Chapter Summaries

After his parents separated, Kōshū was left behind and fixated on joining his mother in Japan, but he was later duped into a pyramid scheme and rescued by police. His mother, Shen Qing, returned to China to collect him and realized she was about to abandon him again as he walked away.

• Kōshū overheard his parents arguing about their separation, and his mother left him a bank card before leaving for Japan.
• Kōshū visited his grandfather’s former apartment, learned it had been sold, and told Zhao Kaikai he wanted to go to Japan.
• Six months later, Shen Qing returned to BJ after police reported that Kōshū had been tricked into investing in a pyramid scheme.
• Shen Qing signed the paperwork to take Kōshū out of the detention center, but he walked away while she waited for a taxi.
• Shen Qing realized she had nearly abandoned Kōshū again and called out to him.

Kōshū reflected on his uneasy place in Sasaki’s household, where he teased Rōchi and watched the family grow closer without feeling that he belonged. He ended the morning alone in his room, wondering what he was living for in this world.

• Kōshū returned from his morning run and traded insults with Rōchi, who was washing up.
• Kōshū recalled how he had embarrassed Rōchi at dinner by implying that he had been hiding something in his room, prompting Rōchi to flee in tears.
• Shen Qing brought Rōchi food and made Kōshū apologize, while Sasaki worried about managing the children’s feelings.
• Kōshū apologized to Rōchi and glanced around his room, leading Rōchi to hide his belongings in a cabinet and act agreeable around the adults.
• Kōshū lay alone in his room as the household woke below, questioning what place he had in the family and what he was living for.

Kōshū discovered that Lang Zhi was being bullied and drove off the former baseball club members responsible. When Shen Qing questioned him, Kōshū confronted her about doubting him and reminded her of the time she had left him behind, bringing them toward a more honest relationship.

• Kōshū saw students confronting a boy near Lang Zhi's school but did not realize Lang Zhi had been bullied until he noticed the bruising on Lang Zhi's hand at dinner.
• Kōshū asked Lang Zhi about the bullying, learned it had been happening repeatedly, and told him he would not hide being Chinese even if he was excluded at school.
• Kōshū identified the students who had been targeting Lang Zhi and confronted them at their secluded park without needing to fight.
• Kōshū learned that the students blamed Lang Zhi for getting them removed from the Baseball Club after he and an assistant teacher caught them watching pornography in the equipment room.
• Shen Qing asked Kōshū whether he had harmed Lang Zhi, and Kōshū told her he had dealt with the bullies instead.
• Shen Qing apologized for doubting Kōshū, and, when he pressed her, she also apologized for not taking him with her in the past.

After Kōshū transferred to Magnolia Middle School, the Sasaki family went on a beach vacation and decided he and Lang Zhi would join a youth baseball team together. Lang Zhi admitted he had quit his school club and was unsure whether he still liked baseball, but the two began training and playing games soon afterward.

• Kōshū ranked among the top five in his class exams, impressing Lang Zhi.
• Shen Qing took the family to the beach, where Kōshū and Mr. Sasaki played bottle-cap baseball against Lang Zhi and Shen Qing.
• On the walk back, Mr. Sasaki suggested that Kōshū and Lang Zhi join a youth baseball team together, and the family agreed.
• Lang Zhi told Kōshū he had already quit the Baseball Club and questioned whether he truly liked baseball.
• Kōshū challenged Lang Zhi about his hesitation, and Lang Zhi stormed out before Mr. Sasaki sent him back to their room.
• Kōshū and Lang Zhi soon began a routine of baseball training and games.

Kōshū joined the Sasaki family on a hot outing and discovered an immediate aptitude for baseball at a batting cage and pitching area. As Lang Zhi worried about being compared with his stepbrother, Shen Qing froze after hearing him call her Mom.

• Shen Qing, Kōshū, Lang Zhi, and Mr. Sasaki escaped the heat at a cold drinks shop, where Mr. Sasaki questioned Lang Zhi about the Baseball Club.
• The group visited a Batting Cage, where Kōshū hit more than thirty pitches in a row and worked his way up to the facility’s highest speed.
• Mr. Sasaki praised Kōshū’s hitting, and Shen Qing told him about Kōshū’s sprinting record and how his biological father’s family had stopped him from pursuing sports.
• Mr. Sasaki taught Kōshū the grip for a Four-Seam Fastball, and Kōshū threw accurate pitches at about 110 speed.
• Lang Zhi complained that playing alongside Kōshū would invite comparisons, then called Shen Qing Mom, making her freeze.

Coach Ninomiya assessed the Sasaki brothers and accepted them into Kinoshita Little League, where Kōshū’s pitching test revealed his considerable potential. As the brothers toured the club, Kōshū fixated on the catcher’s masked smile.

