Chapter 98: Kuramochi

With a runner on first and one out, Hattanda Taichi's gaze fell upon Yuki Tetsuya, who was walking toward the Batter's Box.

Yuki Tetsuya stepped into the Batter's Box, his bat eager for action; as Seido's third batter, he was well aware of his duty: with someone on base ahead of him, he needed to hit a base hit if possible to advance the runners, expand Seido's scoring opportunities, and finally hand that chance over to the fourth batter, Dong Qingguo.

Hattanda Taichi—according to the intelligence gathered, this was a very troublesome Pitcher, with precise control, a Fastball speed exceeding 140, and sharp cutters and Sinkers; if this guy were allowed to get into a rhythm and find his state, it would be no small trouble for Seido.

At this moment, both the Batter and the Pitcher had brought out their best form.

A few seconds later, Hattanda Taichi swung his arm and threw the ball, and Yuki Tetsuya did not hesitate in the slightest, swinging immediately.

Bang!

The bat struck the little white ball precisely, using force to drive it flying away.

"He hit it!"

"He swung on the first pitch."

"As expected of Jiecheng."

"So decisive."

Amidst the exclamations, Yuki Tetsuya sprinted toward First Base, and the baseball flew over the infield and landed on the ground.

One out, runners on first and second; the next to step into the Batter's Box was the fourth batter, Dong Qingguo.

Not letting down his teammates' trust, a cutter thrown by Hattanda Taichi was blasted away by a single swing of Dong Qingguo's powerful bat, the baseball streaking across the sky toward the Right Fielder.

The speedster Kuramochi exploded with his fastest speed at this moment, charging from Second Base to Third Base, and without stopping, as the ball was picked up by the Right Fielder and thrown back, Kuramochi had already crossed the Third Base bag and charged toward home plate!

"Safe!"

As Kuramochi returned to home plate to score a run, Yuki Tetsuya reached Second Base, and Dong Qingguo also safely reached First Base.

"Dong!"

"Kuramochi!"

"Speedster!"

"Seido!!"

Having scored, the fans on the sidelines did not hold back their cheers and applause.

Making his first start, and as the first batter, Kuramochi Yoichi had taken the lead with a base hit and was also the first to return to home plate to score; this made Kuramochi incredibly happy, and after returning to the Dugout, he gazed longingly at Manager Kataoka.

Manager Kataoka had originally intended to praise him a couple of times, but being stared at like this, he felt he should just forget it; he was already so smug, if he praised him any more, he might just fly off into the sky.

"Not bad."

In the end, Manager Kataoka spoke up; after all, he couldn't dampen a player's enthusiasm.

"I will keep working hard!" Kuramochi shouted.

Everyone was speechless, and those who had originally wanted to go up and offer him congratulations simply dispersed.

Afterward, the fifth batter, Isashiki, came up; among the second-years, Isashiki's batting strength was also second to none in Seido; with runners on first and second, Isashiki also wanted to hit to send Jiecheng to Third Base.

Hattanda Taichi threw the ball, and Isashiki swung with full vigor, hitting this Sinker aimed at the inside corner into the ground, forming a Grounder.

"Tsk!"

Isashiki dropped his bat in extreme annoyance and began to sprint; the baseball was quickly picked up by the Tongying Academy Shortstop and lightly tossed to Third Base, and Third Base quickly threw it to Second Base.

"Pa!"

"Out!"

"Pa!"

"Out!"

"Double Play!!"

Isashiki reached First Base, but Yuki Tetsuya and Dong Qingguo had been turned into a Double Play by Tongying Academy; the first inning ended there, and Isashiki walked off while cursing.

"You guy, why were you in such a hurry to swing!" Dong Qingguo said, slapping Isashiki on the back.

Isashiki let out an "ouch" and said, "I swung because I saw it clearly."

"Bullshit, I think you just got hot-headed," Dong Qingguo said.

Returning to the Dugout, Isashiki immediately faced criticism from Manager Kataoka; he was a hot-blooded guy, but he was prone to getting carried away, and batting required more than just passion.

In the second inning, Huangqian Yangyi faced the Tongying Academy batters and still encountered no obstacles, coming up and taking down their fourth batter, and with that, he easily took down two more, the time taken being frighteningly short.

"Damn it, how are we supposed to play if this keeps up!"

"We can't touch the ball at all!"

"We don't have a chance at all, our swing speed can't keep up."

In the Tongying Academy Dugout, their players stared fixedly at Huangqian Yangyi on the opposite side, each of them muttering disheartened words.

The manager standing in front heard them and turned back to say, "What is this! The game has only just begun and you're already losing heart?"

"Manager, we can't hit him at all."

"Yeah, that guy's pitching is too monstrous."

Hearing this, the manager smiled: "Don't worry, Huangqian Yangyi will pitch at most 4 innings; in Seido's eyes, the next game is the one they truly value, and they will never let Huangqian Yangyi expend too much stamina at this time."

"As long as the score isn't pulled too far apart, there will definitely be chances later."

Hearing the manager's words, Hattanda Taichi, who was nearby, said, "I will suppress Seido's batting lineup!"

"Mm, I leave it to you." The manager reached out and pressed heavily on Hattanda Taichi's shoulder to encourage him.

In reality, however, the Tongying Academy manager's heart was very heavy; what he had just said was not false—Huangqian Yangyi could absolutely not pitch the entire game—but even if he were replaced, would the incoming Nanjo Taishi be easy to deal with?

The reason he said that was merely to soothe the players' emotions.

In the bottom of the second inning, after Hattanda Taichi retired the sixth batter, Shinoki Keita, and the seventh batter, Yoshikawa Junpei, he faced the eighth batter, Miyuki.

Seeing this scene, Huangqian Yangyi knew he wouldn't have a chance to bat this inning.

Sure enough, with no one on base, Miyuki's batting was still not worth anticipating, and he was cleanly struck out.

"Ah, I'm really sorry, I was actually planning to hit a Home Run just now," Miyuki said while scratching the back of his head as he left the field.

"Give it a rest, don't we already know what you're like?" Huangqian Yangyi didn't indulge him at all.

"Heh." Miyuki laughed awkwardly.

At this moment, Manager Kataoka spoke up: "Huangqian Yangyi, you can rest once the third inning ends."

"Yes, Manager." Huangqian Yangyi was not surprised; he had known since last night's meeting that he would only be pitching three innings today.

In the third inning, after taking the mound, the coordination between Huangqian Yangyi and Miyuki continued to perfectly suppress the Tongying Academy batting lineup, and after striking out three consecutive Batters again, in the bottom of the third, Huangqian Yangyi stepped into the Batter's Box.

"Hoo~~"

Huangqian Yangyi prepared himself; this Hattanda Taichi was the most troublesome Pitcher he had encountered in these past few rounds of games, and two innings had passed, yet this person still hadn't thrown a Breaking Ball, relying solely on cutters and Sinkers to hold Seido to only one run, and even that run was mostly due to luck.

Will he throw it? A Curveball.

Huangqian Yangyi's gaze fell upon Hattanda Taichi's face, hoping to discern something from the opponent's expression, but instead, he saw the other man curl the corner of his mouth and give him a crooked smirk; Huangqian Yangyi was stunned for a moment—good grief, was he provoking him?