Ace of Diamond: Return of the Pitcher

"Walk to base!!!"

Without any suspense, Miyuki was Walked to first base.

The situation turned into one Out, with runners on first and second base.

Oikaze's players were struggling to stay in the game.

Now, they couldn't think about winning anymore. The only thing they could do was to drag the game past the fifth inning.

Only if the game was dragged to the bottom of the fifth inning, and the score gap was less than ten, could they have a chance at a future.

As for what this future might look like, the players of Oikaze High had no idea.

They had simply made the pursuit of the future their habit and dream.

Step by step, as time passed, perhaps an opportunity would arise.

Avoiding Miyuki, they had to face Seidou's fifth batter, Furuya, in a showdown.

On the pitcher's mound, Furuya was a beast in human form, a monster.

He brought nothing but despair and fear to Oikaze batters.

Up to this point, Oikaze's players still had no answer for Sawamura.

He was a true monster, and his pitches growled with beast-like roars.

As for his batting, though impressive, it was not as dazzling as his pitching.

A swing of the bat might feel sharp, but if the ball wasn't hit well, everything would be in vain.

After the first two rounds of confrontation, Oikaze High's battery was very confident that they could take down Furuya.

Although his swing looked intimidating, they still believed that in the end, they would be the ones to win.

Whoosh!

With full confidence, the pitch came without hesitation.

In the blink of an eye, the small ball flew toward the batter.

Furuya, standing in the strike zone, had no concept of mercy.

What's a cautious swing?

Is it a pastry? Is it delicious?

He couldn't even imagine it. The moment he saw the baseball coming, only one thought crossed his mind:

That was to hit this annoying little ball out of the park.

Yes, just pure hate.

In the previous two encounters, he had been toyed with by the opponent.

For the arrogant and prideful Furuya, facing the opponent's pitching was like playing a game of peekaboo.

He couldn't catch anything.

But this time, it was different. Whether it was because the opponent's pitcher was too tired or for some other reason,

The white ball came straight at him.

Furuyanator was ready for this.

In fact, even if he weren't prepared, he wouldn't let any flying ball pass him by.

The moment the ball was in the air, he swung the bat.

Buzz!

The sound of the bat swinging created a small storm.

Furuya, capable of throwing a 155 km/h fastball, also made quite an impression with his bat swing.

PAAANG!!!

The small white ball was struck, and it soared like a rocket launched from a jet engine, clearing the left field fence and flying into the stands.

"HOME RUN!!!"

"YEAAAH!!!"

"THIS IS IT!!"

The stands erupted in thunderous applause, with everyone leaping to their feet and clapping whatever they could get their hands on.

A miracle had just occurred.

Originally, after Oikaze High's counterattack, the supporters of Seidou High School believed it would be hard to end the game in this inning.

They didn't expect things to change so quickly. Before they could even react, the situation on the field had already shifted.

Furuya, who had struggled in his first two at-bats, finally exploded after some reflection.

He scored three points in one go, expanding Seidou High's lead to 11 points.

11:0 – that was the final score of today's game.

As for Oikaze High's final attack,

Under Furuya's fastball over 155 km/h, they quickly collapsed.

The final score was locked in.

"Seidou High School vs. Oikaze High School, final score 11:0, five innings played effectively!!!"

With Seidou High School advancing to the semifinals, the other teams also finished their matches.

Inajitsu High School defeated their opponents 7:1 and progressed to the next stage.

With 9:2, the host Hakuryu High School advanced.

And the Shonan High School from Kanagawa Prefecture advanced by winning 13:0 after five innings effectively played.

Adding Seidou High School to the list,

These are the top four teams in this year's Kanto Tournament.

Was this grouping of the teams specially arranged?

In any case, these four teams that have made it this far are undoubtedly the true top four in the Kanto region.

In two days, these four teams will face off in two groups.

The two winning teams will meet in the final on May 23rd.

A great battle is about to begin.

