Kaito Jiraiya

Kaito (real name Kaito Jiraiya) is a professional wrestler employed by Total Non-Stop Wrestling since 2004. He is the current TNW World Heavyweight champion, and only person in the company to hold the title on more than one occasion. He is also a former TNW Ultimate X champion. Originally from Naha, Okinawa, Japan, he has been wrestling in America on and off for the past 5 years.

Profile

Name: Kaito Jiraiya

Aliases: J!, Jiraiya, Kaito

Nicknames: Japanese Hero, Rising Son, Black Dragon

Birthday: January 4, 1982

Place of Birth: Hanishina-gun, Nagano, Japan

debuted: January 4, 1999 at Ariake Coliseum

years pro: 8

height: 173cm (5ft 9in)

weight: 86.3kg (190 lbs)

History

It wasn't until 1999 that Kaito got his start in the wrestling world at age 17. It was then that he was signed to New Japan. Here, he had his first few matches under the masked identity of "J!"... "J!" being New Japan's adaptation of a superhero. Under this name, "J!" would concentrate more on his superhero poses than he would his opponents. He would assume this identity for three months before ultimately losing his mask in a Mask vs Career match against Kenji Yasutoko. To this day, Kaito considers Kenji Yasutoko to be an ally after having helped him finally rid himself of the masked identity.

His next role in New Japan would be that of his actual self. This time he would be known only by his last name, "Jiraiya". This would be the identity that made him well known throughout the Japanese wrestling circuit. "Jiraiya" was simply put a "samurai possessed." He would approach every match in samurai-like attire with the intention of fighting until he could not fight anymore. It was this act of bravery that catapulted him up in the rankings in New Japan. Under this identity, he would go on to win the Jr. Heavyweight championship a total of 6 times and spark feuds with Tiger Mask and Jushin Thunder Liger. While wrestling for New Japan, Jiraiya would make several appearances in other promotions as well. Most notably All Japan and Michinoku Pro.

But it wasn't until March of 2001 that Jiraiya was approached by a wrestling promoter from America about a possible stint overseas in a company known as Xtreme Street Fighting. Jiraiya, age 19 at the time, was uneasy about wrestling in a place that he wasn't familiar with, but he took the offer anyway. The company got its start at the same time that Jiraiya's American wrestling career began. Within two weeks after making his American debut, Jiraiya became the first-ever XSF Heavyweight champion by dethroning Mike Kinkade on the first episode of XtremEMeasureZ. However, the title reign would only last a week as he would lose it to FastFashion at the following XtremEMeasureZ show. Jiraiya would spend a year wrestling for the promotion and ultimately go on to win the International Title on 2 separate occasions, as well as secure the Tag Team titles on 3 different occasions (with different partners each time). Thus becoming the most decorated wrestler in XSF history.

About halfway through his stint in XSF, Jiraiya was contacted by a small independednt promotion about working a few shows with them. The promotion was an offspring of the original Global Wrestling Federation of America (GFWA) called GFWA Omega, or "gO" for short. No sooner had he entered the promotion in November 2001, Jiraiya was immediately thrown into the Omega Championship picture by competing for the belt against Jonny Casanova. He would win the title amidst a ton of controversy and would spend the next month proving himself to be worthy of the title. He would finish off the year having proved his worth but ultimately losing the Omega Championship to Angelica Dawson on New Year's Eve. Jiraiya would continue to compete in the promotion for 6 more months and become involved in a Triple Crown rally for the coveted Triple Crown Titles... which consisted of a Junior Title, a TV Title, and an Extreme Title. At the close of the company, Jiraiya would ultimately win the Triple Crown Titles.