The three core batters of Seiko Academy were like awakened monsters.
They blasted the ball out of the field one after another.
Especially their third and fourth batters—each had already hit two home runs today.
Their performance was even more dazzling than that of Seidou's strongest players!
Whether it was Chris squatting at the catcher position, or Coach Kataoka in the dugout, both knew in their hearts:
Tanba hadn't done anything wrong.
Tanba pitched steadily, and his high-drop curveball was just as effective as before.
Yet even so, his pitches were still getting hit.
Coach Kataoka had intended to nurture him.
Right now, the team could still rely on Yoshida and Zhou Hao—between the two of them, pitching shouldn't be an issue.
But the team still had to get through Koshien.
The pace of games at Koshien was faster. Yoshida's pitching was unstable, and Zhou Hao lacked stamina.
They needed a reliable reliever.
For the past few years, Seidou High School hadn't made it to Koshien. Normally, the focus should have been:
How do we secure a ticket to Koshien?
But Coach Kataoka's ambition clearly didn't stop there.
He had made up his mind—he wanted more.
He wanted results at Koshien.
If you don't consider the long-term, short-term problems will pile up.
Coach Kataoka was planning for the team's future.
His intentions were right, and the players had responded well.
But reality is cruel. When the results play out, even Coach Kataoka found himself in a dilemma.
He had just sent the pitcher up—should he now replace him?
Normally, Kataoka believed in letting players fight through adversity.
But replacing Tanba now?
If Tanba couldn't recover mentally, this year's summer tournament—much less the future—might completely ruin him.
But what if they didn't replace him?
Coach Kataoka could only develop players if the team had enough of a lead to risk experimenting.
Right now, the score difference was only one point.
If Seiko overtook them, not only would Seiko's morale soar, but Seidou's own players would start second-guessing themselves.
Let's talk about Tanba again.
He wasn't at fault even when facing Seiko's powerful second, third, and fourth batters.
In fact, when he came in as a reliever, he had pitched very well.
But now—after giving up three home runs in a row?
Even his most trusted pitch, the high-drop curveball, was getting crushed.
Any pitcher's mentality would crack under pressure like this.
Tanba was only human.
At that moment, the fifth batter of Seiko Academy stepped into the box.
His heart surged with anticipation.
God had granted him another chance to redeem himself.
Last time, just when it was his turn to bat, the opposing pitcher seemed to turn into a different person.
He ended up being the only one who didn't hit a home run.
Seiko's explosive streak had ended with him.
Now, with Tanba likely rattled, there was a real chance.
"This time… I'll pay attention."
He didn't even blink.
He wanted to see if Seidou's pitcher could transform just like Seiko's ace did earlier.
Just as the fifth batter was mentally gearing up, Coach Kataoka stood.
He couldn't risk the whole team just for Tanba.
Even though Tanba had potential for the future…
He wasn't the team's ace, nor the most critical pitcher.
"Seidou High School requests a substitution!"
"Outfielder Zhou Hao will take the mound. Tanba-san exits."
Coach Kataoka had made up his mind.
Yoshida was still available in the outfield, but at this crucial moment, Kataoka didn't use his ace.
Instead, he sent the first-year rookie pitcher, Zhou Hao, to the mound.
The scouts from various powerhouse schools, including Inashiro and several city high schools, were all stunned.
They knew Kataoka wasn't the type to give up easily.
But the situation was clearly spiraling.
And even if he had just made the decision to trust Tanba, Coach Kataoka was fully willing to slap himself in the face if it meant securing victory.
Putting Zhou Hao on the mound now—
Did this mean the first-year rookie had earned more trust than their seasoned ace, Yoshida?
That level of trust… was astounding.
The visiting scouts immediately took notes in red ink.
This would be crucial for any future strategy against Seidou.
But no one was more shocked than the fifth batter of Seiko Academy.
He had already imagined his celebration pose after finally redeeming himself with a home run.
If he homered here, Seidou's pitching staff might collapse entirely.
Why was he so unlucky?
Last time he faced the awakened Yoshida. This time, his turn came and—bam—the pitcher was swapped out.
For Zhou Hao, the first-year monster pitcher.
Seiko Academy had done their homework on Seidou.
They were fully aware of how terrifying Zhou Hao was.
They knew that once Zhou Hao came up, launching a counterattack would become incredibly difficult.
And now… Zhou Hao was standing on the mound.
The fifth batter could practically feel the teeth cracking in his mouth.
"Even if you're a monster first-year, I'm hitting a home run today!"
He raised his bat high.
His teammates had all crushed the ball into the stands.
If he didn't do the same, how could he face them later?
As one of the team's core batters, was he really inferior to the rest?
"Bring it on!"
The fifth batter, burning with determination, stood in the box, eyes blazing.
But Zhou Hao showed no emotion.
He simply set his stance and calmly delivered the pitch.
Boom!
As the spiral ball flew in…
The batter, who had just steeled himself to smash the ball no matter what—
—froze.
He immediately sensed it:
Zhou Hao's pitch was even sharper than Yoshida's.
And not just a little.
He couldn't even make contact with Yoshida's fastball.
So how could he deal with Zhou Hao?
Bang!
"Strike!"
"Strike!!"
"Strike!!!"
"Strikeout!!!"
Three straight swings. Not a single hit.
Three outs. Inning over. Offense and defense switch.
At the end of the top of the third inning, the score was fixed at:
Seidou 6 – Seiko 5
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POWER STONE!!!
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