Narration: Hello and welcome to After The Bell, the series where we explore some of the most fascinating wrestlers, road stories, and controversies of the ring. If you like us, please like and subscribe especially if you enjoy this week's topic as we're doing a rare two-parter due to the long, complicated, and crazy history of our subjects of this episode, Kuroi Hitsuji, the black sheep of Japanese Wrestling, Minoru Tanahashi and Koji Hamaguchi. I had this episode on the back burner, but with their re-emergence as a team as well as the fact they have traveled over to the good ole U S of A for a stint, it made them a much more exciting topic. In this episode, we'll explore the early stages, the first meeting, the first team up, their many short-term splits, and their travels, with stories straight from the men themselves.

Koji Hamaguchi: I thought he was an asshole.

We fade in on a small simple studio with Koji Hamaguchi and Minoru Tanashi sitting in some black chairs just leaning back, Minoru laughing as Koji just starts off with that.

Koji Hamaguchi: He comes in and just starts doing every drill perfectly, not even breathing hard, barely breaks a damn sweat for the first hour. I wanted to chop him in the throat.

Minoru Tanahashi: At that point, I had spent three years in various dojo systems. They were all different, but the basic drills don’t change. I could have done those in my sleep and I’ve always just been ridiculously athletic.

Koji Hamaguchi: See, asshole. Though he did get better after I talked to him.

Fancy screen dissolve as we shift to a small wrestling dojo, a simple ring in the middle of the room, no skirts, hard concrete floors, some old-looking free weights along one wall, and a few battered punching bags along the other wall. Inside this area, we see the After The Bell actors portraying the two wrestlers in their younger days as the head of the dojo introduces them.

Sensei: Koji, this is Minoru and he is officially your problem from now until I say otherwise. I told you not to do that fucking springboard corkscrew shooting star to the outside. You’re gonna break your damn neck and you were in the second match.

The angry old wrestler shakes his head and storms off as Koji appears to be sizing Minoru up.

Koji: Minoru huh? Wait, Tanahashi? The kid who’s been kicked out of what eleven dojos?

Minoru: It’s only seven.

Minoru is quick to correct him, but Koji just laughs.

Koji: Seven, eleven, whatever. Tell me how you did it while I show you around the dojo. Then we’ll go and get some dinner at this little place I know. Your treat.

Koji doesn’t wait for an answer as he just starts strolling his way through the dojo.

Minoru: Fine, the first one wasn’t exactly happy about me giving two young ladies a tour of the dojo that ended in my sleeping area. The second… basically the same thing but it was one of the other trainee's sisters. The third one they absolutely overreacted, I was just trying to get the dojo some more attention. They had a cool name and logo so I sold some shirts. I had to recoup expenses and make a little bit for my time and effort. The fourth one is the same as the first. Fifth, I might have snuck in an extreme amount of alcohol for a birthday celebration. The Sixth was also for sneaking women in and the last one was total bullshit. A bunch of vets got mad at me because I took a bunch of money off them in a poker game.

Koji stops, turns around, and looks at Minoru for a second.

Koji: So sex, alcohol, gambling, and you understand marketing and merchandise? You can be my friend.

Koji laughs and offers a high five to Minoru who just laughs and accepts as we go back to them in the studio.

Minoru Tanashi: Not even lying, that’s exactly how it went.

Koji Hamaguchi: I like sex, alcohol, and gambling, and two of those always require a steady influx of cash.

Minoru Tanahashi: So he spent the next six months or so making my life hell, then beat the shit out of me in my official debut.

Once more with the fancy dissolve, this time we go into a small wrestling hall, maybe two hundred fans, a basic grey mat, black ring skirt, black ropes ring, and an even more simple entrance area. Some generic rock music starts up as the young actor portraying Minoru Tanashi comes out in basic black gear to almost no fanfare. “Koji Hamaguchi” is out next in some colorful green and pink gear as his music plays and the fans cheer along. The bell sounds and immediately Minoru is taken down with a dropkick. Most of the match is shown in a blurred sort of montage, but we do see Koji deliver his signature Somewhere Over The Rainbow (Yoshi Tonic) move with Minoru barely kicking out. Minoru is shown delivering a blistering lariat before Koji lands Do A Barrel Roll (Rolling Koppou Kick), the setup for The Sky Is Falling (Shooting Star Press) which secures him the 1, 2, 3 as we fade back to the studio.

