In the wake of the announcement of EVIL departing NJPW, Tokyo Sports just published comments from his fellow Torturer Ren Narita.
Below is my translation of the part that’s most relevant and includes Ren’s statements. I just skipped over the opening where they explain that EVIL’s leaving NJPW and is rumored to go to WWE, and Ren is challenging for Aaron Wolf’s NEVER title at New Beginning Osaka on February 11th.
I am fluent enough in Japanese to be comfortable posting something I’ve translated, but am not above making errors; so I welcome corrections from anyone who’s more fluent.
The afternoon of the 26th, when the shocking news [of EVIL leaving NJPW] was broadcast, this reporter's smartphone rang. On the screen was not the four demonic letters of “EVIL,” instead it was one character of "蓮 [Ren]"…
Narita, who dared to be the one to make a statement about the departure of the unit leader, said, "It's obvious to everyone that [EVIL] won all the titles and belts and did everything he could in New Japan. We all know that he has moved on to the next stage," he said on behalf of EVIL, who has been silent since he left [NJPW].
When asked about the future of H.O.T Ren declared, "We’re not going anywhere. I'm not going to explain the details to the likes of you, but I took over what EVIL left behind, including his philosophy. Nothing [H.O.T] does will change. We will only embody the King of Sports, continue to serve justice
fair-and-square, just as we always have." [[Personal note: I still don’t know why sometimes Reddit just blanks out portions of text and makes me add line breaks in order to make the text visible?]]
In addition, Narita threw out a stay bullet, "What I can't forgive, by the way, is that bastard Wolf… he spoiled EVIL's last hurrah…". Wolf, the Tokyo Olympic judo 100-kilogram gold medalist, made his professional wrestling debut against EVIL at the Tokyo Dome tournament on the 4th. He won by referee stop with an inverted triangle choke, claiming the NEVER title… “[EVIL] was supposed to leave New Japan as a champion, but what the hell was that? [Wolf] bribed the so-called “referee” to stop the match early, even though EVIL was still able to fight.”
Of course, there is no evidence that Wolf paid off the referee, and when you watch the match, it was clear EVIL had seemingly passed out. However, Narita egotistically claimed, “Not only did he steal the belt, he also took away from the little time we had left to see EVIL [in NJPW]. This is a mortal sin. It must have had a great impact on the TV broadcast, because if EVIL had been able to secure the comeback victory he deserved, the viewership would definitely have been in the double-digits.” [meaning 10+ million viewers, as opposed to the 3.5 million the broadcast did]
"A gold medalist with such unsportsmanlike conduct, he needs to be sanctioned. Greedy, selfish cowards aren’t qualified to hold a belt, you idiot! Do you understand? Remember it well. [“よく覚えとけ” EVIL’s catchphrase.]” with that final shot, [Narita] ended the call abruptly.
Since its inception, H.O.T. has been wreaking havoc on the mats of New Japan with all manner of evil. The demonic fight that the King of Darkness birthed and nurtured has been passed down to the remaining members, and the cycle of fear and hatred will never stop.
by EffingKENTA