Chapter 30: Getting to know the Baseball Idiot's Ace

After high-fiving Furuya and swapping with him in the bullpen for pitching practice with Miyuki, Sora had gone to individual batting. The day before she had asked Takashima if it would be possible to reserve a certain part of the practice field for herself because there was something she wanted to try out and she needed a little bit more space for that than usual.

Luckily for the blue haired girl, she had gotten permission and thus she had distributed fiery red round flags as targets all over the field before starting the ball machine. Focusing on her course control, she tried to pinpoint her hits directly at the red markers, but as always, only about half of the baseballs actually landed spot on on one of the targets. Some others were fairly close and started to flock around certain areas, but the number of bulls-eye hits was still disappointing for the blue head. That wouldn't be good enough for an official match! Control, she needed more control! Like when pitching.

Unbeknownst to her, she had already spent much more time on the field than planned and several people were able to have a closer look at her unique batting practice as they walked by. Coach Kataoka and the female scout Takashima, for example who were surprised about her method.

"Didn't she tell us that her batting wasn't extraordinary?" Takashima asked amused, fixing her glasses with her index finger.

"Mh, with her success rate she might still think like that. And her average isn't all that great, statistically speaking, so she wasn't entirely wrong", the stern head coach replied, focusing his gaze on the young girl who tried her best to get a grip of how to control a bat properly.

"True", the brunette woman admitted. "But if she's actually able to pull off what she's trying right now, it could become a great weapon and an essential advantage for the team as a whole"

"I think the problem lies in her form. We would have to correct her stance accordingly, but that could break the amount of control she has already established by now and make things worse instead"

"Maybe we should talk to coach Ochiai about it, he might have one or the other thought about it we usually wouldn't have. His different perspective has already helped us a few times after all"

"Do that. I'm leaving it to you"

On the opposite side of the practice field, on the way leading also to the dorms and the bath, Kuramochi, Miyuki, Kominato and Shirasu were walking side by side after picking up the brunette catcher in the bullpen. The boys were holding their bats and helmets as they had attempted to do some extra practice as well.

"You-san, look! Isn't that Sora-kun?!" the pink haired teen asked and pointed at his blue haired teammate after he had heard a continuous cling sound of a metal bat hitting a ball.

The shortstop and also their other two comrades stopped in their tracks and turned their heads in the direction of Kominato's pointing finger.

"Yeah, it is", Kuramochi affirmed, furrowing his brows at the sight of the red targets on the field.

"What is he doing?" Shirasu questioned equally skeptical.

"Isn't that…? What he told us the other day?!" Kominato blurted out unusually excited for the calm and shy boy and his green haired fielding partner nodded proudly.

"Hyaha! Target practice for pinpointing his hits like he would with his pitches! That lil' bastard… Not only showing off in the bullpen, but also trying to steal all the good parts in the offense for himself"

"Eh?!"

Miyuki's caramel eyes widened and he scanned the field, estimating the number of baseballs lying directly on the round flags, but also those who had come very close.

"He really can hit about half of his balls directly on point, huh?! That's actually amazing…", the younger Kominato remarked impressed. "And to think that Sora-kun was so disappointed with himself…"

"So, you've already talked with him about this method?" Shirasu chimed in curiously, but Kuramochi shook his head no.

"Nah, that guy only told us he tries to pinpoint, but not how he usually practices it"

"He also told us that he's most likely able to see weaknesses and holes in the defense of the other team and that he will try to exploit those weak points with his batting if possible", the pinkette added.

"Well, then all of this would make sense indeed", the composed right fielder mused. "If he's actually able to do it, it would be a great benefit for the whole team"

"Haya! That's what we also said!"

Miyuki sighed and ruffled his brunette hair with one hand, since he was holding his bat with the other one.

"Exactly when will he start telling me such important things?!"

"Did you even ask Sora about his batting?" Shirasu asked his captain who only blinked a little confused. "He's quite cooperative with his pitching now, isn't he? So, if you want to know something about him or his play, go and ask him directly. I'm pretty sure you'll get an honest answer voluntarily. It's not like he tries to hide anything, right?"

Kominato nodded hesitantly, placing his finger on his chin thoughtfully.

"When we asked him about his batting and his ability to recognize weak spots of another team, Sora-kun replied willingly"

"I remember him trying to tell me his batting wasn't extraordinary though", Miyuki complained.

