Diamond No Ace: The Monster

Chapter 104: The Turning Point That Decides Victory!

"Whoosh!"

The white baseball shot forward with a whistle.

Although Narumiya's pitching speed wasn't as aggressive as Furuya's, the ball coming from his hand was still more than enough to give batters a headache.

The speed, the angle of the pitch, and the potential for hidden variations...

Even if you singled out just one of these aspects, Narumiya's pitching would be formidable. The perfect combination of all three made his pitch a lethal weapon.

Furuya had been a part of the Seidou High baseball team for a while now.

After spending so much time with his upperclassmen, Furuya could confidently say that every one of them possessed impressive batting skills. None of them were pushovers.

Yet, even these seniors of his had no answer when facing Narumiya.

One by one, they were struck out.

Furuya never thought his batting skills surpassed those of his senior teammates.

If he were to step into the batter's box and face Narumiya, all he could do was give it his best and leave the rest to fate.

He would definitely give it his all, but as for the final result? That was up to the gods...

"Boom!"

As the ball approached, Furuya decisively swung.

His powerful swing created a loud whooshing sound in the air. Harada, crouching behind the plate as the catcher, instantly tensed.

Even though he knew the bat wouldn't touch the ball, the force behind Furuya's swing was enough to make Harada uneasy.

If Furuya ever connected with the ball, even if it wasn't a perfect hit, the consequences could be severe.

These batters with explosive power were always intimidating...

Their destructive potential was simply too great!

If you never gave them a chance, that was fine, but if you did—if they seized the opportunity to swing at just the right moment—then for the pitcher-catcher duo, it would feel like they were entering a terrifying nightmare.

"Smack!"

The bat and the white baseball passed by each other, neither making contact.

"Strike!"

Even with a first strike in the bag, the players of Inashiro Industrial High School didn't feel any relief.

The closer the game got to the later innings, the more Inashiro's players could feel the immense pressure their opponents were placing on them.

Seidou High's offensive power was just too overwhelming.

Even though most of their players weren't pitchers, and even though they weren't on the mound at that moment, the tension was still palpable.

The players of Inashiro Industrial could clearly sense that feeling—the tension that the white baseball could fly toward them at any moment.

Every time they thought about it, they couldn't help but shake their heads.

"It won't happen!"

They had unwavering confidence in their ace. They believed he wouldn't lose to the opponent.

In this, they had absolute faith.

"Come on, let's watch carefully..."

Under the expectant gazes of the team, their ace secured the second strike.

"Smack!"

"Strike two!!"

With two consecutive strikes, they successfully put the batter on the defensive.

Even Narumiya, standing on the pitcher's mound, couldn't maintain his initial composure at this point.

"Nice!"

Taking down a regular first-year player wouldn't normally excite Narumiya this much.

But considering his opponent was Furuya, it was a different story.

Narumiya was brimming with intensity.

On the final pitch, he didn't waste any effort. He threw a perfect strike right away.

"Whoosh!"

The white baseball zipped straight like a line, cutting through the strike zone.

In the dugout, the Seidou High baseball team's players watched in awe.

Not only did their own pitchers display exceptional performances, but it seemed that Narumiya, Tokyo's prince of the mound, was also in fiery form.

That last pitch, though it seemed ordinary, was actually of remarkably high quality.

In all honesty, if any of them had been standing in the batter's box at that moment, they probably wouldn't have stood a chance against that pitch.

Yet, this pitch—one that even they couldn't handle—was hit.

"Boom!"

A powerful swing, like a thunderclap.

"Crack!"

This time, the baseball couldn't avoid the bat, and the two collided.

Though the bat didn't strike the ball cleanly, the white baseball was still sent flying into the air.

As they watched the ball soar high into the sky, the players of Seidou High and their supporters in the stands erupted in excitement.

Even if luck played a part, the fact remained that Furuya had managed to hit the ball.

With his tremendous strength, it wasn't impossible for him to score directly.

Thinking of this, the Seidou players' hearts raced with anticipation.

There was a chance—there was definitely a chance!

Their eyes followed the white baseball as it flew dozens of meters.

Then, just as it seemed to run out of energy, the ball stopped moving forward and started dropping straight down.

Even Inashiro Industrial High School's outfielders didn't expect this.

Since the ball had flown high, one of their outfielders had already positioned himself at the ball's predicted landing spot, ready to make the catch.

What he didn't expect was that the ball would fall prematurely, and straight down at that.

Though not a perfect result, the Seidou players were satisfied enough. Their eyes gleamed with hope, anticipating the ball to land on the ground.

"Smack!"

At the critical moment, a dark-skinned player suddenly dashed into the scene.

The moment they saw who it was, the Seidou players were stunned.

"Carlos?"

"How did he get there so fast?"

The ball hadn't even landed in center field; it was heading toward left field.

Even the left fielder hadn't managed to reach the ball in time.

Yet Carlos, the center fielder, had already arrived at the landing spot before anyone else.

Just as the ball was about to hit the ground, he caught it in his glove.

"Smack!"

"Out!"

"Out!!"

"Out!!!"

"Three outs, switch sides."

The two batters following Furuya suffered the same fate—they were both out.

After six innings, the score remained 0-0.

And so, the game entered the seventh inning.

As one stout reporter put it, they were approaching the decisive moment of the game.

So far, neither team had secured a valid hit, let alone scored a run.

With the start of the seventh inning, both teams' batters would step into the box for the third time.

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