Part 1 - Recorded by phone on June 6, 1996 by Kazuhiro Kojima. The photo was taken at Uminonakamichi, Fukuoka during the May 1996 tour. (Picture by Toshiaki Yano)

Megumi Kudo has kept her mouth shut ever since she was rushed to the hospital in an ambulance after the current bombing match in Kawasaki on May 5th. The FMW girls in the doldrums and the company's poor management... In the midst of the biggest crisis of all, the Jado princess finally broke her silence! And then, suddenly, she made a major statement.

Before I get into the interview, I have to explain one thing. As reported in last week's issue, the FMW Wrestlers' Association had proposed to hold the legendary Shiodome show this summer as a measure of revival, and the office side agreed to it. It has been officially decided that a special event titled "Shiodome Legend" will be held on Thursday, August 1st at a special ring at the site of the old Shiodome station as the final event of the August tour "King of Fight II". For various reasons, the event cannot be held at the exact same location as the previous one, but Shiodome is still Shiodome. There is no difference in the fact that this is the "place of legends." The details of the event can be found on the last page of this interview, but the price of 10,000 yen for platinum seats is unusual for FMW... This is probably due to Masato Tanaka's comment at the press conference, "After all, it's Shiodome, so there will be an explosion match..."  Then Megumi Kudo, who was standing right beside him, had already made up her mind to do just that.

Kojima: Let's start with your impressions of the May 5th Kawasaki. You were sobbing in the locker room and was taken away in an ambulance...but you were relaxed before the match, weren't you?

Kudo: I was more relaxed than I thought I would be until right before the match. I was more relaxed than I thought I would be until right before the match. Maybe Toyoda was more nervous than usual, or maybe I knew that from the tour, so I felt I had to calm down. Maybe I was really nervous in a way I didn't even realize.

Kojima: I guess you were more interested in sending Combat Toyoda off right? More than the fear of an electric current bomb match.

Kudo: It was Toyoda's last match, so... rather than protecting myself, I was more concerned about what would happen if Toyoda regretted leaving the ring without regrets, and I didn't want to prevent him from doing so. You know, I could hear the sound and smell the smoke, but I didn't know what was happening behind me. I had no idea how much more powerful it was. My mind went blank, and the moment I thought "I'm on top," my body stopped moving...

Kojima: I remember the second time you got blasted (Toyoda caught your hip attack, and you both went straight to the explosion), I was so impressed by the scene where Toyoda's leg went down and you both got stuck.

Kudo: Yes, I was lucky the first time because my feet were still on the ground, but the second time, with Toyoda holding me in her arms, I moved through the air and bam! There was no way to escape, and the only place I could put myself was barbed wire with a bomb attached...my mind really went blank.

Kojima: So, how did it go, current bombing, was it a good idea to do it?

Kudo: I'm glad we did it now.

Kojima: Now?

Kudo: Immediately after the match I didn't have that feeling at all. I didn't even know if it was a good match or a bad match, and Kawasaki Stadium is a big place, so I didn't know how the audience would react.... But when I was taken to the hospital and Toyoda came out of the room, I asked her if she had any regrets. Toyoda said, "I think it was a good match. I don't regret it." Hearing that, I knew we had done the right thing.

Kojima: One more thing. Toyoda said she was happy with this, but it wasn't exactly a main event in the strictest sense of the word. What do you think about that?

Kudo: ...I guess I didn't have enough to bring to the table, or maybe they thought, "Are we sure we want them to end the show?"  But Toyoda and I were there with FMW Women's, and I think May 5th Kawasaki marked the end of the line for us. But we still have a long way to go, and I think Toyoda did what she did because she wanted to leave something behind... I'd like to aim for the main event again with a new member.

Kojima: The new FMW girls...well, to be frank, they are not doing so well. It's like they're in the doldrums.

Kudo: That's how I see it, after all. If we had the same card and the same fights every time. But when I watch from the corner, I can see that both Nakayama and Kambayashi have grown a lot. In the past, I was more interested in their movements than those of their opponents, but in the last tour, I could tell what they were doing even without looking at them. It's definitely progressing. But, you know, the audience couldn't see it, and it didn't show up in the results, so I kept my mouth shut....

Kojima: As a fan, you're a Junior All-Star, and you're coming back with a match that everyone appreciates, right? And yet, they're not getting a pat on the back in the FMW ring, and it sets their teeth on edge.

Kudo: It's the opposite, to be frank, both Nakayama and Kambayashi are thrown into a higher level of competition than other wrestlers of the same career in other organizations, in our ring. That's why I think they shine when they fight with other wrestlers from other countries, of course.

Kojima: I see. But the gap with Megumi Kudo and Shark Tsuchiya is not so easy to close.

Kudo: We need someone to come out of the woodwork to change this situation, not everyone working together. For example, Nakayama is now able to lead Kambayashi in her own way, and I want her to take a step forward here...

Kojima: In such a situation, of course, Megumi Kudo also has to move. You attended a press conference in Shiodome, so I thought you were really motivated.

Kudo: I think everyone needs to show the best they can do now that the company is in a dangerous situation, otherwise, what's the point of doing it in Shiodome? That's why I'm going to do the current bombing in Shiodome!

Kojima: What? A blow up match? Why?

Kudo: Because the most important thing for me is about to disappear! For me, FMW is more than just a company where I work. I'm very attached to it.

Kojima: ....

Kudo: Until now, I think there were parts where we relied on the boys, and other parts where we were reserved. However, I believe that girls have created a buzz in their own way over the past year, and I don't mean to be presumptuous, but I would like to appeal to the girls in Shiodome to have more confidence and show that girls alone can pull in customers. .....

Kojima: For Megumi Kudo, "the best thing you can do" is a blow-up match... Indeed, if you avoid such a fight now, you might be considered irresponsible as the "face" of FMW. Besides, Shiodome is like the birthplace of FMW women.

