A/N: Hello, guys! I appreciate every one that support and enjoyed my story. So here is the second chapter.
Disclaimer: I don't own the characters and the plot. They belonged to their respectful authors
Seido's training ground
The game between the first years and the upperclassmen has suddenly an interesting turn. Naruto's home run managed to get the first years players head back into the game.
"I can't believe this game will turn out like this. And all because the hit of one player. Naruto Uzuyis such an unpredictable individual" comment Rei Takashima looking intrigued at the outcome.
"I know he is good. But managed to hit a homer out of Kawakami is really impressive" praised Oota in approval.
Meanwhile the first string batters had their own discussion about the first year blond.
"I can't believe Nori couldn't even get a single out from him before he was destroyed by a homer" objected Issashiki, with his usual yankee- tone.
"I guess Beast 4's name is not a mere decoration. Further his home run gains the momentum for the first years. If the upperclassmen can't find a way to shut down Uzumaki, the flow of the game will change to the first year" comment Yuuki Tetsuya, with his usual imposing stance.
"Because Tanba-san knows that, he volunteered for the coach the permission to have a showdown with Uzumaki. After that home run, pretty much most of the upperclassmen were distraught. That's why if there is anyone in upperclassmen team that could stop Uzumaki. It's Tanba-san" analyzed Miyuki .
"But getting him out will not be easy, even for Tanba-san. That bastard has a crazy fast swing and he swang at the last moment when the ball was about to fall into the glove. I don't know how he did that, but the fact he could hit a home from an off-speed pitch, means that his form didn't crumble a bit" added Kuramochi Yoichi, with a tick mark on his temple.
"We got ourselves one heck of a monster rookie this year, eh? Actually two. That Furuya kid is a monster on his own too" comment Kominato Ryosuke with his usual easy-going tone.
Back with the scrimmage game
The one that stood on the mound was Tanba. And an incredible amount of competing aura came if him as he glared at Naruto. The third year pitcher no longer considered this as a scrimmage game, but a serious match in his head. He won't hold anything back.
Naruto stared impassively at the pitcher, but trying to also pressure Tanba.
The catcher called for outside pitch to check Tanba's conditions. Naruto's sharp eyes could see that was a ball instantly so he didn't even faze a bit.
'Good, Tanba-san's pitch has power in them. The problem is how to get an out of this guy. When he faced against Kawakami, it seemed he actually aimed for that silder. Could that be that this guy is incredibly good at hitting breaking balls? How about we try out a low inside fastball?' analyzed the catcher looking Naruto calculatively.
Naruto noticed that Tanba's had much more power and was much faster then that of Kawakami's. He could also see what the catcher's intention was. Since he hit a home run of the breaking ball, the battery will probably avoid throwing it to him. And since he hardly reacted to fastballs, they thought that he couldn't hit em. That was Naruto's intention.
The battery nodded in agreement with the sign. And Tanba threw a fast low inside pitch in strike zone. To his surprise, Naruto didn't swing on that and stood completely still. With that Tanba managed to get one strike.
The catcher smirked in satisfaction and nodded in approval at Tanba, making the pitcher gained more confidence. However Kataoka, as umpire, due to his experience as a coach knew that the battery had fall right into Naruto's trap.
'What a devious strategy! And this guy is actually a first year? And there are actually 3 more like this one' The coach couldn't help, but grinned in triumph.
The battery called for inside high pitch this time. One of the objective of that pitch is to scared Naruto, as the pitch will strike really close to his face. But as Tanba threw his pitch, the catcher noticed the grin on Naruto's face and realised that they had fall right into his trap.
Naruto hit a home run the second time in that game, which caused an uproar from the first years dugout. The score had turned into 15 – 2 in no time. Despite the big gap the upperclassmen team has totally lost them momentum, while the first years gained the vigor to overturn the match.
"Whoa! That bastard did it again! He hits a home run again!" exclaimed Shinji Kanemaru in disbelief and excitement at the same time.
"Yeah, it is really incredible! I think with Uzumaki, we can turn this game around! It is actually possible!" agreed Tojo Hideaki with his eyes full of hope.
