Three Outs, offense and defense exchange!
As Kawakami Nori secured the final Out, the entire Koshien stadium fell into an eerie silence.
What was unfolding on the field was far removed from the scene the audience had imagined.
The gap was too vast!
Most spectators believed that at this moment, Inajitsu High School's Ace pitcher, Narumiya Mei, had returned as the king, which would undoubtedly invigorate the entire lineup of Inajitsu High School.
In fact, Narumiya had already proven his strength in previous pitching.
The dynamics of the game had shifted significantly. Especially the momentum between the two teams—this change was nothing short of revolutionary.
On the Seidou High School side, however, their pitcher Kawakami was performing rather less flashy, compounded by several earlier mistakes.
He appeared anything but stable.
If the game had gone smoothly for both sides, that would be one thing. But faced with immense pressure, it was certain that the pitcher would crumble.
This statement wasn't mere speculation from the players; it came from their strategic analysis.
Kawakami, who they initially thought would falter under pressure, had unexpectedly become an obstacle they had to overcome.
This obstacle had even caused Inajitsu's batters to go up and down in order during the previous inning.
It was almost unimaginable.
For Inajitsu High School, this scenario felt like a bottomless abyss.
In such circumstances, how would the players of Inajitsu High School react?
The spectators were like those who revel in drama; they had set up their seats, eagerly awaiting the show.
They knew that what was about to unfold would surely delight them.
And indeed, exactly as they expected, the unfolding scene brought them great enjoyment.
In the second half of the seventh inning, Seidou High School went on the attack.
The first batter for Seidou High School to step up was naturally Kawakami, who was batting behind Toujou.
He was replacing Furuya, who had been subbed Out earlier. Furuya had been the eighth batter, and now Kawakami was also in that slot.
At this point, Seidou High School didn't expect him to secure any hits; they just hoped Kawakami could throw well.
Although there were low expectations for his hitting, he at least needed to make contact with the ball.
Even if he got Out, he should do so with some dignity.
This ideal was beautiful but extremely difficult to achieve, and Kawakami himself couldn't pull it off.
"STRIKE!"
"STRIKE!"
"STRIKE! BATTER OUT!!!"
He was Out quickly as well.
The whole process was clean and efficient, with no hint of hesitation.
Faced with Narumiya's blazing 150 km/h fastballs, he simply couldn't keep up with the rhythm.
He was struck Out without a chance.
Under these circumstances, Seidou High School couldn't turn a blind eye. Kanemaru, who hadn't shown much performance in the strike zone, was replaced by Higasa.
But Narumiya, who had just come onto the field, showed no exhaustion whatsoever.
Yet he did have a problem.
His control at the start was not very stable.
That didn't mean there were no chances to hit the ball.
As long as the batters weren't intimidated by the opposing pitcher and could find their rhythm, Coach Kataoka believed that hitting Narumiya's pitches wasn't impossible.
"Now go!"
In this situation, he decisively directed Higasa to step up.
And as Higasa took the field, he provided ample advice and encouragement.
In the end, it turned out that the instructions imparted could not be easily applied.
Once he stood in the Batter's Box, Higasa realized just how terrifying his opponent was.
The white ball seemed to appear without warning, hurtling toward him.
"STRIKE!"
Of course, Narumiya didn't possess the Wall-Making Form of Sawamura; he couldn't obscure his pitching point during throwing.
But his movements were so smooth that every action seemed effortless.
"STRIKE!"
Without giving Higasa a moment to react, the ball zoomed past.
Faced with this, Higasa's hair stood on end.
"STRIKE! BATTER OUT!"
There was no way he could swing at such a pitch, and he ended up getting struck out.
In Seidou High School's rest area, this scene held significant educational value for Coach Kataoka.
He finally understood a crucial fact.
Even with clear instructions and simple jobs to do, not everyone can perform well under pressure.
'This situation was beyond Higasa's capability to handle.'
In the Koshien final, he couldn't even tap into 80% of his usual strength.
Although Kanemaru's previous performance wasn't particularly stellar, it was clear that compared to Higasa, Kanemaru was far better under pressure.
The two Outs, while expected, led to an unpredictable next turn.
Seidou High School's lineup was now facing the top order.
