The next afternoon, Kazuya was surprised to see the third years in the dugout when he arrived on the practice field. "Oi, you lazy bums, get going!" shouted Jun. "We're here to kick your asses into shape!"
"All you lot, sit seiza, we have something to say." The underclassmen all sat down in the proper position, vaguely terrified.
"You guys have been slacking off!" Jun roared.
"Your playing in the preliminaries was abysmal! We've come to bully you!" said Ryousuke, with a smirk. Everyone got a slight look of panic on their faces at that, Haruichi's elder brother was scary.
"Starting today, you idiots are going to be doing 1000 sets of one to one fielding! Prepare yourselves!" Jun continued.
Everyone ran. Everyone fielded. Everyone batted. Everyone worked as hard as they could, the return of the third years making them all much more motivated. Jun and Ryousuke were frightening enough individually, but together they were truly the stuff of nightmares.
The third years showed up for the rest of the week, drilling and working with their kohai, evaluating and giving advice where they could, kicking ass where it was needed.
On Saturday, the team arrived to find the seniors all dressed in competition uniforms, ready to play the Senior Game. It was a bit of a surprise to Kazuya that they were playing so early, usually it happened after the season was over, and he wondered what the motivation was for them to play it so early. Coach Kataoka called Kazuya aside and told him that since he was going to be umpiring this game himself, Kazuya was going to be the coach for the underclassmen and Chris was coaching the senpai. The two teams played hard, neither one of them wanting to give an inch, but the elders quickly scored 2 runs. At the next at bat, Kazuya was able to get on first base where he spoke to Yuuki. Questioning his own ability to lead the team as captain, he asked for advice. "Even when things are at their hardest, never show it on your face. If the captain wavers, the team falls." Kazuya tucked that one away for further consideration and returned his mind to the game.
From the dugout, Eijun was berating Kuramochi for not cheering, "We're behind and you need to yell—how else will we get our spirits up?" He looked at his roommate and realized that there was something very wrong, and turned towards him. "What's the matter, Kuramochi-senpai?"
Kuramochi frowned briefly, and spoke to the team currently in the dugout. "When Jun was on base, he told me something. Apparently, Coach didn't ask for this game, the senpai did. They somehow found out that Coach Kataoka is leaving after the Fall Tournament." Everyone gaped at the shortstop in disbelief. Kazuya, this is bad, worse than we expected. Eijun thought.
Shortly after the team got the news, there was a double play that retired the side. Kazuya trotted off the field to gather up the defense, when Kuramochi asked him, "Did you know?"
"Know what?" Kazuya asked, a vague idea of what he was talking about floating in his head. Kuramochi told him the whole story. "You don't look surprised, you must have known!" he accused.
"I didn't know for sure, although I'm not terribly surprised. I wondered why a non-alum was coaching for us." This is sooner than I thought. I don't want Ochiai as the coach; I don't want to lose Kataoka. Eijun, we can't afford to lose Kataoka. Ochiai would be terrible for you.
From the field, the coach was yelling for the team to get moving. "We can't do anything now but play. The senpai went through all the trouble to come out here and help us; we have to repay them with a good game." Kazuya trotted out to the field. "Furuya! No more pacing yourself! These guys are hard to beat, so we have to fight with everything we have!"
The next couple of innings went by with no movement in the score, but the underclassmen were playing even harder than they had been. At the bottom of the fourth inning, the batting lineup was cycling through the second time and it was Kuramochi's turn at bat. Kazuya told Nori and Eijun to be ready to pitch at any time.
When Kuramochi questioned sticking Eijun in, Kazuya told the team. "I want him to experience this game with the senpai. After the summer break, we've felt like nothing's gone our way, we've been feeling a little lost. Finding out about the coach could be the motivation we need. That being said, we will win the Fall Tournament and go to Spring Koshien. If we get a ticket to Spring Koshien, the coach won't be able to abandon us before then, will he? This is the only way I can think of to keep him around. I know it's a lot of pressure, but we can do it." I hope we can do it. We need to do it, Eijun.
Everyone gasped, surprised that their sarcastic captain was so serious about something. Eijun murmured under his breath, "Kazu…" before realizing what he said. He glanced around worriedly—nobody heard him. Kazuya didn't react, so he definitely didn't hear. What are you doing? You're putting even more pressure on yourself, you idiot. But, I can't think of any other way to keep the coach.
However, there were two people who did hear. Maybe the two worst possible people—Kuramochi and Haruichi. Both of them were surprised and confused when did they start using first names? They exchanged glances, realizing that the other had heard it as well.
