"Safety!"
"Yoshi!" Even though he only poses for Long Hit and Home Run, Captain Tetsu actually shouted out loud because of a single hit, which shows how excited he was.
"Yoshi!"
"Oh la!"
"Yoshi! Yoshi yoshi!" Head Manager Oota exclaimed excitedly.
"Huh? My lines!" This greatly displeased Sawamura.
The Seidou bench celebrated as if Captain Tetsu had hit Long Hit; everyone knew how precious that single was.
If Sendou had arrived in this world a few years later, this anime fan would definitely have been familiar with the two Changeup from earlier.
The image of Narumiya Mei, a third-year student, was already present, along with the ball that Miyuki catching.
Even though it was a bad ball, it greatly affected the Captain Tetsu were seeing it for the first time.
Not to mention Captain Tetsu and the other spectators, Narumiya Mei was the most surprised. He didn't expect that his Changeup, thrown in his godlike state, could achieve such a level of variation.
However, this arrogant guy will never admit that he only threw the ball because he was in good form.
Even though this guy had been vehemently criticizing Sawamura's Carter shot as just a fluke, a fluke that wouldn't get him into Koshien. (So true...)
It's because they didn't know that Sendou was only interested in this ball, and that Narumiya Mei wasn't the only one in good form.
Just in case, Harada called a pause in the fishing operation.
"Cry!"
"Um?"
Narumiya Mei looked up with a happy expression on her face, showing none of the outburst Harada had imagined.
"It's nothing!" Harada, knowing he shouldn't have come, was about to go back.
" Ya-san!"
"Hmm? What's wrong?" Judging from his voice, Narumiya Mei was in a good mood, knowing that what was bound to happen was bound to happen.
"That was a great shot! How was it?"
"It's just a bad ball!" Harada said deliberately.
"What did you say? They clearly missed all the calls!"
Liars will have to swallow a thousand needles!
"Hey! Are you a primary school student?"
Since the arrogant Ming was already like this, Harada knew he couldn't argue with the kid any longer, because children don't listen to reason.
"Hmph! That's the only bad thing about Ya-san! She's too serious!"
I'm in absolutely fantastic shape right now!
"You've come this far, give me a compliment!"
Mou Ming acted like a child showing off his treasure.
"Ah! From the perspective of the question itself, it's a magic ball!"
While the previous Changeup, after being lowered, could be considered a "magic ball," this one is even better!
Narumiya Mei's small eyes sparkled as she listened to Harada's words.
"If you can't get into the Strike Zone and can't use it to deal with the batter, that will be your challenge next year: mastering this ball."
"By the time you're back to normal, you probably won't be able to steal that ball anymore, right?"
"Who said that!" Narumiya Mei raised his eyebrows and pouted, expressing his dissatisfaction.
"But this is enough for now."
"But next we need to distinguish this ball from the previous Changeup. Let's work together to take down that monster!" Harada ignored his dissatisfaction, which only made things worse.
"I see!"
"Don't underestimate him! That guy is in great form too, his control over his body is completely different from the previous few at-bats."
"How could I possibly underestimate him! I'm still furious!"
A child's face can change in an instant...
"That bastard!!!"
Narumiya Mei looked at Sendou with furious eyes, the guy completely lost his temper!
Sendou waited in the preparation area because Harada had called a pause before he could even appear, and then he closed his eyes to rest.
Therefore, Narumiya Mei misunderstood him because he had his eyes closed.
Adding to the grudge from the previous Home Run, and the misunderstanding he received from Narumiya Mei when he was offered a walk, he now wished he could tear Sendou to pieces.
"Calm down! He's probably adjusting his mindset. After all, that pitch couldn't have been without its impact on him! (Actually, there wasn't the negative impact Harada was thinking; he was just more excited.)"
And it might also anger you!
This guy's been exceptionally bright since he was a child!
"Hmm?" Narumiya Mei seemed to have discovered something new, while Ya-san seemed to have some bad memories.
"Okay! This guy was already full of bad ideas when he was in elementary school. You can tell from his pitch selection when he was a catcher."
" Ya-san!... Could it be?" Narumiya Mei asked with a mischievous grin.
"In short! Don't underestimate him! And don't get angry over this. Keep a calm mind, okay?" With that, Harada left.
Although in the eyes of the arrogant Ming, he was running away and must have some bad memories.
"Phew! Next!"
"How should I deal with you?" After Harada squatted down at home plate, Narumiya Mei returned to his Emperor Narumiya state.
