"Nice pitch!"
The shout of a boy rang out in the bull pen, barely audible over the constant sounds of ball striking leather. There were 8 youths total, 4 catchers and 4 pitchers paired up and seriously working on their craft.
The boy who shouted earlier stood up from his position and headed over to the pitcher. He had short black hair with wide shoulders and a broad chest, which looked even more exaggerated thanks to the chest protector secured tightly upon him.
"That was perfect Kouichi. If you can start pitching like this from the beginning, there will be no issues with you getting some play time at nationals."
The boy named Kouichi let out a smile of appreciation, "Thanks Daichi. But shouldn't you be catching for Yatsuo? You'll be the starting catcher soon after all."
He was concerned that Daichi may be leaving himself open to criticism by training with him instead of the 3rd year Ace. Of course he was happy for the help, but he didn't want his friend to suffer.
Since receiving the Ace position from Ken last year, Kouichi had felt his confidence and ambitions soar. This was especially true after receiving his mentoring from Ken's father and winning the Kanto tournament.
In fact, this was the reason why he had received a scholarship offer from Osaka Toin in the first place. However, upon arriving he was met with a bit of culture shock.
Players were required to train both before school and after, not to mention during holidays. It was as if he was in a professional club, surrounded by excellent players that were extremely talented.
While he had gained some level of confidence last year, it was a rude awakening seeing the level of talent that Osaka held.
Daichi chuckled and responded, "Yatsuo is still refusing to accept me as the next starting catcher."
"A-Ah that's not good…" Kouichi seemed anxious, not knowing how to react.
If they couldn't get along as a team, didn't that mean they would fail before they even got onto the pitch?
However, Daichi didn't seem too worried. He knew that Yatsuo was upset because he would be replacing his friend, his current catcher as a starter.
The thing was, he could tell that the guy was a professional. So as long as he could gain his acknowledgment through his skills, he would be accepted by all in the first team.
"Don't worry about Yatsuo. Just focus on improving yourself every day."
Daichi placed his hand on his friends shoulder, patting it lightly.
"Oh that reminds me, what school did Ken join? Have you spoken to him since you left?"
At the mention of his brother, Daichi's face darkened. He responded with an abrupt no before placing the ball directly in Kouichi's glove and heading back to the other side of the bullpen.
'Ah crap, I forgot.' Kouichi cringed inwardly, admonishing himself.
A few weeks earlier, Daichi had gone to the coaches office as he was instructed after practice. Thanks to his punctual personality, he was around 5 minutes earlier than scheduled.
He saw a well dressed man with his back turned to the door, leaning over the coach's table. Since it seemed like he and the coach were in a discussion, Daichi was about to turn around and leave until he heard something.
"Argh, we're going to be weak at first base once again this year. We could place Yamada at 1st, but his batting is too much of a liability." The coach sighed deeply.
"Naoki, I remember you saying that you had found a perfect candidate. Ken wasn't it?"
The well dressed man let out a small sigh, this was always the hardest part for him, looking over the gaps in the lineup for the coming season.
"Yeah, but he rejected my offer. It's a real shame, I thought for sure he would join considering his brother is on the team already." Naoki sighed once again.
Daichi froze, feeling everything around him go silent. His mind felt numb and before he knew it, he had already turned around to leave.
"Does he not get along with his brother?"
"Ah, maybe it was because of that other thing I said…" Naoki admitted, feeling a little embarrassed.
"Which was what exactly?" The coach sounded suspicious in his response.
"He actually tried out as a pitcher, but I could already tell that he wouldn't make it far. I told him to give up pitching."
"Was he really that bad at pitching that you would tell him to give up?" He sounded a little regretful, but that was about it.
"Err, well you see…"
Naoki then explained what had happened when he watched the Kanto prefecture finals at Yokohama stadium. Where he met Chris and saw the trio of Ken, Daichi and Kouichi masterfully play and clinch the win against Seigakuin.
He also mentioned that Ken was originally a right hander, however it was evident that he had injured his right shoulder.
"Ah, so his injury was bad enough that it effected his pitching. Such a shame." The coach commented, thinking that it might really have been in the best interest if he gave up pitching.
Naoki fidgeted a little, feeling uncomfortable with the coach's assumption. "Actually… He was throwing and pitching with his left arm when he came to tryouts."
"Huh? Left handed?"
"Y-Yeah."
There was an awkward silence that crept through the room as the coach stared at Naoki with a look mixed with both shock and disbelief.
"So you're telling me that in the six months between the finals of the Kanto tournament and our tryouts that this kid switched to left handed throwing? Not only that, he was also pitching?" The coaches words were calm, yet there was a dangerous undertone.
"Yes sir." Naoki replied, feeling anxious.
"And you're saying that despite all this, he was a good enough player for you to offer a full scholarship to?"
"Y-Yes…"
Another bout of silence ensued, followed by a long sigh. Instead of frustration, it was resignation and disappointment.