Chapter 266: A Desperate Opponent
The beautiful coach of Ichizen stood frozen, a look of pure disbelief etched across her flawless face.
She never imagined that their cleanup hitter—their strongest batter—would strike out without even touching the ball.
"He couldn't even time his swing? How is that possible?"
The teacher leading Ichizen's team spoke with a trembling voice. The scene before him had completely shattered his understanding of baseball.
He had always believed that their fourth batter, even on a national level, was one of the top-tier power hitters.
"At least teach that kid a lesson! Even if we can't win, make him cry!"
But once the fear had passed and they looked again at Furuya's pitch, everything felt different. The mental collapse had already begun.
By the fifth inning, the scoreboard read 8–0.
"It looks like our freshman's potential really knows no limits…" said one of the Seidou players in awe.
Furuya was still on the mound, dominating.
Ichizen's players gritted their teeth, eager to take one good swing at those fastballs. But all they got was frustration.
Sure, he was only a first-year, and sure, Ichizen was a top-tier team aiming for Koshien glory. But it didn't matter. Even if they somehow managed to hit the ball, it would be pointless.
At least, that's how it sounded to Seidou's players and supporters.
He didn't even have time to react.
"Swing with everything you've got!"
From the umpire's perspective, Furuya had barely been pitching for long. But combined with Seidou's ironclad defense, Ichizen couldn't get anything going.
Then, the next announcement rang out:
"Now pitching: First-year, Sawamura Eijun!"
The already demoralized Ichizen players were now left to face yet another challenge—Sawamura, the "trickster."
The white ball screamed toward the plate.
Sawamura understood better than anyone how much effort it took for Furuya to become this strong.
"Facing Inashiro, facing Yakushi… those battles made him grow this far!"
But now, it was Sawamura's turn.
And Ichizen quickly realized this pitcher was just as hard to deal with—if not harder.
They'd thought Seidou only had one monster in Furuya.
But now they saw how wrong they were.
Even if Seidou's players were confident, Ichizen was still a powerhouse.
And yet... against Sawamura's cunning pitches and Seidou's airtight defense, Ichizen couldn't even put up a fight.
"Looks like the win is in the bag now!"
But… was it really over?
After yelling that line, Sawamura's body relaxed.
"Three outs! Change sides!"
He gave Ichizen no time to adjust.
To throw that hard while maintaining such quality? That wasn't normal.
Sawamura's condition looked stellar.
"Out!"
"He's only been in high school a few months, hasn't he?"
On the mound, the newly entered Sawamura was nervous but focused.
From the very first inning—when Seidou took a four-run lead—his teammates already knew they were in control.
And by the end of the third, Seidou was up six runs.
At that moment, Seidou made another pitching change.
Now behind the plate, crouched low and catching every pitch with precision, was none other than Miyuki.
"How humiliating!!" Ichizen's coach growled furiously.
But even so, the players and fans of Ichizen had no choice but to accept it.
And perhaps that's why Seidou's players were even more excited now.
They weren't on the same level at all.
Anyone would be captivated by a pitcher with such terrifying power and control.
What kind of conviction was this?
What kind of confidence?
But still—how was this possible?
Now that fear had been overcome.
His velocity was utterly insane!
The game continued under these overwhelming circumstances.
Only that boy on the mound… could inspire such awe.
Ichizen's leadoff batter stepped into the box, his eyes locked onto Sawamura.
His teammates in the dugout had only caught a glimpse of what he could really do.
But watching him pitch… it was like the ball had a life of its own.
The white baseball streaked through the air like a meteor in the night—dazzling and stunning.
"It's over…"
The Ichizen coach didn't shout about coming back or rallying.
Now, it was like everything Sawamura did was smooth and natural.
Unlike their nervous teammates on the bench, the players on the field were grinning.
Furuya had moved to the outfield, filling in as an outfielder for now.
BOOM!
If you were to pit Sawamura against pros, he'd struggle for sure.
But against fellow high schoolers, he could at least hold his own.
And in this umpire's eyes, Miyuki—catching every wild pitch with ease—was just as much of a genius as the one throwing them.
The sheer power behind Sawamura's pitches made even a neutral ump feel like running away.
