Short Program 35

Short Program, Volume 3, Chapter 35 (pp. 273~300)


<273>
Idol A: Chapter 3

=Okinawa—

=Okay!//Now do a big windup.


<274&275>
Idol A: Chapter 3


<276>
=Now throw!

[bubble]CLICK

=Nice pitch!

[newspaper top]Sports Ippon
[headline]Outstanding! Hirayama
[black box]Tokyo Onions
[photo caption]First appearance! First win!
[lower right]Tokyo

ZWISHH..
=Sato-Azu's agent, Okamoto (age 32).

=This would've made the front pages if they knew what was really going on...


<277>
=Okay, all set!//Thanks a lot, Azusa-chan!

=Azusa Satomi, age 18.
=Yay!

=Sometimes a teen model,//Sometimes a movie star—

=Sometimes,//The official cheerleader of the Tokyo Onions.
ZWISHH..

=—And
=Other times...


<278>
=Tokyo—

[x2]BOOMCHUK

[sign top]Tokyo Onions//Kamisagi Dorm

=Alright, next!//Keita Hirayama, you got your first win recently. You do something!
[bubble]
=Kamisagi Dorm (bachelor dorm) senior resident, Tetsugoro Ishioka, age 43.

=Huh?

=Keita Hirayama, age 18—
=By that,//You mean...?

=Idiot! You think you can be a professional ballplayer without knowing any party tricks!?//Do something!


<279>
=Alright, guess I'll do some teammate impersonations...
=Sometimes a rookie high schooler for the Tokyo Onions.

=Pitcher, Shimobara.
=Sometimes a classmate of Azusa Satomi—

=Sometimes a childhood friend of Azusa Satomi—
=Catcher, Ahe.

=Clean-up hitter, Hagajima.

=Shortstop, Ishioka.

[x2]SCRATCH

=What the hell.//Is that me making an error?
=HA HA HA!//Yeah yeah!//That's awesome!

=Great job!//Awesome!
[x2]RABBLE
=Thank you.
=Thank you.

=—And other times,//I'm Azusa Satomi while Azusa Satomi is Keita Hirayama...


<280>
=Hah!//That's nothing to get worked up about—

=I'll show you a real party trick.//I'll make it across the balcony with two beer bottles stacked on my head!
OHH—

=—So basically,//Keita Hirayama the professional baseball player is actually Azusa Satomi...

=While Azusa is playing baseball,//I have to cross-dress, and...
THUD

=Isn't he...//The starter for the Sllowars game tomorrow?
[x2]SCRATCH

=Tsuyoshi Entenka, age 18. Rookie high schooler. 1st-round draft pick.


<281>
KERPLU—NK

=Hey Hirayama,//What was her name again? Our official cheerleader who happens to be your classmate.

=Are you talking about...//Azusa Satomi?

=Yeah yeah.
=Didn't she say her father coached the high school baseball team?

=Did he go to Aseda University by any chance?
=—Yes,
=I believe he did.
[reference]Waseda University; Aseda=Sweat field

=I knew it!

=So...//What about her?

=I've seen her pitching before!//Around 10 years ago—
=Huh?


<282>
=That girl's father is an alum of my college baseball team.//He kept asking me take a look at his daughter's pitching.

=Think she was only in 2nd or 3rd grade, but...//Yeah, she was ridiculously good.
=The boys didn't stand a chance.

=This is coming from a professional ballplayer,//That girl was a straight-up prodigy.

=Did she end up quitting baseball—?
=—Yes.
=Before middle school...
=Aside from those special training sessions with her old man...

=What a shame.//Wonder what she would be like now if she kept playing.

=A rookie high schooler, with a win in her pro debut.
=Dunno...

KERPLU—NK


<283>
=Hirayama!//The manager's on the phone!
GARUCK

=Yessi—r.
SPLASH

=The next day—
ZWISH—

=RING//RING
=RING RI—NG


<284>
=RING//RING
[screen]Call From//Supermarket K
=RING RI—NG
[reference]See end of Chapter 1.

=PIP

=What do you want?
=—Photo shoot?//Went pretty well.

=Tomorrow's starter?//Who?

=Keita Hirayama?

=Wha!

=I thought it was 6 days off before the next start!

=Well, you see... Entenka was supposed to be the starter, but he injured himself.
=The 3 veterans have to stay on rotation,//And Mr. Torimitsu's been having diarrhea since yesterday.