"Play!" The referee signaled for the game to resume.
"Fifth batter!! Center forward, Sendou-kun!"
"Fifth batter!! Center forward, Sendou-kun!"
"Oh!!!"
"Fight back!"
"Let's go big!"
"We're going to Koshien!"
"Kami-sama also wants to see your swing!"
The moment Sendou's broadcast ended, it was the neutral spectators in the outfield who erupted first.
It's as if the previous situation, which had been directed towards Inajitsu, never actually happened.
The stadium instantly became Sendou's home ground!!!
Upon hearing the broadcast, Sendou slowly opened his eyes, as if he hadn't heard the audience's voices at all.
"Strange! It's really strange! Does that kid even know what nervousness is?" Coach Nakanishi kept muttering to himself, and Sendou Ichiro and the others next to him couldn't hear him at all because his voice was too loud.
Sendou Ichiro was still shocked by the scene of so many people cheering in the arena, and by so many absolutely neutral spectators who cheered for one person and became his personal fans.
And that man was his own son!
Only after the volume started to decrease did the cheering section begin playing Cheering Song.
The referee gave the green light, allowing Sendou's match to have a longer break in between.
"Go all out, Sendou!" Sawamura shouted, clenching his fist.
"Cheer..." Furuya was about to cheer on Sendou when he was interrupted by his older brother.
"You'd better practice your tossing and catching! Don't let your body fall down, Sawamura!" Onii-san spoke with unusual gentleness.
"The chance to become a man!"
Home Run is fine too! Home Run!
"That's right! Let's hit a Home Run! Ahahahahaha!" Onii-san was completely ignored.
"Get out there and warm up, Kula!"
"Who just said that the Sendou is unreliable?" His older brother, Kuramochi, kicked him.
"Huh? Who is it?" Sawamura turned around and asked with a puzzled look.
"Oh my god! (It's you!)"
You bastard, have you already forgotten what you just said? You bastard!
"Hurry up and come out with me!" Kuramochi felt like he was going to be driven crazy by this idiot.
"Seriously! What's wrong with his memory?!" Jun-san said with a smile.
"Ugh!" Pudding-senpai had just put on her helmet and was about to go out, agreed in her all-powerful language.
" Sendou! Fight your way out!" Sawamura shouted with his arms outstretched like a devoted fan, as Kuramochi dragged him out by the collar.
If his kickoff hadn't been placed in front of the bench, the bench might have believed his nonsense.
Even so, some uninformed viewers were moved by the relationship between them.
"This guy is an idiot! Ignore him!" Narumiya Mei muttered angrily.
Judging from his expression, the child was indeed affected.
As luck would have it, these two guys with similar personalities hit it off.
"Hmph!" A second later, the two of them turned their heads at the same time.
Sendou and Miyuki are attracted to each other (birds of a feather flock together), but these two are repelled by each other, at least that's how it is between two people who don't know each other well yet.
In fact, if you observe carefully, you will find that Sawamura's personality is like a combination of Narumiya Mei and Raichi Todoroki.
Narumiya Mei's tsundere nature, arrogance, and shamelessness in various situations, such as ignoring the catcher's wishes to catch the ball for him... Sawamura also has these traits.
Raichi Todoroki's endearing clumsiness is a trait he shares with Sawamura.
This should make it clear who the main character is, right?
Separating his personality would create two incredibly popular characters...
"That's really strange! Usually, even if Sawamura is so noisy and makes fun of him, he'll at least turn his gaze over once, even if he doesn't make fun of him back!"
After all, his lack of concentration is almost instinctive.
This also shows how focused he is now!
Tetsu is right! If he didn't even manage to defeat him, then we have no regrets!" Jun-san said with emotion as she saw that someone had already been suppressed.
"Yes!" The remaining third-year students on the bench nodded in unison.
"Keep this momentum going, and unleash your attack! Sendou! ×n!"
As Sendou stepped into the Batter's Box, he stretched out his right arm, his bat and hand forming a 90-degree angle upwards. He touched his right arm with his left hand, as if he were measuring something, or perhaps adjusting the clothes on his arm!
Then, he resumed his striking stance!
Throughout the entire process, Sendou remained silent, his eyes focused, and his breathing barely perceptible, as if the competition had just begun.
Quiet!!!
They were all as quiet as ghosts!
However, this put immense pressure on Harada, and every cell in his body was telling him that this fighter was extremely dangerous.
