Thanks a lot for reading, following, favoriting, and reviewing! Here's the next chapter : D
On Sunday, it's time for the doubleheader against Inashiro Industrial and Shuhoku High School. Nori is starting in the first match between Inajitsu and Seidou, and to be quite frank, Yukari isn't happy with his performance. He let five runs in the eighth inning alone, and they're not even up against Inajitsu's starter players.
Yukari sighs. As usual, Nori's problem lies within his weak mentality. He gets intimidated by batters and runners. It's a shame; he's got amazing ball control, which is what our other pitchers lack.
"Kantoku! Kawakami-senpai's at his limit!" Sawamura shouts. Yukari rolls her eyes, "He's tired from the camp, too!"
"Sawamura, stop!" Youichi whisper-yells.
"If you give me the green light, I'll happily go out there!" Sawamura says.
"Sawamura, shut up," Yukari says without even looking away from her notes. Sawamura flinches.
"I don't have any plans for you today," Kataoka says.
"Go away," Yukari and Kataoka say at the same time.
"N-No plans?! I'm not doing anything today?!" Sawamura asks incredulously. Masuko then grabs him and drags him to the side alongside Youichi. Thank you, Masuko-san, Youichi-kun, Yukari lets out a sigh and continues to watch the match. Miyauchi then calls for a timeout, and Yukari knows that she doesn't have to watch this.
The Miyauchi-Kawakami battery is very strange to her. Miyauchi knows that Nori lacks the heart when it comes to pitching, so he occasionally checks if Nori still has his balls. Literally. Yukari doesn't need to see that.
She refocuses when Miyauchi returns to his post. Nori winds up and pitches, and Yukari smirks as she notices that this pitch is better than the ones before.
"Strike!"
That's it, Nori, Yukari thinks with a smirk as the fielders give encouragement to the second year sidearm pitcher.
In the end, the game ended with a total score of 4-8, Inajitsu's win. The next match is Inajitsu vs. Shuhoku, and Yukari can't help but smirk. She loves doubleheaders like this, especially when Seidou isn't playing in the second game. When the two rival schools are going up against each other, it's Yukari's gold mine. She can dig up as much information as she want and can before their match against Shuhoku.
Yukari leaves Sawamura to clean up the dugout in the other field, but when he doesn't show, Rei told her, Kazuya, Youichi to go look for him. Yukari sighs and reluctantly does as she was told. When they finally found him, Yukari doesn't expect his company. He's with Harada Masatoshi and Narumiya Mei, Inajitsu's captain and ace respectively, apparently spewing out information freely.
"Thai kick!"
Yukari has to thank Youichi for that. Sawamura yells out in pain.
"Stop talking about our team, you idiot!"
"Eh?! That was all true?!" Narumiya asks, "He just gave away secrets to a rival team."
"Is he an idiot?" Harada wonders.
"You…" Yukari says coldly. The people around her flinch when they feel cold aura coming from her. When she changes her usual way of calling 'you' from 'kimi' to 'kisama', Kazuya and Youichi know to back off, "Why are you giving out information freely when it's so hard for me to get them from another team, hmm?"
Sawamura flinches and takes a step away from Yukari, "I-Ichikawa-senpai…"
"Why don't you put yourself in my shoes and see how hard it is to get information from another team? This next match, I want you to get me at least five information about both teams. If you can't do that, I'm going to tell Kantoku what you just did," Yukari smirks coldly at Sawamura, "Who knows what kind of punishment he'll give you."
"I-I understand!"
"As expected from Seidou no Yukihime," Harada comments.
"Seidou no… Yukihime?" Sawamura wonders.
"She's in your team and you don't know?" Harada asks. He points at Yukari, "She is pretty famous among the high school baseball scene; there's even an interview with her in some magazines. People know that Seidou has a female trainer-manager who is cold and harsh on the team, which is why she gets the nickname."
"I still don't get the point of giving me a nickname; I'm not a player…" Yukari comments, "I'm not even a trainer yet."
"But you have to admit that it's a pretty fitting nickname," Kazuya says with a grin. The other players around them flinch a little, afraid that Yukari might get offended. Contrary to their thoughts, Yukari smirks.
"Well, I never said I didn't like that nickname," Yukari admits.
"You're still the same as ever, Yukari-chan!" Narumiya says. Yukari heaves a deep sigh.