"Yeah, 'cause I guess his average really isn't", Kuramochi said matter-of-factly. "Talking about his Junior High records, of course and as you can see it doesn't work out the way he wants it to just yet, so it's still in progress. Plus, he's not exactly the type to hit a homerun, which also adds to the statistic"

Shirasu nodded.

"True. Sora's unique skills would be his speed as a base runner, his fielding abilities and of course his pitching because now he has a partner who's able to use it correctly"

"Heh… I wonder…" the young captain mused, making his teammates throw him questioning glances. "I think Sora would have the ability to be a very capable all-rounder"

"Huh?! Oi, oi, Miyuki… That's high praise coming from you of all people!" Kuramochi stated seriously with the other two nodding along in agreement.

"Well, think about it. He's already a skilled shortstop or rather infielder in general and he has told Rei-chan he'd even be willing to switch to the outfield as well, so his speed and his flexibility as well as his reckless plays, his concentration and focus and even his pinpointing ability of his pitches are useful in- and outfield as well as on base as a runner, of course", the genius catcher explained. "Then, I don't have to mention his pitching, you've seen that for yourself and it even has the potential to get much better, so that's that. If Sora's now also able to polish this completely unbelievable batting technique, which I've never heard of before to be honest and if you're telling me that he can use his concentration skills also for scouting and pointing out our enemy's weaknesses…"

"…He could become one of our pillars of our new offense as well", Shirasu concluded.

"Holy hell…" Kuramochi cursed under his breath, his gaze never shifting from the blue haired girl swinging her bat in concentration.

"So, Sora-kun would be able to play any position in baseball except for the catcher?" Kominato questioned, the disbelief clearly audible in his tone of voice.

"Ah, about that…" Miyuki grinned mischievously. "I mean, he is actually able to catch Sawamura's numbers when playing catch ball and I already mentioned his good eye and high focus, so…"

The brunette captain made a vague gesture with his hand, leaving the sentence unfinished, but his three team members gawked incredulously nonetheless.

"You don't say!" Shirasu breathed heavily.

"D-Does that mean that Sora-kun could actually be… a true baseball prodigy without knowing it all along?!" the pink haired shy boy asked, still having trouble to sort out his thoughts properly.

"Hyaha! Wouldn't put it beyond him", Kuramochi admitted with a wide grin.

"I wouldn't necessarily go that far", Miyuki dimmed their excitement. "I'd say he's a diamond in the rough with a lot of potential, but remember what he told us about his wish to be a pitcher. He put in a whole lot of time and effort and practice in order to be able to switch positions, as he was always well aware of his own flaws. And his fielding ability comes from alle the years of track and field practice with his brother. I think in Sora's case it's all about his willpower. His willingness to practice more than anyone else to achieve his goal and his readiness to never give up. This is just my own opinion, but I think Sora's biggest strength is his love for baseball, not some natural hereditary talent"

"Hm, a hard worker with a love and a dedication to the sport and a passion for the pitcher position", Shirasu mused thoughtfully.

"Yeah, sounds more like Sora than natural born prodigy", Kuramochi agreed.

"And if Sora-kun wants to be a pitcher above anything else, it doesn't really matter if he'd be able to play other positions", Kominato said. "The most important question would be if he'd even be willing to play anything else"

"If it would be absolutely necessary to help the team, I suppose Sora would do almost anything in his power, although the pitcher is his favorite starting position. Just like Furuya who has to play left field occasionally", the young right fielder stated with his friends humming in mutual agreement.

"But well, since I'm a dutiful captain and catcher, I'm gonna have to spoil the fun for our blue head now", Miyuki snickered. "He's pitched already today and should rest his shoulder. If he gets too tense during batting practice, he could get injured and we don't want that now, do we?!"

Kuramochi sweat dropped.

"You just wanna annoy him again…", the shortstop deadpanned flatly.

"Evil accusations…"

The brunette catcher was already making his way to the practice field with the still highly focused Sora hitting ball after ball and the green head sighed in exasperation while Kominato patted his shoulder sympathetically.

"And there he keeps wondering why Sora wouldn't fully open up to him… Don't blame me, if he bites your head off, captain!"

