Diamond No Ace: The Strongest Hitter

Chapter 160: Black History (1)

"Why are you here, Sendo?!!"

"Isn't it obvious? I was also invited to tour Seidou!"

"Wha… what?! Are you planning to join Seidou? Traitor!"

"Why are you overreacting? I already told you—I'll go to the same high school as you!"

"Then why are you here?!"

"Well… that's because…"

"No need to explain! I'm just like you!" Sendo dodged the question effortlessly.

Flashback to a Few Minutes Earlier

The next morning, Sawamura arrived at Tokyo Station alone, where Takashima Rei was already waiting for him.

Since Seidou was quite far away, they still had a long way to go.

"Sawamura-kun, let's wait here for a moment. There's someone else joining us for the tour," Rei told him.

Having spent the previous evening chatting with Rei and building rapport, Sendo had already arranged this little prank with her. Rei, finding Sendo's playful side endearing, had readily agreed.

"Oh, okay!" Sawamura hadn't thought much of it at the time.

Back to the Present

When Sendo appeared at the station, yawning and looking casual, Sawamura exploded.

"Is this the person we were waiting for?!"

"Yes, didn't I tell you?" Rei replied smoothly, playing along perfectly.

"You didn't tell me at all!!!" Sawamura couldn't help but retort, thinking, How can someone's memory be this bad?!

Well, once again, Sawamura lived up to his reputation as a lovable idiot.

Rei gave Sendo a sly look as if to ask, How was my performance? Sendo chuckled lightly in response.

And so, the three of them set off for Seidou.

The journey was long, but neither Rei nor Sawamura noticed the small bag strapped around Sendo's waist like a belt.

...

When they arrived at Seidou, Sawamura's reaction was just as one would expect—his mouth dropped open in amazement, and he froze in awe, completely overwhelmed.

Sendo, on the other hand, remained unfazed, showing little interest in the state-of-the-art equipment, whether familiar or unfamiliar.

"What do you think? This is our school's baseball field and facilities," Rei asked at the right moment, her tone calm and without any trace of arrogance.

"Haaah!" Sawamura sucked in a breath awkwardly, sounding as if he were choking.

"We also have an indoor practice field for rainy days. Most of our players live in the dorms," Rei continued.

"What are all these machines?! …I've never seen so many before!" Sawamura exclaimed, his excitement bubbling over as he darted around, inspecting everything.

Rei couldn't help but laugh softly, finding his enthusiasm amusing.

Sawamura, however, realized he was being a little too obvious and felt embarrassed.

His face turned red as he awkwardly tried to compose himself.

"I'm not impressed by these things at all! I was just a little startled!" he said defensively, trying to save face.

"Ah, is that so?" Rei didn't call him out, but her tone was clearly teasing.

"And anyway, you don't need all this fancy equipment to play baseball! It's just that your players are all really skilled, so of course they're strong! But mark my words—I refuse to lose to such a well-equipped elite team!" Sawamura's fiery determination flared up as usual.

Rei then repeated her inspiring words from the original story, words that earned her respect even from Sendo.

Although Sendo didn't share the same passion for baseball and didn't fully approve of the relentless training methods, he still respected those who worked hard to achieve their goals.

Being a natural talent didn't mean looking down on the efforts of others; in fact, Sendo admired them.

...

As Rei and Sawamura finished their conversation, Sendo scanned the field with sharp eyes.

"It's about time for Azuma-senpai to make his entrance," he thought to himself.

Sure enough, within seconds, he spotted a bulky figure in the long-distance batting area.

Moments later, Azuma's booming voice drew everyone's attention.

"Kawakami!!! What kind of half-baked pitch was that?! Throw a stronger ball! You're already tired after just a few pitches? No wonder you can't even make it to the bench!"

To Sendo, Azuma's voice was surprisingly pleasant to listen to.

But Sendo didn't have time to savor it. Hearing those words, he discreetly slipped his hand into the small bag at his waist.

On the field, Kawakami muttered an embarrassed apology in response to Azuma's exasperated tone.

"It's starting! Haha!" Sendo felt a surge of excitement.

Under his loose-fitting clothes, his muscles tensed like a tiger ready to pounce, waiting to deliver a decisive strike to its prey.

Even without overhearing the players' murmurs, Sendo could discern Azuma's emotions—a mix of frustration and exasperation.

While his words were sharp, there wasn't a trace of malice in his tone. Only someone as naturally observant as Sendo could pick up on such nuances.

Sendo's exceptional observational skills allowed him to gather fragmented information and piece together accurate conclusions instinctively.

This talent, however, came at a cost—it slightly hindered his performance in baseball.

For hitting, this weakness alone dropped his ability by an entire level.

Don't underestimate what one level means—it's the difference between junior high and high school, a gap of immense proportions.

