DONG
"Nice hit Yusuke!"
The ball was smacked into the outfield from a well-timed strike by Yusuke, eliciting a bunch of cheers from the Yokohama dugout.
Although he had been overshadowed by Hiroki and Ken last year, his batting sense had improved tremendously. This paired with his lightning fast legs, made him a big part of the Yokohama offense now.
He stood upon 2nd base and flashed a thumbs up to the team. It felt good to get on base in the first inning, especially against such a dangerous pitcher like Kazuhiro.
"Guess it's my turn now." Shiro muttered, sauntering his way to the batters box.
After gaining some height and putting on some muscle, he was not bad to look at. The confidence in his step and determined expression made him look rather heroic.
"Woohoo! Go Shiro~"
His number 1 fan Kaori shouted from the dugout, wearing a bright smile.
Shiro turned around, flipping his hair to the side before sending a wink her way.
The Yokohama bench stared incredulously, feeling their expectations drop significantly.
"How the hell did this guy get a girlfriend like Kaori?" One of the first years muttered, tears of jealousy forming in the corner of his eyes.
"I've seen better looking toads than Shiro Senpai…"
"PFFT."
Ken felt his whole body heave as he heard the words of complaint, almost causing him to burst out in laughter.
"HAHAHA" one of the first years had no such self control, falling to the ground and causing a scene with his intense laughter.
Unaware he was being made fun of, Shiro took his position in the batters box, a cocky smile forming onto his face.
"Let's see what you've got."
Kazuhiro didn't even acknowledge Shiro, entering his wind up with ease. The immaculate and fluid pitching motion played out in front of everyone's eyes, almost looking like a dance.
The ball came flying out, its speed impressive.
Shiro's eyes shined as he was able to pick the pitch with relative ease. All of his experience as a catcher gave him the confidence to swing unabashedly at the incoming ball.
WHOOOOSH
DONG
The cocky Shiro grinned, not even following the trajectory of the ball. It was as if he knew that the ball was going over the back fence.
"Hehe."
He flipped the bat before turning his head briefly and sent another wink to Kaori.
'Man, I must look so cool right now.' He thought before beginning his victory lap around the bases.
"Out!"
"Eh…?"
SLAP~
The sound of the entire Yokohama bench facepalming rang out over the field, their 2nd hand embarrassment evident.
'We don't know this guy…' Was what everyone was shouting in their heart.
"HAHAHAHA. No… No, please stop. It hurts."
Ken felt his sides about to burst, no longer able to hold in his laughter.
Coach Hanada let out a sigh, feeling his age begin to catch up with him. He could see Coach Goto trying to hold in his laughter from the corner of his eye, filling him with annoyance.
"I'm out? What happened?" Shiro asked the umpire, feeling ripped off.
The umpire looked at him like he was stupid, "You were caught in the outfield…"
"Outfield?" His eyes zoomed to a tall figure in the right outfield and suddenly guessed at what had happened.
"Damn you tall bastard, robbing me of a home run!" He cursed before heading back to the dugout.
The umpire blinked a few times, not knowing how to respond.
"You hit a fly ball…" He muttered, though the guy had already left.
Ken was next up to bat and had the unfortunate luck of receiving some words from Shiro on his way back.
"Be careful of that right outfielder, he's super athletic." Shiro said, patting him on the shoulder.
Ken looked to the guy in question and frowned. He was lanky with hardly any muscle mass and wore glasses, the word athletic was not one that first came to mind.
Quickly shaking off the distraction, Ken approached the batters box with a serious demeanor.
His eyes moved to Yusuke who had quietly tagged up and made it to 3rd base during the clamor. The two shared a look and Ken nodded.
Ever since the system began its upgrade, he lacked the skills that had made his bunt so dangerous. He thought for a few moments before grinning.
Since they currently had 2 outs, there was no way that Shuei would be prepared for such a tactic.
'Bet they won't see this coming…' Ken thought, licking his lips.
But in the next moment a small grin formed on his face.
The moment Ken stepped into the box, Kazuhiro's whole demeanor changed. His eyes narrowed and his hawk like features honed in on his prey.
'You're mine…'
Once again, the beautiful wind up and pitching motion of the Shuei player dazzled the eyes of the spectators. It truly looked like a performance rather than a pitching action.
Ken narrowed his eyes, a grin still perched on his lips.
As the ball flew towards the plate, Ken stuck out his bat and crouched slightly, following it with his eyes.
'Bunt!?'
The whole infield lurched forward, their eyes attached to home plate.
PAH
"Strike"
"Ah…"
The pitch sailed above Ken's outstretched bat and into the glove of the catcher, causing everyone to let out a sigh of relief.
Yusuke quickly turned on his heels and ran back to 3rd base. His heart was pumping wildly after the unexpected miss.
He stared at Ken with confusion, 'What the hell is he doing? I've never seen him miss a bunt before.'
Yusuke had committed to the run home since he fully trusted Ken. He believed their eye contact earlier was an indication that he'd be bunting, yet he never expected this outcome.
"Ah damn, I missed." Ken muttered, looking frustrated.
However, in the next moment an unnoticeable grin crept onto the corner of his lips, as if he'd just thought of something sinister. He had to try mask it before anyone would see.
It was times like this that he missed his poker face ability, yet he made it work somehow.