Shirasu and the younger pinkette exchanged a glance and a knowing smile as they tagged along their captain and vice-captain to get Sora off of the practice field. To everyone's great surprise, the blue haired girl wasn't making a big deal out of it, admitting that she had been at it for much longer than planned already, so the young girl offered to clean up, but since the four boys also wanted to bat for a bit, they told her to go cool off and stretch properly instead.

"Alright, thank you guys", she chirped seemingly in a good mood and waved at them. "See you in a few Mochi?"

"Sure as hell!" Kuramochi replied with a fist pump. "Gotta get my revenge in Smash Bros."

"Ohhh, care to let me in on that?" Kominato almost pleaded with the chance of a good videogame challenge.

"Why not? Wanna pair up with Eijun for a team challenge? Then we could do it in Mochi's room instead?" Sora suggested exchanging a glance with the shortstop who grinned viciously.

"Hyaha! Has been a while since I mobbed the floor with Sawamura"

"I'm in", the pink haired batter took the offer happily. "I'm gonna talk to Eijun-kun after practice, so that we won't be late. If I don't go fetch him, he's gonna run his lungs out with that tire tied to him"

"True", Miyuki, Shirasu, Kuramochi and Sora all gave back unisono.

"Then I will tell the others that we're meeting up in room five today", Shirasu casually added earning disbelieving looks from his teammates.

"Somehow this has become a team party now", Sora deadpanned.

"Just the usual", Miyuki remarked dryly and both sighed, causing the green haired shortstop to laugh his hyena laughter once again.

The blue haired girl took off with a light jog until she arrived at the bullpen again, searching for a good spot for stretching and cooling down. There she spotted Furuya who just came walking around a corner and she greeted him with a smile.

"Did you just finish practice?"

The young ace nodded once.

"I was throwing into a net after Miyuki-senpai had left"

"Wanna cool down together?"

He nodded again. As calm and neutral as ever.

The two teenagers began their cooling down exercises and were helping each other with the stretching. Sora offered to massage Furuya's shoulders after icing his throwing arm and he agreed, a pleased aura glittering around the dark haired boy.

"The team's meeting up in room five later if you want to join", the young girl informed her teammate while pushing his back from behind gently with her knee, so that he would be able to stretch further.

Furuya just let out a muffled groan, but Sora wasn't so sure if it had been a response or just an expression of pain from over-stretching too much, so she let him sit up straight quickly.

After they had finished, Sora helped the young boy put the icing pad around his right shoulder and together they sat for a while in mutual silence, holding onto their water bottles, drinking from them occasionally to re-hydrate after the exhausting practice.

"Sora"

"Hm?"

"I wanted to thank you"

She yawned and gave him a tired smile. He really was trying hard with the communication thingy.

"You're welcome, Furuya. And thank you too"

He was silent again for a moment as if to think about something, then he furrowed his brows and shook his dark haired head.

"Not the cool down"

Sora raised her eyebrows at him.

"Oh? Then what?"

"Sharing your story"

The young girl blinked, taken aback.

"Eh? But that is a while ago already"

Furuya nodded again, humming in agreement.

"But it made me realize some important things, I guess"

"That's news to me though. I already told you, I don't really understand it up until today myself, right?!"

Sora didn't seriously expect a detailed or deep answer in return, especially not from Furuya of all people, but to her big astonishment, he started to tell her a bit about himself and his past in Hokkaidou. About how he had always been alone as a kid because he was too introverted and silent, about his grandfather who had always encouraged him to express himself, his will and his emotions, about how the other children had avoided him and playing baseball with him because they had been afraid of his powerful pitches and also about the fact that he had only entered Seidou because of his hope that Miyuki Kazuya would be able to catch for him properly.

"In a way, your story made me think about my past again", Furuya admitted. "And I realized that maybe I've been in the wrong. Like you said it yourself. I might've done mistakes too. It's not only all the other's fault for avoiding me, it's also my own fault for wanting to push something upon them they couldn't handle and also didn't want to. They weren't liking baseball as much as I did, but I wanted them to. I don't know why, but it made me relax, so thank you again, Sora"

"Maybe because you noticed that they didn't avoid you because they hated you", she tried to explain patiently, gaining Furuya's full attention. "You know, if you had the chance to meet them once again today and to talk about things properly and maybe also to apologize, you guys still could be friends… or something? Or well, maybe friends is a bit too much, but let's say be on good terms with each other?"

"Ah!" the young ace let out an understanding sound.