In the sixth inning, the score was tied at two all, and Nori went in to pitch. The upperclassmen got another run; 3-2. It remained that way until the top of the ninth inning, when Zono hit a homerun. Tied game, bottom of the ninth, and Kazuya calls in Eijun to pitch. "I'm not going to call any inside balls; we'll focus on the outside. I just have one question. The way you are now, can you be of use to the team?" Confidence, Eijun, you've got this. I know you can do it.
"Yes!" Eijun responded.
"Ok, let's go!"
Thank you, Kazuya, for having faith in me. I won't let you down. Eijun walked to the mound. It's not that I've ever been great, and I've always been limited. But, I'll just do whatever I need to do, that's all I can do.
From the third year's dugout there rang out a shout—'Coach, player substitution!"
Looking over at the dugout, Eijun saw Chris-senpai coming out wearing batting gear. Chris-senpai! I get to pitch to Chris-senpai! He's done so much for me, taught me so much.
Kazuya watched Chris trot out to the plate. He smirked at his senpai, and asked, "Are you ready for this?" Eijun, I know you want to repay him. The best way to do so is to pitch your best possible pitch.
Eijun pitched to the best of his ability. Chris-senpai, I hope you understand what I'm trying to tell you. Thank you.
Chris stood and watched Eijun's third pitch, the one that was almost perfectly thrown to the outside. "I couldn't swing...I just watched it go by." You're doing so well, Eijun, I'm proud of you.
The underclassmen got through the inning allowing no hits, ending the game with a tie. As they lined up to bow, the coach interjected, "The game's not over—not every third year has played. Let's keep going until we break the tie." Both sides cheered, happy to continue playing. The third years switched out everybody—Chris ended up catching, and Jun was pitching. Eijun was excited to continue to pitch, to get the feeling of the correct pitch ingrained in his brain. After five more innings the senpai finally scored, ending the game at 4-3.
Post-game, the senpai had only one piece of advice. "Don't do what we did. Don't lose."
After dinner, most of the first string went to Kazuya's room for the usual evening activity, which mainly consisted of the ongoing Mario Kart showdown. As the game ramped up, Eijun rose and quietly left the room. He wandered down to the indoor practice field and started pitching balls mechanically at the net, just trying to process all the things that had happened today. We lost the senpai, now we're going to lose the coach? This is a powerhouse school; I guess that's not that unusual...but, Kazuya, Spring Koshien? Have you lost your mind? That's going to be so hard to do, especially without the upperclassmen. I got to play, though, and that was amazing. I was able to pitch the low and away fairly consistently, and I remember what it feels like to get it right.
"I thought I'd find you here." Eijun spun around and saw Kazuya behind him. Well, here or running, and I'd rather you were here—this is where you come to think, not where you come to forget. "How are you feeling after the game, Eijun? You pitched really well; your outside pitch is coming along nicely." I know you're happy about pitching to Chris-senpai. Did you notice that he was happy with what he saw? "You also held the senpai scoreless for 5 innings, that's better than the others did." I'm so proud of the way you don't give up, don't get frustrated.
"Kazuya, you're right! I did, didn't I?" Eijun looked shocked, like the thought hadn't occurred to him. "You're insane, you know? Go to Spring Koshien? Really?" I want to make sure that you're not putting too much on yourself. I'll remove that weight from you by any means necessary, just watch me.
Kazuya rubbed his head, grimacing. "I know, I know. But we're always aiming for that anyway, right? This is an additional reason to work hard to achieve it. Everyone wants to go. We just happen to have stronger motivation than most." I don't want you to have to deal with Ochiai by yourself when I'm not there to watch over you. He's not on your side in the slightest.
"Well that's one way to look at it, I guess." Eijun grinned, shoulders relaxed. "Are you ok? I know we talked about what could happen, but now that we know what is supposed to happen, I need to know that you're all right. This is pretty sudden." Taking it all on yourself is not the solution.
"I think I'm ok. Really." Kazuya patted Eijun on the back, wanting to reassure the boy. "I'm still processing it, but I do think I can handle it." Don't worry about me. I can handle it. Just worry about yourself.
"Alright. But Kazu-kun, I expect you to come to me whenever you do need help. Everybody needs help sometimes." I'm serious. Please don't shrug this off, it's important.
Kazuya looked straight into Eijun's eyes. "I promise, Ei-chan." I do, really. I've learned that not only am I not alone, I don't want to be alone. Thank you for that. He turned away and strolled towards the door.
