Diamond No Ace: The Strongest Hitter Has Arrived

Yuuki, the Captain, has been taken care of.

Zhang Han has also been cornered with two strikes.

Bottom of the ninth inning, one out, no one on base.

Seido, trailing Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team by one run, seemed to have lost all their chips. It was as if they had no other options left in today's game.

In the dugout.

The teammates' unwilling shouts grew fainter and fainter.

In today's game, the players of Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team, especially their Ace Narumiya Mei, made the Seido High School Baseball teammates very frustrated.

They felt as if they hadn't been able to unleash their full power before being easily taken care of.

How could this be?

How could they accept this?

But no matter what the Seido High School Baseball players were feeling at the moment, they had no choice but to face this cruel reality.

If Zhang Han was taken care of, Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team would get their second out.

Then, for Seido High School Baseball Team to turn the tide, they would probably have to pray for a miracle.

Perhaps Amaterasu, after hearing their plea, would really send down a meteorite to land right in the dugout of Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team.

Then they would be able to turn defeat into victory as they wished.

Of course, this was just a joke.

The Seido High School Baseball players knew very well that with Zhang Han cornered, their chances of scoring and turning the tide were already minuscule.

This wasn't even the most despair-inducing part.

Just thinking that even Yuuki and Zhang Han couldn't get a hit, the Seido High School Baseball players felt as if all the strength had been drained from their bodies.

If it were them, they probably would have even less of a chance.

"Even Zhang Han can't hit it?"

"The standard gyroball is one of the best pitches. Even an ordinary pitcher, after learning this pitch, sees their strength double. Not to mention a pitcher like Narumiya Mei, who is already at the top of the pyramid. Without sufficient preparation, trying to hit his gyroball is probably unrealistic."

Coach Ochiai stroked the little beard on his chin, pondering aloud.

As a qualified team Coach, one must possess the ability to accurately judge the situation on the field. In this regard, Ochiai was in no way inferior to Coach Kataoka.

Since he said so, this matter could basically be considered settled.

"It's not a standard gyroball; it's just a similar breaking ball."

Chris, however, shook his head, denying Coach Ochiai's conclusion.

From Narumiya Mei's pitch form, he should be able to throw such a pitch smoothly through a unique grip and flexible wrist control.

The angle of the breaking ball was very similar to a gyroball.

But it was only similar; Narumiya Mei's pitch should not have inherited the other characteristics of a gyroball.

Chris saw it very clearly. Perhaps precisely because he hadn't had a hitting at-bat, he saw it more clearly than anyone else at this moment.

But seeing it clearly was one thing; wanting to hit such a pitch was another.

Even if it wasn't a standard gyroball, possessing a similar breaking ball meant its power was no less than a gyroball.

Furthermore, this was a pitch Narumiya Mei developed based on his own characteristics.

To some extent, it might even be more troublesome than a true gyroball.

All in all, the challenges Zhang Han currently faced would not decrease at all; they might even increase.

They were all fully concentrated, watching the outcome of the showdown on the field.

Harada, the catcher, finally breathed a sigh of relief after cornering Zhang Han.

Yuuki, Zhang Han…

Whether before the game started or during the game, they were the opponents Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team needed to be most wary of.

To deal with these two guys, the players of Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team, under the instruction of their Coach, made a lot of preparations.

In this game, Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team came prepared.

But even with extensive preparations made in advance, when it came to the actual showdown, they weren't sure if they would ultimately succeed.

Judging by the outcome of today's game, their strategy against Yuuki had achieved a fairly good effect. However, their strategy against Zhang Han was not very ideal.

In three confrontations, Zhang Han got one hit and one Homerun.

Overall, he held a certain advantage.

In this situation, the Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team players took a great risk in confronting Zhang Han again.

If Yuuki hadn't already been taken care of, and there was no one on base now, even if he knew the team couldn't show weakness here, Harada would have found it very difficult to call for a head-on confrontation.

Now it seemed he didn't need to worry unnecessarily.

Zhang Han found it difficult to adapt to Narumiya's gyroball for a while, and he was cornered in two pitches.

The strategy to take care of Zhang Han next was very simple.

Continue.

In the showdown between pitcher and hitter, while the strength of both sides is certainly important, momentum is equally important.

Either the east wind overpowers the west wind, or the west wind overpowers the east wind.

