Eijun charged toward first base.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw that Maezono had already scooped the ball cleanly into his glove.
A split second later—
As the ball was thrown toward first—
A faint smile crept onto Eijun's face.
One more out and it's over. This ga ends here. This is the end of your Fall Tournant, you fat bastard.
But just as the ball was about to reach his glove—
As it was inches away—
A heavy thudding of footsteps suddenly rang out.
"Smack!"
The mont Eijun caught the ball in his glove—
A hulking shadow ca crashing in.
He turned his head.
Ogawa Tsunematsu's massive body was charging full speed right at him.
With a vicious expression, Tsunematsu roared—
"OUTTA MY WAY!!!"
It was a beast's howl from the depths of his soul.
Eijun's pupils shrank.
But there was no space to dodge, no ti to flinch.
And more importantly—
He wouldn't back down.
His eyes glead with a faint golden hue. His stance, unwavering.
Only the victor deserves the right of way.
Only the strongest deserves to stand at the top.
"Boom!"
"Crash!"
An intense collision exploded at first base.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!?"
"WHOOOOAAAAAA!?"
The entire stadium froze in that instant.
Everyone let out a gasp that could not be suppressed.
Dust filled the air.
Two bodies collapsed onto the ground.
"Thud!"
Another heavy sound reverberated.
Dust scattered all over the basepath.
The first base umpire widened his eyes, staring intently at the scene.
The cloud of dust cleared—
And suddenly, a figure stood up from within.
A blue-and-white jersey.
Gleaming under the sun.
Standing tall.
"OUT!!!"
The first base umpire thrust out both hands and bellowed the call.
The crowd erupted.
That sa confident smile.
That sa firm stance.
Eijun stood on the bag at first, dust-streaked but proud—
The very image of unshakable resolve.
Everyone who had worried for him let out a sigh of relief.
Everyone else stared with awe.
This was the Ace of the King, Seidou's Diamond—Eijun Sawamura.
"OUT! GA SET! And in the end, it's the ace who steps up once again! This is the roar of a true king!
A perfect two-seam pitch, flawless teamwork—
Out at first! The ga ends in the top of the ninth!
After a grueling clash to the death, Seidou High cos out victorious—3 to 2! Seidou advances to the finals once again!!"
"Haha! Beautiful catch, Sawamura-kun!"
"Nice one, Eijun-kun!"
"Seidou! Seidou! Seidou!!"
Under the weight of thunderous cheers—
He stood tall in the joy of victory.
The joy of a king.
From the Seidou dugout, everyone surged toward Eijun.
Kuramochi, Kominato, Toujou, Kanemaru—each face lit up with genuine smiles as they sward around him.
From the bench, Coach Kataoka gave a small nod of approval.
Ochiai even twitched his little mustache, a rare trace of a smile flashing through his narrowed eyes.
At ho plate, Miyuki let out a long breath, relief flooding his expression.
Thank god...
If he hadn't caught that…
If anything had gone wrong…
...they might have tied it up.
Miyuki glanced toward Nagata, who stood frozen by third base, his face drained of energy.
A quiet sigh of gratitude filled Miyuki's chest.
In the stands, Seidou's cheering squad erupted in joy.
Isashiki was shouting with all his might.
Tetsu and Chris wore warm smiles on their faces.
They were proud—Seidou had once again advanced to the finals.
The jubilant energy of Seidou stood in sharp contrast to the dazed, broken expressions on the side of Seiko High.
Especially Ogawa Tsunematsu, who collapsed by first base in a fit of uncontrollable sobbing.
It only added to the tragic image of their crushing defeat.
Masu Shinichirou lowered the brim of his cap.
Nagata's arms hung limply by his sides.
They had lost.
They had given it everything they had.
And still, in front of this "Diamond Ace," they had been completely overpowered.
Or perhaps… if he had been pitching from the start, we might've lost even worse.
Nagata and Masu Shinichirou looked toward the center of Seidou's celebration—where Eijun stood surrounded by teammates, grinning brightly.
A bitter smile curled their lips.
In this mont, on this field—
This glory belonged to Seidou.
To the King.
To Sawamura Eijun.
But while everyone was cheering around him, basking in his mont—
No one noticed.
Eijun's left hand, at his side, was trembling.
...
"Line up!"
"Bow!"
"Thank you for the match!!!"
One team shouted with proud, ringing voices.
The other, low and broken.
Tokyo tropolitan Fall Tournant, Semifinal Match 1. Seidou High vs. Seiko High.
Final score: 3–2. Victory to Seidou!
...
"Is every pitiful person simply soone to be hated?"
Eijun muttered quietly as he looked at Ogawa Tsunematsu, who was still bawling as his teammates tried to help him up.
At that mont of collision—
Eijun had suddenly understood sothing.
That brutal crash in his past life…
It hadn't been just malice.
It was because this pudgy guy wanted to win—desperately.
Didn't Kominato Ryousuke once crash the plate like that in the Sumr Semis of the original story?
Didn't he do the sa in this life's Sumr Finals?
Ogawa's charge was more reckless, more violent.
But in the end, they all chased the sa thing—
The view from the top.
He understood that now.
But still… you're one damn crazy fat bastard, Eijun thought with a grimace.
He flexed his left arm when no one was looking.
A shadow passed through his eyes.
...
Outside the stadium—near Jingu Ballpark.
Players from Yakushi High and Inashiro Industrial were warming up.
"Hmm? The ga's over already?"
Narumiya i opened his eyes, blinking as he turned to Tadano Itsuki.
"Yeah. Seidou won. Sawamura Eijun took the mound in the 7th, threw three scoreless innings, and shut it down."
Tadano nodded.
"Heh. Knew you guys wouldn't go down that easy. Tomorrow, I'll be the one to crush you... But first, I've gotta deal with those wild beasts over there."
Narumiya smirked, his gaze shifting—
And across the field, he locked eyes with none other than Raichi Todoroki.
At that exact mont, Raichi was already staring straight back at him, his red eyes gleaming.
An intense clash of gazes—
A spark exploded silently between them in the air.
Narumiya's eyes narrowed.
"Let's go. It's ti for battle."
"Right behind you, i-san!"
As Seidou basked in the glory of their hard-fought win—
Yakushi and Inashiro now stepped forward into their own battlefield.
-----------------
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