Tokyo Soft Rice King.

The other senior members of the baseball team were also stunned, breaking out in a cold sweat, and the entire stadium fell into a deathly silence.

Until someone, or rather, a chat window broke the silence: 'Hey... what happened with that ball just now?'

Next came a series of strikeouts, interspersed with the host's inner monologues.

He already knew what was going on. It was his friend's body that made up for his past deficiencies. After his physical stats were matched, his pitching also displayed the power he was supposed to have.

But this is just the first time I've shown off.

Immediately afterward, the male protagonist, who was prone to making sarcastic remarks, felt not happiness, but regret. He thought, if this body can achieve that kind of power, then why can't his own body do the same?

Is it really a difference in talent? But I'm the one pitching now!

He realized he was working in the wrong direction... he was focusing too much on ball control and neglecting physical training. He now understood what he was missing.

Giving up on baseball too early...

I still want to play baseball...

I want to go back to my original body!

I want to keep working up a sweat!

Incorporate all these feelings of 'unwillingness' into the ball...

Throw it out!

A feeling of youthful passion arises spontaneously.

Akira Kuroba made quite a few changes to the settings and plot.

Originally, Shiori Shirai wrote that the male protagonist was a tsukkomi type with a good feel for the ball, but his physical abilities were insufficient, so he was forced to be a catcher, while the second male lead was a pitcher with no ball control ability. However, Akira Kuroba did not change the positions of the two, but directly gave up baseball.

There's no need to swap positions, because what we want is for the effect of the 'original trash combination' suddenly becoming the 'most awesome combination', and for that feeling of 'it's not the machines that are trash, but the pilots who are incompatible'.

Then, the flaws of the two were also modified, but they were flaws that could be made up by exchanging souls, and were even turned into advantages.

Of course, all of this is to lay the groundwork for the most crucial plot point.

Having figured everything out, the male protagonist looked at his good partner and saw the same seriousness in the other's eyes.

Come on... catch it properly!

My soul is contained within this ball!

I want to cast my 'soul' out...!

This is also the most important close-up shot, with one page divided into two halves, and both male protagonists are shown facing forward.

In the end, the batter failed to hit a single ball, and the pitcher and catcher duo sealed the victory.

Up to this point, we've almost reached the page limit. The ending features the sarcastic male protagonist suggesting to the naturally aloof male lead: 'Hey, XXX, how about we try playing baseball again? Until we both... return to our own bodies.'

His answer was the chirping of cicadas in summer and a single word: "Good."

This concludes the short comic strip.

It has a somewhat abrupt ending and a sense that 'the story has only just begun,' leaving viewers wanting more.

Because this is clearly the idea for a long-running serial.

Moreover, this also foreshadows that the 'invincible throwing and capturing' technique has a 'time limit'.

After all the souls have been cast out, the soul exchange will usually end.

It will make everyone want to know what will happen next.

If short comics are judged on the completeness of the story, this should be a negative point, but excellent short stories in Shonen BOOM have the opportunity to be serialized, so this should actually be a positive point.

The most important part of the plot is the scene where the soul is thrown out like a ball.

You could say that this batch of dumplings was made just for that little bit of vinegar.

However, this touch of vinegar becomes the finishing touch to the entire comic.

Then... it was passed on.

The feelings and meaning that Akira Kuroba wanted to express in this short story were all conveyed to Moe Aizono.

It felt like being shot in the heart with an arrow.

Aizen Moe realized that this was what was called 'hitting the soul'.

So, she blurted it out after reading it.

"...That's amazing..."

When people see something truly amazing, their reaction is not as strong.

Because the 'shock' will spread throughout the body, giving people a tingling sensation, and even making their heart beat faster.

Aizen Moe's body moved involuntarily, and when she came to her senses, she found herself already using the fruit-flavored facial cleanser on Kuroba Akira.

Makoto gave a cold smile, while Mirai wore an envious expression.

Being natural is great... you can grope someone without getting criticized.

But this time, Aizono Moe didn't even show any shyness. Instead, she looked at Kuroba Akira with sparkling eyes and said...

"If Kuroba-kun were this manga... he might actually win the short story award!"

"!" x2

Both Hitomi Anri and Shiori Shirai showed expressions of surprise upon hearing this, and then exchanged glances again.

How could Mengmeng, whose self-confidence has been completely shattered, say something like that... Is the name drawn by Mingjun really that amazing?

Kuroba Akira felt the cute spots on her face and wanted to look up... Mengmeng was really excited, you could feel it even through the bra.

It would be embarrassing if he also held up an umbrella, since boys are much more noticeable than girls. Thinking of this, Kuroba Akira reluctantly left the adorable giant thunder.

"Ahem... Well, as long as you're satisfied, Moe. I actually think that if there aren't any god-like competitors, we still have a good chance of winning the short story award."

