Chapter Text
Studying comes across as easy to Eijun since forever. He doesn't know why his classmates and Wakana struggle with it. They always complain on how he always gets a 100 on his tests even though he didn't even study for it and just lying aroud reading some books they can't understand.
The adults around him, excluding his grandpa and parents, always praise him as a genius or something. His teachers always take him as an example for other students to look up too to the point his family afraid he might growing up to having an ego (really, they should know him better than that). All in all, his life is really boring. Other than going to school, being an perfect student to his teacher and the neighbour kid to the other family, and joining some competion when he's bored, his life is really boring. So when an eight-year-old Eijun comes across baseball for the first time in his life, he falls in love.
"Dad" Eiji looks at his son with a surprise face. His son who look like he's so bored with everything in his life now has a very exciting look in his eyes.
"Dad, I want to play baseball." What.
"Eijun, can you say that again??"
"Geez dad, I said I want to play baseball!" He didn't hear it wrong! His son want to play baseball! He finally want to do something!! HIS SON IS ALL GROWN UP NOW!!!
"DAD! KYOKO! COME QUICK! EIJUN SAID HE WANT TO PLAY BASEBALL!!!"
"WHAT DID YOU SAY? EIJUN!! IS THAT TRUE??"
"Oh Eijun! Mom is so proud of you!!"
"Mom! Can't breath! And why is everyone overreacting like this?"
"Shut up, brat! You don't know how much you worried me and your parents!"
"But baseball huh, your school doesn't have a baseball club, right?"
"Yes but I will make one myself. I'm going to ask Wakana and the other to join too, so can you buy me some equipment for practice? Oh and some money too please? I want to buy some books for research."
"The books is fine, but the equipment... I don't we have enough money for that."
"That's sovled if we use my prize's money from the competition, right? If it's not enought, I can join more then. The school expect me to anyway."
"You sure, Eijun? We all know you don't like that much."
"Not really? I just find it's too easy and boring and the other contestants are so annoying."
"So you don't hate it but just find it too easy?"
"Yep"
"....Eiji, are you sure this is your son? Did you take the wrong baby home?"
"I also been wondering about that too, but look at his face! He is a Sawamura!"
"Anyway, can I have the money for the books?"
"Here, brat. Don't spend too much in one go, you understand?"
"Yes I understand, gramp! Ittekimasu!
"Itterasshai!!"
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'I didn't know I'm worrying them this much. I should make sure not to worry them too much from now on.'
The trip to the bookstore is quite successful. He found some baseball's guide books and some introduction to pitching books. On his way home, he goes to find Wakana and the others to ask them to join his team which meets with shocked faces tho they all agree to it.
Flashback
"Ei-chan, you want to play baseball??"
"Yea why? Is it so shocking? Why is everyone overreacting like this?!"
"I mean, you always look like you're so bored all the time, and now you're telling us you're interested in something!!"
"Not my fault everything is too easy!"
"......Somehow I can't argue to that"
"But Ei-chan, will the teacher agree to this? They expect to join some Maths and Physics competitions, right?"
"It's fine, not that they can say anything to that. My family all agree to my decision, and it's not like they have anything to teach me. You know I don't study before any of my competitions and I still atleast got 3rd place, right?"
"If you say so.....But what about training? Our school doesn't even have a baseball team let alone a coach!"
"You can leave that to me. I will do some research on thiis subject, so it might take a while. You give should do some running in the meantime.
End of flashback
It's been a few day since then, and Eijun has read whatever he could find on baseball. He also made a guide on baseball's rule for his team and also a training plan too. But without anyone to supervise them, he can only put basic training to avoid overworking them, and there's the gripping techniques. They've all agreed to make Eijun the team's pitcher and ace after he told them the positions. After that he's been looking for guide on how to pitch and the different gripping techniques, but reading is different from doing it especially for something you have never done before. If it was chemistry or something that involves using the brain, then Eijun can do it just fine, but it's a different story for anything physical as he's never really invested in before not to mention baseball is a team sport, and Eijun has never work with anyone before.
Appealing to the teacher for them to agree to make a baseball club was pretty much easy, finding a field for training is a different thing. After the finding a training field business was over comes another problem, the training itself. Explaining the rules and their training to his group of eight-year-old friends was more exhausting to Eijun when he tried to do the calculus. After some months of training, the team has made some progress, but they have another problem. Nobu, their catcher, can't catch his pitch.
"Ei-chan, I'm so sorry. I'm too weak to catch your pitch."
"It's not your fault, Nobu. It's mine, my control is not good I can't pitch to your mitt."
"Ei-chan......."
"EVERYONE! PLEASE GATHER HERE FOR A BIT!!"
"What is it, Ei-chan?"
"I'm going to looking for some control training. This will solve our problem of Nobu can't catch my pitch and also help us on fielding too. I also have a maths competition coming up, so I will take a break from practice for a few days. You guys will continue doing just the basic exercises and some running to avoid straining your body when I'm not here to supervise you guys, understand?"
"YES, CAPTAIN!"
'Even though they're doing this just for me, they are rather devoted to it. I guess they love me more than I thought. I will have to make sure I can take them far. Now there's a maths competition and some research to complete."
Seven years later
Nagano tournament semi-final
Last inning
'DAMMIT!! After all this training, we're still can't compete against a powerhouse! One last pitch, our fate depends on this one. I will have to use that pitch, Nobu please catch it!'
Eijun begin to windup and-
pling-
It hit the fence.
"BALL! GAME SET!"
'Ah, we lost.' "Everyone line up in a straight line and put on a proud look on your face. We played to the last inning with a powerhouse without any professional coach. We come this far with just our efforts so put on a proud smile."
"Ei-chan..."
"No more of this. Come, we have to line up"
While Eijun was cheering up his teammate, on Takashima Rei was trying to overcome her shock.
'D-did that kid just throw a freaking BREAK BALL? A middle schooler throwing a break ball? And with such a break too, it's such a pity that catcher can't catch that pitch. If he comes to our school then-'
"Excuse me, that pitcher, do you happened to know his name?"
"Oh, you mean Sawamura-kun? Everyone here know who he is. He is the example for every kids his age to follow after all. His full name is Sawamura Eijun.
'An example? What does that mean? No wait, I have no time for this. I have to hurry back and do the necessary works!'
While doing her research on Eijun, she comes across the most shocking piece of information-
SAWAMURA EIJUN, 1ST IN NATIONAL MATHS COMPETITION
SAWAMURA EIJUN, 1ST IN XXX PHYSICS COMPETITION
SAWAMURA EIJUN, 2ND IN XXX LITERATURE COMPETITION
.
.
.
'What is all this achievement? How did he has time to join all this and still has time to learn to throw a break ball? If he devote all of his time to baseball then-.' At that moment, Takashima Rei comes to a decision. She needs this Sawamura Eijun in the team.
'I really need to visit him fast. I really hope no other teams have noticed him yet.'
To be continue