• Coach Ninomiya reviewed the brothers’ abilities and agreed to take them, explaining that the team prioritized results and would develop any child with outstanding potential.
• Mr. Fujii took Kōshū to the Bullpen, where Hayakawa caught for him during a pitching assessment.
• Kōshū threw accurately at about 110, then improved his mechanics under Mr. Fujii’s guidance and reached around 120 while working the four corners.
• Mr. Fujii told Shen Qing that Kōshū had considerable pitching talent and confirmed the club would accept him.
• Grandma Hazuki began showing the brothers around the facilities and explaining club rules, while Kōshū thought about the catcher’s smile beneath his mask.

Shen Qing enrolled Kōshū and Lang Zhi at Kinoshita Club, where the boys began training with the team the next morning. Kōshū learned basic throwing technique while Lang Zhi joined the infield group, and the chapter left the newcomers settling in over lunch.

• Grandma Gu Yue explained the club schedule and equipment needs to Kōshū and Lang Zhi after a long digression about her family and pets.
• Shen Qing bought Kōshū baseball equipment, and Kōshū and Lang Zhi arrived at practice on time the next morning.
• Captain Ido Shuichi introduced Sasaki Rōchi and Kōshū to the team, and Coach Ninomiya assigned Lang Zhi to the Infield Group and Kōshū to Assistant Coach Yoshioka.
• Coach Yoshioka taught Kōshū how to transfer the ball, adjust his grip, and throw smoothly, practicing with him until noon.
• Lang Zhi and Kōshū ate lunch with their teammates, where Lang Zhi explained that he had played shortstop before and that Kōshū had a strong pitching arm.

Kōshū trained with the team, learned about the risks of pushing his rapidly growing body too hard, and received Coach Ninomiya’s advice to build a foundation before increasing his workload. He left the meeting excited by the coach’s assessment of his talent and the possibility of a future in baseball.

• Kōshū met Hayakawa Aki, who invited him to warm up together and explained the team’s schedule and his own family life.
• Kōshū practiced batting with Coach Yoshioka, then watched Coach Ninomiya lead defensive drills and a pitching matchup.
• Kōshū told Lang Zhi that Coach Ninomiya wanted to speak with him in the Staff Room.
• Coach Ninomiya explained that Kōshū’s rapid growth could leave his bones and muscles vulnerable, and told him not to do extra training at home.
• Coach Ninomiya called Kōshū very talented and said that following the training plan might let him make a living from baseball; Kōshū accepted his advice with excitement.

Coach Ninomiya explained Kōshū’s six-month development plan, centered on building his body and perfecting a single fastball. Kōshū learned that his spin axis and accuracy were unusually strong, then sent Lang Zhi to meet Coach Ninomiya as Hayakawa discussed the team’s individual player plans.

• Coach Ninomiya outlined Kōshū’s medical checkups, weight and nutrition targets, rest, and fastball training for the next six months.
• Coach Ninomiya explained fastball velocity, spin rate, spin axis, and accuracy, and told Kōshū that his spin axis was exceptionally clean and his accuracy impressive.
• Coach Ninomiya asked Kōshū to bring Lang Zhi to his office, and Kōshū sent his worried younger brother upstairs.
• Hayakawa Aki told Kōshū that coaches planned one-on-one meetings for every player and would share the plans with their parents.

Sasaki Rōchi told Coach Ninomiya why he had started playing baseball and admitted that he was unsure whether he still wanted to play. After Coach Ninomiya helped him separate his past reasons from his present choice, Rōchi decided to keep playing and returned home with Kōshū.

• Coach Ninomiya asked Sasaki Rōchi why he wanted to switch from shortstop to second base, and Rōchi explained that he had joined baseball to see his father and described his difficult family history.
• Coach Ninomiya told Rōchi that his past reasons for playing did not decide whether he wanted to play now, then asked whether sharing a club and position with his brother appealed to him.
• Rōchi said that playing baseball with his brother sounded good, and Coach Ninomiya kept him at shortstop while advising him to adapt to hardball and think things over.
• Rōchi hurried downstairs and dragged Kōshū home, where their mother announced that she planned to practice making nutritious club lunches.
• Rōchi later told Kōshū that he had decided to continue playing baseball, and Kōshū accepted his decision without teasing him.

Kōshū underwent pitching-motion analysis and a demanding accuracy test, showing he could hit every part of the strike zone even under pressure. After reaching his eighty-pitch limit, he was iced while Nozawa teased him and Sato.

