Ken's eyes moved to the curly-haired and brown skinned youth who had made an appearance in the line up. It wasn't difficult to find him, especially since he was blatantly staring in his direction this entire time.
Despite seeing Ken's carefree demeanor, Carlos looked as if he was ready to jump into battle. His brown eyes locked with Ken's, issuing a silent challenge between two worthy opponents.
As if it was fate, Ken found himself standing across from the half-Japanese youth in the lineup. Instead of reciprocating the fighting spirit, he was wearing a wry smile.
It wasn't that he didn't look forward to the showdown with Carlos, just that he wasn't the starting pitcher for this game. What kind of person in his right mind would issue or respond to a challenge from the bench.
"Bow."
"Yoroshiku Onegaishimasu"
(This is a commonly said Japanese phrase which can mean "I'll be in your care" Or "Thanks in advance." I felt like using it here since the English translation feels a little weird.)
Makoto and another player from the other team participated in the coin toss which resulted in Yokohama batting first.
The team retreated to the dugout and the two Aoyama twins got ready to enter the field.
Tatsuya had a grin on his face after surveying the crowd. Since it was the finals of the Kanagawa Tournament, there were a lot more spectators than usual. His sharp eyes saw a few potential girls amongst them.
As he made his way onto the field, a few squeals entered his ears.
"Kyaa! It's Tatsuya!"
"He's so hot."
"Hehe." A debonair smile appeared on his face as he waved back, basking in the attention of the crowd.
"His twin is also hot."
Jun heard the words and couldn't help but feel his cheeks heat up. He wasn't as confident as his brother, despite being an identical twin.
Kaori puffed her cheeks and sent a glare towards the owner of the voice in the crowd. She was about to roll up her sleeves and stomp her way over but was quickly held back by Yuko.
Feeling the large melons pressing on her back, Kaori blushed, feeling her anger dissipate.
"Yukooo, keep your big damn chest to yourself!" She complained, struggling to get out of their soft embrace, only to have them jiggle in protest.
A few of the players on the bench felt their bodies tremble at the sight, quickly turning away in order to save themselves from embarrassment.
Thankfully, Ken was too focused on the field to notice the disturbance, escaping the ire of the woman next to him.
There were only two players that he needed to be wary of this game, Kazuhiro and Carlos. One would become the starting pitcher for the Chiba Falcons in the future, while the other was a monster batter.
He couldn't remember what happened to Carlos in his previous life, other than returning to the Dominican Republic where his father was from. Ken had no doubt that he was talented enough to exceed wherever he played.
As he watched Kazuhiro warm up, he could feel the sharpness of his pitches.
'He's improved again…'
They say that pressure can make or break a person. It seemed that Shuei's defeat had resulted in the former, shaping them into a much more lethal team.
"Wow that pitcher has gotten even better."
A soft voice spoke out beside him, causing Ken to tilt his head.
"You're pretty observant." He said, quite surprised that Ai had noticed such a small detail.
Ai nodded, feeling a burst of pride in her heart.
"I've been trying to watch closely since it's part of a managers job."
Ken felt as if he had not given Ai enough credit. He wasn't sure why she had joined the baseball club as a manager, but it seemed that she was serious about helping everyone get better.
"Play ball!"
He was knocked out of his reverie by the sound of the umpire announcing the start of the game. Tatsuya was already in the batters box, wielding his flashy stance.
The first pitch came in hot, taking an inside path.
WOOSH
"Strike."
'Ah… That was lame."
Tatsuya felt his face heat up in embarrassment after whiffing the first ball.
"Strike."
"Strikeout!"
"Eh?"
Bewildered, Tatsuya made his way back to the dugout. He had swung at all 3 pitches, yet it felt as if the ball was almost running away from his bat.
Coach Hanada frowned. From his position he could see the movement of the pitch, sparking a sense of danger.
"This could be a problem…" He muttered
It wasn't just him that noticed. Yuta, Ken and Hiroki's expression suddenly turned serious.
As if to back up their concerns, both Jun and Makoto were struck out without being able to get bat on ball.
Despite striking out the 3 leading batters, Kazuhiro didn't look arrogant. It seemed that the previous loss had matured him a little, making him even more dangerous than before.
"Changeover!"
With that, the starting squad got their gloves and hats on and headed out onto the field, leaving Ken, Shiro and the other few players in the dugout.
As Akira began to warm up on the mound, there was one person who was currently upset.
"Why isn't he starting?" Carlos said, his tone showing his agitation and disappointment.
"Yeah why is their ace on the bench? Are they underestimating us?" Kazuhiro added, a tinge of annoyance in his voice.
Coach Goto also seemed a little surprised, however his trademark smile never left his face.
"Don't worry, I'll drag out the Ace in the first inning."
He turned his attention to his batter in the batters box and made a few signals, receiving a nod in response.
After finishing his warm up pitches, Akira stood on the mound and let out a breath. He'd been pitching well recently, ever since putting more effort into training with the team.
His gaze briefly turned to Ken who had his arms crossed on the bench.
'I won't give up the mound so easily.'
He then turned to Yuta who called for a fastball on the outside. In one fluid motion, his long and thin limbs retracted before whipping the ball out towards the open glove sitting over the plate.
DONG