Translation done by the Hologram Sports Research Foundation.
--April 26th, 7 p.m., Shin-Kiba. The Shirikami faith disbandment draws near
H: At last it's coming. The disbandment that is...
--Why did you decide to disband it?
H: At the last event, I waged that if I lost, we'd disband. Well, I went and lost. I lost because hands of a traitor, Yako Fujigasaki.
--That's sad. As a fan, it's a shock. What would you like to display at the final event?
H: The traitors need to be put in their place. All the opponents in the last match are all traitors! It will be a bloodfilled brawl.
--That'll surely be a gruesome affair. Your opponents will be Fujigasaki, Jun Kasai and finally, Gabaijiichan. I can't make sense what kind of game plan they'll have.
H: Until now, I've been planning who fought with who. But I haven't had my believers fight me before. We've never had all the believers in one match, so it'll be rare. We've made the decision of the match, but we followers rarely fight each other. Of note, this match is my first match with Gabaijiichan.
--I'm sure you keep an eye on the match, but Gabaijiichan's moves are something to look out for.
H: It's really fun to pummel the wrestler you don't like, but I didn't believe it would come back to bite me.
--Kasai has fought in the dark world numerous times. What kind of opponent do you feel he'd be?
H: He's fought for us too. During his battles, he said that "i'll follow our leader" but eventually, he fell in love with Yako.
--That's a bit of an overstatement
H: I wonder. It's not good though. Kasai has no morals. He said he'd follow me, but as soon as I didn't look, he'd go running to Yako's bosom. Since he's affiliated with her, he's an formidable enemy. The one with the most battle potential is him, after all.
--How about the traitor Fujigasaki?
H: You really don't hold back..
--She's known as the visual hunter in various promotions
H: She's everywhere. She invades my territory, she's in WAVE, in Oz Academy and Senjo. Yako travels all the way to Sendai! She's getting booked places, so she feels fine alone. Yet, she was raised in our stable and her ungratefulness will not go unpunished.
--What's your impression of Toru Owashi, your partner in this match?
H: He's taken care of Yako in the past well, that was something he could be entrusted with. I don't trust him in the match though.
--And of course, Manami Toyota, who announced her intention to retire, will be your partner in the last match.
H: It all happened last year, when I had a match with Toyota at Oz Academy. She also used a hip attack and we discussed if this was something that would fit Shirikami. At last years shirikami event, she had a match with Gabaijiichan. That match had a stipulation, that if she won, she'd be allowed to join. That lead to her joining us. She was the saddest of all our followers. "But I only got to appear two times," she said. That was with the timing of her retirement announcement. I have deep respect for Toyota and I'm grateful to even have a match with her, let alone more. After all, this is the last.
--You will compete in two matches. You will face the Ace of NOAH, Marufuji, in the main event.
H: At first, I wanted to do a really outlandish challenge. Ever since I became a freelancer, I felt I developed with every single event I held. I'll be joining MAKAI from now and be able to make new comrades. I can't say it being all nice and easy, but it really gives you a relieved feel. I wanted to do this challenge for myself, since I felt that I have to take on an extravagant challenge.
--Marufuji took the Best Bout award at the last Pro-Wrestling awards. He's a formidable event in the biz, even for men.
H: It really is Hikaru Shida's Great Adventure. Actually, I first announced the Marufuji match first and I thought all 6 of us could beat Marufuji easily. After the announcement, I decided that we should disband. But I am prepared. I feel like it's a great timing to do this. After becoming a freelancer, I became a butt-based character and I will throw that away at your disbandment event. Just after that,
I will have a main event. I feel like it's a perfect timing. I will show a change in attitude.
--Marufuji already sent a threat that "You better prepare, if you're doing 2 matches."
(Marufuji's tweet: I'm having a match with Hikaru Shida on April 26th, but she's having a match just before that match. Huh, I see. I won't go easy! Be prepared!)
H: Was that a threat? It might seem that it's a miscalculation, but I've done back-to-back matches before and after the last match of Shirikami, Hikaru Shida will be different. I'm able to settle all my rumbling feelings and concentrate fighting, so that's great. Of course, I'm scared too.
--Your signature maneuver was the hip attack. Depending on where you hit it, it can be really painful. What's the thing you should worry about that attack?