Sawamura had a look of admiration and respect towards the blond batter. He was the only one that wanted for him to take the mound. And with that home run, Sawamura wanted to live up to the blond's expectation like never before. He will shutdown the upperclassmen with his pitching, so that Uzumaki could score more point from batting.
Furuya stood still in shock. Just how can the blond react like that? Tanba's pitch was clearly not that easy to hit, even if the course was a bit weak. He never seen someone hit so much home run so quick in one game.
Naruto's second home run in that game, made the first string bystanders felt different kind of emotions. Envy? Respect? Annoyance?
"Tanba-san felt directly to that kid's trap" Miyuki couldn't help but grinned both nervously and in excitement.
"What do you mean by that, Miyuki?" wondered Kuramochi curiously, but the one that explained was his captain instead.
"Uzumaki didn't swing for the second pitch to make the battery think that he could only hits breaking balls. But that's not all. Uzumaki didn't swing unnecessary, because that will give the battery more information about how his swing looks. He used the strike as a bait to lure the battery to think that he can't hadle fastball. Because of that reason the battery decided to scare him off with the high inside pitch, but that was all the setup created by Uzumaki" The captain of Seido, couldn't help but shivered, but also admired how devious Naruto's tactic was against the battery.
Isashiki Jun's jaw dropped a bit at Tesuya's explanation. "H-he actually made such a devious plan, just after letting us seeing how he hits Nori's slider?"
"The scary thing about his swing is he always swings at the last second. His swing speed is crazy for that to not missed the ball like that" added Kominato Ryosuke.
"All I can say is I pity any pitcher that is facing him. And that's a huge relief, that he joined Seido. I don't think any pitcher has enough nerves and guts to take him head on" comment Miyuki Kazuya. This year's team might actually turned out to be one heck of a team. All they needed is more reliable pitchers.
The bystanders had gather more, when they heard the uproar coming from the first year dugout.
"That's crazy! Totally crazy" exclaimed a male shaking his head in disbelief.
"What happened?" wondered the female approaching him slowly.
"That first year hits a home run for the second time in a game. I have never seen something so crazy before!"
"Really?" exclaimed the female in shock. "Who is he?"
"Naruto Uzumaki of Beast 4. He was quite infamous back then. But I thought that junior high level of accomplishment won't gonna do anything since high school level is much more. Clearly that was not the case here" answered the man
"Seido this year will be incredibly strong. Now, they only need a reliable pitcher" added another man, which the other man nodded in agreement.
Back to the game
It's time to switch side, and this time it's the first years turn to defend. Before Sawamura got to the mound, Naruto slided by him and whispered the words that made the pitcher fired up even more.
"I am counting on you"
With Naruto's encourage words, Sawamura's pitching had totally jammed the upperclassmen batters. Half of the reason might because they still had yet recovered from the damage Naruto dealt to the key pitcher. But another reason was because Sawamura pitches were 'disgusting'.
However Masuko Toru was managed to get a read of Sawamura's pitch and hit a home run. With that score extended 16 – 2. But even with the gap that big the fighting spirit still burned hot within the first year eyes. Simply because after watching Sawamura's pitching and Naruto's two home run, they believed that they can still win this game.
It's top of the 7th inning and this time it's Sawamura's turn to batting. By a mere fluke that catcher managed to get the ball behind him and Sawamura managed to get to first base safely. When it's Naruto's turn to bat, the blond signaled for Sawamura to advance to second base, because he knew that after his two home run, the battery will walk him to avoid the third home run.
With the first string bystanders, Ryosuke looked on the batter box was a pink haired that had bang completely covered his eyes walked into the batter box.
"On the first look, walking Uzumaki might be a right decision. But that could also be a fatal mistake" stated Ryosuke with a light grin.
"What do you mean by that?" wondered Kuramochi.
"Just watch. This will be even more interesting now" respond Ryosuke mysteriously.
Miyuki looked at the situation at hand to analyse. Sawamura and Uzumaki got first and second base. So the best scenario for the upperclassmen was to take out the last batter. And when they walked Uzumaki, they thought that there won't be any first year that could hit the upperclassmen pitch. If the first year batter manage to get a hit, the game will be totally under the first years control.