It wasn't that Kuroba Akira underestimated others, nor was he overconfident; rather, he felt that with his storyboarding skills and Moe's drawing skills, they were perfectly capable of "smashing fish" in a low-skill game.

Because the level of people who participate in the short comic award varies, and most of them are novices and newcomers who are submitting for the first time, since the big names don't care about a prize of one million, while comic artists who want to serialize their works submit directly to the editorial department.

The most competitive are those who have been working as assistants to well-known cartoonists. Before graduating from their assistantship, they will try their hand at short stories, which makes them true industry insiders.

Of course, there's a very small chance that a future super-genius cartoonist might participate in the short story competition... We can only pray that we won't be that unlucky.

After telling Kuroba Akira her first impressions, Aizono Moe recovered and then blushed as she explained to the others.

"Ah, I didn't mean that this story is better than the previous one. I've said before that I wanted to draw both, but... but..."

Aizono Moe originally wanted to be impartial, since it was her suggestion to draw both parts, but if she now shows that Shiori's story is better, it will make Hitomi feel bad...

In terms of emotional intelligence, Aizen Moe is good at reading people's expressions, but because of her poor speaking skills and stammering, she can't continue speaking and doesn't know how to explain herself.

The understanding Anri Hitomi walked over to her, smiled, and patted her head.

"Okay, okay, Mengmeng, you don't need to comfort me. The truth is that Shiori's story is better, I definitely can't compare to hers."

Hearing Hitomi's self-deprecating remark, Hikawa Makoto and Takanashi Mirai were quite surprised and exchanged glances, both wondering, "Is this still Hitomi?"

Although the two of them had heard that Shirai Shiori was a pretty good writer and had even won a short story award, they thought she was just a fledgling author at best.

And Hitomi Anri is that 'perfect superhero'!

Both of them knew that as long as Anri Hitomi was willing to spend more time on this, she could easily surpass ordinary people, and even many geniuses...

Her efficiency is so high that she can achieve in a week what others might take a month to reach.

It's not so much that it makes people think "amazing," but rather that it makes people think "it's so unfair."

It was that cheat-like learning ability that made both of them have complicated feelings towards her, yet they still acknowledged her as their leader.

But now he feels inferior? And it doesn't seem like he's being humble at all...

Is it because Aizono Moe and Shirai Shiori are closer that you're biased towards the other side?

"That's not true! I genuinely believe that both sides have their own merits, but... how should I put it... in this baseball series, I can feel something... something I've never felt before!"

Shiori Shirai also came over, looking at the name drawn from her own story and saying with an understanding expression.

"This... is something else now. My story with Tong is just a prototype. We couldn't have designed a name like this. So the real genius is the wise ruler."

Aizen Moe nodded repeatedly, then pointed to her finger and said...

"Actually, I really like Kuroba-kun..."

A sudden confession?!

Makoto and Mirai were both stunned. Was this woman serious? Confessing at a time like this?

But Hitomi and Shiori, who know Moe well, knew that she definitely hadn't finished speaking, and Kuroba Akira didn't misunderstand, but waited for her to finish.

Moe realized that what she said was ambiguous... or maybe not, but she was just too shy to say such things in front of everyone, so she quickly corrected herself.

"Ah! Um! What I mean is I enjoy working with Kuroba-kun because I can easily understand his thoughts and intentions, much easier than the seniors in the manga club in junior high..."

Makoto rolled her eyes and looked up, while Mirai lowered her head and slumped her shoulders.

So, is the "natural type" really... wait, is she really natural?

Could it be that she actually knows everything but is deliberately causing a misunderstanding?

Moreover, Hitomi and Shirai Shiori both indulged her and took good care of her, and even Akira would ask for her opinion first...

Is Aiyuan Moe really the core of the Literature Club? Beneath her seemingly innocent exterior lies a scheming, manipulative, and controlling green tea bitch?

As the two fell into suspicion with Dihua, Aizono Moe continued.

“When I used to draw doujinshi, I felt that maybe even the senior artists didn’t know what they wanted. They just insisted that I inject their own sexuality and interests into the drawings… um… you know, that…”

Moe originally wanted to say "xp", but she was too shy to say it and couldn't think of a suitable pronoun, so she blushed and lowered her head.

This is too cute!

Everyone thought that her shyness was so innocent and pure, and that she had a real JK (high school girl) vibe.

She's probably the one who looks most like a JK (high school girl) among all the JKs present...

After all, the other girls seemed to have somewhat abandoned any sense of shame.

Hitomi Anri → and Akira Kuroba leave marks all over the school and also like to taste the fishy-smelling drinks preserved in oil balloons.

Shiori Shirai → She became naked in front of Akira Kuroba, developed a habit of sleeping naked, and even used Akira Kuroba as a casting medium.