"Today's game is really unfavorable for the attacking side!"
Most people observing this match would come to this conclusion. It's not because they're trying to make excuses for anyone, but rather because it's a fact.
Why is this the case? The reason is actually simple. A team that is hastily put together relies primarily on the pitcher and catcher when defending.
If they make any mistakes, when other players try to cover for them, their performance will still generally be solid because of their strong foundations.
But the offense is a different story!
Normally, for a team to score, aside from the main batter, they also need supporting players. However, if two adjacent players belong to the same team, how can anyone know which one is the lead and which one is the support?
Firstly, there is a lack of trust, and secondly, they don't understand each other's characteristics.
They don't know what their teammates are capable of, how far they can go, or how to cover and cooperate.
In short, it's a very troublesome situation.
Unless they are extremely lucky, it's very difficult for the attacking side to score.
This isn't a joke; it's a harsh reality.
They have to face it, and they must come up with a solution quickly.
Otherwise, as time goes on, it will only become more and more unfavorable for them.
The game continues, following a direction no one expected.
Originally, everyone thought the game would continue in a stalemate, at best letting people see just how skilled the two teams' pitchers are.
People made such a prediction for one very important reason that cannot be ignored.
That reason is that both teams' pitchers were just too good.
It was undoubtedly a very difficult task to find a flaw in them and get a hit or score a point in a short period.
Because of this, people made such a prediction.
At that moment, an unexpected event happened.
Narumiya, who was universally recognized as only second to Sawamura in terms of skill, didn't showcase the perfect performance everyone expected.
Instead, from the very beginning, he faced an enormous challenge.
The first batter to step into the Batter's Box was Mima Soichiro from the Hakuryu High School in Gunma Prefecture.
It's unclear how their lineup was arranged, but Mima was placed in the first spot.
Surprisingly, he really suited this position.
First of all, he was technically proficient, observant, and fast.
Once he got on base, he could quickly become an extremely difficult opponent.
The level of difficulty would probably even surpass...
Facing such an opponent and challenge right from the start, Narumiya couldn't help but feel fired up.
As for his partnership with Miyuki, Narumiya was confident. He believed that their combination was even stronger than the old duo of Sawamura and Miyuki.
Let's just finish off the opponent!
Feeling Narumiya's fighting spirit, Miyuki Kazuya had no intention of dampening his enthusiasm.
To be honest, their cooperation felt quite good.
It wasn't just Narumiya who thought so; Miyuki Kazuya had the same opinion.
Let's finish off the opponent in one go!
'No need to hold back your strength; at this moment, unleash it fully.'
Miyuki Kazuya's lead was very daring, drawing every piece of potential he could from his pitcher.
It felt like he was going to absorb the pitcher's throws completely.
Narumiya couldn't help but silently exclaim.
'This little…!'
Although Tadano had been working hard and improving rapidly during this time, he still had to admit that the comparison was unfair.
Compared to Kazuya in front of him, the gap was simply too huge!
There was no comparison at all.
Although it felt a bit unfair to his old partner, Narumiya still had to say it.
This pitching is just too satisfying!
Roaar!
From the very first pitch, Narumiya threw a ball over 150 km/h.
This clearly showed that his current form was absolutely top-notch.
On the opposing side, Mima Soichiro, who was in the Batter's Box, seemed completely unfazed by the pitch.
Miyuki, the catcher, calmly caught the pitch.
Boom!
As he caught the ball, Miyuki took a quick glance at his opponent out of the corner of his eye.
'Completely indifferent…'
Had he given up on that type of pitch? Or had he already decided not to swing at the first pitch?
They hadn't faced Hakuryu in quite a long time, so he wasn't entirely sure what Mima was thinking.
'What was he trying to do?'
As Miyuki pondered the opponent's thoughts, someone else was also thinking about him.
In the other team's resting area, Akashi watched Miyuki thoughtfully.
'What could this guy be thinking?'
He couldn't figure it out at all, and that made him even more curious.
This game had started unexpectedly.
With everyone unprepared, it began in a hurry.
However, it wouldn't be completely accurate to say no one was prepared.
Anyone with a bit of intelligence had already anticipated something like this before joining the training camp.
They knew they would be tested.
It was a matter of verifying their abilities and characteristics through actual combat.
This was a logical step.
