Diamond No Ace: The Monster

Chapter 208: Growth – Shining Bright After Overcoming Setbacks!

Seidou High School Baseball Team Requests a Substitution!

By the fourth inning, the score remained tied at 1-1.

As the starting pitcher, Tanba's performance had not been ideal. His fastballs were being targeted by the opposing Sensen batters.

When he was pulled from the mound, exhaustion was evident on his face.

Everyone wanted to console him, but no one knew what to say.

This was his first game back, yet he had already given up a run. Considering the opponent wasn't particularly strong, his performance was rather underwhelming.

What could they say?

There were no words that would make a difference.

Coach Kataoka noticed this and patiently asked, "How are you feeling?"

Tanba struggled to answer.

He had given it his all during the game. His fighting spirit had never wavered.

Yet, his pitches hadn't always gone the way he wanted. Some were decent, but others missed the mark.

"I never expected you to come back and immediately throw a perfect game. Given the circumstances, your performance today was acceptable. Don't put so much pressure on yourself. If you feel guilty, then focus on improving your fastball."

Tanba's issues weren't something that could be fixed overnight.

Even so, Coach Kataoka didn't want him to give up.

If he could persist and regain his form, Tanba would still be the team's second-best pitcher, right behind Furuya.

He was still a crucial part of Seidou's pitching staff.

"Yes, sir!"

Tanba felt a surge of emotion.

Although his pitching had faltered, leaving him deeply disappointed in himself, his biggest fear wasn't failure—it was that the coach would stop giving him opportunities and lose faith in him.

If that happened, even if he recovered, there would be no stage for him to prove himself.

But it seemed he had worried for nothing.

Even though he was no longer Seidou's ace, Coach Kataoka still trusted him and was willing to give him chances to shine.

Meanwhile, as Sawamura stepped onto the mound, excitement filled the stands.

The group of childhood friends who had come specifically to support him had their eyes glued to the field, sparkling with anticipation.

"Sawamura is up!"

"Seidou's situation isn't looking great… Does this mean—?"

A certain hope flickered in their hearts, though they hesitated to believe it.

After all, this was Seidou, one of the nation's top powerhouse teams.

This was the team that had won the Kanto Tournament, a team they had watched dominate on TV.

It was a team beyond their wildest dreams.

Even though Sawamura was their idol, chasing their dreams in their stead, they had never dared to imagine that he would become such a key player for Seidou.

"You guys should have a little more faith in him."

Wakana watched her friends' cautious expressions and couldn't help but shake her head.

It wasn't just Seidou they held in reverence—even Sawamura felt different to them now.

The teammate who once fought alongside them had grown into a key player for one of the nation's top baseball powerhouses.

And now, in a critical moment, he was being sent to the mound by Seidou's coach.

The sheer contrast between their past and present made them feel as though their former teammate was drifting further and further away.

But just as that thought settled in their minds, they saw Sawamura, just before stepping onto the field, flash them a small victory sign.

To others, it might have seemed like a trivial gesture.

But to his old teammates, it struck them straight in the heart, their eyes instantly welling up with tears.

Realizing how embarrassing that was, they quickly wiped their eyes and put on bright smiles.

"Go for it!"

"You're our idol!"

"You're the pride of our village!"

Before Sawamura even threw his first pitch, his childhood friends cheered in unison, their voices ringing through the stadium.

Kuramochi, observing from the dugout, found himself lost in thought.

How long had it been since he had felt something similar?

Once upon a time, he too had a group of close friends like that.

But after joining Seidou, he had gradually lost contact with them.

"This guy… he's really good at keeping his bonds intact. Makes me kinda jealous."

Just as he was lost in his own musings, he felt a sharp kick to his backside.

"Move it already! The game's started, you idiot!"

"Kominato-senpai! That was uncalled for!"

"Then get your head in the game!"

At Seidou, seniors reprimanding juniors was a long-standing tradition—one that had been passed down without interruption.

The game resumed as Sawamura took the mound.

It was now the bottom of the fourth inning, and Sensen High was up to bat.

As soon as he stepped onto the field, Sawamura showcased an unexpectedly dominant pitching form.

His motion was exaggerated, and his pitches had incredible force behind them.

His fastball consistently clocked over 130 km/h.

To most people, that might not have been particularly shocking.

But to his old friends from Akagi, the sight left them speechless.

They had never seen Sawamura pitch with such overpowering intensity.

It was as if he intended to crush every batter who dared to stand against him.

The baseball zipped into the catcher's glove with a precision that seemed almost preordained.

Not giving the opponent even a sliver of opportunity.

The stadium's radar gun confirmed it—130 km/h.

Their own team's ace couldn't even reach 120.

The difference in level was painfully obvious.

Sawamura had improved by leaps and bounds—so much so that calling it a transformation would be an understatement.

The only reaction they could muster was an explosion of cheers.

"He's grown so much!"

"He's nothing like the player who used to play with us!"

But just as those thoughts ran through their heads, a familiar scene unfolded before them.

"Ball!"

"Ball!?"

"Ball!!"

"Ball four—walk!!"

The shock was immeasurable.

