Diamond No Ace: The Strongest Hitter

Chapter 93: Post-Match Dinner

"Don't be like this, everyone! It's just one loss! Cheer up!" Sawamura tried to comfort his dejected teammates as they left the field.

"Ei-chan! I... I'm sorry! It's our fault... we couldn't defend well!" Ohno stammered, struggling to find the right words.

"If the defense wasn't good enough, then we'll just practice more! Ten times, a hundred times, over and over again!" A voice cut through the air.

"Sen-chan!" Ohno turned to see Sendo's calm expression.

Though Sendo's towering frame naturally gave him a commanding presence, his words conveyed encouragement rather than cold indifference.

"I understand! I'll practice with everything I've got. Next time, I'll defend even if it costs me my life!" Ohno declared with renewed determination.

"Don't go overboard, idiot! If you wear yourself out, it'll only cause more problems. Improvement isn't just about practice—it's also about rest and proper time management. That's part of training too."

"Sen-chan..." Ohno seemed puzzled by his advice.

"We've got two years left. The fall tournament is over, which means we've got two years of middle school baseball ahead. Next summer, next fall, and the summer of our third year—three major tournaments remain."

"Two years. Do everything you can in that time. Look at where you are now and move forward, one step at a time. We will get stronger!"

The words struck a chord in everyone.

They didn't say a word, but a powerful sense of ambition and determination burned within them.

"Honestly, your performance today was great. Tokugawa couldn't even get on base in the first few innings, right? Keep it up, everyone! Now, let's eat! Sano -sensei said that even though we didn't win today, he's still treating us to barbecue!"

"Yeah!!!" the team cheered.

"Sendo, where are you going?" Sawamura asked.

"To get Fumino, and then to the restroom. You guys go ahead!"

...

"!" Standing and waiting, Sendo suddenly heard a voice behind him.

"Hm?"

"Have you been waiting long?"

"No, I just got here."

"Today's game... such a shame," Fumino said softly.

"Not at all. Losing 8–2 was brutal, but everyone gave it their all. Honestly, I didn't expect Eijun's pitching to be so effective," Sendo replied.

"And you?" Fumino asked.

"Me?"

"Yeah."

"I don't know." Sendo paused. "Am I frustrated? Not really. Baseball isn't a game you win alone—it's the result of everyone's efforts. But... never mind, I don't even know how to put it."

"Fumino!"

"Hm? What is it?"

"You've been a lot quieter lately. You used to talk more."

"Hmph!"

Fumino thought to herself, I was just worried about you and wanted to give you space to open up.

"Huh?" Sendo, completely oblivious, couldn't interpret her reaction.

"Forget it. I'll head to the restroom. Let's meet up with the others after." He walked off.

"Alright," Fumino answered softly, following behind him.

...

"Hey," Sendo suddenly stopped and turned around.

"Hm?"

"I just realized something—you've become so much gentler lately. You don't tease people as much. You used to unintentionally offend others all the time."

"Huh? Really? Did I actually offend people without realizing it?"

"Yeah. You had a bit of a sharp tongue. People might've thought you were being snarky, but I don't think you noticed."

"And you're one to talk about being snarky?"

"Fair point," Sendo admitted with a chuckle.

...

"You're so slow! What were you two even doing?" Sawamura complained as they returned to the car.

"Sorry for the delay, everyone," Fumino greeted the team.

"Don't worry about it! We're all friends here!" Sawamura replied quickly.

Just then, a loud rumbling came from Sendo's stomach.

"Let's get going, Sano -sensei! I'm starving! I barely ate anything this morning!" Sendo exclaimed.

"How much is 'barely'?" Sawamura asked, curious about Sendo's appetite.

"Uh... three pieces of bread, two eggs, and two cups of soy milk," Sendo said nonchalantly.

"..."

That's barely anything?! everyone silently thought to themselves.

"Details don't matter! I'm starving!"

"Haha! Sano -sensei, you're in for a rough time today. Sendo can easily eat over two pounds of beef for lunch, even on a normal day. Judging by how he looks now, he's going to demolish everything!" Sawamura laughed.

"It's fine. Eat as much as you like!" Sano replied.

"Why don't you ever say that to me? I barely eat anything! And don't forget, I helped us win the first game!" Sawamura protested.

"If you could be as reliable as Sendo, I'd worry less!" Sano teased.

"What's that supposed to mean?!"

Whack!

Sendo gave Sawamura a swift chop to the head.

"Ow!" Sawamura crouched down, clutching his head in pain.

While Sendo wasn't a fan of Japan's strict seniority system, he also couldn't tolerate Sawamura questioning his elders so rudely, especially when Sano was just joking.

"Apologize."

"Sorry... I'm sorry!"

"Don't worry about it, Sendo. He's always like this," Sano intervened with a smile.

"Just drive already. I'm starving!"

"Alright, let's head out!" Sano understood the urgency and hit the road.

...

"Finally, we're here! It feels like it took years!" Sendo exclaimed with a look of relief.

"Yeah!" His stomach growled even louder in agreement.

"Hahaha! Is your stomach trying to start a thunderstorm?" Sawamura teased, clearly back to his usual self.

"Shut up! Mind your own business... I'm starving!" Sendo shot back.

"Alright, everyone, let's head in!" Sano urged.

"Yeah!!!"

They entered the restaurant, explained their situation to the staff, and were led to a private room.

"Let's start with 20 pounds of beef to kick things off!" Sendo declared as he scanned the menu.

"..."

"Idiot! What if we can't finish it? Don't waste food!" someone scolded.

"Alright... fine, let's dial it back to 15 pounds. That should be enough, about a pound each for everyone, right? Takada's diet plan can wait. Let's enjoy ourselves tonight!" Sendo, clearly too hungry to think straight, almost forgot the Japanese custom of ordering modestly to avoid food waste.

"Yeah!!!"

Before long, the barbecue was served. Sendo wasted no time, piling a massive amount of meat onto the grill.

For reference, the seating arrangement was four to a table. Sendo, Sawamura, Fumino, and Wakana sat together—two boys and two girls at their table.

While Sendo stared intently at the sizzling meat, Fumino and Wakana chatted, and Sawamura glanced around the room.

The day turned into a costly one for Sano, as Sendo alone devoured nearly 5 pounds of meat.

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