"H-Home run!!!"
The commentator's voice cracked.
In the stands, countless fans leaped to their feet, screaming wildly.
Finally—
They had finally waited for this moment.
Up to now, even Seidou High School's most loyal supporters had to admit it:
Akutsu was one of the toughest opponents Seidou had ever faced.
Their fearsome batting lineup had made almost no impact on him.
The one run they scored earlier was practically accidental. They had been waiting—praying—for Akutsu's stamina to falter.
And now his condition truly was declining.
Seidou's supporters had believed their counterattack was coming. They thought, This is it—the moment we show them who we really are.
Then Akutsu began issuing intentional walks.
Two core batters, walked in a row.
Throwing away his pride as a star pitcher, sacrificing everything for the team's survival.
Seidou's supporters cursed him as cowardly and shameless—
But deep down, their fear of him only grew.
With only a one-run lead, no one in the stands felt safe.
With Zhou Hao's own pitching condition declining in the eighth inning, anxiety spread through the Seidou supporters like wildfire.
The unexpected disaster they dreaded could strike at any moment.
But in the end, it was Zhou Hao who answered.
The unexpected play they feared did not happen.
Instead, Zhou Hao smashed Akutsu's pitch at an impossible angle—
Launching it straight out of the stadium.
The fans knew the truth:
Zhou Hao could only pull this off because Akutsu's stamina had dropped.
If Akutsu had been in peak form, even Zhou Hao's monstrous power might not have been enough to crush the ball into the stands.
But what did that matter?
The ball left the park.
The run counted.
Zhou Hao delivered.
And for Seidou's supporters, that was everything.
Zhou Hao may have allowed a hit earlier as his own condition slipped, but he still hadn't surrendered a single run.
Meanwhile, Akutsu had now given up two.
And this home run?
It was hit by Zhou Hao himself.
"Zhou Hao!!!!!!"
"You're incredible! You're a god!!!"
"I want to be your girlfriend!!"
"Back off—that's MY boyfriend!!!"
The screaming female fans around them drew delighted, knowing smiles from nearby spectators.
Zhou Hao's charm was simply unstoppable.
He played like a superstar, and he was handsome on top of that.
How could he not have fans?
The scoreboard now read: 2–0.
Seisho High—already feeling hopeless—now accepted reality.
They were going to stop in the quarterfinals.
Many players from Seisho High couldn't help but look at their Ace.
For them, accepting the result wasn't actually hard.
They knew they couldn't score against Zhou Hao today.
Whether they lost 1–0, 2–0, or even 4–0—it didn't matter.
But for their Ace?
It was different.
Akutsu had avoided Seidou's three core batters just to keep the score at 1–0, to give his team a sliver of hope.
If the score had ballooned to 3–0 or 4–0 earlier, would Seisho High have had any chance at a comeback against Seidou's defense?
Absolutely not.
Akutsu sacrificed his pride.
His dignity.
Everything he had as a star pitcher.
And in the end, this was what he got.
If it were them standing in his shoes… they would have collapsed.
So they anxiously watched him—wondering what he would do.
Then Akutsu suddenly smiled.
A calm, bright smile—as though everything made perfect sense to him.
That smile made his teammates' hearts pound.
Was he… cracking?
Considering everything that just happened—and Zhou Hao's home run—
If they were the ones on the mound, they probably would've already broken down.
Zhou Hao's home run didn't just widen the score—
It completely shattered the last suspense of the quarterfinals.
All around the stadium, fans were still roaring for Zhou Hao.
In faraway Nagano Prefecture, Sawamura Eijun pumped his fist in excitement.
He had already accepted Seidou's invitation.
And the treatment offered was unbelievable.
The school practically covered all his expenses—proof of how much this national powerhouse valued him.
Sawamura now saw himself as a future member of Seidou.
Watching Seidou's performance—
Watching Zhou Hao, the senpai he once pitched to, play like a superstar—
Filled Sawamura with burning anticipation.
By this time next year, they would be teammates fighting side by side.
His childhood friends sitting around him were stunned.
Watching a true national powerhouse, they finally realized how amateur the baseball they had played all these years was.
Their past dreams—charging into Nationals, dominating the country—
Now felt like jokes.
