"It flew out!!"
The white ball, carried by the autumn wind, flew over a hundred meters and landed in the left field stands.
After the baseball landed, several young fans swarmed around it. A home run ball was highly collectible, and the rules of the tournament stipulated that whoever picked it up on site owned it. The baseball landing there was also their luck. Of course, if it had hit someone on the head, that would have been a different story. Such things had happened before.
Ultimately, the baseball was snatched by a chubby kid weighing over 150 pounds. He quickly tucked it into his arms, as if afraid someone would take it.
Several young boys nearby were full of regret and disappointment.
A girl who had come with the chubby kid, likely his older sister, was about fifteen or sixteen, truly at the age of a blooming flower.
"Give it to me."
"I don't want to!"
The chubby kid was stubborn.
"I'll buy you toys."
His face showed a look of struggle, but eventually he looked down at the ball in his arms and shook his head.
"No!"
He said no, but his voice no longer had its previous resolve.
The girl's expression turned pained. "Then I'll treat you to a big meal. How about sushi? You can eat as much as you want."
The chubby kid's eyes showed struggle and reluctance. Finally, he gritted his teeth. "Two meals!"
The girl quickly nodded. "Just two meals."
He reluctantly handed the baseball over to his sister. She quickly tucked it into her own arms. For some reason, her cheeks were faintly flushed.
Zhang Han and Kominato Ryosuke returned to the dugout.
Kuramochi gave a thumbs-up with a look of admiration. "You kid, you're simply defying the heavens! How many home runs is this already? And off Narumiya Mei's pitching, no less…"
The other teammates were the same, either congratulating him directly or giving a thumbs-up in admiration.
Zhang Han waved his hand. "Just good luck."
His two reads had been accurate. Narumiya Mei had not thrown a changeup, and when aiming for the fastball, Zhang Han had aimed one ball above it. As a result, he caught the center of the ball perfectly, sending it directly into the stands.
Even now, the inside of his palms was still faintly numb.
Narumiya Mei's pitching was not only fast but incredibly heavy in ball power. If his timing had been slightly off, or if he had hesitated even slightly during his swing, that pitch might have ended up as an ordinary outfield fly ball.
So Zhang Han felt truly lucky that it had resulted in a two-run home run.
And with those two runs, Seido High School Baseball Team, which had nearly been pushed to the brink, had rallied back. The tide of the game had completely turned.
The score was 4:4. Both sides were back on the same starting line, and Seido's offense was not over yet. They still had a chance to score more.
From this perspective, Seido, which had been at a significant disadvantage, had essentially reversed the game. Now, it was they who had the advantage.
In Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team's dugout, the substitute players were all stunned.
This was too much.
Being on the same team as Narumiya Mei, these players understood his terrifying power more clearly than anyone. Those fastballs, in terms of both speed and ball power, were enough to leave them far behind. Making contact at all was already a testament to great skill and good luck. Hitting the ball out for a hit was an even greater blessing.
They had never imagined someone could hit a home run off their Ace's fastball.
Zhang Han. This player, who had only been somewhat famous during his junior high school days, had now completely risen to prominence. He had earned the title of super rookie at Koshien and broken two records.
Originally, many Inashiro players had believed Zhang Han was simply lucky to have joined Seido High School Baseball Team, that all those opportunities to perform were what had made him famous overnight.
Now it seemed they had been the narrow-minded ones.
He wasn't just lucky. He had genuine skill.
"Every time I see this player, he brings a different kind of shock."
The Director of Inashiro Baseball Club said this with a frown. He truly hadn't expected Zhang Han to be this strong.
"Every time I watch him hit, I can see improvement. Even as an opponent, I have to admit that among the players of their generation, Zhang Han's talent and skill are among the best."
Coach Kunimoto praised him directly, which greatly surprised the Director.
But Coach Kunimoto's next words put him at ease.
"However, it's impossible to win a game with just one or two players."
The game continued.
Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team's players did not perform as reassuringly as their Director had hoped. Even their Ace, Narumiya Mei, was significantly affected.
During his confrontation with Yuuki Tetsuya, he repeatedly threw outside the strike zone. Yuuki, in the batter's box, was steady as a mountain. Watching Narumiya Mei's pitching, he maintained an indifferent expression throughout, watching the baseball fly past him again and again without any intention of swinging.
Narumiya Mei, as if possessed, threw four consecutive pitches, only one of which landed in the strike zone. The remaining three were all outside.
The count became one strike, three balls. The pitcher was in a tough spot.
Yuuki didn't move at all, as if he were waiting for one specific pitch.
Harada was sweating profusely. Yuuki's waiting stance was simply too frustrating. It felt as if he had given up on every pitch except the changeup. As a result, Harada dared not easily call for one.
No matter how precise a changeup was, if it was seen through, it became an ordinary pitch with no speed or ball power. If a batter was sitting on it, a hit was the minimum damage. A home run was possible.
The score had already been tied, and from the perspective of momentum, Inashiro was trailing. Harada did not want them to fall further behind in this inning.
The last pitch: forkball.
Harada gave the sign. Narumiya Mei did not hesitate, taking his stance and releasing the pitch.
Even in a tough spot, you couldn't sense it from Narumiya Mei at all. It was as if the one in trouble was his opponent, not him.
Yuuki did not swing. The baseball dropped sharply as it approached the strike zone, bouncing directly off home plate.
"Pop!"
"Ball!"
"Walk!"
First a two-run home run, then a four-pitch walk.
It seemed there was a problem with the Ace of Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team.
That's how games are: either the east wind overwhelms the west wind, or the west wind overwhelms the east wind.
With Inashiro in trouble, wasn't this Seido's chance?
Two outs, runner on first base.
The at-bat turned to Seido High School Baseball Team's fifth batter, center fielder Isashiki Jun.
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