Ace of Diamond: Return of the Pitcher

Three outs, offense and defense exchange.

The players of the Los Angeles team were left stunned.

Not only them, but even the teammates from the Seidou High School baseball team were also extremely surprised.

They had spent the most time with Furuya, so they should know him best.

In their original impression, Furuya had strength, no doubt, but was it really to this extent?

Their opponent wasn't some weak team; they were the Los Angeles team, one of the top teams in America.

"Furuya was able to suppress them? I didn't expect this kid to be this capable," said Asou, looking at Furuya walking off the field in awe.

It wasn't just him—many of their teammates from the Seidou High School baseball team had similar expressions.

The ones most surprised by Furuya's performance were not the American spectators or the Los Angeles players, but the Seidou High School players who came with him.

Back on the bench, Sawamura glanced at Asou and his surrounding teammates.

He understood their feelings well.

Having spent so much time with Furuya, they probably never imagined his abilities would reach such a level.

Not only in Japan but even in the foreign land of America, Furuya's strength was extraordinary.

And that was precisely what made it hard for his teammates to believe.

Because of their close relationship with Furuya, they knew his strengths too well.

And that understanding had led to a certain bias.

They believed that even though Furuya had great potential, he hadn't surpassed them yet.

They thought that to rise above the other players, he would still need more learning and practice.

But the reality was much harsher than they imagined.

This world doesn't play fair. Despite Furuya's relatively short time with baseball—just over a year—he had an unparalleled talent.

Even with just over a year of effort, he had surpassed most of his teammates.

This was reality.

It was cruel and unreasonable.

Most of the Seidou High School players, due to limited perspectives, couldn't accurately judge Furuya's abilities.

The only one on the team who had such an eye for talent was Sawamura.

Though many of the players were performing well, taking the next step was incredibly difficult.

It was like climbing the pyramid—only a few, with the right talent, perseverance, and luck, could reach the top.

And Furuya had that kind of talent.

When Furuya first joined the team, why did Coach Kataoka immediately take notice of him?

Why did Coach Ochiai treat Furuya differently from the start?

It wasn't without reason.

Coach Ochiai even had the extreme thought of abandoning the future of the entire Seidou High School baseball team just to cultivate Furuya.

Why was that?

Because Furuya had the value to be developed.

Sawamura believed that as time passed, Furuya would truly earn the recognition of his teammates.

And he was genuinely happy for him!

To see a friend achieve such results made Sawamura feel incredibly satisfied.

The game continued in the bottom of the first inning.

It was Seidou High School's turn to bat.

The first batter up for Seidou High School was, of course, Kuramochi.

The first pitcher for the Los Angeles team was Weede.

This surprised both Sawamura and Miyuki.

They had originally thought that the Los Angeles team wouldn't have the courage to start with someone like Weede.

After all, there had been plenty of trouble the last time they faced the Tokyo team.

In such a situation, they thought Los Angeles should have started with their Ace, Conrad.

But for some reason, that wasn't the case.

"Not their Ace?" Kuramochi slyly glanced over at the Los Angeles team's dugout, noticing the long-haired figure.

It seemed like their preparation was different from theirs.

'Are they underestimating us?'

Naturally, Kuramochi began to suspect this.

With a cold smile, he thought to himself,

'If you're so confident, let me test your strength.'

The opponent was tall and powerful. Even though they hadn't faced each other directly, Kuramochi could guess that his strength was impressive.

Against such an opponent, Kuramochi used to be very troubled.

Their approach was simple and crude, with no technical finesse.

How was Kuramochi, someone who relied on skill and speed, supposed to deal with that?

The truth was, there was no shortcut to facing such an opponent.

The only way was to confront them head-on—no retreat, no compromise.

The situation was now a direct clash.

Kuramochi was lively by nature, and he wasn't afraid to play unpredictably.

It was like a clever child who always tried to solve problems using their wit, but in the face of a real challenge, that cleverness wouldn't help—sometimes, it could even hurt them.

This had been Kuramochi's biggest issue in the past.

Compared to the more straightforward and stubborn players like Maezono, Kuramochi lacked the same determination when training or playing.

But now, Kuramochi was confident he was different.

He had faith that, with his abilities, he could hit the fast pitch coming his way.

Let's do this!

Whrroosh!!

The baseball flew toward him with a thundering sound.

The pitch was intimidating.

Facing such a pitch, most people would find it hard to remain calm.

But Kuramochi, standing in the Batter's Box, was unfazed.

He had an unprecedented confidence.

Since becoming a third-year student, Kuramochi has undergone a complete transformation.

Before, he would often finish extra practice at varying times—not too early or too late—about average among those who practiced extra.

When in the first team, his extra practice was counted among the bottom few.

But ever since entering his third year, Kuramochi had never returned before ten o'clock.

Under the night lights, he practiced swing after swing.

[Effort and sweat never betray you] This is what he learned from his great Senpais!

If you work harder than others, success becomes that much easier to reach.

Though life is unpredictable, this rule holds true in 90% of cases.

Kuramochi was one of those 90%.

Watching the ball come toward him, he confidently swung his bat.

Paak!

The baseball flew off the bat, drawing a perfect arc as it fell onto the field.

"It got through!!!!"

