Ace of Diamond: Return of the Pitcher

"Don't worry, we won't lose until we meet you. So don't throw the towel that easy before you meet us."

As he spoke, Sawamura could even hear the grinding of his teeth.

The look on Narumiya's face was changing like a child who was about to throw a tantrum.

"You run your mouth now, but aren't you the one who is ignoring my text?!" Narumiya was acting angry like a spoiled child being ignored…

"Huh?"

"Don't 'huh?' me! I am sending you texts but you barely respond and act all secretive and distant you bastard!"

"ME?! Aren't you the one who doesn't answer my questions and always change the topic to trivial shit? Who cares about ice cream or raisin crap?!"

"Because you always have ulterior motives you little demon shit! And what is wrong with liking rum-raisin ice cream? Better than you who says he likes everything but only talks about the expensive stuff…!"

The two continued to argue like that and their teammates didn't know what to make with these two.

All the tension from before was washed away by their childish act.

It was only when Narumiya's teammates remembered the match that they hijacked him away.

"Release me! I must teach this arrogant kid how to talk to his Senpais!"

"Says the 'Senpai' who is acting like a spoiled child!" Sawamura—who was held by Kanemaru and Haruichi— responded back as if trying to have the last word.

"Say that to my face again you 'Shoes Model'!"

"Mei we have a match!"

"Hold him still!"

'That's more like it!'

Despite the weird episode, Sawamura wasn't angry. In fact, he seemed to have got what he wanted.

'He was diverting my attention because he didn't want to talk about it.'

Sawamura had always felt something was off during the Sankou match.

They weren't at all like how they fought.

In Sawamura's memory, Inashiro High School had been quite strong, and their strength was formidable.

An opponent like that should have been a real challenge. But for Sawamura, the fact that they couldn't go all out was a huge regret.

There weren't many opponents in high school who truly caught Eijun's interest. Inashiro was undoubtedly one of the most important ones. If they couldn't bring out their best, Sawamura would be very disappointed.

When Sawamura saw Narumiya's current demeanor, he felt reassured.

It seemed that Inashiro, as he remembered, hadn't changed. Competing against them would undoubtedly be a very interesting experience.

Other than the 'Quarrel', the two teams apologized to each other briefly and moved on.

According to the schedule, even if everything went smoothly, the two teams wouldn't face each other until the Kanto Finals.

For now, Seidou High School wasn't wasting too much energy on Inashiro, or rather, it could be said that Inashiro wasn't their main focus at the moment.

What truly caught their attention was the opponent they might face next.

Yakushi High School!

In theory, teams from the same region generally don't meet in the first two rounds.

But this year, Tokyo was different. This year, three teams from the Tokyo area participated in the Kanto Tournament. And all three were strong contenders for the title.

If the previous rules had been followed, the Kanto Tournament would likely have turned into an internal battle among the West Tokyo teams.

The organizers didn't want to see that, of course.

So, aside from ensuring they avoided meeting in the first round, they weren't too concerned with other arrangements.

Yakushi and Seidou would first eliminate one another, and then the Kanto Tournament could proceed as planned.

Other regions' results weren't too bad either.

The organizers put in a lot of effort, but for the West Tokyo fans, it was painful. In the second round of the Kanto Tournament, they'd have to watch their teams fight each other.

It was very likely that the champions and runners-up of the Tokyo Spring Tournament would face off in the second round.

Although Seidou High School had defeated Yakushi High School before, the players of Seidou High School never underestimated their opponent.

On a national level, there are never more than 20 teams that are truly a threat to Seidou High School.

And Yakushi High School was definitely one of them.

Therefore, both Coach Kataoka and the players of Seidou's baseball team were highly alert when it came to Yakushi High School.

If time allowed, they would of course attend Yakushi High School's games in person.

When Seidou High School arrived at the stadium, the game hadn't started yet.

Both teams were saluting each other.

"How strong is their opponent?"

"The champion of Chiba Prefecture is still very strong."

Seidou High School had previously gone to Chiba to participate in a practice game.

Although they won all the matches, the opponents still left a deep impression on Seidou.

Those were two very strong teams.

If the teams that didn't win the championship had that much strength, then what about the champions of Chiba Prefecture?

"How does that compare to Yakushi?"

