"Ah, that's right, Kou. The day after tomorrow is the first round of the Kanto Tournament—Seido High School versus Yokohama Kohoku. Do you want to go watch it?"
After finally calming Aoba down, Tsukishima Wakaba suddenly remembered and asked Kou.
"Seido High School..."
Kou immediately recalled the semifinal game of the Spring Tokyo Tournament—Seido versus Ichidaisan. Seido's explosive batting lineup had left a deep impression on him.
His interest was instantly piqued.
"Sounds good. Tomorrow's the weekend anyway, and the baseball team doesn't have practice. Let's go take a look."
"Oh, if Kou is going, then I'll go too," Wakaba said happily.
Cough! Cough!
"What?! Wakaba, you're going with this guy?"
Tsukishima Aoba, who had been drinking water, suddenly choked.
She slammed her glass onto the table and shouted,
"No way! I'm going too!"
Wakaba quickly walked over and patted Aoba on the back with a gentle smile.
"Alright, alright. You're not a kid anymore—how can you choke on water like that?"
Then she added,
"Besides, it's been a long time since the three of us went out together. Let's all go the day after tomorrow."
Two days passed in the blink of an eye.
"Kou! How long are you planning to sleep?!"
Kitamura's mother suddenly opened the door and shouted at the still-snoring Kou.
"Aoba and Wakaba have been waiting forever! Get up right now!"
Kou sat up groggily and grabbed the two alarm clocks beside his bed.
He stared at them in confusion.
Neither of them had gone off.
He quickly jumped out of bed and rushed to wash up.
Outside Stadium.
"Hurry up! The game has already started!"
Aoba dragged Wakaba along while running toward the stadium entrance. She didn't forget to turn around and shout at the culprit behind them.
"It's all your fault for waking up so late!"
"What was I supposed to do?" Kou complained while running after them.
"I didn't want this either! Who knew both alarm clocks would break at the same time?"
"Alright, Aoba," Wakaba said gently, trying to calm the situation.
"If we don't hurry, the game will really be over."
When the three finally rushed into the stands—
The seventh inning had already ended.
"It's all because of you that I missed the beginning of the game!"
Aoba glared at Kou angrily.
"Okay, okay. My fault, alright?"
Seeing Aoba about to explode again, Kou quickly surrendered.
At that moment, a man sitting nearby said,
"Wow, Seido is behind. They're down by four runs now."
Another spectator added,
"Tanba pitched well until the sixth inning."
"But in the seventh, Yokohama Kohoku finally started figuring him out."
"In the end, the difference in pitching strength decides games like this."
Just then, the stadium announcer's voice echoed through the field.
"Top of the eighth inning. Seido High School is announcing a player substitution."
The surrounding spectators immediately began whispering.
"Oh? They're changing pitchers."
"But besides Tanba, does Seido even have another pitcher who can stop Yokohama Kohoku's lineup?"
"The pitcher is being changed from Tanba to—Furuya."
"Furuya?"
"Hey, that's a first-year!"
"What?! In this situation they're sending in a first-year?"
"Is Seido giving up on the game?"
The crowd erupted with surprise, clearly unable to understand Seido's decision.
"Seido really thinks too little of us."
The Yokohama Kohoku coach looked furious.
"They're actually sending a rookie who just joined the team."
He pointed toward the field.
"Show that kid how cruel high school baseball can be!"
"Yes!"
"That guy's too skinny."
The Yokohama Kohoku batter glanced at the mound and spoke to catcher Miyuki Kazuya.
"He hasn't even built his body yet. You Seido guys really struggle every year."
Miyuki smiled lazily.
"Haha... go easy on him."
But in his mind, Miyuki thought with wicked amusement:
Try not to freeze up from fear.
He looked toward the mound at the tall, quiet pitcher preparing to throw.
Today...
This guy's name will be engraved in your memories.
Boom!!!
Thud!!!
The stadium fell silent for a split second.
Everyone stared at the catcher's mitt in shock.
Boom!!!
Thud!!!
Another blazing fastball.
Boom!!!
Thud!!!
"What are you doing?!"
The Yokohama Kohoku coach roared.
"He's just a first-year! Why are you swinging at balls that high?!"
The batter in the box lowered his head awkwardly.
Meanwhile, the crowd began to explode with excitement.
"Wow!! That was incredible!"
"Keep it up!"
"That's five strikeouts in a row!"
"That's insane!"
"A monster pitcher just appeared at Seido!"
"Which middle school did he come from?"
"I've never even heard of someone named Furuya!"
"Strike out the last batter too!"
Almost the entire stadium had unknowingly become Seido supporters.
The cheers grew louder and louder.
"One more! One more!"
The Yokohama Kohoku coach felt his head spinning.
What the hell is happening?
We're the ones in the lead!
These players practice hitting pitching machines every day...
Then why are they swinging at balls?
Does that guy's pitch really put that much pressure on them?
Behind the plate, Miyuki watched Furuya carefully.
The better Furuya pitched, the bigger Miyuki's grin became.
He opened his arms slightly, signaling casually.
Just one more.
Pitch however you want.
Furuya nodded quietly.
Whoosh!!!
Pop!!!
"Strike three! Batter out!!!"
The stadium erupted.
"Six consecutive strikeouts!"
"This guy is the real deal!"
Scouts and players from other schools watching the game all wore serious expressions.
"Seido has a terrifying pitcher now."
"Seido High School is going to be dangerous this year."
The Seido upperclassmen rushed toward the mound excitedly.
"Nice pitching!"
Kominato Ryosuke walked up and thumped Furuya lightly on the chest.
"Ya-haha! Great job, kid!"
Kuramochi Yoichi jumped onto Furuya's back and ruffled his hair.
"If a first-year is working this hard, we can't just lose like this!"
Then Seido's captain stepped forward.
Yuki Tetsuya spoke in a firm voice.
"Leave the rest to us."
"We'll definitely turn this game around."
"Let's go!"
Inspired by Furuya's incredible pitching, Seido launched a desperate counterattack in the bottom of the ninth inning.
Run after run crossed the plate.
Three runs in a single inning.
The crowd roared with excitement.
But the deficit they had created earlier was simply too large.
In the end—
Seido High School lost to Yokohama Kohoku 6–5.
Just one run short.
Yet the final rally still left everyone in the stadium with goosebumps.
Even in defeat—
Seido had shown the terrifying fighting spirit of a powerhouse school.