Kawakami pitched a low inside pitch straight to the strike zone. But the pink haired batter, that used wooden bat, reacted instantly and and slightly hit the ball to the 3rd base. Naruto saw that chance, shouted for Sawamura to run at full speed while he did the same. The loud mouth pitcher tried his very best and managed to get to home plate, scoring the 3rd point for his team. Naruto accelated in an instant the moment Sawamura reached the home and with incredible speed also managed to reach home, which scoring the 4th point for the team.
The upperclassmen were totally in shock, as the blond speed might even exceeded Kuramochi.
That certainly didn't sit well withthe first string lead-off man.
"Great! Not only that kid is a monster slugger, but he is also fast like Sonic" exclaimed Kuramochi sarcastically.
"But that also means that walking him is not a good idea too" added Miyuki looking at the blond impressed. "If you face-off against him, he will hit a home run out of you. If you walk him, and the batter behind him could hit, he will score RBI. That guy sure know how to not make things easy for his opponent, eh?"
"In my opinion, he is too good to be on high school level" stated Tetsuya Yuuki.
"But that's good for us. With him, we can actually reach Koshien this time" input Issashiki with a satisfied grin.
"It's not that easy, Jun-san" refute Miyuki. "If I remember correctly then another member of Beast 4 goes to Ichidai, while another goes to Inashiro. They will be the hardest obstacles standing in our way to reach Koshien"
Scene change
Inashiro Industrial training ground
To test the capacity of Sasuke Uchiha, coach Kunimoto organized a scrimmage game against the most fearsome team with most powerful sluggers, Seiko Academy. Most notable player there, that even Mei Narumiya respected was Shohei Nagata. Most pitchers were intimidated just by his swing. Bystanders expected for the game to be a good one, but the result were totally different.
Sasuke Uchiha. That day his name was forever engraved into the heart of baseball fans. The former pitcher of Konoha Private Academy totally dominated the game by his high pace pitching and consecutive strikeouts. None of Seiko's batters managed to touch his pitch and they were disturbed by his imposing aura on the mound. Not only that, but Sasuke's was very high paced, which left no time for Seiko's batters to rest. The pressure that Sasuke alone integrated into Seiko was enough for the other team started to make mistakes and Inashiro batters easily took advantage to score. The game was called the 5th inning, with the score of 15-0, Inashiro overwhelmed Seiko Academy.
Mei Narumiya, for once, gained a rival that could threatened his position as ace. And if there was anything that Sasuke Uchiha exceeded Mei, then it was his arrogance and overconfidence, according to Masatoshi Harada, the captain of Inashiro team. Coach Kunimoto and the first string certainly recognised Sasuke's skills as valuable asset to Inashiro. He tried to somewhat brought down Sasuke's attitude a notch, but so far the arrogant dark haired pitcher didn't bend to anyone's will. When Kunimoto asked him, did he really believed that he had no rival. The later answered him that the only one, he considered a rival was Naruto Uzumaki from Seido.
The dismissal Sasuke gave him certainly didn't sit well with Mei Narumiya. But without even acknowledging out loud, Mei knew that Sasuke had skills rival his own, hence why he managed to hold down the champion, Komadai Fujimaki scoreless in the past. Sasuke's presence drove Mei to train even more harder, so that the junior won't steal the ace position from him. But Sasuke actually couldn't careless about the ace position. He just wanted to crush Naruto with his own hands, no that they were no longer in one team. He wanted to prove that out of the Beast 4, he is the best.
Scene change
Time skip to 2 months later
Seido training ground
During the past 2 months, many things happened after the scrimmage game. Sawamura and Kominato Haruiichi were moved to the second string after that game. Naruto gained momentum of that game for his team and completely turned around the outcome of the match. But Kataoka had seen enough and stopped the game. He had no doubt that if the game continued the first year could actually won that game. But he didn't need the upperclassmen confidence to damage too much.
