"Strike! Batter's out!"
Change of sides.
Rinichi stood up, removed his mask, and walked toward Mukai Taiyo.
So of the opposing Little League players glared at the two of them with open hostility.
Taiyo, the one they were really provoked by, acted as if he hadn't noticed at all.
Rinichi: "…"
Why are you glaring at ? It was Taiyo who provoked you.
He turned back to Taiyo.
"That last pitch floated high. Lucky for us, they were too lousy to hit it."
…That sounded like a jab.
Taiyo: "…"
With a mischievous grin, he shot back, "That's what you're here for, Rinichi."
Rinichi: "…"
Overall, their team was stronger than the opponent.
When Rinichi stepped up to bat, replacing his gear with a helt and bat, he drove the very first pitch into the outfield.
"Safe!"
A clean double.
The batters after him also perford well.
The coach could only wipe his sweat in relief.
Until now, this Little League team had been used to losing.
But since Rinichi beca the regular catcher and Taiyo the regular pitcher, every ga had been a nerve-wracking close call.
They had begun to crave victory. And because of that, they had also begun to fear defeat.
....
Later, the two boys wandered into a small park.
The real reason was simple—Rinichi wanted to pet cats.
And cats, strangely enough, seed to like him too, as though he were walking catnip.
Suddenly, Rinichi asked,
"Taiyo… are you going to play baseball in junior high too?"
A question out of nowhere. Taiyo froze, then answered awkwardly, feeling a bit nervous.
"Try working on your control a little," Rinichi added.
So that's what he ant?
What did that have to do with playing in junior high?
Still, control… Taiyo had already been thinking about it.
Then Rinichi admitted softly,
"I… still really want to pitch."
Taiyo understood. Sothing in his chest twisted strangely.
Deep down, he wanted to remain Rinichi's battery partner.
If they stayed like this all the way to high school… they could be the strongest duo, right?
That's what he believed.
"Then let's try."
"Try to find a catcher who can handle your pitches."
"That's what you really want, isn't it?"
"Even if we stop being partners, we'll still make great rivals."
Rinichi lifted his gaze, studying Taiyo's averted face.
His smile deepened.
"You're right. We'd be great rivals."
Then he added, almost carelessly,
"But if… in the youth team, there really isn't a catcher who can catch my pitches… then I'll give up being a pitcher."
Taiyo was stunned.
He never expected Rinichi to say sothing about giving up.
"…That can't be helped then," Rinichi continued.
His eyes softened with a faintly bitter smile. And yet his tone was light, almost joking:
"Being a catcher isn't so bad either…"
There was a hint of resignation in it.
Taiyo suddenly realized—he didn't really understand what baseball ant to Rinichi, deep in his heart.
But maybe… it was sothing he truly loved.
....
"Rin, you're playing baseball now, aren't you?"
Narumiya i caught sight of him putting on his shoes. Excited, i hurried to put on his own shoes too, eyes sparkling like stars.
"Perfect! I want to play too. Let's be a battery!"
"I don't play baseball." Rinichi's eyes darkened.
"Liar! I just saw the catcher's gear!" i wouldn't let go.
Rinichi: "…"
…He'd forgotten to put it away.
"If we team up as pitcher and catcher, we'll be the strongest! We'll get into the youth team, then the sa high school, and then dominate the whole country!"
Dominate the country?
Rinichi froze mid-step.
Seeing his reaction, i pressed harder, leaving him no room to think.
"Well? Let's be a battery! I'll be the strongest pitcher ever!"
Rinichi lowered his eyes.
But he had no desire to be a catcher.
"No."
"I already have a partner."
He stepped forward, taking the lead.
i stared in disbelief, then ran to catch up, his face red with anger.
He opened his mouth to argue, but Rinichi cut him off again.
"Why are you so sure that if we beca a battery, we'd dominate the nation?"
"You've barely even started baseball, right? How much do you really know about it?"
i blinked, caught off guard.
Rinichi stopped and turned to look at him directly, his eyes unreadable.
But i only grinned, bright as the sun.
"Because… the catcher is you, Rin! And the pitcher is !"
He proudly jabbed his finger at himself.
Rinichi: "…"
To Rinichi, Narumiya i's answer was completely unreliable.
He averted his gaze to the side.
His right hand clenched slightly, and in a low voice tinged with resentnt he muttered,
"I didn't beco a catcher because I wanted to be one."
What he really wanted… was to stand in that dazzling place on the pitcher's mound.
This was the first ti i had ever heard Rinichi speak in such a tone.
"Then what do you want to be?" i pressed, for once trying to act like an older brother.
"…A pitcher."
"Then why not beco one? Why give it up just to be a catcher?"
i truly couldn't understand.
Rinichi didn't answer. He clearly didn't want to.
The air grew heavy.
i disliked this stifling silence. Irritated, he took a step closer.
"Why won't you say anything?"
He could tell—Rinichi had changed.
The Rinichi he knew used to smile, used to speak freely. Not like now, brooding, like he was hiding sothing painful inside, pushing the world away.
"Tch, what am I going to do with you…"
i sighed in frustration.
"I'm your older brother. What can't you tell ? Is soone bullying you?"
He was already half-ready for a fight.
Rinichi bit back a breath.
The one who bullied has already lost a tooth.
Habitually, he shot back with a jab:
"If I told you, you'd just drag down."
That set i off like a kettle boiling over.
"You looking down on ?!"
Rinichi felt he'd made himself clear enough.
"In any case, I won't be your battery partner."
He turned and walked away.
i stord after him.
"Fine then! When I beco an amazing pitcher, don't co begging to be your catcher!"
Then his tone shifted, smug and taunting:
"But if you really wanted to be my partner… I guess I could force myself to agree."
Hearing those words, Rinichi didn't even need to look—he could picture perfectly the arrogant grin and the self-satisfied mood behind them.
Rinichi: "…"
As if I'd ever beg Narumiya i.
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