Tokyo Girlfriend Guide

"My evolution is faster than light"

Takami Shu, a member of the Shikamiya High School baseball club and many clubs of Sobu High School, fully understood the meaning of this sentence today.

After pitching a complete game shutout and 27 outs, Hojo Kyosuke's pitching speed has increased from 141 in the first pitch to 150, completely surpassing the highest pitching speed in last year's Koshien.

Everyone had reason to believe that this was not Hojo Kyosuke's limit, but his opponent's limit. From the beginning to the end, the speed of his every pitch was increasing, and the only thing that remained unchanged was Shikamiya Takashi's stunned figure or his confused expression after his swing missed.

The "strikeout" who watches a strike ball reach the bases and the "Kara Ignore Three Stars" who swings at the bat in the air are all strikeouts.

He didn't even throw a bad ball, a perfect game. A perfect game is when a pitcher doesn't allow any opposing player to reach first base, a complete shutout.

No one would doubt that if Shikamiya Takashi's trump card was a little stronger, he would be able to allow Hojo Kyosuke to increase the speed of the ball.

"This is really a big deal."

Shikamiya Gao's coach murmured with a dull look in his eyes.

What he was counting in front of him was not a scoreboard, but a table that recorded every time Hojo Kyosuke made a breakthrough in pitch speed.

A piece of white cardboard, which Ryota Tsuchiya got. He has decided to bring this board to every practice match and game in the future, and then update Hojo-kun's record in front of his opponent. After Hojo-kyō graduates, he will take protective measures for the board and use it as a treasure of the Sobu High School baseball club.

People from Sobu High School's Kendo Club, Soccer Club, Basketball Club and other clubs were also standing under the board, looking up and watching.

In Japan, although not 150% of people understand baseball, at least most people do. At least one person in a family of three will understand it. So everyone knows exactly what a speed of represents.

Japanese baseball is about "throwing high and hitting low", which means that more emphasis is placed on the training of pitchers rather than batters, which is different from American baseball.

This is probably due to the cultural differences between the two sides, and the different understandings of "heroes". A batter can score four points and lead the team to victory by hitting a grand slam home run. This legendary superhero who can turn the tide is obviously loved by Americans.

On the other hand, as long as the ace pitcher is strong enough, no matter how strong the opponent's batter is, he will not be able to break through and keep the opponent's score at zero. This will create a feeling of "this is my last ripple", entrusting the victory or defeat of the game to teammates, and there is a kind of epic and tragic version of superhero.

In the commentary of Japanese games, other players are uniformly referred to as "players", and only the ace pitcher has his own exclusive title "Tōshu"!
Take today's game for example, Hojo Kyosuke pitched and shut out his opponent, preventing Shikamiya High School from scoring a single point. This created a situation where "I can only hit you but you are not allowed to hit me." The players from Sobu High School were able to swing their bats as much as they wanted and seize every opportunity to go all out to score points, while the players from Shikamiya High School had to go even further to block the opponent.

Even if today's training match is arranged according to the same schedule as a normal game, Hojo Kyosuke will not be able to get to the batter's zone in every inning and will not be able to score a point in every inning, but as long as he can keep Shikamiya High School's score at zero, then Sobu High School will win as long as they score one point.

In this case, even people who don't know anything about baseball can see how great he is. He led the team to win the game completely on his own.

One person stands at the end and takes it all, this is the meaning of "Ace".

"Our school is going to enter Koshien..."

Hayato Hayama had a dull expression and murmured in disbelief.

"Is our school going to enter Koshien?"

Hikigaya Hachiman asked back.

"Our school is going to enter Koshien!!!"

Enthusiastic screams exploded instantly. Everyone in Sobu High School opened their eyes wide, shouted wildly, jumped, and danced.

"It's crazy. I never thought I'd be able to see Sobu High School enter Koshien in my lifetime..."

The director of the football department said in disbelief that this was even more incredible than when he led the football department to win the World Cup.

"Well done, Tsuchiya. I knew you were a genius when you were in junior high school. You will definitely be admitted to Koshien!"

