The next day, the first-string players gathered inside the cafeteria for a meeting before we set off to the stadium.
As I walked up to the cafeteria, I was a little nervous as it would be the first time I would be meeting the rest of the players up close.
I had seen them around in training throughout the week, but I hadn't spoken to them much yet, as I had a separate menu from the rest of the team.
I walked in and saw I was one of the first to arrive.
The only people there were Yuki and Isashiki.
They looked at me when I came into the room.
"Good morning captain, senpai!" I said to both with a smile.
"Damn straight it's a good morning!" Isashiki replied with his loud voice. "We're finally playing another match; I've been itching to crush some pitchers in front of a crowd."
"Sawamura Eijun." Yuki said whilst looking at me. "Are you ready for your first game on the first-string?" He asked.
"Of course, captain! While Isashiki-senpai is crushing pitchers, I will be crushing batter's spirits, if coach lets me play at some point, of course." I replied with a grin.
"Haha, I like you rookie! You know what's up!" Isashiki said with a smirk.
"Oi, Sawamura, why'd you leave without us?" Kuramochi said from behind me as he came into the room with Masuko.
"Ah Kuramochi-senpai, you and Masuko-senpai were still arguing about how ate his last pudding and I didn't want to interrupt." I replied with a grin.
"Sawamura-chan, it wasn't an argument, it was an investigation." Masuko said as he walked up to me. "The verdict was that Kuramochi was guilty of eating my pudding."
"Isn't that a trial?" I asked with a chuckle. "Kuramochi-senpai, the victim of your crime is also the detective and the judge. You were royally screwed from the start."
"Don't even get me started, you brat." Kuramochi replied.
I chuckle at that.
Suddenly, the door opened, and majority of the team walked in together.
Players like Tanba, Kominato, Shirasu, Miyauchi and Kawakami were among them.
Furya and Miyuki were last in.
Miyuki walked up to me as soon as he spotted me.
"You nervous for today, Sawamura?" He asked.
"Not even a little bit. I'm excited, more than anything." I replied with a smile.
"Haha, you're not even fazed at all! Make sure to bring the same energy if you get to play." He said with a laugh.
"Of course." I said back to him.
Then the door opened, and Coach Kataoka and Ota walked in.
All the players sat down to listen.
"Alright, today we go against Yokohama Academy from Kanagawa. Their a team that doesn't have a great track record but they're not to be underestimated by any means. As soon as they see a chance in the batter's box, they can rally multiple runs in an inning." He said to the players.
"This is our first game with some fresh faces in the team." He continued, looking at both me and Furuya.
Some of the players looked over in our direction as well.
"I want you to show them what it's like to be on the first-string and come out strong." Coach said whilst looking back at the regulars.
"Yes, Coach!" They replied.
"We will go with our regular starters, Tanba will start on the mound." The coach said.
"However, I want to see what the first years can do in a game so for this game, I will put Sawamura on the mound at some point." He said turning to me.
I clenched my fist tightly and my eyes started glowing slightly when I heard this.
"I won't let you down coach!" I said with a determined expression.
He stared at me for a second, looking into my eyes and then nodded.
"Haha, that brat's eyes look good! He must have been serious when he said he was going to break some batter's spirits!" Isashiki said with a grin as he looked my way.
"Yeah." Yuki replied, also looking at me.
In fact, many of the players attention had turned to me after feeling a change in the air.
I started making an aura around myself subconsciously.
Then suddenly a slap lightly hit me round the back of the head.
"Oi Sawamura, save that aura for when you're on the mound! You're gonna run out of energy before the game even starts at this rate!" Kuramochi said.
"Ah! Sorry, senpai, I got over-excited for a moment. Haha!" I replied with a chuckle, rubbing the back of my head.
"Alright, you lot, let's get on the bus to the game." The coach announced.
"Yes!" Everyone replied.
***
We arrived at the stadium and entered the dugout for our team.
I looked around at the crowds and saw loads of people filling up the seats.
I had to admit, my nerves started getting to me when I saw the turnout.
It was my first time playing for such a crowd in years, taking into account my past life as well.
I took a deep breath to calm my nerves a little.
"You nervous now that you can see the crowd?" I heard a voice come from beside me.
I looked towards the voice and saw Tanba standing next to me, also looking at the crowd.
"Tanba-senpai! A little. It's my first time playing for such a crowd." I replied. "However, my excitement out ways everything. Also, I think a little nervousness will be helpful to keep me in check."
"Nicely said." He replied. "You won't be on the mound for a while, so look at your teammates on the field as we play. Let us show you how Seido plays. And when it's time for you to come on, trust them completely to have your back."
I was a little surprised by Tanba's support as we hadn't spoken to each other much, but I was grateful for him coming to check on me.
"Thank you, Tanba-senpai! I will do what you said." I replied, slightly bowing.
He blushed a little from embarrassment as he saw my actions.
He then blushed even more when he saw some of the team had listened on the conversation.
"Aww, Tanba, are you teaching your kohai? What a good senpai you are!" Kominato teased.
"Tanba, you looked very mature just now." Yuki said with a nod of approval.
"Yaha, Tanba-senpai is blushing!" Kuramochi chuckled.
"Shut up, you guys!" Tanba snapped.
I chuckled slightly at their antics.
"Alright you lot." Coach said, looking at the team. "This is a game we should win, but like I said before, do not let your guard down. You need to be switched on a focused from the start. Now go line up."
We all then walked up to the base line on our side as the other team did the same on theirs.