But Miyuki caught them calmly, without flinching.
As soon as Miyuki gave the sign, Sawamura unleashed the ball without hesitation.
Sawamura already had a strong base to begin with.
And since Ichizen had just been "baptized" by Furuya's fastballs, facing a slightly slower pitch wasn't so intimidating—at least in theory.
They'd just faced a monster, so surely this would be easier.
PING!
The ball exploded off the bat.
But still…
"Not every first-year is a Furuya Satoru. And Koshien baseball isn't that easy."
"Let me teach you that myself…"
To most people, Furuya was the only real prodigy.
The more the umpire watched Furuya pitch, the stronger that impression became.
Even the sound of the ball hitting the mitt was crisp and satisfying.
And just like that, the inning came to an end.
Sawamura might not be able to dominate someone like Ichizen's cleanup hitter yet.
But against this particular opponent, he held his ground.
They still had confidence.
Even though Coach Kataoka wanted his players to adjust to the pressure and rhythm of Koshien quickly… that lesson might take time.
He had seen everything clearly.
But for Wada, now standing in the batter's box, it was a different story.
The boy crouched in front of him—Miyuki—remained completely composed.
At the very least, that pitcher named Furuya was someone their cleanup hitter couldn't match up to.
And on the other hand, just in case anything happened…
Seidou had actually brought in another first-year rookie to pitch.
Fans were still captivated by Furuya's pitching—they couldn't get enough of it.
The ball flying from his hand seemed to carry some kind of magic.
Everything felt like a dream.
Unable to contain his emotions, Sawamura finally spread his arms wide and let out a loud shout.
Even the home plate umpire froze for a moment after calling the strikeout.
Furuya's talent was undeniable—no one questioned that.
"You can't see the release point at all. The velocity feels even faster at the plate! Those sharp inside pitches, and that unpredictable breaking ball…"
As long as Sawamura could stay calm, his teammates firmly believed he'd make his mark on the field.
And yet, in just a short time, Furuya—already terrifying—had become even more so.
"Incredible! Absolutely incredible!!"
Sawamura took a deep breath, trying to calm himself.
Ichizen's players and supporters felt like their guts were about to explode in frustration.
On one hand, they couldn't afford to lose his batting power.
But now, Seidou had another first-year stepping onto the mound.
Even though he wasn't as overpowering as Furuya, Sawamura's presence had its own energy.
He was efficient—averaging just over a minute per out.
Wada was an incredibly smart player.
In this kind of game, a little sacrifice was unavoidable.
How could he afford to fall behind?
That same awareness helped the umpire push through his fear.
It wasn't easy.
At one point, Ichizen's players thought they wouldn't score at all in this game.
It seemed like every time Sawamura moved, he was preparing to pitch.
And this kid was only sixteen, already shining so brightly on the field.
They all knew in their hearts: they were done for.
Back in Seidou's dugout…
Ichizen's cleanup hitter might not be one of the top stars in the nation.
But he was still a cleanup hitter for a powerhouse team.
Even if he didn't want to admit it, even if it hurt to accept…
PING!
It was important to note: Seidou's true ace hadn't even left the field.
The one who helped the umpire overcome his fear… was a Seidou player too.
At first, fear clouded his understanding of what made Furuya's pitching so dangerous.
He only wanted to run away.
They admitted it—they weren't on the same level as that monster, Furuya.
Even if he was officially just a rookie, what he showed was monster-level, professional-caliber talent.
And that—Seidou sending out another freshman pitcher—left Ichizen's players completely dumbfounded.
What were they trying to say?
Did Seidou think of them as nothing more than punching bags?
Wada quickly caught onto Sawamura's flaws and habits…
And in the stands, many fans shared the umpire's thoughts.
As the cleanup hitter for a national powerhouse, his strength was obvious.
And Sawamura's rapid growth was largely due to the quality of his opponents.
His teammates were just as excited.
And things progressed exactly as Wada expected.
"Strike!"
From the mound, Furuya had looked like a demon king from the depths of hell.
And Ichizen's beautiful coach clearly understood: this was an impossible mission.
As a first-year rookie, the biggest concern with Sawamura was whether he'd let nerves get the better of him mid-game.
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