"On second thought, maybe I was too hasty. My companions are just ordinary people. That isn't like me! Put the Practice Match aside for now. If things stay like this, we can't even be called a team in such a short time. Maybe this was my mistake—letting the pitcher and catcher go months without working together," Sendou said into the phone that night.
"It isn't entirely like that. Rather than having them hurriedly form a half-baked team, wouldn't it be better to use this opportunity to train them thoroughly? At the very least, your companions haven't developed any bad habits, have they? That's all thanks to you, Akila.
Think about it. If they formed a team just for the competition and kept training crudely until it became a habit, it wouldn't be easy to correct later. This is good. This is enough. Believe in yourself!
They may be ordinary people. I've never met them.
But!!!...
But if you know there are shortcomings in talent, shouldn't you rely on professionalism to close that gap?
This is only middle school Soft Baseball. Unless they're true geniuses—monsters, the kind of name usually reserved for genuine prodigies—there isn't as much difference between those with talent and those without as you imagine. Don't rush. Watch your footing! Move forward one step at a time!"
"Thanks, Uncle!"
"No, you're just too impatient. You already understand all these principles. You're simply too close to see clearly!
Cherish this time, Akila!!!
Thinking alongside your companions, working hard together, growing stronger together—those things will become lifelong memories for you and your companions! Nothing is more precious than that, right? Young people's dreams really are dazzling! Remember: winning and losing are baseball, while tears and laughter are youth!
This is the hardest sport in the world, and also the most exciting one, which is why it's the best sport. And student baseball is the very best!
It carries young people's dreams. Crying together, laughing together, working hard together... Every day, watching the children around me grow feels as though I've returned to my own starting point.
It reminds me of when I was just a brat, throwing myself into my dreams without a care for anything else! Whenever I think of it, tears fill my eyes. There are simply too many wonderful memories.
As for you, Akila, I don't have any especially good advice. Whether you cry or laugh, these three years are all you have, aren't they?"
"Companions... huh?
I think I understand why you refused to stay in America as a Major League coach, and why you turned down that increasingly professional high school baseball you talked about. Elementary school kids are the purest people chasing after a ball, as if that ball is everything to them!"
"That's right. I've already found where I belong, while your life is only just beginning.
Right now, you have the purest companions. They believe in you and train tirelessly every day. Though they may lack talent, they want results. They want to accomplish something with their companions!
In the future, you'll meet all kinds of people, but this special experience will definitely be irreplaceable. Every time I watched Cross Game, I felt the same way. Young people's dreams are dazzling!"
"..." Sendou said nothing, quietly looking at the starry sky beyond the window.
He suddenly understood a little why Fumino, who had followed behind him since childhood, liked the stars. The night sky was truly vast, as though he could melt into it. The feeling was intoxicating.
"Do your best, Akila! From the day I first met you, I wanted to say this: the God of Baseball chose you. If you choose baseball in the future, then I look forward to the day your name resounds throughout the world!!!
I believe that then, baseball fans all over the world will cheer for your reign and worship you!
I believe that you will make baseball history remember the name Sendou Akira forever and become an unprecedented legend!!!
But whether or not you choose baseball, your future self will find where you belong. I will always support you!!!
Well then, good night!" With that, Coach Nakanishi hung up.
"That kind of thing has no meaning at all! So you've always had those expectations of me?
The future... huh?
Can I obtain what I want?"
As he looked at the starry sky, tears unknowingly streamed down Sendou's face. Neither he nor Coach Nakanishi knew whether he would choose baseball in the future.
But Sendou couldn't ignore Coach Nakanishi's feelings. Coach Nakanishi had never demanded that he play baseball. He only hoped to see him grow, hoped to see what kind of person Sendou would become in the future. That was all.
Sendou was searching for something, pursuing something. Coach Nakanishi only hoped that Sendou would obtain what he wished to pursue.
Coach Nakanishi didn't know what Sendou was chasing, but he knew that, just as he had run after the ball he loved like an idiot when he was young, Sendou also had something he desperately wanted. That was enough.
Just like how parents only hope their children can become the person they themselves wish to be. That was enough!
"Akila! Akila! ...What? So you weren't asleep after all!" Fumino's voice came from the hallway outside. Then she naturally opened the door and spoke to Sendou.
"You were right, Uncle! No matter what the future holds, my life right now may be the most precious thing in my entire life. I won't waste it and let time drift by. Cherishing this time has nothing to do with whether I'm slacking off or not! Heh!" Sendou muttered to himself after staring at the sky for who knew how long. Though his tone suddenly changed at the end, he chuckled when he heard Fumino's voice, warmth filling his face.
"What's wrong?"
"Studying, of course! Studying!"
"I see. Let's go, to your room!"
"Did something happen? Akila is actually speaking so gently when I'm asking you to teach me?"
"Quit yapping! Do you want me to explain it to you or not?"
"Mm-hmm, mm-hmm, mm-hmm!" Fumino nodded repeatedly in an adorable manner.
"Honestly, there's nothing I can do with you! How many times do I have to explain it before you understand?" Saying that, he led Fumino out of the room. If anyone had remained there, they would surely have heard the pair's warm conversation.
"Lots of times! Because I know Akila won't abandon me!"
"Don't act like a puppy!"
"You're the puppy! Akila is the puppy! Woof! Woof!"
"Haha!"
There was nothing warmer than this, was there?
I suddenly got some inspiration. I originally planned to write only a little, but it turned into a whole chapter. Am I the first person to cry over something I wrote myself? How low is my tear threshold? Seriously... Lastly, please favorite and recommend it!
Before you continue