BUZZ BUZZ BUZZ
"Hmm? Whose callin me in the middle of the damn World Cup!?" Tetsu's gruff voice complained as he tore away his eyes from the TV briefly.
"Hello…" He responded unhappily.
"T-Tetsu… Does Naomi still have her sewing kit?"
The other voice on the line sounded weak, causing Tetsu's expression to falter.
"Where are ya!?" He asked, standing up in a panic.
"I'm out front."
Tetsu didn't even respond, quickly throwing his phone down and racing outside in the next moment. As soon as he walked out, he saw his friend Tsukasa covered in blood and lacerations all over his arms and face.
Without another word he ran over and placed the guy's shoulder over his own, bringing him into the house. There was no point asking what happened, not until his wounds were taken care of.
"NAOMI! Sewing kit!"
"Huh?"
She was about to ask him why, yet as she saw the bloodied figure being led in by her husband, she quickly moved into action.
Tetsu placed his friend onto one of the chairs in his lounge room, not caring about the blood that was everywhere.
"Where did they get ya?" He asked.
Tsukasa removed his jacket gingerly and showed a gash running from his chest to the top of his stomach.
Tetsu sucked in a cold breath of air as he saw the injury, feeling the hairs on the back of his neck stand up at such a sight.
"Hehe, you should see the other guys…"
The fact that he said guys meant that it was definitely more than a few who he had got into a fight with. Tetsu didn't ask for specifics since it didn't involve him, at least not anymore.
Naomi arrived into the room with the sewing kit and let out an audible gasp of shock after seeing the wound.
"Get me some rubbing alcohol and fresh towels."
"Y-Yes…"
A few minutes later, he had everything he needed to provide first aid.
"Alright, this is gonna' sting like a bitch."
Tsukasa grinned widely before placing his hand on his friend's shoulder.
"Thanks brother…"
Tetsu shook his head and poured the alcohol directly on the large open wound.
"AH-ARGHHHH!"
Tsukasa let out a pained yell before his head fell back and he lost consciousness. It seemed that the pain was too much for him to bear in that moment so his brain switched off.
Yet Tetsu ignored it and began cleansing the wound thoroughly. Without him moving, this was the best time for him to begin his work. With his adept fingers, it only took Tetsu around 15 minutes to clean and stitch the wound completely.
Tsukasa happened to wake up a couple of minutes after the task was completed and saw his friend staring intently at the TV.
He looked at what was showing and happened to see Ken in the batters box.
"Oh is Kenny playing?" He asked a little weakly.
Tetsu shushed him, not even paying him any attention.
DOOONG
"Ah! Nice hit!"
Tetsu got to his feet and shouted, staring at the TV and watching with his eyes wide open.
"And it's caught in the outfield by Santiago. That marks the end of the inning for Japan who will now have to defend against the US batters. Will they be able to hold the US team back and secure the World Cup? We'll bring you back to the action after a word from our sponsors."
"Are you struggling with baldness~?"
"Argh so close!" Tetsu lamented, feeling a little disappointed.
Only after reaching the ad break did Tetsu finally acknowledge the man who was bleeding out on his couch just 15 minutes ago.
"So? Why are ya showin' up at my house half dead?" He asked plainly.
A wry smile appeared on Tsukasa's face at his brother's rudeness, though he didn't appear to be offended.
"We got into a skirmish with a rival gang…"
"Ya mean ya got ambushed right?" Tetsu responded dryly.
The expression on Tsukasa's face looked as if his friend had hit the nail on the head.
Tetsu shook his head in exasperation, letting out a sigh.
"Ya can stay here a while, just don't interrupt me." He said simply, sitting back down in front of the TV.
Tsukasa grinned, already feeling better after being patched up. Naomi walked in a few moments later with some water and treats before leaving the two alone.
After filling up on some much needed water, Tsukasa laid his head back and went to sleep, his soft snores ringing out a few moments later.
If it wasn't for his condition, Tetsu might have kicked the guy out for snoring while he was watching the match, yet he held a little more compassion than that.
In actuality, he was quite pissed off right now. Since his little brother was left in such a state, he didn't mind coming out of retirement and showing some people who was boss.
As people from around the world tuned into the World Cup broadcast, Ken had just left the field after being caught by Santiago. With both Riku and Masayuki being struck out, Hiroki and Daichi had both managed to get hits.
This was almost a repeat of how they scored in the 7th inning, yet a superb play by Santiago had cost them some much needed runs in the end.
Once again his ability to navigate and maneuver his body in the air had robbed the Japanese team of a 3-run home run and kept the US team's hopes alive.
"Don't mind Ken. Just 3 more outs and we'll have won the World Cup."
Daichi tried to console his brother, yet it seemed that Ken was already locked in. He could already imagine the pressure that Ken was under to perform in this final inning.
"Let's go Kenny! Daichi!" Yuki's voice rang out from within the crowd, energizing the two brothers.
Ken let out a deep sigh and smiled, "Let's go put an end to this match."