Finished translating the April 13 TJPW show, which was Juria Nagano’s graduation!
Juria actually had two matches on this show. The first was a tag match where she teamed up with Moka and Kaya against Shino, Aino, and Pom. A nice last chance for her to wrestle some people on the roster she hadn’t faced before.
This show also had some fun developments after a tag match featuring the three new champions (Miu, Suzume, Arisu) vs Shoko, Wakana, and Himawari. You’d think that the champions would easily be able to stomp a team which contains two rookies, but you’d be WRONG! Shoko Nakajima is just that good!! I remember thinking as I watched this “ooh, these Shoko vs Miu exchanges are pretty exciting! I’d love to see a singles match between them!” and hey, guess who got her wish? Shoko got a surprise pinfall over Miu, netting herself a title shot, and giving her teammates an opening to shoot their shot, too. Yay!
Here’s the post-match:
Nakajima: “Wait. Miu… I’ll get straight to the point; please let me challenge for your belt. Since it’s a request from your senpai, you’ll do it without complaint, right?”
Miu: “I have no complaints. I’m frustrated… I’ve always wanted to defend this belt against Nakajima-san, so please fight me at Korakuen with the belt on the line.”
After the two of them shook hands, Uehara and HIMAWARI also took the microphone.
HIMAWARI: “Suzume-san, Arisu-san… we also want to challenge for the tag belts!”
Uehara: “Facing Daisy Monkey today really strengthened our desire to challenge for those pink belts. I feel that the two of us can do it, having participated in the Next Generation Tournament and made it all the way to the finals!”
HIMAWARI: “We won the match today. So I think that gives us the right to challenge. Please let us challenge!”
Endo: “Thanks for having the willingness to challenge. I really feel that the two of you are getting stronger. But you know what, we’re both getting stronger, too. So of course it’s okay—let’s do it!”
Suzume: “Our very important first title defense; I’m looking forward to it. Let’s do it at Korakuen, too. Make it May 6 at Korakuen, please!”
The four of them shook hands as well, and the trio of champions left.
Shoko’s answer was a bit tricky: “偉い。楽しくなった。まだ道の途中ってことだね。（キャリア）10年もまだ1年ちょっとくらいも一緒ってことですよ.”
Nakajima: (to the other two) “Great. Things got fun. This means I’m still on the road. My 10 year (career) together with your little bit over a year. Challenger, challenger, challenger, let’s do our best. Please give us your support!”
Here are the challengers’ comments:
Nakajima: “I announced a title challenge. What I said in the ring is all that matters. I’m going to beat Miu and wrap the belt around my waist one more time!”
Uehara: “We also announced a title challenge. When this match was set, I had a strong desire to challenge, and I definitely think that the two of us who won the Next Generation Tournament will be able to do it. Seeing Shoko-san challenge made me want to do it even more, so we decided to challenge this time.”
HIMAWARI: “We’re going to do our best, and we’re going to be the first of the Next Generation to win a belt!”
Nakajima: “I’m counting on you.”
This was a bit confusing: “（後輩に挑戦するシチュエーションです）そうですね。特に、いつも通りです.”
(You’re challenging your junior in this situation)
“Yes, that’s right. I feel the same as always.”
(How do you view Miu as the champion?)
“She’s talented, powerful, passionate about training, ambitious, and confident.”
This was really tricky: “やっぱり山下実優に近しいものを感じてた部分も最近はあるので。そうですね…渡辺未詩は渡辺未詩ってかんじです。その言葉全部が渡辺未詩ってかんじだと思ってます.”
“And, well, lately part of me has felt something similar to Miyu Yamashita. Hmm… Miu Watanabe is Miu Watanabe. I think all of those words are the feeling of Miu Watanabe.”
(I don’t get the impression that the two of you team together often?)
Uehara: “It’s true that we haven’t teamed much, but we’ve been competing within our Next Generation class. And we’re the two who advanced to the finals. The final was also a very competitive battle, and we have been helping each other improve. I definitely want us to win the belts here.”
HIMAWARI: “We debuted on the same day, and we both got our first victories over each other. Because of that, I think this is something that we can do together. I’m sure there are a lot of people who think it’s reckless to challenge for a title in your second year, but we don’t think it’s reckless. We’re going to do our best.”
