October 23rd, clear skies, Saturday.
That morning—
At dawn, Tokyo's Jingu Stadium was already overflowing with people before 8:00 AM. Not only was the interior of the stadium packed, but even outside, swarms of baseball fans surrounded the venue.
At the front rows—
Countless reporters, magazine editors, and an ocean of caras were already in position.
All for one reason:
Today, this stadium would host two monuntal semifinals.
The reigning sumr champions, Seidou High School, would face the power-hitting Seiko High.
And the forr kings of Tokyo, Inashiro Industrial, would clash with the rising powerhouse, Yakushi High.
Either matchup promised to draw massive attention.
Even before the first pitch, the atmosphere in the stadium was already electric.
"Wow, so many people! The ga starts at nine, right? And it's already this crowded?" said Owada Akiko, wide-eyed with amazent as she glanced across the sea of people, cara gear in hand.
"Well, of course," replied Mine Fujio, fanning himself with his iron fan despite the cool weather, a serious expression on his face. "Today's gas are Tokyo's fiercest matchups. Whether it's Seidou versus Seiko or Inashiro versus Yakushi, all four teams represent the top of Tokyo baseball."
"Who do you think will win?" Owada asked as she finished setting up her cara, glancing back at Fujio.
The question made Fujio pause, his face contemplative.
"Hard to say. Both gas are about even. Seidou has their strengths, but so does Seiko. Sa with Inashiro and Yakushi. If I had to predict… I'd say Seidou and Yakushi will et in the final."
He hesitated briefly before giving his confident answer.
"Yakushi? Not Inashiro?" Owada blinked, surprised.
"Yeah. Narumiya is indeed strong. He's grown a lot since their sumr loss—he's beco a true team leader. But that catcher… Tadano… he limits Narumiya. You saw it in the earlier gas. Narumiya was good, no doubt, but he could've been even better. The previous opponents weren't strong enough to expose the issue. But now Inashiro's up against Yakushi's terrifying batting lineup."
"And especially Raichi—he's already hit seven ho runs in this autumn tournant. They've defeated Kasugaichi and Ichidaisan in succession. Yakushi's montum is practically unstoppable right now. And you know how solid Sanada is as a pitcher. Inashiro's batters will have a hard ti getting through him."
Fujio shook his head with a quiet sigh.
His words left Owada thoughtful.
She had originally expected a Seidou vs. Inashiro sumr rematch. But now, after Fujio's breakdown, Yakushi did seem like the more likely winner.
"And as for Seidou versus Seiko…"
Fujio glanced toward the dugouts where both teams were starting to appear.
"The key will be Sawamura. The question is—how well can he suppress Seiko's batting lineup? His performance will directly… uh…"
He trailed off mid-sentence.
Suddenly—
On the large digital scoreboard behind Jingu Stadium, the starting lineups for today's first semifinal—Seidou vs. Seiko—began flashing on the screen.
And the mont Fujio saw those nas—
He choked.
"Eh—eh—eh—eh?! Furuya's the starting pitcher?!"
"Sawamura is playing left field? Wait, wait—this is the sa ultra-heavyweight lineup that blasted three straight hors off Maki! Is Furuya really going to be okay?!"
"Whoa... Is Seidou showing confidence, or are they getting overconfident?"
"Overconfident might be a stretch. That match against Ugumori probably taught them enough."
"But honestly... Furuya's blazing fastball might actually be a good matchup against Seiko's hitters, right?"
"Hmm, I an, that is true…"
"Still feels like starting with Sawamura would've been the safer choice."
"Yeah, exactly."
"They're probably thinking ahead to tomorrow's final."
"C'mon, if you lose the semifinal, what's the point of worrying about a final?"
"Uh... yeah…"
It had to be said: the mont the starting lineup appeared, the entire stadium was stunned. Most people had assud Sawamura Eijun would take the mound.
No one expected it to be Furuya Satoru.
Among them, Seidou's most loyal fans visibly showed their concern.
To be honest, Furuya's performance against Ugumori had left a lot of them worried.
They had co this far—
And they were all hoping to see Seidou win Tokyo twice in a row and make another trip to Koshien.
Please... don't crash and burn here.
A few sharp-eyed fans, however, could guess the reasoning behind Coach Kataoka's decision.
After all, the final was tomorrow too.
As for losing this ga? Those fans weren't too concerned—Sawamura was on the field, after all. Just because he wasn't starting didn't an he wouldn't pitch. Unless everything went perfectly, there was no way Coach Kataoka wouldn't call on him when the ti ca.
What they were more focused on was Seidou's offense—
And whether Sawamura, when he did pitch, could suppress Seiko's explosive lineup.
That was where the real concern lay.
...
On the other side—
In Seiko's dugout along the third base line—
When they saw Seidou's starting lineup, the players weren't particularly surprised.
They had considered the possibility that Furuya might start.
Based on matchup potential, it wasn't out of the question.
"Saving their ace? Or is there another plan in motion?" murmured Coach Oga, studying the Seidou lineup with a thoughtful expression.
"Furuya's scouting report has already been explained to all of you—he's a power pitcher. If you can't overco his velocity and presence, forget about hits or scoring. First, use your own strength to overpower his fastballs!"
Coach Oga barked firmly to his players.
"Yes, sir!!"
"OOHHHH!!"
"When it cos to power, we're not backing down!"
"Let's go!"
"Let's take down Seidou High!"
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