On 4 January 2006, Akebono appeared in New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) alongside Yutaka Yoshie in a match against Black Strong Machine & Hiro Saito, coming out victorious. Later that month, Akebono competed for Pro Wrestling NOAH, teaming up with his old friend Takeshi Rikio to defeat Junji Izumida and Kenta Kobashi. After the match, Akebono announced that he had been hired by NJPW and was congratulated by Rikio, promising to team again in the future, which never happened due to Rikio having to retire due to his injuries in 2010.