It's unlikely, but I hope that Nakazawa will give Hashimoto and Sato a chance during one of the next Smash tournaments.
Oddly enough, Sato/Hashimoto's incredible match which they won against SYS/WYD seemed to mark the end (or near end) of the doubles pairing. From what I can remember, the only time they played doubles after that was at the following 2025 All Japan Doubles where they lost to Yuka Umemura/Maki Shiomi. Even when the two have been at the same tournament, they chose to pair with others... Honoka with Adrian Diaz and Hitomi with Saki Shibata (same T-League team). They both have had very successful treks in singles and are both targeting the Olympics. So despite the public clamoring to see the two pair up again, perhaps it's a mutual decision... at least up until now. Things can change and maybe we see them pair up at the World Championships next year if they both secure spots.
I think the Sato/Shibata pairing might be due to contractual obligations. In addition, NER is too restrictive in doubles imo. However, it does not explain why Hashimoto/Sato didn't play together at the Star Contender in Astana. Due to lack of participants, NER didn't seem to be an issue at that tournament. For example, there were 4 China/China pairs in WD.