H: It's not something to take easily. Since I'm facing backwards, I need to make sure where I hit. It'd be great if I could make all my opponents fly. I really use that move with pride.
--Someone who's not used to using that move would end up looking like a shrimp.
H: One time when I tagged with Ohata and Mizunami and I had them do the move too. Ohata's hip attack was beautiful. Mizunami looked like a fish out of water, when I looked at the pics of her hitting the move. It's hard to hit if you don't get used to it.
--When did you start using the hip attack?
When I had the gimmick of "Butt Artist". When I became a freelancer, I needed a buzzword to gather attention so I decided to focus on my butt. From that point on, I'd put butt pics on twitter and just write stuff about butts. I didn't use hip attacks at that time, but Kana (ASUKA) said to me "If you love your butt that much, why don't you use the hip attack?", which made me come to a realization.
--How did you manage to know how to hit it?
H: Since you are facing backwards to the opponent, hitting it was hard. Kana used a hip attack, but that was a completely different move. Kana knew how and when to hit it, thanks to practice. I usually try to aim the face.
--Your hip attack is very high and has a long reach. The way you hit it makes you really look like a religious leader. Leading the Shirikami faith really suits you. Do you feel like your having fun with it?
H: It's fun. It was fun..
--That's a sad way to put it. After the disbandment, a new Hikaru Shida will begin. What do you think Shirikami faith is when you look back?
H: When I became a freelancer, i had my first self-produced event 3 months in. It was called "let's go by the butt train!". The butt is something that grew with me. Since the word butt became associated, I started picking up new things and I paid attention on certain things. Since Hikaru Shida grew together with The Butt, It has become that Hikaru Shida equals to the Shirikami faith. After all that is gone makes me worry about what is left. That uneasiness is the same for the fans. "Since she's no longer focused on the butt, there's no point in watching her" is a viewpoint I've heard. At the final event, I want to clear all uneasy feels of those people. I want to make a distinction between the old and new. And ultimately, I want all the believers to thank The Butt with tears in their eyes.
--Will you continue using the hip attack after this?
H: I will seal it with the conclusion of this event. I haven't used that move ever since the disbandment was sannounced. I'll only use it at this event, so It'll be the final time to see the hip attack. If that move wasn't there, it would be weird. Yelling out at the beginning of the match about the power of the butt is a way to make the fans feel pumped up.
--Hip Attack is something that changed your style. Since you're sealing it, you have to increase your base.
H: I'm thinking about moves to subsitute it, but I still haven't found one.
--You're strong, so why not use some power moves?
H: That's the first worrying point for me. When I'm wrestling men, I'm unable to use my power. Usually, my moves are power based, so I want to become more able to use moves that aren't power based. For times like when I can't be using my power. That made me feel that I need to evolve my fight style.
--It looks like it's time for "Hikaru Shida 2.0". You'll seal the butt as a weapon, but I look forward to seeing what you will change it for. What do you feel about the current version of yourself?
H: There's currently a prompt that says "Please update to 3.0". I still haven't installed that update.
--Going to 3.0 is pretty nice.
I have to do it. I don't want to roll back to 1.0, so I have to move forward and I want to do it at this event.
--In terms of an event producer, what are your highlights?
H: For the matches, we're having a "butt battle royale". Everyone appearing in that match has a butt that I feel looks good. Since it's the last event, I want to make it a festive event, so I came up with special rules. When a song plays during the match, during that time only hip attacks are allowed. Since it's mostly people who haven't done hip attacks, It'll be fun to see what kind of hip attacks they'll do. I also look forward to the live Pinky Milky will have. Ranmaru and Syuri and I will perform as an idol-like unit. I think we'll do it in the future too.
--You are doing this in high spirits.
H: I'm in high spirits. I'm doing my best. Shuri is a great dancer, so the choreography is done by her. The song is by my brother, Tsubasa Shida.
--Who came up with the idea at first?
H: Ranmaru. We first did it at Ranmaru festa and it had an overwhelmingly good reception.
--As Togi Makabe of NJPW has done, it's important for a wrestler to be in line with the current pop culture. When a wrestler has something that exceeds pro-wrestling, it really makes them stand out better
H: It would be fun to tag with Syuri and sing and dance while doing it.
--You have variety and beauty, that's great. Please do it at MAKAI events too.
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