Ace of Diamond: Return of the Pitcher

A roar suddenly came from the catcher's position.

"NOT YET!!! THROW TO THIRD BASE!!!!!"

Miyuki's voice sounded somewhat hoarse.

The Seidou High School players, who had been immersed in the joy of securing an Out, were now shocked to realize that Mima Soichiro, who had been calmly stationed at second base, had already lunged for third base.

How could this be?

It was truly unexpected; no one had anticipated this.

However, given Mima's speed, it wasn't surprising that he was capable of such a move.

By the time Maezono regained his composure and threw the ball to third base, Mima was already a step ahead, safely landing on the bag.

"SAFE!!"

What had been a situation of no Outs and a runner on first base had now turned into one Out and a runner on third.

Seidou High School was facing an unprecedented crisis.

Kanemaru, who had just made an impressive defensive play, didn't even have time to celebrate before he stared in horror at Mima Soichiro.

'This guy was truly an anomaly!'

'He managed to reach third base from first base with such a hit—unbelievable!'

Not only was his skill extraordinary, but his determination was also remarkable.

Mima Soichiro had taken the risk of a double play and created such a miracle.

It was truly admirable!

Even on the pitcher's mound, Sawamura could only smile helplessly at Mima.

Mima's actions had exceeded even Sawamura's expectations.

Mima gave a faint smile as if what he had just done was no big deal.

"He really is a monster!"

Miyuki said from the catcher's position.

To become one of the top players in high school, anyone from the group of national stars could easily stand out in professional baseball.

Each and every one of them was a super monster on the high school field.

Just like now, although Mima's actions were somewhat beyond the expectations of Sawamura and Miyuki, their overall pitching wasn't fundamentally flawed.

Especially Sawamura's pitching!

If it weren't for Kuramochi leaving his position too early, the play should have been easily handled.

It could have even been a catch!

Had they made that catch, it would have been two Outs by now.

Then, there would have been no more issues to deal with.

But, despite Seidou's flawless tactics, they still allowed a base steal.

This showed that there is no such thing as a perfect tactic in the world.

Even Seidou High School's well-honed strategies could be countered by the opponent's careful adjustments, leading to unexpected results.

Just like now, there was nothing they could do.

When the third batter of Hakuryu High School stepped up, he immediately set himself up for a bunt.

The opponent's intent was clear.

After some hesitation, Miyuki made a sign to Sawamura.

'Pitch with the mindset that a Run would be lost.'

Sawamura disagreed with this approach, but he couldn't deny it as this was the reality.

However, it didn't mean that he would give it up that easily.

As a pitcher, Sawamura wasn't afraid of any challenge, even in a dangerous situation. He would rely on his superb pitching skills to turn the tide.

So when he was faced with unfavorable odds, he still did his best.

'The first pitch, a magic ball to the outside!'

Although it is categorized as a breaking ball, the magic ball is a Straight ball but with an even more tricky form.

With Sawamura's unstable state, he can still use this pitch to a high degree.

Whrroosh!

When the batter saw the ball coming and was ready to knock the ball forward,

'Wha…'

the ball suddenly disappeared midair, flew away from his bat, and slammed into Miyuki's Mitt.

SNAP!

"STRIKE!"

'So this is his Disappearing ball, how tricky.'

Hakuryu of course knew about Sawamura's Magic ball, and the third batter knew how hard it would be if he wanted to hit this ball normally.

Fortunately for him, this was not his task. His mission now is to bunt it.

He only needs to follow it and knock it forward.

Ping!

The moment the second ball came, the batter was ready this time and knocked the ball with his bat.

The bunt was not perfect but the job was done and Mima was already running.

In the end, Hakuryu High School used forced scoring to push Mima back home.

The score was now 1-0.

The mighty Seidou High School had not allowed a run in the first inning in a long time with Sawamura on the pitcher's mound.

But Hakuryu High School had broken this deadlock.

They had given this final match an entirely different beginning.

The atmosphere at the scene immediately heated up.

Many Popcorn Enjoyers began to switch their allegiance and started supporting Hakuryu High School.

This was Gunma Prefecture—people prefer local heroes.

For these neutral fans, it was easy for them to be drawn to Hakuryu High School.

Becoming a fan of Hakuryu High School was a natural outcome.

Of course, from the perspective of the audience, Seidou High School was not going to back down either.

The fans of the Sawamura were already one-third of the stands.

Some were locals from Gunma, others had come from Tokyo, and still others were from across high school.

These were Sawamura's die-hard fans.

When they saw Sawamura in trouble, they immediately rallied to support him.

"Two Outs!"

"Sawamura!!

"Sawamura!!"

"Demon King!!"

Even after allowing a run, Sawamura still received such enthusiastic support from his fans.

Others in the stands were also thrilled, especially the investors brought by Robert, whose eyes seemed to shine with money.

They had known for some time that Sawamura was very famous, his popularity astounding.

At the time, there were differing opinions. Some believed Sawamura's popularity came from his excellent baseball skills.

They thought that his fans weren't loyal and were just part of region-based fan groups.

But now, it was clear they were wrong.

Sawamura's current fans had nothing to do with regions.

These were die-hard fans, drawn in by Sawamura's personal charisma.

With their support, there was no doubt Sawamura would walk down a smooth path in the future.

From the perspective of fan economy, even if Sawamura could no longer play baseball, he could still thrive in other industries with his current popularity.

In this situation, how could the investors not be swayed?

Even though they weren't fans of baseball or Sawamura himself, they were fans of money. (...Mmm, How do I sign up in the fan club?)

When they saw a profitable opportunity, how could they let it slip by?

Even if Sawamura didn't want to be in the spotlight, they would find ways to push him out.

And they would easily find a thousand justifiable reasons for doing so.

The investors' thoughts were of no concern to Sawamura at the moment.

"STRIKE!"

"FOUL!!"

"STRIKE! BATTER OUT!!!"

He had just solved the last batter and was returning to the dugout.

His eyes were narrowed, almost as if he were going to pounce on his prey.

Although he publicly praised Mima Soichiro, this didn't mean Sawamura would let him off easily.

He was very angry—extremely angry.

He would never let this go.

The run he lost, he would make up for it himself.

Hakuryu High School had indeed improved their offense, but their Ace pitcher had not been replaced. It was still the Hard-faced Ouno.

All of Seidou's players were very familiar with his pitching.

Originally, Sawamura's memory of him had been fuzzy.

But now, the details of Ouno's pitching were as clear as ever in his mind.

The players from Hakuryu High School still had no idea what kind of monster they had provoked.

They were still basking in the joy of their short-term victory.

They didn't know a storm was about to hit.

In the bottom of the first inning, Seidou High School was up to bat.

The players from Seidou High School were already sharpening their swords/bats and heading to the Batter's Box!

…