Former Hitting Coach

At 7 p.m. on Sunday, Kinoshita Club's outdoor field was empty. The wind stirred the dirt on the Pitcher's Mound. Coach Ninomiya watched quietly through the open window, with the coaching staff seated silently behind him. Only two people made any sound: the old man packing his things, and Kinoshita Yanagi, who had accidentally let out a loud burp.

Kinoshita noticed the glare Coach Ninomiya shot his way and straightened up again. Only after he turned back to look outside did he secretly shrug.

"Shouldn't you say something to the players?" Coach Yoshida of the Infield Group sat beside the old man who was packing, occasionally passing him something.

"No, no." The old man hurriedly shook his head. "Just tell them I took leave."

"But they'll notice something's wrong eventually..." Coach Yoshida kept muttering, completely unlike his usual decisive self. It was understandable. Anyone would become unlike themselves when an old friend of more than ten years was leaving.

"Yoshida!" The old man stopped what he was doing and said solemnly, "Stop nagging. You've become an annoying old man too."

"What do you mean, old man? I'm not even fifty yet." And just like that, the two of them inexplicably started bickering again.

Kinoshita Yanagi slouched sideways in his chair. Mrs. Kinoshita had already told him what was going on yesterday and warned him not to talk carelessly, so all he could do was keep stuffing lemon candy into his mouth.

"How's Ryoko doing mentally after getting discharged?" Coach Fujii knew the truth was that she had given up treatment, but he still looked hopeful.

"Pretty good. She's actually doing much better than when she was in the hospital. Yesterday, she even ate a big apple." Just as Coach Fujii had hoped, the old man spoke with bright eyes.

"Have you found an apartment over in Kanagawa?" Once someone asked the first question and broke the silence that had hung over the office for so long, everyone began asking questions.

"I found one. It's right next to my son's home. Our whole family can finally live together again."

The old man's hands moved much faster.

"That's enough. Don't ask all this now," Coach Ninomiya said, making the final call. "Even if we aren't holding a farewell gathering with the team, at least the rest of us should have a few drinks with you. Whatever you want to say, save it for then."

Everyone laughed and agreed with the idea. In the end, they decided Grandma Gu Yue would keep Ryoko company while the rest of them went to the Izakaya for two hours of drinking.

Kinoshita Yanagi drifted apart from the group of middle-aged men. He had originally planned to stay quiet and lag behind, then slip away when he had the chance, but Coach Ninomiya's gaze nailed him in place. "Kinoshita, where are you going?"

In the end, Kinoshita Yanagi reluctantly went to the Izakaya with them. The old man who was leaving was Maeda, the Former Hitting Coach, and the reason Kinoshita Yanagi had been summoned back in such a hurry.

"Kinoshita," after several rounds of drinks, Coach Maeda suddenly came over with alcohol in hand. His eyes were a little unfocused, and his face carried long-lost happiness. "Coming back from America must have been tiring, huh? Sorry about that. Mrs. Kinoshita must have gone and done something reckless again."

"No, no, Coach Maeda. My contract had expired anyway..."

But the drunk in front of him did not seem to be listening at all. "Time goes too fast. You went from such a little kid to such a big guy. Yesterday, I showed Ryoko your photo, and she was shocked too."

Coach Maeda took a sip from his already empty glass and, without realizing it, said, "I've finished gathering everyone's batting information. It's all in that folder. Right, you kept that folder safe, didn't you?"

Kinoshita Yanagi nodded repeatedly. Only then did Maeda continue at ease. "But you still have to go see things for yourself. You young people always think differently from us old men. And you're professional-level, while we're really all amateurs. Even though I got a coaching certificate, America is just different."

The hitting coach, who had always been serious in Kinoshita Yanagi's memory, showed a trace of insecurity after drinking. He was not like Coach Fujii or Coach Ninomiya, who were always tinkering with advanced stuff and running training experiments. As for him, after all these years of teaching, he had relied entirely on experience drawn from real games.

Coach Ninomiya always told him not to worry and to stick to his own methods, but he always felt that he had wasted the players' talent.

"Kinoshita, if players want to stay steady on their feet when they bat, they need years of accumulated training. More importantly, they need an incredibly steady heart. They're all just kids. There's no way they can manage it on their own, so as a coach, you have to be steady. Put on a stern face. You can't go crazy with them."

Unexpectedly, the old man was still quite clear-headed. Just as Kinoshita Yanagi was about to listen carefully, Coach Maeda went on to pour out a whole string of thoughts about his career as a hitting coach: how kids were too naughty, how they had only just become easier to teach before leaving in their third year, how they gave up baseball in high school, and so on. Before he could finish, his coworkers from the other side dragged him off for another drink.