Minoru Tanahashi: We really didn’t have to go through all that.

Koji Hamaguchi: I did beat him pretty good, but he hit a lariat that had me woozy for a little bit, got in a few nice moves after that. He was still stuck doing the basic shit, but he hung in there and that’s when I decided we could team up a bit.

Back to the same wrestling hall as before with a team of wrestlers clad in matching red and gold trunks awaits Koji and Minoru who come out to Koji’s music. Koji now in blue and orange while Minoru is still in basic black. Again we see a slightly blurred montage of the match with a few bright spots like a double suplex, and a back suplex from Minoru followed by a beautiful springboard frog splash from Koji that almost gets the victory. After it’s broken up, there’s a bit more action until Minoru is snatched up by the team who deliver a double vertical drop brainbuster, just spiking Minoru down and getting the pin.

Koji Hamaguchi: Yea that happened quite a bit in the early going. After this asshole got out of the dojo and got to do his own thing though, he started finding some success. We got paired up for some weird tag team tournament. All random teams, we just lucked out.

We fade into a somewhat larger hall, the setup remains very similar, though the entrance area is a bit nicer. The same team from Koji and Minoru’s first time teaming is in the ring and much like last time Koji’s music starts up, but this time the duo come out both in red and sky blue gear, matching for the occasion while keeping their own looks. Koji and Minoru start off with dropkicks to both followed by stereo snap suplexes, and stereo enziguris to rock their larger opponents. More blurred montage footage until the pair hits Koji with a double urange backbreaker and covers only for Minoru to break it up. More of the montage before Koji and Minoru connect with a German suplex/running European uppercut for a near fall. This time the pair manage to send one of their opponents out of the ring and Koji quickly hits a backstabber that sends the opponent forward into Minoru who delivers Kabukicho Nights (Discus Lariat) and scores the pin for his team.

Minoru Tanahashi: We actually did really well in that tournament. Made it to the semi-finals before losing to Klan Kawado.

Narration: The pair would team sporadically and usually found success while both were also rising up the singles ranks. Twenty-thirteen would see the two split as Koji Hamaguchi in what would become a bit of a trademark move for him, sought out other challenges in the newly formed Kitsune Wrestling League, with his high-flying style making him an instant star in the fledgling promotion. Minoru Tanahashi meanwhile would once again find his philanderous way hurting his career as he was run out of Puroresu No Shi after being caught with the eighteen-year-old daughter of the companies head referee.

Minoru Tanahashi: That one was not my fault. That’s what she wanted from me for her birthday, who was I to say no? Maybe if someone wouldn’t have bailed on me, he could have talked me out of it.

Koji Hamaguchi: Me talk you out of fucking an attractive woman? HAHAHAHA, shut up. It was okay though. He went over to Europe, no doubt slept his way across the continent, and about six months later I showed up in, what was it High Impact Pro Wrestle, we teamed up and made the finals of their annual Tag Turmoil Tournament.

Another highlight reel package, this time showing the two in various British and European promotions delivering scintillating combo moves, Minoru often hitting a high impact move and Koji following up with beautiful high flying.

Minoru Tanahashi: But then this fucker decided he wanted to go back to Japan, and join the asshole in Inspire Puroresu.

Koji Hamaguchi: Seriously? Are you still pissy that Kuroki wouldn’t hire you? You hooked up with both of his sisters.

Minoru Tanahashi: Not at the same time.

Tanahashi seems to think he’s making a point, but Koji just shakes his head.

Koji Hamaguchi: Hey you did fine on your own, and I didn’t have to worry about you landing me in an Italian prison, again.

Minoru Tanahashi: One time we ended up in Italian jail, and don’t forget that you’re the reason we went to jail in Germany.

Narration: The duo would not team up again until the fall of Twenty-Fifteen when they found themselves together in the growing Federación Premier de Lucha Libre, quickly becoming standouts in a small but competitive tag team division.