Kudo: It was the place where I did my first street fight and the place where I said for the first time that I would work as a FMW woman. If possible, I wanted to do it again with Toyoda in Shiodome...but that would have been just a memory, and we would have to do something new with new members and create a new "legend."

Kojima: But an explosion match? At the time of May 5th Kawasaki, there was a good reason why you had to do it, but this time, I feel like there will be voices against you about doing it...

Kudo: I, too, am more scared now that I have experienced it once, and the pressure is on, but I still have to do it...I can't hear the voices around me anymore.

Kojima: Not wanting to destroy the company was at the root of the first Onita vs. Goto match. But there was also a grudge between the two at that time.

Kudo: My opponent has been decided...and it is someone that I hold a deep grudge with...

Part 2 is Kojima and Kudo conducting the interview while walking around Shiodome Lot

Kojima: Here at Shiodome...everything around us has changed, from the scenery to everything else.

Kudo: It was only 6 years ago and where we had the ring is not here anymore?

Kojima: I think we just passed by it, but the roof that was there at that time is also gone, so I really don't know anymore. "Yurikamome" didn't have any shape or form at that time.

Kudo: What is that?

Kojima: The one that just passed overhead. It's a new transportation system that goes through things like Ariake.

Kudo: Oh, that's not a monorail (chuckles). I didn't know that (laughs).

Kojima: But for some new fans may end up saying, “Shiodome legend?" I don't know what that is.

Kudo: That's right. The fan base has changed a lot, hasn't it?

Kojima: For those fans who don't know, let me explain...August 4, 1990 was the first time FMW had an explosion match, and it was that day here in Shiodome, Megumi Kudo had her first women's street fight match in Japan against Combat Toyoda (fighting under her real name at the time, Noriyo Toyoda). She lost the match, but she was the first to make it clear that she wanted to fight as a member of the FMW women's team, breaking away from her previous existence as an outsider (the Outbreakers)... right?

Kudo: Yes. That is why I am so particular about Shiodome as a venue.

Kojima: That's why you've decided to hold an explosion match. Who will it be with? Since you called it "an opponent with a grudge," everyone probably thinks it is Shark Tsuchiya....

Kudo: Tsuchiya was not on my mind at the beginning. After all, this case is going to be done in Shiodome first. So I want to do an explosion match.  So, I thought about who to work with, and in that order, and although I thought Tsuchiya, she was not someone I felt like it had to be done with her.

Kojima: Why not? Is it not the best stage to complete the show down?

Kudo: You know, I believe that the formula of "death match = complete settlement" is necessary, but in this case, I think it is meaningless unless it is a "death match where something starts from here".

Kojima: A death match that starts something...?

Kudo: It's not so much that it starts, but rather that it has to start. If something doesn't start for the next time, tomorrow will never come, right? That is why Tsuchiya and I haven't done an explosion match yet. If I won or if I lost, it's over...there was no point in going all the way to Shiodome if we were going to do that, and I wondered what would happen after that.

Kojima: ....Yeah....

Kudo: The first priority is to keep the company alive and maintain it, in this case. If we don't think that far ahead, I don't think there's any point in doing an explosion match...

Kojima: I see... So who is the person who meets those conditions?

Kudo: I don’t know if I’m allowed to say this.  I'm just making up my mind on my own, and first of all, I don't know if I'll be able to get in touch with her or not, or if she will be able to make it to Shiodome in time....

Kojima: Who's that?!

Kudo: Gundarenko

Kojima: Svetlana Gundarenko!

Kudo: That's right, I want to destroy that blue cape with an electric current explosion match as a settlement in my own way...

Kojima: This was surprising or unexpected...perhaps fans today may not even know that Gundarenko, who won last year's "L-1" by a nose, had entered the FMW ring and even had a tag-team match....

Kudo: Toyoda beat her, but I lost both my singles matches against her...I think the only way to recover this with one shot is to blow her up...

Kojima: Setting a bomb on the wire mesh of is one way to go, certainly.

Kudo: The bombing match to protect the company, and the Gundarenko match to settle my heart... I don't have that long ahead of me, and just as Toyoda retired like that, I think it's time to settle things one by one without regrets. Just like Gundarenko overcame the extreme conditions of the L-1 tournament, and I came back alive from the electric current bombing...both were extreme conditions, and both were the first time for a woman, right? There were so many things I couldn't do back then, but now I finally have something to put on the same level... In honor of Gundarenko who survived the L-1 tournament, I will prepare another "hell ring" for you... If it were true, it would make sense to do it after two consecutive wins in different kinds of martial arts competition, As I said before, our first priority is to keep the company alive, and if you ask why we're doing it in Shiodome, it's because FMW is in danger, right? We can't afford to go through the steps to blow up anymore, and we can't afford to take that kind of time and effort! I guess it would make sense since she has beaten me twice to do some kind of martial arts match with her, but as I said before, the first priority is to keep the company alive, and if you ask why we're doing the match in Shiodome, it's because FMW is in danger, isn't it? We can't afford to go through the steps to do an explosion match, and we can't afford to take that kind of time and effort!

Kojima: ...

Kudo: Electric current blasts in a a mixed martial arts competition hasn't even  been done by the boys, right? If something starts from there, it won't end with the settlement of my heart. I still have a lot of things I need to do.

Kojima: You've lost to Chigusa Nagayo, too, haven't you? Don't you have to settle this?

Kudo: You know, winning or losing with Nagayo, it is very significant for me to be a rival with her, but in my mind, we have a relationship that goes beyond the "wrestler" aspect. Winning or losing, we have enhanced each other. I want our relationship to be more than just this.

Kojima: .....?

Kudo: Sometimes I fight, and sometimes I try to include lower wrestlers, and I want to fight for the revitalization of the women's professional wrestling world as a whole. I would like to fight for the revitalization of the women's wrestling world as a whole. In my case, this, which is not a front, is not possible with normal athletes, but, after all, I know that part of it, and my "work allocation" outside of my activities as a pro-wrestler is wider than other athletes. Even during my time off, I have to fly to the country side to make appearances, you know. I think it's the same for Nagayo....So if the crisis in FMW continues, "I'm going to do it even if the time is not ripe".