"It's been a while, Harada-san, Narumiya-kun," Yukari says, "And don't call me so familiarly, Narumiya-kun."
Narumiya pouts, "Geez, you're still as cold as usual, Yukari-chan. I thought we were close enough!"
Yukari raises an eyebrow, "Where did you get that idea from?"
"Well, Sawamura was telling the truth. Furuya's not doing very well right now," Kazuya says. Narumiya sighs.
"Kazuya, when you say it, it sounds like a total lie," Narumiya says.
"So, you're pitching today, right?" Kazuya asks.
"I sure am," Narumiya answers easily.
"Time to get some valuable data, then, right, Yuka-chan?" Kazuya asks with a smirk at his girlfriend. He then offers her a fist, "I'm counting on you."
"Leave it to me," Yukari says as she mirrors her boyfriend's smirk and bumps her fist to his. I'm damn sure Narumiya-kun's going to slip up and give us some brand new information somehow. He's not any better than Sawamura after all. Narumiya clicks his tongue.
"Don't tell me you guys are still going strong?" Narumiya asks with a pout.
"It's none of your business," Yukari answers.
"Of course we are!" Kazuya says, ignoring Yukari's answer, "When she told you that you have no chance, she was being serious, you know?"
"Let's go, Mei," Harada says as he turns around to leave, "I don't like him."
"Oh, is that so?" Narumiya says as he follows Harada, "Last summer, Kazuya's calls completely shut you–"
"Shut up! Let's go," Harada cuts him off, much to Narumiya's amusement.
"Well, see ya," Narumiya says as he waves towards Kazuya, "See you later, Yukari-chan!" he slumps when Yukari completely ignores him.
"Sawamura," Kazuya calls out, "As a fellow southpaw, don't miss his pitching."
"Eh?"
"Last summer, in the semi-finals… he perfectly shut Azuma-san out," Youichi explains. Sawamura inhales sharply in shock, "He's our fated rival. If we don't take him down, we can't go to Koshien."
"The match is starting. I'm expecting a report by the end of the day, Sawamura," Yukari says as she leaves for the next field.
xXx
Yukari has to admit, as much as he is annoying, Narumiya Mei is an amazing pitcher. His pitching repertoire is impressive, and he delivers. The catcher within her wants to form a battery with him, only if he tones down his ego a bit. But the world is cruel and nobody's perfect.
"Tch… that annoying brat…" Jun growls, "He wasn't going all out in the first half. He just stepped up his game."
"Yeah," Tetsu says, "A sharp slider, a forkball that almost goes into the ground, and what makes those breaking balls come to life is his fastball with a top speed of 148 km/h. Vertical and horizontal breaks, in addition to a powerful fastball. He's truly an exemplary pitcher."
Yukari can see the two first year pitchers seem overwhelmed with the knowledge they just received.
"Hey, watch closely," Kazuya reprimands them.
"Especially you, Sawamura. You haven't forgotten your task, have you?" Yukari asks. The first years flinch at her unusually rude choice of words, "Your hand has stopped writing," she adds as she continues to feed ink into her notebook with little information and some pencil sketches.
"Did something happen?" Chris asks.
"I'm just teaching Sawamura the importance of information gathering, Chris-senpai. No need to worry," Yukari simply says. Chris doesn't push it.
"It looks like they understand how complete his pitching style is," Chris says.
"As an opponent, there really isn't anyone worse to play against," Kazuya admits.
"If he doesn't have ego as big as the sun, he would be perfect," Yukari offhandedly comments. She frowns, "What in the world is he doing?" she wonders as she watches Narumiya laughing to himself. Yukari notices that Narumiya slightly touches the tongue of his cap, and then he has this excited look in his face. She sighs, "They came up with something new again…"
"How did you know, Ichikawa-senpai?" Haruichi asks. Yukari ignores him until he realizes his mistake, "…Aneki…?" he says tentatively, which is rewarded by a satisfied smile from Yukari. The first years blush when they see her smile.
"Heeh, did you tell him to call you that, Yukari?" Ryousuke asks.
"You don't mind do you, Ryou-nii?" Yukari asks.
Ryousuke shakes his head with his usual smile, "Call her Aneki, Haruichi," he practically commands.