However, such tests were generally conducted in the later stages of the camp to determine the selection based on results.
What they didn't expect was that such an opportunity would come so early in the training.
This was completely unexpected.
No one thought it would happen this soon!
But the smart people, like Mima, had probably already prepared for it.
Before the game started, even though Coach Takeda was supposed to guide them, the actual strategy was arranged by the players themselves.
It was the same for this side as it was for the Tokyo team, and Coach Takeda didn't interfere too much.
If he had, he would have looked down on himself.
But the Tokyo team was small, and if Takeda interfered in practice games...
That would be unacceptable!
Takeda didn't interfere much, so naturally, the decision-making power fell on the players on the field.
Compared to the disunity on the Tokyo side, the atmosphere on this side was much better because they had a common enemy.
In order to defeat Sawamura, they temporarily allied.
At this moment, Mima Soichiro was taking a wait-and-see approach for the first pitch.
He was preparing to attack on the second pitch.
"Any strategy?" Mima asked Akashi.
The guy was charismatic enough to be a temporary leader.
"Nothing special, let's go with the data we already have on them. If the first pitch is really good and leaves the opponent with no chance, Narumiya throws a straight ball on the second pitch most of the time!"
This was the most likely approach!
'Will the next pitch be a straight ball?'
Mima thought to himself.
To be honest, even though Akashi sounded inexplicably confident, he had no confidence himself.
The temporary alliance with the Tokyo team and the fight against Sawamura made them temporarily united, but this alliance was just surface-level, just like Akashi's leadership.
If things went that way, they would fall apart.
Mima didn't like being led by others, but he had to admit, if there was a leader, the team's chances of winning would increase greatly.
Once the team fell apart, even if each player was skilled, the result would be defeat.
Next, they were relying on their luck.
Their luck was good, or rather, Heaven hadn't abandoned them.
The next pitch from Narumiya was indeed a straight ball.
Miyuki, the catcher, saw the pitch and felt that while the path of the ball was a bit sweet...
It wasn't a big problem.
With good rhythm and such high speed, even Mima would have a hard time hitting it.
Miyuki knew that Mima had excellent dynamic vision.
But no matter how good the vision, it still takes time to react.
A 150 km/h fastball travels 18 meters in only 0.4 seconds.
Even if he could see the pitch, it would be difficult for Mima to hit it.
Unless he was already prepared to hit a straight ball.
But what were the chances of two straight balls in a row?
Not to mention the probability, the batter would instinctively avoid focusing on one type of pitch.
If they did, they might fall into a trap.
Just as Miyuki was confident and thought he could deal with the opponent,
Ping!
The ball suddenly went flying.
Without any warning, Mima's bat swung through the air and hit the ball, sending it flying.
Miyuki's heart skipped a beat.
This was bad!
He knew exactly what would happen if Mima got on base.
He absolutely couldn't let this happen.
"THIRD BASEMAN!!!!"
Miyuki called for help.
But the third baseman on the Tokyo team was a famous "wild card" player.
When he was good, he was legendary, but when he was bad, he was disastrous.
Now, it was the disastrous phase. The third baseman dove and looked like he would block the ball.
But in reality, he didn't touch it at all, and the ball bounced into the outfield.
"It's gone through!!!"
The rest area erupted in excitement.
Mima was like a bolt of white lightning, crossing several meters in the blink of an eye, already close to first base.
So fast!
Even though they had anticipated this, seeing Mima move like this still made everyone shudder. No one expected his speed to be so incredible!
Is he even human?
Everyone couldn't help but wonder.
But it wasn't over yet. As the outfielder grabbed the ball, he realized he couldn't stop the steal.
Just as the outfielder was about to give up, he suddenly noticed that Mima was madly running toward second base.
He was really underestimating them!
First base wasn't enough, and now he wanted to steal second?
That was asking for trouble!
"Stop underestimating people!"
The outfielder threw the ball to second base.
Shirakawa, ever alert, was already running to second base, preparing to catch the ball.
The white ball and two fast runners were heading for second base at the same time.
It was a jaw-dropping clash, a battle that no one could look away from.
No one could guarantee what the outcome would be.
They could only pray, hoping that the result would match their expectations and that no accidents would happen.
At this moment, everyone could only think to themselves that baseball is a round ball, anything can happen, and they just hoped the result would go in their favor.
…