The vice-captain of the kendo club, Aonobu Tamaki, laughed and patted his friend on the shoulder. He was qualified to say this because it was he who recommended Hojo Kyosuke to his junior high school friend Ryota Tsuchiya as an insider, telling him that if he wanted to make one last struggle in high school, he must not miss out on this genius, Hojo Kyosuke.

Well, although the two of them have to compete for Hojo Kyosuke's training time on a daily basis, this does not prevent him from getting a ticket to the first row of the cheering seats!

“Hahahaha… No, no, this is all the result of Hojo-kun’s own hard work. It has nothing to do with me… Ahahahahaha—”

Tsuchiya Ryota wanted to be modest, but he couldn't suppress the joy in his heart, and he laughed continuously. He was telling the truth. Although he had assisted Hojo-kun in several training sessions before, he never knew that he had the ability to train an ace with a pitching speed of 150.

In a word, it’s all the team members’ own efforts.

Everyone excitedly discussed for a long time about the school's trip to Koshien, and then they remembered their precious "tickets".

To give a simple example of what the status of Koshien is in Japan, a Japanese Prime Minister who was born in Shizuoka Prefecture once said on a TV program: "I may not be the most famous person in Shizuoka Prefecture. The most famous person should be the winning pitcher of the 1987 Koshien Summer Olympics. Anyone in our county who doesn't know him cannot be said to be a true Shizuoka person." It is so exaggerated.

Looking at those pairs of hungry wolf eyes glowing green, Hojo Kyosuke subconsciously took a step back.

"I'm warning you. I just didn't get enough of swinging the bat. Now when I see round things, I think they're baseballs and I can't help but want to hit them."

As he spoke, his eyes swept over everyone's heads, and the meaning was very clear.

These bastards, don’t they know that he is sweating all over? He doesn’t even want to celebrate. If anyone dares to throw him up high, he will make them dig a big hole and bury him.

Although dear Ticket Master refused the request to celebrate with everyone, everyone at Sobu High School still raised their hands and shouted several words like "Board Loading" and "Saigao". They were so fanatical and had the feeling of being a cult member.

But after a while, Ryota Tsuchiya started to expel people from other clubs.

"Hurry up and leave. Don't disturb our training. If Sobu High School can't go to Koshien this year, it will definitely be your fault for delaying Hojo-kun's training for a minute today."

"Hey? Tugu, you didn't look like this when you asked me how to form a cheerleading team just now."

"Baga, it's your honor to contribute to Hojo-kun, stop talking nonsense and get out of here."

Ryota Tsuchiya had an arrogant look on his face.

A bunch of clubs left cursing. Really, they wanted to feel the atmosphere of a baseball giant again. They would have something to brag about when they go out with friends tomorrow, right?
Soon the people around the baseball field were cleared out, and Shikamiya Gao's coach came over with the players. Just as he was about to speak, he saw the four beautiful female musicians coming over. They were all very good at reading the air, and without saying a word they stepped aside to make room.

Michiru Hyodo had a bright smile on her face, and the hair on her forehead was wet with sweat and stuck to her forehead, and it was obvious that she had just experienced some intense exercise.

This is indeed the case. Michiru Hyodo never knew that performing as an audience member could be such a refreshing thing.

In the past, when the band practiced, even if there were only one or two audience members from other clubs, they were always the protagonists standing on the stage. But this time, everyone, including them, focused their attention on the baseball field, all focused on the man with the number "1".

Music is the art of mood, and it directly targets mood.

Musicians express their emotions through melody and use their strong emotions to infect the hearts of the audience.

It is impossible to compose the Symphony of Fate without experiencing Beethoven's life. Using music theory and techniques alone to create a soulless, mechanical, dead object may be exquisite but lacks the power to move people.

As a genius, or someone who is called a genius with only a short-lived enthusiasm by people around her, Michiru Hyodo does not actually think of herself as a genius. Instead, she agrees more with the latter statement, "a genius with only a short-lived enthusiasm", in which "enthusiasm is the key".

Heat - Passion

She plunged into those fields according to her inner passion, including volleyball, drama, basketball... everything. She chose to devote herself to them not because she had talent, but because she loved this career so she entered without hesitation.

Isn’t passion enough? Isn’t passion the greatest gift?
Just like now, when I was little, I loved to praise myself the most, "Xiaomei, the guitar you play and the songs you sing are so contagious."

