Chapter 51: Volunteer

At Hachioji Stadium, the scene at the catcher's position was extremely chaotic. People were rushing onto the field from both teams' dugouts.

It looked as if a fight was about to break out.

This startled Carlisle, who was standing in the Batter's Box.

Earlier, in his focus, he had unknowingly exerted too much force, trying to rely on a strong swing to knock the ball out of the park.

But to his surprise, he didn't manage to hit the ball at all.

Instead, as his body rotated with the swing, after completing a 360-degree turn with the bat, the bat ended up hitting the Tokyo team's catcher.

Kengo Inui was struck in the head by the bat.

Luckily, he was wearing a helmet and protective gear, or it could have resulted in a serious accident.

Even so, the force of the swing caused significant aftereffects.

After taking the hit, Kengo Inui collapsed right at the catcher's position.

The people around weren't sure what had happened, but when they saw someone collapsed on the field, they immediately rushed over.

If something serious happened during this exhibition game, everyone present—without exception—would face severe consequences.

This included Coach Kunitomo and the organizers.

In particular, Coach Kunitomo was overwhelmed with frustration that he couldn't even put into words.

The Coach of Teito High School had entrusted him with their cleanup hitter.

This was an act of trust in both his ability and character.

And now, after the game, a player had passed out.

How was he going to explain this to the Teito High School coach?

What if the player had suffered serious harm? Coach Kunitomo might end up feeling guilty for the rest of his life.

If it had been one of his own players, Coach Kunitomo would feel a little better about it.

Players willingly choose to play baseball, so they have to bear these kinds of risks.

In such cases, the pressure on him as a coach would be much smaller.

But now, after training another team's key player for just a few days, and then returning him broken, it was a whole different story.

Even though Coach Kunitomo wasn't personally responsible for this, he certainly didn't feel good about it.

As for the organizers, things were even worse.

Before the Summer Tournament started, their key cleanup hitter and starting catcher from Teito High School were now out of commission.

The impact on the entire team was already huge, and if anything serious happened to the player, their reputation would be ruined.

Carlisle, who had been in the Batter's Box, now had no intention of caring about the situation on the field.

What he feared most now was well well-being of Inui.

He is the guest here, and his opponent was doing great that he was pushed against the wall.

But suddenly he physically hurt his opponent like that because of his mistake.

If something really happens to Inui, even if he wasn't punished, such guilt will follow him for life.

Everyone surrounded Kengo Inui, who had collapsed.

"Everyone, move aside, give the player some fresh air!"

The doctor who rushed over immediately gave orders, and the players obediently stepped back.

At this moment, Kengo Inui slowly regained consciousness.

After taking that heavy hit, he was initially dazed, but it seemed like there was no major discomfort in his body.

After a quick check-up, the doctor indicated that there was nothing seriously wrong with him.

Upon hearing this, everyone breathed a huge sigh of relief.

Kengo Inui also confirmed that he felt fine and was ready to continue playing.

Of course, the doctor wouldn't let him continue without precaution.

After consulting with Coach Kunitomo, the doctor said, "Although he doesn't feel any discomfort, he did lose consciousness for a moment. For safety reasons, it's best not to let him play in the next part of the game."

"I am fine sir, I can still go on," Inui said to Kunitomo, actually he was more frustrated at himself for making such an amateurish mistake.

"No, I can't possibly push the players under my care like this, in such an important time. You have done well until now so you can rest." Even if the doctor hadn't said it, Coach Kunitomo was already planning to take him out.

Unless he was out of his mind, there was no way he would take that kind of risk again.

Making that decision was easy, but what to do next was much more complicated.

The Tokyo team only had two catchers who were truly up to the task.

One was Kengo Inui, and the other was Miyuki from the Seidou High School baseball team.

Although there were other catchers in the team, only these two could handle most pitchers' throws.

Even if other catchers had experience, they weren't capable of handling the pitch at this level.

So, with no other choice, Coach Kunitomo had no option but to put Miyuki in.

But there was another issue—who should partner with him?

Should he pair him with Narumiya?

Honestly, Coach Kunitomo wasn't keen on that.

Once the two formed a battery, even the smallest details would be observed and noted. It wouldn't even be necessary to observe—Narumiya would probably give away a lot of information on his own.

The Summer Tournament will be a direct confrontation with Seidou High School.

In that case, having Seidou High School's battery watching the observing his Ace was unthinkable.

So, aside from Narumiya, the only other option was Sawamura.

That seemed like a better fit...

But in front of everyone, if they paired up, it would still leak some information.

Though this option was better than pairing Narumiya and Miyuki together, Coach Kunitomo still wondered if he could ask for such an arrangement openly.

Even if he felt justified in his decision, would the others feel the same?

Coach Kunitomo found himself trapped in a dilemma.

In the end, after much thought, he decided to accept the situation.

After all, this was his team to lead.

If he let Seidou High School's battery make a sacrifice now, it would completely undermine the fairness he'd strived for all along.

