The Blonde Saint Only Makes Strange Noises In Front Of Me, What Should I Do?

Episode 28: Sana VS Kazuharu

“Come on, come on, Itsuki Sana! I’ll show you my batting, I was called little Hank Aaron in the Small League!”
Kazuharu said, standing up to bat.

Also, mention the old major leaguer …I only know the name. In fact, I’ve never heard of Kazuharu having baseball experience in the Small League. If so, this game is insanely disadvantageous. No matter how much moving, a straight type is tough.

“And I’m going to prove to you that …I’m Kaoru’s friend!

I have no idea what he’s talking about, but I’m sure I shouldn’t tweak it here. I reminded myself of that and went over to Sana’s place on the pitcher’s mound.

“Let’s see, …can you throw at the mitt I’m holding?”

“That’s the point, right? I think I can.”

“Also, I want you to remember this grip for a moment.”

Before I handed the ball to Sana, I showed her my grip.

“Hold it in a shallow grip along the seam, with your thumb in the center. Just throw it the same way as before.”

“Shallowly along the seam, right? Is that okay?”

Sana takes the ball from me and mimics my grip.

Yeah, it’s perfect. As expected of an athletically gifted woman, she’s a quick learner.

“Yeah, that’s fine. It doesn’t matter if you miss in the worst case, just throw the ball as hard as you can.”

“Okay.”

Sana nodded her head.

Normally, this is not something that should be done on the spur of the moment, but judging from this guy’s cheat sheet, I felt like I could handle it on the spur of the moment. Besides, if I made a mistake and it went through, I could throw away one of the pitches if there was enough room in the ball count.

“I’ll give you a signal with my forefinger before I put my glove on the ball, and you can throw that ball when I do this.”

“Okay.”
When I said that, Sana chuckled.

“What?”

“No. I just thought it was surprising that Kaoru-kun was so serious about such a silly game.”

“Parfait eaten with …people’s money is something special.”

“That’s right. Let’s win and let Sakuma-kun buy you a drink.”

Sana smiled and winked at me.

Damn. You’re so cute every single time, you know that?

The truth is, I don’t care about the parfait. I just want to see her happy to win.

It’s really ridiculous to me—
With that thought in mind, I lightly tapped my glove against Sana’s, and returned to home base.

“Is the strategy meeting over~?”

When I returned, Kazuharu asked me with a grin.

“We don’t have any pitches, so we need a little strategy.”

“A strategy. Well, I’m the one who’s going to win and eat the parfait. …Wait a minute…”

“What’s up?

“If I win, I won’t be able to buy Kaoru a Parfaitttt!”

Kazuharu collapsed and shouted as he held his head in despair. What is he saying now that is so obvious, this guy….

“No, you don’t have to buy me a drink.”

“No, no! I can’t forgive myself for just eating a parfait with someone else’s money and letting you buy it with your own money!”

What’s wrong with you lately, man? I really can’t keep up with you, what am I supposed to do?

I think I’ve bought you juice or ice cream a few times before, but what was that all about?

“Wait, Itsuki Sana! I’m changing the terms! If I win, you have to buy Kaoru a parfait instead of me!”

“Huh? Why would you do that?”

“Never mind, I promise! I’ll pay for my own drinks!”

“I don’t know what you mean. ….As expected you’re indeed Kaoru’s friend. I can’t read his behavior at all.”

Sana was also slightly taken aback. Don’t worry, I’m also taken aback by this comment.

However, it is also a little uncomfortable to be called “As expected” by this, but I will not mention it now.

“Well, I’m not going to lose, so it doesn’t matter either way.”

Sana also easily agreed to the change of conditions.

That means that no matter who wins, I’ll be able to eat a fancy parfait for free, right? I mean, is Kazuharu really this much of a blabbermouth?

My image of Sakuma Kazuharu as a handsome, high-spirited man is being destroyed…

“Kaoru, for you ….I’ll hit it!”

He made a pretend gesture and said it in a very cool way. I’m not going to get a kick out of it.

In the first place, I can eat a parfait no matter who wins. …Well, whatever. For the time being, let’s finish this unclear game. Before the story goes in a strange direction any more.

This is why I held up my mitt nervously. Catching without protective gear is scary. I can only hope for Sana’s cheat-like athletic ability and control power here.

“I’m ready for you! Come on!”

“Play ball,” Asuka announced in a dull voice.

I’d really like to practice the change of pitch, but that wouldn’t be a hidden ball, so I’ll just have to make do with a surprise run. Even if the ball slipped through, it would be effective just to alert him that there were other types of pitches besides straight.

Now, it’s time to play one game. How shall we attack?

For now, I wanted to see if she could really throw it at the mitt, so I set up …the full low outside corner.

Sana nodded, and she swung at it – and threw it.

With a swoosh, a quip, and a bash, the ball was settled in my mitt.

He seems to be able to throw where he really wants to, and his control is amazing. If it were a popular baseball game, “Powerful Amateur Baseball,” I’m sure he’d have an A or better control level in the early stages. However, as expected, the ball bent irregularly in my hand, and I was afraid that I might make a mistake catching it.

I wonder if the first pitch was to see how it went. Kazuharu didn’t make any moves at all.

“Oi, oi, how did you aim at a moment?”
Kazuharu asked in exasperation.

“I set up right there.”

“It’s a bit of a foul throw to be able to aim at the full outlaw, isn’t it? You’re really a beginner?”

“I’m surprised too. …Can I get a strike?”

“Yeah, sure.”

After saying that, Kazuharu stared at Sana.

The playfulness of earlier is gone and his eyes are completely serious. This is going to be a real hit next time.

“One strike! That’s good.”

I raised my voice a little and threw the ball back to Sana.

Sana smiled and made a gut pose, then, probably unconsciously but she was gyrating her shoulders. Maybe it’s not a good idea to let a beginner girl throw everything she’s got at you too much. Let’s get this over with as soon as possible.

(Now, what am I going to do?)

While I was thinking about this, I suddenly thought that I’m having a lot of fun right now.

Ever since I met Sana, I feel like every day is full of fun things happening. I wonder if this is the change that Saisana brought to me.