"E-Eh?! B-But…"
"Hyahaha! You really are the middle child of the Kominato siblings, Ichikawa!" Youichi says. Yukari scoffs.
"Anyway, I've been watching this battery since they were first formed. I pick up on small signals like that. When Narumiya plays with his cap, he's bound to have something up his sleeve," Yukari explains, "Especially when he looks like an excited puppy like that," she frowns, "So freaking annoying…"
Since she figured out that it must be something new, Yukari gets her pencil ready to start sketching. Her pencil runs across the paper furiously as she draws a stick figure of Narumiya's form. She clicks her tongue in annoyance as she sketches the course of the ball when she realizes that the ball drops.
A freaking changeup. Good lord, does he ever stop…? But thanks for the new information, Narumiya-kun. I know I can count on you. Yukari peeks at Inajitsu's coach, and smirks when she sees him looking furious. I wonder if I look like that when I'm mad.
"What was that half-assed throw?" Sawamura asks. When no one answers him, he turns to look to his side and sees his upperclassmen with their heads bowed down, except for Chris, Kazuya, and Yukari, "Huh? What's wrong, guys?"
"Tch. That wasn't even funny," Jun says, "He already has a good fastball and both vertical and horizontal breaks. Now he has an off-speed pitch? That brat… just how good is he going to get?"
Yukari peeks from the corner of her eyes when Tetsu activates his aura. She takes a step aside away from her upperclassmen when the aura spreads within the first string members except for Kazuya.
"I wanna hit him," Jun growls, "His overconfident face makes me mad!"
"Make sure you hit him with a ball," Ryousuke says with a smile on his face, which makes him all the scarier.
"I'm going to hit in today's game," Masuko swears.
"Hyahaha! I'm getting excited," Youichi says.
Yukari eyes Narumiya. Your attempt in scaring us has backfired, Narumiya-kun. Nothing excites these baseball monsters more than a strong opponent, she holds her chin in thought. There has to be a weakness somewhere… nobody's perfect. Not even the seemingly perfect Narumiya Mei. So far, the only weakness I have of him is his tall pride. We need to utilize his ego for our gain somehow, Yukari eyes her boyfriend. I'm gonna have to count on you for this, Kazuya.
Sawamura laughs, "We haven't lost! I don't quite know exactly what, but we haven't lost!"
"Sawamura, your hand's stopped," Yukari comments without looking at him.
"Geh!"
"I need to train even harder," Haruichi says. Yukari smirks. Even Haru-kun's motivated. Good.
"Miyuki," suddenly Tanba says, "Let's go warm up."
"Eh?"
"You should check out how I'm throwing today in the bullpen," Tanba says, "So you'll know how to call the plays."
Yukari smirks at Tanba's retreating back, "Can I come with, Tanba-san?" she asks. Tanba eyes her from the corner of his eyes.
"Go ahead," Tanba says.
"Chris-senpai, I'm sorry, but can I leave the data gathering to you?" Yukari says.
"Don't worry. Leave it to me," Chris says. Yukari turns to look at Kazuya and smiles softly when she sees the astonishment in his eyes. She knows that he will never admit it, but she knows that he's just a little bit touched by Tanba's words and actions.
"Don't you dare ask for information from Chris-senpai, Sawamura. I'll know. I've been reading his data for almost three years," Yukari says as she and Kazuya walk towards the bullpen. Sawamura flinches and pouts.
xXx
It's the third game of the doubleheader, Seidou vs. Shuhoku. It's the bottom of fifth, and Seidou is in the lead by nine runs. Yukari is, so far, thoroughly satisfied with Tanba's performance. His control over his curveball really pleases her. Not to mention he has somehow reached a truce with Kazuya and has yet to disagree with his calls.
Yukari has to admit, she was a little bit shocked when Tanba approached Kazuya first earlier. She knows very well about his aversion towards Kazuya. It feels good to know that he knows when to put his head down and listen to Kazuya as the starting catcher.
The next pitch, the battery intentionally lets the batter hit the ball, which is caught swiftly by Youichi who throws it towards Ryousuke, outing the runner on first going to second, who throws it towards Tetsu, outing the runner from home going to first, creating their signature 6-4-3 double play.
"After five innings, he's thrown 43 pitches," Rei comments, "He's pacing well, so far."
"Nice pitching, Tanba," Chris comments when Tanba returns to the dugout.
