My details: Server Number: NY386 Serpant's Rampart. Character Name: Emperor Lone. UID: 200000100062044

The Will To Be Accepted

Scarlet Blaze; the youngest and shortest member of the Konoha Rasengans, sat on the bench as he bit his lips in frustration. He had been ridiculed and taunted for his height ever since he joined the team.

It was only thanks to his occasional, 'moments of luck', as the other team members called them, that he was able to be selected to just be a benched player for them. baseball meant everything to him.

How many years had he worked hard to perfect his Scorching Pitcher? How many hours had he toiled away by himself, almost breaking his body, to make up the difference in his small frame with strength? Too many to count. What was the point of all of the training, all of that hard work, for it to be ignored and dismissed as 'luck' or a 'fluke'?

Scarlet only wanted two things: To gain the respect of his teammates and to help win the game.

All of the professional juniors teams from the five great villages had conferred for the annual baseball cup, and in this event, great fortune and fame could be earned by the winners.

Unfortunately, the Konoha Rasengans had never once won this tournament. It was only open to Genin, like Scarlet, and due to the tensions between the five great nations, only the weakest Genin were allowed to join their ninja sports divisions to let the stronger ones focus on their training in preparation to deal with the fourth great ninja war that could easily break out at any moment.

'We can't lose again! We have to show the other villages that we're better than them!', Scarlet's mind raced as he let his fiery temperament consume him for a moment.

It was at that moment, that a loud array of voices suddenly inhaled sharply or cried out in surprise. Raising his head, Scarlet could see that the ace batter, Naruto Uzumaki, one of the weakest Genin, had been hit in the face with a chakra infused baseball, knocking him out cold.

He was dragged away by a few medical ninjas as Asuma Sarutobi, the temporary coach for the team, furrowed his brow as he thought of what to do.

This was the last inning, and their opponents, the Hard Hitters from the village of stone, had been purposefully eliminating their best players via chakra infusion, a technique that the Konoha Rasengans hadn't learnt yet in their Genin training.

Now there was only one option left if they wanted to win. "Scarlet!"

"Me?" Scarlet looked around a bit sheepishly only to notice that he was the last person sitting on the bench. Had everyone else been taken out with those insanely fast throws? He didn't know, but he did know that this was his chance.

"Yeah, you. I know it's not right to ask you to face those monsters... *ed Iwagakure cheaters... It was a silent agreement to use the weakest ninjas... unless these are there weakest?" Asuma paled at this thought.

He held no hopes for the young fifteen-year-old, Scarlet Blaze, but he couldn't take this defeat lying down. That wasn't Konoha. That wasn't the undying Will of Fire that filled all residents of Konoha's hearts!

"I'm sorry to put this on you," Asuma said while he put a hand on Scarlet's shoulder. he showed his teeth holding his cigarette in place as he smiled. "I believe in you, even if the team doesn't. I was keeping you back as our trump card, so go show them the Will of Fire, okay, kid?"

"Asuma-sensei..." Scarlet felt his chest pound and his blood begin to rush. 'Asuma-sensei believes in me... Even if it ruins my hands, I have to use that! I can't let Sensei or Konoha down!'

"I can do this, Asuma-sensei! I won't let you down, I swear on my name as a member of the Blaze Clan!" Scarlet passionately declared.

"Kid..." Asuma was taken aback before he closed his eyes and nodded. "Yeah, that's the spirit."

Scarlet grinned and walked over to the batting stand. Asuma had a conflicted look on his face. 'There's no way we can win. He needs a flawless home-run... With the way the Earth boy is throwing his *, there's no way...'

Scarlet stood firmly in front of the catcher with a determined look in his eyes and he stared at the pitcher who was twenty or so feet away. His palms were sweating and he was nervous. The boy who was holding the baseball and getting ready to throw it was a hulking mass of muscles unfit to be called a teenager. Not only was he covering the small leather ball in chakra, his raw strength alone was enough to scare Scarlet.

'I can do this! Asuma-sensei, the team and all of Konoha are counting on me!' he gritted his teeth and prepared for the pain that was to come from using his secret jutsu.

The pitcher wound his arm back and threw the baseball. It was shrouded in a thin layer of brown energy, clearly, this was Earth-natured chakra. Scarlet swung his bat to match the height of the ball, and just as the two were about to hit one another, Scarlet moved his fingers in a strange pattern and mumbled, "Jigoku no bō no jutsu."

Immediately, his metal bat was covered in a wild and fierce layer of roaring flames. All Scarlet felt after that was his arms flopping to his sides and his feet moving as fast as they could. Something that seemed like a loud cheering sound passed through his ears before he collapsed.

A few days later, he woke up in a hospital bed with Asuma sitting next to him. "You're finally awake, Scarlet." A big smile was on his sensei's face.

"What happened? I can't remember anything past when I..." Scarlet looked down at his arms and was glad to see that they were still okay.

"You won, kid. I couldn't believe it. When did you learn such a powerful jutsu? It must be at least rank A. Here, take this," Asuma praised before he passed a small black lump of something to Scarlet.

"Is this... the ball?" Scarlet asked in confusion.

Asuma laughed. "You messed it up pretty badly. My Uncle, the Hokage, he wanted you to have it. Also, welcome to the team, Ace-san."

"A-Ace-san?" Scarlet stuttered.

Asuma nodded and grinned. "The whole team decided. You're the new Ace. Naruto had to step down to go find Jiraiya-sensei, an old toad hermit."

A tear rolled down Scarlet's face. He had finally been recognised! This was all he had ever wanted! With the help of the lost art from his long-dead clan, he was able to carve his path ahead!

What the future held for the young Scarlet Blaze, no one knew for sure. However, he would never forget this moment for a single day as he grew to become one of the most powerful shinobi in the known world.