"Whoosh!"
"Clang!"
"Bang!"
"Foul!"
After Narumiya raised his velocity, even the power behind his pitches beca overwhelming.
Third pitch — an outside fastball.
Miyuki intercepted it again, sending it flying just outside the first-base line.
He shook out his arm slightly and looked toward the mound with a serious expression, silently thinking:
That guy's stuff really is getting heavier...
...
"Whoosh!"
Just as that thought crossed Miyuki's mind—
another flash of white light ca hurtling in.
"Swish!"
"Fwoosh!"
A vertical slider—sliding horizontally out of the zone.
After a string of fastballs, Miyuki couldn't react in ti.
"Pop!"
His bat missed by a hair as the ball zipped into
Tadano's glove with a crisp snap.
"Strike! Batter out!"
It was the slider—Narumiya's signature finishing pitch from last year, the one Tadano caught with the most confidence, and the pitch that the Narumiya–Tadano battery used to show their true strength.
Even Miyuki, known for his sharp instincts, was just a little too slow this ti.
Miyuki's strikeout all but signaled the end of the inning.
Following him, sixth batter Maezono—eager to redeem himself after yesterday's poor showing—
stepped up with fire in his eyes.
But once again, Narumiya toyed with him like a cat with a mouse.
After a few dazzling pitches—strikeout.
Flawless pitching. Sheer dominance.
In the bottom of the 2nd, Seidou's offense was once again shut down by the overwhelming combo of Narumiya and Tadano.
...
"Impressive... Narumiya-kun," said Owada Akiko, her voice tinged with admiration as she watched Narumiya return confidently to the dugout.
"To perform this calmly against Seidou's batting lineup..."
Back in the sumr, I already thought this blond kid was sothing else, but to think he's grown this much in just three months…
"Of course," replied Mine Fujio, standing beside her, eyes serious.
"As Inashiro's ace—he was already pitching in Koshien as a first-year. After two years under Coach Kunimoto's guidance, he's finally beco what he was ant to be. That loss in sumr must've lit an even bigger fire under him."
"In this final, even scoring one run off Narumiya might be too much for Seidou."
...
A clash between giants.
For both Seidou and Inashiro, this ga was shaping up to be a grueling tug-of-war.
A glint of tension flashed in Mine Fujio's sharp eyes.
...
"Top of the 3rd inning. Inashiro's at-bat. Batting ninth, left fielder, Sugi-kun."
...
No need to rush to find a weakness.
First, lock onto the fastball.
In the dugout, Coach Kunimoto pressed his left hand to his chest, then adjusted his cap.
...
At the plate, Sugi nodded calmly.
He choked up slightly on the bat and—unusually—stood as far back in the batter's box as possible.
...
"Choking up? And that stance…"
Miyuki frowned slightly.
He really doesn't make things easy, does he?
He shot a glance toward Inashiro's dugout—specifically at Coach Kunimoto—and thought to himself:
...
First pitch — a probing one.
A ball low and inside, just to check the batter's reaction.
On the mound, Eijun gave a subtle nod.
He stepped forward, whipping his left arm forward—
"Whoosh!"
About 70% power.
A precisely controlled inside pitch, low and sharp.
The ball glead as it approached the plate.
...
At the plate, Sugi's pupils widened.
This pitch...!
"Swish!"
He suddenly stepped forward and swung hard.
"Clang!"
This location—damn it!
The mont the bat touched the ball, Sugi knew.
He'd swung at a bad pitch.
"Whoosh!"
The ball bounced off the bat, skipping sharply off the ground—
Because of its low location…
The ball slamd hard into the ground right in front of ho plate.
It rebounded sharply in the direction of the pitcher's mound.
Eijun quickly rushed off the mound and leapt forward to intercept it—catching it cleanly in his glove.
"Whoosh!"
In one smooth motion, he turned and fired it toward first base.
"Pop!"
"Out!"
Maezono caught the throw securely, retiring Inashiro's ninth batter, Sugi.
Damn… was I late on the swing again? You can't rely solely on your eyes to read the pitch against this guy… if you do, it's already too late.
Sugi shook his head in frustration as he walked off the field.
...
"A sharp inside fastball — one pitch, one out. After regaining his form in the second inning, Seidou's ace, Sawamura, cos out strong in the top of the third."
"Leadoff batter, center fielder, Kamiya-kun."
...
They really are swinging. These guys are dead set on locking onto Sawamura's fastball, just waiting for a crack to appear.
But today's Sawamura isn't off. If anything, he's sharp—maybe only a bit shaky on the breaking ball control.
Still, as long as the fastball's on point, there's nothing to worry about.
First pitch — Cutter (Modified).
Against Carlos, the key is to seize the initiative—
overpower his swing with raw strength.
Behind the plate, Miyuki twitched his fingers slightly, signaling the call.
On the mound, Eijun's expression shifted subtly.
Power control, huh?
He took a deep breath, subtly rolling the ball behind his back, checking in with his arm's condition.
I can probably push it a little.
Leg lift, arm motion— every movent from Eijun was crisp, clean, and textbook-perfect.
"Whoosh!"
As his arm ca down— every muscle in his fingers and arm flexed at once.
"Tch... it hurts..."
This ti, he braced himself—enduring the stinging pain and numbing sensation in his arm.
Forcing all that power into the ball.
A flash of white light shot forward.
A gleaming arc stabbed toward the inside corner.
Carlos's eyes flicked.
He pulled back instantly—his legs moved, and his bat swung with power.
"Swish!"
The ball shimred as it approached the plate—
Then suddenly jolted, cutting even harder inside.
A cutter!?
Carlos's pupils shrank in an instant.
He recognized the pitch type the mont it veered.
"Pop!"
But the fierce redirection gave him no ti to adjust.
All he could do was watch as the ball thudded into Miyuki's glove.
"Strike!"
...
Damn… This cutter is nothing like a regular one.
It cos in with the speed of a fastball and breaks at such a sharp angle.
It's nearly impossible to read with a normal swing.
I really did get lucky in the first inning…
This — this is his real form.
Carlos adjusted his cap, hopped twice, and got back into position.
...
Perfect. With movent like that, this pitch won't be easy to track.
Even if they make contact, it'll probably go foul.
Behind the plate, Miyuki felt the strong vibration from the catch, and after witnessing the violent break firsthand, his lips curved into a smile.
This—this is the true form of our ace.
Sawamura's strongest self.
-------------
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