The highly anticipated showdown between the Seidou Coach, Kataoka, and his former mentor, Sakaki, was on full display right from the first round.
At first, the players from Yura Sougou, under Coach Sakaki's leadership, took advantage of Furuya from Seidou High School's instability, seizing the opportunity to score two points.
They gained the initiative right from the start of the game.
However, Seidou High School was not willing to sit back. In the bottom of the first inning, they immediately launched a counterattack.
First, Kuramochi, the catalyst for Seidou's offense, took advantage of a fake bunt opportunity to get on base.
Then, completely disregarding the pitcher's pickoff attempts, he ran straight for second base as soon as the pitcher threw the ball.
By the time he reached second, the Yura Sougou catcher didn't even have time to throw the ball.
Kuramochi used his overwhelming strength to let Yura Sougou know who the real force was in this game.
With no outs and a runner on second base, the next batter, Kominato Haruichi, known for his incredible batting skills, stepped up to the plate.
Almost all the spectators believed without a doubt that Seidou High School would employ a continuous hitting strategy.
However, in an unexpected move, Coach Kataoka did not go this route.
He signaled to Kominato to bunt and walk Kuramochi to third base.
With Kominato's skill and Kuramochi's speed, there was no risk in this strategy.
Therefore, Kuramochi was advanced to third base without issue.
One Out, runner on third.
The fans were somewhat confused, unable to understand why the mighty Seidou High School team wasn't following through with their usual strategy of consecutive attacks. After all, their success rate with such strategies was high.
Yet, Coach Sakaki, the opponent, seemed to understand exactly what his former student was planning.
"Really putting the pressure on us!" Sakaki muttered.
The two-point lead at the start of the game was crucial for Yura Sougou, so they were determined to do everything they could to prevent Seidou High School from closing the gap.
Coach Kataoka saw this and understood their strategy. He knew they needed to score at least one point to counter Yura Sougou's momentum.
This point would serve to disrupt Yura Sougou's confidence.
Seeing Coach Kataoka's calculated response, Coach Sakaki was pleased. Over the years, especially after winning two national championships, Kataoka had grown considerably. He no longer cared about small gains; his focus was on the big picture.
It wasn't just about winning this match but about preparing for the next.
Sakaki had to admit the student he once mentored had truly surpassed him in some ways!
As a Coach now leading Yura Sougou, Sakaki couldn't afford to focus on the next match. They had to give their all in this one. If they thought about the next match, they'd be setting themselves up for failure.
The ability to maintain a tactical focus was not just about the Coach's level but also the players' strengths. The strategy needed to be grounded and realistic.
Ping!
Next up, Shiratsu used a hit-and-run strategy.
Although he was caught out, Coach Kataoka's tactical objective had been achieved.
Kuramochi safely returned to home plate, helping Seidou High School score the vital run they needed to reduce the deficit.
Two Outs, no runners on base.
The fourth batter, Miyuki, hit a single!
Though there were no other runners on base, Miyuki demonstrated his unrivaled batting power. Ever since becoming the team captain, his batting abilities have skyrocketed. Now, in his senior year, he was more powerful than ever, preparing to challenge for the title of the top high school player in the country.
Miyuki made it to second base, but unfortunately, Seidou's batting lineup couldn't string together a series of hits.
The fifth batter, Maezono, hit a high fly to the outfield.
It was caught, resulting in the third Out, and the sides switched.
In the end, Seidou High School only had one runner left on base.
The first inning ended with a near tie — though Seidou High School trailed by one point, Coach Kataoka had effectively neutralized Coach Sakaki's strategy.
Additionally, they disrupted the momentum of Yura Sougou.
For Seidou High School, this result was acceptable. Once the game returned to their rhythm, defeating their opponents would be a matter of time.
Coach Kataoka understood this. His players knew it, too.
Even Yura Sougou's players had to admit... during the first round, despite being one point ahead, they hadn't gained a clear advantage.
However, most of the spectators were amateurs. Their perspective on the game was very different from those who understood it better.
Among them was a chubby guy sitting at the back who had come to the game with his girlfriend.
He was dissatisfied with Seidou High School, but his discontent wasn't because of the team's play. In fact, he wasn't even a fan of baseball. Whether Seidou's players performed well or poorly had nothing to do with him.
He was just annoyed with the team.
To put it simply, he didn't like one particular player from Seidou High School.
Why?
Because his girlfriend was a fan of that player.
