Ohtani Shohai's gaze was fixed on the scoreboard in the outfield of Koshien Stadium, with a hint of confusion in his eyes.
The huge board recorded the score on the field clearly:
Hanamaki East (Iwate) 0:5 Waseda Real (West Tokyo).
Before the game started, although he always believed his team had the ability to play the role of the underdog, he was actually mentally prepared for losing — what Ohtani Shohai didn't expect was that in this game, they, Hanamaki East, could be so... so —
So powerless to fight back.
Yes, they were rendered powerless against Waseda, against Lin Guanglai.
The triple in the second inning, followed by the uncaught third strike, seemed like the key to Pandora's Box. Hanamaki East's players were beaten by the "monsters" released from the box, like a disorganized group of soldiers.
The gap in the match was not just a visible 4-point difference, but a full-scale gap in both offense and defense.
