Chapter 43: Big-Mouthed Miyuki

"What kind of nonsense are you spouting?" Miyuki rolled his eyes at Huangqian Yangyi, speechless. "Power alone is useless for batting. Technique, swing speed, timing, and the ability to select and track pitches are all very important."

"You really do think about a lot, don't you?" Huangqian Yangyi chuckled. "Why don't you practice those yourself? How about I join you for some leg training?"

"Huh?" Miyuki looked suspicious, then realized, "You're the one who wants me to join you, right?"

Huangqian Yangyi rolled his eyes, looked up at the sky, and whistled. "No way. I just think your batting is too trashy and wanted to help you out."

"I'd have to be a ghost to believe that."

Although they hadn't spent much time together, Miyuki felt he already understood this guy well enough. He sighed and said, "Didn't Chris-senpai make a training plan for you? Give me a copy tonight; I'll see where it's appropriate to add leg training."

"Yo, you agreed? I knew you were a good guy." Huangqian Yangyi happily patted Miyuki on the shoulder.

"I'll give you a gift in a couple of days."

Miyuki had been feeling a bit depressed, but he cheered up instantly upon hearing the word "gift." "A gift? What kind of gift?"

"You'll know when the time comes." Huangqian Yangyi continued to keep him in suspense. If Miyuki knew that the so-called gift was actually just another training exercise, Huangqian Yangyi worried he might jump up and punch him.

That night, Manager Kataoka once again gathered all the First String members for a pre-game meeting and announced the starting lineup for the next day.

For the pitcher position, the starter remained the third-year ace Nanjo Taishi, but the middle reliever became Tanba Koichiro, with Huangqian Yangyi responsible for closing.

Of course, this was the ideal scenario; if they fell behind by a large margin during the game, Manager Kataoka would make adjustments at any time.

Returning to the dormitory, Huangqian Yangyi took a photo of the training plan Chris had made earlier with his phone and sent it to Miyuki.

"Yangyi." Chris suddenly spoke up.

"Hm? Is something wrong, Chris-senpai?" Huangqian Yangyi turned his head and saw Chris toss a baseball toward him.

"I heard from Miyuki that you tried practicing a new pitch this afternoon?" Chris smiled as usual.

Huangqian Yangyi nodded, cursing Miyuki the big-mouth in his heart.

"Is the new pitch not going well?"

"Yeah, a few minor issues." Huangqian Yangyi didn't specify.

Hearing this, Chris couldn't help but laugh: "The Cutter doesn't break, the Slider is a wild pitch—you call these minor issues?"

"Wild pitch?" Huangqian Yangyi was stunned for a moment, then cursed: "Kazuya is not only a big-mouth, he also talks nonsense."

"Chris-senpai, my Slider isn't a wild pitch; it's a one-of-a-kind, super-awesome breaking ball!"

Hearing such self-aggrandizing words, Chris couldn't help but chuckle. In reality, although he hadn't seen what Huangqian Yangyi's Slider looked like, he had already gotten a rough idea from Miyuki.

He had never even heard of a Slider with that much movement, let alone seen one. It was precisely because of his curiosity that he couldn't help but ask Huangqian Yangyi about it just now.

"Pitch it to me after the game tomorrow," Chris said.

"Of course, I also want to ask Chris-senpai to help me think of a solution."

"I'll do my best." Chris wouldn't go so far as to say "leave it to me," not when he hadn't even seen the pitch yet.

The two chatted idly, and before long, Dong Qingguo returned, soaked from head to toe in sweat.

"Hahaha, what are you two doing?" Dong Qingguo grinned loudly, tossed his bat casually by the bed, and pulled over a stool to sit down.

"Nothing much. You look very happy, Dong-senpai," Huangqian Yangyi said.

Upon hearing this, Dong Qingguo laughed "ah-hahaha" for a long time. "That guy Nanjo just struck me out!"

"Oh?" Huangqian Yangyi exchanged a surprised look with Chris. He was this happy after being struck out? Was this really Dong Qingguo? He hadn't been possessed, had he?

Suddenly, Huangqian Yangyi thought of something and asked hurriedly: "Dong-senpai, could it be... Nanjo-senpai's Cutter?"

"Eh? How did you know, kid?" Dong Qingguo asked.

It really was that. Huangqian Yangyi smiled slightly: "I saw Nanjo-senpai practicing the Cutter this afternoon. I didn't expect the results to be this good. Looking at it this way, it can already be used in games. After all, even our monster batter was struck out."

"Huh?" Although the strikeout was a fact, Dong Qingguo didn't really care. Hadn't he been struck out by Huangqian Yangyi plenty of times during this period?

But the tone this kid used was very irritating. "I was only caught off guard because I didn't know about it before. Otherwise, it's just a Cutter; he's still far from being able to strike me out."

Huangqian Yangyi nodded in agreement. It wasn't flattery; Dong Qingguo truly had that kind of strength.

"Then, Senpai, are you happy because you were struck out?" Huangqian Yangyi asked.

"Hmph, brat, Nanjo's strength has increased again. It won't be so easy for you to snatch the ace number," Dong Qingguo suddenly changed his expression.

Huangqian Yangyi smiled speechlessly. So that was why he was happy. The third-year seniors really did have a close bond. If he snatched the ace number, he would probably offend quite a few people.

"Senpai, you're overthinking it. At least until the summer, I don't have any plans to compete for the ace position," Huangqian Yangyi said.

"Hmph." Dong Qingguo was someone who wasn't good at hiding his emotions. How could he not understand the meaning behind Huangqian Yangyi's words? Not snatching it until summer just meant that for the main event of the year—the summer qualifiers—he intended to become the ace.

"Um, Dong-senpai, I'm your teammate too, and a junior in the same dormitory. Don't be so hostile," Huangqian Yangyi said with a smile.

Dong Qingguo turned his head away, feeling a bit embarrassed. It was true; as a third-year senior in the same dorm, it was bad enough that he didn't look after his junior, but he also kept making a sour face from time to time—that was inexcusable.

"Then, if we win the game tomorrow, I'll treat you to a meal!" Dong Qingguo suddenly said loudly.

The room went quiet instantly. Huangqian Yangyi and Chris looked at each other and suddenly burst into laughter. Chris was a bit more restrained, but Huangqian Yangyi just threw his head back and laughed.

"What are you laughing at! Is it that funny!" Dong Qingguo's face turned red.

The next day, 8:00 AM.

After morning training, the members of the Seido Baseball Club gathered in the cafeteria to eat breakfast. The game was set to start at 12:00 PM. After Huangqian Yangyi finished eating and arrived at the field, he saw Manager Kataoka, Takashima Rei, Department Head Ota, and Chris all standing outside the bullpen.

"Rei-chan."

"Yangyi, why did you come over too?" Takashima Rei turned around, saw Huangqian Yangyi, and waved at him.

"I felt like the training just now wasn't enough, so I wanted to come over and run for a bit," Huangqian Yangyi said while looking into the bullpen.