"Unlike me you didn't have a complete fallout with them, right? If you wanted to, you might be able to fix things if you ever want to return to Hokkaidou. Or you can just come to terms with your past now and have some peace of mind"

"Talking to you is comfortable. It clears up things and it's easy to understand"

"Why, thank you very much"

Sora rubbed the back of her head a little sheepishly.

"But you know, I don't do anything special or something. Anyway, I'm glad that you feel better"

Furuya nodded his head again for the umpteenth time now and took another sip of water from his bottle.

"Just… don't think you have to change yourself for some other people. You're good as you are, Furuya", Sora advised giving him a rather sad kind of smile since she knew what she was talking about and before she knew it, she had stretched out her hand to ruffle the young ace's dark hair affectionately. "While it may be true that you have some trouble expressing yourself or communicating with others, you have a nice and accepting team here with a lot of baseball idiots who just understand you well enough, no?! Especially that loud-mouthed one"

His silvery-grey eyes widened at her kind words and a slight blush creeped up Furuya's cheeks as he processed Sora's former actions, but he noticed soon enough that she was right.

"Eijun… might be the one understanding me the best"

Sora perked up at the fact that Furuya of all people was calling Sawamura by first name and that he was admitting something like that so casually. She smirked a little impishly.

"You like him, don't you?! You see him as a friend, not only as a rival"

"…"

Furuya narrowed his eyes and turned his head away.

"Hahaha, okay, now you're ignoring me?!"

"…"

"You know you're acting all tsundere now, Furuya?"

His fiery blue aura suddenly plopped out and Sora had to laugh even more.

"See?! Your communication is just fine. It's different and unique, but it's very much like you and perfectly understandable. If anything, you're hella obvious, Furuya. Just stay as you are and be yourself! But sorry, I gotta say that thing with your aura really is funny. For me at least"

The black haired boy turned back around with a slightly surprised expression and then the corners of his mouth twitched a tiny little bit upward, which could be considered an actual smile taking his usual poker face into consideration.

"Alright, enough icing for your shoulder, let's get to the massage, shall we?"

And as always, Furuya nodded and complied without much talking.

After a short, but relaxing shoulder massage, the two teenagers packed their stuff, cleaned up the bullpen and left, running straight into two other first-years who apparently had finished their lower-body training indoors.

"Cheez, Kanemaru, Toujou!" the blue haired girl greeted and she and Furuya joined them on their way to the dorms and the shared bathroom. "Are you coming to room five later? The rest of us is meeting up"

"Oh sure, thanks for letting us know", Toujou responded, but Furuya seemed to be displeased with something, furrowing his brows.

"Sora"

"Yes?"

"Why do you still call us by last name?"

"Huh?!"

"You call the others by first or by nickname, right? It's unfair"

"Oi, oi, Furuya!" Kanemaru scolded slightly.

"I don't call everyone of our team by first or nickname, ya know. Only a few. A few! Get the difference!" the young girl protested. "Besides just calling you randomly like that would be rude, none of you offered"

"I just did", the ace deadpanned.

"Ah well, I don't particularly mind either", Toujou added, causing Kanemaru to groan and to shrug his shoulders.

"Fine, if they wanna get sappy now, I'll just go along…"

"Shinji…" his best friend sweat dropped once again because of his gruff attitude.

Sora tried to suppress her blush.

"Okay, so that would be Toru, Shin and uh… do you go with Hide or with Aki?!"

The nice center fielder flushed embarrassedly and waved his hand.

"B-Both is fine, choose whatever you like better"

"Alright, but it might vary depending on the situation"

"I don't mind…"

"So, that's settled", Kanemaru decided with a grin.

"…Toru…" Furuya repeated with an unusually goofy smile and a flowery, sunny aura emitting from his body.

"He seems to like that", Toujou commented lightheartedly, letting out a soft chuckle as he watched the dark haired ace floating down the small path beside him.

"…Ugh… Well, I'm glad, but… actually that's not a thing to make such a fuss about, right?"

Sora raised her eyebrows questioningly at her teammates, but then she remembered Narumiya's reaction to Miyuki's nickname and sighed.

"Okay, never mind…"

Sometimes she seriously felt so done with her life…

Kanemaru and Toujou just exchanged a confused glance, red question marks almost visible in the air and Furuya was still happy-go-lucky in his own world.