Three outs—change sides!
At that moment, the entire Koshien stadium erupted into thunderous applause.
Arayashiki High School was no nameless team. They were strong, respected, and had already built a reputation on the Koshien stage.
When Seidou High School faced them, even the most diehard Seidou supporters knew this would be no easy game. Both sides would likely have to fight tooth and nail before a winner could be decided.
But no one expected this.
The game had barely begun, and Zhou Hao—using nothing but his straight ball—had already taken complete control.
The batters of Arayashiki High School stood dumbfounded.
It wasn't that they didn't want to hit the ball. They simply couldn't.
"Seidou's Ace… how terrifying!"
"He's still just a first-year, right?"
"Seidou's luck is unreal—what kind of monster did they find!?"
The excitement in the stands made it feel as if Seidou had already won.
Though the game had only just begun, the atmosphere screamed victory.
The players of Arayashiki High School, stunned and shaken, had taken a heavy blow to their morale. And once confidence wavered in Koshien, it was hard to recover.
Unless there was a huge gap in power—or Arayashiki somehow had a miracle in store—the match would be decided before long.
After all, Seidou had already gone toe-to-toe with the powerhouse Osaka Kiryu and defeated them. They weren't just another strong team—they were the first seed of this tournament.
Arayashiki's strength was solid, but if it came down to raw power... how could they possibly compete with Seidou?
Bottom of the first inning — Seidou's offense.
The Seidou cheering squad, led by the second and third string players, exploded with synchronized chants.
"Seidou!"
"Hit it!"
"Seidou!"
"Hit it!!"
The brass band blared triumphantly, and even fans watching on TV could feel the rising tension. Everyone believed that Seidou was about to crush Arayashiki High School completely.
On the mound, the Ace of Arayashiki wound up and delivered his first pitch.
"Whoosh!"
At the plate, Matsumoto, Seidou's leadoff hitter, couldn't resist swinging.
"Good pitch!"
He unleashed his bat.
"Ping!"
The moment the ball connected, Seidou's fans jumped to their feet—only to freeze a second later.
The ball didn't soar into the outfield like they'd hoped. Instead, it hung in the air just above the second baseman's head.
The Arayashiki infielder took a few steady steps back and caught it cleanly in his glove.
"Pop!"
"Out!"
The sudden turn shocked everyone.
In the Seidou dugout, Coach Kataoka's face grew serious, as did his players'.
They knew exactly what that miss meant.
"He's even tougher than the data showed…"
Chris nodded at the remark, eyes narrowing.
"According to the scouting reports, he's another irregular breaking-ball pitcher. Where did Arayashiki find this guy?"
Coach Kataoka finally spoke, calm but firm.
"This is Koshien. It's normal to face unexpected opponents."
His words grounded everyone.
This was, after all, the biggest stage in Japan. Every team here was elite.
In terms of record, Arayashiki wasn't as strong as Osaka Kiryu—but they weren't far behind Inashiro Industrial either.
And everyone on Seidou had faced Inashiro before. They knew how terrifying a team of that level could be.
From that perspective, today's opponent wouldn't go down easily.
"Second batter, number 20—pitcher, Zhou Hao!"
The moment the announcer's voice echoed across the stadium, the crowd erupted.
"Zhou Hao!!"
"Ahhhh!!!"
"I want your babies!!"
"Show them what you've got, Ace!"
Even Seidou's own players were stunned by the sheer number of fans cheering for Zhou Hao.
His dominant performance against Osaka Kiryu had catapulted him to stardom.
Now, he stood on par with Japan's top high school baseball icons.
It was shocking—just one game had been enough to elevate him to this level.
But no one on Seidou felt jealous. Instead, they were proud.
He was their Ace.
"Zhou Hao can hit it, right?"
"That guy just throws natural breaking balls—he's no Kuroda."
While the players whispered among themselves, Arayashiki's Ace, Uekusa, began his windup.
Even facing the rising star Zhou Hao, he showed no fear.
"Whoosh!"
The pitch came fast and sharp. Zhou Hao, after a quick glance at the defense, made his move.
"Ping!"
The crack of the bat echoed, and the crowd roared—certain the ball would find a gap.
But just as Zhou Hao started sprinting to first base, something unexpected happened.
The fielders of Arayashiki High School moved as if they already knew where he'd hit it.
The shortstop, who had been positioned several meters away, shifted before the swing even connected.
The instant the ball hit the ground, he was already there—scooping it cleanly and firing to first base.
"Pop!"
The ball beat Zhou Hao by a step.
"Out!"
"Whoa!!!"
"They actually stopped it?!"
Even the neutral spectators gasped in awe.
None of them had expected it.
But it happened—right before their eyes.
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