Ace of Diamond: Return of the Pitcher

No Outs, runner to second base!!

The catcher, Miyuki, had a serious expression.

The speed at which things had worsened was something Miyuki had not anticipated.

Before pitching, Sawamura had used his gaze to keep Andy in check more than once.

From the judgment of both Sawamura and Miyuki, they believed Andy would not attempt a steal.

It was precisely under this assumption that they began focusing all their attention on Ramirez, the batter.

Ramirez possessed top-tier dynamic vision, and his hitting ability was also outstanding.

Going up against an opponent like him, even the slightest carelessness could lead to disaster.

Therefore, even Sawamura and Miyuki had to proceed with extreme caution.

But just as they had discussed their strategy and Sawamura was about to pitch the first ball,

Andy, on first base, suddenly began to move.

Though he appeared harmless, once he began his action, he quickly transformed into a sharp dagger, piercing straight into the opponent's heart!

'Normal Pitch!'

'Or Last Moment Adjustment!'

Two thoughts raced through Miyuki's mind, and with great decisiveness, he chose the latter.

Andy's speed was remarkable. If Sawamura pitched normally and Miyuki received the ball, they might not have had enough time to tag Andy out.

Fortunately, Sawamura had the Last Moment Adjustment, which meant no matter where Miyuki moved, Sawamura could throw the ball exactly where he wanted.

With this advantage, they should be able to catch the runner.

Miyuki immediately shifted his body, stepping out of the strike zone, and at the same time, he stood up, preparing to throw the ball to second base.

By doing this, Miyuki's overall hold-on speed could be improved by at least 0.1 to 0.2 seconds.

Though it seemed like a small difference, in a baseball game, a difference of 0.1 to 0.2 seconds could determine life or death.

At that moment, Sawamura had not thrown the ball yet.

When he saw Miyuki move out of the strike zone, he instantly understood.

'The runner had stolen the base!'

While they were focused on the batter, Andy had brazenly stolen second base.

Someone had given Andy a very friendly nickname.

They called him a "Ninja!"

It was said that Andy could steal bases without making a sound.

Even Sawamura, a left-handed pitcher, hadn't noticed when Andy started his move.

But it didn't matter.

Sawamura wasn't fighting alone; he had his partner, Miyuki, who could help him out.

After noticing Miyuki had shifted positions, Sawamura decisively changed the pitch direction.

Whrroosh!

The baseball flew like a laser, crossing over to the plate in an instant, and landing right in Miyuki's Mitt.

Snap!

Without hesitation, Miyuki immediately pulled back, setting up the throw like a bow, sending the ball like a sharp arrow toward second base.

"Hyaa-ha-haa!"

The shortstop, Kuramochi, was already prepared, lurking near second base.

Snap!

He caught the ball that came flying toward him.

At this moment, Andy was already charging forward.

But instead of panicking, when he saw Kuramochi catch the ball, he calmly dodged.

He skillfully avoided Kuramochi's mitt and slid past second base, touching the base with his hand.

His speed was extraordinary, and his movements were even faster.

The series of actions was swift, precise, and clean.

Just as Andy's hand was about to touch the base, a blue figure, moving faster than him, pulled back the mitt and blocked the space between Andy and the base.

"Sorry, this way is blocked!"

Kuramochi grinned, showing a bit of amusement.

To be honest, Andy's quick and decisive actions had surprised Kuramochi.

No wonder this was the legendary Dream Team. Their power was so impressive it was the first time Kuramochi had seen something like this.

But fortunately, higher skill triumphed over speed.

Kuramochi's skill proved to be a level above.

"OUT!!"

Andy's stolen base attempt had failed.

A nearly perfect attempt to reach base was wasted.

It seemed like a loss for America.

But the audience in the stands, none of them showed any regret over the Out.

"Wow!"

"That was fast!"

"Andy's steal was stopped!"

"Yeah, that catcher got a nice shoulder!"

It was very exciting!

The intense clash between the two teams was just too thrilling.

The spectators who had come specifically to watch this game felt it was well worth it.

In just their first interaction, the two teams had already shown a level far beyond their peers.

The earlier duel was absolutely stunning!

Every move was tightly linked, and each moment was heart-pounding.

For the fans watching the game, it was truly an immense pleasure.

Now, they couldn't wait to see what would happen next.

If America's New York Team kept winning, dominating their opponents, that would still be a scene fans enjoyed.

But such a one-sided match had been seen too many times before, and it had become a bit numb.

It was this evenly matched competition that truly fired up their blood.

On the pitcher's mound, Sawamura gave Kuramochi a big thumbs up.

Though the credit for this play belonged mainly to him and Miyuki, without their perfect cooperation, Kuramochi wouldn't have been able to block Andy in time.

But also, if not for Kuramochi's stellar defense, Andy might have managed to sneak past and steal the base successfully.

Had that happened, Sawamura couldn't help but feel cold sweat form on his forehead.

He didn't even want to imagine such a scene.

It was terrifying!

The game continued.

One Out, no runners on base.

The huge crisis that had once loomed had been dissolved without a trace, thanks to the flawless teamwork between Sawamura, Miyuki, and Kuramochi.

The former supervisor of America's New York Team, a man in his 40s or 50s, who appeared full of energy, now turned his gaze toward Sawamura.

