Ace of Diamond: Return of the Pitcher

The score was now 4:0.

This, of course, was a heavy blow to Oikaze High School.

The players from Oikaze High School were a bit dazed.

They felt that they were playing this game with extreme frustration, unable to figure out what Seidou was trying to do.

The players from Seidou seemed like stealthy ninjas, appearing out of nowhere and striking from corners where they least expected it.

Just thinking about it was enough to send chills down your spine, let alone actually playing against such an opponent.

In fact, it wasn't just them—the spectators at the scene were equally shocked.

When Oikaze High School had been trailing by a large margin in previous games, they were still able to claw their way back through sheer determination.

This led the audience to instinctively think that Oikaze High School was no ordinary team.

The team had strength.

Even if they were playing against a national powerhouse like Seidou High School, while winning might be unlikely, they should still be able to show their spark.

But once the two teams actually faced off, the spectators and fans quickly realized how naïve their thinking had been.

These two teams were simply not on the same level.

In the corner of the stands, a group of young players in matching uniforms were sitting and watching the game.

In front of them, a nonchalant-looking young man held a long-range binoculars.

It looked like the kind used by pirate captains, with a rather antique design.

The young man was using the binoculars to focus on the progress of the game.

He would occasionally zoom in to observe the players' faces, carefully examining their expressions.

"As expected of Seidou High School, they're truly terrifyingly strong."

"It's because the opponent is too weak!"

The young players in the group around him were discussing the game animatedly. Without realizing it, they had split into two camps.

One camp supported the mighty Seidou High School, believing their strength was overwhelming.

The other camp argued that it was mainly because the opponent was too weak. If Seidou had faced a more capable team, they wouldn't have such an advantage.

The two sides were at odds, while the young man with the binoculars remained unfazed.

He showed no interest in participating in the discussion—his only concern was what he could see through his binoculars.

Through the lenses, he could observe not only the players' movements but even the slightest actions and expressions in great detail.

Despite the heated debate among his teammates, they all shared one main idea: Oikaze no longer had any chance of making a comeback.

Today's game was as good as decided—Seidou High School was sure to win.

However, the young man holding the binoculars didn't agree with this view. He still believed that the game was far from over, and it was too early to decide the outcome.

Through the binoculars, he could still see the players from Oikaze, their eyes burning with determination.

Clearly, they weren't ready to accept their defeat.

They were probably still thinking about fighting back.

Just as the young man was watching with keen interest, someone suddenly stood up at the back of the group.

"Kawaki, where are you going? The game has just started."

A teammate immediately asked.

Although their team hadn't yet played their quarterfinal match, they were confident they had already advanced.

Given that they were already certain of moving forward, the winner of this match would be their opponent in the future.

The Coach had also instructed everyone to pay close attention to the game.

Kawaki leaving was somewhat unusual.

However, Kawaki himself seemed unfazed.

"I'm not interested in watching Seidou High School flaunting their strength. I'm going to practice!"

As Kawaki left, a few more players stood up and followed him.

One by one, these players were the troublemakers in their team.

"Just a bunch of unruly guys!"

The young man sighed and shook his head.

The words on their uniforms became visible under the sunlight.

Shonan High School!

A very famous comprehensive school that includes elementary school, middle school, high school, and university.

It was well-known nationwide.

Whether in terms of graduation rates or achievements in various sports, they had made a name for themselves.

However, despite their fame, their baseball team hadn't made it to Koshien in a long time.

The gap was even longer than that of Seidou High School.

But this time, to everyone's surprise, they had claimed the championship in the competitive Kanagawa region.

The young man holding the binoculars had the features of a Hafu.

He looked quite indifferent.

He was known as Matt, and actually the Coach of this team.

Matt had a Japanese name, but he never used it, and over time, everyone had forgotten about it.

Matt had been coaching for quite a while now.

It had been three full years.

After three years of hard work, and now Shonan High School was finally ready to make a name for itself.

But it seemed their luck wasn't too good—they had to face the reigning Champions, Seidou High School.

***

In the first inning, Seidou High School scored a solid four Runs!

In the bottom of the first inning, Furuya pitched and struck out three batters.

Just by looking at the start of the game, Seidou High School's performance was undoubtedly flawless.

But unfortunately, their opponent is not so weak and easy to bully.

Starting from the second inning, Oikaze High School showed incredible resilience.

This team, which was able to stage a comeback against Yakushi High School after being far behind, also had their own characteristics.

Like weeds sprouting from cracks in the rocks.

By the second inning, when facing the relentless barrage from Seidou High School's lineup, Oikaze High School only conceded one Run and managed to defend the inning perfectly.

In Seidou's dugout, Sawamura and Miyuki exchanged glances.

Coach Kataoka, with his experience, was right—they had underestimated their opponent.