'I'll bet Kuramochi wants to kick my ass in Mario Kart as revenge for springing that stuff on them. Plus, I think he probably still thinks I knew something about it. I'm heading back. Don't stay up too late." Take care, Eijun.
"Just stay away from Rainbow Road and you'll be fine! I have faith in you—Miyuki Fight-O!" Sweet dreams, Kazuya. Sleep well.
From: Me(catch4me .jp)
To: BastardKazuya(miyukik )
Kazuya-
Playing with the Senpai was cool.
Pitching to Chris-senpai was amazing.
But the best part of the game was our battery.
I'm sure you probably figured this out, but you are the only reason I came to Seido.
I was perfectly happy to stay with my team, even if we sucked.
But then I found you again.
I think that was the best decision I've ever made.
Something you don't know about me:
On the last day of our season in middle school (the game Rei visited) I slapped the members of the other team. And at least one umpire. They were making fun of us, making fun of my team, and I lost it. It was surprising that Rei was still interested after that scene, but she just said something to my parents about the joint flexibility in my wrists helping me pitch better.
Sometimes I don't think things through. I'm trying to getting better.
The Tournament drawing is tomorrow, right? Good Luck, captain!
-Eijun
The following morning, Kazuya got dressed in his school uniform and walked out of his room to grab breakfast before he took the train to the drawing for the Fall Tournament grouping. He turned the corner and saw Kuramochi leaning against the wall.
"Hey, Mochi, how's it going? Recovered from Mario Kart?" Kazuya smirked at the shortstop.
Kuramochi pushed away from the wall and fell into step beside the pitcher. "Just on my way to breakfast and I heard your door open. Figured we could eat together." I saw you leave shortly after Sawamura last night. What's going on? You looked more at ease when you got back.
"Sure thing. What's going on with you? Some game yesterday, right?"
"Yeah, it was great playing with the senpai again." Kuramochi said, "But I could have done without the drama bomb. Do you really think coach will stay if we win the Fall Tournament?"
Kazuya shrugged. "I'm not sure. But I can't imagine that he'd leave before the Spring Koshien, at least."
"That makes sense. The other surprise that came out of the game was Sawamura. I had no idea that he'd figured out the outside pitch." Let's see how he reacts to that.
"Yes, he did. Good for the team, right?" Kazuya smiled slightly, almost fondly. "Chris-senpai was able to help him learn it."
"Chris-senpai is pretty close to Sawamura, isn't he?" Kazuya's lips pursed, just slightly, almost unnoticeably. Except Kuramochi did notice. Jealousy? Really? There might be something to this. I hope someone brought popcorn, because this is going to get good.
"Well, naturally, they've worked together a lot." Kazuya replied. What are you looking for? Why these questions?
"That's true. Anyway, did you see how fat Masuko's gotten?" Kuramochi changed the subject. I've got enough to go on for now. I'll check with Haruichi later, we need to figure out where Sawamura stands in this mess.
Kazuya strode up to the platform to draw the placement number for Seido. Number seventeen. Not that it mattered; we're going to win the Fall Tournament regardless of our placement.
In the common room, Kazuya, the coaches, and some of the players watched footage of their first opponent- Teitou.
"You suck at drawing lots, Bakayuki!" Kuramochi groans. "Did you have to pick the team that's gone to Koshien twenty-one times for our first game?"
"Sorry, sorry." muttered Kazuya, paying careful attention to the video. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Ochiai leave the room. Wonder what he's up to? SInce the senpai game, Kazuya'd been watching the assistant coach closely.
In the indoor practice field, Eijun practiced his pitches with Kariba. He was having a rough time aiming them, and realized that he's trying too hard; he needed to force himself to relax. Once he did that, his pitches went where he wanted them to, and were moving faster. Excited about this breakthrough, Eijun decided repetition was required to get the motion ingrained in his body. Seeing Ochiai hanging out outside the building, he asked him to come inside and help call his pitches.
Ochiai entered the practice area reluctantly.
As he walked across the area, he told Eijun, "Say, why don't you start throwing sidearm? You should become a batting practice pitcher for your team—you're not worth anything more than that, anyway."
Eijun looked at Kariba, thinking hard. Teitou has a southpaw sidearm pitcher...it would be great if the team could practice with someone like that before the game, and I'm the only southpaw we have. This might not be a bad idea!
