Hiro Tonai

2.1. Debut and early career

Hiro Tonai's professional wrestling debut has been reported with two different dates. According to one account, he made his debut in Kaientai Dojo at K-DOJO Club-K Tour In Nagoya on May 26, 2006. In this match, he teamed with Saburo Inematsu in a losing effort against Miyawaki and Yoshiya in a tag team match. Another account states his debut occurred on November 19, 2006, at Kaientai Dojo's Chiba Blue Field against TAKA Michinoku.

2.2. Kaientai Dojo (2006-2018)

Tonai spent the majority of his career, twelve years, with Kaientai Dojo, where he became a prominent figure and won multiple championships.

He first won the Strongest-K Tag Team Championship alongside his "Little Galaxy" stablemate Yuki Sato at Club-K Super Overthrow on December 16, 2011, by defeating Ryuichi Sekine and Saburo Inematsu. He later held the titles a second time with another long-time Little Galaxy partner, Shiori Asahi, winning them at KAIENTAI DOJO's 10th Anniversary in Osaka on June 17, 2012, by defeating Saburo Inematsu and Yuji Hino.

Tonai also secured the Chiba Six Man Tag Team Championship alongside Yuki Sato and Shiori Asahi at Club-K Tour In Osaka on April 30, 2011. They became the inaugural champions by defeating Kaji Tomato, Marines Mask, and Taishi Takizawa in the finals of a championship determination tournament. His sole reign with the UWA World Middleweight Championship began at Club-K Super in Korakuen Hall on November 1, 2015, where he defeated Kaji Tomato.

In 2009, Tonai won the Kaientai Dojo Tag League with his 同期_dōki^Japanese (a term referring to colleagues or companions who started at the same time or graduated from the same class) Taishi Takizawa. However, in November 2009, during a Korakuen Hall event, Tonai unexpectedly betrayed his partner Takizawa late in a match and made a sudden heel turn, joining the MONSTER Plant stable. In the following week's event, he changed his appearance drastically, dyeing his hair blonde and switching from red short trunks to red long pants. His fighting style also became characterized by frequent use of rough tactics.

On December 25, 2010, at a loser-leaves-unit four-way tag match in Korakuen Hall, Tonai was defeated by the team of Oishi Makoto and Shiori Asahi, forcing him to leave MONSTER Plant. Subsequently, he began to act somewhat reluctantly with Oishi, Asahi, and Yuki Sato, a group that would eventually form the stable "Little Galaxy."

Tonai also participated in various other tournaments within the promotion, including the BO-SO Golden Tag Tournament, K-Metal League, and Kaioh Tournament. In 2015, alongside Taishi Takizawa and Kotaro Yoshino, he formed the stable Akatoha, aiming to defeat the rival stable Kyogetsu.

2.3. Japanese independent circuit

As a freelancer, Tonai made numerous appearances across the Japanese independent scene. He participated in one of the largest professional wrestling matches documented, a 108-person battle royal at Tenka Sanbun no Kei: Ōmisoka New Year's Eve Special on December 31, 2009. This was a cross-over event jointly promoted by Kaientai Dojo, Big Japan Pro Wrestling, and DDT Pro-Wrestling. The match, which featured many notable wrestlers such as Jun Kasai (who won the match), Thanomsak Toba, Great Kojika, Daikokubo Benkei, Sanshiro Takagi, Poison Sawada Julie, Kota Ibushi, and Kenny Omega, saw Tonai among the numerous competitors.

Tonai also competed in a massive 74-person tag team match at New Year's Eve Pro-Wrestling 2011. He was part of the winning team of thirty-seven wrestlers, including prominent figures like Abdullah Kobayashi, Daisuke Sekimoto, "Black Angel" Jaki Numazawa, Gentaro, Harashima, Shuji Ishikawa, and Kaji Burdock.

2.4. New Japan Pro-Wrestling (2007, 2012-2013)

Tonai briefly wrestled in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) as a developmental talent from Kaientai Dojo. He made his NJPW debut at NJPW Last Of CTU on August 26, 2007, where he teamed with Apple Miyuki, Daigoro Kashiwa, Taku Anzawa, and Teppei Ishizaka in a losing effort against the five rangers of the Control Terrorism Unit (CTU) stable.

He continued to make sporadic appearances for the company, particularly on the NEVER brand of events. His first appearance on a NEVER event was at NJPW NEVER.9 ~ Road To The Super Jr. Tournament on April 13, 2012, where he defeated Hiromu Takahashi in the first round before losing to Madoka in the semifinals two days later.

