Chapter 278: Partners from Hometown

"Huangqian!!"

"Home Run!!"

As Huangqian Yangyi walked to the Batter's Box with his bat, the fervent atmosphere at the venue instantly reached a peak.

Holding his bat, Huangqian Yangyi looked at Yuki Tetsuya at Second Base; two outs, runner on second, this was the time for either another hit to send the runner to Third Base, or a direct Home Run.

Huangqian Yangyi stood in the Batter's Box and prepared to hit as naturally as always, yet this scene felt like immense pressure in the eyes of Maki Yosuke.

Seido's Fourth Batter and Fifth Batter, the Captain and the Ace—these two standing in the Batter's Box looked unremarkable at first glance, but this very appearance of calmly waiting for the pitch gave people a feeling of being impregnable, as if no matter how he pitched, the opponent could hit it.

Maki Yosuke knew that when such a thought appeared in his mind, he had already lost half the battle, and even if he tried his best to focus and erase this notion, it was of no use.

After exchanging looks with the Catcher, Maki Yosuke's massive frame took a small step, his extra-long arm whipped out rapidly, and the small white ball shot toward home plate like a laser.

Whoosh!

Pop!

"Strike!"

Huangqian Yangyi didn't move; standing in the Batter's Box and seeing Maki Yosuke's pitch with his own eyes, he could truly appreciate the sense of drop caused by the ultra-high release point.

From this angle, it felt like it was being smashed down.

Huangqian Yangyi looked back at the baseball in the Catcher's mitt; it had great power, the ball speed was not bad, and coupled with this unique release point, it was indeed very difficult for most Batters to hit.

Have to say, Maki Yosuke has something.

However, wanting to get an out from me, I'm afraid that's still a bit lacking.

As Maki Yosuke threw the second pitch, Huangqian Yangyi's bat accurately bit into the incoming baseball, Bang! The small ball was blasted to Left Fielder and landed.

Tch, didn't hit it well, Huangqian Yangyi muttered with slight dissatisfaction after rushing to First Base.

Sure enough, encountering a pitcher like Maki Yosuke who is 195cm tall in the first inning, wanting to adapt to his large-angle pitching all at once was clearly impossible; even for him, he hadn't been able to hit this ball to the position he wanted.

As Huangqian Yangyi got a hit, Yuki Tetsuya advanced to Third Base.

Two outs, runners on first and third, the next Batter was the Sixth Batter, Miyuki Kazuya.

"Miyuki!! It's up to you!"

"Runners on base, you can do it!"

"Get another run!"

There was no lack of teasing in the audience's cheers; Miyuki chuckled, looking a bit embarrassed, swung his bat twice after standing in the Batter's Box, and glanced at the Catcher: How will you call the pitches?

Two outs, runners on first and third; at this time, once an Extra-base Hit is blasted, runs will be lost, so the best way is to try to keep the pitch path low to limit the Batter from swinging a big bat, and coordinate with Breaking Ball to disrupt the Batter's rhythm.

The possibility of the first pitch being a low outside Fastball is very high.

Whoosh!

Maki Yosuke raised his hands high and quickly threw the baseball; Miyuki didn't move, letting the baseball fly in.

Yeah~ that's really scary, although the ball speed isn't that fast.

Miyuki sighed; Maki Yosuke's ball did look scary, full of ball power, and most importantly, he wasn't used to this kind of pitch path.

But as long as he could guess the Catcher's pitch calling, hitting it wasn't difficult. The corners of Miyuki's mouth curled up; after previous observations, he had roughly understood the Sensen Catcher's pitch-calling habits and thinking.

The next pitch will either be a high inside Fastball or a low outside Curveball.

The moment Maki Yosuke threw the second pitch, Miyuki decisively swung his bat toward the outside position.

Bang!!

Guessed right! Miyuki felt a joy in his heart and fiercely blasted the baseball away.

The baseball flying backward was fast and high; Huangqian Yangyi and Yuki Tetsuya on base quickly started running, and while the ball was still in the air, Yuki Tetsuya had already returned to home plate to take the second run of the game.

Just then, the baseball flew over the wall and landed in the stands of Right Fielder.

"Home Run!!"

"Miyuki!!"

"So cool! As expected of you!"

Hearing the cheers of the audience, Huangqian Yangyi's running speed slowed down, and he looked back at Miyuki who was also running; this guy was happily waving at the audience.

"Not bad, didn't expect you to be the first to get a Home Run today."

Miyuki ran a lap and came back, and Huangqian Yangyi immediately stepped up to high-five him.

"Hehe, luck, just guessed it," Miyuki laughed, his face inevitably carrying pride; snatching the Home Run before Yuki Tetsuya and Huangqian Yangyi put him in a great mood.

"Compliment you once and you're already acting up," Huangqian Yangyi pushed Miyuki off the field.

Next, Seventh Batter Arima Kazusa went up; facing Maki Yosuke's pitching, he performed well, fouled off two pitches, and although he hit one, the route wasn't good, flying right toward the position of the Second Baseman, and was ruthlessly forced out.

Thus, the top of the first inning ended, score: 4:0.

Bottom of the first inning, Sensen High School on offense.

On the Seido side, starting Pitcher Sawamura Eijun walked out of the Dugout with a bright smile on his face.

"Hey, don't get cocky, you have to bring out your best state to pitch today, you know?" Miyuki patted Sawamura on the shoulder to remind him, fearing this guy would cause some trouble again because he was too excited.

Sawamura nodded obediently, but after walking to the Pitcher's Mound, he immediately took a deep breath and then shouted: "Teammates behind me, I will let them keep hitting it, I leave the defense to everyone."

Hearing Sawamura's statement, the teammates behind him all laughed; although this guy was mostly unreliable, his momentum after standing on the Pitcher's Mound was indeed quite something, and Sawamura's pitching was the type that let the Batter hit it.

Considering this point, defending behind him was indeed more fun.

By comparison, Huangqian Yangyi's pitching was indeed powerful, but most of the time, defending behind him was like standing in punishment; in the most extreme cases, not a single ball flew out from the start of the game to the end, completely standing in punishment for the whole game.

At the Left Fielder position, Huangqian Yangyi twisted his neck and suddenly saw a few figures in the stands.

Hm? That is, Sawamura's friends?

In the stands behind the Seido Dugout, a group of young boys were lying on the railing, excitedly watching the game on the field.

Among them was a girl with short brown hair wearing a green T-shirt; the girl had her hands behind her back, her gaze looking gently at Sawamura on the Pitcher's Mound.

It really is Aotsuki Wakana!

Huangqian Yangyi had once seen a photo of this girl on Sawamura's phone; it was a group photo, of course.

Heh, that guy Sawamura is truly lucky; despite being a foolish, blockheaded, and hopelessly dense guy, he has a childhood sweetheart who silently likes him.

Just then, the game began, and Sawamura, not yet knowing that his friends from back home had come to the venue to watch him play, quickly threw the first pitch after adjusting his state.