Chapter 11: Or Whatever

When playing against a relatively unknown small team like Nanakyo High School, the Seidou High School baseball team surprisingly sent out their big Ace, Sawamura, right at the beginning.

From the perspective of the audience, this approach seemed somewhat excessive!

Although deep down they didn't mind this, and it actually seemed quite exciting, to be honest, it was a bit too much.

As the saying goes, why use a sledgehammer to kill a cockroach?

Facing such a small, unknown underdog that popped up out of nowhere, Seidou High School's baseball team didn't need to treat them like a formidable opponent.

In fact, sending in their substitute players could easily solve the problem.

And it would be a very easy solution.

Given this situation, sending Sawamura out to the mound was not only cruel to the opponents but also a waste for Seidou.

Anyhow, the fans didn't complain.

Sawamura's fans want to see an unprecedented large score difference; that would be thrilling.

The Nanakyo High School players were probably dumbfounded, right?

At this point, the batter on the plate, Koyama, had a lot to say about it.

If he knew what the audience was thinking, he would raise his hand and honestly tell everyone: "I can't take it!"

"STRIKE!!"

Before Koyama could react, Sawamura had already thrown the second pitch.

No need for any breaking balls, just relying on his overwhelming pitching speed, Sawamura easily suppressed Koyama's swing.

'This guy is too inexperienced!'

Although Koyama had made an impression on them while gathering information, Sawamura couldn't help but think that this kid was just too raw to be taken seriously.

He hadn't prepared himself psychologically for this showdown.

In Sawamura's eyes, it was practically like looking for death.

He hadn't encountered anyone so reckless in a long time!

Now that the opponent had made such a reckless move, completely disregarding their own safety, Sawamura didn't mind being the one to take them down.

WHRROOSH!!

The speed of the final pitch was even faster than the first two.

The small Koyama had just barely overcome his psychological barrier, and now, he was swinging his bat out of desperation.

But by the time his bat swung, Sawamura's pitch had already sailed through the strike zone.

SNAP!!

"STRIKE! BATTER OUT!!!"

One Out, no one on base.

Right from the start, Sawamura showed his full might.

The opponent was completely powerless against him.

The title of "Demon King" echoed across the Koshien stadium.

Not just the spectators on-site, but even those watching at home couldn't help but shout out loud.

Of course, they then got reprimanded by their wives or mothers for making such noise.

"Just watch the game, stop shouting!"

Such dissonant scenes were nowhere to be seen in the stadium.

The crowd was completely ignited by Sawamura's performance.

It was said that during the previous West Tokyo tournament, Sawamura had broken the national single-game strikeout record.

Just hearing that news made the crowd's blood boil with excitement.

They couldn't wait to see what the atmosphere had been like back then.

It was important to note that Seidou's opponents were no weaklings—they were the powerhouse teams of Yakushi and Inashiro, known across the nation.

Sawamura had broken more than just the strikeout record; his performance had been unprecedented in its quality.

Even if someone were to surpass Sawamura's record in the future, the fans still believed that his legacy wouldn't be surpassed.

Records could be broken, but what about the caliber of the opponents he faced? Could anyone surpass that level?

Sawamura was destined to be a legend.

Now, seeing Sawamura display the same momentum, the spectators were thrilled.

Who knows, perhaps they might witness another legendary scene in this year's Koshien!

The excitement of the audience is obvious, but Koyama, who had been struck out, looked like he was about to cry.

It was a strange sight—seeing a high schooler cry after being bullied. It felt off in some way.

But with Koyama, it didn't feel awkward. His teary-eyed expression looked almost cute.

This was the only benefit that his small size and appearance gave him.

No one would think he was weak for crying; they'd just feel sorry for him.

At the same time, they also felt that Seidou's Coach had gone a bit too far.

"How could they start off like this?"

"Didn't their handsome Captain say that friendship comes first and the game second or whatever?"

"The opponent's strength wasn't on par with theirs, and the gap was quite large."

"Why couldn't they be a little merciful?"

"They weren't paying attention to sportsmanship."

Actually, the audience was quite conflicted. Although they were complaining at the moment, if Seidou's team really did show mercy and an accident happened during the game, their comments would be much harsher.

They might even say that Seidou had underestimated their opponents and acted arrogantly.

So, these complaints were nothing to take seriously.

Nanakyo's second batter was their core player, Hanagata.

From this arrangement, it was clear that Nanakyo had prepared for this game.

They knew that Seidou's pitching lineup was strong, and it would be difficult for any of their players to get on base or score.

That's why they had arranged it this way; it was their best shot at scoring.

If they could get two hits, their two most capable batters would have a chance to step up to the plate.

Even small details like this showed that Nanakyo's Coach was willing to take risks.

Hanagata was Nanakyo's core player, their strongest batter.

He was also their spiritual leader.

As for Sawamura's position on the Seidou team, there was no need to say more.

With these two players facing off, it was clear to anyone with a sharp eye that this was the critical moment of the game.

In this showdown, the team that won would gain a significant advantage.

Especially Hanagata.

Although thanks to his encouragement and the unexpected turn of events, his teammates had mustered up the courage to face off against Seidou, the gap between the teams was still too large, and external factors played a role.

Thus, Nanakyo's players had not yet fully gathered their momentum.

It seemed that they were being suppressed by Seidou.

Hanagata didn't even dare to directly ask his teammates if they had confidence in winning.

He already knew the answer in his mind.

His teammates certainly didn't have any confidence—none at all.

Under these circumstances, as the core player, Hanagata had to show an overwhelming amount of strength.

Only then could he inspire confidence in his teammates and prevent them from being crushed by Seidou's momentum.

Hanagata thought it would be easy, but when it came down to it, he sharply realized that things weren't as simple as he had imagined.

The power displayed by the opposing team was far stronger than he had ever anticipated.

Especially after watching Sawamura pitch, Hanagata's heart sank.

WHRROOSH!

The pitch was like a laser, crossing the 18 meters in an instant.

This was Hanagata's first time facing Sawamura's pitch. His eyes widened as he tried to track the ball.

But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't see where Sawamura released the ball.

Sawamura's arm was fully hidden by his mitt.

His soft arm swung like a whip behind the mitt.

By the time Hanagata realized it, the baseball was already flying toward him.

In this situation, Hanagata had no chance to swing his bat.

He could only helplessly watch the ball whiz past him.

…