When Furuya returned to the rest area of the Seidou High School baseball team, he was greeted by the enthusiastic applause and praise of his teammates.
"Well done! Keep it up like this!"
"I originally thought you had no hope, but now, if you maintain this pace and keep working hard, you still have hope. Before you graduate, I believe in you!"
Asou said boldly.
By the time Sawamura arrived at the rest area, he could no longer listen quietly.
Why were all his teammates becoming such big fans of Furuya?
"Senpai, who did you just say has a chance?"
Faced with Sawamura's serious expression, Aso opened his mouth but couldn't say a word.
"Hya-ha-ha! Are you scared? Furuya threw a 160 km/h pitch. Of course, he has a chance. Unlike some people, who still haven't reached 150 km/h. Look at Narumiya, look at Hongou—who among the top pitchers in the country throws slower than you?"
Upon hearing Kuramochi's words, Sawamura's face darkened.
'This Weasel!!'
"I have to remind you that I Can throw a 150 km/h too!!"
"That is a momentary speed, who knows maybe it was luck~"
"I assure you it's not!"
This was beyond what Sawamura could tolerate!
Originally, Sawamura was satisfied with his current abilities. No matter how you looked at it, compared to his previous self, he had already become the most terrifying monster in high school baseball.
Not just high school baseball.
With his current skills, Sawamura felt that he would have significant power even among university and professional players across the country.
Although he wasn't completely unbeatable, he would still have quite an advantage.
In this case, there seemed to be nothing he was dissatisfied with.
However, Kuramochi's words felt like a nail driven into his heart.
If he didn't pull that nail out, he would never feel at peace for a while.
'I had to do it!'
'No matter what, I had to do it.'
Sawamura repeated these words in his mind over and over.
He gave a slight teasing smile and said to Kuramochi:
"Moreover, shouldn't you worry about yourself more Senpai? Don't end up like last time, when you couldn't even get a hit. If the other side hadn't made a mistake, you would've been struck out the whole game!"
If you're not showing me mercy, I don't have to show you any.
Sawamura returned the words sharply.
The two of them exchanged barbs, making a few first-year students watch nervously.
Would they really start fighting?
One was the ace of the team, and the other was the vice-captain.
Though Kuramochi wasn't as important as Sawamura to the team, he was still an indispensable member of the Seidou High School baseball team.
If they really started fighting here, it would be a huge mess for Seidou High School.
Okumura approached Miyuki and asked with a frown.
"Aren't you going to stop them?"
Miyuki smiled upon hearing this. "There's no need. They have their own way of getting along. They won't really fight."
This wasn't the first time Sawamura and Kuramochi had exchanged barbs.
They had done this many times before.
At first, their teammates were a little nervous.
What if something went wrong?
But after seeing it happen so often, they gradually got used to it.
These two drama queens were never calm for even a moment.
If one day they didn't jab at each other's-, the teammates would probably find it strange.
The way they got along now was perfectly normal.
"It looks like I haven't shown enough love from this Senpai lately. Your attitude has gotten a bit too relaxed. Time to tighten it up."
"A gentleman uses words, not fists!"
"Sorry, I never learned that. I only know that if I can use my fists, I shouldn't be talking!"
Every time Sawamura had a real argument with Kuramochi, he ended up being the one hurt.
Sometimes, he even wondered why he couldn't hold his tongue.
He knew very well that when he bickered with Kuramochi, that guy never followed the rules.
If he couldn't win the argument, Kuramochi would just go straight to fighting.
Sawamura couldn't help but get irritated and wanted to fight back every time.
He regretted it afterward, but that was just his personality—something he couldn't change overnight.
Whenever Kuramochi provoked him, he didn't back down but retorted right away.
Miyuki's assessment of him was spot on.
At heart, Sawamura was a pitcher, with the competitive spirit of a rooster.
Even when there was nothing happening, he liked to pick a fight.
And when something did happen, he never backed down.
After showing some "tough love" to Sawamura, Kuramochi stepped into the Batter's Box.
Although he had just taught Sawamura a lesson, he still took his words to heart.
Perhaps it was because he took them to heart that he got so angry.
Sawamura had directly exposed the side of Kuramochi he most hated to face.
In the previous game, against the team from the unknown Kanetsu-Norin High School, or rather, against Hoshitaru, Kuramochi had been truly embarrassed.
That lesson from the previous game had kept him awake the entire night.
Now, it was time for him to seek redemption.
Before Kuramochi stepped up to bat, Miyuki gave him a special reminder.
"Don't let your guard down!"
Although Furuya had performed well, they were far from being in a safe and secure position.
Hoshiryu High's Ace pitcher, Nanami Haruka, was no easy opponent.
Miyuki had been involved with baseball from a young age, and he had often heard rumors about this pitcher during his elementary school years.
He was a pitcher who could stand alongside Narumiya Mei.
After entering high school, his performance seemed a bit lackluster, not as impressive as it once was.
But no matter how you looked at it, the opponent's strength couldn't have dropped that much.
Even if Nanami no longer possessed the peak strength of his peers, his level of ability still wasn't too far from that.
Facing such an opponent, any careless mistake could cost them dearly.
With that in mind, Miyuki was particularly cautious before Kuramochi stepped up to the plate.
"I know. Any team that has made it this far can't be made up of weak players."
The top eight teams in the country!
In this era, they were known as the super platinum generation in baseball!
With the great demon Sawamura leading the charge and the 12 Rising Talents as the backbone, talented players were emerging from every corner of the country, like grass after rain.
In this context, even players like Kuramochi, who were originally quite strong, didn't quite stand out in comparison to the talent of the time.
