Rule #26c: To a young person, to whom everything comes easily, the pain of defeat can be a much needed wake up call.
"…Batter number five is the Honing Hero, Gotcha!" Mineta crowed as the sharpshooter moved up to bat. Gotcha, as it turned out, was another one of the Yoshiwara kids that had been headhunted during one of the Yakuza's earlier initiation periods. Although Toru didn't know them personally, she had seen them around the place—both in the compound and in the PLF manor—and their reputation spoke well of them in that sense. "And—what's this? The players are converging on the in-field! This is highly unusual…!"
Toga crossed her arms with a heavy sigh as the opposition took up positions in the in-field that were just a tad too close for comfort. "I think its safe to say that they've caught onto our bunting strategy"
"Mon dieu!" Aoyama pouted, "Can they really do that?"
"Technically, if it's in fair territory, they can defend however they like" Toru replied. "The umpire could call 'em on it, but since Grape Juice's on their side, there's a fat chance of that happening"
WHOOSH!
"…And he's popped it off!" Mineta crowed, "Looks like Gotcha is intimidated by the in-field's pressure. Which makes that the first out of the game!"
"This is messed up!" Slidin' Go began to sweat as he stepped up to the plate. "How the fuck am I supposed to bunt my way around a set-up like that?!"
"…Batter number six is the Sliding Hero: Slidin' Go!"
"Any guidance, Egg?"
Across the field, Major Egghead sheepishly flashed through the signals. Blank—Blank—Blank
"You mean, we've got nothing?!"
And so it went that Slidin' Go was struck out, and then following in shortly thereafter was Yoroi, in what was a rather shameful attempt. Although, Zhao did receive a rather nice bruise in the side, thanks to her efforts. In any case, three outs were struck in quick succession causing the umpire to call for a switch. Mineta seemed to be having a field day directing everyone where to go from the stands, whilst Toru on the other hand, was more than ready to call it quits, mostly thanks to that jet lag that wasn't quite gone and the nerves that chomped at the bit for the upcoming mission.
"And we're back! First up for the Lurkers, is batter number one: Mt Lady!" Declared Mineta as the giantess stepped up to bat. "Dagger of the Carmines, throws the first fiery pitch"
WHOOSH!
Toru had to smile as she watched the flaming ball curve nicely around the blonde's anticipatory stance, just barely brushing through her bangs as it swerved to nestle itself in the folds of the catcher's mitt, of the backstop. It was almost like the canine was playing fetch with themselves; except, you know, the balls were on fire. On purpose.
"Huh?" Mt Lady blinked dumbly as her gaze darted back & forth between the pitcher and the backstop as if she were trying to reconcile how she had missed the ball. But soon enough, she had returned to her ready stance and stared down the hound with an intensity that did not belong there.
"Yeah, Dagger! That's the way!" Wicca cheered, "Don't let 'er get a hit! None of us can catch worth a damn…"
"Ehehe…No worries, I'm on it" Dagger chuckled sheepishly as the ball was returned to them. "Guess its time to get serious"
Please, Dags, don't let her get a hit in! Toru silently pleaded as the canine's arm wound back for a second pitch. And if you do, don't let it come my way!
Flaming like all hell, Dagger wound back their arm and let the ball fly with an almighty declaration of "Hound style: Headhunter!"
"Not good enough!" Mt Lady retorted as she shifted about an inch to the right; just enough for the blonde to swing and whack the ball back out into the open field.
WHACK!
Mercifully, the ball didn't rebound in Toru's direction. It did, however, turn towards Aoyama who was less than pleased at the turn of events. Taking the ball in the stomach revealed a pained face that not even the overuse of his own quirk had ever brought forth and the glittery blonde was quickly swept off of his feet with the force of the swing.
"Twinkling Star just got snuffed out!" Mineta called as Mt Lady rounded the bases like the actual hounds of hell were right on her heels. "But—oh! The ball fell out of his glove! And there's Wicca tossing it to second base!"
"Nice play, Wicca!" Toru called through cupped hands. Not that it lasted long because, just as the witch had foretold, Carmine's catching skills were shit and they fumbled the ball like it was hot potato allowing Mt Lady to body check Toga out of the way.
