Beautiful Baseball Club Manager

Putting away his phone, Sasaki took off his convenience store uniform and put it in the locker.

As he changed back into his school uniform, he sighed inwardly.

His choice, to be honest, was undoubtedly correct.

But this inevitably pushed Tsukimi Chifuyu a bit closer to Takagi.

Although Sasaki was confident that the outcome wouldn't change much, if Takagi suddenly decided to care for her, it would surely cause some trouble for him.

This was why he timed his words to Chifuyu right around the end of Takagi's club activities when he might message her.

While it might not completely overshadow Takagi, at least it would ensure that his place in Chifuyu's heart remained unchanged.

After all, no matter how good a 'friend' is, it's hard to rank higher than a 'boyfriend.'

Bam—

Closing the locker door, Sasaki looked at his reflection in the mirror on the locker and murmured to himself:

"Hope those words will outshine Takagi."

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Leaving the convenience store, Sasaki waved back at Haruno Ayato, who was waving at him.

He glanced at the street full of life, swallowed by the colourful lights of the city against the backdrop of the evening sky, and slowly walked toward the school, illuminated by the row of streetlights.

Sasaki was not the one to break his promises.

After all, he had already said he would walk Shinomiya home; he wouldn't flake out on his words unless there were special circumstances.

Especially not to such a pretty girl, as that would hurt his reputation.

Consistency is key to everything.

Although he didn't necessarily intend to date her, no normal guy would reject the goodwill of a beautiful girl.

Besides, Shinomiya had a beautiful mother who had even cooked for Sasaki.

With a mindset of reciprocating kindness with the same, Sasaki returned to the empty, silent school.

Just like the past two days, he walked by the side of the playground, along the wire fence set up by the baseball club, listening to the shouts of encouragement from the sports clubs, and headed towards the Aikido club.

However, unlike the previous two days' orderly shouts, today's uniform "cheers" included a hint of an anxious, pleasant female voice.

"Student! Watch your head!"

The moment the voice reached his ears, Sasaki heard a whizzing sound above his head and instinctively reached out, catching a baseball the size of an apple, white with red stitches.

Looking at the ball in his hand, he glanced toward the fenced-off baseball field.

Due to the setting sun, Sasaki could only see a black figure running towards him from within the baseball field, bathed in the crimson glow of the sunset.

Although the figure was blurry, the exaggerated curves swaying as she ran were clearly visible.

This girl has the assets matching Tsukimi.

This instinctive comparison left Sasaki momentarily unsure of an exact conclusion.

And when she finally reached him, the answer became even more unclear.

Her clear eyes, like a summer afternoon sky, and the slightly furrowed eyebrows under her auburn hair expressed an apologetic look that one could not bear to blame.

Since she had run over, her thin, petal-like pink lips were opening and closing like a fish out of water.

Accompanying this was the proud silhouette beneath her sky-blue baseball uniform.

Glancing at the girl in the dark blue baseball cap, Sasaki saw the bashful blush on her flawless white face, more vibrant than the evening clouds, and pulled a bottle of drink from his backpack, handing it to her:

"Here, catch your breath first."

"Tha-thank you."

Taking the offered drink, Nanao Akane looked up at the classmate who was looking at her with a gentle smile, showing no signs of blame, and her tense heart eased a bit.

After all, it was a member of her club who had hit the ball out of bounds, and as the baseball club manager responsible for logistics, she often bore as much blame as the member who made the mistake.

During her run over, she had prepared to apologise and bow repeatedly.

Encountering a difficult person could mean ten or more minutes of bowing.

But…

Rubbing the bottle in her hands, Nanao Akane, looking at the classmate whose smile felt like a breath of fresh spring air, felt grateful and cleared her throat, preparing to bow and apologise.

"I'm so sor…"

Just as she started to speak and was about to apologise, she felt a hand press down on her shoulder, preventing her from bowing, and she couldn't help but look up in surprise.

"This ball came from your side, right? Just be careful next time. I can see you're pretty tired, so there's no need to apologize. I didn't get hurt."

Retracting his hand from her soft shoulder, Sasaki handed the baseball back to her.

Akane Nanao, who really didn't like bowing her head to apologise due to her exaggerated figure, felt the other party's thoughtfulness and couldn't help but sneak a few glances at him while reaching for the baseball.

Earlier, because she was anxious and then grateful, she had only looked at his face out of politeness, noting that he was handsome and had a nice smile.

Now, upon closer inspection, she realized he was better looking than any guy she had ever seen.

Coupled with his warm, sunny smile and gentle demeanor like a spring breeze, his already attractive appearance had an added layer of indescribable charm.

However, since she already had someone she liked, Nanao Akane simply acknowledged inwardly, "He's really good-looking," without staring at him like a lovesick girl.

Grateful and pleased, she placed her hands on her thighs and bent slightly:

"Thank you very much for the drink. But are you sure you're not hurt? If you are, I can take you to the infirmary."

As she spoke, she glanced at his right hand, which was tucked into his pants pocket.

Knowing how hard that ball must have been hit to fly out of the wire fence, she asked with some concern.