Originally, based on Sawamura and Miyuki's estimations, defeating Oikaze wasn't supposed to be difficult.

As long as they maintained their strong momentum and kept their opponents under control, Oikaze wouldn't even have a chance to turn things around, let alone overtake them.

But clearly, they had underestimated their opponents.

Oikaze High School's own strength is still quite remarkable. Although the team doesn't have many standout players, when combined, they have a very distinct style.

Flexible teamwork, relentless fighting spirit.

The overall combat power that the team can exert is truly impressive.

The players of Seidou High School's baseball team tried their best to control the situation, but they never fully succeeded.

Even with their superior strength, they could only barely suppress their opponents and had no way to completely control the rhythm of the game.

This became quite awkward, as the game dragged on.

On the contrary, Seidou High School's baseball team began to seem more passive.

Fortunately, Furuya continued to display his monster-level strength.

With a fastball exceeding 155 km/h, he toyed with Oikaze High School's less-than-top batters.

With just the ball speed alone, it was difficult for them to make contact. Not to mention the other pitches that Furuya mixed in.

Even if they were lucky enough to hit the ball, facing such a fast pace, such a high speed, and such powerful pitches, it was hard for them to produce anything threatening.

So, it was another strikeout, two Shutouts.

Keep in mind, these were the clean-up batters of Oikaze.

The 4th, 5th, and 6th batters!

In other words, they were some of the strongest hitters in Oikaze High School's lineup.

Even they were helpless against Furuya's pitching.

Not to mention the other batters.

By the end of the third inning, the game finally reached a critical point.

In this inning, Seidou High School's upper batters came back to the plate.

Even Oikaze High School's battery duo had to be extra cautious. Against opponents whose strength was far beyond theirs, they were powerless.

Despite their struggles, they still gave up two more Runs.

With this, Seidou's lead grew to a terrifying seven points.

Keep in mind, that this was only the third inning. On average, Seidou High School's lineup was scoring over two points per inning.

If this momentum continued, Seidou High School's dominance in this game would likely become a foregone conclusion.

Of course, the players of Oikaze High School were unwilling to accept this.

No matter the reason, they had made it to the top eight in Kanto.

If they were solved in five innings, it would be an embarrassing outcome.

Even if there was no hope of victory, they would never let Seidou High School win so easily, simply for the sake of their pride.

So, as expected, the players of Oikaze High School began to fight back.

All of them had the same fire burning in their eyes.

They were of one heart and united as a team.

With their desperate defense, Seidou High School was only able to score one more Run in the fourth inning.

Especially at the end, when they managed to retire the leadoff batter who had successfully reached base twice in a row.

That batter was the very strong second-year player, Takatsu.

Before the game, the players of Oikaze High School only knew Takatsu's name.

But now, the way they looked at Takatsu was different.

There was both fear and respect in their eyes.

Takatsu was a truly respectable opponent, at least in the eyes of the players of Oikaze High School.

He was just too strong!

Had they not seen it with their own eyes, they wouldn't have believed it.

This young man before them wasn't even that well-known.

From Oikaze's point of view, Takatsu's strength was at least on the level of a monster.

They were very happy to have solved such a difficult opponent.

And so, the game moved into the fifth inning.

The first to step into the Batter's Box was Kominato Haruichi, the second batter.

It was his turn to bat.

For the players of Oikaze High School, Kominato Haruichi was definitely one of the most hated opponents.

Without particularly strong speed or power, Kominato Haruichi is a player who has honed his skills to perfection.

He is definitely the nemesis of Oikaze High School's pitchers.

Oikaze High School's Ace pitchers were well aware of this, so when they faced Kominato, they planned to use corner pitches to apply pressure on him.

They wanted to force Kominato to hit these corner pitches.

That way, they would have a chance.

Otherwise, Seidou High School's lineup was simply too strong. As long as they threw a good pitch, it would be hit.

Against such an opponent, they couldn't afford to hold back.

Any method they could think of, they would try.

They couldn't let themselves be weighed down by any mental pressure or burdens.

Otherwise, they would only end up harming themselves.

With this plan in mind, the pitchers became even sharper.

But Haruichi was not one to back down.

Long before the opponent started to act, he had already guessed what they might be planning.

So, he started to aim for the corner pitches.

Don't be fooled by Kominato Haruichi's appearance, which may look like that of a well-behaved boy; his true personality is definitely not like this.

Especially when batting, he has a bit of a Devilish personality.

Once he made his guess, he went for the ball immediately.

Paak!

The small ball was struck and flew into the gap in the defense.

In his previous three at-bats, he had three hits.

Today, Kominato Haruichi seemed to be on fire.

…

T/N: As always, Thank you all for reading!!

See you Tomorrow!

Until then, take care!

You also can check my Patre0n for extra Chapters.

https://www.patre0n.com/ColdColt

There are +150 Chapters there.