H2
	 Volume 16
	  Chapter 1 (150)
	   He Really Is a Jerk

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(Ch. 1) He Really Is a Jerk

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<<Frog: (ribbit)
	(ribbit)

<<Hirota: Don't like frogs, Fumio?

Ohtake: {Now that I think about it...}

<<Frog: (bork)

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Ohtake: {I've ALWAYS hated you.}

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Announcers: Whoops!  The first and third basemen charged in for a bunt,
	but Ohtake takes a huge swing at the first pitch!
	That was a cover,
	a big-swing feint.

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Ohtake: Shit!
	I could have hit it if that pitch was a fastball!

Koga: Why so loud?
	The ump's gonna yell at him.

Players: But,
	now that other people heard him say that, it'll be harder for Hirota to throw any curves.
	Yeah,
	He doesn't want to be seen taking the easy way out.  He'll have to get the strikeout with fastballs.
	Now that we know it's a fastball,
	with Ohtake's swing taken into account,
	Hirota could slip up enough to let up a...

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Ump: Strike three, yerrr out!

Noda: He really is a jerk.

Hiro: Still,
	Ohtake waited for a curve and swung at the right time.

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Sign: Shima

PA: Batting ninth, leftfielder Shima-kun.

Boy: Batting ninth, leftfielder Shima-kun.
	What a surprise.  Your brother just happens to be on Senkawa's baseball team.

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Boys: Remember this guy?
	Shima, from my class.
	Yeah.
	I heard your brother was on the track team in middle school.
	I heard he was pretty fast.
	No, he was just lucky.  Right,
	Shima?
	Because before every tournament, his biggest rivals would get hurt and couldn't compete.
	For SOME reason.
	It was such good luck that even the police looked into it once.
	Or twice?
	Right, big brother?

Mitamura: Huh.

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Mitamura: Oh, yeah.
	If I hadn't gotten hurt, I'd be one of the stars of high school track and field now.
	His team's pretty awesome, if they can get to the semifinal.
	I wonder if their opponents have been getting sick or injured, too.

Boy: Hey, you should talk to a reporter about his brother.
	Let's get them disqualified.

Keita: Hey, wait.

Mitamura: You know, that might just be a good idea.

Takaaki: And your name is?

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Mitamura: Mitamura.
	Who are you?

Takaaki: You said you wanted to speak with a reporter?

Boy: Shima, the guy who's batting for Senkawa right now, is totally evil!

Mitamura: Koji!

Koji: In order to win the 100 meter race in middle school, he pushed his opponent, my brother, down a flight of stairs and ruined his running career!

Takaaki: And did you tell the school or police?

Mitamura: Er, no,
	it was too dark.  I couldn't really tell.

Takaaki: ...then why do you say it was Shima?

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Koji: It wasn't just my brother!
	Other guys who were supposed to race him got hurt before their tournaments!

Takaaki: So I hear.
	One of them got into a fight, with Shima-kun nonetheless.
	That much is true.  The police had to investigate.
	But the one who instigated the fight was his opponent.  And it was 3-on-1.
	Later, the injured boy's parents apologized to Shima-kun.
	Before the next tournament, the heavy favorite was hurt and couldn't compete.
	But that was a complete accident; it was his own fault.
	However, Shima-kun was able to win because of it.
	Ever since then, when his opponents could not race, odd rumors began to spread.
	Eventually, they got bad enough that Shima-kun had to quit the team...

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Takaaki: You are Mitamura-kun, right?

Mitamura: Eh,
	Oh,
	yes.

Takaaki: I've also heard about your injury.

Mitamura: Uh-oh.

Takaaki: You fell not from stairs, but a ladder,
	while peeping into the girls' locker room.

Mitamura: W-who told you that?!

Takaaki: Your principal, who swore me to silence, to save his school's face.
	Or should I have checked more thoroughly?

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Mitamura: Let's go, Koji!

Takaaki: Sounds like your brother doesn't like to make excuses for himself.

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Ump: Foul ball!

Announcer: After failing to bunt, he swings and fouls.
	Shima, the last batter in the order, is doing all he can to make contact.

Koga: Just get the ball into play.
	With your speed, we don't have to worry about a double play.
	Even if it's just exchanging runners on first.

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Hirota: {We live in different worlds, Osamu.
	Past, present and future.
	Don't ever talk to me again!}

Ump: Strike three!

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Announcer: The runner's stuck at first, now with two out!
	We go back to the top of the lineup.

Sign: Kine

Announcer: Centerfielder Kine-kun steps into the left...
	...no,
	RIGHT-handed batter's box.

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Kine: Settle down, all y'all.
	You can see the ball better when you bat right vs. left, rather than both lefties.
	This is the day I have been practicing my right handed hitting for.
	If you think I'm lying, refer to page 35 of Volume 9.
	I swear, it was not a silly mistake made by the author in the face of encroaching deadlines.
	I've always been training to be a switch hitter.
	Even though this is my big scene, we're running out of pages.
	But such is life in a serial work.

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Ump: Strike three, batter out!

Hiro: We got an extra panel here, Kine.

 - Chapter 1 End -