<285>
=You're coming back sometime today, aren't you?

=Haven't you ever heard of a weather forecast!?
SWII—SH
=Huh?

=There's a typhoon closing in on Okinawa,//So they're delaying all the flights till tomorrow morning!
[banner]Mensore; "Welcome" in the Okinawan language.

=A typhoon!?//This time of year!?
=Don't dwell on the little details!

=A night game, maybe.//But there's no way I'll make it back in time for a day game!
=Uck!
[x2]SPLASH


<286>
=W-What should I do...?
=That's my line!//Besides, how did Entenka get injured in the first place!?

=He fell off the balcony with 2 beer bottles on his head, and...
=What the heck?

=Anyways, you've got to turn it down!
=I can't,//I already...

=Then you fall off the balcony too!
[bubble]PIP

=BEE—P//BEE—P
=BEE—P

=—Gosh,//Geez...

ZWII—SH


<287>
=The Kuluton Sllowars home field,

=Gugu Stadium—
[sign]Meiji Gugu Stadium
[reference]Meiji Jingu Stadium; home of the Tokyo Yakult Swallows.

[2]Ahe
[1]Hirayama


<288>
WHOP

=Are you sure 4-days rest was enough...?//He's not throwing well at all.
=Hah-hah! This is normal for him.

=He doesn't turn on the heat until he's up on the mound.//That's when he get into serious mode.

WHOP

=Keita Hirayama in serious mode, aka//...Keita Hirayama.

=—So,//What happened was...


<289>
WHOOSH

WHOP
=Steeerike out!

=Amazing! That's already the 5th strikeout!

=The Sllowars lineup can't seem to get the timing right,//Against this rookie high schooler!


<290>
=M-Manager...//Are you sure this data is correct?

=His fastball is supposed to be over 90mph on average,//But he's throwing about 20mph slower with the exact same delivery.

[x2]SWUSH

=You see, this is my best teammate impersonation,//Mr. Ishioka...

TOSS

BLOP
=Over to the veteran shortstop, Ishioka!

WHAP
=Inning over!


<291>
=Outstanding! Keita Hirayama,//Has pitched a perfect game over 3 innings!

=Perfect...?

=That's sandlot pitching!
=Damn it—!//That little squirt...

FLAP FLAP..

=Hirayama...//You sure you don't wanna get into serious mode already!?
[x2]=Perfect


<292>
=Serious mode!

WHACK

=H-//Homerun!
WHOA

=H-//Huh?


<293>
TOSS

CRINK

=There's another huge shot!
WAHH

=Foul!//Foul!
=So close!//Missed it by a few inches!

=Hi-//Hirayama—!

=A-//Azusa...!
=EE—K!


<294>
SPLASH

=Wh-What's going on here!?//It's suddenly looking like a bucketful of rain is being poured over Gugu Stadium!
[from right]WAH—//AHH—//WAH—//EE—K//AHH—

=The referees have called a timeout, and are directing the players back to their dugouts.

=This is a tremendous downpour!


<295>
=According to the local weather bureau,//The rainfall is being caused by the typhoon which suddenly veered off course from Okinawa!

[sign]Locker Room

=Phew,//I'm saved...

=Hirayama, looks like this rain is just a one-time thing.//Be prepared!
=Huh?

=No wa—y...

=Here,//Hurry up and get changed!
=Right right.


<296>
=A-//Azusa!

=H-How'd you get here!?
=They said it on the announcement.//I made it back in time thanks to the typhoon changing course all of a sudden.

=Gosh, looks like I made it in the nick of time!

=Thanks...

=Why do you have scrapes all over your body?

=Oh,//These?

=I tried falling off the balcony a few times,//—But, you know. I was always pretty flexible, right?
=So I only managed to get scrapes.
[bubble]...Sorry


<297>
=...Idiot.

FLASH

=Just look at that! Whatever happened to that weather from before?//The sun is now shining over Gugu Stadium.

=The game is restarting!

=Alright!//Crush that sandlot pitcher!


<298>
[x2]BLAM

=Yer out!

=Now he's throwing 93mph with the same exact delivery as before,//Manager...

=Wh-//What the heck is going on...


<299>
=Now I remember!

[x2]SWISH

=That habit that Hirayama has—


<300>
=The girl prodigy from 10 years ago had the same exact habit.

Idol A: Chapter 3 (END)