"Strikeouts!!"
"More Strikeouts!"
"Amazing!"
"He Is On Fire!!"
When Sawamura successfully struck out Carlos, the atmosphere at the scene immediately reached its peak.
The fans were shouting Eijun's name ecstatically as if they wanted to pass on their strength to him.
At the front of the Brotherhood of Red Heart, their greatest weapon, the massive war drum, was prominently displayed.
On either side of the drum stood Obayashi and Kobayashi.
At this moment, both of their eyes glistened with tears.
This version of Sawamura was both familiar and moving to them. Back when the Akagi Middle School baseball team was just starting to gain fame, Sawamura was in a similar state, often striking out all opponents, not giving them a chance to retaliate.
However, after joining the Seidou High School baseball team, this kind of performance had become rare.
It wasn't surprising, though. The level of competition in high school baseball was far beyond what it had been in middle school.
Even Sawamura, despite his talent, found it difficult to easily strike out opponents who were two years older than him.
Additionally, Seidou's baseball team was a powerhouse. Their fielders were incredibly reliable!
Naturally, Sawamura began adjusting his pitching rhythm. Instead of focusing on strikeouts, he aimed to make opponents hit poorly, no longer forcing the Strikeout.
After all, if he pushed for strikeouts, Sawamura would have to exert much more energy!
When he had just joined high school, Sawamura was still two years younger than most of his teammates, and his training in middle school hadn't been as intense as in high school.
So, his stamina was lacking.
As Sawamura's die-hard fans, Obayashi and Kobayashi knew this all too well.
But understanding it was one thing; saying they didn't feel regret would be another matter entirely.
Whether discussing it privately or imagining it back home...
They still preferred the Sawamura from Akagi Middle School. The invincible, overwhelming "Demon King" of the baseball field.
Even though they knew that, as Sawamura's stage grew larger and his opponents stronger, they would probably never see that version of him again!
The "Demon King" of middle school might very well be the final chapter.
But as Sawamura's oldest fans, it wasn't just them—many other fans who had watched Akagi's games together shared the same sentiment.
If only they could see that Sawamura again—how wonderful would that be?
Dreams should always be held onto; who knows, they might just come true!
And now, Obayashi and Kobayashi were excited to realize that the Demon King they had been longing for had returned.
After just three innings, he had already struck out seven batters—seven consecutive Strikeouts!
Such a situation wasn't unheard of. Sometimes Sawamura would start strong to control the game's pace.
But those kinds of opponents were usually weaker, so it was easier for Sawamura to strike them out.
Today, however, felt completely different!
Inashiro Industrial was strong, and Sawamura had to pay a price to strike out these players.
It was precisely because of this that Obayashi and Kobayashi sensed something unusual in Sawamura's performance.
"Today, the Demon King might just surprise everyone in the stadium with something amazing!"
"What exactly would that surprise be?"
Obayashi and Kobayashi couldn't quite imagine it at the moment.
But they believed the surprise would surely come—without a doubt!
In the bottom of the third inning, Seidou High School's baseball team took to the offensive.
"STRIKE!"
"STRIKE!!"
"STRIKE! BATTER OUT!!!"
On the mound, Narumiya Mei maintained his rhythm, using three pitches to strike Out the ninth batter, Kanemaru.
One Out, no runners on base.
At this point, Seidou's lineup came around to the top of the order.
"Kuramochi!
"Cheetah!"
"Kuramochi!!"
"Get ready to hit!"
"Train! Train!~"
The Seidou cheerleaders in the stands sang in unison, encouraging the batter on the field.
They believed that after the first round of adaptation, Seidou's lineup would certainly erupt in the second round.
They were confident they could conquer Tokyo Prince Narumiya Mei.
They definitely could!
Although Seidou was still one point behind, their momentum seemed stronger than their opponents.
Everyone on the field, including the fans in the stands, were united, ready to overthrow Inashiro Industrial's high school team.
On the mound, Narumiya appeared calm, but internally, he was gritting his teeth.
Sawamura's performance had deeply affected him!
That might, presence, and aura that is dominating the entire stadium kept flashing before his eyes, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't shake it off.
On the Batter's Box, Kuramochi kept looking for an opportunity, eager to hit.