• Coach Fujii recorded Kōshū’s pitching motion and gathered the pitchers to introduce him to the returning Shibasaki.
• Kōshū passed the four-corner accuracy test with Ido catching, then threw accurately across all nine regions of the strike zone.
• Nozawa stood close to the plate and provoked Kōshū during tests of pitches just outside the strike zone, but Kōshū continued to hit his targets.
• After nearly eighty pitches, Kōshū threw one final inside-high pitch despite fatigue, and Coach Fujii ended the test at his daily limit.
• Shibasaki helped the exhausted Kōshū get iced, while Nozawa teased him and Sato about his nickname, Missile-kun.

Kōshū completed a battery of strength and fitness tests as Coach Yoshioka set his pitching and weight goals, then secretly practiced his different straight balls during Kinoshita Little League’s game against Edogawa Little League. He encountered Miyuki Kazuya, a catcher from the opposing team, and realized Miyuki had been watching him pitch when he spotted him by the opposing dugout.

• Coach Yoshioka told Kōshū that his bone density was low, his upper-body strength lagged behind his lower-body strength, and he needed to gain 7 kilograms while raising his pitching speed to around 130 over four months.
• Kōshū learned that Kinoshita Little League would play a practice game against Edogawa Little League before the Kanto Tournament, then spent an exhausting week training and received an email from a former track-and-field teammate about people from his old school.
• Kōshū replied that he had moved to Japan with his mother and probably would not return to his old school.
• During the Edogawa game, Kōshū slipped away to practice pitching in a nearby park and demonstrated that he could control the landing spots of straight balls with different rotation speeds.
• Miyuki Kazuya introduced himself as a catcher and asked to catch Kōshū’s pitches, but Kōshū declined and returned to the field.
• Kōshū realized Miyuki was with Edogawa Little League when he saw him standing by the opposing dugout and waving.

Kōshū watched Kinoshita Little League win a practice game, then began the new semester balancing school and restricted baseball training. He continued developing his high-rotation fastball but remained unable to play in games, while Coach Ninomiya assigned First String uniform numbers.

• Kinoshita Little League scored four late runs and defeated Edogawa Little League 5–1, while Miyuki obtained Kōshū's email address after the game.
• Lang Zhi stopped Kōshū from going for an extra run and invited him to watch Idol Live, so Kōshū trained at home instead.
• Shen Qing proposed making the boys' bentos, but Mr. Sasaki agreed to handle the main dishes, and Kōshū started the semester with a morning run.
• At practice, Kōshū threw a High Rotation Speed Straight Ball for Hayakawa, while Coach Fujii told Sato to shorten his pitching distance after sixty pitches.
• Coach Ninomiya assigned First String uniform numbers, naming Senior Nozawa the ace and giving Senior Heishi number 10, while Kōshū received no number.

Kinoshita Little League received a first-round bye in the Kanto Tournament and began preparing to face Marugame Little League later in the bracket. At the opening ceremony, Kōshū overslept through the opening game and returned to the stands just as it was underway.

• Shibasaki explained the tournament’s 28 first-round byes while he and Kōshū trained, and they discussed the team’s pitching needs and training plans.
• Captain Ito drew a first-round bye for Kinoshita Little League, and Coach Ninomiya warned the team that Marugame Little League had also received a bye and would be a serious opponent.
• Kinoshita Little League attended the opening ceremony, but Kōshū escaped the hot stands and fell asleep in an air-conditioned entrance hall.
• Miyuki startled Kōshū awake, and Kōshū rushed back after learning the opening game had started and that he had been assigned to record all three games in the Scorebook.
• Kōshū returned to the stands during the third inning of Edogawa Central Little League’s game against Kijima Little League, with Edogawa Central leading four to zero.

Kōshū watched tournament games and learned how fielding mistakes, bunts, and pitcher-catcher coordination affected play. After Edogawa Central won 8–0 and Seichi won 3–1, Coach Ninomiya required Kōshū to submit his post-game notes for inspection after every game.

• Edogawa Central’s pitcher struck out Marugame’s cleanup hitter, and Hayakawa explained to Kōshū why scouts valued live-game performance.
• Kijima’s Shibata lost control under pressure, and a bunt scored two runs before Edogawa Central won 8–0.
• Kōshū suggested replacing Kijima’s entire infield to ease its anxiety, but Kijima instead replaced Shibata with Yamaguchi.
• Kōshū teased Lang Zhi about his room decorations during lunch, while his teammates wondered where he had slept.
• Kōshū watched Seichi’s catcher throw out a runner and saw Seichi use bunts and pressure to defeat its opponent 3–1.
• Coach Ninomiya checked Kōshū’s scorebook and ordered the assistant coach to inspect his post-game notes after every game.