I took some time to look over the players, they looked determined and serious.
I then looked over at my teammates.
They had the exact same expressions.
My heart started beating a little faster, my excitement growing.
'I'm finally here! My first game for the first-string! I will make sure to make people remember my name after this game.' I thought as my eyes started to glow.
"Bow!" The umpire then announced.
"Let's have a good game!" Both teams shouted as we bowed to each other.
We then headed back to our dugout and the team got their gloves and headed out to the field for defence.
I stayed in the dugout with the rest of the reserve players.
"It's about to start! The first game of the Kanto Tournament with Seido vs Yokohama! It'll be a thrilling game to say the least. Seido is starting on defence while Yokohama gets to start on offence. Let's see how this game will turn out!" The commentator said into his mic as the first batter walked up to the batter's box.
***
WHOOOOSH
DING
"And it's a hit from the first Yokohama batter in the top of the seventh. He manages to get onto to first safely. Tanba has been doing well so far, only allowing 2 runs in the first 6 innings but it looks like the Yokohama batters might have finally figured out his pitching." The commentator said after looking at the play happen in front of him.
I was currently still in the dugout with a a feeling of restlessness.
It had been a slow game to start.
Both teams not managing to score in the first 2 innings.
Seido managed to grab a run in the bottom of the third but then Yokohama fought back to get 2 runs in the top of the fourth.
We didn't take that lightly as we got back another run in the bottom of the fifth.
The scores stayed the same throughout the sixth inning and now at the top of the seventh inning, Yokohama had struck again.
After their first batter got a single, Miyuki decided to call a timeout and gestured for the infielders to join him on the mound.
When I saw Tanba's face look frustrated and fatigued, I turned and walked to Miyauchi, the back up catcher of the team.
"Miyauchi-senpai, lets go to the bullpen." I said to him with a serious face, my eyes were glowing a little.
Miyauchi looked at me for a second then stood up.
"HMPH! Alright, I've been itching to move anyway." He responded, blowing steam out of his nose.
We both walked out of the dugout and headed for the bullpen.
The coach watched us go and didn't say anything.
As we got to the bullpen, we started throwing the ball back and forth.
I looked over at the field as I saw the team disperse from the mound, Tanba still looked fatigued but he had calmed down a little.
He threw his first pitch after the timeout.
WHOOOOOSH
PAAH
"Strike!" The umpire called.
The batter swung hard and missed.
Tanba then threw his next pitch.
WHOOOSH
'It's off.' I thought, as I saw the speed.
DIING
The batter connected with the ball wat into the outfield for a double.
There was now a runner on second and third with no outs, a terrible start for an inning.
I then turned to Mayauchi on the other side of the bullpen, he was looking at the field as well with a frown.
"Senpai, my shoulder's warmed up now, I'm throwing for real." I called out to him, making him turn back to me.
He just nodded in reply.
My eyes were glowing a lot at this point, as I started my windup.
WHOOOOOOOSH
BAANG
My pitch landed in Mayauchi's mitt with power and precision.
His eyes widened slightly when he felt his mitt be pushed back a little.
'That was a good pitch, I didn't even see his arm.' He thought as he threw the ball back.
I pitched a couple more times to get a feel for my condition.
After a few more pitches, I turned back to the field as Tanba was pitching against the next batter.
WHOOOSH
PAH
"Ball four!"
The umpire called as the batter walked to first base.
The bases were no loaded and there were no outs.
Miyuki called another timeout.
"Sawamura!"
I turned to the voice and saw Kawakami jogging towards us.
"The coach called for you." He said as he got to us.
As soon as he said that I quickly made my way to the dugout to where coach was standing.
"Coach." I called to him as I got there.
He turned his attention away from the field and looked at me.
My eyes were glowing brightly, and my face was calm.
My aura was also thick at this time as well.
He stared at me for a few seconds and then spoke.
"To be honest, I was going to call you to tell you that I planned on putting you on after this inning."
I flinched slightly and my face turned one of determination.
"Coach, I know I'm asking for a lot. But put me on the mound right now. Tanba-senpai is fatigued and the scores are tied right now." I said to him. "If you put me on the mound, I won't let them score once throughout the rest of the game." I announced with determination.
A lot of the players looked at me in shock.
'What's this kid thinking, promising something like that.' They all thought.
The Coach then looked at me for a couple of seconds, looking at my face and eyes, he just couldn't resist the urge to put this cocky rookie on the mound.
"Okay, I'm giving you a chance. However, if they score one run throughout the rest of the game, I'm taking you off and demoting you to the second-string." He said to me with a serious face.
"Yes, Coach!" I replied without hesitation.
The Coach then walked past me and called for a pitcher change.
As I saw this a notification came up from the system.
*DING*
[New mission: Promise to the Coach.]
[Tasks:
>Don't let Yokohama score any runs for the rest of the game
>Strikeout 6 batters before the end of the game (0/6)
>Make a play when in the batter's box
Rewards:
>1 S-Grade pitching elixir
>1 silver tier batting skill
>25 Ace points
Punishment if failed:
>Be taken off the mound and demoted to the second-string]
[Accept mission: Yes/No]
I instantly pressed you yes option as soon as I saw the rewards.
'I won't back down here. I'll do what I said.' I thought with clenched fists.
My eyes were filled with fire as I heard the announcement.
*Seido High school has called for a change in players. Switching out for Tanba for the pitcher, Sawamura. Batting ninth, pitcher, Sawamura.*