Koji Hamaguchi: Mexico was a lot of fun, especially the matches with the Magnifico brothers and the Spanish Superflys. The big moment was of course winning Campenatos De Parejeas off of Hellspawn and Ángel de la Muerte.

Minoru Tanahashi: That was actually the first time we used the move now called Chico’s Monkey Farm, though they called it león volador

More blurry montage footage as we see Minoru and Koji come out in red and white gear while two masked wrestlers await them in the ring. A double Russian leg sweep followed by Koji hitting a Tope Con Hilo and Minoru connecting with Akihabara Dreams (Yakuza Kick) scores them a near fall. More quick back and forth until their opponents drop Koji with a poisonrana/diving foot stomp combo, almost securing the pin until Minoru is in to break it up at the last second. Stereo tope suicidas are the next highlight until Minoru is dropped by a double DDT and almost pinned off a 450 splash from Hellspawn. The final comes when Koji takes out Hellspawn on the outside with a suicide tornado DDT as Minoru delivers the Lion's Claw (Emerald Flowsion) and rolls off so Koji can connect with The Sky Is Falling (Shooting Star Press), making the cover as Minoru keeps watch and the secure the 1, 2, 3.

Minoru Tanahashi: We had a pretty good run with those belts, five, almost six months, and nearly a dozen defenses. When we lost them though, this fucker went right back to Japan and we didn’t have another tag title run until twenty seventeen when we returned to Puroresu No Shi. We can save that for the next chapter though, because that wasn’t the next time we were paired together, and we might actually have a little surprise as we talk about our run as a trio.

Minoru grins as Koji rolls his eyes and sighs.

Koji Hamaguchi: Please tell me you didn’t call that douchebag? He’s the reason I nearly got shanked in a Mexican prison.

Minoru Tanahashi: He’s also the reason we’re two of the only people who can say we were Federación Premier de Lucha Libre tag and trios champs, and why we won trios gold in Japan and Australia. That is for the next episode of After The Bell.

Minoru smirks and winks as the video fades out, but we still have Minoru and Koji in the studio as Minoru has fired up his phone.

Minoru Tanahashi: Kon'nichiwa bitches. The Black Raion Minoru Tanahashi here with my partner in crime, the uncontrollable wild man himself, Koji Hamaguchi.

Koji just waves as he relaxes in his chair.

Minoru Tanashi: We just finished up something that we think all our fans will enjoy, but not gonna reveal it yet. Instead, we figured we should talk a bit about this little event coming up July twenty-second, twenty-third and twenty-fourth live from New York City at the incredible, amazing, fabulously fantastic Velvet Rabbit, that’s right I am talking about the Cannabis Cup Twenty-Twenty-Two. Three nights of wrestling, musical performances, and who knows what else.

Koji Hamaguchi: Were wrestling on the twenty-fourth against… it’s some big guy and some other guy.

Minoru Tanahashi: John Cable and THE Tristan Slater. Do you think he’s part of that beautification group or whatever? They do that THE thing as well. Better hope they don’t try and sue him or something.

Koji Hamaguchi: Pretty sure anyone can do that. Hey look, we’re now THE Kuroi Hitsuji, boom just happened.

Minoru laughs a little bit while Koji just keeps relaxing.

Minoru Tanahashi: I’m not gonna lie, we don’t know a lot about these two, but they probably don’t know a lot about us either. It doesn’t really change our strategy one bit. We’ve got experience, technical skill, I’ve got the power, he’s got the speed, and we’re not afraid to fight dirty.

Koji Hamaguchi: Do we really need to talk about this? Let’s just like go get some barbecue or something. We’re gonna kick ass like we always do, wow the fans, and make all the people who don’t know us, want to know us.

Minoru Tanahashi: They expect this kind of stuff, and besides you know how much I like to talk trash. We have had a busy day though, so we’ll leave it at this. Cable, Slater, I hope you two are prepared to face the best tag team you’ve never heard of. I hope you two are prepared for your inevitable face fucking, and I really hope you two are prepared when every woman you know asks you for our numbers.

Minoru grins and winks before both flip the bird and end their promo, quickly uploading it to all forms of social media.