Who could stand having posters of another man in their girlfriend's room?
It was simply intolerable!
"Blowing their own horns, saying how strong Seidou High School is. I think they're just average..." he complained.
In the first inning, they were already behind their opponents.
And even after the second inning, the score remained unchanged.
Still 2:1, with Seidou trailing by one.
It could be said that the first inning was an accident, but now with two innings where they were trailing, it couldn't be written off as just an accident.
Though such situations were common in baseball, Seidou High School was no ordinary team.
They were the reigning champions, the most popular team in the country today.
To be struggling against a dark horse like Yura Sougou... it was hard to swallow.
It was no wonder the chubby guy was complaining!
Many neutral fans around him shared the same opinion.
They muttered in agreement, though nobody dared to say it too loudly.
Why?
Because the chubby guy feared upsetting his girlfriend, and others were afraid of drawing the ire of the crowd.
Out of the more than 10,000 people in the stands, there were very few truly neutral fans.
Most of them were die-hard supporters of Seidou High School.
Bad-mouthing the team there would be like asking for trouble.
Insulting fans, or the teams or players they supported, was a very foolish thing to do.
"I think Seidou High School might really be in trouble today!" the chubby guy said smugly after receiving some murmurs of agreement from those around him.
However, when he turned around, he found that the others weren't responding as they had at first.
Though they were also dissatisfied with Seidou High School's performance in the game, they couldn't quite believe that Seidou High School might actually lose.
The thought was hard to even imagine.
The reigning champions, Seidou High School, losing to an underdog? Impossible!
"You really don't understand anything, do you?" a voice suddenly spoke from behind.
The chubby guy turned around, only to see a tall, well-proportioned man with a strikingly handsome face.
The chubby guy couldn't help but feel irritated. He humphed, ignoring the person behind him.
The man, however, paid him no mind and focused on watching the game.
At the end of the second inning, the score remained 2:1, with Seidou High School trailing. Both pitchers had been flawless, sending their opponents down in order.
Now, the game moved into the third inning.
"Only this inning will decide the outcome," Takigawa Chris murmured.
In the top of the third inning, Yura Sougou's turn to attack!
"STRIKE!"
"STRIKE!!"
"STRIKE! BATTER OUT!!!"
With his full power unleashed, Furuya had entered his zone.
This nationwide fastball speed champion, this monster, once he fully erupted with his power...
It was very difficult for the opponent to hit his pitches!
Not only was it hard to hit the ball, but just trying to make contact with Furuya's pitches with the bat was an incredibly difficult task.
The ball speed ranged from 150 to 157 km/h!
There's nearly a 10 km difference in speed.
With such a speed difference, just timing your swing correctly becomes a tough challenge.
Let alone catching the ball at the right moment to make contact.
It's not just about timing the swing.
It involves eyesight, technique, strength, courage, and intelligence…
Unless you're someone like Todoroki Richi with terrifying intuition, hitting Furuya's ball requires all these qualities.
This really tests a player's comprehensive ability.
The Yura Sougou players, to some extent, each had their own characteristics.
You could say they had decent talent.
But in terms of overall comprehensive ability, they were still a little behind compared to the well-trained top players from prestigious schools.
This small gap in baseball, especially in head-to-head pitching and batting, was extremely fatal.
This directly led to the result in front of them, where the lower-order batters couldn't even touch the ball.
When the upper-order batters came up, the situation didn't get much better.
The first batter, Hakurai, managed to make contact with the ball.
You had to admit, this guy was pretty skilled, no wonder he was once the third batter for Yura Sougou.
In the second round of battle, he managed to catch up with Furuya's terrifying fastballs.
But so what if he caught up with the ball speed?
Pinng!
When his bat made contact with the ball, Hakurai's face turned pale.
'It was so heavy!'
It felt like he wasn't hitting a baseball but a cannonball.
He felt like his arms were going to break, and he almost couldn't hold onto the bat…
In the end, even though he gritted his teeth and persevered, so what?
The ball that rebounded off the bat still flew high into the air and landed directly in the pitcher's mitt.
Furuya, catching the ball, looked a bit cocky.
He even turned around and glanced at the bench, mumbling three words.
They were separated by tens of meters, so of course, Furuya's muttering couldn't be heard by anyone on the bench.
But they didn't need to hear it to know what he said.
"The Swallow's Homecoming!"
This move wasn't originally created by Sawamura, but it became famous nationwide because of him.
