The players of Omori High just wanted to end this inning quickly; if it continued, Seido's entire batting lineup would have almost gone through a full rotation.
Seido's 7th batter, Araki Keita, stepped up to the plate, but his luck wasn't great. He hit a forkball onto the ground, and it bounced right behind the catcher.
The Omori catcher quickly picked up the ball and threw to First Base to force out Araki Keita.
"Hm? Wouldn't it have been better to throw to Third Base first and get Yuki-senpai out?"
"Oh my!"
As Kanzaki Ryou lamented the opponent's misjudgment, the situation on the field changed again.
Isashiki Jun, who was forced to advance, still hadn't reached Second Base. Omori High's First Baseman, after catching the ball and forcing out Araki, immediately turned and threw to Second Base!
A double play attempt? How bold!
The ball whizzed past, and Isashiki Jun watched helplessly as it was caught by the Second Baseman, who now had him trapped.
Because the force-out had already occurred at First Base, a tag was now required. The Second Baseman smirked.
Isashiki was stuck—neither fully advancing nor retreating.
towards First Base—ball thrown back.
towards Second Base—ball thrown back again.
Omori High trapped Isashiki in a perfect pickle, shrinking his movement space like a game of tag.
Just then, Tanaka, already at Third Base, suddenly sprinted toward home plate, trying to disrupt the defense. But Omori High players ignored him completely. They trapped Isashiki and tagged him out.
The stylish double play earned Omori High warm applause from the stands. Meanwhile, Isashiki returned to the dugout furious.
"Jun-san, you looked like an Akita dog running back and forth," Kanzaki Ryou teased immediately.
Isashiki bristled—then heard Azuma Kiyokuni's booming laughter.
"Isashiki, Kanzaki is right. It really DID look like that. Even your hair color matches."
Isashiki froze. If Kanzaki teased him, he could fight back. But when Azuma said it, he could only suffer.
Damn Omori High… this was all their fault!
"Let's go, time to get on the field," Kanzaki Ryou said, stepping out. He paused, turned around, and added:
"Jun-san, don't worry. I'll take revenge."
Top of the Second Inning
Kanzaki Ryou kept his word.
He struck out three Omori High batters with nine pitches—three up, three down. Even their cleanup hitter couldn't touch him.
The Seido dugout exploded with excitement.
But Omori High was in despair. Not only had their defense fallen apart, they had no way to break Seido's field control built around Kanzaki Ryou.
Bottom of the Second Inning
Amano Yamato, returning to the mound, seemed to have regained some composure—or perhaps he had accepted defeat and simply wanted to lose with dignity. He threw with everything he had!
With that momentum, he quickly got an out against the 8th batter, Yoshikawa Junpei. The next batter was Seido's 9th—
Kanzaki Ryou.
Amano Yamato had heard rumors about Seido's freshman Ace. Omori High had studied him thoroughly, but only now—seeing his pitching firsthand—did they truly feel fear.
Explosive speed.
Violent movement.
Unpredictable pitch trails.
Paired with catcher Miyuki Kazuya's sharp calls, Omori High's hitters were completely suppressed.
Watching Kanzaki Ryou prepare to swing, Amano Yamato felt fighting spirit rise.
He HAD to get this kid out.
You're just a freshman. Don't get cocky.
Receiving the catcher's signal, Amano threw with all his might.
A slider.
Kanzaki didn't hesitate—his black bat sliced toward the outside corner.
But—the pitch had too much break due to overexertion and became a perfect Niceball.
"Strike!"
No way… what are you doing?
Kanzaki Ryou stared in disbelief. His dynamic vision had seen immediately that it was a slider—but when the ball suddenly shifted incorrectly, he realized it was a mistake. Still, he had already swung. Too late to stop.
Amano Yamato also looked helpless. He didn't mean to throw it like that—it really was an accident. But luckily, Kanzaki swung, giving him the strike.
The catcher quickly requested a timeout and jogged to the mound.
"What's wrong?" he asked.
"I'm fine. Just a misthrow. Won't happen again," Amano said.
"You sure?" The catcher doubted him. After last inning's disaster, losing composure was normal.
Amano forced a smile.
"If I do that again, I'll take myself out."
Only then did his catcher relax and return.
Kanzaki watched them, unsure what happened. No matter—his focus wouldn't waver.
He raised his bat again.
The catcher shifted inside. A Forkball signal.
A forkball inside and dropping sharply would choke Kanzaki's hitting space. Even if he lifted it, it would likely become a flyout.
Pitcher and catcher locked eyes—Amano threw with everything he had.
A sharp glint flashed in Kanzaki's eyes.
The black bat dropped instantly. His left foot stepped forward, kicking up yellow dust.
Boom!!
The sound of the swing roared like a death knell.
Bang!
The baseball shot out like a white meteor, blazing toward the stands.
Seido: "Drop in!!"
Omori: "Catch it!"
Clearly, Seido had more fans—and louder ones.
As Kanzaki Ryou sprinted toward First Base, he watched the ball fly.
It won't go out… but it's high. And deep. It'll drop near the foul line. Could be caught… or not.
Omori's center fielder sprinted with all his strength, feet practically smoking.
Catch it!!
He leaped—
But came up short.
The ball landed perfectly, then bounced high.
Seeing this, Kanzaki accelerated toward Second, then Third.
His luck today was unbelievable. By the time the ball was retrieved and thrown back—
He was already sliding safely into Third Base.
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