Ping!
The ball took off into the field after being hit.
The Akikawa players saw it and tried to stop it, but they just weren't fast enough to catch up.
By the time they got close, the ball had already zipped past them.
"It's through!" someone yelled in excitement and disbelief.
Kusunoki, who had hit the ball, sprinted to first base like a blur.
If Akikawa's outfielder hadn't gotten to the ball quickly, he probably would have made it to second base.
"Safe!"
No outs, runner on first.
Back in the Seidō dugout, the players didn't seem all that excited, even though Kusunoki had gotten a hit right away.
No one really reacted.
It was like, yeah, that's just how it's supposed to go.
Over in the Akikawa dugout, their assistant coach was scribbling in his notebook.
"The good high school teams are almost as strong as the minor leagues. It's a pretty big jump for the average teams," he muttered to himself, more as an observation than a declaration.
After writing that down, he just kept watching the field without blinking.
He didn't really look like a coach, more like someone keeping score.
Seidō's next batter came up to the plate and immediately got into a bunt position.
He looked like he was trying to get Kusunoki to second base, so he'd be in scoring position.
Then, a simple hit would be enough for Seidō to score the first run.
Even though they'd just started playing, the Akikawa players could already feel the pressure from the powerhouse team.
It felt like the pressure was trying to swallow them up.
"Damn it, what's going on?" one of the players cursed under his breath.
The Akikawa players could definitely feel it, but they couldn't do anything about it.
You Shunshin, on the pitcher's mound, was grinding his teeth.
In their last couple of games, they'd been able to take control pretty easily.
But now, facing Seidō, the pressure was on right away.
It wasn't going to be easy to get Seidō's batters out.
"I can't believe a fancy school like that would bunt to move a runner over right at the start!" he exclaimed in disbelief, barely above a whisper.
Going against what he thought would happen, he threw the ball.
But, surprisingly, Seidō's second batter really did bunt.
Ping!
The ball bounced towards first after he made contact.
The first baseman ran in, but by the time he picked up the ball and tried to throw to second, it was too late.
Kusunoki, who was on first, showed off his speed again, making it to second base.
Even though the batter was out, it wasn't all bad.
One out, runner on second.
The assistant coach from Akikawa wrote some more in his little notebook.
"Seidō's players can think for themselves out there. They'll change their plan depending on the situation," he observed with a hint of grudging admiration.
The second batter from Seidō was probably just going to fake a bunt.
But he decided the ball was in a good spot, so he bunted it and it worked, getting the runner to second.
Next up, Seidō's three and four hitters were coming to the plate.
The Akikawa assistant coach probably already figured Seidō's players were gonna score.
"It's not just that they're good, but even the way they play is a lot like the pros," he mused, with a hint of resignation.
This coach, who used to play professionally, finally understood why so many pro teams wanted to get players from Seidō.
Basically, they just get the job done!
Players who are trained like this can fit right into a pro team after they join.
That's something that's hard for players from other high schools to pull off.
"Let's go all out, time to show what you've got!" the Akikawa coach urged, filled with encouragement.
The assistant coach, who'd been acting like a scorekeeper, suddenly signaled to the pitcher.
Shunshin, on the mound, nodded to the coach when he saw it.
This was happening sooner than he thought it would.
He was planning on saving some of his best stuff, but now it looked like they'd fall behind if he did.
"These guys are one of the best teams in the country!" he thought to himself with a growing sense of apprehension.
He couldn't help but remember the game they played against Inashiro Industrial in the spring.
They played pretty well in that game.
But really, it was because their opponent didn't take them seriously, so they got lucky and scored some runs early on.
Otherwise, they would have gotten crushed.
Now, facing Seidō, it felt like the same thing was happening.
If they didn't give it everything they had, they wouldn't have a chance against a powerhouse like this.
Taking a deep breath, he seemed like a different person.
The ball he threw seemed to have something special about it. Seidō's third batter swung hard but just hit a ground ball to the infield.
Thud!
The ball was caught and quickly thrown to first base.
"Out!"
Two outs, runner on second.
Even though Seidō had tried to move the runner over, their offense wasn't really clicking.
This let the Akikawa players breathe a little easier.
"That's our Shunshin-senpai!" one player cheered filled with pride.
"So what if it's Seidō?" another called out, a spark of defiance in his eyes.
"We can still do this," a third player affirmed resolutely.
From one out to two outs, Seidō, who had been in control, suddenly seemed to be having a little trouble.
Back in the Seidō dugout, the players were still pretty chill.
They didn't seem worried at all that the team was in a tight spot.
It was like they knew they were going to win in the end.
Their coach seemed to feel the same way.
Coach Kataoka Tesshin stood at the very front of the dugout, his opinion on the situation unreadable.
"Fourth Batter, number five, third baseman, Azuma Kiyokuni."
Two outs, runner on second.
It was Azuma's turn to bat.
You Shunshin, on the mound, felt his blood start pumping the moment he saw him.
Even on a powerhouse team like Seidō, some players are better than others.
Take Azuma, for example.
He's not just good on Seidō; he's known all over Tokyo, maybe even the whole country.
Word was, the pro teams already knew he had potential, even though he didn't make it to Koshien his senior year and hadn't really had any standout moments.
Pro teams were still thinking about offering him a contract.
"Our only shot is to go up against a hitter like this and strike him out," Shunshin told himself with steely resolve.
He knew that.
If they just went by who was stronger overall, they were way behind Seidō.
This was their only chance to win.