Furuya trained to get more stamina, by running constantly. Miyuki helped him with the ball control. Of course, Naruto didn't neglect his training and is swinging bat everyday. Though the most crazy thing, that the others just recently find out was he put on weights on hus wrists and ankles while swinging and running. At first, the elders tried to stop him from that reckless training as hus muscles could ripped apart. But when the doctor inspected him, Naruto muscles were totally fine and were strong enough to withstand the weights.
Both Furuya and Sawamura were instructed with pitcher's training regime through Miyuki Kazuya and Takigawa Chris Yuu. At there were some problems between Sawamura and Chris, due to the later's unmotivated behaviour. That all changed one day when Rei showed him the truth about Chris. Sawamura felt like a fool for badmouthing such an amazing person like Chris and began to respect the upperclassman. Their relationship became a true master and disciple bond.
Naruto's friendship with Furuya and Sawamura was always improved. The two of them came to respect Naruto's opinion greatly. And that's not only him, all the first years started to look up at him and asking for his help with batting. Whether wanted it or not Naruto became the leader figure of the first year. And the others clearly could see why.
Tetsuya once decided to challenge to Naruto who could hit more balls. The result actually impressed both the coach and the other players. Both hits 300 balls, but Tetsuya was clearly out of breath and the only thing that kept him going was the competition spirit. Naruto was slight out of breath, but was still fine. The captain missed the ball at the 305, so the victory went to Naruto.
Time skip
It's time for all high school baseball to participate in practice match to gain experience in preparation to the upcoming Summer Qualification Tournament. West Tokyo block gained much attentions from the spectators, because most notable powerhouse located there. And of course, the most infamous Big Three were Inashiro Industrial, Seido High and Ichidai Sankou. Those three had been rivals and fought for the top for eternity. However the presence of Beast 4 members managed to draw more attention to those teams.
Hyuga Neji of Ichidai Sankou demonstrated the impregnable defense that rendered the offense of Osaka Kiryuu to nothing. Osaka Kiryuu has lots of capable batters, but none of them were specialized in home-run hitting. Neji's impregnable defense caused the shock to the other team due to the fact that even though he defended the outer field, his range were not just his area, but the entire outer field. When the ball was hit into the outer field, he could predicted the direction where the ball will landed and caught it with precision. As a batter, Neji also has sharp eyes and could hit any ball pretty well. Sanko team also trusted Neji's abilities greatly to allow him to run across the whole outer field for defense. Neji's debut managed to outshine one of the most capable player in playing defense, Masaniri Kawabata of Hachiya Oji. But he was not the only one that showed himself being extraordinary.
Uchiha Sasuke crushed Nanamori mercilessly with 7-0. The shocking fact was that none of the batters managed to even graze his pitch. The reporters discussed about the fact that there will be a competition for the ace number within Inajitsu between Uchiha Sasuke and Narumiya Mei.
And of course there was Naruto Uzumaki, who debuted the game with 5 home-run in a game. Reporters thought that he could actually replace Yuki Tetsuya as a clean-up hitter for Seido High. With the showcase of Beast 4 abilities, the reporters has no doubt it will be a fierce battle between Beast 4 members. And thus even before the Summer Tournament started, the battle for Koushien has started.
Time skip
Seido practice field
20 players were selected to the battle in Summer Tournament. Despite Naruto's extraordinary hitting ability, Kataoka didn't make him a clean up hitter, but a pinch hitter. The four selected clean up hitters were confused, but at the same relieved at the same time because their junior didn't take away their positions. They were confused, because even if they didn't want to admit it outloud, Naruto was the best batter in their team. They also saw his training up close and saw how hard he trained everyday by his self-prepares insane menu.
And to the surprise of the others, Naruto didn't complaint one bit, but just accept his position. When Kataoka called him to his office to ask his reasoning. Naruto replied
"Baseball is a game that needs teamwork and the trust of the teammates the most. The senpais here had been together for 3 years, thus they knew and understand each other better. For me, Sawamura and Furuya, even if they didn't say that or admit that deep down, we still didn't earn the trust of the team. Even if my abilities as a batter is better then others, that didn't mean that I can just outright replace the third years senpais who worked hard in preparation to this tournament. Hence why I understand your choice, trainer"
Kataoka widened his eyes a bit, as Naruto easily read his reason. But he should of expected something like this from this young man. Since his appearance, he surprised others multiple times, so this shouldn't be something new. Seido trainer closed his eyes for a bit and uttered simply.