Postscript

After the interview, Megumi Kudo's left upper arm still had a stiff spot. It was caused by a laceration she sustained in an electric current bombing match at the May 5 Kawasaki event, where bacteria entered and swelled up around her lymph gland. Another survivor, Combat Toyoda (who will continue to use this term until her retirement ceremony at Korakuen on June 28th), said that she still suffers from burns and neck pain even though she has started his life as a civilian. The two were a different shock to me when I saw the actual match than when I saw the men's match, and I was made acutely aware of the risks involved in women's current bombing. Nevertheless, Megumi Kudo made her own decision to once again enter the electric current bombing ring, a very natural choice for Kudo, who, as the "face" of FMW, is in a position to protect the company.

However, now that he has made such a big deal about the "electric current blasts in Shiodome," she will have to fight someone in the blasts even if Gundarenko refuses to fight her. In that case, the first candidate would be Shark Tsuchiya, who, ironically, Kudo says "never crossed my mind at all." In fact, Tsuchiya has a greater necessity to fight in a current bombing match, and they both have lost to Chigusa Nagayo in a one-on-one match, so they are even in terms of conditions. Kudo, who has two belts (Independent World and WWA World Women's) from Combat Toyoda, has a big job left to do in defending these treasures against Tsuchiya. And yet, when I dared to look at Tsuchiya from the opposite side of the venue, the rail of the Yurikamome and the Metropolitan Expressway crossed overhead. It was as if the past and the future were crossed.......

The reason why Tsuchiya was removed from the strike was because she wanted the audience to see this match as a third party, was it not? This is true not only for Tsuchiya, but for all FMW women. The key phrase that came up in this interview, "the death match where something starts" ... this was the answer that the FMW girls, who were completely "dead bodies" for the May series. As I mentioned in last week's issue, both Nakayama and Kambayashi have been growing in areas invisible to the audience. How can it be delivered to the audience? Another problem that needs to be addressed, considering the FMW women as a whole, is the toning down of the Mad Dog Military, whose sense of existence is waning due to the weakening of the regular FMW women's army. The only person who can make that breakthrough is Megumi Kudo.

She must have understood this well after the May series, in which she kept her mouth shut and did not take any action, ended in a state of no wind. Kudo is the only one who can create the wind and a movement. Chigusa Nagayo has trained newcomers with her own hands and sent them out to the ring. If this is the GAEA style, then the FMW style is for Kudo to say something through her fights, and for the young fighters who catch it to digest it in their own way and grow. To be clear, it is not efficient, but just as Hayabusa, Tanaka, and other "superb" wrestlers jumped out after Onita's retirement, it would be fine if an ace were born with a bang after Kudo retired. I can't help but feel that will happen. whether it's Gundarenko or Tsuchiya. Even if it's the theme of humiliation against Chigusa Nagayo, August 1st Shiodome can't lose....

Part 3 - two months later after Parts 1 & 2 on August 9, 1996 - Megumi Kudo announces her retirement

It was a really sudden statement. "I've decided. If there is a show at Kawasaki Stadium on May 5th next year, I want to put an end to my professional wrestling life there... I will retire!"

May 5, 1997. Megumi Kudo Retires This is no longer a rumor or a speculation, but a daring fact that no one can stop... . The issue of retirement has been discussed many times before. Ever since she bet on her retirement against Combat Toyoda on March 28, 1996, saying, "If I lose, I'll leave the ring," the word "retire" has been in the spotlight every time something happens.

Even in the long interview with Kudo in this magazine, which has become an annual tradition, the main topic has always been her retirement, and she has made such startling statements as "I am seriously thinking about it" and "I don't think it is that far away." Since she gave up wrestling once due to an injury, it may be inevitable, but the "retirement" mentality has been hanging over Kudo for too long. This was one of the factors that contributed to her popularity as a "tragic heroine," but it was also an image that was never appreciated by the leading wrestlers of the organization. As shown in a "treasured photo" published in April of this year, Kudo had decided last spring to follow Atsushi Onita out of the ring. However, seeing the plight of FMW, which had been shaken to its foundations by the sudden departure of Tarzan Goto and others, Kudo withdrew her intention. Of course, this has not been made public, but the rumors of her retirement have stopped abruptly, perhaps because her strong will was conveyed to the audience.

She was so busy focusing on her own death match road with Tsuchiya and decorating the road for the retirement of her close ally, Combat Toyoda, that she had been missing from her consciousness the issue of her own retirement. When she said, "I want to fight Svetlana Gundarenko in an electric current bombing death match," at the time of the Shiodome event, she had hinted at a countdown to her retirement, but it was hard to believe that she had set a goal so close to her retirement.

Interviewer: Why now, all of a sudden, are you saying, "I'm at my physical limit?" was thinking.

Kudo: I've already reached that point. It's the same with energy. I had already reached my limit years ago. But I couldn't quit, thinking about the FMW children under me. Combat Toyoda retired, and I thought that if I left now, people would think I was a "heartless" person who gave up on Nakayama and the other children. Compared to the time when my back was so bad that I couldn't even walk and was sidelined repeatedly, my condition is relatively better. However, it is just a "dormant volcano," and other parts of my body have become rattled by protecting my back.

Even now, before a series starts, I have to go to the hospital for a full body tune-up before I can go out on the track. But I can't take a break when I think about my younger children. On top of that, Hayabusa's prolonged absence from the sport had effectively made him the "signature wrestler" of FMW, which put the brakes on my retirement on the emotional front. During his time off, I was often rushed out to fill in for Hayabusa at local events and sales promotions, and on box-office posters produced by local promoters, Kudo's picture, larger than any other wrestler, would be laid out in the center with a big bang. Now that Hayabusa has returned, such a burden will be alleviated, and the recognition of wrestlers such as Masato Tanaka and W*ING Kanemura is rising rapidly among wrestling fans. The burden of being a "single signboard" and having to bear the responsibility has lessened.