Any team that could make it to the Kanto Tournament couldn't possibly be weak.

All of them had to be strong.

The key point was who they were compared with.

If compared with Yakushi High School, this Chiba Prefecture champion was still very impressive.

That made this Chiba Prefecture champion team very interesting.

"Oikaze High School!!"

Lee-Hyun looked at the name of the Chiba Prefecture champion with surprise on his face.

Sawamura gave him a strange look.

"Have you heard of this team?"

If Sawamura's memory served him right, Lee-Hyun had just arrived in Japan. He didn't even know how many powerhouse teams were in this country, so how could he know of a school like Oikaze, which he'd never heard of before?

"I haven't heard of this team, but the name sounds quite familiar."

"Is it famous abroad?"

"Yes, very famous. It's a household name."

Lee-Hyun smiled and nodded.

For some inexplicable reason, Lee-Hyun felt a strange sense of familiarity with Oikaze High School, a school he had known nothing about before.

"I wonder if they can win?"

Lee-Hyun actually seemed to genuinely hope that Oikaze High School would win.

Sawamura shook his head.

"It seems like it will be difficult."

A strong team always carries some momentum.

This momentum is something ordinary players might not feel, but as a veteran on the baseball field, Sawamura could vaguely sense it.

The so-called Oikaze High School wasn't bad at all.

The players had great physiques, and it was clear that they trained very hard.

Their mental outlook was also good; it was a team with very strong willpower.

But their overall strength was somewhat average.

Saying this might sound a bit unfair to Oikaze, but the most accurate description would be:

'They weren't strong enough.'

They lacked the aura of the nation's top players.

Without that level of strength, going up against Yakushi High School would undoubtedly be very difficult.

Although Yakushi High School still had many problems, under the leadership of several star players, the strength they could unleash was definitely not something an average team could match.

The game unfolded much as Sawamura had expected.

In today's match, Yakushi High School sent out their Ace pitcher.

Sanada Shunpei!

With his powerful pitching rhythm, he completely dominated the batters of Oikaze High School.

He quickly recorded three Outs, sending the opponent down in a three-up three-down.

Next, it was Yakushi High's turn to bat.

Akiba, who was hitting first, immediately made a steal attempt.

This move caught Oikaze High School's players completely off guard.

He narrowly made it to first base.

The second batter, a senior in his third year, was out, but Mishima, hitting third, landed a clean hit.

The situation became one Out, with runners on first and third.

Now, Yakushi High School's fourth batter stepped up to the plate.

"Keha-ha-haa, Keha-ha-haa!!!!"

With a sharp, strange laugh, Todoroki Raichi stood in the Batter's Box.

In the stands, a huge roar of excitement erupted.

It was clear that Todoroki's popularity was still very high.

The fans were eagerly anticipating his performance, looking forward to witnessing his monster-level abilities.

The battery duo of Oikaze High School clearly hesitated. Should they face this world-renowned monster head-on?

In the end, both of them turned their attention to the Coach in the dugout.

This dilemma was too difficult for them to solve on their own; they needed their coach's advice.

The Coach of Oikaze is a middle-aged man with slicked-back hair.

His fashion is modern, but his appearance is rather ordinary. If he weren't in the position of coach at that moment, most people would recognize him in a crowd.

The Coach gave a stern neck-cutting gesture to his players.

Despite his plain appearance, he had an incredibly fiery heart.

He disagreed with avoiding a direct confrontation with Raichi.

In his mind, life has only two choices: to act, or not to act.

If you act, there's a chance you could succeed, but if you don't, there's no hope for success at all.

Yakushi High School, which had shown excellent performance in Koshien before, was now riding a wave of momentum.

If this game allowed the opponent to find their rhythm, then they would be doomed.

In this situation, it was better to take the risk and fight head-on.

If they won, the rewards would be great. They would be able to show the strength of Oikaze High School.

Even if they lost, it wouldn't matter.

The most important thing when facing an opponent much stronger than you is your spirit.

As long as they could display their own fighting spirit, they would be able to face the upcoming games with courage.

The Coach's style directly affects the team's overall attitude.

Although Oikaze High School might not have outstanding overall strength, their fighting spirit was far superior to that of others.

With the support of their Coach, Oikaze's pitcher-catcher duo immediately decided to face Raichi head-on.

