In the top of the third inning, it was Hakuryu High School's turn to attack once again.
Leading off was the ninth batter, Ono Shintaro, the weakest hitter in Hakuryu's lineup.
Following Kitamura Kou's advice, Sanada Shunpei abandoned his low-pitch approach. Using a sequence of three elevated fastballs—inside, outside, and another up in the zone—combined with a breaking ball, he successfully retired Ono Shintaro.
Next up, Mima Soichiro stepped into the batter's box for his second confrontation with Sanada.
Ping!
The ball shot toward third base.
After bouncing in front of Todoroki Raichi, it took a slight, awkward hop. Raichi failed to handle it cleanly, and the ball slipped past his glove, continuing into shallow left field.
The moment the ball headed toward third, Akiba Kazuma charged in to cut it off.
Unfortunately, by the time the relay reached Mishima Yuta's glove, Mima Soichiro had already reached first safely.
Then, the same script unfolded again.
Mima stole third base.
Miyako laid down a sacrifice bunt, willingly giving up his out to bring Mima home once more.
Hakuryu High School scored its third run of the game, stretching the lead back to two runs—the very gap Kitamura Kou had worked so hard to narrow.
Yakushi High School simply had no answer for Hakuryu's relentless offense.
Fortunately, Sanada possessed a strong mentality. Despite surrendering consecutive runs, he remained unfazed. Instead, he continued pitching calmly and successfully retired the next batter.
Hakuryu's fourth batter noticed that Sanada had significantly reduced his use of low pitches. Adjusting quickly, he abandoned his focus on the lower zone and managed to lift Sanada's high Cutter into the air.
The baseball soared deep into center field, drifting dangerously close to the outfield wall.
But it never touched the ground.
Relying on his explosive speed, Kitamura Kou made a sliding catch just before the ball landed, cutting off Hakuryu's offensive momentum.
In the bottom of the third inning, Yakushi High School came to bat again.
The eighth batter, Yamauchi Yutaka, and the ninth batter, Kobayashi Keisuke, both managed to make contact.
However, it was all according to Ono Shintaro's plan.
Using Hakuryu's exceptional defensive mobility, they converted both plays into routine outs.
Two outs.
The lineup returned to Yakushi's leadoff hitter, Akiba Kazuma.
Having learned from his previous at-bat, Akiba finally connected solidly, driving a sharp single through the gap between second base and shortstop.
Yakushi High School had finally recorded its first hit of the game.
Against most teams, Akiba would have aggressively pushed for second base.
But this was Hakuryu High School—a team famous for its speed and defensive range.
Trying to stretch the hit into a double carried an extremely low success rate, so Akiba wisely settled for first base.
Down by two runs with two outs.
The situation wasn't ideal, but it wasn't hopeless either.
If Mishima Yuta could keep the momentum alive, Yakushi would gain a golden opportunity to tie the game—or perhaps even turn it around.
Because of that, Akiba had no intention of recklessly attempting a steal and handing the opponent a free out.
Ito understood the importance of this moment.
If they could survive this inning, Hakuryu's chances of victory would continue to rise.
But if they failed…
The game they had firmly controlled could instantly return to square one.
Or worse—collapse entirely.
Hadn't Seihou High School fallen the exact same way?
Without hesitation, Ito called for a timeout to discuss strategy.
"We have to cut off their offense here. Under no circumstances can we allow Todoroki Raichi and Kitamura Kou to bat this inning. If they do, the consequences could be disastrous."
Ito spoke gravely to his battery partner, Ono Shintaro.
Mima Soichiro offered his analysis calmly.
"The upcoming hitters are Mishima Yuta, Todoroki Raichi, and Kitamura Kou."
"We can't afford to walk Mishima or Raichi. Otherwise, we'd be forced to face Kitamura Kou with the bases loaded—that's the absolute worst-case scenario."
"So our best option is simple: challenge Mishima directly and shut Yakushi's offense down right here."
"But we're still leading," someone added.
"Shintaro, don't put too much pressure on yourself."
"Exactly! Even if things go wrong, we still have time to recover!"
"That's right. With their defense full of holes, once we get runners on base, our scoring chances are practically ninety percent!"
"Todoroki Raichi's batting is terrifying, sure—but everything else about him is a disaster. Even junior high players can field better than him."
"Pitch with confidence! Our defense is leagues above theirs!"
Truthfully, Hakuryu's players understood the situation very clearly.
Their remaining scoring opportunities were limited.
Sanada Shunpei wasn't a strikeout pitcher.
His style focused on disrupting timing, forcing weak contact, and relying on his defense to secure outs.
If not for Hakuryu's extraordinary speed, Sanada would not have struggled this much.
But what about Kitamura Kou?
Just his fastball alone—with an average velocity exceeding 150 km/h and tremendous weight behind it—was enough to overwhelm hitters.
And that wasn't even counting his precise breaking pitches.
Their odds of reaching base against him were slim.
After all, Hakuryu wasn't Osaka Kiryu High School, a powerhouse known for overwhelming batting strength.
It was already the third inning.
They probably had no more than two innings left to score against Sanada.
Their only option now was to support Ono Shintaro and hope he could survive this dangerous stretch, widening the lead as much as possible before Kitamura Kou took the mound.
That had been Hakuryu's winning strategy from the very beginning.
After the brief discussion, play resumed.
Supporters from both sides erupted with passionate cheers.
Shintaro maintained his usual cold, unreadable expression.
No one could tell what he was thinking.
He cast an icy glance toward Akiba Kazuma at first base, warning him not to stray too far from the bag, before turning back and delivering the pitch.
"Ball!"
Low and outside.
Close, but just off the corner.
But with Mishima Yuta's carefree approach, the distinction between a strike and a ball hardly mattered.
If it was within reach, he would swing.
Without hesitation.
Ping!
"Foul!"
The pitch was so low that Mishima barely clipped the bottom of the ball, sending it spinning foul down the first-base line.
Ono wasted no time throwing the second pitch.
"Strike!"
High and tight on the inside corner.
As for the exact pitch type…
Only Mishima himself could figure that out.
But Mishima had no interest in playing guessing games.
Trusting his instincts and experience, he unleashed another decisive swing.
Ping!
Just before reaching the plate, the baseball suddenly darted sharply toward his chest.
The ball grazed the top edge of the bat and flew backward behind home plate.
"Two strikes!"
Mishima Yuta was suddenly backed into a two-strike count.
Could he keep Yakushi's offense alive...
and pass the opportunity on to Todoroki Raichi?