Chapter 296 The Last Summer (2)
The last day of the first semester of the second year of high school, July 20th.
"I checked the weather this morning and it said the highest temperature was 32°."
"It has been like this for the past few days, but I felt so bored when I woke up today."
"Will it rain?"
"Not necessarily. The rainfall rate is 36%."
"Ah, yucky, I hope this ends soon."
"Well, if it ends at noon, I won't have to go back under the scorching sun."
"I'm worried about the rain, but the sun is also unbearable."
Toru Watanabe listened to the conversation between the two girls in front of him, and with the mechanical pencil in his hand, he wrote the learning experience required by the principal on the grid paper used for writing essays.
"Pah"
The pen core was broken, and a small spot on the white grid paper was stained black by lead powder.
This scene seemed familiar - thinking of this, Toru Watanabe pressed the end of the pen with his thumb.
"Click, click", there is only the sound, but the pen core does not come out.
He turned his head and turned around.
"The final exam is over, but you're still able to maintain your attendance. Is your work going bad recently?" Toru Watanabe rummaged through Miki Kujo's stationery and took out a refill.
"Didn't I tell you?" Miki Kujo was wearing a shirt, supporting her delicate and beautiful face with her left hand, and playing with her mobile phone with her right hand.
"What?" Toru Watanabe put the refill into the mechanical pencil.
"A few days ago, my mother suddenly said, 'Meiji, enjoy your last two years of high school life,' and then took away my rights."
"That's good," said Toru Watanabe. "High school students should study and enjoy their youth."
"If I work, someone will lose. If I don't work, someone will be desperate."
Watanabe Toru turned his head and looked to the left, where Kiyono Rin was reading a thin hardcover book.
The room was cool enough, so she put on a spring sleeveless cardigan over her shirt.
Because the clothes were thin and it was a close-fitting sweater, one could actually see a small undulation on the Kamikawa Crow school emblem on her chest.
"That's good, that's good." Watanabe Toru was very pleased.
After hearing what Kujo Miki said, Kiyono Rin didn't react much, but because of Watanabe Toru's eyes, she raised her eyes from the book.
Her stern and beautiful eyes stared at Toru Watanabe.
"Huh?" Watanabe Toru looked back in confusion.
"What are you so happy about?"
"I got first place in the country. I'm happy."
"lie."
"Yeah, getting first place in the country doesn't make me happy anymore." Watanabe Toru pressed the mechanical pencil, and a lot of refills fell out, and then he stuffed them back in. "What should I do next?"
"What should I do?" Miki Kujo said, looking at the phone screen.
"Personal values must be satisfied from both material and spiritual aspects." Toru Watanabe opened Kujo Miki's math textbook and wrote "material" and "spiritual" in Chinese characters on it.
“Material matters are not important, the key is ‘spirituality’.”
He casually drew a beautiful circle on the word "spirit".
"Material satisfaction does not necessarily bring happiness," said Rin Kiyono.
"Of course, so spiritual satisfaction is more important." Watanabe Toru nodded.
"So," Kujo Miki glanced at him, "being number one in the country in terms of academic performance can no longer satisfy you. Are you planning to find something else?"
"You are worthy of being my beautiful girl. The question now is, where can I seek spiritual satisfaction?" Toru Watanabe typed a "?" after "spiritual".
"Considering your status as a high school student." Kujo Miki took the pen and wrote "Participate in various national competitions; Student Council President" under "Spirit"
"Or cultivate a hobby," Qing Ye Lin said, "You don't need too many great things to be spiritually satisfied. The daffodils blooming on the kitchen counter are enough to satisfy many people."
"Competition and interests." Toru Watanabe looked thoughtful.
Before I could come up with anything specific, Koizumi Aina walked in and said, "Everyone, go back to your seats."
Watanabe Toru was about to turn around when Kujo Miki pointed at her Mathematics B with her eyes and said to him:
"Wipe it clean."
"Hmm? Oh." Toru Watanabe picked up her eraser.
When he turned around and Koizumi Aina started the morning meeting, Kujo Miki noticed:
The only part of the book that was erased was the part he had written. The words she had written, "Participating in the national competition; Student Council President," were still there.
Under the table, she kicked Watanabe Toru's chair.
Koizumi Aona relayed the news from yesterday's meeting.
"Teacher," a girl raised her hand, "I have tutoring during the summer, can I take a leave?"
"Except for the bottom 30 students in the final exam who need to attend the tutoring organized by the school, the rest of the students must attend."
"Eh——" There was a chorus of dissatisfaction from below.
Many people have signed up for cram schools or are preparing to travel during the summer vacation.
"This is the school's rule, and the teacher can't do anything about it."
Seeing everyone's sad faces, Koizumi Aina comforted them:
"Everyone is already very good. Let's enjoy the club activities during the summer vacation, go to Koshien for free, and cheer for the baseball team."
"Teacher!" Ikki Aoi raised her hand.
"Ichiki-san, please speak."
"In addition to preparing cheering songs, do members of the wind band need to participate in other cheering activities?"