Kinoshita Yanagi shook the food crumbs off himself and smoothed down his wrinkled collar. Talk all he wanted, but he had kept gripping his collar the whole time. It seemed that despite his nice words, he still had plenty of resentment in his heart.

When the drinking party ended, Coach Ninomiya took responsibility for bringing Coach Maeda home, while everyone else took taxis or the subway.

Kinoshita Yanagi opened the documents he had only read halfway through on his phone. All the current players' batting information was inside. Every player had an analysis of their batting and their current training plan, along with a short batting video. There was also a roster with the children's photos and personalities. It was clear how much care the collector had put into it.

Suddenly, he spotted a barbershop out of the corner of his eye. "Driver, please stop here."

"Dyeing my hair this late... what a pain..." If he did not dye it back today, his mom probably would not even let him into the house. So annoying.

On the other side of the city, the Kōshū brothers were out walking after dinner.

"It's already been half an hour. Are you going in or not?" Kōshū's gaze wandered across the brightly lit display windows. Through the gaps between the merchandise, he could see colorful gifts and groups of girls walking around together.

"Let's make another lap. I still haven't decided what to buy," Lang Zhi said hesitantly.

"Tell me, do you have a classmate you secretly like in there or something?" Kōshū blurted out loudly without any restraint.

"Of course not. I just want to browse when there are fewer people around. It's more comfortable."

"Tch." Kōshū took the lead and walked off. After circling the central garden twice more, they came back to the gift shop. It was already late, and from the entrance, they could see the clerk spacing out. Only then did Lang Zhi enter.

With no one else in the store, Lang Zhi relaxed a little, but his penny-pinching instincts soon returned.

"A bracelet... but Mom's a pretty simple person. I don't know if she'd like wearing one..."

"A snow globe... oh, look, it can even snow."

Kōshū ignored him. Thinking about how Shen Qing and Lang Zhi had already made up, he felt a little regretful about assigning that task in the first place. In the end, he was the one who had exhausted himself.

"Wow, is this a speaker? So cool. How much is it?" After checking the price, Lang Zhi silently put it back.

Using his height advantage, Kōshū saw the price tag: ten thousand yen.

After the two of them finished looking around, Kōshū began flipping through some strange little items too. He had not expected a shop normally full of girls to have so many fun things.

"I think I should just buy steak instead." After considering everything, Lang Zhi felt that spending the money on food was more worthwhile than buying some impractical accessory.

"Buy that speaker. You looked at it several times," Kōshū said absentmindedly.

"Really? You'll help pay for it? I never thought you'd start acting a little like the older brothers in TV dramas."

"But don't buy the figurine. Count that toward the speaker instead," Kōshū added, turning his head.

"You really are still that bastard Takano. Why are you deducting my figurine money?"

After a round of arguing, Lang Zhi ultimately bought the speaker. Seeing his unhappy face, Kōshū thought painfully, I'm using my money to let Lang Zhi buy Shen Qing a gift, and in the end I don't get anything out of it. I'm the one getting screwed over here, okay?

Still, the result was good. Shen Qing was very happy and did not ask where Lang Zhi had gotten the money. She merely smiled and glanced at Kōshū.

The next day was another dull day at school. The classmate who had sat in front of him and been injured had recovered and returned. Kōshū, who was used to being alone, now had an accessory named Kusakabe attached to him. For some reason, the boy beside them who aspired to become a sports reporter also began tagging along. For a long time afterward, their classmates saw them as a fixed group.

But for Kōshū, aside from class, meals, and naps, there was hardly any time left at school. His focus still lay on baseball.

But that was only if nothing unexpected happened in his baseball career. Like the current situation: everyone looked at one another, stunned by the news they had just learned. Coach Maeda had taken a long leave, and the new hitting coach would be the blond young man who had only arrived yesterday. Of course, he had dyed his hair black again now and was solemnly announcing the news.

"I've reviewed everyone's previous training plans. Since we're in the middle of a tournament, we'll continue with your existing routines. But I'll give each of you one-on-one guidance based on your weaknesses. If you have any batting-related questions, you can come ask me."

After the announcement, the First String continued with game practice, while the Second String practiced batting against the net together.

Kōshū and Shibasaki ended up together again.

"Why did Coach Maeda take a long leave as soon as Coach Kinoshita arrived? Could it be..."

"And is the surname Kinoshita just a coincidence?"

"Let's ask Hayakawa about it today. He knows a lot of gossip like this," Kōshū whispered.

But before they knew it, the person at the center of their discussion came over.

"Kōshū, you have great instincts. Want to try swinging without lifting your front foot?" Kōshū had been specially marked by Coach Maeda, so Coach Kinoshita decided to start with him today.

I'm coughing blood. I only wrote this much all afternoon. I really am a snail.