Roaar!
This time, the ball wasn't thrown outside; instead, it came in on the inside corner, heading straight for Sawamura.
'Great!'
Sawamura had not originally planned to swing at a Ball, but upon seeing this one, he couldn't help but think it was a good pitch.
He could reach it, and he could swing at it.
He took a step outward, shifting his body back by about ten centimeters.
This slight adjustment made the pitch that would have been impossible to hit now a possible one.
PAAAAAK!!!!
The small baseball made contact and flew high along the Foul line.
The defenders of Inashiro Industrial High were startled and stunned.
Their outfielder ran after the ball, watching as it sailed out of the field.
Fortunately, it missed by about half a meter, or it would have been a home run!
"FOUL!"
Sawamura hit two Foul balls, pushing the count to two Strikes and one Ball.
But things weren't going smoothly for Inashiro either.
Just a moment ago, Sawamura's near-home run had shocked them, and their faces had turned pale.
They looked at Sawamura like he was some ominous monster.
"How terrifying!"
"This guy is truly a complete monster."
"As expected of All-Tokyo team Fourth batter!"
Admittedly, the players of Inashiro Industrial's baseball team weren't unfamiliar with Sawamura.
But it was the first time they realized just how terrifying he was!
He almost turned that kind of pitch into a home run.
In the Seidou High dugout, the teammates also sighed, lamenting the missed opportunity.
That ball was really close, so close to being a home run, and with it, they could have tied the game.
Was it possible that even the heavens were on Inashiro's side today?
That's just too unfair.
Standing in the Batter's Box, Sawamura was mentally scolding himself.
'I had gotten too anxious!'
Seeing the opportunity, he swung at it without considering whether it was a Strike or not.
As a result, he hit a Foul!
It seemed like it was just a little off, but that small difference was impossible to recover from because it was a BALL to begin with. He had done his best to adjust, but the fact remained that he couldn't pull it back.
If he had known this would happen, Sawamura would never have swung at it.
Behind the plate, Tadano cast a cautious glance at Sawamura.
Truthfully, this was the first time he had felt like he had no way to handle this opponent.
But fortunately, they were ahead with two Strikes, and they were in the lead.
Such an opportunity was rare.
'Let's end this here and settle it once and for all!'
Tadano gave Narumiya a firm signal from the mound, trying to push him to the peak of his form so they could settle things with Sawamura.
Narumiya glanced at his pitching hand for a moment, lost in thought.
He looked at Tadano and shook his head slightly.
Then, he took his stance and threw his next pitch.
Roaar!
'Another Ball?'
In that strange state, Sawamura's eyes seemed to have opened as if he had activated the Sharingan.
He felt like he could control everything—at least, that's how it felt to him.
Knowing this was a Ball, Sawamura had no intention of swinging.
SNAP!
"BALL!"
"BALL!!"
With two consecutive Balls, the count had reached two Balls and three Strikes.
Having realized that Balls were simply hard to hit, Sawamura abandoned any intention to swing.
He focused his attention on Narumiya on the mound, waiting for him to unveil his hidden killer pitch.
Though Sawamura had never seen Narumiya use it, he was confident that Narumiya must have some kind of trick up his sleeve.
If not, there was no way that Tadano and Narumiya would have remained so calm after Sawamura figured out Narumiya's pitching style.
Also, having faced Narumiya and understanding him well, Sawamura didn't believe for a second that Narumiya was unprepared.
'Bring it on!'
'Show me your hidden trick.'
Sawamura was eager to take a swing at that pitch.
The run he gave away, he would get back himself.
With his current state, no matter where the ball was thrown or how it might change, Sawamura had confidence that he could handle it.
Roaar!
At that moment, Narumiya's next pitch came flying toward him.
This time, the pitch seemed to enter the strike zone, just grazing the inside corner.
Sawamura almost swung, but he managed to restrain himself.
