Chapter 15: Battle Baseball!
Godzilla let out a content sigh as he felt a calm breeze blow past. He couldn't think of a better place to be than where he currently was: Toku Town's park. Just enjoying a monthly picnic with his wife and son. Many of Toku Town's other colorful characters had also decided to enjoy the town today. Yes, it seemed that today would be one of the rare peaceful days in Toku Town. Or at least, it was supposed to be that way. Godzilla's ears soon picked up on the sounds of marching footsteps, and his family along with his fellow citizens had their attention focused on a particular sight.
Puzzled as to what everyone was gawking at, Godzilla turned his attention to where everyone was looking. And to his surprise, he saw a gathering of villains led by King Ghidorah. Some of the more notable faces among the fiends were Ultraman Belial, Gigan, Gyaos, Shadow Moon, NegaRed, and Kamen Riders Ouja, Glaive, and Eternal.
"Bask in our glory, peasants!" Ichi, Ghidorah's center head, boasted! "You stand in the presence of the true king!"
'Thank Tanaka Kong never had this much of an ego on him just because the word king is in his name.' Godzilla thought as he let out a silent sigh of exasperation. "You're a king in name only, Ghidorah. But please, for the love of Tsuburaya, can you NOT engage in your petty rivalry with me? You're already one of the most popular kaiju in existence! It doesn't get much better than that!"
"Ironic that the King of the Monsters is so content to mingle with commoners." Ichi sneered.
"That's just a title, Ichi." Ni deadpanned.
"Oh! If we win, can we got crowns for each of us?!" Kevin asked as he bobbed his head up and down in excitement.
"What's he talking about?" Godzilla asked with a raised eyebrow as he crossed his arms. "'Win' what?"
"I was just about to announce that!" Ichi smirked before clearing his throat"*Ahem*! CITIZENS OF TOKU TOWN! IN ONE WEEK'S TIME, YOU SHALL BEAR WITNESS TO A CLASH FOR THE KINGDOM OF MONSTERS! THIS BATTLE SHALL BE WAGGED ON THE BASEBALL DIAMOND! AND THE WINNER WILL BE THE UNDISPUTED KING OF THE MONSTERS!"
"How vexing." Ouja hissed as he rolled his neck. "You forgot what's in it for us, goldie. We Dark Riders get to be named as TRUE Kamen Riders!"
"You said the winner will be undisputed, right?" Godzilla asked. "Fine. If it'll finally shut you up Ichi, then it's game on!"
"Perfect." Ichi smirked. "In one week, I'll be knocking you off your throne!"
Godzilla just snorted as he watched the group of villains take their leave. Glaring out towards their retreating forms until they disappeared over the horizon. Seeing his friend's determination, Anguirus walked over to him.
"If you're taking those jerks on, then I'm with ya!" Anguirus said with a grin. "Heck, it reminds me of when we tag-teamed them in one of our movies!"
"Since there's Dark Riders involved, you'll be needing our help too." Kamen Rider Double said as he was joined by Ryuki and Blade. "You can count on Black RX to help out too. And since NegaRed is taking the field, MegaRed should be happy to lend a hand."
"Belial's rolling with them, so I'm definitely taking part in this game!" Ultraman Zero declared.
"Good to see you're willing to help lay a baseball beating on the badguys." Godzilla noted. "But given who one of their team members is, I think I know who to call-"
Godzilla didn't get to finish his thought as his phone started ringing. Curious as to who was calling him, he whipped out his phone to check the caller ID.
"Or, they could call me." Godzilla muttered before answering. "Hey Gamera. I was just about to dial you up."
"I think I know why." Gamera said as he scrolled through various online posts about the upcoming baseball battle. "You can bet I'll be joining your team since Gyaos is with them."
"Thanks." Godzilla nodded from his end. "We've got a week to prepare for the baseball game. If we practice every day, we should be able to stand a chance."
"ALL RIGHT!" Godzilla's team cheered!
"But are you sure we can't just montage our way to getting better?" Ryuki asked.