If it weren't for the era they were in, relying solely on Kuramochi's skills, he might not have reached legendary status, but he certainly would have been a famous star player.
Unfortunately, in this unfortunate era, there were several players with similar styles and strengths, like Mima from Hakuryu and Carlos from Inashiro.
In terms of style, they were similar to Kuramochi, but when it came to raw offensive strength, Kuramochi couldn't hold a candle to them.
To say there was no advantage would be an understatement.
The gap between his modest skills and those of these two was likely quite large.
This unfortunate era was just like that.
Players with similar styles couldn't reach the national top, and it was even harder for them to reach the peak of the sport.
Kuramochi's fame and status had always been somewhat awkward.
He didn't need others to tell him; he was clear about it in his heart.
Luckily, he was able to take it in stride.
So what if he couldn't be number one? Was life over?
If he couldn't achieve his dreams by relying solely on his own strength, then he would find a way to make his team the best!
He wanted Seidou to be the best team!
He didn't know exactly when, but this had become an obsession for Kuramochi.
For this, he was even willing to make some changes.
Standing in the Batter's Box, he held his bat high.
Kuramochi's eyes never left Nanami.
'This is a very formidable pitcher!'
Although his pitch speed wasn't fast, his throws had a unique characteristic.
His pitch speed wasn't as fast as Sawamura's, only just over 140 km/h.
His fastest pitch was 145 km/h, 3 km slower than Sawamura's pitch.
His breaking ball wasn't as sharp as Sawamura's either.
His pitch strength and rpm were good, but not too overwhelming.
If they really tried to think about it, none of the Seidou team members could pinpoint exactly what made Nanami Haruka so strong.
But they could all feel it instinctively. This guy was strong, and his abilities were not to be underestimated.
He didn't need to do anything special; just standing on the mound brought out a natural aura.
Hitting his ball wasn't an easy feat.
Kuramochi took a deep breath, exhaled slowly, and used this moment to adjust his thoughts and mindset.
He couldn't rush this!
The more he couldn't figure out the true strength of his opponent, the more he needed to remain patient and wait for the pitch to come.
He needed to observe carefully and then swing his bat at the right moment.
This sequence of actions required complete focus, and if there was even the slightest lapse, the outcome could be vastly different.
Kuramochi steadied himself, patiently waiting for Nanami's pitch.
At this point, Hoshiryu High's infielders, who had been playing in close, began to relax.
From Kuramochi's stance, they could somewhat guess what he was trying to do.
He seemed to want a head-to-head duel.
If that was the case, Hoshiryu's infielders couldn't just keep pushing forward.
The ball could very well be hit behind them.
That was a strong possibility!
After all, Nanami wasn't the kind of pitcher who made it impossible for batters to hit the ball.
His specialty was getting batters to miss the sweet spot of the bat.
Whoosh!
Nanami, standing on the mound, appeared calm and unfazed.
He decisively threw the baseball from his hand.
The baseball accelerated rapidly, flying toward the batter in the blink of an eye.
Before that,
Kuramochi had kept his bat high, making it look as if he was determined to swing hard and hit the ball.
Hoshiryu's players had that feeling, and in a way, they weren't wrong.
At first, Kuramochi had indeed made up his mind to face Nanami directly.
Though he wasn't entirely confident in his hitting ability,
He still had a fair amount of self-assurance.
As long as he didn't get too unlucky and hit the ball right to the top of the fielder's mitt, or have it turn into an infield bounce,
Kuramochi felt he could make it safely to first base.
After all, his speed was so fast that a lapse in the defense would be enough for him to win the battle.
Prepared for a normal duel, Kuramochi was ready to face Nanami.
But then, he suddenly noticed something unusual at first base.
The first baseman, after seeing Kuramochi's stance, had started to move back.
'An opportunity!'
This sudden opportunity was fleeting.
The defense had left a small opening for him.
Such a chance was rare.
Having originally decided to face Nanami head-on, Kuramochi couldn't resist the temptation of the opportunity in front of him.
He abandoned his original plan and, without hesitation, pulled his bat back and adjusted his stance for a bunt.
'A bunt?'
The change in Kuramochi's approach caught everyone off guard.
Seeing this, they even briefly wondered if they had wandered onto the wrong set.
This was too bold!
Hoshiryu's players had pushed forward, so where did Kuramochi find such courage?
Masamoto, the first baseman had already taken two or three steps back.
He immediately noticed Kuramochi's change in stance.
'This is bad!'
He panicked and rushed forward.
Oda Honjou, the third baseman, didn't fall back like Masamoto.
So Masamoto immediately knew that the baseball was likely to bounce toward him.
As he had predicted, the baseball bounced off the bat and headed right for first base.
Seeing the ball's trajectory, the Masamoto sprang into action.
At this point, he could only give it his all to recover from the mistake.
He sprinted a few steps and finally reached the ball, scooping it up into his mitt and turning around to throw it to first base!
As the first baseman, he had no issues making this throw.
As Masamoto threw the ball, either the pitcher or the second baseman would surely cover the base.
So, he had no hesitation when making his move.
But when Masamoto turned back and saw the scene before him,
His mind went blank.
'WHAT?!—Why Is He There?!!'
Kuramochi, who had just made contact with the ball, had somehow already made it near first base.
Masamoto's alarm bells went off in his head. Without thinking, he threw the ball to first base.
But unfortunately, he was still a step too late.
As he tossed the ball back to the plate, a swift blue figure had already made it to first base.
Snap!
"SAFE!"
…
T/N: Furuya finally achieved his Super Saiyan form!!
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