The baseball shot through the defense of the Los Angeles team like a sharp bullet.

The fielders of Los Angeles rushed to the spot where the ball was falling, but they still couldn't make it in time.

The ball fell right into their defensive blind spot.

To reach such a position in time, would only be possible if they had prepared beforehand; otherwise, it would be impossible.

Like a streak of cyan-blue light, Kuramochi shot up to first base like a gust of wind.

"SAFE!"

The first base umpire quickly made the call.

No Outs, and a runner on first.

"Hehe!"

Kuramochi, having reached first base, wore an expression of excitement that was hard to put into words.

Yes, excitement.

It might be hard for most people to imagine, but how long had Kuramochi been stuck at a bottleneck before this?

It was because of his cleverness and a bit of wit that Kuramochi had been trying all sorts of shortcuts, hoping to break through his own limitations.

But it wasn't that easy.

A bottleneck, by definition, is a state that's extremely difficult to break through.

In his frustration, Kuramochi started to practice his swings diligently.

At that time, he didn't think that just mechanically practicing his swings could break through his bottleneck.

He was just trying not to think too much.

Unexpectedly, the effort paid off. His practice had truly honed his skills.

If Kuramochi were to reflect on how he broke through his previous limitations, he probably wouldn't be able to explain it himself.

At one moment, everything just clicked.

Now, Kuramochi was extremely confident in his hitting.

He had also abandoned his old habit of swinging both boxes.

As it turned out, his success rate in getting base hits from the left-handed Batter's Box was much higher.

Given this situation, there was no way Kuramochi was going to abandon the achievements he had made.

Before you can gain something, you often have to give something up.

Kuramochi was at that stage now.

He was on the rise, and naturally, he wanted to practice what would help him improve the most.

"Nice Cheetah!"

"Well Done You Delinquent!"

"As Expected Of You!"

"Nice Run!"

In the rest area of the Seidou High School baseball team, the teammates were all excited, cheering for Kuramochi.

Although Kuramochi looked fierce on the surface, he was actually easygoing and easy to get along with. He was the kind of guy who, once you gave him a bit of attention, would pretty much go along with whatever you wanted.

He would go to great lengths for his friends, something others might not do, but for Kuramochi, it was no problem.

Naturally, he had good relationships with his teammates.

Kuramochi, now on first base, seemed like a completely different person.

His presence was so strong that it felt as if someone was holding a knife to your neck.

You couldn't ignore him, no matter which pitcher was on the mound, especially when Kuramochi was the lead-off batter for Seidou High School.

Once Kuramochi was on base, Seidou High School's chances of scoring increased dramatically.

The pitcher on the mound, Weede, could not convince himself to ignore Kuramochi either.

So, inevitably, he began to throw pickoff attempts.

Kuramochi was too far off the base, and if the pitcher didn't attempt a pickoff, he would feel irresponsible.

"Die!" Weede yelled, throwing the ball fiercely to first base.

His goal was no longer just a pickoff; he was trying to tag Kuramochi Out.

Weede's pitch was fast, and the baseball nearly reached the first baseman in the blink of an eye.

The first baseman stretched out his mitt, ready to catch the ball and tag Out Kuramochi.

But unfortunately, someone was much faster.

Almost the instant Weede threw the pickoff, Kuramochi made his move.

With a swift dive, he easily returned to the base.

Before the first baseman could catch the ball, Kuramochi's hand was already on the base.

Such a quick reaction left the audience in awe.

"Wooah!"

"Good reactions!"

"And he is fast too!"

It was like watching a child playing tricks.

At this moment, Weede's pickoff attempt made him look foolish.

"Forget about him, focus on the batter."

The Los Angeles team quickly realized Kuramochi's intention.

'It was a feint, meant to aid the batter.'

If they hadn't been prepared, how could Kuramochi have returned to first base so quickly?

Seeing through Kuramochi's trick gave the Los Angeles players a renewed sense of confidence.

Weede, now fully aware, didn't hesitate and prepared to pitch.

But just as he was about to throw, Kuramochi was already eager to take off between first and second base.

Seeing Weede pitch, Kuramochi's eyes sparked up.

'It was now or never!'

Timing it perfectly, Kuramochi surged forward like a rocket.

His movements were incredibly agile, from complete stillness to full speed without any hesitation.

"He's so fast!"

The Los Angeles team was stunned.

They never expected Kuramochi's base-stealing move to be so sudden and without any buildup.

"That's not fair!"

The American Los Angeles Coach muttered, clearly baffled.

He couldn't understand what Seidou's players were thinking.

"Catch the ball!"

Despite all his doubts, the Coach quickly gave instructions.

The catcher, Carlisle, was known for his excellent arm strength.

Without hesitation, he grabbed the ball and immediately threw it to second base.

Whoosh!

The baseball shot out like an arrow, reaching second base in the blink of an eye.

Snap!

The shortstop, Reinhardt, caught the ball!

And as Kuramochi slid in, he swiftly swung his mitt to tag him Out.

He was confident he could stop Kuramochi.

But to his surprise, Kuramochi's agility was beyond belief.

As Reinhardt swung his mitt, Kuramochi lowered his body and avoided the tag, his foot landing safely on the base.

"SAFE!!"

...

T/N: And the game with the Wind Youth Starts!

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