"Safe!" - The umpire declared, spreading his arms wide.
"Yeeeahhh!" - Takeya, who had just scored, stood up and celebrated enthusiastically with Sora, who had also crossed the plate.
"Yeeeeaahhh! Sho-to! Sho-to! Sho-to! Sho-to!" - The cheers from the Shoto crowd grew even louder. With these two runs, the score now stood at 7-0 against a powerhouse like Seiryu, and it was still only the top of the first inning.
Shun watched the scene from third base with a satisfied smile. He had just hit a triple and driven in two runs, but he wasn't content yet. His eyes t those of his samurai friend, who was walking toward the batter's box. Without exchanging a word, Ren understood exactly what Shun wanted him to do.
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Ren stepped into the batter's box with determination. Even though he had already hit a ho run earlier in the inning, he wasn't satisfied. Ren felt he had let his team down by not following Shun's instructions during his previous at-bat, and he was resolved not to make the sa mistake again.
anwhile, Seiryu's relief pitcher stood nervously on the mound. It was already impressive for him to have entered the ga under such difficult circumstances and executed a pitch as requested. But after Shun crushed that pitch, the young pitcher's confidence was shaken, and the weight of the mont pressed heavily on his shoulders.
With the score at 7-0 and the ga still in the top of the first inning, the situation felt increasingly dire for Seiryu. Given that this might be the last ga of sumr, and for the third-years, their final middle school ga, the atmosphere among the team was heavy. This tension only added to the pressure weighing down the second-year pitcher on the mound. Even with two outs, having Shun on third base and a dangerous hitter like Ren at the plate made this a critical mont.
Despite the imnse pressure, Seiryu's new pitcher summoned his courage to deliver. The boy lifted his leg high and hurled his body forward, planting his foot forcefully on the ground as he whipped his arm like a whip and put everything he had into the pitch.
"HA!" - The pitcher shouted, pouring his entire being into a fastball aid precisely at the upper inside corner of the strike zone, just as his catcher had called for. Unfortunately for him, while his determination to overco the pressure was admirable, the young samurai's resolve was even greater.
WOOOOSH
DOOOOONG
Shun's eyes widened as the ball rocketed off Ren's bat like a missile, soaring deep into center field. There was no doubt in Shun's mind, it was a ho run, and a massive one at that.
"Yeeeeaahhh!" - The Shoto dugout and crowd erupted with excitent at Ren's towering two-run ho run. Ren himself was elated as he watched the ball sail into the center-field stands. The samurai trotted confidently around the bases, raising his fist in triumph.
"Haha, nice hor!" - Shun greeted Ren at ho plate with a grin. This wasn't just an incredible ho run, it extended Shoto's lead to 9-0 and completely shattered the relief pitcher's confidence.
"Hehe, thanks!" - Ren replied with a bright smile in response to his friend's genuine praise. The two high-fived before heading back to the dugout together. Along the way, the Shoto fans didn't miss their chance to shout cheers for both Ren and Shun. Shun responded with a smile, but Ren was thrilled to hear girls in the crowd calling his na.
Ren and Shun were t with applause and congratulations as they returned to the dugout. The two exchanged cheerful greetings with their teammates, but before they could settle in, a loud crack echoed across the stadium once more.
WOOSH
DONG
Jiro, Shoto's third batter, swung on the very first pitch of his at-bat, sending the ball flying deep into center field.
PAH
"Out! 3 out, changeover!" - Unfortunately, the ball had a bit too much lift and ended up landing in the center fielder's glove, finally bringing the top of the first inning to an end.
The Seiryu players trudged back to their dugout with their heads hanging low. They all knew the extent of the deficit they faced and how nearly impossible it would be to recover. On top of that, they couldn't be sure the gap would remain at just nine runs, with their ace out of the ga and his replacent already having given up a triple and a ho run.
The Seiryu cheering section, which had been roaring at the start of the ga, had also gone quiet. Seeing their players' dejected deanor made it hard for them to keep up their enthusiasm.
---
anwhile, in another section of the stands, the Hokuto Junior High team was watching the ga between Shoto and Seiryu.
"Finally, their offense is over..." - Toru Okada, Hokuto's center fielder, sighed in relief after witnessing the end of Shoto's long top half of the first inning.
"Those guys keep getting better every ti I see them... They're making Seiryu look like a weak team." - Isamu Endo, Hokuto's shortstop, added, his tone tinged with concern. At that mont, even the reigning champions of the Kanto tournant couldn't confidently claim they could beat this Shoto team.
"Hmph! Don't be impressed! Kaito was tipping his pitches! That blue-eyed idiot must've picked up on it and told the rest of Shoto..." - Unlike his teammates, the white-haired maniac, Yoshinori Sugawara, didn't seem the least bit worried about Shoto. In fact, the Hokuto catcher appeared quite irritated as he fixated on one particular person in Shoto's dugout.
"Shun Takahashi, huh? Interesting..." - Surprisingly, Hokuto's ace, Kohei Sasaki, didn't take this chance to tease his white-haired friend about his obsession with Shun. Instead, Kohei also watched Shun with interest. First, Shun had thrown a perfect ga on the mound, and now he was leading his team to dismantle Seiryu's formidable pitching staff.
"Looks like the semifinals are going to be fun!" - Kohei murmured with a grin. Even though Hokuto hadn't yet played their quarterfinal match and Shoto hadn't officially secured their spot, Kohei seed certain he would face Shoto in the semifinals, and he was more than excited about the prospect.
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