Unmasked by Riki Fudo, December 14th, 1998 It's 9:30 in the morning and I'm out in the middle of this nice field, lots of green grass, nice big trees, y'know the kind of stuff poems are written about.  I'm watching the wrestler formerly known as Super Tengu repeatedly slam his shin against the trunk of a tree.  Now me, I'm fragile, my leg would've been broken after the first strike but Tetsuo Matsumoto?  Hell, this bastard is tough...  too tough. Just a month ago, Matsumoto was the talk of Super Japan Pro.  His threat of walking out on the federation sent Jumbo Kobayashi into a panic.  Matsumoto was tired of working as Super Tengu.  He was tired of wrestling in the Junior Heavyweight division.  Tetsuo Matsumoto wanted to thrive under his own name as a heavyweight. "This all started back last March", Matsumoto says to me over a sparse lunch, "I told both Yamashita and Jumbo that I was tired of the Tengu gimmick and after the Battlecade event wanted to take some time off to train for the Heavyweight ranks.  Well Jumbo went crazy, accused me of sabotaging the federation.  I gritted my teeth and kept on wrestling the Junior style but deep down "Heavyweight" was constantly the word in my head." As Tengu, Matsumoto wrestled his last match in the original Super Japan against Shinji Hamada in the now infamous best-of-three-falls cage match.  Then, Super Japan shut down for roughly four months.  When Kobayashi announced the fed would resume in September, Matsumoto was thrilled, or at least he thought he would be. "Jumbo asked me to come to his office and told me he needed me to help jump start the Welterweight division.  I sat there in disbelief.  I mean he knew I was there to tell him I wanted to wrestle Heavyweight but he was treating my like some rookie who didn't know the business.  All the great Juniors graduated to Heavyweight so why not me?  But he said that we could build the Welterweight crowd around me.  Again, I gnashed my teeth and agreed." Things started going sour when Kobayashi hired Kenshiro Matsumoto, Tetsuo's own Uncle, to keep him in line.  Tetsuo was furious and threatened to walk.  That led to the now infamous PN Magazine press release. "I had a sit down meeting with both Kenshiro and Kobayashi and told them flat out that I was leaving the Tengu gimmick as of December.  Jumbo threatened to fire me, Kenshiro said I was a disgrace to my family.  A disgrace?  Because I want to be myself?  I laid it out for them very simply, I was finished as Tengu by December or I'd jump to SHVF.  I went home angry and spent days waiting for a reply.  Then, Maiko called me." Maiko Asakino, Tetsuo's cousin, is known in the business as the most savvy negotiator for her talent.  She's caused more ulcers among wrestling executives than even Tetsuo.  When she wanted her Team Combattler in SJPW she would only agree to sign them if Kobayashi gave her a position on the Championship Committee.  The fact that Kobayashi agreed is a testament to her skill and power.  "She gave me a call and said 'Tetsuo leave everything to me, you'll get what you want and Jumbo won't have time to figure out what happened'.  I knew if anyone could get me what I wanted, it was Maiko." When the press release of Super Tengu's planned exit from Super Japan hit the stands, the wrestling world went crazy.  PN Magazine broke the story when Maiko Asakino called yours truly with the scoop.  After checking some sources, the article ran and suddenly, Matsumoto was the most sought after wrestler in Japan. "The phone wouldn't stop ringing.  Hadi Moditian called me three times in an hour, each time with a new deal.  Kasumi (Tetsuo's sister) called and said I should start my own promotion.  Even Keiji (Asamiya, another cousin) called and offered me a teaching position with 'Steel Wind Dojo'.  It was just insane!" Finally Kobayashi and Matsumoto agreed to one last meeting to patch up their differences.  Kobayashi gave Tetsuo what he desired most, freedom from his role as Tengu and an upgrade to Heavyweight. Matsumoto smiles when I ask him about his rumored new five year contract with SJPW.  He simply tells me that he can't discuss it but that he is once again pleased with his positioning in the company.  His first match back impressed many people and even though it was a draw already most are saying that Tetsuo Matsumoto wrestles more like his father every day.