BUSHI undergoes surgery following his NJPW departure.
BUSHI and Tetsuya Naito wrapped up with New Japan Pro-Wrestling at the conclusion of the Wrestling Dontaku tour in early May.
A new update on BUSHI came by way of an interview he did with Tokyo Sports. He was hospitalized on May 8th so he could undergo surgery for vocal cord polyps. The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association has the following written on their site about vocal cord polyps:
Nodules and polyps are growths on your vocal folds. They can change the way your voice sounds.
Most of the time, vocal abuse or misuse causes nodules. Long-term vocal abuse can cause polyps, too. But polyps may happen after just one instance of vocal abuse, like yelling at a concert. Smoking cigarettes for a long time, thyroid problems, and reflux may also cause polyps.
BUSHI underwent surgery the day after Tetsuya Naito was discharged from the hospital after undergoing right eye surgery.
BUSHI stated that since November 2024, doctors told him the operation is something that vocalists often need. The surgery was not something BUSHI needed immediately, but he had been experiencing discomfort in matches and wanted to take the opportunity to get it done.
Since about November last year, the doctor told me that this is the kind of thing that often happens to vocalists. It wasn't malignant, and it wasn't an urgent surgery, but I was feeling some discomfort (during the matches) and it was hard, so I wanted to take this opportunity to have it done. Until now, I haven't been able to take long breaks because of my busy schedule.
As for BUSHI's in-ring future, 31-year veteran Kaz Hayashi tweeted about BUSHI's interview and confirmed his comment that he was contacted about coming to the GLEAT promotion. Hayashi serves as the promotion's Chief Technical Officer.
BUSHI said he'd go to GLEAT if Hayashi returned to the ring. Hayashi retired from in-ring competition in July 2024.