Interviewer: At Shiodome, you fought three members of the Mad Dog Military, didn't you?

Kudo: I told you after the match that it was not about a grudge between me and the "Mad Dog Military" but a fight to convey something to Nakayama, and to Kambayashi who did not come out with me on that day. I think Nakayama understood, and I think the scene when she brought Maedomari into the iron cage with a bang was the highlight of the match for me. Watching the video of the show, what made me most happy was that when Nakayama beat Miwa Sato in the second match, she did not look surprised or happy, but rather he looked as if it was a matter of course. She had a crisp face like, "It's natural." I felt that she had grown up to this point. Next, it was my turn to surpass Tsuchiya and Maedomari. But you know, in reality, I was taking away the chance of Nakayama and Tsuchiya and the others to fight one-on-three, right? I finally understood. I had been sticking to my current position for the sake of the younger children, but that's not really true. Because I am here, Nakayama and the others can't overcome a hump.

It is not her fault that Nakayama cannot peel off his skin. I'm sure that once I'm gone, she'll come to realize that she's the top and she can change. I'm going to retire in eight months. I hope the day comes when you can see me smiling on the apron. This is my last hope as a pro-wrestler, I guess...

The limits of physical strength and energy. The only two words that would come to mind if the "sense of responsibility" that had been desperately covering them was removed would be "retire." Some may say that it is selfish, but considering Kudo, who has been running far beyond the goal she should have achieved under extreme conditions, it makes sense to send her off with an honest heart. However, there is one thing that concerns me. Will Megumi Kudo have any regrets if she retires?

Kudo: When I came back to FMW, I didn't think I would be able to continue wrestling for such a long time, and yes, that's more than enough to satisfy me.

Interviewer: The best happiness as a pro wrestler is when you and Tsuchiya had a barbed wire death match last year in the main event at Korakuen, and when the match was over, a huge crowd gathered in the ring and called out "Kudo," didn't they? I'm sure you tasted it at that moment, and I'm sure that when you were able to see off Combat Toyoda's last moments in the ring at Kawasaki Stadium, and that too in the current bombing death match that Toyoda had requested, I'm sure you had no regrets." Also, according to Megumi Kudo, her last "self-satisfying" match was a WWWA match against Aja Kong (December 6, 1993, Ryogoku Sumo Hall)

From that point onward, it seems that she was fighting only for FMW, and that it was a period for her to fully pursue her "true joy" as a professional wrestler. Now that the "necessity" of Shiodome is gone, the electric current bombing with Gundarenko is no longer an object of strong interest, and she has no desire to fight with his peers like she did with Combat.

Kudo:  I am no longer so obsessed with the "inevitability" of Shiodome, and I have no desire to fight with my peers like I did in Combat. I have already settled things with Tsuchiya, and there is no point in making up rules. I will take a step back from the "Mad Dog Military" and I will devote myself to supporting Nakayama. When I think about it, my life as a pro wrestler up until now has been very happy, although it has had its good times and bad times (laugh). If it were true, it would have been best for me to retire at this point, and retiring after losing a tag team match at Budokan at the upcoming Midsummer's Eve show would be an interesting way to end my career (and still putting Kaori Nakayama in the spotlight), just like the Jado princess.

However, as I mentioned before, such selfishness is not allowed for a "signature wrestler." She would naturally be asked to make a "nationwide retirement tour" like Atsushi Onita did, and she would want to do so because she knows that she has come this far thanks to the support of her fans.

Taking this into consideration and setting the goal of "May 5th Kawasaki," the time limit for announcing his retirement was approaching. She had been struggling with her feelings for some time after the Shiodome event, but she had already begun discussions with the company, which led to this "shocking" confession. One problem, however, is that she has not yet received the official go-ahead to wrestle a match at Kawasaki Stadium on May 5th next year.

Of course, Kudo's retirement match at Kawasaki Stadium is only her "wish," and if it is not at Kawasaki, she will not postpone her retirement match. In the unlikely event that the show is not held at Kawasaki, a commemorative event will be held on or around May 5th at an alternative stadium.

Kudo: I have been rumored to retire many times, and even now that I have announced that I will retire, I don't really feel like it is someone else's problem (laughs), but I have no regrets, and I will try to nurture Nakayama in the next eight months. The only thing I would like to say is that I would like to have my retirement match not with a meaningless wrestler, but with a wrestler whom I have in my heart. I still have an idea of what I want to do, but I don't know what will happen in the next eight months, so I can't say anything right now..."

She will probably make her official retirement announcement after the "Midsummer Night's Budokan," (August 12, 1996) in which she and Nakayama will compete as a pair. If Kudo and Nakayama are still around on the second day of the Budokan (after the second round), we would like you to keep an eye on Kudo's thoughts and Nakayama's efforts.

December 2007

- Are you doing anything in particular related to your activities?

Kudome: My parents run a store (a convenience store)...it's not quite a company yet, but I go to see how they run it. I learn about store management and things like that, hoping it will be useful in the future. When I go to study things like that, I get to become friends with the people who work there and see what goes on behind the scenes. Until now, I was just a customer, but it feels refreshing to hear all sorts of stories.

-Are you aiming to become a manager?

Kudome: I'm not aiming to become a manager, but I've lived separately from my parents until now, so I've never really been involved in what my mother does. Just seeing it makes me think, "Wow, so that's what she does," and even though I wasn't interested in it at all before, it's good to see parts I didn't know about.

-That's an unexpected direction. You're going in the humanities rather than the sporty and active direction.

Kudome: That's right. I hardly go to the gym anymore. My main form of exercise is walking my dog ​​(laughs).

- Do you still watch pro wrestling?