As soon as Narumiya showed the slightest sign of weakness, Kuramochi would pounce on it like a shark sensing blood.
'Seidou's players were indeed difficult to deal with.'
Narumiya, though outwardly confident, had to admit this fact in his heart.
It seemed nearly impossible to easily deal with them now.
So, he had no choice but to go all out!
Determined, Narumiya seemed like a volcano about to erupt.
Roaar!
The baseball shot out like a cannonball, seemingly unstoppable.
Years of being tormented by monsters like Sawamura and Furuya had clearly paid off.
Kuramochi quickly adjusted to Narumiya's pitching speed in the second round, managing to keep up.
The first two pitches, one strike, one ball, and Kuramochi didn't swing.
He demonstrated his excellent vision; for him, it was tough to fool him with just a BALL.
On the third pitch, Kuramochi didn't hold back. He swung at the incoming ball.
PING!
The small baseball brushed the bat and flew behind the catcher.
"FOUL!!"
Kuramochi was stunned.
When he hadn't hit the ball, it was fine, but now that he had, he couldn't even make solid contact!
'This monster!'
The difference in power made Kuramochi feel frustrated.
The man on the other side, Narumiya, was like an invincible titan, impossible to find any flaws.
It was amazing that players like Haruichi and Sawamura could still consistently hit the ball.
'Talent, sometimes, was really beyond words.'
Kuramochi thought to himself.
On the mound, Narumiya had no idea what Kuramochi was thinking.
He was secretly worried.
Even though he had tried to evaluate Seidou's strength as best as he could before, the actual confrontation still left him feeling uneasy.
In just the second round, Kuramochi had already caught up to his pitching speed.
Kuramochi's threat level had to be raised another notch.
"BALL!"
Ahead in the count, Narumiya threw a Ball intentionally, trying to bait Kuramochi into swinging.
But unfortunately for him, Kuramochi didn't fall for it.
He let the Ball pass.
Staying this calm after being pressured—made both Tadano and Narumiya realize that trying to deal with Kuramochi using Balls was unrealistic.
To deal with him, they would have to meet him head-on with precise, overwhelming pitching.
Roaar!
Narumiya threw his final pitch.
Seeing the ball coming, Kuramochi, not one to back down, swung at it.
He timed the swing perfectly and aimed accurately. Just as the bat was about to meet the baseball, it suddenly dropped.
'You Little…!'
TAP!
Snap!
The falling ball bounced once before being caught by Tadano.
"STRIKE! BATTER OUT!!!!"
Kuramochi struck out!
Two Outs, no runners on base.
Now it was Kominato's turn to bat.
PAAK!
"FOUL!"
"FOUL!!"
PAAK!
"FOUL!!"
SNAP!
"STRIKE! BATTER OUT!!!!!"
After another round of back-and-forth, Narumiya struck out Kominato with an inside slider.
After Sawamura's seven consecutive strikeouts, Narumiya responded in kind with seven of his own.
This included Seidou's lead-off and second batters.
He successfully divided Seidou's initial lineup into two halves, preventing them from connecting.
"So strong! The pitchers on both teams are incredible!"
In the stands, Akiko was already wide-eyed with amazement.
Before the game, everyone had predicted it would be a pitcher's duel.
The legendary Demon King Sawamura and Tokyo Prince Narumiya Mei were both well-known.
Even though their team had many star players, compared to these two, naturally, it was Sawamura and Narumiya who would shine the brightest.
The outcome of today's game would depend largely on the performances of these two pitchers.
But Akiko was sure that no one had expected the game to unfold in such a way.
This was no longer just a pitcher's duel; it was practically a showcase for the two pitchers.
"Evenly matched, both with seven Strikeouts!"
The game had only gone three innings, and there had already been 18 outs.
Out of those 18, fourteen were Strikeouts.
'If the game continued like this, it could get really exciting.'
'Something big might even happen.'
Akiko thought to herself, her eyes reflecting a mix of worry and anticipation.
Beside her, Fujio took a quiet look at his teammate and shook his head.
'Evenly matched?'
'That was a joke.'
'Sawamura was practically Narumiya leading around by nose.'
'The difference between the two was starting to show.'
...
T/N: Well, That's it for now!
As always, Thank you all for reading guys!
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