Chapter 96: The Game Begins

The coin toss determined that Kawaki High School would take the offensive first.

The first batter stepped up to the plate—a boy of medium build wearing Kawaki’s light brown baseball uniform. He positioned himself at the batter’s box, gripping his bat firmly. On the opposing side, Asakura Public High School’s starting pitcher wasn’t Rumi, but a tall and lanky boy instead.

As soon as the batter was ready, the tall pitcher threw a fastball.

Crack! The ball soared into the sky, and the Kawaki batter immediately dropped his bat and sprinted toward first base. By the time Asakura’s second baseman caught the ball, the batter had already dashed past second base. Luckily, the third baseman caught the relay throw just in time, stopping the runner short of third base.

“Double!” the umpire announced loudly.

“Swinging so boldly on the very first pitch,” muttered Asakura’s female team manager, wiping sweat from her brow.

When it was the second batter’s turn, the Kawaki player unexpectedly executed a sacrifice bunt. Before Asakura’s infielders could react, the runner had safely advanced.

“It’s fine. We still have a chance,” reassured Asakura’s bearded coach, clapping his hands vigorously from the sideline.

“No outs, a runner on third…” The team manager sighed inwardly as she jotted down the play on her scorecard. “And the game’s only been going for a few minutes.”

Meanwhile, in Kawaki’s dugout, the atmosphere was more relaxed.

“We should be training for the Koshien tournament right now. Why are we wasting time playing this lousy team?” grumbled one player.

“No choice,” a stockier teammate replied, eyes closed as he rested. “The principals of Asakura and Kawaki are old college buddies, after all.”

“I don’t know what the old man was thinking. This trash team isn’t even a challenge. What a waste of time,” another player said disdainfully, resting his chin in his hand.

“Let’s just finish this quickly. I don’t want to miss the Kawaki High School beauty pageant later,” someone chimed in.

“Exactly! Let’s rack up 20 runs by the third inning and send them packing.”

Other players joined in with loud agreements.

“What a bunch of annoying flies,” Kazumi muttered coldly.

Standing not far from the Kawaki dugout, Masashi and his companions could overhear the snide comments.

The game resumed, and the tall Asakura pitcher threw again. This time, the ball was hit once more. As the Kawaki runner neared the base, the umpire’s voice rang out:

“Out!”

Asakura’s shortstop had swiftly thrown the ball back to the baseman, securing the out.

“Looks like Asakura’s second baseman isn’t too bad,” remarked a boy in a Kawaki uniform standing by the field, his cap pulled low.

“Masato, are you going to play in the next game?” asked a pretty girl beside him, holding a scorecard.

“No matter how talented a player is, they’re useless without good teammates,” Masato murmured to himself, not answering her question.

Crack! Another sharp sound echoed as yet another ball was hit. Fortunately, Asakura’s center fielder caught it before it touched the ground.

“No outs, a runner on third, and still zero runs. Seems like our team isn’t performing their best today,” Kawaki’s principal remarked smugly from the grassy area on the east side of the field, dressed in a sharp black suit.

“Kawaki, your school’s baseball team is famous in Tokyo. I envy you for having such a strong lineup,” said Asakura’s rotund principal, ingratiatingly.

“You have a few decent players as well,” Kawaki’s principal replied, clearly pleased with the flattery.

When it was Asakura’s turn to bat, Kawaki sent out a tall and muscular pitcher. A clear power pitcher, his fast and precise throws quickly struck out two Asakura batters.

The fourth batter up was the same player who had been playing center field earlier. The situation was dire: two outs with a runner on second base.

Crack! To everyone’s surprise, the center fielder managed to hit the ball. As Kawaki scrambled to catch it, the batter sprinted with impressive speed, making it safely back to home plate.

“How could we let them score first?!” Kawaki players shouted angrily in frustration.

“Idiots. That’s what you get for underestimating the opponent,” Masato muttered quietly.

In the second inning, it was finally Rumi’s turn to pitch. Wearing a slightly oversized cap, most people didn’t realize she was a girl. After glancing briefly toward where Masashi and his group were seated, she began her pitch against Kawaki’s batter.

Compared to the previous pitcher, Rumi’s throws were notably lighter and faster. Though her pitches lacked the heavy sound of hitting the catcher’s glove, none of the Kawaki batters could manage a hit.

Despite this, Asakura’s coach wasn’t particularly optimistic. He knew Kawaki’s true strength far surpassed what they had shown so far. The batters were simply adjusting to Rumi’s pitching style. Given a few more innings, the tide could turn. This was why he hadn’t let her pitch in the first inning. Originally, he planned for the earlier pitcher to last three innings, but his pitches kept getting hit, leaving him no choice but to bring Rumi in earlier than planned.

The first half of the third inning ended quickly, and it was Asakura’s turn to attack again. Neither side had scored any additional points.

Kawaki’s coach was furious at this outcome, shouting angrily at his players from the sidelines.

“Good!”

“It’s a hit! It’s a hit—great job!”

“Arikawa, narrow your strike zone, swing hard from above, and aim to knock it out! Don’t raise your hands too high.”

“Got it, Coach.”

Asakura’s coach enthusiastically guided his players from the side.

The game grew increasingly intense as both teams battled fiercely.

“What’s going on? It’s that guy again. Every ball we hit gets caught by him!” A player in the dugout threw his cap to the ground in frustration.

“So far, most of the outs have been caught by their second baseman and center fielder. Also, that pitcher has excellent control—he hasn’t allowed a single hit yet,” said Kawaki’s female team manager, now back in the dugout with Masato, while studying the scorecard.

“Out!” The umpire’s voice rang out again as another player was taken out.

From the scoreboard on the field, it was clear the game had already entered the bottom of the fifth inning.

“It seems Asakura High’s team is much stronger than we anticipated. Strange—why haven’t we heard about them before?” Masato said, turning to the team manager.

“According to the information I have, Asakura’s baseball team was only formed last year. Since they haven’t played any practice matches with other schools, I didn’t pay much attention to them. This is my oversight. I sincerely apologize to everyone.” The team manager bowed deeply to the players to show her remorse.

“It’s not your fault.”

“Yeah, don’t worry about it. We don’t blame you.”

“You’re too polite.”

Seeing such a beautiful girl apologizing to them made the high school players feel incredibly awkward.

“Well done!” Asakura’s principal was ecstatic. He hadn’t expected the coach he had casually hired to train this previously unimpressive team so effectively. He made a mental note to reward the coach generously later. Watching Kawaki’s principal’s increasingly sour expression only heightened his satisfaction.

“Go and call Coach Tanimori over here,” Kawaki’s principal instructed his secretary standing nearby.

“I need to ask what’s going on. Has our team really gotten weaker?” the principal asked as the coach approached.

*It should be Hirai as mentioned in Chapter 8, but it’s what’s in the raw.