"Game start!"
A schoolmate with a generic face acted as the umpire, and the opposing pitcher took to the mound.
Nobi Hiroshi stood ready according to the knowledge Shizuka had taught him, knees slightly bent, Center of Gravity shifted downwards.
The knuckles of his left and right hands were in a straight line, gripping the wooden bat tightly.
"Where did Gian find this kid? I've never seen him before!"
"Who cares about him? This pretty boy is annoying to look at. Let's strike him out quickly."
The members of the opposing team whispered a few words before immediately getting into position.
He raised his right hand, wound up a few times, and a fast straight ball instantly left his hand.
"Here it comes!"
Staring at the flying white dot, Hiroshi swung his arm, the bat sweeping from inside to out.
"Bang!"
He hit it successfully. The white ball flew into the sky along an arc, but it wasn't over yet.
Using the strength of his wrist, Nobi Hiroshi flipped the bat over again, immediately left his position, and ran towards first base.
"Well done, Hiroshi!"
With a clenched fist and bent elbow, Gian looked excited. The team successfully scored the first point.
As expected of someone who had defeated him, his strength was indeed extraordinary.
"No way, it must be luck… This kid's luck is actually so good."
Nobi Nobita looked on in disbelief, biting his glove bitterly.
He hadn't even seen that last pitch clearly; it must have been luck. Having never hit a ball before, he was unwilling to accept this reality.
How could anyone be good at every sport?
"Huff… huff…"
The first half ended. Nobi Hiroshi leaned on the fence, resting and panting, propped up by his bat.
Although he had played to his heart's content, his stamina no longer allowed him to continue playing. Gian had already taken over his position more than ten minutes ago.
"You were so great, Hiroshi. If I didn't know, I really wouldn't have guessed it was your first time playing baseball. You're truly amazing."
To think she had been so worried just now. Shizuka took out her handkerchief from her skirt pocket and wiped the sweat from the young man's forehead.
Nobi Hiroshi's performance on the field just now could only be described as heroic and spirited.
Other girls wanted to come help, but seeing Shizuka get there first, they wisely left, though they still offered water.
"Gian, do you guys want water? I have a lot here."
Hiroshi distributed the dozen or so bottles of water he had obtained to his teammates. He wasn't a water barrel; he definitely couldn't drink all that.
"Thanks, Hiroshi. You're really popular, kid. I'm almost jealous!"
Gian said jokingly, wrapping an arm around Hiroshi's neck. He opened a bottle of water and gulped it down, relieving his thirst from earlier.
"Hey! The one who was slacking off the whole first half, Nobi Hiroshi is treating everyone to water, so hurry up and come over."
Xiao Fu deliberately shouted loudly. Nobi Nobita walked over with a dejected expression. He didn't need this water, unless it was given by Shizuka.
Seeing Hiroshi and Shizuka interacting intimately, Nobi Nobita felt very unpleasant inside.
If this continued, his future wife would be snatched away by someone else.
"Gian, let me bat in the second half!"
Shaking his head, Nobi Nobita said to Gian beside him, raising the bat in his hand that had never touched a ball.
It seemed to be under some kind of curse, still brand new from the factory.
"You? Nobi Nobita, are you sure? I think it's better if you just stick to picking up balls."
Because they had gained an advantage, Gian was in a good mood now and spoke politely.
"No problem, leave it to me!"
Patting his chest, Nobi Nobita looked confident, as if he had no choice but to go up.
He originally wanted Nobi Hiroshi to make a fool of himself, but it ended up making the other person shine.
He had to do something to make Shizuka's attention focus on him.
"Alright then, I'll let you try."
Gian looked at Nobi Nobita, whose eyes were full of enthusiasm, and agreed to let him play around.
The team was already leading by three points. As long as they didn't mess up in the second half, victory was surely theirs.
"Hey, look, Nobi Nobita is up. We need to seize this opportunity to overtake them."
"Understood. Although I don't know why Gian sent him up, this is undoubtedly a good opportunity for us."
With a weakness on the field, the opposing team's morale suddenly soared, and their fighting spirit was high.
"Okay, watch me. If Hiroshi can do it, then I won't be bad either."
Nobi Nobita widened his eyes, ignoring the idle chatter of others, and prepared to catch the ball, mimicking Nobi Hiroshi's stance.
"Swish~"
"Strike!"
"Swish~"
"Strike!"
"Swish~"
"Strike!"
"Batter out."
Clean and precise, Nobi Nobita, as expected, didn't catch a single ball.
Nobi Hiroshi and Shizuka stood outside the field, silently praying that Gian, whose face was gradually darkening, would go easy on him later.
"Stupid Nobi Nobita, you struck out again! How on earth did you hit it?!"
Gian, furious, unleashed a torrent of curses at Nobi Nobita.
Nobi Nobita held the bat, looking like he was about to cry. He had clearly copied Hiroshi, so how could this happen? What went wrong in the process?
"Alright, Gian, don't be so quick to act. The other teammates are still resting, and Nobi Nobita still needs to go on the field to pick up balls."
Xiao Fu pulled back the enraged Gian, whose burning iron fist cooled down slightly.
"Nobi Nobita, if you can't make up for your mistakes, I will absolutely not let you off the hook!"
"I… I'll try my best…"
A chill ran down his spine. Nobi Nobita tremblingly put on his glove and went onto the field, remembering the furious Gian with a shiver of fear.
His already poor skill was further affected. He couldn't even catch a sure-fire fly ball and ended up falling face first.
"Damn it, Nobi Nobita, the score is tied!"
"Hiroshi, this last at-bat is up to you. Please, you must win!"
Gian solemnly patted Hiroshi's shoulder. As the team of the neighborhood boss, they certainly couldn't lose to other teams.
"I'll try my best…"
Nobi Hiroshi, having recovered his stamina, re-entered the field and looked at the score on the scoreboard.
Winning now would be somewhat difficult. Just hitting the ball wasn't enough; he had to hit a grand slam home run.
"Time to step up, my brother." Nobi Hiroshi felt a bit nervous. Hitting this ball would be difficult.
A familiar voice suddenly echoed in his mind, calming his restless heart.
[Ding, Baseball Skill +1]
[Ding, Physique +1]
Exactly half an hour had passed. Without further ado, this hit would pierce through the stars.
"Bang!"
A crisp thud—it was a home run!
The white ball flew beyond the sun.
"Hiroshi, well done!"
Gian stood outside the field, shouting loudly, his whole body boiling with excitement. It had been a long time since a home run had been seen on this baseball field.
The whole place erupted, and everyone's eyes were drawn to the white ball in the sky.
Shizuka, who was on the lawn, also excitedly stood up and cheered, losing her ladylike composure.
"No… no way!"
Nobi Nobita stared dumbfounded at Hiroshi, who was being held high by the crowd. Before he could react further, a swift dark shadow instantly appeared in his vision.
"Nobita, even though we won, you're still going to get a beating!"
"Ah, that hurts! Gian, please spare me this time!"