Here are the champions’ comments:
Miu: “For my first match in Japan after winning the belts at Ryogoku, I teamed up with Daisy Monkey as a team of champions, and despite that… I still lost. I feel like it’s really bad for me to lose so soon even though I have the belt, or rather I think it’s not befitting of a champion, and that kind of thinking has me feeling down.”
This was a bit tricky: “でもその分、やっぱりベルトを持つって狙われる立場になるんだなって今この瞬間でより感じたので.”
“But conversely, holding the belt means I’m a target; that’s how it’ll feel from this moment on. I want to work even harder from here, and Nakajima-san challenged me in the midst of it all.”
I had trouble putting this into English: “私はベルトに挑戦する時からどんな風に防衛していきたいかなって思った時に、中島さんが来てくれたら、防衛戦ができたら嬉しいなって一番に思った人だったので.”
“Since challenging for this belt, when I thought about how I wanted to defend it, if Nakajima-came forward, I thought she’d be the person I would be happiest to defend my title against. In any case, I am going to keep working hard until May so that I won’t lose to her, and I’ll be able to defend my title.”
Suzume: “First of all, losing is the most frustrating feeling, but more than that, I’m very happy that they wanted to challenge for our belts. From the time that I joined TJPW up until now when we challenged for the belt… I have been given the courage to step forward time and time again. Since I have the belt, I want to become someone who can give that courage to others.”
This was also a bit tricky: “だから見ているお客さんもそうだけど、まだまだベルトに挑戦したことがない選手たちにも挑戦してきてほしいって思っていて。だから、2人は元々欲しかったものかもしれないけど、私たちが取ったタイミングで踏み出してくれたことがすごく嬉しいし.”
“This goes for the audience watching us, but I also want the wrestlers who have never challenged for a belt to try challenging. So this is something they may have wanted from the start, but I’m really happy that they took that step forward at the time that we won the belts. For this very important first title defense, I want to take them on properly.”
Endo: “I was simply surprised. I was surprised to hear them announce a challenge. It’s certainly true that they had amazing momentum today. I could really feel that, how much they wanted to challenge.”
Suzume: “They were watching us, huh?”
Endo: “I’m happy.”
Arisu lost me a bit right here: “でも私たちは私たちらしく…もうチャンピオンだから.”
“But as is befitting of us… we’re already champions. So we’re absolutely going to defend our belts!”
(Why do you want to fight Nakajima with the belt on the line?)
I could not for the life of me put this into English, haha: “プロレスをこうやって、練習頑張ろうって思えたのって中島さんの存在が一番大きくて.”
Miu: “The thing that motivates me to think ‘I’m going to practice hard and do pro wrestling like this’, Nakajima-san is the biggest influence. She’s always working as hard as she can at the dojo and always growing… It’s so cool that even as a senpai, Nakajima-san continues to grow. Seeing her ahead of me, I’ve always thought that she’s cool, and that I had to follow in her footsteps. So with a senpai like that and then with me in the position of champion contrary to expectations, that’s very meaningful to me.”
After that was Juria’s last match before her graduation/retirement. This one was a singles match against Moka, which is one of those beautiful and bittersweet things that only pro wrestling can do. I both love these matches and hate them. Juria went out on her back, as is proper and traditional for a retirement match.
Here’s the post-match:
After the match, the two of them embrace while crying.
Miyamoto: “…Juria-san, thank you for fighting me today.” (she bows deeply) “Juria-san and I have the same underlying frame, karate. Since her debut match, the two of us have teamed up, and we have had several singles matches at big venues, and have challenged for the tag belts. She was such a big part of my pro wrestling career, so I’m really sad to see her retire and graduate, and I really don’t want her to graduate… I wish Juria-san the best of luck in the future. Thank you so much.”
I wasn’t quite sure about the last chunk of this: “じゅりあさんが東京女子プロレスに入ってくれてホントにホントに嬉しいし、すごい大きなご縁だなと思ったし.”
“I’m really, really happy that Juria-san joined TJPW, and I think we had a truly great connection. Thank you so much for being a part of TJPW.”