They wanted to dig a hole and hide.
The only one who carried their pride was their Ace—Sawamura.
He would take their hopes and dreams with him to pursue the highest honor in baseball.
To reach Koshien.
To dominate the nation.
"When you get to Seidou, make the most of the chance. You still have more than half a year—start training now. Those books you bought—"
Sawamura nodded seriously.
"Zhou Hao-senpai already gave me advice. I just need to work on my pitching and control! The rest is physical training."
Seidou's complete training system would mold him from a raw talent into a real pitcher.
And he needed strong fundamentals—this was Zhou Hao's own suggestion.
Sawamura accepted it wholeheartedly and already set goals for himself.
"You've really changed, Eijun."
The young girl watching him quietly stepped back, observing his new confidence.
On the TV, the eighth inning continued.
Two outs, nobody on.
It was Seidou's third batter's turn.
"Third batter—first baseman, Yuki Tetsuya!"
Yuki—one of only two Seidou players to record a hit today.
Once he stepped into the batter's box, he looked like a massive mountain.
Seisho High's catcher grimaced.
Every time he saw Yuki's preparation stance, he got a headache.
It felt like Yuki could hit anything.
"Other than Zhou Hao, he's the toughest guy to deal with…"
He glanced at his partner—Akutsu.
Akutsu had regained his calm.
There was no point walking Yuki now.
Might as well go for it.
If he could strike Yuki out, maybe—just maybe—they could shift momentum.
Even if the odds were low, trying was better than giving up.
Akutsu wound up and fired.
"Swish!"
The Bullet Ball flew like a bullet.
Zhou Hao's Bullet Ball earlier had stunned everyone—even Seidou's players.
They didn't face it directly, but they could imagine how terrifying it was.
Maybe even stronger than Akutsu's.
But Zhou Hao's Bullet Ball wasn't his signature pitch. And with declining stamina, it faltered—enough to allow a single hit.
If not for that one hit, today would've been a perfect game—
No hits, no runners, no runs.
Akutsu was different.
Even exhausted, his Bullet Ball still had bite.
Yuki didn't swing.
"Thwack!"
"Strike!"
Seisho's catcher finally breathed out.
Good.
"Keep it up! Maintain this rhythm!"
A declining pitcher needed confidence more than anything—and the catcher had to provide it.
Akutsu nodded.
He wound up again.
Another bullet-like pitch flew.
This time, Yuki moved.
He raised his bat and unleashed a powerful swing.
"Boom!"
The catcher's eyes went wide.
Impossible—
How could he make contact with that pitch?!
But he did.
"Ping!"
The ball didn't fly far, but shot out like lightning.
Akutsu clenched his jaw bitterly.
He should have known.
Seidou's core three were absolute monsters:
Zhou Hao.
Yuki.
Azuma Kiyokuni.
Not even Kuroda of the Universe Team, or Akutsu himself at full strength—
Could escape unscathed from these three.
Let alone now, in his weakened state.
Just as Akutsu braced for the worst—
He heard shouting behind him.
"They stopped it!!"
Akutsu spun around.
Seisho High's shortstop had blocked the line drive—
with his body.
He looked pale, like he was ready to vomit.
But he still gritted his teeth, grabbed the ball, and fired to first.
"Thwack!"
Yuki was sprinting at full speed.
He and the ball reached first at the exact same instant.
No one could tell who won the race.
All eyes turned to the first-base umpire.
He blinked, replaying the moment in his mind.
Replay?
For a moment, he considered it.
But then he made the call—
"OUT!!"
Three outs.
Side retired.
The game entered its final stage: the ninth inning.
At 2–0, Seisho High's chances were slim.
But because Akutsu managed to retire Yuki, their dugout's atmosphere wasn't bad.
They still wanted to fight until the end.
On the other side, Seidou—who all but had the victory in their hands—wore serious expressions.
They looked at Akutsu… and at the shortstop who was still retching.
"Monsters…"
To stop Yuki's hit—like that—
What else could they be?
Especially Akutsu.
Everyone thought that at this point, if he dared face Seidou's three core hitters—
He'd be crushed.
But he actually fought back.
Akutsu truly lived up to his reputation as one of the nation's top three star pitchers.