Diamond No Ace: The Monster

Chapter 107: Furuya's 'Magic Ball'

Hokkaido.

In a spacious and luxurious room, a robust-looking young man was intently watching a live broadcast of the Kanto Tournament finals on TV.

"Isn't that Furuya-san? He looks like he's in trouble..."

Suddenly, the door opened.

A young girl wearing a princess gown entered from outside. With just one glance, she recognized Furuya.

Clearly, she must have known Furuya previously.

"Trouble?"

The young man, who was watching the live broadcast, immediately pursed his lips.

"I don't think it's any trouble at all. That's Furuya we're talking about. When he was on our team, he was..."

The young man, named Kameda, had been Furuya's partner during junior high school.

"Brother, now that you've joined the Komadai, is there a chance you'll face off against Furuya?"

The young girl suddenly seemed excited as she remembered something and asked.

"Well, it's hard to say. First, we both need to become starters on our teams and represent our teams in matches. Besides, both teams need to make it to Koshien together…"

Kameda explained patiently.

However, the young girl didn't pay much attention to her brother's words. Her eyes remained fixed on the handsome face on the television screen.

"When the time comes, I'll come and cheer for you all."

"It's too early to talk about that. Let's wait until the summer tournament begins."

Kameda did not realize that the young girl meant "you all" instead of just "you."

This wasn't unusual.

At this time, many of Furuya's teammates, including those who had played against him on the field, were also watching his performance in the Kanto Tournament with keen interest.

They were curious about how the young man who had already shown extraordinary talent would perform on the field once he unleashed his full potential.

Unlike those familiar with Furuya, when he threw a change-up, the spectators on the bleachers were filled with a sense of disappointment.

The little powerhouse they were all eagerly anticipating seemed to have run out of steam.

"Stamina, is it still not holding up?"

Even though they were reluctant to admit it, the dedicated supporters of Seido High School's baseball team understood that this issue was unavoidable.

"Everyone, there's no need to get discouraged, right?"

Some fans looked around in puzzlement at the people nearby.

Although the speed of Furuya's pitches had visibly decreased, what did it matter?

His performance on the field was witnessed by everyone present, and what did that indicate?

It indicated that even without his greatest asset—pitching speed—Furuya's contribution from the pitcher's mound was still formidable.

"Young man, you still don't get it. Let me ask you a question: what is Furuya's biggest asset?"

A middle-aged fan, appearing to be in his thirties, asked earnestly.

"Speed!"

Without any hesitation, the young man uttered these two words.

After saying them, he suddenly realized that cold sweat was breaking out on his back.

As the cold May breeze blew, his back felt chilled to the bone.

"A pitcher's asset is his greatest weapon! If Furuya's biggest asset is gone, do you think he can rely on just that change-up to take on Inashiro Industrial?"

These words hit the nail on the head.

The fan who had just disagreed with the others fell silent instantly.

One out, runner on first base.

Furuya's sudden change-up pitch was causing a lot of discomfort for the players on the Inashiro Industrial High School baseball team.

In Inashiro's dugout, several players were frowning, utterly puzzled.

"Senpai! Keep an eye on his pitches..."

Even though they were trying to cheer on their team's batters, the Inashiro players lacked confidence because they couldn't figure out how Furuya was managing these pitches.

"Was it just a fluke?"

The third batter for Inashiro Industrial High School stood at the plate with a look of bewilderment.

The reaction of the fans in the stands was so intense. As the player directly facing Furuya, the third batter felt this acutely.

Furuya's previous pitch had caught him off guard.

But was it really an extraordinary pitch? Was its quality that high?

Not necessarily.

The third batter felt quite certain that he had simply been unprepared.

If he had known in advance that Furuya could throw a change-up, he believed there would have been at least a 50% chance he could have hit the ball.

Could he have secured a hit?

It was doubtful, as Seido High School's defense was strong.

"First year monster! If you think that pitch of yours will hold up in high school, you're going to have a hard time."

Inashiro's third batter raised his bat high with his mind made up—he would definitely swing at the next pitch.

Catcher Miyuki could clearly sense the determination in the batter's stance.

"Even though the previous change-up was good, it's still difficult to deal with Inashiro's batters with that alone. And..."

Miyuki glanced worriedly at Furuya on the mound.

A straightforward change-up is a sitting duck against the nation's top high school players.

Even the great Narumiya's change-up worked mainly due to his powerful fastball.

Currently, Furuya's high-speed fastball was clearly not an option anymore.

As a result, the effectiveness of his change-up would probably be significantly reduced.

If only...

A thought had just surfaced in Miyuki's mind, only to be pushed aside.

Even if Furuya had disclosed this kind of pitch beforehand, it wouldn't have made much difference in an actual game. His fastball could easily overmatch Inashiro Industrial for now.

In such a situation, why bother with a change-up?

Moreover, the difference in intensity between Furuya's fastballs and change-ups was tremendous.

While it might confuse other opponents, using it against Inashiro Industrial's batters was practically courting disaster.

"Is it really not going to work?"

Even though Furuya's change-up had been effective, deceiving the opponent and causing the third batter to swing and miss, neither their opponents nor Furuya's teammates seemed optimistic about his future pitches.

Just then, Furuya threw another pitch.

Another change-up?

"Are you asking for it?"

A glint of aggression appeared in Inashiro's third batter's eyes, and he swung the bat with force.

The sound of the bat cutting through the air startled Miyuki.

"Not good!"

Before Miyuki could think further, the bat connected perfectly with the ball.

"Ping!"

The white baseball hit the ground and bounced directly towards Furuya.

"Pop!"

Furuya caught the ball smoothly in his glove.

"Out!"

Two outs, runner on first.

Those who had previously dismissed Furuya's change-ups were left completely dumbfounded.

"What just happened?"

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