Chapter 231: The Practice Game Approaches

"Don't sell yourselves short. The upperclassmen have, after all, had one or even two more years of training than us; it's only natural they have such stamina after putting in that much more sweat," Arima Kazusa comforted the two.

Kominato Haruichi, sitting to the side, nodded in agreement, his gaze fixed on Kominato Ryosuke's figure on the field; compared to his older brother, he still had a long way to go.

On the field, Coach Kataoka was hitting every ball with great force, and the team members were giving their all to field every one. As time ticked by, the members collapsed one after another, leaving only Yuki Tetsuya and Huangqian Yangyi standing at the end.

The reason Huangqian Yangyi could remain standing was that he had fielded fewer balls; for a Pitcher like him, such fielding practice carried significant risk. Neither the coach nor anyone else would hit too many balls in his direction, for if he were to injure his fingers, it would truly be a disaster.

Yuki Tetsuya was different; he had relied entirely on his powerful willpower to persist until now.

As the team Captain, Yuki Tetsuya was not good with words, nor was he skilled at communicating with his teammates, let alone managing the team; yet, not a single person on the entire team felt dissatisfied with him.

Whether in training or in games, Yuki Tetsuya always led by example, guiding the team through his actions, and he always managed to create opportunities for the team at critical moments, repeatedly distinguishing himself.

At this moment, with everyone else collapsed, Yuki Tetsuya had to stand tall to set an example for the First Year newcomers: the Seido Baseball Club was not a place where one could survive with a "good enough" attitude. If one wanted to achieve something on this team, one needed not only skill but also a strong heart and will.

"Jiecheng! Can you not stand up?"

After two more balls, Yuki Tetsuya caught the ball, but his entire body slumped to the ground, his heavy breathing blowing the dirt on the ground, unable to get back up for a long time.

Hearing Coach Kataoka's voice, Jiecheng gritted his teeth and used the last of his strength to push his body up from the ground bit by bit, his exhausted body feeling as heavy as if it had been filled with mercury.

The First Years present were all deeply shocked by this scene; had he still not collapsed even after reaching this point?

"I, I can do it! Coach! One more ball!"

The barely standing Yuki Tetsuya, hunched over with one hand pressed against his heaving chest, shouted loudly at Coach Kataoka.

On the sidelines, Ochiai Hiromitsu shuddered, his hair standing on end.

With a team like this, it wouldn't be strange no matter what results they achieved, would it?

Another ball flew out, and after Yuki Tetsuya used his final strength to dive and catch it, Coach Kataoka wiped the sweat from his forehead; after so many hits, he was also exhausted.

"Training over! Everyone get some rest early tonight!" Coach Kataoka said.

Hearing this, everyone on the field looked at the coach in surprise; did they not have to run anymore?

Just then, Coach Kataoka suddenly remembered something.

"Miyuki, Kuramochi! No resting until you finish running!"

The two, who had been holding onto a glimmer of hope, immediately stood straight and shouted "Yes!" upon hearing the call.

"Haha, you two idiots, stunned, aren't you?" Huangqian Yangyi mocked them mercilessly.

"Damn you! You're still laughing!" Kuramochi rushed over and grabbed Huangqian Yangyi by the collar, wishing he could hit him with a scissor kick right then and there.

"Hahaha, you guys take your time running, I'm going back to rest." Kuramochi Yoichi laughed cheekily and turned to run off the field.

A week of intensive training passed, and the team returned to their daily routine.

The following evening, after training ended, Coach Kataoka stood before everyone and announced some news.

"There will be a practice game tomorrow, and the opponent is Osaka Kiryu!"

"What? Osaka Kiryu?!"

"No way, with our current state, how are we supposed to play them?"

"Interesting, isn't it?"

The others whispered among themselves, while Huangqian Yangyi felt nothing; it was a practice game against Osaka Kiryu, and he certainly wouldn't have a chance to play.

The purpose of this practice game was for Coach Kataoka to test the team's combat effectiveness in a state of fatigue. While this was also a form of exercise for him, Huangqian Yangyi knew that even in his current exhausted state, he could still maintain his pitch speed above 145.

Coach Kataoka was definitely not testing him; there would certainly be more than one practice game. Among the pitchers, the ones facing the test would be the others, especially the First Years, Sawamura Eijun and Furuya Satoru.

"Hey, did you know about this a long time ago?" Miyuki turned his head and asked in a low voice.

"Isn't this standard procedure? What's so strange about it?" Huangqian Yangyi said.

Miyuki shook his head; he wasn't surprised about the practice game, of course. "I meant Osaka Kiryu!"

"Oh, that? Yeah, I knew since last night." Huangqian Yangyi laughed.

After training ended last night, Takashima Rei had called Huangqian Yangyi to the coach's office, and that was when he learned the opponent was Osaka Kiryu.

"You guy, you get every piece of news first; the coach is too biased," Miyuki pouted and said.

"Heh, you'll probably be playing tomorrow, so I'll be watching your performance then," Huangqian Yangyi laughed.

Miyuki rolled his eyes and didn't say anything more.

Upon learning the news of the practice game, Sawamura Eijun, Furuya Satoru, Arima Kazusa, and Kominato Haruichi were all very excited; this would be their first time playing as members of the First String.

Returning to the dormitory and seeing Arima Kazusa's excitement, Huangqian Yangyi smiled and said, "Kid, pray for yourself tomorrow."

"Huh? What do you mean?" Arima Kazusa turned his head, looking innocent, not understanding what Huangqian Yangyi meant.

Huangqian Yangyi shrugged without explaining. The current Arima Kazusa was physically and mentally exhausted; his batting level would definitely drop, and not only that, his defensive ability would also be affected. It would be extremely difficult, almost impossible, for him to put on a good performance in tomorrow's practice game.

Just then, the dormitory door was knocked; it was Sawamura.

"Aniki! That guy Miyuki is calling you over to his room to play games," Sawamura said loudly.

Huangqian Yangyi sighed helplessly, "Look, Eijun, Kazuya is your upperclassman after all, you should at least call him 'senpai'."

"No way, that guy is too mean!" Sawamura said.

"Sigh, let's go. Arima, you come too," Huangqian Yangyi said.

The three arrived at Miyuki's dormitory, and the room was already crowded with people, even Chris was there.

"Chris-senpai, you play games too?!" Huangqian Yangyi asked in surprise. Having lived under the same roof for over a year, this was the first time Huangqian Yangyi had seen Chris playing games.

"Of course, I'm just not very good at it."

As he spoke, Chris KO'd the character Miyuki was controlling.

*Heh*, Huangqian Yangyi's mouth twitched twice, and he immediately saw Kuramochi lying on the floor reading a manga, while Furuya Satoru was kneeling beside him, looking exhausted, massaging his shoulders.

"Hey, hey, that's going too far."

"Hehehe, it feels great, want to try?" Kuramochi looked up and said.

"Sure!"

And so, Huangqian Yangyi sat down cross-legged, and Arima Kazusa, showing great initiative, leaned over to knead his shoulders.

"Huangqian! Come here!"

Yuki Tetsuya held a black chess piece in his hand, a chessboard set up before him, and gestured enthusiastically for Huangqian Yangyi to come over and play.

"Captain, aren't you tired? Playing chess is very mentally taxing."

"This is precisely the time for cultivation, Huangqian; come, battle me for three hundred rounds!"

Huangqian Yangyi had no choice but to agree, and subsequently lost three games in a row.