Diamond No Ace: The Strongest Hitter

Chapter 200: Counterattack

Seidou High Baseball Field

The game between Kiryuu and Seidou had reached the fourth inning, with the score at 12-4.

In the second round of the lineup, Sendo couldn't replicate the luck he had in the first. Despite battling for six pitches, he was fooled and ended up hitting a high infield fly, resulting in an easy out.

However, on defense, Sendo's stellar performance made Kiryuu abandon any thoughts of aiming for center field.

By this point, Furuya was clearly at his limit.

Even Miyuki looked like he was about to lose his temper—his expression alone showed how much he wanted to lash out.

To be honest, while Sendo understood Miyuki's method of nurturing Furuya, that didn't mean he liked how Miyuki seemingly accepted defeat so readily.

Still, Sendo knew that while he could afford to be willful, he couldn't disrupt the team's overall strategy.

"Time-out! Sorry!" Furuya finally acknowledged that he couldn't suppress Kiryuu's lineup on his own and called for a timeout.

Except for Sendo, everyone assumed that Furuya had truly reached his limit.

But Sendo, well aware of Furuya's stubbornness, knew that the pitcher was more frustrated than anything else.

After learning the situation, Miyuki laughed loudly on the mound before he and Furuya started scheming something together.

Once the timeout ended, Sendo felt a shift. It seemed like the real game was about to start.

A wider score gap didn't matter much—as long as it wasn't complete surrender from the start, it was an improvement.

After a glance at Sawamura, who was fuming in the dugout, Sendo refocused on home plate.

"Ping!"

"Left field!"

With just a few words from Miyuki, Furuya had finally stopped overexerting himself, and the power of his pitches increased.

Kiryuu's batter, faced with a pitch that seemed alive, instinctively swung, even as he remembered the coach's strict instruction to avoid center field.

"I got it!" The fly ball headed toward left field, and naturally, it was up to Kuramochi to handle it.

"This should be enough time!" The third base coach, unaware of Jun-san's incredible arm strength, underestimated him and treated him like any ordinary outfielder—a mistake.

"Go!"

"Take that, you idiot!"

Jun poured all his frustration at Furuya into this one throw.

"Pop!"

"Out!"

"Three outs! Change sides!"

The crowd erupted at the impressive throw.

"Beautiful throw, Jun-san!" Sendo was the first to rush over and praise him.

"Nice one, Jun-san!"

"Next time, a ground ball would be safer," Kuramochi, always the critic, remarked dryly.

"Shut up!" Jun pointed his glove at Kuramochi, retorting sharply.

"Hey, Furuya! Did you forget to back up home plate just now? What if my throw hadn't been caught? Baseball isn't a one-man show, you idiot!"

"Jun-san, stop saying such touching things!" Sendo teased, watching the fiery senior poke Furuya in the chest.

"You shut up too!"

Sendo didn't argue. Instead, he squinted, unable to hide his smile.

"Furuya! Now do you understand? Throwing too hard won't make your pitches faster. A power pitcher like you needs rhythm and control!" Jun scolded.

"That's exactly what Sendo just said!" Miyuki chimed in.

"That's right! Even though he's not always serious, sometimes he does make good points!"

"I heard that! And you're in no position to say it!" Sendo protested, refusing to let Miyuki off the hook.

"Ha! So you heard me," Miyuki replied with a grin before turning back to Furuya.

"Alright, time to score some runs—for someone special!"

"Don't fall for it! He's not reliable with no one on base. Just look at his first at-bat as an example," Sendo quipped, immediately exposing him.

"Oh, I see!"

"Hey! Watch me! I'll hit it!" Miyuki declared confidently as he strode to the batter's box.

"Ping!"

"Pop!"

"Ah! Straight to the pitcher!"

"Two at-bats, no hits!" Furuya tilted his head, confused.

"Did you see that? You can't count on him to hit anything when the bases are empty!" Sendo continued to drill this point into Furuya from the dugout.

"Mm! Mm!" Furuya nodded earnestly, looking oddly adorable as he did.

"That idiot!" Rei, having overheard Sendo's remarks, couldn't help but comment. This level of roasting was practically creating a record of embarrassing moments.

"But when runners are on base, he's like a completely different person," Chris replied with a calm smile.

"The difference is way too big! Compared to him, Sendo's recklessness is at least reliable."

"Speaking of which, I noticed today that he's actually swinging at breaking balls. A…home run and a high infield fly. His progress might be even greater than we imagined!"

