Chapter Text
Rei still couldn't believe it despite hearing it for the second time, and the fact that they hid it from her was unacceptable. (Although she'd forget it later on.)
"This humble one is Kataoka Eijun! I'm 15 years old and i play as a pitcher! I'm from Akagi Junior High! I look forward to working with you all!" The person said and bowing about 90 degrees afterwards.
Let's go back to about 7 months from now.
Rei was about to go recruit other players when Kataoka suddenly asks her to do something.
"Something you need, coach?" Rei raised a questioning brow at him, he responded with:
"I want you to go to the countryside, specifically from Nagano. There might be some interesting players from there, but it's too far and recruiters don't usually go there. So i'd want you to look for players with potential." Tesshin points out, and adds- "-You never know. You might hit a gold mine." Tesshin snorts after mumbling the last sentence and leaves to check on the players.
Rei found him too oddly specific for wanting to scout a countryside. Maybe he does want Rei to find that person he was referring to.
So there she was, sitting in a bench inside a baseball field that was a bit too small from the field she was used to. Good thing they don't play in this area, or one day she might just end up using all of her money to upgrade the entire field.
Nagano's Summer Tournaments weren't really that exciting, the teams that goes to Koushien from this area wasn't strong. Either they'd get crushed from the first round or they get lucky and get crushed the next.
Rei was getting bored, her index finger tapping the bench she was sitting on. 'This is a waste of time, i could probably recruit some players if i already went to Yokohama or something-'
"Okay everyone, balls will come flying! So fielders please back me up! Thank you in advance!" A pitcher shouted in the middle of the mound, getting Rei's attention and some people by the bench. So she started focusing on that guy.
He was,
what was the right word?
Bright?
A mood maker, everyone around him felt warm just because of his words. Truly an ace material, although she doesn't know if the same applies for his abilities. He can lead the team with mellow words, but what about his skills?
The said guy turns around towards the home plate, focusing his gaze on the catcher. His gaze completely changing. From nice and playful, to blazing hot fire. You could see just how determined he was to win. He reminded her of someone.
He's only thrown straights up to the Eighth inning, both theirs and their opponents runs are up to seven. Bases loaded, 3 balls - 1 strike.
He starts his windup. Foot rising up a little higher. It was a different form, Rei noticed. He throws the pitch.
.
.
.
The ball hits the fence, the fastball broke at the plate, due to the catcher's suprise, he didn't manage to catch it.
It was slightly faster than the balls he threw before.
8-7 Akagi Junior high lost. (I literally only know a few things about baseball, idk how a game is called. Let's pretend i know shit about something)
Rei was about to go up until she saw the incident after the game. He slapped both the umpire and some players... He was a problem child huh? It's not unexpected, most of the players Rei recruited were one so she wasn't worried.
She approached the pitcher, startling him a bit.
"Good afternoon, I'd like to have a conversation with you for a moment, would you please elaborate?"
"Good morning, I'm Takashima Rei, and i want to talk about Eijun-kun possibly going to our school. Would that be okay with you?"
"That- that's okay! Please come in!" A middle aged man around her age opened the door.
"By the way, i'm Sawamura Eiji. Let me call Eijun down for a minute." He said as he led Rei to their living room and hurriedly went upstairs..
Their house was pretty big, it was also traditional. Someone was going inside the living room assuming it's Sawamura-san's dad, and wife. They looked at her weirdly.
"Good evening, I'm here for Eijun-kun. Do you mind me talking to him?" Rei questioned unsure. Hoping she wasn't disturbing them.
"No, no it's okay! I'm sure he'd be delighted to hear the news." Sawamura-san's wife said.
"I'm sure your son would be good for our school, he has alot of potential." Rei grins.
She chuckles awkwardly. "Actually i'm not-"
"Eijun is here, sorry for the wait Takashima-san." Eiji peeks through the wall, bringing a boy a bit shorter than him.
"Good Evening, Eijun-kun. Please elaborate with me for a moment." Rei clears her throat.
"I think you'll be a great help for our team, you have so much potential. Our team is very much serious about baseball, and we think you'll be a great addition. We have catchers who can enhance pitches of your arsenal." Rei started, being straightforward.
"Thank you for your concerns Takashima-san, but i don't have the intentions on going. I have to reach for my goals, atleast catch up to my dad and-"
"Seido will be a great place to start to reach for your goals. I doubt that it won't be any good for you." Rei tries, he really needed Eijun to say yes.
"I'm really sorry, but i-" He stops, just now realizing what she just said.
"Wait... Did you just say Seido?" He asked.
Perhaps he knows that our school is popular. That'd be good.
"Yes, Seido highschool. May i ask why?" Rei raised a brow.
They didn't answer her. Instead looking directly at Eijun and grinning at him. What a weird, nuclear family. Rei just internally sighed.
"Then, Takashima-san! This Ka-" He stops midway and clears his throat. "Sawamura Eijun will wholeheartedly accept your offer!" His parents raised a brow at him. Rei ignored his archaic Japanese and told him more information about him going to Seido. Rei absolutely didn't know how he got him to say yes, but she didn't question it and went with:
"So, Sawamura-kun. When can you visit our school?"
They were finally at the school grounds after 2 hours of standing in a full train, and a few minutes of walking.
Eijun seemed to know where he's going, despite only seeing the place for the first time. (Oh Rei, only if you knew.)