Even if Harada knew from the beginning just how dangerous Sendou was when he was in top form, otherwise he would have just stood up and secured a spot in the last match when Narumiya Mei wasn't at his peak.
This was also the first time in his catching career that he had walked a batter.
With only his right foot on the edge of home plate and his left foot almost crossing the right Batter's Box, it's a disgrace for a student baseball player.
Everything is for the sake of victory.
At this moment, the Sendou also had a sense of emptiness and clarity.
To put it bluntly, he really couldn't hear the cheers from the sidelines, nor could he hear Sawamura's noise.
He didn't even use reason to determine what he should do instinctively, as he usually does.
When ordinary people can't hear any sound, they are extremely nervous. Just like Narumiya Mei, who can hear the cheers from the sidelines to determine that he is very calm.
The same is clearly not the case in the Sendou.
He just stood there, like air, even he himself was somewhat unaware of his own existence.
This feeling is very strange. You can't feel the weight of your own body, but you can feel the outline of your body like the divine sense projecting outward in a novel.
And, there was a kind of illusion that I could sense the state of all the cells in my body, and the only thing that existed in my eyes was Narumiya —Meru!
The only thing that Sendou was certain of was that his condition couldn't be better.
This feeling is irresistible, and your whole body feels comfortable.
The previous fatigue was completely swept away.
The touch was incredibly sensitive, giving one the illusion that the baseball bat was actually one's own hand, and the vision was clearer than ever before.
Although he didn't know what level he could reach in his current state, Sendou was certain that he could definitely fight the man in front of him to a standstill at this moment!
"Although he saw the latest Changeup in the preparation area, it would be better to let him get a deeper impression of it."
Even bad balls can be used, and this batter doesn't seem to be able to hit bad balls.
"Once you get a feel for this ball, the subsequent ball pairings will be easier!" Harada withdrew his gaze from Sendou and began giving Signals.
His approach was absolutely correct. After the first missed catch, he was able to decisively change the ball distribution plan and ultimately suppress Captain Tetsu. Although he was unlucky, it is fair to say that if it weren't for luck, Captain Tetsu would have been defeated quite easily.
He now applies the same approach to this match with the same decisiveness.
And at this stage, no one has the energy to worry about the number of points, stamina, or risks.
It's a contest of raw strength, willpower, the will to win, and ultimately, who Lady Luck will smile upon.
After they missed their last chance to capitalize on their superior strength in the previous game, the match became uncontrollable.
"Give it your all! I'll definitely take it!"
Let the trajectory of this ball... be deeply imprinted in his mind!
Defeat this guy!
Let's go to Koshien together!
Narumiya Mei raised his arms high, like a god!
"Hmm?" Captain Tetsu looked at the situation and knew that the real battle was about to begin.
This stance completely ignores the runner, or rather, because of Sendou's presence and previous grudges, Narumiya Mei has forgotten about Captain Tetsu on first base, and all he needs to do is suppress Sendou, and the game can be declared over.
Although it won't end immediately...
As Narumiya Mei completed his pitching stance, Sendou remained unmoved in Harada's eyes, like a wooden sculpture.
There wasn't even a gesture like gripping the bat tightly, nor any other movement that showed tension or strain.
Although it was unclear what was going on, the die was cast.
"Puff!"
"Whoosh!" The rapidly swinging arm seemed to create a sonic boom.
"Change- Changeup!!!"
It's that ball again! And the first one was..." When the Seidou bench saw the ball, they were all shocked.
"But Sendou probably won't swing his bat!"
"He didn't even throw the previous Changeup!" But immediately, images of Sendou's previous at-bats flashed through their minds.
"Boom!"
But before they could even put their thoughts aside, a flash of white light disappeared at home plate.
"Pfft! Smack!"
The ball bounced off the ground and into the catcher's glove.
"Nice shot!!!"
What did I see?
The number of monthly votes dazzled me—exactly 180 votes. Ranked 1470th.
I feel like this isn't the place I belong!
I'm usually ranked around 2800 to 3000 in terms of recommendation votes, which is around 3300.
Thank you all so much.
I saw this on the last day of the month, before my monthly passes expired.
So, there was a little mishap yesterday. I was outside at the beginning and didn't have internet access while typing. Then, just before I was about to publish, I was notified that I almost posted a public chapter, and that's when I realized it. So I created a new chapter and copied it over, but I didn't copy the chapter title...
The chapter titles were already written; Lady Luck was smiling upon us.
The chapter titles can't be changed; you have to edit them, which is frustrating.
I'm feeling withdrawn. Goodnight everyone.