The catcher, Hosho, could only watch as Sawamura's bat flew past right in front of him.
It felt like the air around them had been sucked out by the swing of that bat.
Hosho wasn't unfamiliar with Sawamura; on the contrary, he knew his former partner too well.
Sawamura was clearly not a power hitter.
He shouldn't have such terrifying batting power.
But now, Hosho felt a sense of pressure coming from Sawamura, the kind of overwhelming feeling he hadn't expected.
After joining the Seidou High School baseball team, what kind of training had this guy gone through to grow to this point?
Hosho was deeply shocked.
However, right now, he didn't have the time to reminisce about the past with Sawamura, nor to think about how much he had grown since joining Seidou's team.
All of his attention was focused on the bat in front of him and the small ball that was about to come his way.
For some reason, his heart was pounding faster than usual.
Hosho had a very bad feeling.
This feeling, when said out loud, seemed quite unreasonable. Back when he was on the Akagi Middle School baseball team with Sawamura as his teammate, he always felt completely at ease whenever Sawamura stepped up to bat.
That guy had never let him down.
At that time, Hosho deeply admired Sawamura.
But now, the admiration he once had for Sawamura had turned into anxiety.
That was the source of his unease.
The confidence he had in Sawamura had now turned into a sense of fear.
Somehow, he just had a feeling that the bat would make contact with the ball.
And that it would definitely hit the ball out of the park!
This feeling was uncomfortable, but it was the truth.
What happened next confirmed Hosho's judgment and intuition.
It was as if the bat and the baseball had come to an agreement.
Hosho had an unusually clear view of the situation now.
The bat carried the baseball for a few centimeters before it finally sent it flying.
The ball, already fast on its way, flew out even faster, surpassing the speed of the Shinkansen.
This speed, of course, was not comparable to the initial speed.
The baseball drew an enormous arc, reaching the left-field stands at a speed of over 180 km/h.
The moment the ball landed, the entire stadium went silent.
'How could this happen?'
Before, when they saw Sawamura battling against the opponent, it was clear he had been on the defensive the whole time.
This made Sawamura's fans uneasy.
They had an ominous feeling, thinking that their idol might be in trouble.
Many people had this feeling before Sawamura's turn at bat.
Not just Sawamura's loyal supporters, but even many of the onlookers, initially had this same sense of foreboding.
In the midst of the confused gazes of the crowd, Sawamura Eijun cleanly hit a home run.
The stadium fell into complete silence.
It was a full five seconds before the commentator was the first to react.
"It's gone! It's gone!!! Originally, The Mighty Batter Seemed To Be Suppressed, But It Turns Out That He Wasn't Suppressed At All. He Had Just Pulled His Punch, Waiting For The Right Moment To Strike With Full Force. A Clean, Decisive Home Run By Sawamura From Seidou High School!"
The commentator shouted hoarsely, cheering for Sawamura.
After the commentator finished speaking, Sawamura's loyal fans also reacted.
It turned out they had been worrying for nothing.
What a pleasant surprise!
As expected from their powerhouse, his performance was just amazing.
With their favorite player performing so well, they, as supporters, naturally couldn't be left behind.
They immediately picked up whatever they could and started banging on them.
They rhythmically banged water bottles, blew small horns, and chanted the names of Seidou and Sawamura.
"SEIDOU!"
"SAWAMURA!"
"SAWAMURA!!!"
"KING SEIDOU!!!"
The stands at Koshien Stadium were as lively as a festival.
Everyone was celebrating, celebrating the stunning performance of their powerhouse.
Sawamura once again proved to everyone with his actions that his title of the powerhouse wasn't just empty boasting.
It had been earned through countless battles, challenges, and matches.
And this time, he had clearly won again!
In the celebratory atmosphere, Owada Akiko from Baseball Kingdom Magazine was stunned.
She cheered along with Seidou's fans, waiting for Sawamura to complete his run around the bases and bring the team to that point.
The score became 1:0.
Only then did she sit back down with the crowd.
After the celebration died down, Akiko finally expressed her disbelief.
"That was a home run?"
Looking at the recent confrontation, anyone would have thought that Sawamura had been suppressed by his opponent.
But in such a situation, on his third attempt, Sawamura hit a home run.
Two Strikes against him, in such a difficult situation.
With a clean, decisive hit, he had made a home run.
Akiko had been so busy cheering that she hadn't stopped to think about how this happened.
When everything finally settled down, she began to wonder about it.
Next to her, Fujio rolled his eyes in dissatisfaction.
His partner's reaction was certainly slow.
But honestly, he was also shocked.
He hadn't expected Sawamura to hit a home run in such an unfavorable situation.
It was simply unbelievable!
But when he thought about it carefully, it seemed that there was nothing impossible about it.
If anyone in the entire high school could achieve this under such unfavorable circumstances, it could only be Sawamura Eijun!
Fujio thought to himself.
The game continued, and Sawamura, upon returning to the home plate, hesitated to speak to Miyuki.
Although he had hit the mysterious Cutter from Nanami out of the park, to be honest, it was only because of the miraculous state that he had managed to do so.
Otherwise, just relying on his instincts and strength, he could have easily failed in that encounter.
He was in this situation, and he doubted that Miyuki would fare much better either.
At this point, even if he told Miyuki about Nanami Haruka's pitch breaks, it probably wouldn't have much effect.