"He used to avoid breaking balls entirely unless he was in a desperate situation," Chris noted thoughtfully.

"Now that you mention it, that's true."

"Well, according to him, the home run was just lucky," Chris concluded.

Suddenly, Sawamura stormed out of the dugout, walking with his signature exaggerated crab steps. "Furuya's already at his limit! That goggle-wearing catcher can't be trusted! It's time for me to take over!"

"Shut up, Sawamura!" Kuramochi snapped at him.

"But—!"

"Enough, Eijun!" Sendo's voice cut through, calm but commanding, leaving no room for argument.

"Sendo?"

"The game's far from over." Seeing that Sawamura had calmed down and stopped resisting, Sendo softened his tone. "Got it?"

"Okay."

"Looks like Sawamura really trusts Sendo," Chris remarked, surprised at how quickly Sawamura backed down.

"He messed up again!"

"When the bases are loaded, has he ever not messed up?"

"Well…as the pitch count increases, his pitches also gain power. He's actually a pretty solid pitcher." Miyuki, who usually kept his thoughts to himself like Sendo, had started sharing more of his observations with him.

"I agree," Sendo replied. He had never encountered a player as challenging as this one.

After Miyuki's at-bat, Shirasu was quickly retired, hitting a weak fly ball straight to the pitcher's glove. It was as if the ball fell into the pitcher's hand without effort.

The heavy fastballs were a nightmare for average batters, though the pitcher avoided throwing straight pitches to players like Sendo, Miyuki, and Masuko.

Against them, he relied on breaking balls and tricky pitch locations, knowing that straightforward pitches would be suicide.

Following Shirasu's out, Tachi seemed to hit his stride. He had already managed to exact revenge on both Sendo and Miyuki earlier, exuding an unstoppable aura.

Just then…

"Cough, cough!" Sendo, startled by Tachi's eerie grin, choked on his water.

"Why's he smirking like that?" Sawamura, equally unsettled, asked.

...

"That creepy grin of his is back! Tachi's at his peak now!"

"He really does love games like this," someone muttered.

"...Though after the game, he's back to facing hell. Our coach is only gentle during games," Tachi thought, even finding time to mock his own coach in his mind.

Meanwhile, in the dugout:

"At first glance, his face looks kind of grotesque, like a skull," Sendo whispered to Miyuki.

"It's a little unsettling," Miyuki agreed.

"But don't you think it's the kind of face that grows on you? The more you look, the more you can't look away." Sendo's keen observation brought a strange realization.

"Huh?"

As Tachi's focus intensified, Furuya was struck out without much effort.

Due to Sendo's interventions, Furuya never got the chance to face Tachi at his peak.

"A cleanup hitter and ace who's only given up four runs so far—clearly the pillar of this team. We should start targeting him," Miyuki suggested, watching Tachi with a sharp eye.

"How?" Sendo asked.

"Hehe, just wait and see!" Miyuki grinned mischievously.

Sendo shook his head with a small smile and headed back to the outfield.

The inning began with the second batter in the lineup stepping up to the plate. Furuya, who had regained some rhythm, unleashed his full potential.

Using only fastballs and slightly elevated bad pitches, he quickly dispatched both the second and third batters.

When it was the cleanup hitter's turn, Miyuki, just as described in the original playbook, called for a slow pitch as the first offering.

Don't be fooled into thinking slow pitches are easier to hit.

A well-thrown slow pitch follows an arc as it approaches home plate, creating a downward trajectory that's far harder to track and aim for compared to a fastball's direct path.

For most hitters, it's nearly impossible to connect on the first swing.

Tachi didn't take the bait.

From the outfield, Sendo could see Miyuki's determination to strike out Tachi.

He also remembered that this was the game where Furuya first threw his forkball—a pitch so unexpected it even caused Miyuki to miss the catch.

The forkball had been deliberately hidden for this moment, specifically to face Tachi.

The result? A clean strikeout.

In the bottom half of the inning, Seidou's top lineup was up to bat. Furuya received heartfelt encouragement from his seniors.

"That forkball was amazing! I wish I could stand in the batter's box and see it for myself. A fastball that drops—that's a special kind of forkball!" Sendo chatted with Miyuki back at the dugout.

Seeing it firsthand, Sendo finally understood why the pitch was called a "magic ball."

"Haha! You're not thinking of actually hitting it, are you?" Miyuki teased.

"Of course not. Even knowing it's a forkball, it'd be incredibly hard to hit. But... once you get used to it, who knows?"

