MaruMA:Doujinshi1:Story2

For Some Reason You Need Money in this World 　

Source: NEWTYPE 2007- SPRING
Originally published in doujinshi 01: Vier

Since I became a high school student, and I can't cling onto my parents in tears asking for money, I've decided to use my summer break to get a short-term part-time job. This is because up till now, every piece of baseball equipment I own has been bought at their expense.

I have the glove and the shoes already, but now I need my uniform for my grass-lot baseball team. In order to get both the mesh and normal ones, it will cost about 25,000 yen. I can improvise with the underwear and socks but I don't even want to think about how much having the team's logo added to the cap and jerseys will cost.

And on top of that, in my case, I also have to pay for the protector and mask out of my own pocket.... Ah~! You need money to be a catcher .

---

Ah, nice to meet you. I'm here for the interview for the part-time job... is this the right place? Yeah, I heard that there was some physical work involved so I was a little shocked when I saw this place.

Ah, yes you're right. Since this is where you sign up, it's an office, and that's why it's pretty tidy.

Yes, please let me sit down. Ah, the "please let me" should be a "thank you, I will". I'm sorry, I'm not used to speaking Japanese correctly.

Uhm... here's my resume. This is the first time I've written one. My name is Shibuya Yuuri. Shibuya as in Shibuya-Harajuku-Roppongi. The "Yu" part of Yuuri is written with the kanji for profit. In other words, my name means "advantageous". No, I've never had a superiority complex thinking that Harajuku is disadvantageous.

My height? I'm 1,70m. To be accurate almost 1,70m. But there are professional baseball players that are shorter than me, no, I mean, shorter than I am, such as Hashimoto, Ooshima, or Tanaka Kazunori for example. If you think about my age, I'm still going to keep growing. I'm about the average size of any other high school student so there shouldn't be any pro... blems?

You want me to stand up?

Like this?

Ah... that's enough? Okay.

The reason why I want this job? To be honest, there's something that I want...

Eh? A brand? Uhm... I like the brand ZETT.Why? Well, even though I picked one, I actually like all baseball equipment brands.

The reason why I want this job, has to do with my grass-lot baseball team... Before I can begin, I'll need a uniform and a protector.　I had never noticed this before, but to be a catcher you need more money than players in other positions. I wonder if that's why no one wants to be a catcher in Little League?

Ah, yes, that's right. I'm a Leo. Cool, huh? To be a Leo, I mean. I was born on July 29 but if my mom would have tried a little harder for another month I'd be sharing my birthday with my mentor. It's super frustrating, I wish I could have been born on August 29.

I've never had a blood test to determine my type.

My favorite phrase is: "For a catcher, baseball is everything"

The person I admire the most is, my mentor, Itou Tsutomu-san.

Ah!? What do you mean "Who's that"!? It's Japan's Number 1 Catcher! Furata? Furata was not that good! Nomura.... ah! When it comes to Director Nomura, I must acknowledge he was one of the great ones.

I'm sorry. Me, I mean "I" , I get a little too excited when it comes to baseball.

I like all the Giant's players... well, if you make me choose one, I guess it would be Kisanuki. Ah! And then the one who was originally from our team, Toyoda.

My ideal type? .... Uhm! Well, definitely it has to have a strong body, and a long career.... that's my ideal.

Since I want to become a good player, I'm properly accumulating information, but when you're in a pinch, you have to use your experience and intuition. If you can do that and show a strong, solid leadership, you'll become a cornerstone for your team, a spiritual pillar.... He's so cool, isn't he? My mentor...

Ah! I'm sorry, when you said ideal type were you talking about appearance or personality?

Ah... well, let's see. I like someone with bags under their eyes and a strong face like that of a samurai. By samurai face I mean one that seems tight and refined, an imposing face... that's what I like.

　And then, there's the way samurais walk. The hips are the most important part, you know? Moving their hips like this *Ku*Ku*Ku* and walking like that, you know? And then doing their entry dashing on a white horse, or if they're horse archers, that's nice too, huh? An emperor, like a shogun, you know? Matsudaira Ken! Though now a days they call him Kin-san. But And Takahashi Higeki's Nobunaga, even though it was a long time ago, he did an awesome job! My dad cries when he watches his movies. Yeah, Higeki-chan is hard to forget.

Ah? You were talking about girls? What type of girl do I like? What does that have to do with a part-time job?

What did you say? That love affairs at for work are forbidden, so just in case? .... Ehh?.... Really? Girls.... girls, huh? Hmmm... girls.

I guess any talented girl would be interesting, right? Hm... Jennifer Aniston, for example? Ah, the one that recently got a divorce from Brad Pitt... yeah, yeah, that one. She was in "Friends". She's cute, right!?

Do I like them to be older than me? Well... yeah.

My hobby is baseball. Watching it, playing it... I just love it. It's a good sport, right? Baseball.

My position is catcher. Hm? Mike Piazza. No rather than major leagues I prefer the Pacific League. If the Pacific League can't excite people, Japan's professional baseball is doomed.