Kudome: I watch it occasionally. But the frequency is much lower than before. I only go to events for work-related reasons or when I'm invited to watch, so I rarely go on my own anymore. After all, I don't have the usual fan perspective. Like being a fan of so-and-so, or liking a particular organization. Without that, the only motivation is being invited by old wrestling friends or something like that. I still really enjoy watching it, though. So I watch it on TV.

- What's something that has left a strong impression on you in the recent pro wrestling world?

Kudome: That would have to be Kenta Kobashi's comeback match. No matter how strong a pro wrestler is, they suffer from illness for a long time, don't they? But the joy of his return after all that, of course Kobashi must have been happy, but seeing how happy everyone who had watched him was, saying "We've been waiting!", made me realize how amazing professional wrestling is. My own husband is ill, you know. So I really felt the fear of illness, and I couldn't treat it as someone else's problem; I had a special feeling about it.

- Kobashi was a wrestler who was active around the same time as you, right? When we did a color feature on Kudo in Weekly Pro Wrestling, we did a Kobashi feature as a coupling.

Kudome: Soon after that, I had the opportunity to meet him in person. I brought some young FMW women's wrestlers, and Kobashi brought Satoru Asako, and we all had dinner together. Even while drinking, Kobashi was passionate. He would ask for a handshake at every opportunity. He was so refreshing.

- Those were good times. So, when you saw him, it must have been an overwhelming feeling.

Kudome: I cried when I watched it on TV. A wrestler whose fans are so excited and eagerly awaiting their return, as if it were their own...it's like they're talking about someone else, isn't it? I don't think there's anything else that can create such a sense of unity with fans over someone else's event.

- Was the most recent event you attended the Gokuaku Domei show (November 11, 2007 Shinjuku)?

Kudome: That's right. On that day, (Crusher) Maedomari, (Shark) Tsuchiya, and (Combat) Toyoda had a match. When I saw Tsuchiya and Maedomari together for the first time in a while, I was reminded once again what a great tag team they are. It wasn't about the match itself, but the unique atmosphere they created when they stepped into the ring...it's unusual for women's pro wrestling, but I could feel the light that only those two could create. Even though Maedomari had retired 10 years ago, Koizumi (Emi) and Komatsuzaki (Yumiko) were also there, and a while after the match ended, they each sent me separate emails saying things like, "That era of FMW was really great, and I realized that Tsuchiya and Maedomari's team was really good. I'm glad I got to see this match."

- What were your thoughts watching all the other FMW Women's alumni compete together?

Kudome: When Maedomari left, she told me she would absolutely never step into the ring again. But then she did...and she had even come all the way from Nagoya. She came just for that match and left the same day. That was the most unexpected and surprising thing for me. So I asked her, "You said you wouldn't step into the ring, so why?" And Maedomari said, "Because Toyoda-san was going to be there." She said she wouldn't have participated in any other show, but she agreed because Combat was performing. Maedomari still has a lot of affection for FMW Women's and her team with Toyoda and Tsuchiya. And I thought to myself, even after all this time has passed, the feelings for each of them haven't faded at all. Of course, when you do pro wrestling after so many years, you can't move like that. But their presence is their own, and that was the same as back then. In terms of their presence, I think they're in no way inferior to those currently active.

- At the time, you were on the receiving end, but looking at it objectively, you can see those aspects, right?

Kudome: But I thought so even back then. Tsuchiya & Maedomari were a good team. During the inter-promotional matches, when they faced wrestlers from other organizations, there was a certain awkwardness and they didn't quite mesh, right? But that awkwardness created a sense of tension, and that lack of meshing perfectly reflected the position FMW was in at the time. I think Tsuchiya & Maedomari were the very essence of FMW women's wrestling.

-In today's women's pro wrestling, with the increasing borderlessness, that kind of tension and awkwardness has almost completely disappeared.

Kudome: It's gone, isn't it? You can see the efforts to improve women's pro wrestling today, but it seems like it's confined to that. They should be reaching out to more people, but it seems like it's only reaching a select few. Regarding the hard work we put in, that hasn't changed from the past, so shouldn't we get more recognition?

- Compared to when you were actively competing, what specifically do you feel is lacking now?

Kudome: I'm really sorry to say this as someone who's retired, but... when I go to watch a show, the first thing I notice is the lack of tension. It's more in the locker room than during the matches. Nowadays, wrestlers from various organizations meet at the venue, right? The sheer number of points of contact is a big difference from our time. Back then, just the fact that it was an inter-organizational match created a tense atmosphere, and it was unthinkable for wrestlers from different organizations to be friendly with each other in the locker room. You could say, in a good way, that everyone's camaraderie is well-maintained, but from the perspective of a viewer, I feel like the audience isn't getting that "we won't lose to them!" feeling. If friendship and camaraderie go in a good direction, everyone can work together as one, but... yeah.

- The scary thing about pro wrestling is that the atmosphere backstage is directly transmitted to the audience in the ring.

Kudome: I guess it's inevitable that things will turn out that way when you do a lot of things together and see each other all the time... Back in our day, there was always the tension of not knowing what the other person was going to do, so it was always on edge. For example, All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling was very strict even in places where the audience couldn't see, and the rookies were always responding with "Yes!" "Yes!" every time something was thrown at them. FMW was relatively open... so each organization had a very distinct character.

- It's probably difficult to recreate the tension of the women's pro-wrestling inter-promotional matches in this day and age.

Kudome: In those inter-promotional matches, not everyone from each organization participated, right? Only selected individuals represented their respective organizations, so the weight placed on those wrestlers was immense. And yet, they were being judged not as individuals, but as a whole organization, so there was a lot of pressure on the quality of the matches, and everything, from who won or lost to which organization was superior, carried a heavy weight. It was normal to fight against wrestlers you'd never seen before, people whose moves you didn't know at all. There was no trust between them. The tension of performing in that environment was incredible. But, fighting for the first time in that environment also gave me a great sense of excitement, like, "Oh, this wrestler is good. I want to fight them more," so the sense of satisfaction was unique.

