"Top of the first inning—Ichidaisan High School on offense. First batter, second baseman, Hirakawa!"
After a short warm-up on defense, the game officially began.
"Play ball!"
Yakushi's starting pitcher, Mino Hayato, delivered the first pitch.
Strike!
In the batter's box, Hirakawa Takahiro tracked the pitch calmly. The moment it approached the strike zone—
Clang!
The bat flashed.
The ball shot cleanly through the gap between first and second base.
Fortunately, Kitamura Kou reacted quickly, cutting it off before it could roll deeper—otherwise, it could have easily turned into a double.
Runner on first, no outs.
"Second batter, Fukushima!"
Ichidaisan immediately showed their discipline.
Fukushima squared to bunt.
Tap!
A clean sacrifice.
Mino charged forward, fielded it smoothly, and fired to first.
Out! Runner advances to second.
"Well done, Mino-senpai!"
"Haha! Let it come to me I'll stop anything!"
Todoroki Raichi shouted excitedly from third.
Mino broke into a cold sweat.
"…Yeah, no thanks."
From the dugout, Todoroki Raizo roared:
"Don't drag the team down, you idiot!"
"Stop nagging, old man!" Raichi shot back instantly.
"Third batter, center fielder, Miyagawa!"
A tense silence fell.
Facing the composed Miyagawa Teru, Mino steadied himself and delivered—
A fastball just over 140 km/h.
Strike!
But against Ichidaisan's seasoned core lineup…
That wasn't enough.
Clang!
Miyagawa's swing was sharp and precise.
The ball sliced through the gap between second and third, landing safely in the outfield.
Runner on first and third, one out.
Yakushi was already in trouble.
"Fourth batter, third baseman—Omae!"
The moment Omae Takahiro stepped up, the atmosphere shifted.
He calmly pointed his bat toward the outfield.
"I'm calling it."
"Here it comes! Omae-senpai's home run prediction!"
"Send it flying!"
The crowd roared in unison.
CLANG!!!
A thunderous impact.
The ball soared high—higher—and then disappeared beyond the outfield fence.
Home run!
A three-run blast.
The stadium exploded into cheers.
"Omae!!"
"Captain!!"
"As expected of Ichidaisan!"
"Tch… three runs in the first inning," muttered Yuki Tetsuya with a frown.
"And he's our age…"
From beside him, Miyuki Kazuya spoke calmly:
"Their lineup revolves around those four. Power hitting, short-ball tactics—they can do both."
"Just think of them as our batting lineup."
The two rookie pitchers froze.
"…Our lineup?"
"Nice one, cleanup!" Coach Tahara shouted, giving a thumbs-up.
"Keep it going! Score whenever you can!"
On the mound, Mino clenched his teeth.
Even if I get crushed… I'll hold the line.
The pitchers I face every day are monsters. I won't go down easily!
His fighting spirit only burned brighter.
"Fifth batter, Hoshida!"
Mino fired another pitch.
Clang!
A sharp grounder screamed toward third base—
Raichi dove.
He stopped it.
"HAHAHA! Got it!"
Rolling to his feet, he hurled the ball—
Wildly.
Way off target.
"…What was that?!"
"Is he serious?!"
"Is this guy even a baseball player?!"
The crowd erupted in disbelief.
From the dugout:
"Raichi! Stop messing around!"
"Can you focus for once?!"
Even Yakushi's own players were yelling.
"…Even his teammates are complaining," said Furuya Satoru.
"…Feels familiar," murmured Kominato Haruichi.
Both slowly turned—
Toward a certain pitcher pretending not to notice anything.
"Pfft, that guy's terrible," someone muttered.
Chris adjusted his glasses, eyes locked on Raichi.
"That's Todoroki Raichi… the freshman cleanup."
On the field, Raichi scratched his head, grinning sheepishly.
"Ahaha… my bad!"
"Stop smiling like an idiot!" his teammates snapped.
Ichidaisan Dugout
"Their core lineup is completely new… and mostly unknown players."
Coach Tahara narrowed his eyes at Yakushi's dugout.
There sat Raizo—
Leaning back, eyes half-closed, a faint smile on his lips.
Completely unfazed.
"…Did they give up? Or is there something else?"
He turned to his ace.
"No matter what tricks they use… we stick to our baseball."
"Right, Manaka?"
"Yes!" replied Manaka Kaname firmly.
Tahara smiled faintly.
"Seeing Seidou advance must've lit a fire in you."
"Back in middle school… you and Tanba promised to become aces and meet at Koshien."
Manaka froze.
"…How do you know that?"
"I wanted both of you," Tahara said calmly.
"A dual-ace team."
Manaka lowered his gaze briefly.
"…He chose Seidou."
"But that's exactly why I've pushed myself this far."
Tahara's expression sharpened.
"Then stop looking backward."
"Focus on the opponent in front of you."
"Can you do that… Ace?"
Manaka stood up straight.
His voice was firm.
"Yes!"
"Good," Tahara said with a grin.
"Then go—Ichidaisan!"