Ace of Diamond: Return of the Pitcher

V6_Chapter 64: The Final Inning!

In the Seidou High School dugout.

Coach Ochiai was rubbing his goatee with a worried expression. The calm and collected demeanor he had at the start of the game was long gone.

Inajitsu High School had delivered a massive shock!

Coach Ochiai couldn’t help but reflect on how difficult it was to be in this position. Not only was it hard to recruit top talent, but within their own district, they had a formidable opponent like Inajitsu High School to contend with.

In terms of strength, Inajitsu High School's players were not necessarily inferior to Seidou High School's. In some cases, they were even better.

‘But the game was also being dominated by the opponent!’

Despite finally getting a chance, Coach Kataoka immediately issued instructions for a surprise move. However, Inajitsu High School had studied Seidou High School’s players so thoroughly that they had seen through their tactics at a glance.

Looking at Coach Kataoka and then at Coach Kunitomo in the Inajitsu High School dugout, Ochiai’s mood was far from relaxed.

‘It seemed we were at a disadvantage in this tactical battle between coaches.’

“This game is tough!” Ochiai muttered quietly.

His voice was so soft that even those around him didn’t hear.

The score remained tied at 1-1, with both teams set to bat in the upcoming inning.

From the current state of the game, both sides were still evenly matched. It was hard to believe that Seidou High School was at a disadvantage and likely to lose.

At least the Seidou High School players were not ready to give up.

Two Outs, with a runner on third base!

Higasa was now at the plate.

The sun shone softly on his shaved head, reflecting a gentle light.

“Shuu! Shuu!”

Muttering his catchphrase, Higasa prepared himself.

Coach Kataoka’s instructions were simple: attack!

With two Outs and no room for retreat, they had no choice but to push forward aggressively.

Whether it was a lucky hit or not, they had to make contact with the ball.

“Go for it!”

“Attack!!”

“It’s all on you!!!”

Seidou High School’s players cheered enthusiastically for Higasa!

But for some reason, everyone lacked confidence.

‘Probably no one really believes I can hit the ball out, right?’

Higasa knew this all too well.

The game had been going for a full eight innings. Seidou High School’s lineup had faced Narumiya Mei three times. Only three players had been able to hit his pitches consistently:

The team’s Ace pitcher and big star, Sawamura Eijun;

The team captain, main catcher, and Fourth Batter, Miyuki Kazuya;

And surprisingly, Shiratsu is now on third base.

Although Shiratsu had always been a reliable player, his remarkable hit was unexpected.

But teammates knew Shiratsu’s strength well. Despite his quiet nature, he was exceptionally skilled.

‘Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been selected for the first team!’

Unlike the current, less cohesive first team, the Seidou High School that won the national championship was a Solid Legion Of Monsters. Every position was outstanding.

Compared to them, Higasa was not underestimating himself, but the gap in strength was significant.

In this situation, facing the monster Narumiya, all he could do was give it his all.

Come on!

Higasa took his stance, showing full intent to attack.

In response to Higasa’s desperate preparation, Inajitsu High School’s battery didn’t seem particularly concerned.

Tadano signaled confidently.

At this point, they were also going all out.

As the game neared its end, the tension grew. Any slip-up could lead to irreversible consequences.

Like Shiratsu’s unexpected hit!

If Coach Kunitomo hadn’t seen through Coach Kataoka’s strategy and used a bunt with Seki, the current situation might have been different.

Narumiya Mei, who had just suffered a major setback, was determined not to repeat his previous mistakes. Even against Higasa, he was giving his all.

Roaar!

Despite having thrown seventy or eighty pitches, Narumiya’s pitching power remained strong.

Higasa could only watch as the ball whizzed past, powerless.

He swung his bat!

All he could do was keep swinging.

“STRIKE!”

“STRIKE!!”

“STRIKE! BATTER OUT!!!”

Three consecutive swings, and he missed each time.

Struck out after three failed swings.

Higasa looked embarrassed.

But in Seidou High School’s dugout, the result wasn’t taken seriously.

Or rather, the result was exactly as they had anticipated.

In the top of the ninth inning, Inajitsu was up to bat.

Automatically, the game had reached its final inning.

Despite the low scores from both teams, with only a total of two points scored so far, the audience was far from bored.

This Koshien final-level match had them mesmerized, unable to look away.

The applause and cheers were continuous, and many spectators were simply cheering for the players.

In a corner of the stands, a boy with a mushroom haircut blew a large bubble from his gum.

Beside him, another boy spoke with a hint of regret.

“This attack, Seidou High School had a chance!”

Ouya High School’s Kasuga Hiro was a keen observer, keenly observing the tactical decisions of both sides.

“The recent substitution was somewhat abrupt. If Asou had stayed on the field, it might have been possible to use a play-and-run strategy. Asou’s ability was unquestionable, and since this was his third time facing Narumiya, he had a chance...”

Puff!

The bubble popped, sticking to Mushroom Head’s mouth. Unbothered, he chewed it again.

Mushroom Head, Wakabayashi Gao was dismissive of his teammate’s concerns.

‘On the surface, Seidou High School had indeed missed a great opportunity.’

‘But in reality, Seidou’s hit was not lost, was it?’

‘This meant that Sawamura Eijun, who had hit a home run earlier, still had a chance to bat in the ninth inning!’

Not everyone has the insight of Mushroom Head.

So, most of the audience felt pity for Seidou High School.

