Chapter 18 : Targetting Chris!
Unfortunately, the same couldn't be said for the opponent team. A grim and gloomy silence filled Kokushikan's dugout as they looked at the two runners who were sent out helplessly. Even though they were still on the lead, they felt pity not being able to widen the gap as they knew how capable Seidou's lineup hitters were.
To be honest, they didn't expect to get a good result here. Even though Kokushikan was a decent school in East Tokyo, they had a similar nickname as Seidou, a fallen giant. They were a big team in the past that couldn't reach Koushien for the last decade. However, unlike Seidou, they were a public school, so they didn't have a lot of funds to spend on recruiting players.
That's why they changed their focus on cultivating players for their future.
As for this sparing game against Seidou, they actually only aimed to not lose with the mercy rule. They knew even though Seidou only sent their second team, it was enough to wipe out almost 60 percent of the teams in Tokyo. That's why they didn't hope too much and only asked for their players to gain some experience.
Who would think they would be able to take the lead after Sawamura's bad performance in the first inning?
That gave them a glimpse of hope that they could compete and maybe even win against Seidou. Unfortunately, after Chris came on the field, he stabilized Sawamura's performance while not allowing even a single run for them again. After getting five easy points, facing this suppression made them frustrated and uncomfortable.
However, there was still one player who didn't share the same sentiment. He kept observing what was going on in the field and trying to figure out how to deal with Seidou. And when he saw his teammates' frustration, he was the first one to laugh, showing off the bravado to keep the morale high.
"Why are you so gloomy? He is just a rookie! Why are you so worried about him?!"
"But Zaizen-san, it has been three straight innings and we couldn't do anything about his pitch." One of the Kakushikan players said. "We don't know what should we do next."
"Why do you overestimate the pitcher so much?" The boy called Zaizen asked once again. "Don't you remember how you all got the first five points? It showed that he is not that impressive! It is the catcher who changed the game! If you want to score again, you have to think about how to deal with him."
Almost all the players there looked at each other, not knowing what to say. It wasn't like what Zaizen said was wrong. However, it was easier said than to be done. They didn't know anything about the catcher. Hell, even the name was unknown to them. It was like the catcher came out of nowhere just to deal with them. That was why they never thought of dealing with the catcher.
Unexpectedly though, Zaizen seemed to have hidden information about Chris.
"Don't worry about him. For a guy who had already destroyed his shoulder once, it is easy to target him. Listen to me and deliver my message to the runner in the first base. Here is what we would do."
A malicious smile grew on Zaizen's face as he laid out his plan, glancing secretly at Chris on the field.
------------
After the chaos was over, the game continued once again. It was still Kokushikan's turn for offense with two outs and one runner on the first base. However, it didn't dampen Sawamura's excitement. After sending out two runners in the last play, he came with new confidence.
Unfortunately, Kokushikan wouldn't give him an easy time. Sawamura frowned when he saw the next batter was ready on the box while the runner was two steps ahead for a steal just like before. He met Chris's eyes for a moment, asking silently what should he do.
'Just ignore it.' Chris shook his head, answered Sawamura's silent question. 'Focus on the batter. Let me do the rest.'
Sawamura nodded after seeing Chris's gesture. After training together almost every day, they could understand what the other wanted to say even with no words exchanged. Now that Chris said to ignore the runner, he would only have his eyes on the batter next to him.
'An outside pitch? Sure.'
Sawamura started to wind up, ready to throw the ball. However, right before the ball was released from his hand, the batter changed his stance into a bunt one and the runner was ready to go, disturbing Sawamura's concentration.
'Shit!'
Fortunately, instead of an easy ball, the ball went outside of the strike zone, far within the batter's reach, only resulting in a ball for Kokushikan.
"BALL!"
The play didn't end up just like that. Right after Chris caught the ball, he threw it immediately to the first baseman, trying to send out the runner who was already out of position. Unfortunately, the runner was one step faster as he came back to his place quickly.
"SAFE!"
The second attempt was like a replay of the latest one. The runner was showing the sign to steal while the batter changed his stance into a bunt one at the last moment. And just like before, Chris managed to prevent both the batter and the runner from advancing to the next base.
However, in the next attempt, the batter didn't even swing the bat, letting the ball slide to Chris's mitt.
"What the hell?! Not a bunt?! What do you want to do?!" Sawamura started to get frustrated.
"Don't think too much, Sawamura!"
"Calm down, Eijun-kun! If they want to bunt, just let them do it. That would be an easy out for us."
Everyone tried to encourage Sawamura, especially after they realized Kokushikan's mind game attempt to disturb Sawamura's rhythm. Or so that was what they thought. No one still realized that it was Chris who was targeted right now. The catcher was forced to throw the ball several times to prevent the steal from the runner. The aim was for Chris to burden his shoulder more and force him to make a mistake.
And it finally worked when the count was 2 – 2 and the runner started to run for another steal attempt. Sawamura's pitches went outside of the strike zone due to this distraction. At first, Chris didn't really think too much about it. Even if it was a full count, he still believed he could guide Sawamura to get through this situation.
However, the moment he raised his hand and was about to throw the ball, he felt something uncomfortable on his shoulder. It was just a slight pain, yet enough to mess up with his throw.
"Fumiya! Cover!" He roared out loud, startling everyone on the field.
No one knew what was going on. It wasn't until the ball went far from Haruichi that they realized Chris made a mistake.
