September)

 N-1 VICTORY 2022 GRAND FINAL & GREAT MUTA OSAKA FINAL (Edion Arena Osaka First Stadium, Saturday September 3rd)

After screaming, "I won the N-1", Kiyomiya called Kenoh to the ring. Kenoh (still looking a little green from earlier), came to the ring. He looked somewhat proud that Kiyomiya had won, and silently held up the belt to him before leaving. 

However, backstage he branded him a "useless N-1 champion" and a "handsome wrestler with a cool face". In the ring, Kiyomiya promised the crowd that neither himself or Noah would ever betray them and vowed that from now on, he would "create Noah". 

STAR NAVIGATION 2022 (Thursday September 15th, Korakuen Hall)

Kongoh (Kenoh, Masakatsu Funaki, Katsuhiko Nakajima & Manabu Soya) vs Kaito Kiyomiya, Jack Morris, Masa Kitamiya & Daiki Inaba

Normally it's Kenoh who starts yelling at Kaito Kiyomiya when the two of them are in the ring, but today it was actually Kaito Kiyomiya who got in his face by shoving Kenoh (albeit politely). Kenoh looked like he couldn't quite believe this, but okay if he wanted to fight, then the two of them would start the match. 

The final of the match came down to Kenoh and Kiyomiya. Kenoh blocked the Shining Wizard and then did his own, pulling Keiji Mutoh's pose. The crowd screamed as he almost pinned Kiyomiya with it. Kenoh then rubbed it in by using the moonsault, but Kiyomiya moved. Later Kiyomiya would counter the PFS by a dropkick, and do two Shining Wizard's on Kenoh before using his own as of yet unnamed variation for the win.    

WINNER: Kaito Kiyomiya with the Transformed Shining Wizard (20 minutes, 10 seconds)

Kiyomiya got into a dazed Kenoh's face in the ring, while Nakajima basically patted Inaba in the chest 

and walked off while Soya helped Kenoh out. 

Kiyomiya spoke on the mic; 

"Kenoh! I have been chasing you all this time! You are the opponent I am the most aware of. I don't want to lose to Kenoh and on the 25th September, I will wear Kenoh's belt in Nagoya! There will be a pre-match at Korakuen tomorrow, so please come and watch me!"

STAR NAVIGATION 2022 (Friday September 16th, Korakuen Hall)

Kongoh (Kenoh & Shuji Kondo) vs Kaito Kiyomiya & Atsushi Kotoge

Kaito Kiyomiya politely waited until Kenoh had finished his pose before squaring up to him. Kenoh shoved him away. The match was very much about the GHC Heavyweight pre match, with Shuji Kondo and Atsushi Kotoge being there to assist their partners, and keep the other away. 

Kenoh has never failed to see Kiyomiya as the young boy he once knew, and he knew it winds Kiyomiya up whenever any of his seniors pat his head condescendingly. Doing this threw Kiyomiya into a rage. Knocked out of the ring by this, Kenoh took the belt up from the stand and held it up. He also thought that Kiyomiya could go in for a closer look and trapped Kiyomiya under the steel barrier and sat on him so he was eye level with the belt. 

Kenoh had sworn that he was never going to be pinned by Kiyomiya using The Shining Wizard or any kind of Shining Wizard variant again. Kenoh reversed the modified Shining Wizard into a choke, but Kiyomiya turned it into a pin. The title match is by no means going to be straight forward. Kenoh got cocky when he broke the pin after doing the PFS, but he achieved his aim by mocking both Keiji Mutoh and Kaito Kiyomiya, by doing his own Shining Wizard for the pin.

WINNER: Kenoh with the Shining Wizard (17 minutes, 47 seconds)

This was a humiliation for Kiyomiya, not only had Kenoh defeated him, countered his Shining Wizard (albeit what followed), but he had pinned him with a Mutoh move. Kenoh then pulled more Mutoh poses as he sat over Kiyomiya with the belt in hand. Kenoh even pulled them as he was leaving the ring, Ally and the English language announcer remained stony faced with their arms crossed. 