"That only works in movies." Godzilla replied. "Now come on! We've got off-screen practice to complete!"
A week passed by in practically no time at all. Before anyone knew it, the day of the baseball game had arrived. The first team to enter the stadium was the villain team led by King Ghidorah with Godzilla and the hero team following shortly after. A coin toss was performed to see which team would be up at bat first. Godzilla's team called tails while Ghidorah's called heads. Unfortunately for the team of heroes, the coin landed head facing up. With a smirk, Ghidorah took his place at bat. A smug aura emitted from his as Godzilla stared him down.
"Now we just need to-KEVIN!" Ichi scolded as he saw Kevin gnawing on the bat's handle! "Stop chewing on the bat!"
"C'mon Ichi! I'm hungryyyy~!" Kevin pleaded.
"I can't believe you thought being 'hungry for victory' meant skipping breakfast." Ni grumbled as he held the lower portion of the bat's handle in his mouth. "You do know swinging this is gonna hurt our necks, right?"
"Yeah. You and Kevin's. Not mine." Ichi replied. "Now let's hit a homerun!"
Ghidorah, however, had no such luck. In fact, he completely struck out. One strike for each head. Needless to say, he wasn't too happy about it.
"Three strikes in a row. Not off to a good start oh, fearless leader." Belial chuckled at Ghidorah's expense. "Though given your track record against Godzilla, the results weren't too surprising."
"And how's your score against Zero?" Ichi Ghidorah snapped back! "Last I checked, you got beaten by your own son! He's even cheering for Zero!"
"You do realize I only held hatred for the Ultra Warriors because it was required for my role, right?" Belial asked with a raised eyebrow. "Can't you see that an on-screen rivalry doesn't have to carry over to real life?"
"Don't bother Belial." Gigan sighed. "Ni and Kevin understand that, but Ichi is way too deluded to listen. Let's just get into our field positions so we can compensate for his rambling and grumbling. He's my friend, but I can't blame anyone who gets sick of his delusions of grandeur."
In the announcer box, two individuals were giving commentary on the game's progress. One character was King Kong while the other was Gomora. The two even wore ties, so you knew that this was all very official.
"I have to say, Kong. Things aren't looking promising for Ghidorah's team." Gomora said as he observed the shifting of team positions. "You've played a fair amount of ball. What're your thoughts?"
"Well Gomora, I'd say it's hard to play right when you're of three minds about everything." Kong replied before taking a swig from his soda. "Coupled with the fact that Glaive and Ouja tend to be poor sports and sore losers, I don't think Ghidorah's got a winning team on his hands. Or rather, his necks."
"True." Gomora nodded. "And now it's Godzilla's team up at bat."
"I don't think it's going to be a close game at this point." Kong chuckled. "If there's anything I learned during the one film Godzilla and I starred in, it's that no matter what kind of challenge, he'll meet it with the full force of his power. There's a reason he's called the King of the Monsters. It's a title that I'd say he's well earned."
"Huh. I wouldn't have expected you to give him such praise." Gomora chuckled.
"Why does everyone keep thinking we've got some sort of historic grudge match or heated rivalry?" Kong muttered. "Ghidorah's one of his most frequent opponents anyway."
Back on the field, Godzilla was up at bat and staring down Gigan who was pitching. Gigan threw a wicked curveball thanks to his scythe-like arms, but Godzilla just dug his feet in and swung with all his might! A thunderous crack sounded throughout the stadium as the ball was sent flying into the air! In a desperate attempt to avenge his earlier humiliation, Ghidorah was making a b-line right for the ball! He'd have flown, but he wouldn't dare disgrace himself by cheating. His pride would never let him live it down. But it seemed that luck did not grace Ghidorah as the ball flew right over his heads! Letting Godzilla score a home run for his team!