In fact, if he worried too much about it, Miyuki's batting stance might even be thrown off.
Sawamura thought for a moment, then decided not to say anything.
Once Miyuki finished his turn at bat, he would explain everything to him in detail.
Since Sawamura wasn't planning to speak, Miyuki wasn't about to let him off the hook.
Miyuki stared at Sawamura, watching his every expression.
"Tell me, what did it feel like just now?"
With such little time, how could he summarize everything in just a few words?
Sawamura furrowed his brows, suddenly struck with an idea.
"Don't focus on his winning shot. Swing before he throws it!"
Although he couldn't explain Nanami's winning shot in detail in such a short time, it didn't stop him from giving Miyuki a helpful tip on how to face Haruka.
As their tacit partner, Miyuki immediately got the gist of it.
Sawamura meant that the winning shot was difficult to hit!
Sawamura was well-meaning but inadvertently piqued Miyuki's curiosity.
Miyuki wasn't particularly interested before, but now he was even more eager to see what Nanami's winning shot was like.
Of course, as the Captain of the Seidou High School baseball team, Miyuki's whims weren't allowed to take precedence.
Though he was curious, he didn't plan to actually swing at Haruka's winning shot.
Right now, Seidou's top priority was to secure more runs.
With a one-run lead, if Sawamura were on the mound, it would be very secure.
But now, it was Nanami on the mound. Though his skills were strong and his performance was solid, he couldn't match Sawamura's consistency.
In this situation, there was a high chance of Seidou conceding Runs later.
As batters, their only job was to score as much as possible.
As long as they had a sufficient lead, even if Nanami faltered later on, it wouldn't be a big deal!
After all, Seidou never intended to shut out the game.
When the Koshien tournament started, the Seidou team had such ambitions.
They hoped their journey through Koshien would be even more glorious.
But unfortunately, the last rounds had completely crushed the team's arrogance!
Those three games made the Seidou players realize that, while they were indeed strong, and ranked first in the high school overall, their advantage wasn't enough to look down on every opponent.
The teams that made it to Koshien were strong enough to pose a threat to Seidou.
Just the level of that threat varied!
Under these circumstances, how could Seidou continue to be haughty?
They couldn't, not at all.
Now, their only remaining goal was to win every match and ultimately claim victory.
The legend of Seidou's triumph was all that mattered.
Anything else was just icing on the cake.
Seidou didn't expect more than that!
Miyuki Kazuya gave up the plan to make the game-winning hit.
Although he deeply desired it, as the team captain, he could not act impulsively.
The captain has responsibilities, and at this moment, he must shoulder them.
In this inning, Furuya replaced Sawamura on the mound.
The purpose was to rotate and avoid over-exerting Sawamura's stamina.
On one hand, this was to prepare for the upcoming two games, and on the other hand, it was for the growth of Sawamura.
According to experts, if a pitcher throws more than 120 pitches in a game, they should rest for three or four days before continuing to pitch in another game.
Otherwise, the pitcher's shoulder won't recover in time, and this could lead to serious and dangerous consequences.
The consequences of overuse of the shoulder can range from ruining one's talent and making it impossible to progress further in the future, to even causing permanent disability.
For this reason, Coach Kataoka and the coaching staff of the Seidou High School baseball team decided.
In this game, Sawamura would be rotated out.
Although the game situation is favorable, the Seidou High School baseball team is not yet in a secure position.
As his partner, Miyuki of course hoped to help Sawamura.
He wanted Sawamura to have a good rest during this game and focus on preparing for the semifinals and finals.
To do this, they first need to win this game.
Rather than facing off against the opponent's game-winning hit, Miyuki's most important task now is to select the right pitch and make a clean, beautiful hit.
Miyuki raised his bat high, his eyes locked firmly on the pitcher's mound.
He waited for the small baseball to come flying toward him.
Miyuki's glasses reflected the sunlight.
Now!
The ace pitcher of Hoshiryu High School, Nanami Haruka, was surprisingly bold for his first pitch, using an inside fastball.
Miyuki had no intention of showing mercy.
After seeing this pitch, he swung his bat without hesitation, aiming to hit the ball hard and send it flying.
The small baseball kept getting closer, and with perfect timing, Miyuki decisively swung his bat.
Just as the bat was about to make contact with the baseball, Miyuki noticed something strange.
This change happened quickly, and after swinging his bat, Miyuki couldn't be sure.
Was it his imagination, or had the baseball really changed?
Paak!
The bat struck the baseball, and from the recoil in his hands, Miyuki realized that he had missed the ball!
This conclusion was easy to draw. Whether from the recoil felt in his palm or the angle at which the ball flew, it was clear.
After hitting the ball, Miyuki threw his bat aside and started running toward first base.
Even though he knew it was in vain, what else could he do?
Miyuki Kazuya had no answer in his heart and could only run forward, bewildered.
As expected, the ball he hit bounced and was caught by Hoshiryu High School's infielder and thrown to first base.
Snap!
"OUT!!"
Nothing unexpected happened, and Miyuki Kazuya was cleanly Out.
…
T/N: Well, That's it for now.
Thank you all for reading!
Have a good day!
You also can check my Patre0n for extra Chapters.
https://www.patre0n.com/ColdColt
There are +190 Chapters there.