Seidou High School is falling behind!
And it's happening right from the start of the game—Seidou High School is already down by three points. That's not just one or two points, but three points, which could significantly determine the outcome of the match.
If Seidou High School were leading by three points with Sawamura pitching, victory would almost be assured.
This setback is quite severe!
In the stands, thousands of fans fall silent. The majority are Seidou fans, and they're at a loss for words as they watch their team struggle.
After a long pause, the crowd begins to gasp in shock. They're simply stunned and don't celebrate Ugumori's success.
In Seidou's dugout, Coach Ochiai nervously tugs at his goatee, his face turning pale.
'Ouch, that hurts!'
'To fall behind by three points at the start is an incredibly heavy blow.'
For Seidou, being three points down from the beginning is a completely new experience.
'Furuya is still too immature!'
Of course, you can't judge a pitcher's strength based on just one inning. But at this moment, he is clearly not suited to stay on the mound. He needs to be replaced and given some time to train quietly.
Thinking this, Ochiai looks at Coach Kataoka beside him, wondering what his Boss will decide.
Surprisingly, Coach Kataoka doesn't seem to intend to make a substitution.
Although he's visibly shaking with anger, he hasn't signaled any intention to replace Furuya.
"Superintendent!"
'Such indecisiveness is problematic!'
Ochiai decides to offer some advice.
Coach Kataoka's voice trembles, but his words are clear: "One more hit this inning, or another run in the next inning, and Furuya will be pulled."
Ochiai knows this is the standard for removing Furuya.
Even under these circumstances, Coach Kataoka still shows a lot of trust in Furuya.
'He's truly a great mentor, but…'
'As a Coach, this approach is very risky.'
'If the score stretches to four points, Seidou's current offensive power might not be enough to recover.'
There's a real chance that Seidou might lose this game.
"I believe in them!" Coach Kataoka suddenly says, as if answering Ochiai's concerns or reassuring himself.
If Furuya is removed now, his autumn season will be ruined.
Coach Kataoka is reluctant to do this unless absolutely necessary.
The best chance to recover is right after a fall.
"Time!"
Miyuki, the catcher, fights his anger and walks to the mound.
At the same time, Seidou's infield players gather around the mound.
Furuya's face remains expressionless, but there's a hint of frustration in his eyes.
Miyuki, suppressing his urge to reprimand, says as calmly as possible: "Do you think I'm a wall that stops the ball? Even if you disagree with my signals, you should at least shake your head to show me.
What's going on? If you keep this up, I'll have you replaced. There are plenty of people waiting to replace you in the dugout."
'I'll have you replaced!'
These four words hit Furuya hard.
How could he lose his chance like this?
'No, absolutely not!'
A stubborn look crosses his face.
Despite his poker face, he can be quite easy to read.
"Hyaa-ha-haa, If you cause trouble again, you won't need Ugumori to make a hit—I'll hit you myself."
"Hang in there, Furuya-kun."
"Be confident, and find your rhythm!"
"Believe in your speed; you can get them Out!"
Kuramochi and Miyuki are stern, while Kominato, Maezono, and Kanemaru are gentler.
They all express their trust in Furuya.
Miyuki glances thoughtfully at the dugout.
Coach Kataoka and Coach Ochiai remain silent, and Sawamura hasn't left his seat to warm up.
'So, they're not planning to replace him yet?'
'You really have high expectations~'
This is a crisis, and Miyuki is the Captain now.
Trailing by three points, he must lead his teammates to turn the game around quickly.
The game resumes!
"STRIKE!"
"STRIKE!"
"STRIKE! BATTER OUT!!"
"STRIKE! BATTER OUT!!!"
After giving up a home run, Furuya finally shows his incredible speed and strength, securing the last two Outs.
With three Outs, offense and defense exchange.
In the bottom of the inning, Seidou High School begins their attack.
"Furuya!"
Coach Kataoka suddenly called out to Furuya.
Furuya shivered inwardly, aware that his recent mistake was significant. According to the team's previous practices, being substituted directly wasn't out of the question.
"You performed well after giving up a home run," Kataoka began, offering some reassurance.
Just as Furuya started to relax, Kataoka added, "But before the home run you were totally unstable. Therefore, after the game, I want you to review your thoughts clearly and write me a 2,000-word essay detailing your mental ups and downs during that inning. It needs to be greatly detailed."
Furuya's face went pale instantly.
Every player on the baseball team is required to write notes for the coach. It feels like a task similar to writing reports to your company—it's one of the team's traits.
Many players do enjoy expressing their feelings through writing. There are quite a few such players in the baseball club. Unfortunately, Furuya is not among them.
He has little interest in anything other than pitching. His previous notes to Coach Kataoka were all about one core message:
I want to become the Ace!
I want to become the Ace!
I want to become the Ace!
The important resolution was repeated three times.
Once he had the core idea, the rest was about his training plan and how he could surpass Sawamura, dethrone this 'Demon King' from the Ace pitcher position, and become the Ace himself.
There were even parts where he asked Sawamura Eijun for advice…
Using someone as a teacher while aiming to surpass him in the same notebook—that's quite shameless.
Even with such a vague and repetitive training plan, his notes never exceeded 200 words.
With his third-rate level of writing, writing a 2,000-word essay was more uncomfortable for him than death.
The other players, while they had complaints about Furuya's performance, kept silent seeing his misfortune.
The troublemaker had been punished, which was enough for them!
The bottom of the inning began.
Seidou High School was up to bat!
Before getting ready to hit, Haruichi noticed Furuya's clearly low morale and asked Sawamura.
"Shouldn't you comfort Furuya?"
Sawamura, still wearing his huge mask, spoke in his deep, muffled voice.