"unnecessary."
"Very good!"
"So for those of us who are responsible for practicing holding signs and shouting slogans, do we train in the playground or in the gymnasium?"
Before Koizumi Aona could say anything, the girls started shouting, "Playground?! The sun is so bright, I'd rather die than die!"
“You’ll definitely get a tan!”
"Damn the baseball club! They wasted our tutoring time and left us in the sun!"
"Kunii, I remember you were on the baseball club, right?"
"……yes."
"Can't you just not respond?"
"this……"
"Everyone!" Koizumi Aona clasped his hands together, and the classroom became quiet again.
"Study hard and hold books while eating. This is indeed good, but when you are old enough to be teachers, basking in the sun together during the summer vacation, cheering with classmates, and working hard with the baseball club will become very beautiful youth memories."
This is the school rule. There is no way to complain. We can only accept our fate.
"Kunii! You guy, if you can't win the Koshien championship, then commit seppuku!" Saito Keisuke gritted his teeth.
He planned to use the summer vacation to finish the game in one go.
"That's right!" the girl agreed, "Don't embarrass Shenchuan! We can't let us get tanned for nothing!"
"Everyone, don't worry!" Kunii Osamu stood up, "This year, we will definitely dominate Koshien!"
Of course, there are also happy people, for example, those who have loved ones and are happy to come to school every day.
Everyone has their own ideas, but those who agree with them won't stand up and oppose them, so it seems as if everyone hates them.
On the first day of summer vacation, the hot summer began.
"Kamikawa!" "Come on!"
"Kamikawa!" "We must win!"
The cicadas chirped like rain, and in midsummer, the shouts from the playground reached all the way to Yotsuya Station, drowned out by the rumble of the trains.
"One, two, three, four!"
The cheerleaders not far away, wearing short-sleeved shirts and shorts, were waving pompoms and inflatable baseballs, their hair at the temples stuck to their faces by sweat.
"Idiot! You can't swing randomly! Cheer up! If you can't even handle this little bit of heat, how can you get into Koshien? How can you win the championship?"
"yes!"
"What about the voices! The cheerleaders are louder than you!"
"yes--!"
The baseball club, a sweaty baseball team, was covered in mud.
After practicing the swing with sweat pouring down his face, the ball was hit and flew out.
Amid the metallic "bang" sounds, one could hear the brass band playing the Koshien cheering song, the majestic and powerful "栄冠は君に偏".
In the entire school, only the Human Observation Department is out of place.
Toru Watanabe stood by the window whose glass seemed to be hot, looking out at the playground.
All you can see from here is the whole school holding up the black and white school emblem, "Shenchuan" and "Must Win".
School rules do not allow hair dyeing, and those people's black hair shines brightly in the sun.
The cheerleaders' legs rose and fell with the slogans, brimming with the youthful vigor.
"It's summer." Qingno Rin, who was reading a book, suddenly said.
"Yeah." Watanabe Toru returned to his seat.
Even with the curtains drawn, the scorching sun still couldn't be blocked.
"Bang", the book on her belly fell to the ground, and the sleeping Kujo Miki woke up.
"Ah—" She yawned, "What time is it?"
"Nine minutes past ten," replied Toru Watanabe.
"It's boring, so I might as well work." Miki Kujo changed her sleeping position and closed her eyes again.
"Auntie wants you to enjoy your youth, not to sleep in school," said Toru Watanabe.
"You want me to go down and hold up a sign like a fool with those people?"
"How's the wind band?"
"No. I will sit in the VIP seat, watch their efforts and appreciate their performances. For them, this is already an honor." Her voice was undulating and melodious, with a mysterious charm.
"I don't agree with your idea, but I approve of your approach." Qingye Rin's voice still sounded cool even in this summer.
"You just hate exercising and sweating," Toru Watanabe pointed out.
"That's very rude, Watanabe-san." Qing Ye Lin smiled sweetly, "This is the consciousness of the upper class. Whether it's the principal or the teacher, in this kind of weather, they will not agree to let me enjoy my youth under the scorching sun."
"You'd better get used to it as soon as possible." Kujo Miki said to Watanabe Toru in an increasingly confused voice.
"I can accept sitting in the VIP seats and training under the scorching sun - I want to keep this mentality if possible," said Toru Watanabe.
Miki Kujo didn't respond, she had fallen asleep.
After she stopped working, Toru Watanabe slept in Jimbocho most of the time, so she still seemed sleep-deprived.
Qingye Rin got tired of reading, so he closed the book and took out the chess set.
While she was setting up the chess pieces, Toru Watanabe took some cold grapes from the refrigerator and placed them next to the chessboard.
The two of them ate and played chess at the same time.
The air conditioner blows out cold air, the chess pieces collide with the chessboard, the swallowing sound of chewing grapes, the distorted air, the noisy cicadas, and the distant shouts from the playground.
Time passed day by day, and in the blink of an eye it was July 28th, Saturday.
Today is the final of the East Tokyo qualifying tournament. The winner will obtain the right to represent the 20 districts of East Tokyo and go to the Hanshin Koshien Stadium in Hyogo Prefecture to participate in the National High School Baseball Player Rights Conference.
