"Demon King!"
"Demon King!!!"
Just after hitting a timely single, Sawamura was met with the enthusiastic cheers of the crowd.
Although the cheers came from just over 2,000 fans who had traveled from Japan to watch the game, these 2,000 fans created an atmosphere of cheers as loud as those from tens of thousands of people.
In the rest area of Japan.
Kuramochi furrowed his brows and looked at those who were making the most noise.
How familiar was this scene?
As a teammate of Sawamura, he had heard more than once how Sawamura's fans cheered for him in previous games.
The most notable feature of Sawamura's fans was that, even if they weren't as numerous as the opposing team, they could still generate a momentum that far surpassed their opponents.
'This guy's appeal truly exceeded that of many professional baseball stars in the country.'
Score: 1-0…
The batter, Mima, had his eyes firmly locked on the pitcher.
At this moment, he had discarded his usual arrogance, his eyes were completely focused on the pitcher.
As the only player not from Tokyo, he was also the representative of this kind of player.
Carlos, Sawamura!
Both players from Tokyo had already delivered actual performances, helping the team score.
Now, he couldn't afford to slack off; he had to keep pushing and show some performance.
At this moment, Mima's mind had cleared of all distractions.
The only thought left in his mind was to hit the incoming baseball with all his might.
Even though he was in the batter's box, Mima's powerful fighting spirit could be felt by his teammates in the dugout.
It was terrifying!
There were several pitchers in the rest area, all among the nation's very best.
Now, watching Mima's batting stance from the rest area, they all felt the pressure!
The pressure was immense, as if it could destroy everything they knew at any moment.
Very dangerous.
Even though he wasn't standing on the mound, they could still feel an extremely dangerous aura from Mima.
Even the observers in the stands could feel this overwhelming pressure, not to mention the pitchers standing on the mound.
Japanese players couldn't help but feel regret for Cuba's ace pitcher.
This player wasn't very well-known when he was in Cuba, and he hadn't had many opportunities.
Yet, he possessed an incredibly rare talent and strength.
Originally, during this world tournament, he was expected to shine.
Previous games had proven his talent.
Katro!
After today's game, this man's name would definitely attract attention.
But sadly, it would probably only be attention.
In the coming time, he would face a monster that had fully awakened.
He would have to face off against Japan's strongest batting lineup.
Before, people had said online that Seidou's victory over the Dream Team was solely thanks to Sawamura's efforts.
Although both teams were evenly matched, on paper, the Dream Team players from America were far superior to the Seidou High players.
It was only because Sawamura's personal strength was so powerful that Seidou had the right to compete with the Dream Team.
Otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to compete at all.
This meant that Seidou wasn't even qualified to compete with the Dream Team.
However, when the national team was formed this time.
Even though Japan fans blindly thought America might be better, they no longer rated this team like they did Seidou.
In terms of strength, this team was truly capable of facing off against the Dream Team.
On paper, their strength was even comparable to the Dream Team's.
They were strong!
They were very strong!
Though Cuba's ace pitcher had performed well in previous games, even impressively, the gap between them and this team was still enormous.
All Japan players believed that Cuba's ace, Katro, wouldn't be able to stop Japan's offensive.
He couldn't stop it at all!
Japanese players could almost see Katro's future.
It was bound to be a tragic end.
PAAK!!
Mima, full of momentum, found an opportunity and hit the ball.
But as soon as the ball was hit, it seemed to vanish into thin air, with no further information.
Originally aiming for a home run, Mima was completely stunned at this point.
How could this be?
He had clearly observed the trajectory, spin, and approximate position of the ball. In his mind, everything was clear, and he thought it would be easy to take down the opponent.
Looking back, Mima thought there was nothing wrong with his swing.
Though he had been somewhat rushed, his overall batting was flawless.
Even if he hadn't fully unleashed his power, his precision was guaranteed.
He should have 100% hit the ball!
According to his prediction, the ball should have flown to the left.
But now, the baseball didn't go left at all.
Fans from Japan in the stands, and even teammates in the rest area, were shouting urgently.
"Run!"
The ball was already hit, so why was Mima still standing there in the Batter's Box?
Had he lost his mind?
They didn't know that Mima was stunned in shock.
Some things could only be understood by the person involved.