If you count the weekends, I watch them play about three times a week. Watching the baseball players live, at the stadium, makes me feel like I myself am growing.

Of course, the intensity is different. When I see one of Cabrera's home-runs, or when there's a killer foul ball, and you know the Central League is going to lose...

Yes? Ah! Yeah, that's right. All the guys in my class have girlfriends, it's hard to be alone, but I go to the arcades.

Yes, there are lots of guys chasing after idols. Like guys who send messages to magazines and radio shows all the time.

Am I interested in idols?

Well, an acquaintance of mine, Okada, he chases after one person. What was her name? The girl that sings the NHK Theme song... Ayaka Hirahara ? She's an idol, right? But I'm really not interested in that. I mean he follows her everywhere, and cheers really hard for her during the live performances. But that doesn't help her, or AKB at all. But even if it doesn't help the artists when their fans cheer for them, when you cheer for the Seibu Lions, that helps the team! Everyone knows that.

Eh? Why did I come here you ask? I came here for a job interview.

You say you have no use for a guy who's not interested in showbiz.... Why?!　This is the registration office for manual labor, isn't it? Like for employees who work in the field, factories, warehouses and such.... IT'S NOT?!

Then what kind of place is.... a show biz production company?!

A company that does the primary screening for a a show biz production company?!

Ah! Crap, I really messed up. I was careless and I was tricked into this!

S..s..s..s..sorry! I'm not in the slightest interested in becoming an idol.

It's just that my mother said that this was manual labor job, and she scheduled the interview over the phone.

I see, so it happens often that sisters and mothers register the applicants without their permission? Ah, that's good. It's not just me then. I feel relieved.

I see, so housewives and female college students who have a lot of free time, while looking for something fun to do, they end up sacrificing their sons and little brothers...... Yes, my mom is a full-time housewife too. But she's not the type who accepts she's just a housewife.

My father's job? My dad's the average office worker. Yes, at a bank. My brother is still studying his career, and my profession is being the Maou. It's a really ordinary family. No matter how you look at it, it's the typical 4 person family.

Ah, about being the Maou?　No, you don't need to worry about that. It's just a freelance profession, just an honorary position, I'm not really skilled at it. It's like being a "Miss Koshihikari Rice", or a "Miss Eel Pie".

What did you just say?! You don't get the feel that I have the power of a maou, or the mysterious beauty of one?! Right? Right?!

I have a very average appearance. I'm not the type who has good looks, neither am I cute, or someone who has a noble body. I was not born with a beauty that entices people, nor am I a super handsome pretty boy that everyone falls in love with, right?

You're right, no matter how you look at it, I don't look like a Maou, right?

Ah.... that's great! I'm just an average person, an average person!

Since I was told so many strange things over there, I started wondering if I was just not aware of what I really look like and I was secretly worried.

Uhm... I'm sorry, could you tell that I don't look like a Maou, that there's nothing special about me, and that I have a super-average appearance one more time?

If possible with a confident tone and swear words?

No...no...no...no... I'm not the type of person who gets excited when others humiliate them.

But please tell me one more time how average and mediocre I am.

Uwah~ that's so soothing! That's right, I am, after all just an average guy.

---

"Wait Yuu-chan! After telling me "I have no money! I have no money" , and after I went through all the trouble of getting you that interview, you went ahead and left in the middle of it!? It's a neat office where you don't need to talk to girls too much for them to like you, and it's a safe place where you won't get bullied..."

"When did I ever say I wanted to be a part of a talent agency!? When did I ever say I wanted to be an idol!?"

"It's just that, Yuu-chan! Aren't you always saying that you want to meet Itou-san at least once in your life, that you want to talk to the Seibu players, that you want to get to know the professional baseball players? So, if you become a male idol, like TOKIO Matsuoka-kun, you can have specials where you talk to the players that you like and rare players too, right?

"..... Uhm.... that's not the problem here...."

" If you were to become friend with Hirose-san of the Nippon-Hams, you might be able to exchange phones and addresses with Uno-san of the Chunichi Dragons, that mom likes so much!

"......................"

" If I were to meet Uno-san, I'd surely ask him the truth about the his head incident, you know? Was it really an error? Did his head actually hurt? I'd ask him that for sure.

"....If you do something like that, you'll probably get killed by Uno...."

"Ah, but it's alright. After all, Yuu-chan, the blood of the National Athletic Prized Fencer Shibuya Jennifer open quotation marks maiden name: Honzawa close quotation marks runs through my veins."

"..... Who's Jennifer? "

"Ah.... I'm looking forward to it, Yuu-chan. Shibuya Yuuri, on the path to become an idol!"

"I won't follow, I will never follow such a path. But more importantly, who's Jennifer!?"

"I would be known as a top-class stage mom, and momma would be full of energy, you know? "

"You don't need that, okay?! You don't need to be a stage mom at this age!?"

"Both of us need to work hard together, Yuu-chan! Being a star with a high box‐office value is only a step away!"

"That's why I keep asking you, who is this Jennifer?!"

For some reason you need money in this world, but the way of earning it depends on the skills of each individual.

END

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