"Nice pitching, Tanba-san," Yukari says as she hands a towel over to him. Tanba nods at the two of them and accepts the towel from her. When Kazuya returns to the dugout, Yukari eyes him. One of the reasons why Tanba-san has been doing so well is because of his calls… I've thought about this a million times, but he really is an amazing catcher. When he catches her eyes, before she can look away, he smiles softly. She looks away with a blush, but she peeks at him again and gives him a small smile of her own, telling him that she is satisfied with his calls.
"Stop flirting, dammit!" Youichi says in irritation. Yukari flinches. Youichi-kun, damn your observation skills… she thinks as she looks down to her notes with a blush on her face. Kazuya grins at Youichi before he approaches Tanba.
"Tanba-san," Kazuya calls out, "I think they're going to start focusing on a certain pitch soon. I'll start asking for forkballs next inning," he informs, much to the shock of not only Tanba, but also Miyauchi, who's sitting right next to the third year pitcher, "One of the objectives in today's game is to throw a complete game. We've been able to keep your pitch count low, so let's take this chance to make this game ours," he smirks at Tanba, "The second half is the real battle."
"Whoa, he sounds like an actual catcher," Sawamura comments, "Is he the same guy who only asked for inside throws?"
"He didn't make any calls to me…" Furuya says under his breath.
"I guess it depends on the pitcher," Haruichi says.
"Exactly, Haru-kun," Yukari says, much to Furuya and Sawamura's dismay, "Sawamura, I don't expect you to slack off now. You can still get some information from Shuhoku, you know."
"Y-Yes, ma'am!"
"Eijun-kun… did you upset Ichikawa-senpai somehow?" Haruichi asks.
"'Aneki', Haruichi. 'A-ne-ki'," Ryousuke says in a teasing tone.
"A-Aniki!"
Yukari hears Tanba scoffing, "I thought you weren't asking for it because you weren't confident you could catch it."
"Eh?"
"Try and catch it if you can," Tanba challenges. Yukari smirks. I thought you would know better by now, Tanba-san. I've never seen Kazuya miss a pitch he specifically asks for. As long as you deliver, he will definitely receive it.
xXx
It's the bottom of sixth after Seidou manages to get three more runs. Yukari gets her pencil ready to sketch Tanba's forkball pitching form and course. The players get in position, and Tanba gets ready to pitch. When Yukari notices his shocked look, she knows that Kazuya has asked for the forkball. Thanks, Kazuya.
When Tanba winds up, Yukari's right hand swiftly move across her notebook as she sketches Tanba's form. When the ball is thrown, she immediately moves to draw its course. She smirks as the batter swings and the ball drops. That's not bad. Not bad at all. Following the same path as a fastball, it drops right in front of the batter like a sinker. The textbook example of a forkball, Yukari grips her pencil tight. It's been a while since I felt like this, but… I wanna catch it.
The inning ends quite quickly with three strikeouts.
"Wow!" Sawamura exclaims.
"Tanba's looking really well!" Oota exclaims, "He's doing well with Miyuki, too!"
"Looks like he's prepared well for the summer," Chris comments.
Let's just hope that no one will hit his pitch, Yukari thinks. Tanba-san's weakness lies in the fact that he's way too hard on himself after he gives up just one hit. At least I hope he has learned how to get over it.
When Kazuya returns to the dugout, Yukari smirks at the satisfied look on his face. She can't help herself. When he's close enough, she has to ask, "How did it feel?"
Kazuya looks at his girlfriend and smirks, "It felt awesome."
Yukari clicks her tongue with her smirk still stuck on her face, "I'm kinda jealous," she says, "I should've asked to catch it earlier," she turns to look at Tanba, "Tanba-san, do you mind if I catch some later?"
Tanba smirks. He, like the rest of his teammates in his year, has a soft spot on the red-haired trainer. The current third years all see Yukari as their resident younger sister. At first, no one liked her because of her bluntness. But when Chris got injured, they saw how worried she was about him – in fact, it was the first time they've ever seen her show her emotions clearly –, and they realized that she really, truly cares for them. That's when they started really listening to her, much to her surprise, since the players from the previous years took so long to start taking her seriously.
"Do as you like, Ichikawa," Tanba says. Yukari smirks back at him, "Miyuki. Let's focus on throwing more forkballs the last three innings."
