The next day after school the air in Nagano felt heavy with anticipation. I stood at the edge of the field waiting for the others to arrive. Shortly after Nobu and Wakana showed up, the rest of the crew from our elementary school team appeared. They marched onto the lot hauling old tires and coils of rope as if they were going to war. Some had brought rusty shovels while others carried heavy duty trash bags and garden rakes from their homes.
"Eijun we heard the principal finally gave the green light" one of them shouted, dropping a massive tractor tire that hit the ground with a dull thud.
I nodded as I looked at the pile of rubber and cleaning supplies growing in front of me. "You guys really came prepared" I said and I felt a surge of pride seeing everyone ready to work.
"We've been waiting for this since the graduation ceremony" Nobu grinned, throwing his own rope onto the pile. "Operation Baseball is officially a go"
We didn't waste any time. The tires were stacked neatly near the old dugout and everyone put on thick work gloves. The field was a total mess of tall weeds and jagged rocks that looked like they had been there for decades. We divided into teams immediately. Some of us tackled the overgrown grass in the outfield while others began the backbreaking work of sifting through the dirt to remove stones that could cause a bad hop during practice.
The sun was high and sweat began to soak through our school shirts within minutes. The sound of metal rakes scraping against the hard earth filled the air. It was exhausting work but nobody complained because we were finally building our own space.
About two hours into the labor two older girls appeared on the path leading to the field. It was the older sisters of one of our teammates and they were carrying large wicker baskets.
"Break time" they called out with a laugh. "We figured you'd be starving after all that raking"
We dropped our tools and gathered under the shade of a lone tree near the fence. Inside the baskets were mountains of fresh onigiri wrapped in salty seaweed and thermoses filled with cold barley tea. I took a bite of a plum filled rice ball and it felt like exactly what I needed.
"This is amazing" Nobu said with his mouth half full of rice. "My hands are already starting to blister but this makes it worth it"
"We're making good progress" Wakana added, wiping dirt from her forehead with a towel. "If we keep this pace up the infield might actually be playable by tomorrow afternoon"
One of the older sisters looked at the messy field and then back at our tired faces. "I've never seen this many kids working so hard on a school project. Are you guys really going to do this without a coach for now"
"We have to" I replied looking at the determined faces of the guys I had played with since we were small. "We have a plan and we have each other. That's enough to start"
We sat there for a while talking about the drills we would do once the ground was level. The laughter and the shared snacks made the daunting task of clearing the wasteland feel manageable. Once the last crumb was gone and the tea was finished we stood up and went back to the dirt with renewed energy.
As the hours passed the sky began to turn a deep shade of indigo. The neon lights of the distant town started to flicker one by one. We had cleared about half of the court but the darkness was making it hard to spot the smaller rocks and glass.
"Okay let's wrap it up for today" I called out leaning on my rake and stretching my sore back. "We've done a lot of good work but we don't want anyone tripping and getting hurt in the dark"
We gathered our personal belongings and tucked the tires under the shelter of the old dugout to keep them dry. Everyone was covered in a thick layer of dust and grime. We said our goodbyes and started the long walk home through the quiet streets of Nagano.