Just as Coach Kunitomo was about to give the order, Miyuki stepped forward on his own.

"Coach, leave the rest of the game to us."

No one had expected that Miyuki would volunteer at this moment.

Even the members of the Inashiro Industrial High School baseball team were dumbfounded.

In their impression, Miyuki had always been equated with slyness and cunning.

When did he develop this sense of responsibility?

No matter what the others were thinking, Miyuki had given Coach Kunitomo an out.

Coach Kunitomo thought about it and realized this was a good opportunity.

It wasn't too high nor too low, just the right level.

He agreed without hesitation.

At the moment when Coach Kunitomo was caught in a dilemma, Sawamura Eijun and Miyuki Kazuya volunteered.

Their actions earned the heartfelt praise of the majority of the players present.

Of course, not everyone supported this decision.

For example, Narumiya Mei.

"What?"

Just after getting one Out, Narumiya, who had been called off, couldn't believe the news. His first reaction was disbelief.

Then, he immediately asked, "Why?"

He had just pitched an inning, and although he had struck out three batters and displayed excellent skills, he was still unsatisfied. Now, he was being replaced.

Of course, he wasn't happy about it.

The young man was straightforward. If he was upset, he would say it.

For a moment, the atmosphere around him became awkward.

Some things were understood by everyone, but no one said it out loud. It would have been a bit inappropriate if it was spoken.

At that moment, Narumiya raised his objection.

Everyone wasn't sure how to respond.

"Just go back to the dugout and watch us do well," said Shirakawa, pulling Narumiya back. Nearby, Carlos and Yamaoka stood on either side like two guards watching over a prisoner.

The three of them worked together to pull Narumiya off the field.

With that, the matter was settled.

Miyuki was moved to the catcher position, and Sawamura was moved to the pitcher position.

Other players replaced them at first base and second base.

Although there was a shortage at the catcher position, there were still plenty of players for the other positions, especially first base.

Looking at the adjustments the Tokyo team made, the American players were somewhat confused.

"These guys from Tokyo are all versatile. It seems like they can adapt to any position."

"The catcher was replaced due to injury, but the pitcher was performing well. Why was he replaced too?"

The American team's dugout was filled with chatter.

Their confusion would remain unanswered for the time being.

"Every team has its own difficulties. I believe Tokyo's Coach had his reasons for making this arrangement," said the American Coach, stepping forward. He didn't want his players to keep getting distracted by these changes.

The American team was already at a disadvantage in this match.

They had to find a way to score some points.

Even if they couldn't completely turn the game around, they had to show their fighting spirit.

"The battery duo that was just replaced, although they performed well and impressed us, were not Tokyo's first-choice battery combo," the American Coach said, his eyes gleaming with sharpness.

Now that they were in such important positions but still not fully adapted, this was the perfect time to strike.

One Out, no one on base.

Earlier, when Inui was knocked out, there had been chaos on the field, and the American players were distracted.

But as soon as Inui regained consciousness, the first thing he did was put on his Mitt, catch the ball, and tag out batter Carlisle.

His resilience and fighting spirit left a deep impact on both the American players and Tokyo's players.

Even Coach Kunitomo couldn't help but praise him.

Though Inui was usually quiet and unassuming, his willpower and skill surpassed that of most players on the field.

East Tokyo's competition wasn't as fierce as West Tokyo's, and with such a strong player like Inui on their team, if no surprises occurred, it was likely that the championship for East Tokyo would belong to Teito High School this summer.

Back to the game, thanks to Inui's persistent fight, when Sawamura stepped up, the team already had one Out.

Now, he was facing North America's fifth batter, C. Harris.

Harris was also a very strong player, giving off a powerful presence that seemed like he could overwhelm his opponent.

In fact, many American players had this feature. The three core batters of their lineup were particularly imposing.

Harris, Carlisle, and Reinhardt, these three players were all big, strong, and powerful, making them very difficult to face.

No one knew this better than Miyuki, the catcher.

'Shunshin and Mei had previously kept the team under control.'

'But if anyone thought the American team's batting power wasn't strong, that would be a big mistake.'

In their earlier encounters, the pitchers had a huge advantage.

They only faced each batter once, not giving the American players enough time to figure them out before they backed off.

If it weren't for this, even they couldn't guarantee that the team wouldn't lose points.

The Tokyo team was truly doing everything they could to field their best players.

If nothing else, they definitely had the advantage on the pitcher's mound.

But now, Sawamura was facing a completely different situation.

There were still five full innings left, and he will have to face most of these players twice.

'We need to plan this carefully.'

Harris was big and stood in a very conservative position. He wasn't too far forward or back, neither too left nor right.

He stared at Sawamura with a calm and steady gaze, like a stationary target.

It wasn't until he saw the baseball flying toward him that he finally reacted.

Paak!

The baseball was struck and soared into the sky...

…

T/N: Well, That's it for now.

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