Maki Ito & Kian Furusawa suffer a crushing defeat against the Goddess Champions, but declare, "We don't just want to take the belt, we're going to take it!" / February 22nd Kobe Tournament Report

Maki Ito and Kian Furusawa, who hold the top two spots in the "World's Cutest Ranking," have vowed to make a full-fledged entry into the tag team championship scene

At "STARDOM in KOBE 2026 Feb." on February 22nd (Kobe Art Center), they faced the Goddesses of Stardom Champions BMI2000 (Natsuko Tora & Ruanka). Furusawa was caught in a difficult situation after Tora called her "ugly!", the last thing anyone would want to hear in the world, but Ito fought back, shouting "Who's the cutest in the world? Ito-chan!" and delivering a knuckle strike, then followed up with a diving body attack on both of her opponents

Furthermore, Ito caught Tora with a reverse figure-four leglock, and Furusawa caught Ryuka with an ankle lock, creating opportunities, but Furusawa was crushed by Ryuka. In the end, Furusawa was hit with Ryuka's freezer bomb and was pinned

Backstage after the match, Ito comforted Furusawa, saying, "Are you okay? I'm sorry I couldn't come to help you, Master," to which Furusawa responded with tears in his eyes

"I want to fight alongside my mentor. I want to one day go for that glittering belt that the two BMI members are waiting for, together with my mentor, so I want to get stronger and work hard to win it!"

Acknowledging his disciple's resolve, Ito declared firmly, "The Ito Respect Army doesn't just want to take the belt, they *will* take it!"

Finally, the two engaged in their usual banter: "Who's the cutest in the world?" "Ito-chan!" "Who's the second cutest in the world?" "Kian-chan!" "I know!" They then left, saying, "Let's go eat some delicious food in Kobe."