The reporters' eyes burned with excitement.
Interviewing Coach Kataoka had been a challenge.
He was calm, disciplined, and impossible to trip up. Every question they threw at him came back with a textbook-perfect answer.
And while that was admirable, it didn't make for juicy headlines.
Reporters lived for stories — the kind that stirred discussion and drew clicks. If every coach handled interviews like Kataoka, how could they ever make news worth reading?
But now, they had a new target.
Two first-year players — complete rookies — who had just stunned the nation.
Zhou Hao and Miyuki Kazuya.
They were young, inexperienced, and likely to slip up if pushed just right. A single careless sentence could spark a storm of attention.
One reporter grinned and leaned forward.
"Zhou Hao," he began eagerly, "how did you feel about today's game? You completely shut down the Universe Team from start to finish—"
Coach Kataoka's eyes widened instantly.
As a language teacher, he immediately recognized how dangerous that question was.
It was a trap.
If Zhou Hao tried to be humble and said he was just lucky, the headline could easily become 'Seidou Wins by Sheer Luck'.
If he answered with confidence, the spin would change to 'Seidou's Rookie Ace Arrogantly Dismisses Osaka Kiryu'.
Either way, trouble would follow.
Even if the reporter didn't mean to stir things up, Kataoka couldn't take that risk.
He was just about to intervene when Zhou Hao calmly opened his mouth.
"Thanks to my teammates' help," Zhou Hao said with an easy smile. "If they weren't behind me, I don't think I could have done it."
The reporter froze.
So did everyone else.
It was the kind of safe, polite answer they'd heard a thousand times before — so flawless that it gave them nothing to twist.
Coach Kataoka, however, was stunned for a very different reason.
In past interviews, Zhou Hao's responses had been decent at best — polite but uninspired. But now, his tone, his timing, and his sincerity felt… genuine.
Zhou Hao wasn't saying it to play it safe. He truly believed it.
Even though most of Seidou's outs came from his own strikeouts, his trust in his teammates was absolute.
He believed that even if his pitch was hit, someone would be there to back him up.
That faith allowed him to throw freely — without hesitation, without fear.
Kataoka's eyes softened. That's why he's able to pitch like that.
Millions of viewers were watching the live broadcast at that moment.
Zhou Hao's quiet sincerity struck them harder than any highlight reel could.
Sincerity was his ultimate weapon.
Across the country, fans were moved by his words.
Of course, the reporters conducting the interview had no idea. All they knew was that they weren't getting the juicy headline they wanted.
So they immediately shifted their focus.
"Miyuki," another reporter called, "can you tell us how you felt about your performance today?"
Coming in as a pinch hitter at the most crucial moment, Miyuki Kazuya had helped turn the game around with a clutch two-run hit. It was a performance that had already made him a national sensation overnight.
Miyuki smiled politely. "Thanks to Director Kataoka's trust, and thanks to my teammates' support," he said smoothly. "I was able to contribute only because of the efforts of my seniors and everyone on the team."
Kataoka almost laughed.
Privately, Miyuki was cheeky, mischievous, and loved teasing people. But in front of the camera, he was flawless — every word textbook-perfect.
Watching the broadcast from afar, the players of Inashiro Industrial High School could barely contain themselves.
"They're acting like good boys now?"
"These Seidou guys are getting more and more fake!"
Their irritation was palpable.
No one knew the true personalities of Seidou's players better than their long-time rivals.
Still, one of Inashiro's captains stood up, clenching his fist. "Forget them. Let's focus on the Autumn Tournament. We'll settle it there."
The others nodded firmly. The sting of their loss still burned, and they swore it wouldn't happen again.
Seidou's participation in Koshien meant their new team would be formed later than usual — and Inashiro planned to use that time to get stronger.
"We're not waiting until next summer," one player said coldly. "We start now."
Even without their third-years, this year's Inashiro team might be stronger than ever.
Elsewhere, at Ichidai Third High, players were reacting the same way — sleeves rolled up, motivation burning. They were eager for payback, ready to challenge Seidou on the field.
Across Japan, countless baseball fans and rival schools were now fixated on one name:
Seidou High School.
Before this match, Seidou was already famous — they'd beaten two national-level powerhouses just to reach Koshien.
But now, after defeating Osaka Kiryu, the nation's top-ranked team, Seidou had officially become the team to beat.
That night, the Seidou players slept soundly, unaware of how much the world outside had changed.
But the next morning…
They woke to a shock.
The hotel staff greeted them with over-the-top enthusiasm, offering seconds at breakfast, smiling like fans meeting celebrities.
When they stepped outside, reporters were already lined up in front of the entrance, microphones and cameras in hand.
The players stared, dumbfounded.
"I thought stuff like this only happened on TV!"
"I didn't think it'd be this real…"
"Wait—did we actually become famous overnight?"
They had.
Seidou High School Baseball Team had gone from competitors… to national icons.
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