***

On the night of their victory over Oikaze High School, Coach Kataoka didn't give any specific instructions and allowed everyone to move freely. However, he made a special statement: if anyone wanted to practice more, they shouldn't practice too late.

The intense semi-finals were approaching, so everyone needed to conserve their energy.

After all, who knows what could happen on the day of the competition? No one can predict it.

Sawamura and Kuramochi were assigned to the same dorm room.

This, of course, was Sawamura's initiative. Otherwise, according to the usual arrangement, he would either be with Miyuki or with other players from the same grade.

Later that day, Sawamura took out his disguise gear again.

Although the Kanto Tournament didn't receive as much attention as Koshien, Seidou High School garnered a lot of media attention due to numerous newsworthy events.

There were quite a few reporters gathered outside the hotel, seeking interviews.

If they saw Sawamura, they would definitely not miss the chance to interview him.

There are many star players across the country, but only Sawamura could truly be called a big star. If the reporters could interview him, it wouldn't be a wasted trip.

Being experienced, Sawamura naturally wouldn't make himself uncomfortable. A hat and a pair of gold-rimmed glasses transformed him completely.

As long as it wasn't someone who knew him well and was paying close attention, it would be difficult for them to recognize him.

Just as Sawamura was about to leave, the door to the room was suddenly pushed open.

Kuramochi looked at the stranger in the room with surprise, then, after thinking for a moment, he incredulously pointed at Sawamura.

"You're going out again?"

"Shhhhhh!"

Sawamura gestured for him to keep quiet, signaling for him to keep quiet. His sneaking-out plans almost got ruined because of Kuramochi.

"It's a long night, and I'm not in the mood to sleep, so I decided to go for a walk."

"then don't go out alone, take me with you!!"

This time, Kuramochi didn't try to stop him as he had before. Instead, he looked at Sawamura smugly.

Under the half threat, Sawamura couldn't help but agree.

"Then you should disguise yourself too!"

Kuramochi nodded at Sawamura's suggestion.

Ever since attending Koshien the previous year and seeing Sawamura disguise himself to go out, Kuramochi had wanted to try it himself.

Naturally, Kuramochi didn't have any disguise gear.

Luckily Sawamura was ready. Soon, he took out a wig from his bag.

"...Why do you have this in your bag?"

"shut up and put it on!" Sawamura replied.

Once Kuramochi was dressed up, the two tiptoed to sneak out.

But they didn't get far before they were caught.

Kanemaru had just finished using the restroom and was heading back to his room.

He spotted the two familiar figures sneakily trying to slip out.

'With the big tournament approaching, some people still wanted to go out and mess around?'

Kanemaru, who had a strong sense of 'justice', immediately decided to stop them.

Although Kanemaru wasn't the team captain, he often worried just as much as the captain about the team.

"Stop right there!"

After stopping them, he stared at their slightly unfamiliar appearances.

Kanemaru instinctively prepared to apologize.

'Wait a minute! Why does this boy with the cap and gold-rimmed glasses look so familiar?'

He turned to look at the other one, and his face seemed even more familiar.

"…"

"…"

"…"

"Want to join us?"

To prevent Kanemaru from reporting them, the best way was to drag him into it.

Sawamura quietly asked.

Kanemaru instinctively wanted to refuse.

His position on the team wasn't as stable as the two in front of him.

Just trying to keep his current position, Kanemaru had already exhausted all his efforts. How could he be thinking about going out and fooling around?

However, seeing Kuramochi's unkind gaze, Kanemaru never said the word 'no'.

In the end, he had no choice but to go along with them.

The three of them walked out of the hotel one by one, avoiding gathering together in case they drew attention.

The trip went very smoothly.

The sports reporters here lacked the aggressive paparazzi mentality of entertainment reporters.

They never imagined that someone would try to sneak out like this.

The three of them left the hotel without any issues.

First, they found a place to eat some snacks and satisfy their hunger.

Then they began to wander aimlessly.

The feeling wasn't exactly joy, but it could definitely be called comfort.

After all, relaxation is key.

In the days before, the players had been under too much pressure. A break like this was a nice change.

…