Of course, they didn't foolishly try to clash with him directly.

Whether from the information they had gathered or the pressure they felt now, it was clear that their opponent was incredibly tough to deal with.

To face someone like Raichi, they would naturally need to use tricky, corner-pitched balls to tie him up.

If Raichi couldn't handle the tough corners, it would be even better. If they ended up walking him instead, they could accept that result as well.

Once they formed their strategy, the Oikaze pitchers suddenly felt more confident and their pitching became much more relaxed.

Whoosh!

The ball wasn't fast, but the rhythm was surprisingly good.

The pitcher's stance was quick, releasing the ball in what seemed like an instant.

In the blink of an eye, the ball was right in front of Raichi.

'Yes!'

'Awesome!!!'

As the ball flew toward him, a gleam of excitement flashed in Raichi's eyes.

Such a smooth pitching rhythm, and such a tricky angle.

It was something he hadn't even imagined when practicing visualization.

'Perfect, so perfect!'

On the surface, Raichi appeared to be barbaric.

His swing was full of violence.

But when it came to baseball, Raichi was actually a very meticulous player.

Because his language skills weren't great, he couldn't use rich language to describe how excellent the pitch was.

All he could say about the ball was: It was great, it was amazing, it was perfect.

He deeply appreciated the pitch and, when facing it, he was filled with excitement.

He loved being in the Batter's Box, facing pitchers who threw such great balls.

Although Oikaze's pitcher was little known, his pitching was quite distinctive. At least, to Raichi, this pitch was unique.

It was like a beautiful piece of art suddenly placed before him.

Facing such a flawless creation, Raichi's first instinct was not to preserve it.

Instead, he wanted to destroy it with the bat in his hands.

It was exhilarating.

Buuuzzzzzzzzz!

Raichi swung his bat with all his might as the ball came toward him.

The sound of the bat slicing through the air shook the eardrums of Oikaze's catcher.

For a moment, the catcher stood frozen, unable to process what had just happened.

'What was that?'

It was as if a huge black shadow suddenly loomed over his head, and he had no awareness of anything that followed.

BANG!

The ball was blasted, and it shot up like a rocket, rising higher and higher into the sky.

At the end of the field, it flew past the wall and flew off into the unknown distance.

"Keha, Keha-ha-haa…"

Raichi's sharp laugh returned.

His eyes were filled with intense excitement.

It was as if a perfect piece of art had exploded right in front of him.

That fleeting moment of brightness was far more valuable than eternal beauty.

"Amazing!!!"

"Home run!"

Yakushi High School leads 3:0!!

In the stands.

On the Seidou High School team, no one said a word.

Raichi's swing had left them deeply shaken.

If they hadn't seen it with their own eyes, they wouldn't have believed that the person in front of them was just a high school student like them.

"This guy's swing has already far exceeded the level of high school baseball!" Miyuki said, struggling to find the right words.

His teammates nodded in agreement.

It wasn't that they hadn't seen talented players before, but even among the so-called 'monsters', Raichi's talent stood out.

The bat in his hands was like the scythe of death.

He could end the game with a single blow at any time.

"To face someone like that, you either walk him, or you crush him with your own strength. What will you do?" Miyuki glanced at Sawamura.

"Don't worry, I won't lose to him," Sawamura said calmly.

Because his unexpected butterfly had fluttered its wings twice.

Those naturally talented players, now at an unbelievable level, had reached heights he could hardly imagine in high school.

But Sawamura didn't sit idly by either.

As the Seidou High School vow says, he sweated the most and shed the most tears.

Having undergone the toughest training, he naturally had the confidence to beat anyone.

Since it was anyone, that naturally included Raichi.

Seeing Sawamura's confidence, Miyuki felt reassured.

There was only one thing that worried him.

Due to the excessive increase in pitch speed, Sawamura was currently in a bit of an awkward state.

To put it plainly, he wasn't in his best condition.

It was truly concerning to face Yakushi under such circumstances.

But even so, Miyuki had absolute faith in Sawamura.

At least this faith was stronger than his belief in Furuya.

Even if he wasn't at his peak, Sawamura was still Seidou High School's Ace.

Miyuki just hoped that Sawamura could adjust his condition as soon as possible and leave no regrets in the summer.

…