They're finally inside the field. "Sawamura-kun, this is our field. We practice here everyday, we have two fields, one for the non-stringers, and one for both the second and first strings." Eijun nodded in acknowledgement.
"We have all the types of equipment here, as long as it's for training."
Rei noticed Eijun wasn't listening to her anymore, instead looking back at an upperclassman shouting at his kouhai to do better. She also noticed his fist clenching as the upperclassman rambled.
"Oi, you fattie! Stop shouting and show what you're capable of instead of wasting your time rambling shitty remarks!" Eijun shouted, startling the nearby people who were practicing. Rei gaped at the sight infront of her. But before she could stop him. Azuma stepped out of the cage and approached them.
"Who are you calling 'fattie'?! Do you wanna die middle schooler?!"
They continued bickering, Rei decided that it was enough and wanted to break them off.
But the coach approached first.
"Oi, what's happening here?!" He eyed the both in front of him. Rei got startled by the coach himself. She wanted to apologize for Eijun's actions. But before she could do that, another suprise came in. She might just die already because so much surprising things happened today.
"Oh, Eijun. You're here." Kataoka said, following with a bow from Eijun.
"Good Afternoon dad- or should i say boss! i am back from Nagano!"
"Who are you calling boss? Don't call me that, your mom might just kill me."
"Yes boss!"
Kataoka just sighed, now aware of what was happening inside the field. A few players mumbling, he hears a few words. Like 'Coach is his dad?' or 'they're so casual, who is that guy?'
"C-coach, Sawamura Eijun-kun is your son?!" Rei barely managed to squeak the sentence out since she was so suprised.
"Sawamura Eijun? Eijun what have you been telling Takashima-san?" Tesshin sighs and looked back at Rei. "I figured he already told you once you said that you were from Seido, but i guess not. Sorry 'bout that."
"So you're telling me, that you sent me to Nagano for a slim chance that i'd find Eijun-kun?" Rei sighs as she sat in a couch.
"Well, it was up to you whether you'd recruit Eijun or not. Since we made a deal before." Tesshin clarifies, flipping through the pages of a scorebook.
After that incident, Rei had to make readjustments since apparently she wrote some false informations. (Lmao Eijun you just made Rei's life harder.)
"So coach, what was the deal from before?" She asks Tesshin out of curiosity.
"Something about if someone recruits him before going to highschool then i might let him enter this school." He answers without hesitation.
"Then you wanted to test if Eijun-kun is good enough to be in Seido?!"
4 years before the incident happened. (Rei wasn't in Seido yet. And Eijun was in last year Elementary.)
"Dad! Look! I made a new pitching form!" Eijun proudly exclaims.
"You made use of the lesson i thought you? Then let me see it."
Tesshin grabbed his mitt and went towards the field. The players weren't supposed to practice today, but due to them not listening and kept practicing he then let go of the topic.
Some of the players were still on the field. Either running, batting, fielding, you name it, their doing it as long as it's related to baseball.
Tesshin holds out his mitt and sat in the catcher's box, playing catcher. He sets his mitt in the middle, and waited for Eijun to windup.
Eijun lifts his leg, his left arm now hiding behind his head and out of site. It was a unique form, it was usable but due to Eijun not having enough control, it missed Tesshin's mitt.
"Aww, dad one more time! I promise i'll get it next time!"
Eijun pitched a few more times and Tesshin finally called it off. He was just about to go back to the office when "Dad, if i considered this school in one of the schools i wanna go to, would you consider it?" Eijun asked due to curiosity. Making Tesshin shake his head.
He knew it hurt Eijun, but he needed Eijun to know what he's about to get himself into if he dedicated his entire highschool career in a baseball club. "No, this school had always have hard entrance exams. Only less than fifty-percent of the applicants pass, i doubt you'll be able to-"
"What if i was here on a scholarship, what if i get recruited. You wouldn't?" Tesshin realized their conversation were more mature than what Eijun has done in his whole 12 years, but deciding to educate his son, he continues.
"Still no, recruiters tend to recruit pitchers with more pitching arsenals, for now you have no control, power, or even stamina. You have alot to work on young man."
"Dad, i want to propose a bet." Eijun cuts him off.
Tesshin eyes his son, trying to figure out what he's up to.
"What kind of bet would it be?"
Eijun continues. "If i manage to attract any recruiters, wherever school they might be, i want you to let me study in this school. But if i didn't manage to do that in those three years, then i'll stop and focus more on my studies." Eijun stills, it was nerve-wracking saying that, he barely even pass his studies.
"Alright," Wait- what? It was that easy? He'll have to work extra harder now!
"Do want your heart desires, except things that won't do you any good." Tesshin says as he walks away, checking up on his players.
The first time Eijun proposed that bet, Tesshin already knew who won. Eijun doesn't give up that easily.
At first Eijun's mom was against it since she doesn't want to be away with his only child.
But Eijun found a way to convince her anyways, so he decided to study in Nagano with his relatives. (Mother's side)
"And after that, it was all up to you if you wanted to recruit him or not." Tesshin shrugs, and went to continue what he was doing previously.
'Ofcourse i'd recruit him, he's your son.' Rei sighs as she went out of the office and went to go and bring Eijun back to Nagano.
Tesshin continued flipping through the pages and slowly a grin started forming in his lips. 'I guess things will be interesting from here on out.'