Yukari bites her lower lip. This is also a weakness of Tanba's. Like all pitchers, he's an egotist. But because he's the starting catcher's upperclassman, Yukari thinks he feels that he has more right to get what he wants than other pitchers.
"I think that pitch alone was effective enough," Kazuya says, "Do we really need to throw more with Inajitsu watching?"
It's true. His performance usually worsens in the second half. There's no point if he can't grip the ball tight enough to throw it well later on, Yukari thinks.
"We should use the forkball to scare them, but I think it's best to center the plays around your fastball and curveball," Kazuya explains.
"No, I want to throw forkballs," Tanba insists, "I don't have a lot of opportunities left to throw them in a real game."
Before Yukari can open her mouth to comment, Kataoka is faster than her.
"Tanba," the head coach calls out. She can see Tanba's face tightening from the corner of her eyes, "Are you saying that as a pitcher representing the team? Or are you saying that for your own good as a baseball player? Which is it? Tell me," Tanba is silent as he ponders on the question, "If you're saying it for your own good, then I can't give you the ace number."
He took the words right out of my mouth. Well, I figured it would have a better impact on Tanba-san if those words came out of Kantoku's mouth. Keeping my mouth shut was a good decision, Yukari thinks. The players in the dugout look shocked at the coach's words, but no one is as shocked as Tanba.
"Wa– Kantoku!" Oota says.
"I think it's both," Tanba then answers.
"O-Oi, Tanba! What are you saying?" Oota asks.
"I know I tend to put myself down in the second half," Tanba says, "And I understand that Miyuki is thinking about me when he makes the calls. But if I don't conquer my weakness with my own strength, I can't stand on the mound with confidence. It is in order to become the true ace. That is my honest answer."
The dugout is washed in silence after Tanba's answer.
"I understand," Kazuya then breaks the silence, "If that's the case, I'm with you all the way until the very end," he says, much to Tanba's shock, "I can't ignore a pitcher's opinion when it's this strong."
Jun scoffs, "Where did you learn to talk big like that? If you give up a run now, you'd better take responsibility. You'll shave your head all the way!"
Ryousuke laughs, "Oh, that's good. I'm in."
"I'm in," Tetsu says.
"Hyahaha! Or you could grow your hair long," Youichi suggests.
"Hey! Knock it off!" Oota reprimands them.
"If you give up a run, you'll shave your head. If you lose two runs, you'll shave your eyebrows, too. I'll write it down," Chris says as he writes it down in his notebook.
"I'll write it down too so you have backup, Chris-senpai," Yukari says as she writes it down in her own notebook.
"Chris! Ichikawa! Not you too!"
"Hyahaha! Chris-senpai, you're awesome!" Youichi laughs.
"Three runs and you'll grow your hair long?" Chris suggests again. The players in the dugout laugh at his words. Yukari can't help but let a genuine smile out.
Yukari likes the lightness of the atmosphere in the air. This is why she loves the players one year above her more than any other players. Their struggle together when they first started cemented their relationship, and Yukari is privileged enough to watch it form and solidify. She remembers when they all first came. Tanba was definitely shier than he is today; so much that he could hardly meet anyone's eyes. But now, Tanba seems to have gained respect and recognition from his fellow players, which is the most important thing in becoming a real ace.
"Next batter! Hurry up, please!" the umpire calls out.
Yukari looks at the field and turns, "Tanba-san, I think it's your turn."
"We're sorry!" Oota says, "He's coming!"
Sawamura suddenly yells, "When did Shirasu-senpai get on base?!"
"You weren't watching?" Shirasu asks. Sorry, Kenjirou-kun, Yukari mentally apologizes for not paying attention.
"And Sakai-senpai is back in the dugout!"
"Shut up!" Sakai Ichirou, the third year left fielder says with tears running down his face, "I'm sorry I hit straight to third base!"
Yukari shakes her head incredulously with a small smirk on her face as she turns back to look at the diamond where Tanba is getting ready to bat. She scoffs out a laugh when the players in the dugout start shouting half-assed encouragement.
"Hyahaha! Tanba-san's determined to hit!" Youichi says.
Tanba-san, just get struck out and return. We don't wanna affect your pitching, Yukari thinks as she watches the Shuhoku pitcher. She frowns when she sees him panting harshly. Is he okay…?
