Ace of Diamond: Return of the Pitcher

The home run hit by Sawamura at this moment can be said to make all the fans of Seidou High School proud.

It's not wrong that Shonan is strong, but isn't the gap between them and Seidou High School not that large?

Is it really only a two-point difference?

This is after playing a full nine innings!!

Because of this, the supporters of Seidou High School were not very enthusiastic.

It wasn't until Sawamura hit this home run that their expressions improved a bit.

The facts proved that Seidou High School is indeed Seidou High School, and you can still rely on them!

No matter how well Shonan High School performed, it was still not enough in the eyes of Seidou High School.

The score difference tells the whole story.

After two Outs, Kuramochi took the lead and teamed up with Haruichi to score the first point.

Following that, the Maou of Seidou High School, Sawamura Eijun, hit a clean home run, completely sealing the game's victory.

The score became 5:0.

Compared to a 2:0 score, this one looks much more pleasing to the eye.

At least these supporters of the Seidou High School baseball team can accept this score.

And Seidou High School's attack didn't end there.

After Sawamura Eijun's home run, Miyuki stepped up to the Batter's Box.

The opposing team had just been bombarded with base hits and a home run.

'Now is the perfect time for a storm.'

Miyuki could fully take advantage of the situation.

With his personality, it's not impossible for him to do such a thing.

Miyuki has never minded striking when the iron is hot.

He wasn't exactly a good person.

With the bat raised high, even with the empty bases, Miyuki didn't lack motivation.

If the situation required him to score, Miyuki could force himself to get motivated.

He had been made a fool of by Kawaki in the previous two encounters.

As a nationally known star player and the top backup for the first catcher position,

Miyuki also had pride.

He at least had to get a hit, or he would be laughed at by the guys in the dugout.

With the bat raised high, Miyuki stared hard at Kawaki on the pitcher's mound.

He wasn't sure what kind of pitch the opponent would throw.

Of course, even if he knew what pitch was coming, Miyuki couldn't do much.

After all, Kawaki isn't Sawamura; he couldn't just throw whatever he wanted.

His control wasn't stable.

And that was precisely Miyuki's Achilles' heel.

He made his living by guessing pitches, and when the opponent's control was unstable, it was a fatal flaw for him as a batter.

'Can you be more reliable?'

Miyuki silently prayed in his heart that the opponent would throw the pitch he wanted.

But clearly, luck wasn't on Miyuki's side today.

In the end, he guessed wrong.

Maybe he guessed right, but the pitch still wasn't where he expected it to be.

Anyway, he didn't hit the final ball well.

Ping!

The baseball was hit and rolled toward third base.

Snap!

Shonan High School's defense responded quickly.

They immediately passed the ball to first base.

"OUT!!"

Miyuki was out just like that.

He faced Kawaki three times and didn't get a hit in any of them.

If this were any other player, it wouldn't be a big deal. After all, Kawaki's strength is evident, and with factors like luck, it wouldn't be surprising at all.

But who is Miyuki?

He has been the star of Seidou High School from day one.

To be played like a fool three times in a row was embarrassing.

"How shameful!"

Kuramochi's face was full of sorrow.

The opportunity to mock Miyuki was a once-in-a-lifetime chance.

If he let this pass, he wouldn't be Kuramochi.

"At least you're the captain of the team, can you show some decency?"

Maezono also chimed in with a deep voice.

At this point, he had conveniently forgotten that he, too, had been easily solved twice before.

Faced with the group mockery from his teammates, Miyuki remained calm and unruffled.

Being ridiculed by his teammates like this, if it were anyone else, they might have felt like smashing their heads into the wall.

But Miyuki didn't care in the slightest.

He felt no shame; instead, he felt proud.

With both hands wide open, he waved energetically at his teammates, as if he were a political leader on a tour.

The scene didn't seem like his teammates were mocking him, but rather like they were complimenting and praising him.

"Don't you have any shame?"