Four days before the game, Eijun's on the mound to show off his new pitch. The team looked on in bewilderment when he threw a sidearm pitch that moves really slowly. Everybody laughs. Afterward, he asked, "How'd you like my sidearm pitch? It can be useful, right?" Nobody laughs. Or answers him. They all look confused. Shouts of "Yeah, right" and "Very funny" come from the team, but no one really seems amused.
"I heard our next opponent will be a southpaw sidearm. I'm the only southpaw, so I thought I could help out the team."
Coach Kataoka asked, "Did you come up with that on your own?"
Kazuya scowled. He was pretty sure he knew the answer to this question. That shitty bastard, I'm going to KILL him. If he caused Eijun to break his form, that guy will never walk again.
"It was the Sergeant's idea; he's the one that suggested it."
Kazuya was lost for a second. Sergeant? Well, the coach is the general, so I guess. Yup, he's dead. He'd just taken a step towards Ochiai when he felt a hand on his arm. Looking up, he saw that it was Kuramochi who had stopped him. The shortstop nodded towards Coach Kataoka, who was glaring at Ochiai. "Let him handle it, you've got to calm down!" He whispered to the upset catcher. "Think! What will help Sawamura? Don't just act!"
Kazuya shook him off. "I am thinking. Don't you know what this means?" Dammit, Eijun, don't give up on yourself yet!
"Yes, I do. And so does everyone else. Look around, we're all pissed, including Coach. I think the only one clueless, as usual, is Bakamura." The shortstop hissed.
Kazuya looked at the team. There were varying degrees of upset and horrified looks on everyone's faces.
"I don't need a lousy sidearmer. Get off the mound; you're in the way of practice." Kataoka grated out.
Eijun looked around, bewildered.
"Sawamura, weren't you working on your low and away?" Kataoka asked. "Why did you stop practicing that? I appreciate your wanting to help the team, but if you break your form with halfhearted pitching you won't have anything left." He turned toward the dugout. "Miyuki! Get the pitchers ready, we're having a game simulation. Batters, practice sign exchange with runners on base. Shake up the pitchers."
"Coach", Kazuya asked, "Do you want Sawamura to pitch too?"
"Yes, and tell him to pitch with his regular form. He's a valuable player, and if he breaks his form, it'll ruin our chances of winning." The coach glared at Ochiai. Again. And he wasn't the only one.
The practice began with Furuya pitching. After he played for a while it was Eijun's turn. When he got on the mound, he still had Coach's question in his mind. 'Why did your stop?' Why did I stop? I stopped because I doubted myself. I'm an idiot, really, there's only one thing I can do, and that's throw my pitch to the best of my ability.
Eijun came out of the dining hall after dinner, headed for his room. As soon as he stepped outside, someone grabbed his wrist and started to drag him away. Startled, he saw that Kazuya was the one with a death grip on his arm. "Oi, Miyuki!" Eijun objected. Kazuya didn't respond, just kept pulling him somewhere away from the dorms. Eijun struggled a bit, trying not to hurt his friend but also wondering what was going on. Finally, they got to the practice field, and the catcher let go.
Rounding on his confused friend, Kazuya snarled, "What the fuck, Eijun, what the everliving FUCK did you think you were doing? Do you know how BADLY that could have ended? Do you have ANY FUCKING idea? Why can't you see that you're NOT BROKEN? You're fine the way you are, and you're getting better every day! What do I have to do to convince you? What does the team have to do? We ALL believe in you!" He turned away from Eijun, dashing the tears from his eyes. Eijun froze, staring at Kazuya, shocked.
"Kazuya!" Eijun walked over to his friend and leaned his head on his back. "I'm sorry. I just thought I could help out; I just wanted to not feel useless for once. I didn't think a coach would steer someone that wrong." He rubbed his back gently. I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to make you worry, I didn't want to make you worry.
"I understand that, I do." Kazuya replied, turning around. "But Eijun, you've got to understand, too. Understand that you're neither a burden nor broken. You're not a worry; you're someone I care about. You're not useless. Didn't hear Coach today? He said that if you break your form, our chances of winning would be a lot less. He believes in you, in your value to the team. You have a lot of people who care about you—beginning with me. You didn't see everyone's face earlier, they were all so pissed off. Not at you but at that Ochiai guy. He wants Furuya to be the ace, and that's all he's worried about. He doesn't care about anything that doesn't help him achieve that goal; that includes you. Nothing he says has any value whatsoever and if he ever gives you any trouble I want you to tell me. You're important, Eijun, just as you are. Don't let anyone convince you otherwise." Kazuya stopped to catch his breath. Fuck, Eijun, do you see? Do you understand yet?