In this game, it seemed that luck was not on their side. Aside from Sawamura's forceful home run, every other scoring opportunity for Seidou High School seemed to have vanished.

Top of the ninth inning.

Before heading out to the field, Miyuki intended to discuss a few things with Sawamura.

Turning around, he saw Sawamura sitting on the bench like a statue, completely still.

His expression was relaxed, almost as if he were asleep. Even his breathing was unnaturally long.

No matter how intense the game was, Sawamura remained calm and motionless.

‘Is this some kind of meditation? Are you trying to become a monk?’ Miyuki thought with irritation.

Miyuki wasn’t unaware of Sawamura’s reason for this behavior, but an inning of offense only lasted a few minutes, at most about ten.

Could such a short rest really be effective?

Miyuki wasn’t sure.

But he didn’t have time to think about it now; the umpire had started urging them.

“It’s time to go!”

At Miyuki’s command, Eijun abruptly opened his eyes.

He glanced at the scoreboard, nodded calmly, and began walking to the mound while stretching his body.

Not a single word was exchanged.

Miyuki hesitated.

He had originally wanted to discuss pitching tactics for the final inning with Sawamura. But the moment he saw Sawamura’s eyes, he abandoned the idea.

In just a few minutes, Sawamura’s breathing had stabilized.

Though it was hard to believe, it seemed his stamina had indeed recovered.

Miyuki felt this more acutely when he caught the ball.

Whoosh!

The white ball zoomed into Miyuki’s Mitt like a streak of light.

SNAP!

Despite his exhaustion, Sawamura seemed indifferent, not even bothering with his usual adjustment pitch.

He threw a sharp Breaking Ball instead.

The ninth batter from Inajitsu High School, who had been prepared for a Moving Ball, was completely thrown off and couldn’t make contact.

The player kept swinging his bat but never managed to hit the baseball.

As the game neared its end, Sawamura’s performance only grew more solid.

At this point, he looked in better shape than at the start.

“Incredible!”

The president of the Inajitsu High School baseball team muttered in surprise from the dugout.

From Sawamura’s previous pitching, they had clearly noticed that this seemingly omnipotent pitcher appeared to be struggling with stamina issues.

Though they didn’t know the cause, Sawamura’s lack of stamina was obvious.

They had expected to find an opportunity to attack him in the ninth inning.

But this was not the case. Sawamura showed no signs of fatigue in his pitching.

In fact, it almost seemed like his stamina had been restored.

“Could he be eating Senzu beans or something?” Shirakawa muttered.

“Oi Oi this is not dragon ball, there is no master Korin around.”

“But this is just too unreasonable. How could he look completely drained before and now perform so fiercely?”

“The reason is actually quite simple. Either he was pretending before, or his stamina has miraculously recovered in just a few minutes.”

“STRIKE BATTER OUT!!!”

After three consecutive misses, the ninth batter from Inajitsu High School was Struck Out.

One Out, no one on base.

Now, Inajitsu High School’s lineup was back at the top.

“First Batter, Center, Kamiya-kun.”

As Carlos stepped into the Batter’s Box, his eyes locked onto Sawamura with a dangerous glare.

‘Did he truly recover?’

He wanted to see if Sawamura had truly recovered his strength.

Sawamura on the mound seemed to be unaware of his opponent’s identity. He pitched without any hesitation.

The white ball flew from his hand like a concealed weapon from a master assassin.

Everything looked so natural, yet so unpredictable.

The mitt concealed his pitching hand until the ball was visible to the batter.

His form was flawless.

At this moment, Sawamura didn’t appear fatigued in the slightest.

His pitching form was identical to before as if it had been honed through countless repetitions into a fixed pattern.

‘It’s infuriating!’

A pitch from a fixed pattern should theoretically be as predictable as one from a pitching machine!

But Sawamura Eijun’s pitching was nothing like that. Once the baseball was thrown, its trajectory was unpredictable. Without seeing the ball in flight, it was impossible to guess what Sawamura intended to throw.

Facing the sudden pitch, Carlos didn’t wait. He swung his bat decisively.

Ping!

The bat struck the ball, but Carlos’s palm tingled from the impact.

This pitch was even heavier than the last one he faced!

‘How could this be?’

Carlos’s expression changed.

The pitch was a standard outside corner Straight Ball, not a Breaking Ball.

Yet, its weight was so daunting that Carlos couldn’t manage to hit it.

The ball bounced out of bounds!

“FOUL!”

Even after more than 70 pitches, the ball’s power didn’t decrease; if anything, it increased slightly.

‘This monster!’

Carlos’s eyes were bloodshot. Though he was often described as a monster in his games, he felt completely normal compared to Sawamura Eijun. Sawamura was a true monster, his pitching leaving everyone utterly baffled.

He needed to drain Sawamura’s stamina and then defeat him in one final push.

Such an opportunity might be rare.

Realizing this, Carlos quickly adjusted his strategy.

Though his pride as a batter usually made him disdainful of such tactics, he didn’t mind using them now that Seidou High School’s players weren’t advancing or defending aggressively.

As Sawamura prepared to pitch again, Carlos set up for a bunt without hesitation.

Ping!

His bunt was sharp. The bat met the ball, sending it rolling between first base and the pitcher.

Maezono was about to move forward to retrieve the ball.

At that moment, he suddenly heard someone shout:

“Don’t move!”

…