The fast forkball was so disruptive that even when batters knew it was coming, their instincts treated it like a fastball.

Its unpredictability could even make hitters doubt themselves.

However, Sendo's confidence shone through—if he got used to it and knew the pitch was coming, he believed he could hit it. What would happen after making contact, though, was another matter entirely.

"I see. What a reckless statement! Haha!" Miyuki laughed, fully grasping the implications of Sendo's words.

"Anyway, it's our top lineup this inning. Let's take advantage of his shaken state and score some runs!"

"Then you should be telling that to our leadoff batter," Sendo said, nodding toward Kuramochi.

"Haha! You really are something else, kid!"

"You're bold too, letting him practice a breaking ball during the game. That pitch is terrifying, but if it doesn't drop, it's also ridiculously easy to hit. Good thing this is just a practice match!"

"That's exactly why I dared to let him try it. Honestly, when I first saw that pitch, it gave me chills!"

"Getting scared is good! But now your pitch-calling will be easier, won't it? That pitch totally disrupts the opponent's rhythm."

"True! But don't forget, the next inning will be Sawamura's turn to pitch!"

"Huh?" Sendo glanced at the scoreboard and suddenly realized they were already in the fifth inning.

"Wow, big shot! Didn't even notice how far along the game is!" Miyuki joked.

"You're right! But hey, the game's still long, right?" Sendo admitted nonchalantly, brushing a hand through his spiky hair.

"Haha! Then it's all on you next at-bat. Make it a good one—you got taken out in just one pitch last time!"

"And you, who hasn't had a single hit today, are in no position to criticize me!" Sendo retorted.

"…!" Miyuki fell silent, exposed.

"Sawamura!" At that moment, Coach's voice drew Sendo's attention.

"Huh?"

"You're up next inning! Are you ready?"

"Yes!" Sawamura clenched his fists, determination burning in his eyes.

"He's probably having an intense monologue in his head right now," Sendo muttered, laughing at the sight.

"Finally making his debut on the First String!" Haruichi couldn't help but poke fun at Sawamura, which only made him freeze, his expression stiff and his gaze darting around.

Miyuki, seeing an opportunity, teased him mercilessly before sending him to the bullpen to finalize his pitch selection.

Sendo stayed behind, watching the game unfold with a smile.

...

"Ping!"

"Safe on base!"

Facing a shaken Tachi, Kuramochi showed no mercy and executed a flawless bunt to reach base.

Following him, Tachi orchestrated a hit-and-run play, delivering a powerful double and advancing the runners to second and third base.

"Looks like this inning might finally be my turn! Ah, I'm so nervous!" Sendo muttered to himself, watching the situation unfold. His sudden elongated exclamation startled Masuko, who was standing nearby.

Meanwhile, Tachi, having struck out the previous batter and now suddenly facing runners on second and third, had lost all trace of his earlier smile.

"Big trouble!"

"Ping!"

With his booming voice, Jun hit a grounder to first base!

Kuramochi easily scored, and Kominato advanced to third.

"Another perfect bunt!" Kominato at third base muttered darkly to himself.

This marked Seidou's fifth run!

"Ping!!!"

"Another hit!!!"

"As expected of Yuuki! Following Sendo's home run in the first inning, he delivers a two-run homer!"

"Keep the momentum going, Sendo!"

Sendo understood what had happened.

Tachi had made a mistake with his pitch—an uncharacteristic error. The previous time Tachi faced Yuuki, he hadn't thrown anything remotely easy to hit.

Seidou now had seven runs. The original eight-point gap, once at 12-4, was suddenly reduced to five. It was just like Sendo always said:

"The game isn't over yet!"

In baseball, the real battle begins with two outs in the ninth inning. By the fifth inning, the game was far from decided.

When a pitcher collapses, even a single inning can feel endlessly long.

Tachi stared blankly at Yuuki's figure rounding the bases, a clear sign of his mental collapse beginning to show.

However, this was precisely what gave Sendo a headache.

Even though he'd long since forgotten the exact flow of this game from his previous life, he knew one thing for sure:

Tachi, a third-year ace, had a mental fortitude that couldn't be underestimated. A little slump like this wouldn't break him entirely. If Sendo were his teammate, he knew a few words would be enough to bring Tachi back to form.

Unless, of course, his coach and teammates were incompetent—which was highly unlikely. Coach Matsumoto and the Kiryuu players were no pushovers; they were last year's Summer Koshien runners-up, after all.

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