"DAMN!" Fumiya gritted his teeth, diving forward to catch the ball. Fortunately, he was able to cover Chris's mistake and threw the ball back to Haruichi. Unfortunately, though, the runner had already arrived and touched the second base, indicating the steal was successful.
"SAFE!"
"What happened? Did the catcher make an error?"
"Yeah. It probably slipped from his hand. That was why the ball went wild."
Chatters and whispers exploded outside of the field, talking about the last play. For the normal spectator who didn't know Chris, they just thought it was just a regular mistake. However, for anyone who knew him, they all realized something was wrong with his shoulder.
"Should the coach change him?" Isashiki frowned, looking at Chris worriedly.
"He should." Ryousuke nodded. "But I don't think he would do that."
"Yeah." Hiroto nodded in agreement.
And they were right. Kataoka-sensei didn't have the intention to change Chris now. He had already consulted with Chris before the game and the catcher said he was ready. Moreover, there was no sign of pain in Chris's expression. That was why Kataoka-sensei thought the error was just a normal one and decided to move on.
However, the same couldn't be said for Sawamura. He glanced at his senpai worriedly, trying to ask if Chris was alright. He had the thought to ask for a timeout to let Chris take a breath for a moment. However, the catcher just raised his hand slightly, stopping him from coming over.
"Don't worry, Sawamura. It is alright."
"Shisou…." Even though he was still worried, since Chris said so, Sawamura would believe it.
"Come on, everyone! Just one out left! Concentrate!" Chris suddenly shouted, startling everyone on the field. "Fielders, prepare to throw back home! Shrink the defense! They wouldn't swing the bat! Sawamura, don't worry about the runner! Just focus on the batter!"
"YEAH!"
Under Chris's instruction, they all moved forward, ready for the ball. Determination burned in their eyes, especially after hearing Chris's speech. The catcher wasn't a talkative person. So, when he did it, it left a special impression on the team.
"Come on, Sawamura! Don't worry about the runner!"
"Yeah! We are behind you! Just kill the batter in front of you!"
"THANK YOU, SENPAI!" Sawamura bowed his head deeply before turning around, ready to face the batter again. Inwardly, he cursed himself for the weakness that put Chris on the edge like this. But since his teammates had his back, he would try his best to ignore the runner behind him.
'Okay, full count. If the batter didn't swing, this would be the final throw. Let's concentrate.'
Sawamura nodded when he saw Chris asking him for an inside pitch. Usually, facing a batter who went for a bunt, a catcher would ask for an outside pitch just to avoid a squeeze play. But since it was already two outs and the runner was still on the first base, just sending one of them out was enough to force a change side.
That was why rather than avoiding the bunt, it was better to confront it directly and target the batter here instead of the runner.
And that was what Chris aimed for. With Sawamura's irregular ball, it would be hard for the batter to aim where the bunt would land, so it would be easier to kill him now. Chris took a deep breath, ready to run and catch the ball whenever it was hit by the batter.
And the next play went just like how he thought inside his mind. The batter aimed for the bunt once again, just to face the irregular ball from Sawamura. Even though he managed to hit it, the ball just rolled down weakly, not far from Chris's spot.
"YEAH!"
"NICE PITCH, SAWAMURA!"
"COME ON! IT'S TIME TO COUNTER ATTACK!"
Even though the batter was running to the first base and the other runner was about to reach the third base, no one on Seidou took them seriously. No matter how fast they run, it would be impossible to be faster than the ball thrown by Chris. Unfortunately, they didn't expect another error from Chris.
"Eh?"
Maezono who was on the first base was caught off guard when the ball went a bit far from his position. He tried to stretch his body to reach the ball. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough, resulting in the ball going far to the outfield.
"Another error!"
"Outfielder, cover up!"
"I got it!"
Fortunately, Chris instructed the outfielder to shrink the defense, so it wasn't too far for them to cover the error. However, they weren't fast enough to throw it back to Maezono or Kanemaru who guarded the third base, as the two runners dived forward to grab the plate.
"SAFE!"
The two of them reached the next base safely, bringing back the momentum in Kokushikan's favor. But the focus of the spectators was not on them. Instead, all eyes were on Chris who just made two consecutive errors.
"What's wrong with that catcher?"
"His throws have gotten really poor out of nowhere."
"Yeah. Now, the runner at the first and third base were safe, ready to go back home."
"Will the momentum fall back to the opponent again?"
Chris could only look at his teammates with complicated eyes. The tingling pain sensation that he felt before suddenly worsened, forcing his second error on the game. He could feel that he should stop or his old injury would haunt him back. But Chris was stubborn enough to admit it.
Unfortunately, luck wasn't on his side, as Kokushikan announced a change for the next batter. Zaizen who hadn't spoken anything yet after his last speech on the dugout walked calmly with the bat in his hand, smiling mockingly at the catcher.
"As I thought, you are just a shell of your former self, Chris. As your former rival, it is my duty to perform the last rites for you."
-------------------------------------------
Author note :
Hey! I have written a few next chapters of this new story and posted it already on my patreon account. If you want to read it in advance, you can visit patreon(.)com/ZetaFaes .
You can read this story up to chapter 27, and I will try to update it faster.
You can also read my other fanfiction, Kuroko no Basket: The Sixth man of Seirin Basketball Team up to chapter 165 on that page.
Thank you for your support! I appreciate it! :)
-Zeta Faes-