Tonai also participated in two nights of the NJPW Tokyo Game Show 2012. On September 21, he and Shiori Asahi, as "Little Galaxy," defeated Ryuichi Sekine and Saburo Inematsu. On September 23, Tonai secured a singles victory over Sekine. He also competed in the inaugural tournament for the NEVER Openweight Championship on November 15, 2012, where he was defeated by Ryusuke Taguchi in the first round.

Tonai made several appearances during the NJPW Road To The New Beginning 2013 tour. On February 2, he teamed with Suzuki-gun members Minoru Suzuki and Kengo Mashimo in a losing effort against Chaos (Kazuchika Okada, Shinsuke Nakamura, and Tomohiro Ishii). During this period, it was revealed that Tonai had been briefly recruited into Suzuki-gun by Taka Michinoku. His final appearance for NJPW took place at NJPW New Japan Road #1 on February 11, 2013, where he teamed with Suzuki-gun (Davey Boy Smith Jr., Lance Archer, and Taka Michinoku) to defeat Tencozy (Hiroyoshi Tenzan and Satoshi Kojima), Captain New Japan, and Tama Tonga.

2.5. Pro Wrestling Noah (2012-2014)

Hiro Tonai debuted in Pro Wrestling Noah by participating in their signature Global Junior Heavyweight Tag League.

In the 2012 edition of the league, he teamed with Shiori Asahi. They competed in Block A, earning four points against teams including Atsushi Kotoge and Taiji Ishimori, Atsushi Aoki and Kotaro Suzuki, Bobby Fish and Eddie Edwards, and Gastón Mateo and Kaiser. Despite not winning the league, Tonai and Asahi were recognized with a skill award.

They teamed again in the 2013 edition, competing in Block B where they scored two points. Their opponents included Jushin Thunder Liger and Tiger Mask, Yoshinari Ogawa and Zack Sabre Jr., Roderick Strong and Slex, and Daisuke Harada and Hitoshi Kumano. They also had single matches against TMDK (Mikey Nicholls & Shane Haste) and NO MERCY (KENTA & Takashi Sugiura).

Their final appearance in the competition was in the 2014 edition, where they scored four points in Block B. They faced Daisuke Harada and Quiet Storm, Atsushi Kotoge and Taiji Ishimori, Hitoshi Kumano and Mitsuhiro Kitamiya, and Jinzo and Rocky Lobo. In their final match, they lost to Jinzo and Rocky Lobo, failing to advance to the finals.

At NOAH One Day Cruise on May 3, 2014, Tonai and Asahi unsuccessfully challenged Atsushi Kotoge and Taiji Ishimori for the GHC Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship.

2.6. Other promotions

Tonai also competed in other promotions and one-off events. On January 4, 2014, he won the second edition of the Dave Finlay Cup, an event organized by Wrestling New Classic (WNC), defeating Koji Doi in the final with a leaping body scissors hold.

After relocating to Osaka, Tonai began to regularly participate in matches for Dotonbori Pro-Wrestling starting from May 20, 2016, alongside his appearances at Kaientai Dojo's Osaka events.

3.1. In-ring style and signature moves

Tonai's fighting style often included the use of rough tactics, especially after his heel turn in 2009. He was known for a diverse set of maneuvers.

His signature and finishing maneuvers include:

• Harai Goshi (払い腰^Japanese, "Sweeping hip throw")
• Dropkick
• Kid Clutch
• Armbar (腕固め^Japanese, "Arm hold")
• Takioshi (滝落とし^Japanese, "Waterfall Drop"): A lightning spiral executed from a back drop lift position.
• Hichoo Otoshi (飛鳥落とし^Japanese, "Flying Bird Drop"): A jumping high kick.

3.2. Entrance themes

Throughout his career, Hiro Tonai used the following entrance themes:

• First theme: "CHANGE!"
• Second theme: "Arm Killer"

5.1. Personal life

On March 26, 2016, Hiro Tonai announced his marriage and his decision to relocate to Osaka. This move meant that his regular appearances with Kaientai Dojo would conclude by April 29 of that year, with subsequent appearances primarily focused on Kaientai Dojo's Osaka events and Dotonbori Pro-Wrestling.

5.2. Other endeavors

Beyond his wrestling career, Tonai engaged in other activities. From 2015, he began selling handmade engraved glasses at Kaientai Dojo's merchandise stands. He also made television appearances, notably on Pro-Wrestling KING, which aired on GAORA.