Narumiya was a left-handed pitcher, and Sawamura was a left-handed batter.
'It seemed like the ball was flying to the inside corner, but could it be?'
SNAP!
"BALL!!"
The ball almost brushed against Sawamura's clothes before landing in Tadano's mitt.
"Walk To Base!!"
And just like that, Sawamura was walked to first base.
Narumiya on the mound was furious, shouting.
"Damn It, Why Didn't You Swing?"
It seemed like he had expected Sawamura to swing at the Ball.
The fans in the stands laughed.
They hadn't expected Tokyo's Prince Narumiya to have such a funny side.
At first base, Sawamura's eyes were cold.
He wasn't like the spectators laughing at the situation; Narumiya was Sawamura's friend, and Sawamura understood him better than anyone else in the stands.
That last pitch—what if Narumiya had tricked him into swinging?
It would have just been another Foul ball.
'Did Mei-san not realize that?'
Continuing to engage with him like this—what benefit would that bring to Narumiya?
An audacious thought began to form in Sawamura's mind.
'He is acting! He did this on purpose!'
The Narumiya that Sawamura knew would never do something like this.
Despite his appearance, Narumiya had the heart of a true man, one who wouldn't back down even with a knife to his throat.
Especially when it came to baseball, he was adamant and never gave up.
For him to intentionally Walk someone was more painful than being killed.
Yet he had done it without hesitation, without any mental burden.
He did it boldly, straightforwardly.
The funny impression Narumiya had left on everyone was so good that they automatically overlooked the possibility.
They didn't believe that Narumiya would Walk Sawamura.
So they assumed that Narumiya just misjudged the situation.
And that's why they laughed.
People liked this comedic conflict, thinking it wasn't surprising that Narumiya would act this way.
His thought process was a bit different from others, so it wasn't unusual for him to come up with strange ideas.
And they hadn't made similar mistakes in past games.
For these reasons, the spectators didn't think much of it and let Narumiya slide.
Even the next batter, Miyuki, hadn't shown any particular reaction, so it seemed like he too had been tricked.
At first base, Sawamura was stunned as he looked at Narumiya.
He hadn't expected such an act—Narumiya should be nominated for an Oscar for his performance.
'Inashiro had done this on purpose, and to avoid affecting the team's morale, Mei had even staged a little play.'
It didn't seem like the Narumiya Sawamura knew at all.
'What reason could there be for such a huge change in a person?'
Sawamura didn't know for sure.
But one thing he could guess was that Narumiya's actions were motivated by ambition. Without that drive, he would never have done this.
In this game, Inashiro's baseball team was certain they could win.
To the point where Tokyo's Prince, Narumiya Mei, had even abandoned his over-bloated dignity as a prince.
Realizing something wasn't right, Sawamura subtly gestured to Miyuki in the Batter's Box.
Though he was curious to see what Narumiya and Inashiro's team would do in the rest of the game, Sawamura knew his position as a seasoned player.
He could take risks, but he had no right to drag the Seidou High baseball team into it.
That would be irresponsible to both himself as the ace pitcher and to the whole team.
Sawamura knew he couldn't stand by and let things happen.
He had to act and nip any possible schemes from Inashiro in the bud.
Miyuki, receiving the signal, frowned slightly.
'It was only the fourth inning—wasn't it a little early to act?'
This thought crossed his mind, but in the end, he discarded it.
He trusted his partner's judgment—Sawamura's judgment.
Since Sawamura had said so, there must be a reason behind it.
Miyuki raised his bat and subtly changed his grip and stance.
Tadano, still deep in his emotions, hadn't expected Narumiya to sacrifice so much for the team.
Even throwing away his own pride.
With such determination, how could they possibly lose?
They could win—they definitely could win.
With no Outs and a runner on first, it seemed like a very ordinary situation. But both teams had their own hidden agendas and were preparing for action.
…
T/N: Well, That's it for now.
Thank you all for reading!
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