72 Seido High Vs. Teitou High

In Yakushi's Team Bus.

"Oy, Captain. You should tell us who's the 1st team we are up against", said Sanada.

Everyone else nodded agreeing with him.

"Ok…wait a second", said Ryou taking a paper out of his pocket.

"Let's see. It's Nanamori Gakuen", said Ryou.

"Never heard of them", muttered Rei.

"They're not a well-known school. I think I have seen them practicing their batting in a park before", said Atsushi.

"You guys better not be underestimating, The Nanamori guys. Even if they aren't well known I hear they are a team with strong batters", remarked Kazuma.

Sanada nodded agreeing with him.

Rei scoffed at their argument. Looking out the window, he couldn't stop thinking about the mound.

**BA DUMP** **BA DUMP** 'What is this feeling. Am I feeling excited? I can't wait to go to the mound. we are finally going to reunite', thought Rei.

Hideo who was sitting near Rei observed him close.

'Strange', thought Hideo as he saw Rei's ecstatic expression.

The Next Day, The Fall Tournament Started.

Every team was standing outside for the tournament and getting ready to walk inside the stadium.

A lot of schools were nervous since they had to go up against giants like Inashiro or Seido.

Schools like Yakushi High were underestimated. Even though Yakushi showed how good of a team they are in the summer tournament, they are still underestimated. But now with Rei joining they wouldn't be able to ignore, how powerful Yakushi has become.

"Ahhhhh, Miyuki!!"

"FURUYA-KUN".

"I can't believe Furuya is the ace".

"What happened to Rei".

"I thought he was going to be the ace".

"Oh, didn't you read yesterday's article?".

"Nope".

"Listen to the gossip. So, Rei transferred schools".

"Which one? I'm going to go root for that one".

"Unfortunately, the coaches and even his former teammates don't know what team he transferred to. But heyyy!! How can you switch sides this quickly? I thought you were Seido's die-hard fan".

"I was because Rei was in it but not now", said the fan walking away.

Unknowingly, Yakushi gained another die-hard fan.

This incident was happening in the audience while Seido walked into the stadium.

The whole team overheard the fan's conversation since they were pretty loud. Because of it, the atmosphere of the team plummeted.

Sensing the change in the atmosphere, Kataoka said, "Get your act together. Don't let someone affect the team. You guys aren't elementary school kids. If you are high school players, then act like one".

"HAII", replied the players. The speech seemed to have some effect on the team players.

'I can't let this be. The team has been affected by the gossip that people around us are doing. After Rei left, the team isn't the way it used to be. Something has changed', thought Miyuki.

"Why can't I see Rei, anywhere", said Sawamura.

"Do you even think he's playing in the tournament?", said Kuramochi.

"I don't think so since usually, transfer students don't get to play as soon as they join the team", said Haruichi.

"I really wonder which team that brat went to. If I ever find out I'm going to go give him a piece of my mind", said Kuramochi.

After 2 hours. The tournament had officially started.

Seido High Vs. Teitou High.

In Seido's Dugout.

"Furuya, get ready", said Kataoka.

"Finally debuting, huh. As an ace, how do you feel?", said Miyuki.

"My heart's beating fast, nothing much", commented Furuya as he walked to the mound.

Miyuki chuckled at his response.

Seeing Furuya walking to the mound, 'I hope nothing goes wrong', thought Miyuki clenching his hand.

The match officially started.

1-3 inning Furuya dominated each player by striking them out one by one.

Seido scored 2 runs during the 3 innings.

During the 4th inning, Furuya started to feel exhausted. He was breathing hard.

'Why is he out of breath already? I told him not to go all out in the beginning', thought Miyuki.

From there, Furuya's fastball speed kept decreasing. Though he still held on, and not letting runs through since the back saved him each time.

Even though, Furuya was struggling. The team's offense was on fire, and they scored 3 more runs during this time.

Kawakami replaced Furuya in the 6th inning.

"What's happening to Furuya?"

"He started off so good".

"It's a little disappointing since it's his debut after all as an ace".

Discussed the audience.

In Seido's Dugout.

Furuya sat on the bench in a corner. Feeling disappointed in himself. Ever since he wore the ace number, he started to feel the burden and he let down the team even though he just started being an ace.

"Do you know why this is happening?", said Miyuki as he sat next to Furuya.

Furuya stayed silent.

"You already know your stamina problem then why not pace yourself when pitching?", said Miyuki.

"You know I shouldn't be giving you his example now but remember when Rei had problems with his stamina at the start of the year? Even though his stamina was still lacking a bit when I saw him last, he did everything he could to make up for it. The reason I'm telling you this is because you should learn from him.", said Miyuki.

"But Yaaa…I really shouldn't be giving his example now since he isn't on the team anymore. If Coach overheard this, he would kill me", said Miyuki chuckling.

'Even though you abandoned this team already, why am I still in your shadow?', thought Furuya clenching his hand.

Just like this, Seido's first match ended.

Seido High Vs. Teito High. 5-2.

In the Locker Room.

"I look so amazing", said Rei looking in the mirror as he ruffled his dark hair. He felt like a new person after wearing the ace number jersey.

"Wah, how egoistic".

"How Conceited".

Commented his teammates.

"Why are you guys against my good looks", remarked Rei.

"Mahh…mahh…let's stop arguing and focus on the next match, shall we?", said Sanada.

"Stop acting like a reasonable person, Sanada. I heard from Raichi that you used to skip training sessions", said Rei.

"Really!!", said Sanada glaring at Raichi.

Raichi looked away whistling.

The next Match, Yakushi High Vs. Nanamori Gakuen.