Kōshū watched Miyuki Kazuya’s game after Hayakawa Aki brought him along, intending to assess Miyuki as a catcher. Miyuki directed Hasegawa to rely on fastballs and Cutters, and Great Victory Little League’s leadoff batter grounded out; the game was still underway.

• Kinoshita’s coaches refined Heishi’s pitching mechanics and planned to adjust his Curveball’s spin axis to resemble his fastball’s early rotation.
• Kōshū learned that Nozawa had been Miyuki’s source of information, then agreed to attend Miyuki’s game after exchanging messages with him.
• Hayakawa Aki took Kōshū to scout Miyuki, and Kōshū watched while keeping score.
• Miyuki called for Hasegawa to use fastballs and Cutters, criticizing his Slider as unreliable.
• Hasegawa threw a Cutter, and the leadoff batter grounded out.

Edogawa Little League defeated Daishōri 2–0, while Kōshū invited Hayakawa Aki home and began building a friendship with him. Hayakawa later confirmed they were friends, and Kōshū teased him for needing to ask.

• Hasegawa retired Daishōri’s batters in the first inning with strong fastballs, while Miyuki and Nakamura encouraged him in the dugout.
• Miyuki read the opposing pitcher’s strategy and drove in a run with a hit, extending Edogawa Little League’s lead.
• Hayakawa Aki told Kōshū that he and Miyuki had been neighbors and baseball friends, and Kōshū invited Hayakawa to dinner at his home.
• Hasegawa kept striking out batters as Edogawa Little League held its 2–0 lead through the end of the game.
• Kōshū welcomed Hayakawa to dinner, and the two talked late into the night before Mr. Sasaki drove Hayakawa home.
• Hayakawa later told Kōshū that he considered them friends, and Kōshū teased him for seeking confirmation.

Kinoshita Little League won its first game 8–1, though Coach Ninomiya reprimanded the team for taking Dōhoku Little League too lightly. Afterward, Kōshū and Lang Zhi learned that Shen Qing was pregnant, and Kōshū offered to help the family celebrate.

• Kinoshita Little League faced Dōhoku Little League at its home field, and Nozawa Kai struck out several batters as the team grew complacent.
• Captain Ito called a timeout and scolded the players for losing focus, after which Kinoshita tightened its defense and won 8–1.
• Coach Ninomiya ordered the players to run laps and warned that anyone who lost focus during a game would be taken out.
• Kōshū, Hayakawa Aki, and Lang Zhi returned home, where Shen Qing told Lang Zhi and Kōshū that she was pregnant.
• Lang Zhi retreated to his room, while Kōshū reassured Shen Qing and Mr. Sasaki and suggested they go out to celebrate.

Lang Zhi struggled to face his family but began taking small steps toward helping Shen Qing as Kōshū guided him with a seven-day task list. Two days later, Lang Zhi noticed Kōshū was training harder, then watched him hit Shibasaki’s pitches with striking skill.

• Lang Zhi went downstairs for more rice after Kōshū made it his first task, and he told Shen Qing to take care of herself because she was pregnant.
• Lang Zhi found Kōshū’s seven-task list, which included helping Shen Qing prepare for the baby, but he crumpled it up and threw it aside.
• Kōshū privately worried that Lang Zhi feared him and thought about how the new baby would fit into the family.
• Two days later, Lang Zhi asked Hayakawa Aki about Kōshū’s increased training and learned that Kōshū might join the Second String and needed to improve his batting.
• Kōshū hit Shibasaki’s pitches, including a newly developed Cutter, and asked Shibasaki to teach him how to throw it.
• Kōshū and Shibasaki reflected on the importance of pitch speed, while Lang Zhi watched their exchange.

Kōshū’s testing showed gains in weight and pitching speed as he continued refining his control, while Shibasaki began a stricter meal plan to improve his condition. Meanwhile, Kinoshita Yanagi returned from America to Japan and was greeted at home by his forceful mother.

• Coach Yoshioka tested Kōshū, found he had gained 3 kg and could consistently pitch at 125, and recorded his pitching form.
• Shibasaki learned that his nutrition plan would increase his meals from four a day to seven, then threw pitches at a steady 127.
• Kōshū practiced hitting Hayakawa Aki’s stationary glove with varied fastballs, and the coaches tracked his accuracy as a daily condition score.
• Coach Fujii considered Shibasaki a potential Number Two Starter and Kōshū a likely future ace, while anticipating that Kinoshita Yanagi would help improve the team’s batting.
• Kinoshita Yanagi flew back to Tokyo with Ninomiya Haruno, fell asleep in a taxi, and was woken by his mother pressing a hot spatula against his arm.