With two Outs and no one on base, Kuramochi stepped into the batter's box.
Ambitiously, Kuramochi sought a hit.
He knew for sure that Narumiya on the mound was not at his peak.
If Narumiya were at his best, Kuramochi would be more uneasy.
He probably wouldn't be able to gain the upper hand against the top monster pitchers in the country from the start without some plan.
But right now, Narumiya seemed strong on the surface but weak in the center.
How could he pass up such an opportunity?
This might be the only chance in his lifetime to take down Narumiya Mei.
Kuramochi was eager to take a swing.
The players of Inajitsu High School, as before, adopted a defensive strategy to guard against Kuramochi's short hits.
Here it comes!
The white ball flew toward him.
Kuramochi swung his bat confidently.
However, the ball arrived late.
'A Change Up!!!'
Snap!
"STRIKE!"
'This sunavab-'
Without waiting for him to process what the hell was going on, the next ball came.
SNAP!
"STRIKE!"
'A Forkball!!'
With two breaking balls in successions, Narumiya's pace and drive are so strong for any pitcher to get used to from the get-go.
At the third ball, Kuramochi swung in vain.
"STRIKE! BATTER OUT!!!!"
The last pitch was an inside pitch!
Kuramochi swung at all three pitches.
In the end, he didn't touch a single one and was cleanly struck out.
Though his heart was filled with bitterness and reluctance, Kuramochi had to admit.
This guy in front of him didn't seem like an opponent he could easily take down.
In the rest area, before Maezono could even warm his seat or finish his drink, his eyes widened in shock as he stared at the scene before him.
So stunned, that he forgot to swallow after taking a sip of water.
Yet he continued to hold the cup, water spilling over as it filled his mouth and dribbled down his chin.
That scene was comical, but in Seidou's rest area, no one paid attention to Maezono at that moment.
They were all fixated on what just happened on the field.
"To say he's physically exhausted is a complete lie."
Narumiya Mei's spirit and performance were as if he had rested for weeks and was finally pitching.
He didn't give Seidou players any chance to touch these pitches.
The score remained at 9-5.
Now that seven innings were over, if Inajitsu High School couldn't catch up by at least four runs in the last two innings, the game would have its winner.
From Inajitsu's perspective, they had been pushed into a desperate situation.
If they couldn't mount a strong counterattack, they would slowly lose their chances as time went on.
No, they absolutely could not allow that.
For Inajitsu High School, which had finally reached the Koshien finals, they would never accept such a result, even if it meant fighting to the bitter end.
Some teams might celebrate just being the runner-up at Koshien, but Inajitsu High School was clearly not one of those teams.
From the beginning, their aspirations were aligned with those of Seidou High School's baseball team.
They both aimed to dominate the nation.
How could a team with such ambitions settle for less?
They were determined to stage a comeback, no matter the cost.
The first to step into the batter's box for Inajitsu High School was their starter, Carlos.
Starting from the eighth inning, it was time for Inajitsu High School's top hitters to take the stage.
They knew very well that if they were solved here, their chances of making a comeback in this game would be slim.
If Seidou High School easily claimed Three Outs, they would only have the ninth inning.
Breaking through Kawakami and Seidou High School's ironclad defense would be very difficult when the end is near.
This meant that Inajitsu had to get what they could get now.
And it was an opportunity that they could not afford to miss.
Carlos appeared nonchalant, posing casually.
But Miyuki, the catcher, wasn't fooled by his relaxed front.
He knew full well.
'Carlos would not give up easily.'
'The opponent is aiming for a long hit! Throw it low and outside!'
'That position was the farthest from the pitcher's body and also the most challenging for long hits.'
Ping!
The incoming ball was smashed into the air.
The low outside pitch ultimately failed to stay in bounds and went foul.
"FOUL!"
Though the ball was out of bounds, the power behind it was staggering.
'This guy!'
Miyuki carefully studied the batter before him.
He realized that simply relying on Kawakami's pitching to handle him would be challenging.
In this case, they would have to resort to fishing.
Fortunately, they had a hidden card; otherwise, Miyuki really wouldn't be confident in stopping Inajitsu here.
…
T/N: This Game, this Volume, and this Part of the story will all end tomorrow!!
Thank you all for reading!
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