"What a great game, it was really neck and neck there for a while. But it looks like the best team won at the end of the day."
Coach Hanada looked like a smiling buddha as he held out his hand towards the opposing coach.
Coach Goto felt his entire face twitch in annoyance, contemplating whether or not to wipe the smile off the rapscallion's features physically.
Fortunately he decided to be the bigger man and take the hand offered, albeit using a bit more strength than he usually would for a handshake.
"Let's see what happens when there is more at stake… In the prefecture tournament."
Seiji's face returned to normal after these words, a smirk appearing at the corner of his mouth before replying.
"Don't lose before you face us."
"Bah, I should be saying that to you." Goto said, before he himself let out a smile.
With that, the first friendly on the road to Nationals was completed with a narrow Yokohama High victory.
As the Yokohama players made their way to the front of the school to get on the bus, Coach Goto surveyed his players. Most of them looked pretty down, especially one student who was still on the bench staring at his bat.
He addressed the players, saying some things about this being a learning experience for everyone before donning his usual calm and smiling demeanor. Inwardly though, he was a little frustrated.
"Carlos…"
Once everyone had left, the coach approached his star player to check in on him.
"That pitcher… What was his name?" Carlos asked, not taking his eyes off his bat.
"I believe it was Ken. Ken Takagi."
Carlos was silent for a few moments before he stood up, gripping his bat tightly.
"Ken… Is it written with the character for strength or sword I wonder."
After saying so, he began walking off without another word towards the school.
At first Goto was worried that Carlos may be a little depressed after not being able to hit a pitch from a first year, however these thoughts were quickly dismissed in this short interaction.
Carlos only wanted to know the names of those he thought were strong, adding them to his list of rivals he needed to overcome. Since he had asked for Ken's name, that was all Goto needed to know that a fire had been lit under him.
He turned towards the retreating back of Carlos and let out a genuine smile.
"Ahh to be young."
***
Ken and the rest of the Yokohama players were feeling jubilant as they packed onto the bus and waited to depart. The coach who had stayed behind to "discuss" the game with the opposing coach only entered around 5 minutes later.
He was all smiles, forgoing his usual poker face which the players had been used to seeing. It was clear that he was very happy with the win over their prefecture rival Shuei.
"You all played well today for our first friendly of the new school year."
A cheer erupted at the coach's words, showing just how happy the team was.
"However, next match against these guys won't be easy at all. Thanks to this game I can already see what our strengths are and where we are lacking." He continued, looking around the bus.
His words calmed down the players, who took on a serious air.
"But for now, let's celebrate a well fought victory."
As the bus took off, Ken received a lot more attention than he was expecting. Yuta, Makoto, Yusuke and even both the Aoyama twins praised him for his heroics in the game.
The only person who seemed a little odd was Hiroki, the person currently sitting next to him on the bus.
He was silent for almost 20 minutes, clearly deep in thought. Since he didn't look like he wanted to chat, Ken didn't disturb him. Sometimes people just needed a moment to think and sort through their feelings.
"Ken…"
"Mm? What's up?"
Hiroki paused for a moment, seemingly gathering his thoughts.
"I want to get better. Do you think you could help me?"
He looked at Ken, his face full of resolution.
Ken faltered, doing his best to keep a straight face.
'Damn. Why did it have to be Hiroki of all people?'
He had already seen through the Identify function that Hiroki could no longer improve thanks to his lack of potential. But if he turned around and said that he couldn't help him, it could easily destroy their budding friendship.
Ken felt a headache coming on.
Out of desperation, he decided to use the Training Plan function on Hiroki in hopes of finding something.
NAME: Hiroki Kondo
AGE: 17
TALENT ASSESSMENT: A+
POTENTIAL: A+
SYSTEM IS UNABLE TO CREATE A TRAINING PLAN SINCE TARGET HAS REACHED THEIR POTENTIAL.
Ken's expression darkened.
'Figures… What was I hoping for? A way to increase his potential?'
WOULD USER LIKE TO REMOVE THE CAP ON HIROKI KONDO'S POTENTIAL?
COST: 4000 Major points
TIME REQUIRED: 2 Months
[Y/N]
"Eh!?"
Seeing the mixture of expressions on Ken's face, he suddenly felt inadequate.
"It's okay, I shouldn't have burdened you with my problems." He said, a forlorn expression appearing on his features.
"A-Ah wait Hiroki. Sorry I was just thinking of ways that I could help you." Ken replied, trying to cheer the fellow up.
'Looks like I've got no choice now.'
Ken clicked the yes button and instantly saw his balance of Major points disappear. A comprehensive list of directions and exercises appear in front of him, filling his vision. Even he who was a training advocate suddenly paled after reading it.
"So you'll help me?" Hiroki asked, his eyes sparkling.
"Heh… It won't be easy though." Ken gulped.
"Good! It wouldn't be worth it if it was easy."
***
"D-Demon! How can this even be called training!?"
Hiroki was seemingly fighting for life as he cursed Ken's 9 generations of ancestors. He crumpled onto the floor after completing the 50th repetition of climbing the stairs by the riverbank.