Still, even those junior high stars who shined brightly would often struggle to adapt to the fast-paced world of high school baseball, needing months to reach even the lower batting order of Seidou's elite team.

For Sendo, those junior high stars were nothing more than weaklings.

But imagining what he could achieve without his natural limitations was a tantalizing thought. If only...

...

Sawamura, being his usual clueless self, lacked the ability to read the room. His combination of naivety and low emotional intelligence made Azuma's sharp words unbearable for him.

However, just as Sawamura began feeling uncomfortable, Rei stepped in to introduce Azuma.

"That boy's hitting ability is something you should pay close attention to! He's a monster with 42 career home runs in high school, Azuma Kiyokuni! He's one of this year's top draft picks!"

Forty-two home runs was a monstrous achievement.

While the term kaibutsu didn't carry the supernatural connotations of bakemono, it was still a rare and high praise.

After all, Azuma hadn't even participated in Koshien, and first-years typically didn't play in official matches right away.

...

PING!

The sound of Azuma's bat connecting with the ball echoed as it soared effortlessly over the high protective net.

The net, designed to prevent powerful home runs from leaving the field, was usually high enough to contain 90% of hits.

Witnessing a home run that cleared it entirely was impressive, even to Sendo, who had only seen such feats in anime.

In person, the impact was much more striking.

While Sendo had confidence in his consistency, he acknowledged that Azuma's raw hitting power far surpassed his own.

Although Sendo's innate gifts in spatial awareness, dynamic vision, and reflexes allowed him to confuse pitchers with his unconventional approach, in a head-to-head power contest, Azuma had a clear advantage.

Sendo knew his own limits and understood that while his natural abilities allowed him to shine in many areas, Azuma's superior physicality and polished techniques were on another level.

...

Just as Sendo was marveling at Azuma's power, the man himself started barking sharp criticisms again.

"What the hell was that?!" Sawamura, completely out of his depth, began his usual antics.

At that moment, Sendo's single-status-honed reflexes kicked in.

Like a ninja, he swiftly pulled a black object from his bag, the motion accompanied by a series of clicks and clacks as he prepared a small, high-definition camera with practiced efficiency.

Hearing the sound of something being unsheathed, Rei turned her head curiously.

What she saw nearly made her burst into laughter on the spot.

In her view, Sendo was holding a compact camera, its lens aimed squarely at Sawamura.

Rei stifled her laughter, maintaining her composure as best she could.

While filming was prohibited on the training grounds, she let it slide, assuming Sendo simply liked documenting moments with his friends.

What she didn't know was that Sendo had spent an hour the previous night practicing with the camera specifically for this moment.

His innate ability to learn quickly had made him a natural, and his enthusiasm for capturing Sawamura's ultimate blackmail material drove his efforts.

This was no ordinary footage.

Sendo planned to preserve this as one of Sawamura's greatest embarrassments, something he could tease him about for years to come.

To ensure its safekeeping, he was even considering storing it on a dedicated USB drive in a hidden location.

"This is perfect. From now on, this camera is my aibo (partner)!" Sendo thought gleefully, already imagining the endless joy he'd derive from this footage.

...

Meanwhile, Sawamura, oblivious to Sendo's scheming, was preparing to pick a fight with Azuma.

"Ha!" Sawamura took a deep breath.

"With that body? You think you can go pro? Unbelievable!"

"Huh?" Azuma finally noticed Sawamura, though he hadn't fully processed what he was saying.

"Look at that gut! He's just an ossan (old man)! Hahaha!" Sawamura continued, even throwing in a fake laugh for effect.

Rei, realizing the situation was escalating, tried to intervene, but her attempts to calm things down were futile.

"Does he even look like a high school student? He's clearly over 40!" Sawamura added, doubling down on his insult.

Sendo, meanwhile, shifted his camera to Azuma, determined to capture both perspectives for maximum effect.

The nearby first-year catcher, Ono, was gaping in disbelief at Sawamura's boldness.

Azuma, on the other hand, had tensed up, his muscles visibly flexing as his temper flared.

"Who the hell is this kid?! Mocking my best features like that?!" Azuma roared.

"Best features? More like your biggest flaws! Hahaha!" Sawamura fake-laughed again, his shoulders shaking.

Sendo could barely contain his laughter behind the camera.

As Azuma's rage reached its peak, Sendo could almost imagine flames erupting around him.

Several players rushed to hold Azuma back, but his overwhelming strength made it nearly impossible.

"Get out of my way, you idiots!" Azuma bellowed, breaking free with ease.

Rei quickly stepped in, trying to defuse the situation by urging Sawamura to apologize.

She couldn't believe how impulsive and hot-headed Sawamura was.

Though she found his naïve stupidity endearing at times, this was too much to ignore.

If the two continued like this, it would undoubtedly cause major trouble!

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