Next to bat was Anguirus. The quadruped kaiju waddled his way up to plate and, to the surprise of many, stood up on his hind legs! Gripping the bat tightly as he let out a taunting snort and gestured for Gigan to give him his best shot! A taunt that Gigan gladly obliged! Anguirus was able to slug the ball away with the bat, and immediately ran towards the bases on all fours! But the villains' team wasn't going to give up that easy! As Anguirus made a break for the bases, NegaRed managed to catch the ball and tossed it over to Belial! The dark Ultra Warrior would have been able to get Anguirus out if the kaiju hadn't rolled into a ball and landed on top of third base safe!
Blade's turn at bat came next. However, he didn't pick up the bat. No, Blade used his Blade Rouzer in the bat's stead. Needless to say, the crowd was perplexed. The outcome was what most expected: Blade unintentionally slicing the ball in half.
"Ack!" Blade panicked! "I forgot to use the flat side!"
"Ooh!" Kong winced at the scene! "And Godzilla's team was off to such a promising start!"
"Well, the umpire hasn't called a foul." Gomora stated. "Blade will have another shot just as soon as the replacement ball is brought out."
The replacement ball was swiftly brought out, and Blade was much more inclined to take up the standard baseball bat than his sword. Blade didn't need to score a home run. Just enough to get Anguirus to home plate. And he accomplished that without much difficulty as Glaive was beating off anyone that tried to catch the ball. Unfortunately for Glaive, Blade came to a screeching halt as he reached second base! Stopping just in time!
"Alright! My turn!" MegaRed cheered as he jogged up to home plate! "Wish me luck!"
"Reds rock!" Ryuki shouted from the bench!
"I'm taking up the pitcher's mound!" NegaRed declared as he marched up to Gigan! "I'll be the one to strike out MegaRed!"
Gigan just shrugged as he took the infield. Meanwhile, NegaRed reached his arm back before swinging it forward and twisting his wrist at the last second! Sending the ball forward in a spiral! The ball's unusual movement landed MegaRed his first strike! Two more and Ghidorah's team would take the batting position again! NegaRed chuckled as he threw another spiral ball at MegaRed! But to the dark ranger's shock, MegaRed managed to actually hit the ball!
'Oh wait. His unique weapon is a drill-sword.' NegaRed thought to himself before facepalming. 'Of course he'd know how to get around a throw like that.'
MegaRed's successful hit allowed Blade to rush the next bases before sliding down to home plate! After the point was given, Ouja stepped up to the pitcher's mound.
"Let's see how dragon dork likes my fast ball." Ouja sneered as he gripped the ball tightly and reared his arm back like a cobra getting ready to strike. It was just as well that Ryuki was up at bat. "This is long overdue payback for all the times you vexed me!"
"You'll be sulking while you slither after this!" Ryuki snapped back before crouching and brandishing the bat like it was the Dragsaber.
"Hmph." Ouja scoffed as he let loose his fastball! Like a snake shooting forward at its prey, the ball rocketed toward Ryuki! Ryuki swung, but it was too late as the ball hit the umpire's glove! "Strike one dragon dork! Two more, and you're out!"
Once again, Ouja's fastball screamed past Ryuki! Ryuki took a deep breath to focus himself, and returned to his ready position. Closing his eyes as he held the bat loosely and close to the ground while in a slight crouch. Ouja let out a smug chuckle as he prepared a final fastball! However, Ryuki's eyes snapped open and he swung with all his might! Like a dragon swiping away with its tail! The hit was so strong that it knocked the ball right out of the park! Not wasting any time, Ryuki bolted like a herd of Metalgelas were charging right behind him and scored a home run!
However, Ouja didn't take to kindly to this and began pursuing Ryuki despite there being no ball to tag him with! This behavior was met with immediate consequences as Ouja was removed from the rest of the game.
"I don't mean to be the bearer of bad news, but it looks like you're one member short of a full team." The umpire informed Ghidorah's team. "If you have any reserve members, now would be the time to put them in."
". . . Reserve members?" Ichi asked nervously.
"Don't tell me your ego was so huge that you actually considered yourself three players!" Gyaos snapped at his leader! "Penalties and benching happen all the time in sports! How did you not consider this?!"