Eijun looked at Kazuya, tears running down his face, and just beamed. Kazuya caught his breath, entranced. Moving over to his friend, Eijun hugged him. Kazuya stiffened for a second, and then brought his own arms up, embracing his friend back. The catcher couldn't remember the last time someone hugged him. Not the backslapping hugs everyone exchanges after a good game, but a real, Kazuya-only, Kazuya-focused hug. Damn, here come those tears again. Only you, Eijun, only you.
"Thank you." Eijun whispered in his ear, "Thank you, Kazu-kun. I don't know what I would do without you." I don't know how to tell you how important you are to me.
Eijun pulled away slowly, watching his friend closely. He rubbed Kazuya's arm. "Feel better now that you've bitched out your idiot pitcher?" Eijun smiled.
"That wasn't just bitching, idiot, I was furious." He smiled back. "Yes, thank you, I do feel better. I cannot believe how upset that made me. I still want to do something to that guy. Maybe we can Nair his stupid goatee while he sleeps?" Eijun snorted.
"I've got a question, Kazuya. You said that everyone was mad. Why didn't anyone talk to me before this about it?"
"Probably because I threatened them with some unknown horror if they spoke to you before I could." He replied, smirking. I needed to make sure you were ok, that you understood what I needed to say.
"You really are an evil shit, aren't you?" Thank you for looking out for me.
"Why, thank you, Ei-chan." Yes, again, thank you for caring about me.
That wasn't a...oh, never mind" Asshole. I'm glad you're feeling better.
They walked back to the dorm side by side, exchanging small talk and just enjoying each other's company.
Arriving back at the dorms, they split up—Eijun to his room, Kazuya to the vending machines for a drink. When he got there Kuramochi was leaning on the wall, clearly waiting for something.
"Oh, there you are, Miyuki," He greeted the catcher.
"Hey, Mochi, how's it going?" Please not tonight not tonight not tonight. I don't want to have to deal with this tonight.
"We need to talk." The shortstop stood away from the wall and headed towards Kazuya's dorm room. "Grab me a tea, wouldja?" He threw over his shoulder as he walked away.
Kazuya sighed, and did as he asked. He knew this talk was coming and he was not looking forward to it.
Once inside the dorm room, Kazuya sat on the bed. Kuramochi straddled the desk chair and rested his chin on the back. "So, spill." The shortstop demanded.
"I don't know what you want to know." Kazuya evaded, resigned to his fate but refusing to just surrender. "You know what I'm talking about, bastard!" Kuramochi glared. "What's going on with you and Sawamura?"
"Oh, that. It's a long story, and it's late. Why don't we…"
"No, Miyuki!" The shortstop glowered at the catcher. "We're going to do this now."
"Ok, ok." Kazuya sighed. "What do you want to know?"
"Everything. I've seen some things that need explaining, so explain. He's my roommate and kohai, and I won't see him more beat up than he already is. It's clear to me after today that you really do care about him."
Kazuya screamed internally for a second and took a deep breath. Of all his batchmates, he was closest to Kuramochi, and he did trust him as much as he trusted almost anyone.
"Ok, I'll tell you this, but if a word of it gets out, I will make your life hell. And you know I can." Kazuya glared at his friend, demanding an answer. "Of course, of course. Unless I think something bad is happening to Sawamura. Then I reserve the right to tell the coach." The catcher nodded.
"That's fair." Kazuya agreed. "Ok, so here goes. Literally no one on the team other than Sawamura and I know this, so if it gets around...anyway. What no one knows about me is that I didn't grow up in Tokyo. Until I was twelve, I lived in Nagano. My best friend, for as long as I can remember, was Sawamura Eijun. We were Ei-chan and Kazu-kun, back then." Kuramochi listened intently. Well...I didn't expect this. This changes things somewhat.
"We did everything together. Well, for us, everything was baseball. He's only six months younger than me and that put him a grade behind. In primary school we joined the baseball club, and that's how we learned to play.
"When I was twelve, my mother, who had been sick for a long time, died. My father didn't handle it well. He threw himself into work. Hating the house she lived in and the town that reminded him of her, he transplanted the business to Tokyo. He didn't tell me in advance, so I just got to say a quick goodbye to Eijun before we left.