- Pro wrestling is said to be a sport built on trust, but in terms of match scheduling, there were quite a few matches where that wasn't the case, right?

Kudome: Yes. Those kinds of matches don't really stick in your mind as time passes. I remember it was tough at the time, but I don't remember the specifics of the match or my opponent. All that's left is the feeling that I just went through the motions in that place. Since that's how it was for me as a participant, I don't think it would have left a lasting impression on the fans watching either. But even against opponents like that, I wanted to make it a memorable match among the several matches scheduled for the inter-promotional series, even though it was difficult.

-So, who are some matches that still resonate with you as memorable matches?

Kudome: It wasn't an inter-promotional match, but the match against Tsuchiya at "YAMATO NADESHIKO" (an FMW women-only event) and Combat's retirement match. Also, my last match at Korakuen Hall, a singles match against Ozaki (Mayumi), is very memorable.

- So, matches between FMW women come to mind before inter-promotional matches?

Kudome: That was a lot of pressure. It was the main event of an all-female show, and Tsuchiya had been sidelined for a while due to a leg injury. You know how you can't have a good match if your opponent isn't in top physical condition? Even if she went all out and used weapons, I'd still prefer that. I was also worried about what kind of wrestling we could have with Tsuchiya, who was injured and unable to do much. More than anything, holding an all-female show at Korakuen Hall was a huge gamble, so if it flopped, there wouldn't be a next time. I'd always said I wanted to headline a women's show at FMW's main event, but if I failed there, it would have been like, "See, this is reality." Even so, failure wasn't an option after they'd put on this show. On top of that, it was a barbed-wire death match, so it wasn't a normal match and unpredictable. I lost so much blood that I became anemic and started hallucinating.

- Hallucinations?

Kudome: I was giving a comment in front of the locker room at Korakuen Hall, and the area in front of me suddenly became a hospital. So nurses were going back and forth. But actually, they were reporters, but to me they just looked like nurses. Because there were people walking around in white coats, I was talking while thinking, "Oh, I've come to a hospital." So when I watched the video later, I was just repeating the same things over and over, and it wasn't answering the questions at all. I was anemic and extremely nervous, so I guess my mood was all messed up.

- So reporter Suyama and reporter Kojima at the time were dressed as nurses. I would have liked to see that too. Suyama might have looked good in it. I understand why the Tsuchiya match and Combat Toyoda's retirement match left a lasting impression on you, but Mayumi Ozaki was a wrestler from another promotion, right?

Kudome: At the time, Ozaki said she wanted to do death matches, and I could really feel her love for death matches. That really resonated with me. Of course, since she was from another promotion, it was different from the death matches we did in FMW, but I felt that the fundamental elements were the same, and she was the only wrestler who truly conveyed that. There had been other wrestlers who said they wanted to do death matches before, but...it just looked like death match-style matches. With Ozaki, you could feel her "love" for death matches during the match.

- What's the difference between a death match and a death match-style match?

Kudome: It's whether it's just the appearance or not. The substance behind the movements in a death match...the invisible parts. If you don't have a clear understanding of why you're doing a death match or what you want to convey, it just becomes an ordinary match. If you just grab a chair and rampage or use weapons, or string together only moves that appear in death matches, it becomes a "deathmatch-like" match. Ozaki was different, wasn't she?

- Ozaki continued with the hardcore style in GAEA after that, right?

Kudome: When it comes to memorable matches, it's the death matches that come to mind rather than the inter-promotional matches. Of course, there are memorable matches in the inter-promotional matches, like the one against Aja, but I did death matches in the latter half of my active career, didn't I? In the latter half, I feel like we all created things together, exchanging ideas with the company staff and other wrestlers, like "Let's do this," or "Let's try doing it this way." Before that, I would just do matches that were unilaterally announced, or matches that followed the flow laid out by the company, so there were times when I wondered, "Why am I having this kind of match now? I don't understand, but since it's been scheduled, I have to do it." In the latter half of my career, I would meet with Toyoda on our days off and talk about how we should proceed, and we created our own path, so I think that's why I felt such a high sense of fulfillment.

- I think the inter-promotional matches attracted more attention from the industry and the public, but what you created yourselves is what remains most strongly in your mind, right?

Kudome: But I honestly never imagined that I would be doing death matches. Until Onita retired, women's matches were limited to street fight matches, and barbed wire was only used after the rebirth of the promotion, but until then, I never even considered that I would be doing death matches.

-Even when you watched the men doing it from ringside on a daily basis, did you think that you would never be a part of it?

Kudome: That's right, I thought it was a completely different world. So I vaguely thought that my wrestling career would end with me doing regular women's pro wrestling matches. When it was first decided that I would do it, I thought "Are you kidding me?" "Really?" over and over again. However, I don't recall anyone explicitly telling me, "Please do a deathmatch." It was more spontaneous, or rather, I think that as we went along with the flow at the time, there was a feeling within the company that the women had no choice but to do barbed wire matches. Even just the barbed wire board made me think, "I don't want to do this anymore!" but it just kept escalating. But looking back now, it's strange, but there's a slight discrepancy between my true feelings and what Megumi Kudo, the wrestler, says in magazines. So I can't tell which is my true feeling. And there was another reason why I didn't want to do it anymore.

- So it wasn't simply because you didn't like the pain or getting injured?

Kudome: For me, death matches were largely something that Onita-san had built. The idea that we could so easily do something Onita-san had built seemed unbelievable. Aside from those feelings, I also thought that if doing this could allow FMW Women's to emerge in a different way, it might be an opportunity. So, I think I was always conflicted back then, wondering which was better?

- So it was a period of self-questioning?

Kudome: However, I also thought that once I did it, I wouldn't be able to escape this path. At that time, the men weren't doing death matches, were they? To show a new direction for the reborn wrestlers. So, conversely, I thought the women should do it. If the men had done it at that time, I don't think the women would have.