Others could see a little bit of the surface, but they could never truly experience what the person felt.
The baseball continued to fly and eventually landed in the mitt of Cuba's center fielder.
Snap!
"OUT!"
Both the fans in the stands and the Japanese players in the rest area felt a great sense of regret.
The hit wasn't poorly executed, nor was it short.
The problem was that the ball landed just slightly off-target, right into Cuba's center fielder's mitt.
It was as if the heavens were favoring the opponent, allowing them to grow at a rapid pace.
Japan players felt a foreboding sense of unease.
If the opponent suddenly surged forward and increased their strength, it wouldn't be surprising.
After all, Cuba was one of the top five teams, so even if Japan was in a tough spot, it wasn't a big deal.
As long as the opponent performed well, the Japanese players weren't afraid of a hard confrontation.
They had complete confidence in their own abilities.
More accurately, they had full confidence in their players on the field.
But the situation was not what they expected.
It wasn't that the opponent's strength had suddenly increased; their performance was no different from before.
It was Japan team's players who, despite their strong momentum, suddenly deflated.
Without warning, everything had fallen apart!
This sudden change made Japanese players and fans anxious.
They were worried, deeply worried.
This strange atmosphere made them all uneasy.
If this continued, the consequences could be disastrous.
Next up to bat was Miyuki.
The local fans from Taiwan weren't very familiar with this player.
But the Japan fans certainly were!
Anyone who watched the King Seidou High baseball team play couldn't ignore the boy standing in front of them.
Miyuki, the former Captain of Seidou's team, was also their cleanup hitter.
It was rumored that whenever someone reached base, his batting success rate surpassed that of their Ace, Sawamura.
With one out and a runner on second, this was the perfect time for Miyuki to shine.
He should've had an easy hit, but the reality wasn't that simple.
Watching the incoming baseball, Miyuki decisively swung his bat.
Paak!
Before hitting, Miyuki simply made some quick inferences, then swung with determination.
There wasn't much data on the opponent!
Previously, when in Cuba, the player wasn't well known, and in the last game, he had only just tested his abilities.
He hadn't fully shown his true strength!
With so little information, Miyuki had trouble making perfect inferences.
This swing was based more on his skills and speculation than solid knowledge.
Fortunately, Miyuki was a well-rounded player.
He wouldn't hesitate to swing just because his information was limited.
Whoosh!
The baseball flew off the bat.
But after hitting it, Miyuki's face didn't show any joy.
In fact, after seeing Mima's experience, he had become alert.
But despite his vigilance, the opponent had still managed to exploit a gap.
And after being exploited, he didn't even notice the flaw.
Snap!
"OUT!!"
Two consecutive high fly balls were caught.
This was undoubtedly a huge blow to the Japanese team's morale.
With two Outs and a runner on second, they were so close to breaking the opponent's defense, but something unexpected happened.
No one had seen this coming!
After taking two Outs, Cuba's team seemed reinvigorated.
Before, they had been pushed to the brink, looking like they might collapse at any moment.
But now, the situation had completely changed.
Cuba looked full of life, ready to jump up and strike back at the Japanese team.
At second base, Sawamura, seeing this, narrowed his eyes.
He was very clever and quickly noticed something was off.
Mima and Miyuki, who had already been up to bat, had probably noticed it too.
Once was a coincidence, but twice? Could that still be a coincidence?
Two mistakes in a row from Japan's top players? That wasn't normal.
There had to be something behind it.
Sawamura glanced around and fixed his gaze on the pitcher.
Though he wasn't sure what was happening, he had a strong suspicion that it had something to do with the pitcher's behavior.
Sawamura even suspected that the pitcher's ball had some unexpected break just before it reached the batter.
It was this unexpected break that left everyone caught off guard.
"KEHA-HA-HA! KEHA-HA-HA-HA!!!"
As Sawamura and the rest of his teammates were trying to figure out the pitcher's movements, a strange laugh was heard as a new batter walked to the plate.
WHOOOPAAAAAKKKK!!!!!!!
The sound of the bat striking the ball was deafening, as if the whole world bent before it.
The baseball changed slightly during its flight, but that tiny shift was nothing in the face of the batter's powerful swing.
The baseball was hit, soaring into the sky, over the fence, and out of the field!
...