"Three heads but the working brain isn't at the center." Gigan sighed.
"Now. . . enjoy our defeat." Kamen Rider Eternal sighed as he looked at the ground and gave a thumbs-down before whipping out a trumpet and playing a funeral tune.
"I WILL NOT FORFEIT!" Ichi snapped indignantly! "Can't we call in one of the Mechagodzillas?!"
"MG1 has a literal broken arm. MG2 has one of his optics busted, and Kiryu broke one of his legs when he collided with one of the flying kaiju." Belial reported. "Not to mention you didn't seem too keen on recruiting some reserve players when assembling our team."
"Seems like grounds for a forfeit to me." The umpire stated.
"Th-Then I demand that Godzilla remove one member of his team from the rest of the game!" Ichi snapped! "We're short one player, so they should be short one too!"
"Hold on." Godzilla said as he approached the pitcher's mound. "I've got a better idea."
"What did you have in mind?" The umpire asked.
"One last run. Me up against Ghidorah." Godzilla declared. "This whole thing has our rivalry at the center. So let's just keep it between the two of us. If Ghidorah strikes me out, his team wins. And if I score a home run, then my team wins."
"Hmmm." The umpire scratched his chin in thought. "It's highly unorthodox, but all right."
"As it should be!" Ichi smirked as he spread his wings wide! "Prepare to hand over the throne, pretender!"
Godzilla said nothing as he walked over to home plate, and got into a ready position. Ichi smirked as Ni threw his head back, and hurled the ball at Godzilla as hard as he could! Godzilla's eyes went wide with surprise as he barely managed to intercept the ball with the bat! But the force behind the throw was too great, and the ball sailed right into the umpire's mit!
"STRIKE ONE!" The umpire announced!
Godzilla shook himself out of his daze, and readied himself once more. This time it was Kevin's head that threw a wicked curveball that snaked around the arc of Godzilla's swing! Netting the King of the Monsters another strike!
"STRIKE TWO!" The umpire declared!
"One more and you can kiss kingship goodbye!" Ichi cackled! "And with this. . . IT ENDS!"
"Not if I can do anything about it . . ." Godzilla growled as he held the bat like a sword about to be drawn from the hip! "BRING IT ON!"
Ichi narrowed his eyes, threw his head back, and hurled the ball at Godzilla from his mouth! Godzilla waited until the ball was right in front of him before swinging the bat with all his might! The sound of a bat cracking against the ball echoed throughout the entire city with the ball being sent flying into the sky! There was so much force behind the swing that the ball began to reach the atmosphere!
Panicking, Ghidorah took to the air in an effort to snatch the ball and use it to get Godzilla out! The instant the Ghidorah made his ascent, Godzilla hit the ground running! Meanwhile, Ghidorah's pursuit of the ball led him to the upper atmosphere! Ichi managed to catch the ball with his mouth, and shot back towards the stadium at top speed! Godzilla had just made it to second base when he saw Ghidorah rocketing down towards him! Godzilla wasted no time kicking it into high gear to get him to third base and beyond! At this point, Ghidorah came screamin towards him! Both were rapidly approaching home plate! The instant Ghidorah landed, a massive dust cloud exploded from the baseball diamond! All of the assembled viewers waited with baited breath for the dust to clear and reveal who had triumphed.
When the dust finally settled, the victor was made clear! Godzilla had made it to home plate and won by a literal tail! The crowd erupted into cheers as Godzilla stood up and let out a mighty roar before cementing his victory with his signature dance! In mere seconds, his team was tossing him up and down with one cheer resonating through the air!
"LONG LIVE THE KING!"
AN: And here it is folks! The last chapter of Toku Town! It's been a blast writing this story, and I had so much fun creating each chapter! Now, I can proudly say that I'll be committing myself to my next project: Kamen Rider Ryuki Revised! Thanks for sticking with me, and the input you've given! I couldn't have made it here without you all!