- Ultimately, it became something that was synonymous with you. Were there any times when you wanted to give up along the way?

Kudome: When I got injured multiple times, or when I got cuts on my face or other places that weren't visible, and another injury would appear before the previous one had healed, I sometimes wondered, "If I keep going like this, when will this injury ever heal?" But the organization had reached a point where I couldn't afford to think like that. When it comes to injuries and wounds, before a match or right after a match, you think it's no big deal, but then you suddenly get anxious. Then, as the match approaches, that anxiety fades, but then as time passes, you get depressed again...it was a cycle. When you're at the hospital and waiting alone in the waiting room, you start thinking about all sorts of things, don't you? That's when fear overwhelms you.

- At that point, you must have your future as a woman on your mind, right? Yet, no matter how you look at it, you're doing professional wrestling, which inevitably leaves you with scars.

Kudome: I get a lot of head injuries, and they have to stitch them up. I want to heal them in a way that's as inconspicuous as possible, but the doctors at the hospital tell me to shave my head. I could probably shave my forehead properly, but when they asked me to shave the top of my head, I didn't want to do that. So I ended up arguing with the doctor. Of course, that was when we had a photo shoot for a poster, and I'd say, "No, I can't do it!" but he'd get angry and say, "If you're going to be that stubborn, I can't do it, so go to another hospital!" In the end, they shaved a triangle on my head, but more than the scars themselves, I was shocked by the sight of myself with a shaved triangle... I know my hair will grow back over time and go back to normal, but it's the kind of thing that really hits you mentally.

- Yeah, I totally understand.

Kudome: And the costumes, too. I'd had them newly made, but they'd get holes in them, or ripped by barbed wire, and I'd have to make them again, which was pretty tough. While I was doing it, I wanted them to come at me hard and not worry about them tearing. But after it was over, I'd feel sad.

- Even amidst all that, do you still feel a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction from continuing?

Kudome: I don't think I've reached the point of mastering it, but I do think I did my best with what I was capable of. The fact that I think I might have been able to do something different if I had continued means I haven't mastered it. Maedomari and Tsuchiya might have improved more if they had continued, and as they had more matches they would have understood how to fight in death matches and could have shown a different side of themselves.

- If you had continued, you might have ended up fighting with fluorescent lights like in Big Japan Pro-Wrestling today.

Kudome: That's true. However, I had decided a long time ago that I would retire at that time. I decided to retire a year after Toyoda retired

- Now that you mention it, Combat Toyoda retired in May 1996, and Megumi Kudo retired a year later, right?

Kudome: Actually, the plan was for me to retire the year after Onita-san retired. At first, Toyoda and I went to Onita-san to discuss our retirement. We both wanted to retire together if we were going to quit. But Onita-san told us, "That's impossible no matter how you look at it." So he said, "If you're going to quit, one of you should stay for a year and do your best." We had always said that since we had both joined and worked hard together, we should retire together, but when we thought about it, if two people suddenly quit from the already small FMW women's division, we could understand what the company and Onita-san were saying, so originally, it was decided that I would retire first, and Toyoda would retire a year later.

- So it was the other way around initially?

Kudome: Yes. But ultimately, it was Onita's decision that Toyoda would retire first and I would continue for another year.

- When you and Toyoda first decided to retire together, did you feel like you had done everything you could?

Kudome: Rather than feeling like we had done everything we could, it was more that we felt it was about time for us to step down. On the other hand, I wondered if it was okay to quit now, and I knew I would miss her if I did, but I also knew that if we left, someone would surely step up. So, we kept talking about whether we should wait for someone to step up, or if someone would step up because we stepped down, and which would be better. And we came to the conclusion that it would be better if someone stepped up naturally because we had retired. But even after coming to that conclusion, we ended up continuing for two more years.

- Your retirement match was on April 29, 1997, so it's been over 10 years now. In professional wrestling, it's become commonplace for people to return after retirement, isn't it? But you haven't stepped into the ring and had a match even once. I think that's amazing.

Kudome: I've done everything I could. I still like pro wrestling, but I've convinced myself that it's something I should never do. So I don't want to do it, and I've never even considered what it would be like if I did. I had decided that I would never step into the ring (after retirement), and many people told me, "Kudo-san, please don't step into the ring after you retire." Toyoda had the same idea, but she did appear in Onita's shows, didn't she? That was because she was asked and couldn't refuse, but when a senior wrestler offered her a spot in the recent Gokuaku Domei show, Toyoda happened to be there with me. Toyoda readily said yes, so I said, "What?! Why did you say yes so easily?!" and she said, "I don't understand why I've been so stubbornly refusing until now. Lately, I've changed my mind and now I think there's no reason to refuse, and it's fine as long as it's fun." Hearing that, I realized that's how it is. People tell me that since Toyoda did it, it should be my turn next, but for me, there's absolutely no choice. I've decided I'm never going to do it, so there's no question of what to do, and I don't even think about it. When Onita-san held his show, he got angry and said, "Why won't you appear when I've been asking you so much!", but even then, the best I could do was get in the ring as a referee. Even being a referee wasn't really something I wanted to do, but I felt indebted to him for everything up until then, so it was a last resort. When I hear what Toyoda is saying, I wonder why I'm so bad at (making a comeback)... Hmm, I think it's closer to not wanting to do it than not wanting to do it at all.

- Everyone says at that point, "I'm absolutely never coming back," right? But that "absolute" gradually crumbles. That's why I think it's difficult to protect it unless you have a very strong belief within yourself.

Kudome: I wasn't doing "fun pro wrestling" just because I was doing death matches, was I? So those kinds of matches aren't what people want from me. But if I came back now, I wouldn't be able to do death matches like I used to, so I think I'd end up doing a different kind of pro wrestling than what people want from me. It would probably end up being a situation where I'd be showing pro wrestling that's more of a status update, but I can't do that. If I were told to choose between an OG match with retired wrestlers and a death match, I think I'd still choose the death match. But that's not realistic, is it? That's why I think coming back isn't an option for me.