The two teams in the finals were Kamikawa, representing Shinjuku Ward, and Mimatsu, representing Chiyoda Ward.
The venue for the final is the Meiji Jingu Baseball Stadium, which is known as the "Island Baseball Holy Land" together with Koshien.
The competition time is 2:00 p.m. Everyone will gather at school in advance and the school will arrange school buses to pick them up.
Dozens of buses set out in a long line from Yotsuya, where Kamikawa High School is located, heading for Jingu Stadium.
Inside the school bus, students who had worked hard for a week in training also had high hopes for the upcoming baseball game. No one wanted their efforts to go to waste, even if it was just cheering.
The discussion was lively and exciting.
On the bus of Class 2-4 of High School, Keisuke Saito and a group of other boys were video chatting with Kunii Osamu who was sitting on the baseball club bus.
"Kunii! Come on!"
"Don't worry! I'll show you how well Mr. Kunihi hits the ball!"
"Can you hit the ball to our side? I heard that if the ball is hit outside the court, the audience can take it back directly!"
"Kamikawa is sitting on the side! Hitting you is out of bounds! Do you want to kill me?"
"What does one ball matter? We're going to win today, right?"
The atmosphere was very lively, and the huge wheels of the bus, carrying the hot summer atmosphere, arrived at the crowded Jingu Stadium.
In the VIP seats of Jingu Stadium, Toru Watanabe, Miki Kujo, Maki Kujo, Yuko Kiyono, and Rin Kiyono - the five of them sat in this order.
Unlike the crowded and exposed auditorium, the seats here are spacious enough and there is free air conditioning.
"There are so many people." Watanabe Toru was a little surprised.
The temperature today was also quite high. He braved the scorching sun to watch the game. He thought it would be good if the seats were two-thirds full.
In the end, I underestimated the Japanese people's passion for baseball.
The Jingu Stadium, which can accommodate 30,000 people, was almost full at this time.
"Mr. Watanabe doesn't understand baseball?" Mrs. Kiyono asked him.
"If you have to distinguish between understanding and not understanding, it should be not understanding," replied Toru Watanabe.
"Every summer is the summer of Koshien. It is also a grand celebration for the whole country."
"Aunt Kiyono likes baseball?"
"I was also on the baseball club in high school. Although it was a girls' baseball club, I could only play by myself or organize competitions with other girls' schools." Mrs. Kiyono said with a smile.
"I'd love to see you pitching, swinging the bat, and running the bases."
"I have photos. I'll show them to you when I get home tonight."
“That’s great.”
"Where are you going back to?" Miki Kujo asked Toru Watanabe.
"…I just said it casually."
"Ah, it turns out Watanabe-kun was lying to mom, bad boy."
"I am Watanabe-kun's mother, right?" Mrs. Kujo said, "I will not allow you to bully my child."
"It's too early to draw conclusions about whose child this is, isn't it, Rin?" Mrs. Kiyono asked her daughter.
"certainly."
"As a person, you must have confidence, no matter whether you can succeed or not." Miki Kujo said with a smile.
"It seems like it's about to begin." Watanabe Toru changed the subject.
The five people turned their eyes to the court.
On the left, students from Kamikawa High School, wearing cheering uniforms of the same color, each held up a sign, spelling out the huge "Kamikawa".
On the right were students from Sansong High School, also holding signs - judging by the number of people, the entire school was out.
Amid the noisy sounds, wind music suddenly sounded.
Before the game started, the wind bands of both schools began to compete across the fan-shaped baseball field.
Blue sky, white clouds, and noisy sounds.
Both teams began to enter the field.
"Kamikawa! Come on!"
"Sansong! Come on!"
The conversation of 30,000 people was drowned out by the thousands of people from the two schools.
The temperature was getting higher and higher, and the atmosphere suddenly became more lively.
The opening ceremony of the finals was attended by female voice actors Mari Uchida, who is also Reiya Sanka from "Sanka Reiya", Rikka Takanashi from "Chunibyou ga Koubei!", Rui Tachibana from "Home with a Girlfriend", and Fischl from "Genshin Impact".
It is said that she is a female voice actor who loves baseball.
Toru Watanabe picked up the telescope on the table.
Sure enough, Kunii Shuuji in the camera looked like a pervert.
This guy bought Mari Uchida's photos and is a disgusting body fan.
The camera moves up and sees the Samsong cheerleaders... wearing safety pants.
He put down the telescope with regret.
As for the Kamikawa cheerleading team... he had known about safety pants a long time ago, and they were longer than skirts.
"Everyone!" the male host's voice resounded throughout the stadium, "Welcome to the East Tokyo Regional Finals! It's another summer full of tears and sweat!"
"Fierce battle! Fiery youth!" said the female host excitedly.
"Let's cheer for both sides together! Come on, Kamikawa!"
"Come on, Sansong!"
After a simple opening statement.
"Next, popular female voice actress Uchida Mari will kick off the match!"