At this point, Daisy Monkey present a commemorative album and Aino presents a bouquet on behalf of the wrestlers. Juria receives the items, then, crying, she holds the microphone. After hugging Miyamoto again, she speaks.
Juria: “Thank you all for taking time out of your busy schedules to come here today. I wanted to greet you all with a smile on my face, but I couldn’t reign in my emotions.”
This was tricky: “けっこう…そうですね。SNSの発信とか、けっこうTikTokやるんですけど文字で打つのが苦手だったとか、やっぱりフル参戦できなったっていうのは自分の中で引っ掛かりはあったんですけど.”
“Alright… I’ve been posting a lot on SNS and doing a lot on TikTok, but I’m not very good at writing, or I was uneasy about not being able to participate full time. Even so, everyone gave me a warm welcome and supported me right from the start, and my senpais and even the new juniors talked to me a lot and made sure to invite me. I received a lot of advice, and being able to come to such a wonderful organization… It was only a little over two years, but these two years were very precious for me. …I forgot what I was going to say, but right now, I think you all really love TJPW, and I really love TJPW, too. From here on out, I will be supporting TJPW as a fan. Of course, everyone, please also keep supporting TJPW as much as you can. I’m truly blessed to have been able to come to such a wonderful place. It was only a short time, but thank you! Oss!”
Side note: I got a bit stuck on how to translate “押忍！”, then googled it and found out that “oss” has an English wikipedia page, so I decided screw it, I’m just gonna romanize it. I might keep the “yessir” translation for the Kamiyu instance because I think hers was more sarcastic, whereas Juria’s use is more straightforwardly the karate association (and would maybe be more likely to be understood by English speakers). But I dunno, maybe it would be best to be consistent.
Juria then bowed in all four directions, and the announcer called her name one last time and her entrance music hit. The wrestlers all gathered in the ring for a group photo, then they each hugged her and shook her hand, and at the end Juria remained alone in the ring and gave a seated bow before exiting. Backstage, the wrestlers formed an arch, and Juria made her exit by walking through it.
Juria: “Today I graduated from TJPW.”
I wasn’t quite sure the best way to translate the first part of this: “高木社長からお声がけいただいて…私がプロレスラーになる未来なんて想像してなかったんですけど、素敵な機会をいただいて.”
“President Takagi reached out to me… I never imagined a future where I would become a pro wrestler, but I was given a wonderful opportunity. When I actually experienced it, I became keenly aware of the severity and pain of pro wrestling, but more importantly, pro wrestling was so much fun. The audience was so warm, and my senpais were kind and gave me a lot of advice.”
This was a bit tricky: “後輩とかもすごい和気あいあいとお話することができて、素敵な空間に自分は来れたなって思っています。これは2年ちょっとの間で私の人生の中ですごくプラスになりましたし、今後も絶対死ぬまで活きていくことだと思います.”
“I could talk to my juniors and such in a friendly atmosphere, and feel like I was able to come into a wonderful space. This has been a very positive experience in my life over these past two years or so, and I’m sure it’ll remain in my heart until I die. I’m really grateful to everyone, and to all of the fans who are watching this. Thank you so much. I have become a big fan of TJPW, and I’ll be supporting them very much. Please continue to support TJPW. Thank you very much. Oss!”
(Which match left a lasting impression on you?)
There were a couple things in this I wasn’t 100% sure on: “いっぱいあるんですけど、最後のもかさんとの試合って2人で積み上げてきたものがあるので…2人ともすごい喋る方ではないんですけど、ずっとそばにいてくださって.”
“There were so many, but the last match with Moka-san was something that the two of us had built up together… Neither of us are great talkers, but she was always at my side. Her presence was really reassuring, and I was also chasing after her, so I’m glad that we were able to fight in the end, and it left the biggest impression on me.”
(Do you have any regrets as a pro wrestler?)
I wasn’t totally confident about this: “…（しばし悩み、苦い表情をしてから）やり残したことはありますし、もっともっと勝ちたかったし、悔しい思いもいっぱいしたし。まだやりたいって気持ちもあるけど、でも自分の決めた道だし、ここまでは全力で突っ走ってこれたので…ないです！って言っときます.”
