CHAPTER 50: CHAPTER 50: KOSHIEN, KOSHIEN

August 7, 2010, morning.

Japan, Hyogo Prefecture Nishinomiya City, Hanshin Koshien Stadium.

"And now, we commence the 92nd National High School Baseball Championship Memorial Tournament, sponsored by Japan’s Asahi Shimbun!"

Thunderous applause erupted from the packed stands of Koshien Stadium. Under the watchful eyes of over fifty thousand on-site spectators and millions of baseball fans in front of their TVs, the summer of youth and dreams began at this moment.

"Players, please enter the field!"

As soon as the announcer’s voice faded, the Kansai Wind Orchestra Alliance, composed of brass bands from four high schools in Hyogo, began to play the entrance march. Tens of thousands of spectators turned their eyes to the player tunnel in right field, where players from 49 schools gathered, awaiting the start of the entry ceremony.

As the grandest and most watched amateur baseball event in all of Japan, Koshien’s opening ceremony was full of grandeur:

Apart from ordinary fans, the stands also featured luminaries and political leaders from various fields, with even representatives from Japan’s royal family in attendance.

Accompanied by the melody of the entrance march, standing at the forefront of the lineup was Nishida Naoki, the captain from Sawayama Town’s baseball team in Hyogo Prefecture. His hometown, Sawayama Town, was hit by a storm disaster last summer, and Nishida Naoki was one of the volunteer workers for disaster recovery. To showcase the event’s human care, he led the national flag and event flag units into the field as the foremost guide.

After Nishida Naoki and the national and event flag units passed by, the next to enter were the winning representatives from various regional tournaments.

"First to enter is last year’s champion, the Aichi Conference representative, Chukyo University Chukyo!"

The on-site announcer introduced the entering teams, and the spectators in the stadium warmly welcomed them with applause.

The entry order at Summer Koshien follows long-held traditions: the school that won last year’s Summer Koshien enters first;

Since this year is an even-numbered session, the teams enter from south to north based on geographic location; in odd-numbered years, the order is reversed from north to south.

As last year’s champions, the captain and vice-captain of Chukyo University Chukyo carried the "National Champion" and "Aichi Conference Champion" flags, leading their team forward in a steady march.

"Next to enter is the Okinawa Conference representative, Konan High School."

As the representative of the southernmost island of Japan, Konan High School entered after Chukyo University Chukyo—being the Senbatsu Champion and this Summer Koshien’s biggest favorite, their appearance also drew loud applause from the audience.

On TV, Asahi TV’s commentators introduced the teams to the viewers:

"The champions of spring, the only A Level team in this year’s tournament, with eyes on winning their first Summer Koshien for the Okinawa region, and achieving a historic sixth spring-summer consecutive championship, Konan High School, making their 9th Summer Koshien appearance in two consecutive years!"

Following Konan High School was Kagoshima Industries, leading other schools from the Kyushu Region into Koshien Stadium one by one; next were schools from Shikoku, China, Kansai, Tokai... Due to Tokyo belonging to the Kantou Region, which is located in the north, Waseda Industries’ entry was relatively later.

In the player tunnel, standing at the back of the team, Lin Guanglai had mixed feelings: joy, nervousness, but more than anything, excitement—

This is Koshien! Youth, dreams, passion, glory—these are all words closely tied to this stadium and this event;

The powerful beating of his heart and the solid sensation underfoot told Lin Guanglai that this wasn’t a dream, but the moment his dream was coming true.

The teams in front were getting fewer, and cheers and applause from the audience outside the tunnel occasionally reached Lin Guanglai. He took a deep breath to try to calm himself slightly.

At this moment, standing at the front of the line, holding the West Tokyo Conference championship flag, Suzuki Kensuke turned back to remind his teammates, "It’s almost our turn. Everyone, get ready to enter!"

Under the guidance of the staff, Tsuchiya Ryota, standing in the queue, began shouting slogans, and the other team members followed his rhythm by marching in place before moving forward.

"One, two, one, one, two, one!"

Exiting the player tunnel, Lin Guanglai’s view suddenly expanded and brightened—the azure sky, the scorching sun above, the vast playing field, and tens of thousands of spectators in the packed green stands—it was all overwhelming.

Though Lin Guanglai had seen similar scenes before, and Shengong Stadium was not much less impressive compared to Koshien, for some reason, perhaps personal mood, he felt his heart racing faster than ever, much more nervous than before.

Marching along the field’s edge, Waseda Real’s players proceeded, and as their team reached the vicinity of the podium, the on-site announcer simultaneously made the announcement:

"West Tokyo Conference representative, Waseda Real."

"Clap, clap, clap!" Sudden loud applause and cheers erupted from the stands, even more fervent than the welcome given to other prominent teams—Waseda Real’s players were even somewhat startled by it.

In reality, Waseda Real has always been immensely popular throughout Japan, especially among women in their forties and fifties, even earning the nickname "Media’s Favorite Child."

This phenomenon’s origin can be traced back to the 1980s.

In 1980, a prodigious young lad from Waseda Industries set the entire Japanese baseball scene ablaze with his talent—he was Arima Daisuke. As soon as Arima enrolled, he became the starting pitcher for Waseda Real and led the team to the finals of that summer’s tournament—allowing no earned runs in all games leading to the finals.

Though fatigue led to a loss in the final and nothing noteworthy followed in his next two years or professional career, Arima’s handsome appearance, tenacity, and never-give-up spirit garnered him a large fanbase, with an overwhelming number of female fans—In the 1980s, Waseda Real’s games drew so many supporters that police were needed to maintain order; Arima himself was once troubled by his fervent female fanbase.

Since then, Waseda Industries’ popularity has remained high. The nationwide frenzy ignited by Waseda Real’s championship victory in 2006 was largely fueled by the nostalgia of those fans who once dreamt of dominating the nation alongside Arima.

As Waseda Real players goose-stepped into the stadium, television commentators also remarked, "A prestigious school from West Tokyo, first participating in four years since Yuu-chan (Saito Yuuki). What can they accomplish in this tournament?"

"Of particular interest is their first-year pitcher, Lin Guanglai; started 4 games in the regional tournament only allowing 1 run, and threw a no-hitter in the finals, making him one of the noteworthy rookies this year."

Keeping pace with the main group, the entire player formation marched around the field and then converged at the central field area.

Once all 49 teams assembled, under the leadership of Nishida Naoki, all players proceeded towards the infield—where lines had been drawn for the teams, forming a neatly aligned player formation nearly a thousand strong.

"It’s so crowded, and so hot."—this was Lin Guanglai’s only thought at the moment.