"Clap! Clap! Clap!"
As Zhang Han walked past Miyuki, he heard the latter's sarcastic applause.
"I really don't know when our Han-san became such a great person."
Zhang Han knew Miyuki was mocking him for making his pretense too obvious.
And fair enough. If it had been Isashiki Jun or Carlos in that situation, they probably wouldn't have dropped the ball. But Zhang Han's opponents were the freshman team, not them.
Committing to not let any pitch past his bat put him at a disadvantage as a hitter from the start. Then to hold the nation's top defensive standard as his imaginary benchmark on top of that, what was that if not showing off?
Zhang Han himself might have been acting with good intentions, but what about the senior team's dignity?
Others found it difficult to point this out directly, out of politeness. Miyuki had no such restraint and immediately switched into his most irritating mode.
Zhang Han couldn't help but feel his face go red.
He had treated that showdown as a personal duel between himself and Furuya Satoru. But his public decision to concede wasn't entirely about appearing magnanimous.
"Furuya has just been promoted to the first string. It was already a stretch for me to force that duel under those circumstances. Coach Kataoka thinks very highly of his potential, and I also believe this guy will shine on our mound in the future. Given that, why discourage him now? For a pitcher like him, believing his pitching is the strongest might actually be the most beneficial thing."
Sometimes a pitcher runs on momentum more than anything else. When Furuya Satoru believes his pitch is the best, the ball he throws will carry the most conviction.
"That works for now. But what about later?"
Miyuki didn't disagree with the point.
But the approach had a shelf life. Once opponents studied him specifically and found ways to counter him, Furuya Satoru would face a hard lesson sooner or later.
"That depends on his growth. But in the short term, for the Kanto Tournament and even the Summer Tournament, that belief is the most beneficial thing for him and for the team."
"Everyone says I have a bad personality. But you're clearly even more ruthless than I am."
"I'm not the only one who thinks this way. Coach Kataoka didn't object either. His thinking is probably the same as mine: letting Furuya Satoru carry that belief through the Summer Tournament is the right call. What happens after, whether he can come back stronger from that lesson, that depends on him. Which ace at a top program didn't grow through something like that?"
Zhang Han's own pitching journey had been full of twists and turns. Coach Kataoka and the coaching staff had identified his greater potential with his left hand early on, but still waited until the Autumn Tournament before steering him toward developing it.
Coach Kataoka felt genuinely grateful for the surprise that was Furuya Satoru. He hadn't even dared to hope that more capable players would emerge from this year's freshman class.
"Let's stop here. Continuing the game would be pointless for the freshman team."
As Coach Kataoka said it, his eyes stayed on the freshman team.
Besides Furuya Satoru, only Jinguuji and Kominato Haruichi had turned in commendable performances. For the rest of the freshman team, including those who had built strong records in middle school, Toujou, Kanemaru, Takatsu, this game had become a torment.
Coach Kataoka didn't actually intend for the game to end there. He mainly wanted to see whether the freshman team still had any fight left in them.
"Me! I haven't even pitched yet. How many innings have gone by? There are still six innings left, and six innings to close the gap."
The outfield's resident loudmouth came sprinting back with enormous enthusiasm and addressed Coach Kataoka directly, showing not the slightest trace of fear.
That alone was remarkable. It was known that this particular player had previously angered Coach Kataoka badly enough to be punished with three consecutive weeks of running. Having lived through that, he still had this much nerve. You had to give him something for that.
With someone leading the charge, the other freshmen instantly found their fighting spirit again.
Jinguuji stepped forward with a serious expression. "Please give us a chance, Coach Kataoka. We want to keep playing."
Kominato Haruichi nodded alongside him.
The rest of the freshman team reacted much the same way.
"The game isn't over yet. Are the upperclassmen scared?"
The loudmouth pressed on, apparently unaware of the danger he was walking into.
The senior team, who had been holding their silence, felt something boil over inside them.
"Coach Kataoka, let's continue!"
"We need to show these kids how brutal high school baseball actually is."
The freshman team members looked at each other with embarrassed expressions watching the fury ignite across the field. Heaven help them, this had been entirely that one idiot's doing and had nothing to do with any of them.
Kanemaru looked ready to combust. He glared at Sawamura. "When did you become the leader of the freshman team? And why are you provoking the upperclassmen?"
"How did I provoke anyone?"
Sawamura looked genuinely confused.
The atmosphere in the freshman dugout was not exactly warm or harmonious. But because of Sawamura, they had found some life again. They were no longer as hollow as they had been a few minutes ago.
Coach Kataoka noted it quietly.
It was best when the young ones found that spark themselves. That saved him from having to say anything further.
"Since we're continuing, then you go to the mound. There are no other pitchers left on the freshman team anyway."
Everyone except Sawamura himself had seen this coming. Sawamura looked genuinely stunned.
The pitcher on the freshman team that the senior team had originally been most curious about was not Furuya Satoru. It was the one standing in front of them now. By luck or by genuine ability, this player had struck out Azuma fair and square in a real game. The senior team had been preparing for that matchup.
Then Furuya Satoru had arrived and immediately pulled all the attention his way. He had effectively stolen Sawamura's moment before it even happened.
Now that Furuya Satoru had officially joined the first string, whatever plans the senior team had held onto no longer applied. They had to turn their attention to the next challenger.
They had originally planned to settle the score for Azuma and give Sawamura a proper lesson. Now, one freshman had already claimed a first string spot. There was absolutely no way they were letting anyone else near the remaining positions.
Not one.
From the freshman team's side, every upperclassman, including Zhang Han and Chris, was watching them like a predator sizing up its next meal. The look in their eyes said they would be perfectly happy to step onto the field and end this right now.
The freshman team couldn't help directing every bit of their frustration at Sawamura.
This was entirely his fault. You want to pitch, fine, just pitch. But why go out of your way to provoke the upperclassmen?
The rest of the game was not going to be comfortable.
************************************
Upto 50 Chapters In Advance At: P@treon/Vividreader123