Chapter 281: Entrusted with a Heavy Responsibility

The second inning hadn't even ended yet, and the score was already trailing by 10 runs; Sensen High School felt like they were in a dream right now.

This was completely different from what they had anticipated. Maki Yosuke's pitching shouldn't have been this weak; how was it that in front of Seido's batting lineup, it was like paper—anyone could get a hit.

Wukai Yiliang clenched his hands behind his back, his gaze fixed on Maki Yosuke with worry. Judging from the pitching this inning, Maki Yosuke was clearly a bit anxious. Was it because the opponent was Seido? He had originally thought that facing Seido would ignite Maki Yosuke's fighting spirit, but looking at it now, it had ignited it a bit too much; he was too hot-headed.

In the Seido dugout, Huangqian Yangyi and the three runners on base returned after scoring 4 runs and were immediately surrounded by their teammates. This home run today was his fortieth, and it was even a Golden Home Run!

"Forty!!"

"Forty!"

At this moment, the Seido fans in the stands were cheering in unison.

"Too amazing, that's forty home runs already; he's more than a year faster than Senior Yuki."

"Tsk tsk, at this rate, by the end of this summer, 50 home runs will be a piece of cake."

"I don't even dare to imagine what the total number of home runs will be when this guy Huangqian retires in his third year."

The friends chattered on without stopping, and Huangqian Yangyi was also very happy.

With his increasingly powerful batting, his efficiency in getting home runs would be even higher compared to the previous year.

This was also the reason why Coach Kataoka let him play every game; even if he wasn't pitching, he had to boost his batting stats, which was absolutely beneficial for his future.

"Luck, it's all luck," Huangqian Yangyi said, waving his hands.

"Being too humble won't do, Huangqian," Yuki Tetsuya said.

Huangqian Yangyi smiled, "This is all because I have a group of amazing teammates. If it weren't for you all actively getting on base in front of me and putting pressure on the pitcher, I would likely be getting walked often; how would I have the chance to get so many home runs."

Hearing this, the others also looked at each other and smiled. It was true that the ace was great, but the ace knew in his heart that their hard work and dedication were even more moving.

While they were talking, on the field, Miyuki had already been put out and returned.

"Kazuya, what's wrong with you? You cut off our momentum while it was at its peak," Isashiki Jun said irritably.

Miyuki scratched his head and gave an awkward smile: "It's just bad luck, it happened to fly right to where someone was."

After Miyuki, Arima Kazusa's second at-bat still failed to result in a hit. Facing Maki Yosuke's powerful, wide-angle pitches, Arima Kazusa made contact with the ball many times, but every time it was hard to hit it far enough to get on base.

"Don't be anxious. You just lack power right now, and your swing speed isn't fast enough. Take it slow."

After Arima Kazusa left the field, Huangqian Yangyi patted his shoulder to comfort him.

"Mm, I will work hard." Arima Kazuto nodded heavily. Being a First Year as well, Senior Huangqian had already hit many home runs by last year; he still had a long way to go.

"Little Arima, don't take it to heart. I'll treat you to pudding when we get back," Masuko Toru said as he walked over.

As fellow Third Basemen, Arima Kazusa was the starter today, but Masuko Toru didn't mind at all. It was very common to let newcomers play in these kinds of games to accumulate experience.

Seeing the little junior suffer one setback after another, Masuko Toru also wanted to do something, but after thinking for a long time, he could only come up with pudding.

Bottom of the second inning, Seido on offense.

The Sensen High School batters began to gradually get used to Sawamura's pitching. Balls were constantly being hit, and there were runners on base. Soon, there were two outs and a runner on Third Base.

Miyuki looked at the batter. There had already been two consecutive outside fastballs; the batter had swung and missed once and hit a foul ball once. At this time, an inside high fastball should be effective, but the opponent should also be wary of inside pitches.

Since that was the case, Miyuki set his glove for an outside low cutter, right on the edge of the strike zone.

Sawamura took a deep breath, his focus extremely sharp; he wasn't affected by the arrival of his friends and his childhood sweetheart in the stands.

Aiming at the spot Miyuki wanted, Sawamura whooshed the ball out.

The batter also swung his bat the moment the baseball was released. Inside! Guessed wrong!

Pop!

"Strike!"

"Strikeout!"

Successfully taking down this batter, Sawamura had two scoreless innings and personally curbed Sensen High School's scoring opportunity in the second inning.

"Your condition is good today, Sawamura. Well done, you're already showing the flair of an ace," Miyuki said, praising him while draping an arm over Sawamura's shoulder.

"Eh? Really? Am I already capable of being an ace?" Sawamura's eyes sparkled, eager to get Miyuki's affirmation.

Miyuki chuckled. It was just a casual compliment, yet this kid had directly jumped up a level and thought he could qualify as an ace.

"You're still far from it. First, master the Nine-Grid Control, then master two more types of breaking balls. Otherwise, with your pitch speed, if you only have your current pitch types, you'll be easily figured out," Miyuki said seriously.

Sawamura nodded, "Mm-hmm," and asked while walking toward the dugout: "Is it time to develop my moving fastball?"

After entering Seido, Sawamura also understood his own pitching characteristics, but because he couldn't master it himself, it had been shelved. Afterward, it was all about standardizing his pitching posture and movements. He had always looked forward to the day he could develop his own moving fastball.

"Look, you're rushing again."

Miyuki shook his head. Now was not the time for Sawamura to develop a moving fastball. With Huangqian Yangyi, Tanba, and Kawakami ahead of him, Sawamura had more time to build his foundation; there was no need to rush for success.

Returning to the dugout, Sawamura was stopped by Coach Kataoka.

"Sawamura."

"Yes! BOSS! Here! General!" Sawamura shouted.

"Good performance. From here on, I'm leaving it all to you. Can you do it?" Coach Kataoka said, then turned his head to look at Sawamura, watching him with extreme seriousness.

Hearing this, everyone present was stunned, including Huangqian Yangyi.

Kawakami, who was originally planned to be the middle reliever, understood the coach's meaning after a brief moment of shock.

Sawamura's pitching performance today was excellent, and with the score already 10-0, it was highly likely the game would end early in the 5th inning. If they followed the original plan, he and Furuya, who was responsible for closing, couldn't just go up and pitch one inning each.

Furuya, standing to the side, was full of resentment; he looked like an Evil Sword Immortal.

Whoosh~~

In the quiet dugout, the sound of Sawamura's breathing was clearly audible.

Suddenly entrusted with such a heavy responsibility, Sawamura's brain stalled a bit; the surprise had come too suddenly.

"Hey, Sawamura, are you chickening out at a critical moment?"

"Ya-ha-ha, you aren't scared, are you?"

"Our First Year brat might just be nervous."

"That's true, after all, he's still a rookie; he probably can't believe he was suddenly entrusted with such an important task."

Listening to the teasing from the upperclassmen beside him, Sawamura's face turned red in an instant, and after a long while, he suddenly raised his head and looked straight into the eyes of Director Kataoka.

"I can do it!"