The spectators in the stands were left utterly speechless.

Meanwhile, Sawamura's old teammates couldn't help but hold their heads in their hands.

"He's still the same!"

The biggest problem they had faced in the past was their captain's wild pitches.

The more intense the game got, the more walks he gave up.

They never expected that, even after making it into Seidou High School's baseball team and securing a spot as a key player, Sawamura still hadn't fully corrected that flaw.

But strangely, noticing this little imperfection put their minds at ease.

It didn't matter what kind of player Sawamura had become.

Every time they saw him on the field, and he turned back to wave at them, it felt just like old times.

Even his pitching still carried traces of the way he used to throw.

And that was enough for them.

This was still their old teammate.

This was still their captain.

"We all came here, so at least try to be reliable, will you? You didn't even reply to my messages—I thought you were too busy training!"

Wakana pouted in mock annoyance.

While she was only slightly dissatisfied, Seidou's players had a completely different reaction.

Yes, Sawamura was still being sent in during key moments.

But their trust in him today wasn't nearly as strong as in his previous games.

After all, in his last match, he had been mercilessly crushed—his pitches were hit cleanly, and he even gave up a home run.

That alone would've been bad enough, but what made it worse was that he crumbled afterward.

Neither Coach Kataoka nor the rest of the team had forgotten that.

They were sending him in with a mix of expectation and hope.

They truly wanted this kid to rise to the occasion and prove them wrong.

Even if he couldn't deliver a surprise performance, he at least needed to regain his former composure.

Only then could he truly solidify his place as a core pitcher for Seidou.

But now, as soon as he took the mound, problems started appearing.

How was the rest of the team supposed to feel about that?

"It's okay, don't tense up."

Miyuki flashed him a sign.

But the reality was, Sawamura had already faltered right out of the gate.

On top of that, the psychological scars from his last outing were still fresh.

How could he not overthink things?

If he failed now, how would the coach react? How would his teammates see him?

Could he really live up to the expectations placed on him?

Could he justify the trust of his team?

Under the weight of all these pressures, the young pitcher was visibly struggling.

No matter how hard he tried, the ball refused to cooperate.

His pitches were either getting hit or missing the strike zone entirely.

In the stands, Seidou's die-hard supporters watched in stunned silence.

They had already been growing impatient when Tanba was on the mound earlier.

But since he was a third-year ace and an essential part of the team, they had reluctantly tolerated his struggles.

More importantly, this was his first game back, making it a significant moment for Seidou.

So they had given him some leeway.

But Sawamura?

What right did this kid have to make mistakes on the field?

This was unacceptable!

If he couldn't handle it, they'd rather see him pulled from the game immediately.

A wave of discontent was brewing among the fans in the stands.

It reached its peak the moment Sawamura gave up a run.

The scoreboard now read 1-2.

Coach Kataoka's patience had seemingly reached its limit.

To be fair, compared to before, his temper had softened significantly—mainly because the team now had a solid foundation to rely on.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have been so understanding with Tanba.

And he certainly wouldn't have given Sawamura this much leeway, allowing him to stay on the mound even after conceding a run.

But that was as far as it would go.

Seidou's iron-fisted coach was ready to intervene.

The fans, too, were on the verge of demanding Sawamura's removal.

But then, just after giving up a run, Sawamura suddenly raised his arm.

"Don't worry about it! Giving up runs is just part of the game."

"First, we need to settle down and get the first out."

Seidou's players turned to look at Sawamura as if he were some kind of abomination.

Their eyes were filled with disgust.

There was nothing wrong with what he had said. In fact, it was exactly the kind of mindset Seidou had always emphasized.

But of all people, why did it have to be him?

Was he really the right person to be saying this?

Did he even consider how his teammates felt?

Did he think about their fragile emotional state?

In Seidou's dugout, Coach Kataoka paused.

In the stands, the restless fans instinctively fell silent.

Meanwhile, in the scorer's box, Chris smirked slightly.

"This unexpected situation really caught him off guard."

Sensen High's batters weren't just there to make up the numbers.

Given the chance, their ability to string together hits was downright frightening.

That aggressive offensive sequence was exactly why Sawamura had given up a run.

For a first-year pitcher, that was entirely understandable.

But that wasn't what pleased Chris.

What truly made him proud as Sawamura's mentor was that this time, after facing adversity, Sawamura didn't crumble like he had in the previous game.

In fact, it was the opposite.

After giving up the run, he quickly regained his composure.

Not only that—he even had the presence of mind to rally his teammates.

Compared to the Sawamura of before, this was a completely different person.

The difference was night and day.

One game—that was all it had taken for this first-year to grow so much.

No matter how you looked at it, this was a massive win for Seidou.

"Only by experiencing setbacks and overcoming them can a player truly shine on the field."

A second-year Seidou player in the stands spoke with admiration.

Though the team had fallen behind, after seeing Sawamura's response, he firmly believed that Seidou's resurgence was just beginning.

His name was Watanabe.

Hearing his remark, a friend beside him couldn't resist teasing him.

"And what about Furuya?"

Experiencing setbacks to shine, huh?

How exactly does Furuya fit into that philosophy?

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