Catching a baseball barehanded that had enough force to leave the field was no easy feat.

Though the ball had lost much of its momentum due to the distance, it was still unlikely that someone could catch it without any impact.

Despite his outward appearance of being uninjured, the girl felt responsible to ensure he was truly okay and not just pretending to be fine.

Seeing her glance at his right hand, Sasaki smiled and extended it for her to see:

"My hand is fine, really. No need to worry. And you don't need to speak so formally to me. I'm not a teacher or anything, and it sounds weird."

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Carefully looking at the wide hand extended towards her and seeing no redness or injuries, the girl sighed in relief.

Then, hearing his words, she smiled and nodded in agreement.

"Alright, I'm Nanao Akane, the manager of the baseball club.

If you have any problems in the future, you can come to the baseball club and find me.

I'll report it to the person in charge."

"Got it."

Nodding, Sasaki glanced at the baseball field behind her, where the players were eagerly watching, then smiled and waved at her:

"Let's leave it here then. They're waiting for you to go back so I won't disturb your practice."

Turning to look at the players who were paying attention, Nanao Akane paused on one of them before turning back to nod at the still-unnamed student.

"Well, goodbye then."

"Goodbye."

Watching the girl with a youthful and slightly immature back walk away, Sasaki glanced again at the baseball field before turning back and heading towards the Aikido club.

Entering the baseball field, Akane Nanao handed the baseball to the new member who had accidentally hit it out of bounds and advised:

"Here, don't use such strength next time. It's dangerous to hit the ball out."

"Sor-sorry, Nanao-senpai, I'll be careful."

Seeing the member lowering his head in apology, the girl showed a faint smile:

"Continue your practice; I'll go get water for you."

"Senpai is really nice. She looks cold but is actually very gentle, and..."

Watching the girl's retreating figure, the new member's words were interrupted by a nudge from the person beside him.

"And her chest is big, too, right?"

"Yes, yes, she... ouch!"

"Don't talk about others behind their backs."

Feeling the pain in their heads and the reprimand from behind, the new member and the old member beside him turned around.

They saw a serious-looking, slightly dark-skinned, handsome senior standing behind them.

Knowing that the sunny-looking senior behind them was the star player of the baseball club, someone who could participate in major tournaments, the new member quickly scratched his head and laughed awkwardly.

The old member, who had been in the club for a while, felt a bit awkward too, but knowing the senior, he lightly nudged his arm and jokingly said:

"We were just talking, no harm in that. Besides, Nanao-senpai is so beautiful and has a great figure. You like her too, right?"

Feeling his heart tighten, Katase Shouya quickly said, "What's with this 'like' or 'don't like' stuff? Relationships are not allowed in the club. If the coach hears this, we'll get scolded."

"It's just talk, no big deal. You've always stopped us from talking about Nanao-senpai. I thought you liked her."

Shrugging indifferently, the old member continued teasing:

"I'm in the same class as Nanao-senpai. If you want to pursue her, I can help."

"No need. Let's talk about these things after the tournament."

Katase Shouya shook his head, his tone calm and unruffled, making him seem like someone not easily swayed by beauty, focused on training, a good member, and a good senior.

But in reality, it was entirely different.

He had already made a pact with Akane Nanao that they would become an official couple after the tournament.

Although, now, due to club rules, they can only treat each other as ordinary members and managers.

But in his view, becoming a couple was a certainty, so there was no need for anyone else's intervention.

"Really?"

Surprised that Katase Shouya would refuse, the old member looked at him and patted his arm:

"Katase, you're really determined about the tournament. You have to do your best~."

"By the way, I just saw Nanao-senpai coming in with a drink from someone else.

You know, Nanao-senpai rarely accepts things from guys.

Our club manager won't be taken by someone else, right?"

Talking about gossip, the new member who witnessed it was excited and started to describe everything he saw.

"Yes, yes, when Nanao-senpai handed me the ball, I clearly saw that her other hand was holding a drink from someone else. That guy was really handsome and looked quite compatible with Nanao-senpai."

"Handsome? Don't praise others and put yourself down."

The old member slapped the new member's head and glanced at Katase Shouya, who seemed to be lost in thought, and smiled:

"And Shouya is not bad either. Do you think he and Nanao-senpai are not a good match?"

"No, no, that's not what I meant." Being suddenly given a big hat to wear and not wanting to be targeted by the star player, the new member anxiously tried to explain.

"Never mind, just joking. It's Nanao-senpai's business, who she's with. It's not good to talk behind people's backs."

Laughing and waving his hand, Katase Shouya spoke in a tone as casual as ever, as if he really didn't have anything to do with Nanao Akane.

His expression didn't seem to care either.

Feeling relieved in his heart and facing the leniency of the club star, the new member was about to say something flattering when the old member dragged him away to practice.

"Huh?"

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"Eh?"

Seeing his companion walking away without saying a word and winking at him with a smile, Katase Shouya, who was confused, was about to ask when he heard footsteps behind him.

Turning around, he greeted the pretty girl who was walking towards him with a bucket in her hands in her hands in a dry voice.

"Ak.. Nanao-san