"Ah! Illus-o-Camie just got body-checked by Mt Lady!" Mineta gasped. Toru rolled her eyes at the boy's tone; she could practically feel the lust in it as the shapeshifter went flying. Inwardly though, she hoped that Toga would be able to keep the transformation up even as she was man handled a bit too roughly for her liking. "—And there we go! Prism chucks the dropped ball to third base, but—oh! Again with the fumble! Today is not Carmine's day! And there she goes, rounding the bases! Looks like this'll be a home run, folks! That's the second one of the day! And would you look at that? Despite the brutal body check Illus-o-Camie is back on her feet whilst Twinkling Star is still down for the count! Guess they make 'em tougher in Shiketsu…!"
As Mineta's commentary turned towards the more depraved and unsavoury side of things, Shiozaki, whom had previously been watching the field like a hawk suddenly grew distressingly pale and subsequently passed out. Apparently, the sight of Aoyama being dragged off of the pitch looking whiter than a ghost was more than enough to put the fear of God into the religious girl and she dropped like a sack of potatoes. "Shiozaki?!" Sero panicked, rushing to help the girl as Kaminari appeared on her other side (looking far better than he had, previously).
"Oops! Looks like it was too much for Vine to handle, cause she's out cold!" Mineta sighed, sounding completely unapologetic. "And with that the Lurkers have six players left, whilst the Carmines only have four!"
Out the in field, Toru could only watch on as Mt Lady rather smugly strode back to the impromptu dugout as the next batter stepped up to the mound. Though inwardly, she found herself wondering why the giantess didn't bother growing several feet and rounding the bases that way; it would've made this thing so much simpler.
"Psst! Prism!" Someone hissed down at her feet. "Hey! Down here!"
"Huh?" Toru glanced down to find Major Egghead nestled tightly between her feet and looking imploringly up at her. Secretly, she was glad that her costume didn't include a skirt or anything less than what she already wore because this position felt problematic enough as it was. "Probably not the best idea to be right under my feet, Egg, 'least the idea is to get stepped on"
"Ehehehe! You're the second up to bat in the next inning, correct? How about we shake things up a bit, eh?"
"…Now that we're back, the teams have switched for the top of the second and it looks like the invincible front defence is the still the order of the day!" Declared Mineta after a small break when the teams had swapped back over. "Illus-o-Camie is up to bat for the Carmines, and the starting pitcher for the Lurkers is Kamui Woods! He winds up for the first pitch and throws…!"
WHOOSH!
"Huh? Huh?!" Toga blinked dumbly as she was quickly yanked off of her feet and dangled high up in the air. No matter how much the shapeshifter struggled, she could not break free of the dryad's grasp. In any case, with the batter no longer blocking the route to the backstop, Kamui was free to fire the baseballs straight into the catcher's mitt that stood ready and waiting.
"Strike!"
"Pre-emptive Binding: Lacquered Chain Prison" Kamui murmured in lieu of an explanation as he wound up his arm once more.
"Aw! That's like totes not fair!" Toga whined, playing the character of the Shiketsu second year just a tad too well. After the fiasco at the Provisional Licensing Exam, the shapeshifter had made it her mission to perfect the technique—both in physicality and personality.
"Strike!"
"Put me down! Put me down!"
"Strike! You're out! Batter number eight is the Invisible Hero, Prism, back up to bat!"
"Hmm…" Toru hummed as her gaze drifted out over the tightly-packed in-field.
"Move it, Prism! We haven't got all day—!"
"—Hang on…" Toru brushed off the grape head's concerns and instead turned to the eldest of the Lurkers who stood off to the side. "Never took you as the type to play dirty, Edgeshot"
"Dirty?" Sero puzzled, "What's she talking about?"
"If the rules haven't changed, then this little gambit ain't legal, y'know?" She grinned, idly tapping the baseball bat against her shoulder. "They're begirding the in-field; the umpire—" Toru shot Mineta a glare. "—Should've called 'em on it, by now. Aw, c'me on! Anyone else smell a rat, or is it just me?"
"Quit whining about every little thing!" Mineta scowled, "And just play ball!"
"Oh, nevermind! What was I thinking?" Toru smirked as she turned her attention to the umpire. "You guys must be morons! Baseball's like a foreign language to ya!"