- You've had tons of offers up until now, haven't you? People wanting you to appear just once.

Kudome: Yes, I have. I sometimes get calls from promoters saying things like, "We're doing an event for so-and-so, would you be willing to appear?"

- Don't you have any desire to experience the cheers of the audience and the spotlight you felt back then again?

Kudome: No. I still have the memories of the cheers I received back then. I've experienced them enough. If I could experience something that surpasses that, I might become interested, but what I've experienced is enough for me. I don't think there's anything better than that. Besides, I don't want to get in the ring without training. Everyone says, "You've retired, so you should just accept it and enjoy pro wrestling." That's what I hate the most. I think it's fine to watch, and if fans remember those times and feel nostalgic, then that gives them a happy time, so I think that's a good thing. And I think Maedomari had a lot of courage and determination to get in the ring the other day, so I think that's amazing...

- So, it's 100% impossible in the future?

Kudome: Yeah... Hido also thinks that he doesn't want a retired person to get in the ring. If that's the case, why not just say "taking a break" instead of easily saying "retirement"? However, it's not that I'm saying I won't do it because Hido is stopping me out of dislike; even if he told me I could, I probably wouldn't. I wonder if I'm being stubborn? I wonder if I'm being selfish.

- I think it's a normal choice. Because you're never going to do it again, the image you had when you quit will live on in the minds of your fans. If you were to appear even once, that image would be shattered.

Kudome: That's true.

- However, I think there are circumstances that force people to return. This is something you can answer if you want, but right now, your husband is away from the ring in that situation, right? Even if the financial situation within the family becomes difficult, would you still be able to stick to your beliefs?

Kudome: ...I don't think I would. If I did, Hido would have to bear a heavy burden, thinking it was all his fault. If I were in financial difficulty, I think I would just work steadily and diligently like a normal person.

- Have you always been the type to stick with something once you've decided on it?

Kudome: I've been pretty much like that. I'm the type who doesn't change my mind unless something really drastic happens. If I'm forcing myself to do something, my resolve might fade over time, but I think I've been able to continue because it's something I don't want to do.

- The nine years you were a professional wrestler is just a fleeting moment in your life, isn't it? How does the fact that you were able to burn so brightly during that brief period fit into your life afterward?

Kudome: When something happens, it becomes a source of support for me. In my current daily life, it gives me confidence from what I've gained... Of course, it wasn't all good, but even amidst all that, I was able to continue doing what I love, professional wrestling. I think it's keeping me going in those unseen ways. Because I was able to do that much, I think I should be able to do this other thing besides professional wrestling. When I did my first stage performance, I couldn't do anything and caused trouble for a lot of people. I didn't have the basics, and I had to stop a lot of practice time, so it was really uncomfortable. I wondered if I even belonged there. Even so, I've wrestled in many large venues and performed in front of many people, so I felt I had to perform with confidence in this venue as well, and that's how I approached the role.

- In the future, while primarily focusing on being a housewife, are there any other things you'd like to do as an artist?

Kudome: I'm not really thinking about that right now. That's because the president of the agency I used to belong to was very kind to me, understood my wrestling, and thoughtfully considered how to incorporate wrestling-related work and jobs that would utilize my past experience. But then the president passed away... The agency closed down for the time being, and now I'm in the process of talking to new agencies through various connections, but the death of the president has had a huge impact on me, and I can't seem to move forward; it's become a heavy burden. So, even though I should be more proactive in talking to the agencies I'm currently in discussions with... I feel more at ease living my current life than pursuing entertainment, so I've asked them to wait a bit. I don't have a strong desire to actively pursue entertainment activities. When the company president passed away, a lot of people around me died one after another. Before that, I hadn't really experienced the deaths of many acquaintances; my grandparents hadn't died either. So, I'd never really thought deeply about death except when Mr. Arai died, and it suddenly felt so imminent, and I was terrified. Then my husband got sick... there was a time when he was in very poor health, and I heard a loud crash in the house, and he'd collapsed. He couldn't even eat for a while, and it continued to happen to the point where I thought he might never recover. After that, I couldn't express myself emotionally. Now I've found my rhythm with work, so I've gotten over it, but at the time, I felt like I was going crazy.

- So, your desire as an artist disappeared, and you settled down as a housewife? But isn't that the ideal for a female professional wrestler? To settle down properly into family life.

Kudome: Oh, I want to be a mom too. I'm a little late to the party (laughs). I'm already satisfied with just having a dog... Oh, that's right, there's something I'd like to do related to my dog. This is really just a dream of mine, but these days there aren't many places where dogs can play freely, are there? You absolutely have to breed them, and that creates a lot of conflict between dog lovers and non-dog lovers. In that situation, you can't let them run around freely. But you want to let dogs run around to their heart's content without bothering anyone, right? I have a dream of creating such a place. I want land for that (laughs).

- Well, you'll just have to keep wrestling and earn money then. That's a joke, of course. If you wanted to earn money, you'd do other jobs.

Kudome: When I think about it, I really feel like I was able to do it at the right time and quit at the right time. There's nothing better than that, so I really shouldn't do it again.

- In this day and age, a retirement match at Yokohama Arena is unthinkable.

Kudome: I want to send off the wrestlers I've worked with in a good way. It was the same with Nakayama (Kaori), but the day will come when Tsuchiya retires, and we've been talking about how we won't do anything with Toyoda when that day comes. Tsuchiya isn't the type to initiate something like that herself. As for my feelings about women's pro wrestling as a whole, all I can say right now is that I hope the fans will watch over us with warm eyes. I myself can't do anything anymore since I've retired, but my love for pro wrestling, especially women's pro wrestling, hasn't changed, so I hope that what I love will spread even further.

- It seems like Hido's return is imminent, and we hope you'll come and watch us at the venue once things have settled down.

Kudome: Of course! I'd be grateful if people understood that I'm not coming back because I love it, not because I hate it.