Chapter 236: Winning the Training Game

"Amazing, Sawamura! You caught a ball like that; your reflexes are so fast."

"You scared us to death."

"No kidding, that ball was headed straight for Sawamura. It was too dangerous."

"That's why they say being a Pitcher is a high-risk profession."

Stepping off the field, Sawamura's task for the day was considered complete, and the upperclassmen surrounded him, talking incessantly.

"Huangqian, go end the game," Director Kataoka suddenly said.

Huangqian Yangyi, who had been resting, was stunned. No way, sending him up to bat in the bottom of the ninth?

"Is there a problem?" Director Kataoka asked.

"No!" Huangqian Yangyi hurriedly stood up, grabbed a bat from the side, and swung it vigorously a few times.

Soon, the bottom of the ninth began, with Seido on offense.

The first to stand in the Batter's Box was the 5th Batter, Chris.

Carrying his bat, Chris radiated an aura of "who else but me."

Bang!

The first pitch thrown by Tachi Hiromi was seized by Chris and sent flying to Center Fielder.

"Safe!"

After Chris successfully reached base, the next up was the 6th Batter, Arima Kazusa.

"Arima, good luck! I'll bring you home in a bit," Huangqian Yangyi shouted to Arima Kazusa.

"Right! I'll definitely get on base!" A sharp glint flashed in Arima Kazusa's eyes; this was his first time fighting on the same field as Huangqian Yangyi, and although it was just a training game, it was enough to excite him.

Whew~

In the Batter's Box, Arima Kazusa adjusted his breathing, his gaze locked on the Pitcher, Tachi Hiromi.

Whoosh!

Thwack!

"Strike!"

The first pitch was a Slider; Arima Kazusa raised an eyebrow and swung his bat decisively, but he swung and missed.

With no sign of frustration on his face, Arima Kazusa took his batting stance again, waiting for Tachi Hiromi to pitch.

Zoom!

The second pitch flew in; Arima Kazusa raised an eyebrow and swung decisively. This time, it was a Curveball.

Bang!

"Jianjie!"

"Strike!"

Whew~

Two strikes. Arima Kazusa slowly let out a breath; he had to hit the next one.

The Osaka Kiryu Catcher looked at Arima Kazusa. This First Year had swung at both pitches; he couldn't tell if he was trying to hit anything specific, or if he was just swinging at whatever came?

But it didn't matter; he would finish him off with the next pitch!

On the Pitcher's Mound, seeing Arima Kazusa pushed to two strikes, Tachi Hiromi smiled happily, though his terrifying face made the smile look chilling.

Eek~

Arima Kazusa, who was usually very calm in the Batter's Box, couldn't help but feel a chill down his spine after seeing that smile, fearing that Tachi Hiromi might suddenly rush over and stab him.

Soon the Catcher gave the signal, and after Tachi Hiromi nodded, he threw the ball with a full smile. The little white ball flew toward Arima Kazusa's body—it was an inside-high Fastball!

Seeing the trajectory clearly, Arima Kazusa shifted his body and swept his bat across. Bang!

So heavy!

Feeling the power transmitted from the bat, Arima Kazusa gritted his teeth and smashed the ball out.

The little white ball flew toward Second Base at extreme speed. The Osaka Kiryu Shortstop stepped forward quickly, accurately judged the ball's landing spot, and after catching it, quickly threw it to Second Base to force out Yuki Tetsuya.

Arima Kazusa also took this opportunity to successfully reach First Base.

Standing on the base, Arima Kazusa looked at Huangqian Yangyi, only to see him walking to the Batter's Box in a leisurely manner. Just standing there was enough to make the Osaka Kiryu players feel immense pressure.

The Catcher looked up at Huangqian Yangyi. This familiar and hateful face—it wasn't his first time seeing it, but it was his first time being this close.

During last year's Summer Koshien, when the two teams met in the Semi-finals, he was still a backup Catcher. At that time, Huangqian Yangyi had hit a two-run Home Run and a three-run Home Run off their Osaka Kiryu ace.

That terrifying scoring ability made him feel the road ahead was bleak. He didn't know how to win when facing such a Batter.

Now, more than half a year later, facing Huangqian Yangyi again, he still felt a bit intimidated.

Feeling the same way was Tachi Hiromi on the Pitcher's Mound. Just looking at the guy who had personally sent them home last year, the smile on Tachi Hiromi's face faded significantly.

In the Osaka Kiryu Dugout, Director Matsumoto Hirotaka also sighed. He had thought this game would end at 12:12, with both sides tied, a happy ending for everyone.

Who could have expected that in the final moments, Director Kataoka would send out this god of slaughter.

It's just a training game, is it really necessary to be this competitive?

It looks like they are going to be defeated today.

Director Matsumoto Hirotaka shook his head and sighed helplessly. It wasn't that he lacked confidence in his own ace, but after nine innings, Tachi Hiromi's condition wasn't what it used to be; his pitch speed and power had both declined. Facing Huangqian Yangyi at this moment, it would likely be difficult to retire him. He could only pray that the goddess of luck was on their side.

But on second thought, this might be a good thing. They lost to Seido and Huangqian Yangyi in last year's Koshien; losing another game now could allow the players to turn their shame into courage. Of course, that would depend on how he, as the Director, used his verbal skills after the game to ignite the players' fighting spirit.

On the field, having adjusted his mindset, Tachi Hiromi finally threw the first pitch.

The little white ball flew toward home plate; the trajectory and speed were both fine.

Yoshi, this pitch is good! The Catcher praised inwardly.

A Curveball!

Huangqian Yangyi's gaze was sharp; he judged it the moment the ball left the hand, and then swung his bat, fiercely smashing the ball away.

Bang!

"So high."

"So fast!"

"It's going out!"

"Hahaha, Home Run!!"

"Huangqian!"

As the baseball landed outside the field, the Seido teammates cheered from the sidelines.

We won!

"Did you see that? This is our Seido ace, hahahaha." Sawamura stood outside the Dugout, hands on his hips, shouting and laughing wildly toward the Osaka Kiryu side.

"This kid." Huangqian Yangyi walked off the field with a smile; he was too lazy to run the bases, and since Arima Kazusa had already returned to home plate to score a run, the game was over.

"Senior Huangqian, you're too amazing." Arima Kazusa said while walking beside Huangqian Yangyi.

He said he would send him to home plate, and he really did; it was just too cool.

"Haha, impressed?"

"Impressed, truly impressed." Arima Kazusa said.

The practice game ended, and the managers of both sides came to the sidelines to shake hands.

"Manager Kataoka, this practice game was excellent. Your First Year players are quite good; not only do you have two completely different types of Pitcher, but the other two also have great potential in both batting and fielding," said Manager Matsumoto Hirotaka.

"You are also very impressive; among the players who took the field, several were not starters, right?" said Manager Kataoka.

"Hahaha, not at all, we already used our full strength."

"Is that so."

Both managers were smiling tigers; neither could see what the other was truly thinking.

After sending the Osaka Kiryu people onto the bus, the Seido group began to pack up their things to prepare for dismissal and rest.