I am practicing in Tokyo

Chapter 75 Tickets

"Snapped!"

A flash of white light flashed, and the baseball went straight into the palm of catcher Shuji Kobayashi, but hitter Nobusada Osaki remained stunned.

"nice shot."

The referee on the field starts counting. If there are three strikes, Osaki Nobusada will be substituted. If three consecutive players are substituted, the half inning will be over.

Is this speed too exaggerated?

Osaki Nobusada, who was originally the first player to play instead of the fourth player to ensure scoring, was to give Hachioji High School a showdown, but unexpectedly, he felt the pressure after just the first ball.

Sweat dripped from his forehead, and his arrogant words before the game made Osaki Nobusada blush a little.

This guy's ball speed is actually 155 kilometers per hour. There are not many ace pitchers in Japanese professional baseball who can throw such a ball at such speed!

The Hirano High School coach on the sidelines opened his mouth in surprise, and the game continued.

If you strike out three opponents in each inning, you can shut down the opponent. After nine innings of a game, if you don't make any mistakes, you will have a total of 9981 goals. No matter how weak your teammates are, you can win as long as they score one or two points.

Fujii, who got the baseball again, secretly calculated in his mind that as a pitcher, he usually doesn't have to hit the ball hard in the rotating batter position. If he only throws a high-speed ball of about 150 kilometers a hundred times,

His body is perfectly fine with it.

Holding his hands in front of his chest, Fujii stretched his body, raised one leg high, and took a step forward.

"Whoosh——!"

The baseball flew out like an arrow from the string. Osaki Nobusada's eyes darkened and he waved the baseball bat in his hand.

The dull collision sound still came from behind. Osaki Nobusada's baseball bat came out a step too late and did not touch Fujii's second ball.

"nice shot."

The referee behind catcher Shuji Kobayashi announced the result decisively. Osaki Nobusada's face became a little solemn. If he had another good ball, he would be struck out.

Give up at least one hit!

Osaki Nobusada tightened his grip on the baseball bat in his hand. As the top batsman, he was struck out, so where could he put his face?

The so-called hit means that after the batter hits a ball, he runs to the base safely, so that the ball hit by the batter usually does not go too far, which is considered a regular and guaranteed scoring method.

Go down and rest obediently.

Fujii noticed the unwillingness in Osaki Nobusada's eyes, but it was of no use to him. He had switched to a new project. If he couldn't make a name for himself, how could he be worthy of Suhara who agreed.

On the third ball, he added a little more force and aimed lower. He stretched his body and threw the baseball. He only heard the sound of the baseball bat being swung in the air, followed by the expected sound of his glove clinking.

"Strikeout, next one."

The referee made the decision mercilessly, and Osaki Nobusada, who had lost his last chance, left the field with his head lowered, obviously unwilling to do so.

"nice shot."

"nice shot."

"Strikeout, next one."

The performance of the other batter was not that good either. In front of a high-speed straight ball of about 150 kilometers, the Hirano High School batter either had no time to swing, or couldn't see the baseball line clearly. He just blindly swung and hit the ball.

Miss Fujii's ball.

And when three consecutive batters were struck out by Fujii, the offense and defense switched, and Hachioji High School failed to score in the first round.

Therefore, it was not until the second half of the fifth inning that Toru Harada scored two runs through several consecutive hits, but the score difference was obviously not enough for the referee to end the game early, and the game continued until the end of the ninth inning.

, it was announced that Hirano High School had failed, and the final score was 4-0.

"What kind of monster is this?"

"They actually blocked us."

"Isn't it good to go play professional baseball? I have to come here to bully high school students."

The baseball players at Hirano High School complained to each other unhappily. If they were a little stronger, they would still be interested in challenging, but if they were several levels stronger, it would be a complete torture. Being struck out one after another would feel uncomfortable.

It will feel better.

The culprit on the side, Fujii Shu, didn't think so. Even throwing the high-speed ball nearly a hundred times put a heavy burden on his body. Hachioji High School's line was too weak and he didn't even have the ability to end the game early.

After stretching his muscles from side to side, Fujii took off his baseball cap and came off the field. The audience on the sidelines gave him overwhelming applause as a small reward for his performance.

"Is it just a straight shot that relies solely on the body? Is the opponent too weak?"

Coach Mizutani of Hachioji High School crossed his arms in front of his chest. He had seen Fujii Shu use OK balls and finger balls during training, especially the finger balls, which are known as magic balls. After being thrown at high speed, they hit the target in front of the batter.

A sudden change in speed, once successfully executed, will be impossible for high school hitters to guard against.

After winning the first round of the competition, Fujii welcomed the summer vacation. From mid-July to early September, it was the holiday for students from the island nation. Koshien is famous for being held during the summer vacation. High school students across the country are eager to be broadcast on TV.

Koshien was in the limelight and participated in the most eye-catching student movement during the summer vacation.

In the last five rounds of the local competition, Fujii still used straight balls to help the team overcome difficulties, but the speed increased from 150 kilometers per hour to 160 kilometers per hour. After defeating the last opponent, he finally won the Koshien title before August.

Tickets.

After throwing nearly a hundred balls in a row, Fujii's palms trembled slightly. He, who had brought the Hachioji baseball team to this point by himself, walked off the field silently, enjoying the applause of thousands of spectators along the way. His performance during this period made fans like him

People who saw the lone hero stepped up their support.

"Stop forcing yourself like this."

In the tunnel at the end of the field, coach Mizutani was waiting for him to pass by and reminded Fujii.

"Six games, averaging more than 80 shots per game. Counting missed shots, you made almost 500 shots."

As a coach, Coach Mizutani analyzes from a professional perspective.

"Your body is fine if you stop and recuperate now. But when you get to Koshien and face stronger batters, you will be forced to hit faster ball speeds, and at least 500 balls. Your body will not be able to withstand such a high speed."

Intense exercise.”

But I have a cheat plug-in.

Fujii's body was only temporarily depleted, and it was not to the point of damaging his fundamentals, but obviously he couldn't talk to Coach Mizutani about the external device.

"Coach, I want to try to see where my limits are, and there are some skills that I haven't used yet."

He made an excuse. Baseball did not bring him as much pleasure as football, but once he chose something, he would not give up halfway. He hoped that his enemies in Koshien could bring him something different.

He left alone, leaving behind a lonely figure. Coach Mizutani sighed and shook his head.

I feel like I can’t write about baseball with the same passion as football, so I plan to finish it after writing a few games in Koshien. I won’t waste the word count on the previous transitions. Maybe it’s because of the new crown virus. I’ve been feeling sluggish recently, and my writing skills are also poor.

The decline is severe, I hope to get better soon.

(End of chapter)