The pitcher winds up and throws the ball, and Yukari's eyes widen as she watches the course of the ball.
It hits Tanba cleanly on his cheek.
His helmet falls off his head due to the force of the hit. Yukari lets her notebook and stationeries fall to the ground as she runs in full speed towards him, being the first to react out of everyone, with Kataoka following close behind her. Yukari manages to catch him just before his body hits the ground. She thanks her fast legs as she grunts a bit at the sudden extra weight.
"Someone get the stretcher!" Yukari hears the coach commands.
"Tanba-san, let me see," Yukari says as calm as she can be as she slowly puts Tanba's uninjured side on her lap. She squeezes her hands to stop them from trembling before checking his injury. Tanba groans in pain as she touches his cheek, trying to get away from her touch, "Don't move, Tanba-san."
"I'm fine…" Tanba says.
"No, you're not," Yukari says straight away, "Now, can you tell me where we are?" she asks as people start to crowd around them.
"…Seidou…"
"Good. What are we doing today, Tanba-san?" Yukari asks without missing a beat as she continues to examine his injury.
"Oota-buchou, get the car!" Rei shouts.
"Right away!" Oota says.
"Doubleheader… with Inajitsu and Shuhoku…" Tanba answers.
"Exactly. Who are we up against now?"
"Shuhoku…"
Good. His memory's just fine. She bites her lower lip when she realizes that it may not be too bad, but it's not too good either. I think his chin may be cracked…
"Youichi-kun!" Yukari calls out, "Get the ice pack from the cooler and a towel, now!"
"O-Okay!"
"I can stand…" Tanba groans.
"Don't you dare," Yukari growls coldly.
"Just stay put," Kataoka says. Thanks to his fast legs, Youichi returns with the things she asked for in no time. She thanks him and then wraps the towel around the ice pack.
"I'm applying ice pack on your cheek, Tanba-san, okay?" Yukari warns him. She lightly presses the towel covered pack onto Tanba's slowly swelling cheek, to which he flinches.
"Sorry… Ichikawa…" Tanba suddenly says.
"Eh?" Yukari frowns.
"It seems that… we need to reschedule…" Tanba says as he tries to smile at her before hissing in pain. Yukari frowns for a bit, until she realizes what he meant. He did say that he's going to let her catch some of his forkballs. She lets out an exasperated breath as she holds her tears at bay.
"Don't think about that now. I'm just going to hold your words," she looks sternly into Tanba's eyes, "Right now, just get better, you hear me?" Tanba just lets out an affirmative sound and Yukari grits her teeth. Why now…? When he's doing so well?
"I'm terribly sorry," the coach of Shuhoku says as he approaches Kataoka, "Especially right before summer."
"It was an accident that happened during a game," Kataoka says, "It's not your pitcher's fault. However, would it be okay if we ended this game here?"
"Yes, that's perfectly fine," the Shuhoku coach says.
"I'm sorry about this after you came all this way," Kataoka says.
"Where's the stretcher?!" Yukari yells as she slowly loses her composure.
"Here!" two players come with a stretcher.
"Okay, Tanba-san, we're going to move you, okay?" Yukari warns him calmly. Tanba groans. He's still responding, but it seems that he's starting to lose consciousness, "Damn it… Tanba-san, stay with me! Masuko-san! Tetsu-san!" Yukari calls out, trying not to let her panic seep too much into her voice, "Help me move him, please."
"Okay," Tetsu says.
"Uga!"
Yukari asks Tetsu to hold Tanba's lower half while Masuko holds his upper half, "Try not to move his head too much," she says as she tries to keep the ice pack on his face. Masuko nods, "On the count of three. One, two, three!"
Masuko and Tetsu move together to put Tanba on the stretcher. She then walks with them towards where Oota brings the car. After they move him to the car, Yukari sits in the back seat as she lets Tanba's head lie on her lap so she can keep pressing the ice pack against his injury. She, Kataoka, and Oota then proceed to bring him to the hospital.
Kimi: a polite way of saying 'you', but is less polite than 'anata'. This is the word Yukari usually uses to refer to the people of her age and below.
Kisama: a very rude way of saying 'you'. Yukari uses this word when she's pissed off.
Just a little bit of new info about Yukari. If you guys have any questions, just ask! :D
