Diamond No Ace: The Monster

Chapter 211: Furuya Satoru's Walk-Off Home Run!!

At the batter's box, anyone could see that the hitter was nervous.

Coach Kataoka frowned, glancing back at his own dugout.

Most of the players didn't seem to be in a good state.

It was clear—they were just as nervous.

If he hits it, he's a hero. If he fails, he's the scapegoat.

It was too absolute. Stepping into the batter's box and performing steadily in this situation was something only a rare few could manage.

Wait… something seemed different.

A boy with his hair partially covering his eyes was staring intently at the field.

"Kominato Haruichi!"

Hearing the coach call his name, the boy immediately lifted his head.

"Be ready. If necessary, you'll be going in."

Right now, it was bases loaded with no outs.

Even Coach Kataoka hesitated to send a first-year in as a pinch hitter under these circumstances.

In the end, he decided to give the current batter one more chance.

"Whoosh!"

The white baseball shot forward as Maki, the towering ace on the pitcher's mound, threw with all his might.

At this crucial moment in the game, the ace of Sensen High's baseball team showed an indomitable fighting spirit.

Especially with the bases loaded!

The little giant on the mound seemed to have flipped a switch.

Every pitch he threw carried immense power.

At the batter's box, Sakai gritted his teeth, tracking the ball.

He had to make contact!

As a third-year starter for Seidou High's baseball team, he might not have been as strong as some of the other main players.

But Sakai had fought his way to this position step by step.

"I am also a Seidou starter!"

"Whoosh!"

The white baseball came screaming in, and Sakai locked his gaze onto it.

As the ball approached, he swung without hesitation.

But at that moment, he noticed something—it was curving.

"A breaking ball!"

The little giant of Sensen High's team didn't seem fazed by the intense situation.

Even in this nerve-wracking duel, he continued to pitch with unwavering precision.

Caught off guard by the sudden change, Sakai refused to give up and quickly adjusted his swing.

"Ping!"

Amidst the tensely watching crowd, the baseball soared high into the air.

All eyes followed the ball as it arced toward the outfield.

If it landed, it would be a huge hit.

Seidou would at least score one run, possibly even two.

But Sensen High's fielders weren't just standing idly by.

The moment Sakai swung with all his might, they had already started retreating.

By the time the baseball came down, they were right under it.

In the stands, Seidou High's supporters turned their heads away in disappointment.

What a shame!

The ball had been hit well, but unfortunately, Sensen High's fielders were already waiting in the perfect spot.

All he had to do was raise his glove—

"Pop!"

"Out!!"

Sensen High's players had not only anticipated the hit but had also prepared in advance.

This forced Seidou's aggressive offense to hold back, unable to take any risks.

"One out, bases loaded!!"

Sakai returned to the dugout, his face filled with shame.

However, Coach Kataoka wasn't disappointed in his performance.

"You stuck to your hitting style—that's good! Keep it up, and don't let unnecessary thoughts cloud your mind."

Hearing the coach's encouragement, the light returned to Sakai's face.

"Yes, sir!"

Meanwhile, over in Sensen High's dugout—

Their coach narrowed his eyes.

He had to admit—Seidou's players had remarkable mental strength.

Even in that pressure-packed situation, that batter's swing had been outstanding.

"But in the end, the pressure still got to him. And that's enough."

At the end of the day, high school players were still just kids.

Older kids, sure, but kids nonetheless.

And their weaknesses were often inevitable.

"That said, we have to give credit to our ace today. Maki is in the best form we've ever seen."

"If he keeps this up, the next batter is just a first-year—his hitting ability is practically negligible. As long as we force a ground ball, we can get a double play!"

The Sensen coach turned his gaze toward Sawamura, his expression like a predator eyeing its prey.

"Heh heh!"

Over in Seidou's dugout, the tension was palpable.

Yet, Coach Kataoka still hadn't made a substitution.

This meant that, in the bottom of the seventh inning, he was sticking with Sawamura.

On the surface, it was a logical decision.

But at this moment, sending Sawamura up to bat still made his teammates uneasy.

Chris glanced at the coach, but Kataoka gave no instructions.

"Sawamura… has become such an indispensable player now."

Coach Kataoka wasn't blind to the risks.

There was a real chance they might lose their opportunity to end the game early.

But even so, he had resolutely chosen to let Sawamura step up.

What did this mean?

In the stands, Fujio, wearing a baseball cap, nodded in understanding.

"Sawamura is truly lucky."

His sudden remark confused sports journalist Akiko.

"Senpai, what do you mean?"

"In a powerhouse program like Seidou, first-years rarely get opportunities to gain experience on the field."

"Because of the previous ace's injury, two first-year pitchers at Seidou were fast-tracked to the top. Furuya's talent speaks for itself—him getting opportunities was inevitable. But Sawamura? If his luck had been any worse, forget his first year—even by his third year, he might not have had many chances at all."

Owada nodded.

She had to agree with that.

With a prodigy like Furuya on the team, it was inevitable that other players would have fewer opportunities to shine—especially Sawamura, who was in the same year as him.

If things had gone differently, Sawamura might have been buried in obscurity.

"But things are different now. Seidou High's baseball team is incredibly strong. Even if they waste this opportunity, they still have a 100% chance of winning this game."

"Coach Kataoka is confident—that's why he's investing so much in Sawamura."

"For a first-year to experience this kind of pressure, his skills will improve rapidly. Once he grows stronger, Seidou will value him even more. Once that cycle starts, even if he's not the ace, the training he receives won't be any less than what an ace gets. In fact..."

Fujio could already envision Sawamura's brilliant future.

This boy would undoubtedly carve out his own place in the world of baseball.

