Paak!
After a brief entanglement, Kominato Haruichi didn't choose the Walk as everyone expected.
Instead, he seized an opportunity and decisively swung, sending the ball flying.
The airborne baseball successfully avoided the interference from the second baseman of Hoshiryu High School's baseball team and soared into the outfield.
"It's through!"
"A long hit!"
Before the commentator could even speak,
The second-team players from the Seidou High School baseball team, sitting in the stands, had already started cheering excitedly.
Amidst the cheering, Kominato Haruichi sprinted to first base.
No Outs, one runner on first.
Seidou High School's offense in the bottom of the eighth inning seemed sharper than ever before.
Not only the players of Hoshiryu High School's baseball team felt immense pressure, but even other teams from the top eight who had specially come to watch this match felt an unparalleled threat from Seidou High School's team.
Among the team from the Komadai Fujimaki High School,
Renji, adjusting his glasses thoughtfully, murmured emotionally.
"Seidou High School's offense is about to begin!"
Standing on the pitcher's mound was Nanami Haruka.
A pitcher with national recognition.
From his performance in today's game, Nanami Haruka already showed strength on par with the nation's top pitchers.
At least, that's how he performed in this match.
Even under these circumstances, Seidou High School's players were still able to unleash such a powerful momentum.
It felt as though they were on the verge of completely crushing their opponents.
This was extraordinary!
Teams targeting Seidou High School could feel their strength from these little details.
Especially with the next player to bat, who silenced all the other players.
Because they honestly didn't know what to say about this player.
The pressure he brought to everyone on the field was overwhelming.
Although the players didn't know what to say, the fans in the stands didn't care about their dilemmas.
Especially the fan clubs dedicated to Sawamura Eijun. When they saw their star step into the Batter's Box, they immediately jumped up, cheering and doing everything they could think of to support Sawamura.
Even though the game was practically decided at this point, every time Sawamura Eijun stepped up to the plate,
The fans were always full of anticipation!
They were constantly eager to see what kind of performance their idol would put on.
That's right, it was a performance.
For these die-hard fans of Sawamura, they no longer thought that anyone in the country could challenge Sawamura.
Since there was no one capable of forcing Sawamura to go all out, the game had essentially become a stage for his performance.
Moreover, Sawamura seemed to understand his fans' feelings well. Whenever the fans felt the game was getting boring, he would do something spectacular.
Making everyone on the field completely immersed in his brilliant skills.
This time should be no different!
The fans cheering for Sawamura all had such expectations in their hearts.
They couldn't wait to see Sawamura's performance, to see him hit the ball out.
No matter what kind of hit, no matter what method he used,
Sawamura surely wouldn't disappoint them.
The question was, had Hoshiryu High School's Ace and their players learned enough lessons from the previous games?
Had they realized that with their mediocre skills, they simply couldn't stop Sawamura?
If they had realized this, then in the upcoming game, they might just choose to intentionally Walk Sawamura.
If Hoshiryu High School's baseball team did make that choice, the supporters of Seidou High School would feel disappointed, but it wouldn't be surprising.
After all, their opponent was the "Demon King" Sawamura Eijun. It was completely understandable for Hoshiryu's players to not have the guts to face him.
In previous games involving Sawamura Eijun, more and more people avoided him.
Even if they didn't feel directly threatened by Sawamura, they still wouldn't change their tactics.
Throwing four Balls and Walking Sawamura, was the most effective way to deal with the "Demon King."
Although everyone thought this way, Sawamura himself was well aware that these proud players from Hoshiryu High School would never Walk him.
No one understood the so-called "Golden Generation" of Nagano better than him.
After all, the players representing the Golden Generation had either been his opponents or teammates in the past.
Although Sawamura himself was not a member of the Golden Generation, he understood their past experiences and the personalities of their key players all too well.
If this were in the past, Hoshiryu High School might have made such a choice.
After all, they had to consider not just themselves but the overall interests of the team.
But now, the players of Hoshiryu High School would never make such a decision.
This was their last chance at Koshien.
And the outcome of the game was almost decided.
Their escape wouldn't change anything.
'On the contrary,'
If Nanami Haruka decided to face Sawamura head-on and successfully neutralized him,
Hoshiryu High School, which had no hope, might catch a glimmer of light.
But if they gave up on the direct confrontation, the players from Hoshiryu High School would only make the game look slightly better.
It wouldn't serve any other purpose!
From the beginning, this was never meant to be a fair contest.
Because their positions had already decided their actions.
Not to mention, this was the last Koshien tournament for Nagano's Golden Generation.
They had their own pride.
They could lose the game with their heads held high, but they would never cowardly avoid a confrontation.
Actually, avoiding confrontation wasn't that serious.
But only if their opponent could win the game!
As long as they could win, everything else wouldn't matter.
But could they win?
Of course, it was impossible.
So, Nanami and the players from Hoshiryu High School had no other choice.
They would go all out in a direct confrontation.
Not just to give themselves closure, but also to give the Nagano fans closure.