Why is it so contagious? Because of love. Michiru Hyodo loves music, rock music, and the band she and her companions are in from the bottom of her heart.

And now, standing on the baseball field at this moment.

Michiru Hyodo didn't need to examine her own heart or build up her emotions; she could feel her own violently beating heart.

Her emotions boiled with Hojo Kyosuke's high-speed pitching. Her ears kept hearing cheers for Hojo Kyosuke. She could feel everyone's excitement and joy effortlessly. The enthusiasm overwhelmed her. She held her guitar, eager to express everyone's enthusiasm with music.

She wanted to make the cheers even louder!
She wanted to be part of it.

No one was paying attention to her, and her and her companions' wonderful performance became a foil to Hojo Kyosuke.

But it wasn't frustrating at all, it felt amazing.

On the court, Hojo Kyosuke tried his best to win, and off the court, she responded to that effort with music.

It was as if they had become one, him on the court and her off the stage, working together to fight for victory.

Michiru Hyodo understood the significance of the cheering club.

"You also share in this honor." This is no longer just a polite remark, but the truth.

As soon as the competition ended, she was still immersed in the afterglow of the performance when Xiaoshi, Rui Zhijia, and Xiaolan all came over and asked her when they could cheer for her again.

Really good.

The girl who had always been in the shadows was sweating just as much as Hojo Kyosuke. That was why the four of them didn't go over when the people from Sobu High School gathered together to discuss Koshien. Girls always have to be more careful. And the boys were all sweating, and the smell when they gathered together was simply unbearable.

What? Aren't they sweating too?

Ah wow! Of course girls smell good!

I had just wiped off the sweat, but my forehead was wet again when I walked over.

Michiru Hyodo's fair little face is still rosy. Compared with her previous dashing look, she is now even more lovely.

"north……"

Looking at Hojo Kyosuke who was wiping his sweat, Hyodo Michiru was about to speak when she was stunned.

stare……

"Hey……"

Himekawa Tokino nudged his friend with his shoulder and called out softly.

"Xiao Mei! Your gaze is too obscene!!"

Even as she said this, her gaze kept meeting that of Hyodo Michiru.

Looking again, Mizuhara Eijika and Morioka Aiko next to them also had wandering eyes, which occasionally shifted to Hojo Kyosuke, and then immediately looked away with blushing faces.

"what?"

Hyodo Michiru came back to her senses as if she had just woken up from a dream:

“Ah! So… big!!”

The girl screamed subconsciously.

"Hello!!!!"

Curly-haired Himekawa Tokino immediately grabbed her friend's shoulders and turned her around.

"Xiao Mei! If the teacher finds out about this, you'll be expelled!"

Morioka Aiko whispered.

"But it's so conspicuous, how could I not notice it? Didn't you see it too, Xiaolan?" Michiru Hyodo defended in a low voice with a red face.

"I……"

Morioka Aiko, who was like a Yamato Nadeshiko, was grunting and unable to speak.

"You can look at the pitcher's shoulders, but you can't look at them there. That's really rude!"

The curly-haired Himekawa Tokino criticized, and she, who had also peeked, didn't have much confidence when she spoke. Rather than criticizing her friend, it was more like reminding herself.

“It’s really big…”

Mizuhara Ruizhijia, who had been silent all this time, suddenly spoke up.

"Ok?"

As the only one among the four who has a boyfriend, Mizuhara Eiji's words are undoubtedly the most authoritative.

When Hyodo Michiru and the others heard this, they immediately put their heads together and asked frantically, causing Eijika's face to turn red and sweat. After hesitating for a long time, she could only perfunctorily say:
"Just like his pitching, it's a monster!"

“You deserve it!”

The three beautiful girls exclaimed immediately.

What is it that can attract the beautiful girl band to keep peeking?
It’s no secret that baseball pants are pretty tight, well…tight.

Just as Hojo Kyosuke raised his hand to say hello to the girls in the cheering group, he saw the four of them suddenly turn around and talk in whispers without saying a word.

After two seconds, he lowered his head and took a look, then he suddenly realized. (End of this chapter)