Now, even Furuya was borrowing it and couldn't resist showing off to Sawamura.
As for Sawamura, he could only shout in annoyance.
His "The Swallow's Homecoming" was carefully calculated, while Furuya's was...
"It Is Just A Coincidence, You Airhead!! Why Are You So Cocky About It?! Do It Again If You Can!!!"
"STRIKE!"
"STRIKE!!"
"STRIKE! BATTER OUT!!!"
Two Strikeouts and one 'flashy' Shutout!
Furuya's performance kept improving, and it seemed like he was invincible.
At this moment, Yura Sougou's players finally understood.
Why before, some people referred to Furuya as a monster.
He really was a monster!
Once he went all out, he was unbelievably strong, almost inhuman.
In just three or four minutes, the Seidou High School baseball team completed their defense.
Back in the dugout, Higashiyama, feeling exhausted, hadn't even finished a cup of water before being called to pitch again.
When his teammates called for him, he couldn't believe it.
"So soon?"
His breathing still hadn't stabilized.
Seidou High's strength was all-encompassing.
Their advantages snowballed like a rolling snowball, getting bigger and bigger.
As their advantage grew, the pressure they placed on their opponents also increased.
Now, as the game went on, Higashiyama could clearly feel the immense pressure that Seidou High School's baseball team was applying to him.
This pressure was so heavy that it felt suffocating.
It made him wonder, where was the end?
Under such enormous pressure, players couldn't help but question...
Was their resistance even meaningful?
Fortunately, Higashiyama had good mental resilience and wasn't knocked down by this pressure.
He steadied his mind and walked up to the pitcher's mound.
His first opponent was Seidou High School's ninth batter, Toujou.
The lineup for Seidou's team was mostly set and wouldn't change much.
But the lower order was different, and it could be adjusted at any time…
Just like now, putting Toujou in the ninth spot was a decision carefully made by Coach Kataoka.
The purpose was to connect the lower-order batters with the higher ones.
Coach Kataoka and the Seidou High coaching staff trusted Toujou's batting ability.
Throughout previous games, Toujou often surprised the team.
His overall batting average and on-base percentage were high.
Naturally, Higashiyama knew this as well.
But he didn't think too much about it.
Toujou was good, but Seidou's team had many powerful players, and compared to them, Toujou wasn't particularly remarkable.
If he had to prepare for every player, Higashiyama couldn't think of anyone who didn't require full vigilance.
Perhaps everyone needed to be guarded with full attention.
This approach wasn't necessarily bad, but it was impractical.
If the pitcher went all-out against every batter, he wouldn't be able to last the entire game.
Because of this consideration, Higashiyama didn't plan to use all his power with a fastball to overwhelm Toujou.
Instead, he was planning to bait him into swinging.
As long as Toujou swung the bat, Higashiyama was confident he could make Toujou miss the ball.
To beat an opponent, as long as the method is right, you don't always need to use all your strength.
This was advice from Coach Sakaki, and the players of Yura Sougou took it as a golden rule.
Whoosh!
So he threw a pitch he was very confident in toward Toujou.
Toujou, watching the pitch come his way, had a very serious expression.
He patiently waited for the ball to get closer without rushing to act.
He didn't swing until the ball was near his hand.
But just as the bat was about to make contact, the ball suddenly dipped.
'A Forkball!'
This sudden change startled Toujou.
But he, being skilled and bold, didn't let this pitch go and changed to a one-handed grip, forcing the bat to go down.
Originally, the ball had almost avoided the bat, but due to Toujou's impressive stunt, the bat actually caught up with the ball and made contact.
Ping!
The baseball was hit and fell behind the first baseman.
Toujou seized the opportunity and ran to first base.
The ball he hit, due to his awkward posture, flew slowly and was eventually stopped by the outfielders.
Otherwise, Toujou could've used the chance to reach second base.
But this result was still acceptable.
No Outs, a runner on first base.
In a moment of deadlock, the one to break it for the team was their ninth batter.
Toujou Hideaki!
This left Coach Sakaki from Yura Sougou stunned.
This move caught him completely off guard.
Before the top order came up, someone had already reached base.
This was bad news for Yura Sougou.
…
T/N: Mega Respect to my boy Toujou!
And, no matter how cold Furuya looks, he is a child inside who loves bragging to his friends. XD
Anyway, that's it for Today.
Thank you all for reading!
Have a nice day!
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