"Seidou is truly incredible!!"

Those who understood this reality celebrated Sawamura's fortune.

Those who didn't, however, couldn't help but worry about his at-bat.

Meanwhile, Sensen High's players watched him like hungry wolves, waiting for him to make a mistake.

If Sawamura faltered, they would pounce without hesitation.

Yet Sawamura himself seemed completely unfazed.

Standing tall in the batter's box, he raised his bat high.

"Just wait, everyone! I'm going to blast this ball out of here!!"

His confidence was sky-high.

Seidou's players and supporters held their breath, their hearts pounding.

No one could predict what would happen next.

And in that tense moment, the man on the mound unleashed his full power.

Facing Sawamura, Maki was even more fired up than he had been against other batters.

The ball he threw carried overwhelming momentum.

Whoosh!

The white baseball shot forward like a missile.

Sawamura gritted his teeth and swung with all his might.

He wanted to prove to everyone that he, the great genius Sawamura, could hit the ball.

"Pop!"

"Strike!"

"Strike!!"

"Strike three—out!!!"

Despite his fiery spirit, Sawamura completely whiffed—he didn't even graze the ball.

"Damn it, I was so close!!!"

Sawamura looked frustrated after striking out.

Sensen's catcher, upon hearing this, questioned his opponent's intelligence.

"You call that 'close'?"

There had been several centimeters of space between his bat and the ball.

At their level, very few players would make such a blatant misjudgment.

How could he say he was 'just a little off' with a straight face?

Over in Seidou's dugout, his teammates rolled their eyes.

"That was a great swing… except for the fact that it was nowhere near the ball."

"Is this the legendary 'air swing' technique?"

Despite their complaints, there was a collective sigh of relief.

They had known all along that Sawamura's batting wasn't reliable.

But at least the worst-case scenario hadn't happened.

That meant they still had a chance.

Meanwhile, Sensen's coach rested his chin on his hand, eyes filled with regret.

"Outs should come from batters we know we can handle. It's a shame—we could've gotten a double play there. But if the batter can't even touch the ball, there's not much we can do."

Top of the Seventh Inning—Seidou High's Attack Continues.

Two outs, bases loaded.

Sensen High's baseball team had secured two consecutive outs, their momentum surging.

Now, the next batter up was Seidou's leadoff hitter.

"Batting first, number one, outfielder—Furuya Satoru!"

The moment Furuya stepped into the batter's box, the atmosphere shifted.

The crowd erupted, and Seidou's dugout lit up with excitement.

"Crush it! Show them who's boss!"

"Let those guys know who the real monster is!"

In Sensen's dugout, their coach narrowed his eyes.

Facing Furuya in this situation was the last thing he wanted.

Furuya was a serious threat.

The first run they allowed had been because of him.

But there was no way around it—Seidou had too many dangerous hitters.

If they avoided Furuya, they'd have to deal with Kuramochi and Ryousuke, both just as difficult to handle.

At least Furuya had already faced Maki three times.

"Two wins, one loss. He only got a hit in the first at-bat. The last two times, we shut him down. We've got the advantage!"

Senswn's coach wasn't one to blindly trust his players.

But in baseball, challenges like these were unavoidable.

When they had to face them, they had to do so with courage.

Meanwhile, in Seidou's dugout, everyone was eager to see Furuya perform.

"One base hit, one flyout, one grounder. He's only gotten one hit, but he's been making good contact—unlike someone."

A teammate made a pointed remark.

Sawamura nodded in agreement.

"That guy's got it. He just needs to time it right. Once the ball drops, that's the moment—"

"We were talking about you, someone!"

"Seriously, how can someone who struck out so badly be giving advice?"

Sawamura pretended not to hear the teasing.

In the batter's box, Furuya raised his bat high.

In his second and third at-bats, he had emptied his mind, swinging purely on instinct.

That approach had worked—he had made solid contact both times.

But the ball didn't always go where he wanted.

"Why is that?"

He had thought about it before, but he never found the answer.

Now, as he stepped up to bat, all eyes were on him—his teammates, the fans in the stands, everyone was counting on him.

The pressure was immense.

The problem was—he had no idea how he had managed to hit the ball when he swung unconsciously.

Without understanding that, he couldn't use his full strength.

What should I do?

Before stepping up, Furuya had deliberately chosen the biggest bat he could find.

He didn't understand the mechanics behind it, but he had figured out a solution.

Since he was always just a little off, he might as well use his equipment and raw power to compensate for that small gap.

In Sensen's dugout, their coach gave a clear instruction—attack the corners against Furuya.

This Seidou star player would never settle for a walk.

He would swing.

Understanding the hint, Maki nodded.

Gone was his initial frustration and arrogance.

Now, only one thought remained in his mind—get this batter out.

How didn't matter.

Whoosh!

With a small stride and an exaggerated high release point—

Maki's sharp breaking ball, with its steep drop, had troubled Seidou's batters all game.

Now, he aimed it toward the corners.

From the dugout, the Sensen coach stroked his chin, anticipation gleaming in his eyes.

"Perfect!"

Now that Maki had the right mindset, his pitches looked even more lethal.

Seidou's dugout, however, looked grim.

This is bad.

Then—

Furuya swung.

"Boom!"

The moment he moved, his teammates in the dugout winced.

"Not that one—!"

Pitchers wanted batters to chase these edge pitches.

They're almost impossible to hit well.

That's what everyone thought.

Until—

Ping!

Furuya's bat met the ball squarely.

The white baseball soared into the sky.

It climbed higher—higher—

And then, beyond all obstacles—

It landed in the outfield stands.

"It's outta here!!!"

"A WALK-OFF GRAND SLAM!!!!"

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