Back in the dugout, Shida Shota wore a proud smile, his chin high as he showed off to his teammates.
"Senior, that last pitch was amazing!" Kanzaki Ryou handed him a bottle of mineral water.
Given the situation just now, he had thought Nanjo Taishi was about to be in trouble, but he never expected Shida Shota to step up at that moment and catch Hada Kazuki's powerful line drive, which completely surprised everyone.
"Haha, how about it? Impressed, right?" Shida Shota didn't bother with false modesty.
"Amazing, amazing."
After a round of praise, it was Seido's turn to bat in the bottom of the first inning.
After Inajitsu's players took their positions, Seido's leadoff batter, Shida Shota, entered the field again.
The audience still remembered his brilliant performance just now, and as Shida Shota stepped into the batter's box, a warm round of applause erupted again.
"Hey, watch me!"
Shida Shota swung his bat.
"Strike!"
"Strike!"
"Strike!"
"Strikeout!"
After three consecutive swings and misses, Shida Shota pulled down the brim of his cap and silently walked off the field.
"He can't take a compliment."
"Misfortunes never come singly."
"That was an ugly swing."
His teammates complained one after another.
In reality, Shida Shota's batting was quite good, and he didn't make any mistakes just now; it was purely because Matsumoto Takumi's pitching was too formidable, with an average fastball speed of around 143 km/h, combined with a Fast Forkball and a high-speed slider, making it extremely difficult to hit.
Moreover, judging from his performance just now, this guy's condition was surprisingly good.
The cool weather today certainly wasn't only beneficial to Seido.
Next, Kominato Ryosuke, who came up as the second batter, was retired in four pitches without much struggle.
"His pitch speed is faster than it was at the Kanto Tournament."
As Kominato Ryosuke brushed past Yuuki, he provided the information he had just gathered.
Yuuki nodded and stepped into the batter's box, a blue aura erupting from his body, his visible presence making Matsumoto Takumi feel the pressure.
As expected of Seido's third batter, who said they were a lean year?
Matsumoto Takumi silently complained in his mind; not to mention the genius catcher Chris, just the person in front of him was enough to cause Inajitsu considerable trouble.
The catcher Harada Masatoshi glanced at Yuki; he was also very familiar with this person, and it wouldn't be easy to retire him quickly.
After exchanging glances, Matsumoto Takumi didn't delay, throwing the baseball with full force.
Yuuki's bat created a strong gust of wind as he swung at the incoming baseball.
Bang!
The baseball was hit and flew towards the right outfield, foul!
"Niceball!"
Phew~
Harada Masatoshi breathed a sigh of relief; he had been truly startled just now.
From the information they had obtained, Yuuki was not the type to swing aggressively at the first pitch; that Slider was also thrown with the intention of testing him.
However, Yuuki's aggressive swing almost resulted in a long hit.
It seems that Inajitsu isn't the only one playing aggressively today; Seido is too!
Both sides showed the same determination, wanting to win today's game; neither side could show weakness, and they had to seize every opportunity, every possibility.
Yuuki once again took his batting stance, quietly waiting for the next pitch.
Off the field, Kanzaki Ryou smiled and said, "Yuuki-senpai is very excited today."
"Of course," Miyuki said, "Last year, we Seido lost to Inajitsu, and Yuuki-senpai, who was a first-year then, must have been very unwilling."
"So, we're here for revenge today?" Kanzaki Ryou asked.
Miyuki pouted, "Perhaps, in Inajitsu's eyes, they are the ones here for revenge, after all, they lost to us twice before."
"Hey, who cares? Anyway, we'll still win today."
"We will win."
As the two talked, Yuuki swung and missed on the field, and Inajitsu got two Niceballs.
At this point, Matsumoto Takumi had already thrown the third pitch.
Yuuki had nowhere to retreat and swung his bat with all his might.
Bang!
The bat hit the upper part of the baseball, and the baseball bounced off the ground towards first base.
Such luck, Yuuki was helpless, but he still rushed towards first base.
Undoubtedly, Yuuki failed to get on base.
The first inning ended with a temporary score of 0:0; both sides showed strong offensive desires at the plate, and both pitchers suppressed the opposing lineups.
The first inning was a back-and-forth battle with neither side giving an inch.
In the stands, Seido's fans felt much more at ease now.
Although they had already beaten Inajitsu twice this year, just two victories couldn't erase the long-standing shadow cast by Inajitsu's historically superior record against Seido.
Even though Seido's lineup seemed to have made great progress, subtly earning the reputation of the strongest lineup, and the team even had a genius Ace like Kanzaki Ryou.
The fans had high hopes, but their apprehension was also real.
However, in the past inning, Nanjo Taishi's excellent performance on the pitcher's mound, Shida Shota's exceptional play (not counting his batting), and then feeling Seido's determination at the plate, all these small accumulations made the fans feel inexplicably at ease.
Perhaps, this year they can really make it to Koshien!
"Nanjo! Go for it!"
"Suppress them!"
"Ace!!"
Although Nanjo Taishi had now lost his Ace status, some of his old fans didn't think so; in their hearts, if Nanjo Taishi was an Ace for one day, he would always be Seido's Ace, at least that's what they thought.
In the top of the second inning, the first batter Nanjo Taishi again faced on the pitcher's mound was Inajitsu's cleanup hitter, the first baseman, Shinkawa Kenichi.
Come on, if I don't get you out, I won't be worthy of all those fans cheering for me! Nanjo Taishi's eyes were firm; at this moment, he seemed to be possessed by the Baseball God, his entire state was surprisingly good, and the cheers in his ears gradually became softer, as if the stands were separated, forming two different worlds.
Seeing the signal given by Tanaka Wataru, Nanjo Taishi lifted his left leg, and his right arm swung fiercely, the baseball whizzing through most of the distance and arriving in front of home plate.
Slap!
The baseball went into the glove, and Shinkawa Kenichi's pupils in the batter's box constricted; this pitch—so fast!
Is it an illusion? It feels faster than when they faced each other before.
He turned his head to look at the speed gun in the corner of the field—143 km/h.
It was indeed faster than before.
Shinkawa Kenichi silently tightened his grip on the bat; making progress at this point, no matter how big or small, was not good news for Inajitsu.
And Tanaka Wataru, who caught this pitch, was in a very good mood at this moment; the force generated by the baseball entering his glove instantly made him feel Nanjo Taishi's change.
This guy—ever since Kanzaki Ryou joined Seido, he has been practicing even harder than before, and his mindset has changed a lot; his current progress and performance are all forced out of him.
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