Predictably, that did not sit well with their opponents who quickly made their sour opinions known. Still, Toru dutifully stepped up the plate, knowing full-well that there was very little she could do against Kamui Woods' Lacquered Prison. But perhaps if she ignited the baseball bat, the ball would simply burn its way through the branches? Well, it was worth a shot, I mean, it's not like they had a whole lot to lose. Yes, this was just a playful game between friends, but teenagers—and heroes—were a competitive bunch and, well, assassins like those of (formerly) of 3-E weren't exactly great at backing down from a challenge. No, they were better at stirring the pot; just like she had done—just like she was good at doing.
Kamui's leg curled up to meet his arm, winding so tight that he looked more like a root than a tree and then he let both branches and ball fly. "Lacquered Chain Prison!"
"Oh, this better work!" Toru swore to herself as the bat ignited in her hand and burning light wreathed the aluminium so tightly that it sang as she swung. She looked like some strange kind of Jedi as the bat & ball connected, flying back towards the pitcher and carving a burning path through the wood as it did so.
What happened next, couldn't have been predicted if you had days to write it and all of the comedians in the world at your disposal. The baseball clocked Kamui Woods squarely in the cheek with a resounding smack, sweeping the hero off of his feet and scouring a neat line into the forest floor. The ball itself, bounced off of the dryad's head and soared up towards the heavens like a tiny little sun, before it began to drop like an anvil was tied to it.
"Mt Lady!" Makabe called, "Catch it! Catch it! Catch it!"
Mt Lady ran forward at the call, enlarging herself in one step to catch the ball, only to find herself toppling over as she was hit twice without much preamble. The ball, burning like all hell, missed her giant catcher's mitt and bounced off of her forehead whilst Kamui Woods eventually came to a stop between her ankles, dropping the giantess to the ground like a house of cards.
"Ah!" Mineta cried, "Now Mt Lady and Kamui Woods are out cold! But that's a nice save from Cellophane! That should keep Prism from rounding the bases—!"
THUMP!
"What the hell?!" Mineta jolted to his feet as Sero, who had previously yanked the free falling ball from the air, now found himself buried beneath —ft of unconscious heroine, unable to fight or flee…or breathe. "Cellophane was crushed by an unconscious Mt Lady! Seriously?! Even Kamui Woods isn't moving! Prism may be stuck on first base, but that was an amazing play! She took out three Lurkers in one fell swoop…Remind me not to get on her bad side!"
"Hey, hey, hey!" Kaminari bounced agitatedly on his toes. "Someone should probably pull Cellophane out before he suffocates—!"
"Its the bottom of the second inning and the Carmines have given up two outs!" Mineta reported, "And what's this? Illus-o-Camie's swing connects! The trajectory is low and the following smack against the boundary line is leading the Lurkers around the field like headless chickens! Illus-o-Camie makes it to the base with time to spare! And Prism is pushed onto the next base! Folks, looks like we have ourselves a double! Batter up!"
WHOOSH!
"Strike one! Strike two! Strike three! Batter is out!" Mineta crowed as Wicca shamefully trudged over the others, shoulders slumped and head low. "We're now at the bottom of the circle and the end is nigh! The Lurkers are on the defensive and then this game is over!"
Finally.
HERO PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION STATUS REPORT
PARANORMAL LIBERATION FRONT INFILTRATION
HERO: PRISM
Notable Carmine Regiment Members:
Commander Toga Himiko [Identity: Toga Himiko, Status: Alive, Quirk: Transform, Affiliation: The League of Villains]
Commander Skeptic [Identity: Unknown, Status: Alive, Quirk: Anthromorph, Affiliation: Meta Liberation Army]
Dagger [Identity: Tama Jin, Status: Alive, Quirk: Hellhound, Affiliation: Yakuza]
Slidin' Go [Identity: Tokoname Tatsuyuki, Status: Alive, Quirk: Slide, Affiliation: Meta Liberation Army]
Twinkling Star [Identity: Aoyama Yuga, Status: Alive, Quirk: Navel Laser, Affiliation: The League of Villains]
Yoroi Musha [Identity: Yoroi Musha, Status: Alive, Quirk: Equip, Affiliation: Meta Liberation Army]
Wicca [Identity: Unknown, Status: Alive, Quirk: Spellcaster, Affiliation: Yakuza]
Major Egghead [Identity: Unknown, Status: Alive, Quirk: Colour Change, Affiliation: Yakuza]
Gotcha [Identity: Unknown, Status: Alive, Quirk: Honing, Affiliation: Yakuza]