"There's no need. The best encouragement for him now is to quickly recover the lost points. It's up to you, Haruichi."
Kominato Haruichi nodded firmly.
He would work hard, whether for the team or for his friends.
Sawamura wasn't lying.
Though Kataoka had already decided to temporarily trust Furuya, if Seidou failed to score any points this inning, Coach Kataoka would likely be unsettled.
If Ugumori High School is tough to handle, it's not easy to score against them. To ensure no more runs are lost, Coach Kataoka might have to make changes.
That's called situational pressure.
So, when Sawamura said that the best way to support Furuya was to quickly recover the score, he was telling the truth.
"First batter, shortstop, Kuramochi-kun!"
Seidou High School's starting batter was Kuramochi.
In Ugumori High School's dugout.
Matsubara Nao, sitting in a wheelchair, clenched his fists nervously.
'Watch out for bunts!'
Anyone who has studied Seidou High School's data would remember Kuramochi's speed.
It's almost unfair. Right now, if Ugumori's players don't move forward in defense, they won't be able to stop Kuramochi from reaching base.
Ugumori's infielders all took a few steps forward, getting ready for any bunt.
At the Batter's Box, Kuramochi smirked inwardly. He saw through Ugumori High School's intentions clearly.
'Do you think I only bunt? How naive. Today, you'll see Kuramochi-sama's real batting power.'
Kuramochi raised his bat high and calmly awaited the pitch.
According to the data collected, Umemiya has two types of pitches:
First: A sharp, fast Straight ball.
Second: A bizarre, slow curve with a significant drop.
Especially the curve, which is said to be less than 100 km/h. (62 mph)
'Let me see how good your pitching really is!'
As Kuramochi prepared, Umemiya Seiichi's pitch came in.
Whoosh!
A small white ball was pitched out.
Umemiya's straight and curve balls differ greatly in speed, and their pitching motions are completely different.
According to Seidou High School's predictions, it shouldn't be that hard to hit. No matter how strange the opponent's pitches are, they will eventually be hit and the game will be won.
Their confidence comes from the fact that Umemiya Seiichi's pitching is very easy to read.
For Seidou High School's players, as long as they can discern the pitch, hitting the ball is just a matter of time.
Kuramochi, being impatient, wanted to support his Kohai and score points immediately, without waiting to observe for two rounds.
'Bring it on!'
'Let me see how your turtle-paced curveball is.'
The baseball flew in, following a strange trajectory, and began to drop.
Due to the ball's slow speed, Kuramochi saw its path very clearly and let his raised bat fall back down.
He wasn't going to swing at this pitch.
The baseball went over the plate and fell straight into the catcher's Mitt.
SNAP!
"STRIKE!"
Kuramochi frowned and looked back at the umpire.
'That was a Strike?'
After a Strike, Umemiya Seiichi quickly threw his second pitch.
Though still not fast, the pitching rhythm was well maintained.
Down by a strike, Kuramochi saw the ball's path and swung his bat.
As the bat was about to make contact with the ball, Kuramochi frowned and deviated his swing to avoid the incoming baseball.
SNAP!
"STRIKE!"
With two Strikes in a row, Kuramochi was in a tight spot.
His face grew extremely cautious as he stared at Umemiya on the mound.
He had suspected something during the first pitch, and now Kuramochi was almost certain his suspicions were correct.
On the surface, Umemiya seemed wild, but he controlled the ball very well.
The first pitch had appeared to be outside the strike zone but it broke toward it. The second pitch seemed to be within the strike zone, but after its break, it should have fallen outside.
If Kuramochi hit it like that, it would likely have turned into an easy grounder…
'How devious!'
Kuramochi's entire body was on high alert. His nerves, initially relaxed, were now tense.
He realized that despite the opponent not being particularly famous, their skills should not be underestimated.
The more this was the case, the stronger Kuramochi's desire to score became.
Understanding that the opponent was strong, Kuramochi knew that if they couldn't score in this inning and support Furuya, the situation for Seidou would only worsen.
So, he had to get this hit no matter what.
Raising his bat again, Kuramochi stared at Umemiya on the mound with determination.
Umemiya remained as cheerful as ever, but his pitching showed no mercy!
This time, he gritted his teeth and focused all his power on the tip of his pitching finger.
Whoosh!
The baseball shot toward Kuramochi like a laser beam, arriving instantly.
The ball was very fast, especially compared to the previous curveball.
Kuramochi's brow furrowed in surprise.
He didn't expect such a significant speed difference!
'What to do?'
Without hesitating even half a second, Kuramochi swung his bat decisively.
He was cornered with no room for retreat.
So, he attacked!
Ping!
The white ball was barely hit and bounced right between the third baseman and shortstop.
'Damn!'
'The ball wasn't hit well!'
It landed right next to the fielders.
Fortunately, Kuramochi's hits weren't just about batting.
The moment the ball was hit, he threw his bat away, transformed into a wild Cheetah, and dashed toward first base.
'Fast!'
Ugumori's shortstop worked hard to retrieve the ball and throw it to first base.
Even in a hurry, his throw was accurate, and the ball landed squarely in the first baseman's mitt.
It was clear that Ugumori High School's players trained well.
But even so, they couldn't stop the Cheetah's speed.
The baseball was still inches away from the first baseman's mitt when Kuramochi had already crossed first base!
"SAFE!"
No Outs, runner at first base!
Sometimes speed is so unbeatable that even a poor hit can still result in reaching base.
"Nice!"
"Your speed is finally showing its strength!"
"Otherwise, you might as well learn to hit grounders, since speed is your only advantage."
In Seidou's dugout, the players' friendly laughter filled the air.
Kuramochi heard them and was also very proud.
…