Although Miyuki and Kuramochi had also performed excellently, he couldn't help but be drawn to Sawamura.

In the middle of his pitching motion, Sawamura was still able to adjust the direction of the pitch and land it perfectly in the catcher's Mitt.

'This was not something an average pitcher could do!'

'Seidou's number one player, very interesting!'

Successfully dealing with Andy greatly helped the Seidou High School baseball team in the current situation they were facing. If Andy had made it to second base, even if Sawamura wanted to solve him, it wouldn't have been easy.

Now.

One Out, no one on base.

Sawamura could now focus completely on dealing with the next opponent.

Jack Ramirez!

Ramirez was also a difficult opponent, possessing a dynamic vision that only top-level athletes have.

Before Sawamura's vision evolved, his understanding of dynamic vision had been nothing more than theoretical knowledge.

He could be said to have a half-hearted understanding.

But after the evolution, things were completely different.

It was precisely because Sawamura himself had now developed top-level dynamic vision that he could more clearly understand how much it helped an athlete.

To put it bluntly, players with dynamic vision and those without saw two completely different worlds.

Because they can see the incoming baseball in more detail and understand exactly how to hit it out.

It's a mysterious and hard-to-describe concept, one that cannot be fully explained with words.

But the fact is, when you can clearly see the ball coming toward you, it's much easier to hit it.

At the catcher's position, Miyuki was feeling an immense headache.

In fact, Miyuki and Sawamura had a plan in mind for dealing with players who possess dynamic vision.

After all, this wasn't their first time facing opponents like this, so they had prepared a strategy beforehand.

The problem was that the New York Manhattan Academy team had three players with this ability.

Even with the minimum number, they would have to face these guys at least nine times!

The preparations they made were enough for dealing with three or five players, but dealing with nine times was a real stretch!

Shaking his head, Miyuki pushed aside these chaotic thoughts.

For them, now was not the time to think about that. The most important task was to figure out how to deal with the opponent on the field.

'Let's go!'

With no distractions in his mind, Miyuki's actions became decisive.

On the pitcher's mound, Sawamura saw Miyuki's open Mitt.

He gave a slight nod.

Then, Sawamura raised his right foot high and brought it down like a battle axe.

With the shift in his body's center of gravity, Sawamura decisively pitched the baseball in his hand.

During the pitch, Sawamura kept his mitt extended forward as if using it to push away all the resistance in front of him.

Whrroosh!!

Without warning, the baseball flew forward.

Ramirez, at the Batter's Box, had a sharp glint in his eyes.

Before Sawamura's pitch, he couldn't even see the release point.

It wasn't until the baseball was coming toward him that he finally saw the baseball.

'I see!'

'This is so exciting!!!'

He had never faced Sawamura before. Now, just after their first encounter, Ramirez was completely mesmerized by Sawamura's pitch.

He had never seen anything like it before.

And this pitch made him incredibly excited.

He was already eager to see the moment when the baseball would be hit out and Sawamura would show his surprised expression.

"Here We Go!"

With a roar, Ramirez swung his bat decisively at the first pitch.

Though Sawamura's pitch surprised him, he believed he would not lose.

So, as soon as the baseball came toward him, he swung without hesitation.

Paak!

The bat made perfect contact with the baseball.

However, Ramirez's expression changed in an odd way.

He had clearly hit the sweet spot of the ball, so why was it so heavy?

The immense pressure felt like it was bending his arm.

Forced to, Ramirez concentrated all his strength into his arms and swung with all his might.

Whoosh!

In the end, in the battle of strength, Ramirez had the upper hand.

The baseball flew high into the air.

But looking at the flying baseball, Ramirez's face showed no smile.

Instead, he looked slightly grim.

His usual overconfident demeanor was completely gone.

Why?

Because the baseball he hit didn't fly far.

It flew high, but it didn't travel very far.

On the pitcher's mound, Sawamura didn't even budge.

He casually caught the ball.

Snap!

The baseball landed neatly in Sawamura's open mitt.

"OUT!!"

Without a doubt, Ramirez was Out.

In the New York team's dugout, they were all stunned by Sawamura's performance.

They probably never imagined that Sawamura would handle Ramirez so cleanly and efficiently.

But this wasn't the end.

Next up was the New York team's third batter, and their shortstop, B. Ortiz.

B. Ortiz was completely different from Seidou's shortstop, Kuramochi. His build was tall and lean, looking like a predator ready to pounce.

He was full of attacking power!

Ortiz was definitely the type of player you'd consider very dangerous at first glance.

However, against him, Sawamura showed no difficulty.

"STRIKE!"

"FOUL!!"

"STRIKE! BATTER OUT!!!!!"

He pitched casually, and except for the second pitch, which was hit foul, Ortiz didn't touch the first or third pitch.

In the end, Sawamura easily struck him out.

In their first encounter with the Dream Team, although the process was a bit winding, Sawamura still managed to take them down.

They allowed only one hit, but it was also easily neutralized.

This showcased the overwhelming strength of Sawamura, the 'Great Demon King'.

It also gave the Seidou High baseball team teammates a sense of reassurance.

However, both Sawamura and Miyuki's expressions were far from relaxed.

Even after solving the opponents, their expressions remained tense.

'We are screwed!'

…