Diamond No Ace: Life As Sawamura Eijun

Chapter 363: After the Victory

Outside the third-year classrooms at Seidou High School.

It was Monday morning, right after their victory over Teito High School.

"Heh, you guys handled Teito pretty easily, huh? Two home runs and an 8-1 win—nice job. Looks like I don't need to worry about you lot."

With a wide grin, Jun Isashiki threw an arm around Maezono's shoulders, giving him a hearty pat as he laughed.

"Yes, Jun-san," Maezono replied with a serious expression.

To him, these third-year seniors were his idols. He had always dreamed of stepping onto the field alongside them, striving for the ultimate championship title.

"Mm, well done," said Yuuki, a faint smile on his face.

"You're adjusting to your captain role pretty quickly. Managing the pitchers, keeping the team in check, and leading the offense—you've got your hands full," Ryousuke remarked with a teasing smile.

"No, Ryou-san, you're giving me too much credit."

For once, Miyuki wasn't joking around in front of his seniors. He genuinely respected them, especially Yuuki and Chris.

"How are the pitchers doing?"

As expected from a former catcher, Chris's main concern was the pitching staff—especially Eijun.

"They're all in good shape. Well, with that guy around, both Furuya and Kawakami can't afford to slack off," Miyuki replied, a smirk forming on his lips as Sawamura's image popped into his mind.

Chris smiled warmly and shook his head.

It was true—back in the summer, Eijun had never been someone they had to worry about. In fact, there were times when this underclassman was the one leading them instead.

Now that he was the team's ace, there was even less to worry about.

"That brat Sawamura is really growing into the ace role. A hit in every at-bat during the prelims, and then a home run in his first at-bat against Teito? Damn, Miyuki, you better watch out. If you're not careful, Coach might drop you from the cleanup spot and put him there instead."

Isashiki pulled Miyuki into a headlock as he laughed.

"Haha, well, that would take some of the pressure off me," Miyuki replied, half-joking.

"Hey, don't act so unambitious! You're a second-year—if you let a first-year outshine you, won't that be embarrassing? Double the training—everything, double! I don't want to hear people saying we only won the Fall Tournament because of our underclassmen. Even if you don't care, I'd be embarrassed for you. Got it, Maezono, Shirasu, Kuramochi!?"

Isashiki's booming voice was practically like a megaphone, making Miyuki's head spin.

Standing nearby, Maezono, Kuramochi, and Shirasu immediately straightened up and responded in unison.

"Yes, sir!"

They had to admit—if Eijun was doing everything from pitching to offense, they, as second-years, would be left with no face to show.

"Get yourself together, Miyuki. You're the captain, act like one!"

Isashiki's unique way of motivating people.

Of course, for our ever-scheming captain, it was a bit much to handle.

While the second- and third-years were bonding, elsewhere, in the first-year classrooms—

Eijun was completely focused on the scoresheet in front of him.

Ever since he became the ace after the summer, he had started proactively studying this aspect of the game.

For a team, the scorebook and stat sheets were crucial.

Many post-game reviews relied on data from the scoresheet.

Eijun felt it was his responsibility to learn how to read them—not just for himself, but for the team as well.

After all, as captain, catcher, and cleanup hitter, Miyuki was carrying a lot of weight.

Eijun wanted to lighten that burden however he could.

Kuramochi was at least somewhat reliable, but Maezono? Given his track record, Eijun figured it'd be a miracle if he didn't add to Miyuki's stress.

As for helping share the load?

Yeah… not very promising. Not at all.

While Eijun was deeply focused on studying the scoreboard, the surrounding classroom was filled with classmates discreetly observing him.

It was no surprise.

Ever since Seidou's baseball team once again made it to Koshien this summer, first-years like Eijun, Furuya Satoru, and Haruichi Kominato had become star players within their grade.

Just to reiterate—baseball is the number one sport in Japan.

Especially among youth, baseball holds the top spot, followed by soccer and basketball.

Qualifying for Koshien was just the beginning. Unless someone was completely indifferent to school events, most students at Seidou kept up with the baseball team's results.

As Seidou steadily climbed toward the top, Eijun's individual performances gained increasing attention—especially his complete game in the finals and the dramatic walk-off home run.

By then, Eijun had fully cemented his status as a national star player.

Within Seidou High, he had essentially become an idol.

Add to that his naturally bright smile—one that shone like the sun—and his decent looks, and it was no wonder that Eijun's popularity skyrocketed nationwide.

Countless fans—especially young women—became his devoted admirers.

Seidou High School was no exception.

Rumors even spread that Eijun had his own fan club within the school, composed entirely of beautiful female students.

During that time, a certain cheetah-print senior wasn't exactly thrilled about the situation.

In his own words:

"Tch, this brat Sawamura already has a childhood friend. That's bad enough. Now he has a whole damn fan club?!"

"I can tolerate a lot, but even I have my limits!"

Of course, Kuramochi would never admit that he was jealous of Eijun.

As a dignified upperclassman, he would never have such petty, dark emotions. Never.

No, no—he was simply fulfilling his duty as a senior, ensuring that Eijun stayed focused on baseball and didn't get distracted by trivial matters.

That was all.

Absolutely.

For a while, Eijun lived through his own personal nightmare, enduring Kuramochi's so-called "life coaching sessions" on a daily basis.

It got to the point where Eijun seriously considered moving to another dorm room.

But in short—

There was no doubt about it.

Right now, Eijun was the most talked-about student at Seidou High School.

The "Ace of Diamonds", the heart of Seidou's batting lineup, and one of the strongest pitchers of his generation.

Together with Miyuki, they were hailed as a golden battery on the field.

At this point, nearly everyone at school could recite his achievements by heart.