“…” (after a long pause, wearing a bitter expression) “There are things that I’ve left undone, and I wanted to win a lot more, and I have so many regrets. I still feel a desire to do it, but this is the path I’ve decided to take, and I’ve been moving forward toward my goals with all my strength, so… I’m just going to say… No! I don’t.”
(At the end, you did two matches in one day)
This was a bit tricky: “とんでもなくビックリしました、体が。感情もホントに寂しい思いと燃える思いと、いろんな思いがあって.”
“It was a huge surprise for my body. And emotionally, I also felt a lot of sadness and passionate feelings, and I had a lot of thoughts running through my head. My emotions were running high, and I’d never done two matches in one day before. The last match was also a singles match, so it was really… I think my last spark burned out at the end.”
This was a bit tricky to get into English: “だから2試合できて（今まで）あたってなかったユキさん、ぽむさん。あと一緒に組んでたけど闘ってなかった志乃ちゃんと最後闘えて、とてもいい2試合をさせてもらって。このカードを組んでもらって、すごく感謝しています.”
“So I was able to have two matches, having never fought Yuki-san and Pom-san before. And getting to face Shino-chan at the end—we’d teamed up but had never fought before—I got to have two really great matches. I’m really grateful for how the card was put together.”
(What was the atmosphere like at TJPW?)
This was tricky: “ホントにあったかくて、ホントに…人見知りとかで自分からいけなかったりとかもするんですけど、みんな気にかけてくださったり、アドバイスをくれて『もっとこうしたらうまくなるよ』とか言ってくれたりして.”
“It was really warm, really… I’m shy and sometimes can’t do things on my own, but everyone cared about me and gave me advice and said, ‘You’ll get better if you do it like this more.’ I really feel that I was able to wrestle in a good organization. They sent me off with smiling faces at the end, and I’m so grateful to them.”
Miyamoto: “I’m really glad I got to have a singles match with Juria-san at the end of her graduation show… I have been watching from her side since her debut. She was a huge part of my wrestling career, and we had a lot of singles matches together, and we also challenged for the tag belts… She was a huge presence in my life, so I’m really sad to see her graduate.”
This was a bit やばい for me as the translator: “最後に闘えて、やばい。言葉がまとまらない（笑）。まとまらないんですけど、最後に闘えてホントに良かったなって思ってます.”
“Getting to face her at the end, it’s a lot. I can’t put it into words.” (laughs) “I can’t put it into words, but I’m really glad that we were able to fight here at the end. But Juria-san said she’ll be coming to see TJPW, so maybe I won’t miss her too much. I’ll be able to see her. But I will miss not being able to have another match with her. Today we were able to fight each other with emotion, so I’m very glad that we were able to put everything we have into that fight.”
This question was tough to put into English, and some other parts were also a bit hard to translate… “（あらためて宮本にとってじゅりあの存在は？）大きかったですね。多分じゅりあさんが一番たくさんタッグ組んでるし、真拳空勝として名前のついたタッグも初めてだったので。2人でタッグベルトに挑戦したり、試行錯誤を一番した選手だなと思っているので。すごい大きな存在でした.”
(Once again, can you describe how she was a part of your life?)
“She was a big part of it. Juria-san might be the person I’ve tagged with the most, and Shinken Kusho was my first time being part of a named tag team. We challenged for the tag belts together, and she’s the wrestler who learned the most through trial and error. She was a big part of my life.”
And that’s it for that one! Goodbye, Juria. I’m glad I got to translate your little over 2 years of a career 
. I hope her other careers work out for her.
I was going to attempt to translate the post-match for the April 14 show in Nodoka’s village, but neither shupro nor the official DDT site have a full transcript of what was said at the end (and there are no post-match comments), so I think I’m not going to bother.
And after that was Hype 2! Which has a decently long section in the ring at the end (without post-match comments) wherein the wrestlers talk a bit more about how the show came together, and I actually do have a transcript for that, so I think I’m going to aim to translate that next. People might find the blog post a bit of a letdown, though, because it doesn’t really touch on the actual content of the show, which is probably where most of the interest is.
.
. I picked a terrible time to write it…
」って食い気味できいてくるのだけど
(since it’s about the other party’s wishes, not yours).