"I see"
But Naruto's next reply just made Kataoka shook his head with an amused grin.
"Besides as a pinch hitter, I am basically considered as a secret weapon that the other teams need to pay close attention. I guess my role as a scarecrow will be enough until I will need to go against one of Beast 4"
With that said Naruto bowed respectfully to his trainer and excuse himself.
Scene change
As usual the day of the summer tournament was always the hottest. Some players can't stand the heat and nearly passed out. Yes, Furuya for example.
On the passing way, Naruto his two former teammates awaiting him about 5 steps ahead.
"Guys, go ahead I have some business need to taken care of. It won't be long" stated Naruto.
Tetsuya and Miyuki saw that there were two players wearing the uniform of Ichidai Sankou and Inashiro Industrial not too far from them.
"Heh, so that's Hyuuga Neji. The impregnable wall of Ichidai Sanko" muttered Miyuki intrigued at the pale eyes player from Ichidai.
"And next to him is Uchiha Sasuke. The untouchable ace of Inashiro Industrial" added Tetsuya looking at the raven haired teen that has an impassive look, but arrogant air around him.
"Basically Narumiya-san is still the ace of Inashiro, but the bastard can basically be considered their 2nd ace" input Naruto turning his gaze to Sasuke in the distance.
"Bastard?" inquired Miyuki in confusion.
"Ah, that is basically the nickname we called each other since our days in Konoha. That prick Neji called me loser. While that bastard Sasuke called me dobe. Any way, I will go greet them. It won't take long" explained Naruto and then ran towards the direction of his two former teammates.
As soon as he reached them the air surrounding em instantly changed. And the passing by players could also noticed that.
"Hey, it's Beast 4! Hyuuga Neji of Ichidai, Uchiha Sasuke of Inashiro Industrial and Uzumaki Naruto of Seido!" murmured a random player
"The spectators are basically waiting in anticipation for their clashes after their showcase in the practicing match. I personally don't want to face em at all! It will only left emotional damage after that!" added another one.
Meanwhile Neji and Sasuke looked at Naruto with an amusing grin on their faces, which tick off the later.
"Yo, it's been a while, pale eyed freak and dobe" greeted Sasuke with an arrogant tone.
"You are as arrogant as ever, Uchiha" retorted Neji with the same tone.
"You are just the same as him! Why is the pot calling the kettle black!" Naruto respond exasperatedly.
Sasuke ignored that comment and made a declaration.
"I don't have the intend to enter the field until I face one of you. Plus even if I will play, I won't let any batter touch my pitch. Don't lose before our match, dobe and pale eyes"
"Hm, I can say the same to you both. Home-running batters can only count on one finger in this tournament, I won't let anything bypass me while I am defending. Plus you underestimate others too much, Uchiha! Besides us, there are still more capable players that we have yet meet. Don't dismiss others like that or you will pay the consequence" retort Neji crossing his hands.
"I agree with, Mr. Prick here. I can't deny that our levels are high. But I don't think that we are the peak. There are tons of amazing players out there and this is summer so every team will be desperate to win. With that said, I believe that we will gain much more valuable experience playing against em" agreed Naruto.
Sasuke just rolled his eyes. He truly believed that he had no rivals besides his former teammates, because so far no one managed to touch his pitch, even his own comrades.
"Either way. Let us meet in the final" replied Sasuke and walked away.
"Yeah, see you both in semifinal and final" nodded Naruto and going his way.
Neji looked at both of their backs until they faded away in the crowd. He headed to where his team was waiting while ignoring the glances towards him.
The battle for Koushien of West Tokyo has started.
A/N: Few, so the second chapter is finally released. There were not so much comments, so my motivation is a bit low. I will try my best to finish the story though.
See you all next time!