"In Tokyo, things were...difficult for me, and I stopped responding to Eijun's emails. Eventually, he stopped writing, except for holidays and such. I thought it was best that I just forget him, forget everything that happened, I was not the same kid he'd grown up with. That was fine until Rei recruited him, and we were suddenly on the same team again. He'd always been my best friend, and I realized I'd made a mistake by not keeping up with him. I thought, though, that he was better off if I kept the status quo, didn't rekindle the friendship. I know I'm not the nicest person in the world." Kuramochi snorted, agreeing. Kazuya smirked and smacked him on the arm.
"Asshole. Anyway. A couple of things happened. One, he started emailing me again. I hadn't responded to him in years and I didn't quite know what to do. To be honest, I did respond to him, every time. I just never sent any of them—they're all sitting in my drafts folder. He was emailing me daily; I think it was almost like writing in a diary for him, someplace to dump his thoughts. I was ok with that, because I missed having him as my best friend, but still thought he was better off without me. Then the Inashiro game happened. And the email he sent, Mochi, it broke me. He sounded so lost. So, using the email address the school gave us, I wrote him. We started emailing each other after that, but that was all we did, kept it strictly in email. The Yakushi scrimmage happened, and I know you remember how he was after that. I chased him down, and we started talking—we still talk." Kazuya finished.
"That explains a lot." Kuramochi commented after thinking for a minute. "What about that display you put on today? You looked like you were going to pummel Ochiai."
"Mochi, he almost broke Eijun by playing on his loyalty to the team and his own insecurities. He's my best friend, and he shines so brightly sometimes, I can't stand to see anyone try to put that light out. I've known for a while that he didn't have Eijun's best interests at heart, all he really wants is to make Furuya the ace and use everyone else to do so. If coach leaves, I don't know what's going to happen to Eijun in his third year."
"I see. Well, I'll help you keep an eye on him; I care about him as well. He's an idiot, but he's our idiot, right?" I do see, Miyuki, but do you? Can you hear yourself? He's more than a best friend to you. Do you realize that you're in love with him? I don't think you do. But you're not stupid, you'll figure it out. Let's just see how long it takes you to get there.
"Thank you." Kazuya smiled at his friend. "Also, he doesn't know that I read the emails he sent. I've got to figure out a way to tell him, so please don't let him know." The shortstop nodded. "Any other questions?"
"Just one—did you kick his ass for scaring us all earlier? Because I've got some new moves I've been saving for just such an occasion." Kuramochi cracked his knuckles, threateningly. Kazuya snorted. "I gave him an earful; I figured I'd leave the bodily harm to you." He answered.
"Awesome! Well, I'm off; I've got places to go, people to take down. Thanks for the information; I'm not going to tell anyone. You might warn Sawamura that Haruichi's probably going to be asking him the same kinds of questions; he's an observant little thing. I think he has the potential to become even scarier than his older brother." They looked at each other and shivered. Now that was a frightening thought.
"I'll tell him. Goodnight, Mochi, don't abuse the pitcher too much, we're going to need him."
"He can handle it! It's good for him." The shortstop insisted. Kazuya grinned.
When he got back to his room, Kuramochi dragged Eijun off his bed and wrestled him into submission, and then he rubbed his head and let him pick the movie they watched. Sawamura, you're something else. Getting that manipulative bastard to fall for you? That's quite a feat. I hope things work out for you two, I think you're great together both on and off the field.
From: Me(miyukik )
To: Ei-chan(catch4me .jp)
Eijun-
Please don't ever scare me like that again. Promise me you won't.
I still want to do bodily harm to that guy, seriously.
You've got to get better at taking care of yourself; I may not always be around.
I had an interesting visitor this evening. Apparently Kuramochi had some question, so I told him about us, about Nagano.
I'm not ashamed of our friendship, far from it. I just want to keep it out of the gossip mill, make sure there are no accusations of bias because of it.
Simply put, you are my best friend, and I'd do anything for you. But I won't go easy on you, won't let you slide. I'm rooting for you, but I refuse to not be objective when it comes to baseball, and I know that you'd hate me if I wasn't, that you'd never ask that of me. Conversely, you should know that if I tell you something, good or bad, about your performance, it's the truth as I see it.
Kuramochi said that you may get some questions from Haruichi, so heads up. Tell him as much or as little as you'd like, I'm good with it.
Something you don't know about me:
I still have my old mitt from when we were young. I don't know why I kept it, but I could never bring myself to throw it out, even after I got rid of everything that reminded me of Nagano. It's worn, but I've even kept it oiled, it's still usable. I brought it with me here; it's in my closet in a box. I guess I never wanted to sever that one last connection I had to you, I don't know.
Teitou in four days, this is going to be rough. We have to win, though, we don't have a choice.
-Kazuya