At the same time, they also wanted to settle things with Sawamura.
Their rivalry had lasted since middle school.
It was time to end it!
"I often fantasize about this scene when I dream. Even though we've already faced off once, I still wonder what the scene will be like next time we meet?"
After Sawamura Eijun stepped into the Batter's Box, the catcher, Hosho, suddenly spoke to him.
This unexpected conversation startled Sawamura Eijun.
He carefully studied Hosho and asked in confusion, "You want me to go easy on you?"
"Don't talk nonsense, of course not," Hosho replied.
The casual conversation between the two left the umpire bewildered.
He wasn't sure whether he should intervene or not.
While they were speaking quietly and their movements were subtle, the umpire ultimately gave them a warning with just a glance.
Only after being given the eye warning did the two remember they were on the Koshien field.
This wasn't their Middle School team.
Their affiliation had long since shifted from being close teammates to opponents fighting for survival on the field.
"Good luck!" Hosho suddenly said.
After that, he squatted down and gave a signal to Nanami on the mound.
These two words struck the umpire like a thunderclap.
The two were clearly opponents, but Hosho was cheering for Sawamura.
'What kind of international joke was this?'
Was this even a real Koshien game?
Just as the umpire was wondering whether he should give a verbal warning,
Sawamura, standing in the Batter's Box, sneered and said, "Do I need your encouragement to deal with you?"
"Then let's go!"
Their words seemed light, but the tension was palpable.
It already had the atmosphere of a life-and-death battle.
The umpire, who was about to speak up, saw the two of them fall silent and decided not to intervene.
Moreover, in situations like this, if the players didn't feel disturbed, the umpire had no reason to step in.
He just hoped they'd behave and not let any undesirable footage be captured by the cameras.
After receiving the signal, Nanami Haruka on the mound didn't even bother with eye contact and immediately threw the ball.
The speed of his pitching was so fast that it surprised Sawamura in the Batter's Box.
'Had these two figured something out?'
In fact,
Even Sawamura himself had just realized that his super-state batting required preparation time.
No one had ever noticed this before.
Logically speaking, even if his opponent spotted a weakness, they shouldn't have figured out a countermeasure so quickly.
It couldn't be!
Then why was Nanami Haruka's pitching rhythm so fast?
Confused, Sawamura didn't swing at this pitch. He raised his bat high, motionless.
He watched as the ball came in, skimming the inside corner of the strike zone and landing in Hosho's mitt.
Snap!
"BALL!"
The baseball had missed the strike zone by about half a ball width.
Hosho looked back at the umpire with a serious expression.
Though the ball clearly didn't make the strike zone, the umpire's decision was made quickly.
It didn't even seem like the umpire had properly seen the pitch before making the call.
This showed how much trust the umpire had in Sawamura's judgment.
If that was the case, this would make the upcoming confrontation even more difficult for Hoshiryu.
A ball near the strike zone was considered a ball if Sawamura didn't swing.
How would they continue playing?
Hosho racked his brain for strategies, and Nanami's rhythm naturally slowed down.
The opportunity had come!
Even though Sawamura's super-state batting had a weakness requiring preparation time,
As long as he managed it well, this weakness would remain a secret from others.
Perhaps it could be a secret for life.
There were many ways to slow down a pitcher's rhythm.
Just like now, by not swinging, Sawamura had made his opponent start to doubt himself.
Though up until now, Sawamura still didn't understand why Nanami Haruka had sped up his pitching rhythm earlier,
'It didn't matter.'
As long as it wasn't aimed at countering his batting,
It didn't make a difference to Sawamura.
Now, he focused on Nanami on the mound, feeling the immense pressure emanating from him.
Sawamura naturally entered his mysterious state.
The world around him seemed to fade, and all that remained in Sawamura's vision was Nanami and the little baseball in his hand.
As he grew more accustomed to this state, Sawamura gradually became used to it.
Used to this magical feeling!
Used to face off against a master in this state.
The level of detail and control he felt now was something he could never experience during normal batting.
Whoosh!
Without letting Sawamura wait any longer, Nanami threw the ball.
Already behind in the count, Nanami seemed anxious to get a Strike.
He threw the ball right down the middle.
Although it had movement and was his signature Cutter,
Nanami Haruka, having thrown over 130 pitches, still showed no signs of slowing down.
The power behind the pitch was still formidable.
In the blink of an eye, the little baseball was flying toward Sawamura.
With his current state, Sawamura saw every detail of the pitch clearly.
'Here it comes!'
He shouted inwardly, and all his strength poured into his arms as he swung the bat.
Rotating his body, he concentrated all his power at a single point.
At that point, he exploded.
PAAAAAAKKKKK!
The bat struck the baseball hard, sending it flying far into the distance.
Although Sawamura didn't use the Spiral Swing to add power to his swing,
By preparing beforehand concentrating his power at one point, and hitting the sweet spot,
The ball flew far—over 100 meters—landing in the right-field stands.
"HOME RUN!!"
…