Miyuki's shameless attitude even made Sawamura's mouth ajar.

Normally, when others made mistakes, Miyuki would mock them more harshly than anyone.

Now that he had made a mistake, he could have just quietly tucked his tail between his legs and behaved humbly.

Why did he still have to be so annoying?

"Even if I kneel and apologize, or commit seppuku to atone, it won't matter, right?"

Miyuki's expression remained relaxed, but his eyes were cold.

"Any complaints can only be vented on the field, right?"

Looking at Miyuki's cold, eager eyes, what could Sawamura say?

After all, they were partners; when one thrives, both thrive and when one falls, both fall.

"Alright!"

In the top of the ninth inning, Shonan High School took their turn to bat.

The five-point gap had completely shattered their confidence.

The only thing left for Shonan High School's players was to hope for at least one point.

But even this modest request wasn't something that Sawamura was planning to fulfill.

His partner was clearly angry right now, and if Sawamura didn't help him vent, he felt he would be letting his friend down.

He took a stance, pushed aside all resistance with his right-handed mitt, and then swung his left hand like a whip. The baseball shot out with a sharp whistling sound.

WHRROOSH!!!!

The baseball shot out like a bullet, instantly covering the 18-meter distance and appearing right in front of the batter.

'Wha…!'

Shonan High School's ninth batter was nearly scared out of his wits.

He had heard his teammates talk about Sawamura's Sword, the Straight-Fastball, before.

But Sawamura seemed to only use this against top-tier hitters or key batters.

Against someone like him, just a simple, Moving ball would normally end the battle.

What was happening to him now?

It seemed like he had suddenly switched on a demon mode, with the bullet-like ball in his hand coming without mercy, whistling as it flew toward the batter.

The batter gritted his teeth and braced himself.

For a moment, he was completely at a loss.

Facing the full-on fury of the demon king, Sawamura Eijun, he had no idea how to deal with it.

The pitch was already fast enough to exceed 145 km/h, but with his new pitching stance, to the batter, it seemed like the speed was at least 155 km/h.

Faster than the Shinkansen's express trains.

There was no time to blink before the baseball was in front of him.

With determination, the batter swung, but completely missed.

"STRIKE!"

"STRIKE!!"

"STRIKE!!!"

"STRIKE! BATTER OUT!!!!"

"STRIKE! BATTER OUT!!!!!"

"STRIKE! BATTER OUT!!!!!!"

Not just Shonan High School's ninth batter, but even their lead-off and second batters had no way of dealing with Sawamura's pitches.

They could only watch helplessly as the baseball flew by, unable to do anything about it.

In Shonan High School's dugout, Matt collapsed like a lump of mud, slumped in his seat.

He knew that Sawamura was strong, but he never imagined that Sawamura's strength could be this overwhelming.

With just Straight-Fastballs, Sawamura struck Out three of their batters in a row.

And this wasn't the beginning of the game; it had already been nine full innings, and Sawamura had pitched almost 100 pitches.

In other words, Sawamura's stamina wasn't at its peak anymore.

Yet, he still managed to effortlessly crush every player from Shonan High School.

His terrifying strength was evident.

Being called the Demon King wasn't without reason.

As for why the opponent had held back their strength until now, Matt understood that quite well.

After all, after the semifinals, the finals were up next. Seidou High School had never focused solely on this semifinal.

They had probably already begun preparing for the final.

In the stands, teams from Hakuryu High School and Inashiro Industries High School were positioned on opposite sides of the field.

One on the third-base side, the other on the first-base side.

They exchanged glances, sparks flying between them.

The winner of this match would be Seidou High School's opponent in the finals.

"The Game Is Over!!! The First Match Of The Kanto Tournament Semifinals Between West Tokyo Seidou High School And Kanagawa Shonan High School Has Come To An End After Nine Innings Of Intense Battle. The Final Score Is 5:0, And Seidou High School's Baseball Team Is The Winner!"

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