(NOAH) The black mark, engraved into Noah

Weekly Pro 31st October 2000

(Issue No. 1001)

NAVIGATION

11th October - Nagoya Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium 

Kenta Kobashi's overwhelming presence conveyed through his powerful arm.

Kobashi leaves Omori covered in blood and wins by referee stoppage. 

Omori was the first to make a move. He attacked Kobashi as he walked down the ramp towards the ring and delivered a DDT.

A surprise attack before the gong.

Omori's pre-emptive attack was reminiscent of the shocking defeat he achieved against Akiyama in just 7 seconds on March 26th of this year, at the same Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium. Even after going from the ramp to the ring, Omori continued to relentlessly attack. After a series of elbow smashes, he managed to lift Kobashi, who hadn't even taken off his gown yet, and immediately followed up with an axe bomber. Omori's plan was likely to defeat Kobashi in a flash with lightning speed; he had a clear formula for victory. In fact, Omori had previously made comments about leaving a mark; "I'm not thinking about a quick, decisive match, but if we go head-on, the result might be decided in a matter of seconds." 

However, this time things didn't go as planned. 

Kobashi ducked to dodge Omori's signature move, quickly moved behind him, and executed a half-nelson, dropping his opponent vertically. At the same time, he disrupted Omori's formula, and shifted the momentum to himself. 

No, the expression "taking control of the flow" might not be appropriate. If there was a change of offense and defense, you could say that the flow of the match was changing, but from then on, Kobashi completely dominated with his overwhelming offensive power. What particularly caught my eye was his menacing expression and the murderous aura he exuded. 

Kobashi has been wearing a black costume since the start of this series, and his uncompromising fighting style has made him stand out. The change in his image color from orange to black is not a superficial issue, but clear evidence that a change has occurred within Kobashi. The murderous intent and anger emanating from within—that matches the image of black remarkably well. If black is the color that swallows the others, then Kobashi's black is a stark contrast to Akiyama's white based costume, where he proclaims, "I'll make it my own color." One can read in it a declaration that "you can't do whatever you want."

Kobashi continued his relentless attack, even after smashing Omori's forehead outside the ring, causing a tremendous amount of blood to gush out. Although Omori counterattacked several times, Kobashi's offensive intensity remained uncompromising, and in the end, he delivered three consecutive, unparalleled, powerful lariats. Even though he could have gone for the pin with just one more, he deliberately continued to wield his powerful arms as punishment for Omori's betrayal on October 8th in Yokohama, and also as a warning to Akiyama and others who had repeatedly subjected him to humiliating acts.

The match was subsequently stopped by the referee. 

If the referee hadn't intervened, Omori might have had to have missed the Okayama show the following day, but the consequences could have been much worse. 

"The humiliation I suffered, cannot be repaid with just double the effort. I will make them feel, physically, who the ace is". 

Tonight, a clear black mark has been etched into the Noah ring by Kenta Kobashi, who says that he won't be influenced by anyone, but yet will completely influence everyone.   

Picture notes

Takao Omori jumped Kenta Kobashi as he (Kobashi) made his way to the ring. He even tried to "win the match in one go", getting an elbow to the face in the process. 

At one point, Omori attacked Kobashi with an iron pole.  

Omori was blooded by Kobashi during the course of the match

Kobashi forced the broken Omori to stand up, "unleashing a series of spectacular shots". The arena erupted in gasps of amazement. The referee stopped the match. Omori, who had to be helped from the ring by seconds, did not compete the next day due to his wound, but was back in action in Hiroshima. 

After the match, Takayama and Kobashi had a stand off. Kobashi warned them that he wasn't going to let them do whatever they wanted, and that he was going to teach them just who they shouldn't get mad at.