SUNNY VOYAGE 2022 (Yokohama Radiant Hall, Monday September 19th)

Kongoh (Kenoh & Manabu Soya) vs Kaito Kiyomiya & Jack Morris

Kaito Kiyomiya came to square up to Kenoh, who walked away initially, then the two silently glared at each other. There was no shoving or trash talking between Kenoh and Kiyomiya (who can't trash talk in any case, Noah Born generally can't as they raised to be very polite, so they don't really know how as in any case this was never a part of Baba's All Japan or Misawa's Noah), so they did the majority of their talking in the ring. Starting with exchanging Shining Wizards, Kiyomiya even pulling out Mutoh's flashing elbow. Then Kiyomiya kind of did a Toshiaki Kawada when Kenoh patted his head, in that he didn't react straight away before losing his temper. Kenoh by this time was outside of the ring, and as Kiyomiya was ignoring both the referee and himself, Soya booted him off the apron to get back in as he was still the legal man. In a sulk, Kiyomiya tagged Jack Morris in. Kiyomiya got his chance to revenge himself on Kenoh, as while Morris fought ultra-heavyweight Manabu Soya, he and Kenoh got into a brawl outside the ring, which soon everyone in the match was joining in with. Kiyomiya even tried to jump Kenoh, who walked off, meaning that Kiyomiya landed a little comically into an empty chair. The crowd kind of half groaned and half laughed. It took the young trainees at ringside to restore order. 

The Shining Wizard was not the only Keiji Mutoh move that Kenoh used, he used the Dragon Screw and event went for the Figure 4 (which he said he had been training in, even posting a video on YouTube) and countered Kiyomiya's Shining Wizard with his own foot lock. I think Kenoh had a slight message to Kiyomiya here to imitate all you want, but do what feels right for you. 

Soya and Morris had an equally good fight, albeit without the all complex emotions that comes with Kenoh and Kiyomiya, fans I think would like to see more of them as the adaptable Morris worked very well against Soya, even seeming as strong as he did at times. 

WINNER: Jack Morris with The Tiger Driver (16 minutes, 10 seconds)

GRAND SHIP 2022 in NAGOYA PRO-WRESTLING & KEIJI MUTOH RETIREMENT ROAD - LOVE FOREVER.2 ~OUT BREAK~ (Sunday September 25th, Dolphins Arena, Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium, Nagoya)

GHC Heavyweight Championship

Kenoh vs Kaito Kiyomiya

Kenoh has new music to lead into Heartbreak Mosh when he comes out for big matches. That said, I am not sure what the Spanish guitar intro was all about, but it had to be better than the music used in the match video package. 

Kaito Kiyomiya bought out an impressive array of moves; Flashing Elbow, Shining Wizard, Tiger Suplex and even introducing Jumbo Tsuruta's jumping knee strikes. Kenoh mocked the Shining Wizard, which caused rage from Kiyomiya but Kenoh remained in control. I think Kenoh worked out a long time ago that provoking him is a good way to beat Kiyomiya as he stops fighting with his mind. This was not the last time that Kenoh was going to use Mutoh or Mutoh like moves. However, Kiyomiya calmed down and stopped taking the bait and started thinking with his head even when Kenoh pulled out other Mutoh moves in order to try to beat him.

WINNER: Kaito Kiyomiya with the Transformed Shining Wizard (26 minutes, 14 seconds)

Next champion: Kaito Kiyomiya

Links

Vs Kaito Kiyomiya

GHC Heavyweight signing ceremony: Kenoh "A Beautiful Story, I'm gonna break it down and I'm gonna draw it", Kiyomiya prepares for "Last Chance"

Kaito Kiyomiya receives reinforcements from the kick world, if he fails to take the GHC in the Kenoh match, "I can't go to the top anymore"

"I'm using it, so it's my technique!" with Mutoh finisher at full power, Kaito Kiyomiya defeats Kenoh towards the culmination of their five year story