Although it was somewhat risky to use the same pitch three times in a row against a hitter like Zhang Han.

But as it stood, Narumiya Mei didn't have any other better weapons that could definitely take care of Zhang Han.

In comparison, this gyroball he had just mastered could basically be considered Narumiya Mei's strongest weapon at this stage.

They had no reason not to use such a weapon.

"Whoosh!"

After cornering Zhang Han, Narumiya Mei threw a third gyroball. The baseball looked like a whirlwind, instantly arriving in front of Zhang Han.

The first time he saw this pitch, Zhang Han couldn't see it clearly at all.

The breaking ball was sharp, and the pitch speed was fast.

Even Zhang Han found it difficult to hit such a pitch.

By the second time, although Zhang Han swung his bat, he couldn't hit it…

Now, it was his third time seeing the gyroball.

The angle and breaking ball of the gyroball, while appearing similar on the surface, were actually finely adjusted.

The baseball flew with great speed and urgency.

In the blink of an eye, it arrived in front of Zhang Han.

Facing this sharp pitch, Zhang Han did not retreat.

Having already been cornered with two strikes, he had no way to retreat.

Almost the moment he saw the baseball coming, Zhang Han stepped out, focused on the incoming baseball, and decisively swung his bat.

"Ping!"

With a smooth motion, Zhang Han's full body strength, even if not fully unleashed, was at least normal.

If this pitch had been hit squarely, the baseball should have flown very far.

However.

"Ping!"

The moment the bat touched the baseball, Zhang Han felt as if his two arms had collided with a large truck. The bat in his hand almost slipped from his grasp and flew away.

Not only was the breaking ball sharp, but the ball's power had not diminished.

The hit baseball flew very fast, crossing over the Third Baseman before landing and bouncing.

"Foul!"

When the baseball landed, it was just outside the sideline.

Otherwise, even if Zhang Han couldn't directly run back to home plate with such a hit, he could at least get to Second Base.

Although if he reached Second Base, Seido High School Baseball Team wouldn't necessarily score.

But to be safe, the players of Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team certainly hoped to take care of Zhang Han before he got on base.

This not only concerned today's game but also the results of future confrontations between Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team and Seido High School Baseball Team.

These two rivals wouldn't just face off this once; they would meet again.

Right in the Summer Koshien, the West Tokyo regional qualifiers.

They were each other's biggest competitors, and a fierce battle was inevitable then.

Considering this, if Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team could successfully take care of Yuuki and Zhang Han here.

And not give Seido High School Baseball Team even a tiny chance.

Then, in that game two months later, they would have already gained a significant advantage invisibly.

The Seido High School Baseball players would definitely make many, many preparations in advance, preparing how to hit Narumiya Mei's pitches.

Once they fell into such a cycle, it would not only drain their energy but also cast a shadow over their spirits.

The losing side would also be at a great disadvantage in future games.

This was inevitable.

"Let's take care of him in one go."

When Zhang Han hit the third gyroball foul, Harada knew in his heart that what they had feared had finally happened.

Three consecutive pitches had already made Zhang Han start to get used to Narumiya Mei's gyroball.

Continuing to use this pitch as a weapon might not be as effective as they imagined.

In this situation, they seemed to only be able to use another pitch first.

The greatest power of a breaking ball is when it's combined with other pitches, especially when paired with a Fastball.

Otherwise, if there's only one breaking ball, no matter how sharp it is, it's still very easy to counter.

Previously, the pitcher-catcher duo of Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team mainly believed that Zhang Han hadn't had time to adapt to this pitch yet.

They thought they had a chance.

That's why they forcefully used that pitch to take care of Zhang Han.

Now that Zhang Han had seen through it, they didn't need to dwell on it; they could just change their attack strategy.

"Whoosh!"

Immediately after, when Narumiya Mei threw the fourth pitch, he used an outside-corner Fastball at its limit.

Zhang Han, already cornered with two strikes, had no other choice. As long as the baseball had a chance of entering the strike zone, he absolutely could not let it go.

Here it comes.

"Ping!"

The baseball was hit foul again.

"Foul!"

In the stands, the supporters of Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team.

Upon witnessing this scene, they quickly summarized the situation.

"The hitter has been cornered!"

"Now's the time, take care of him."

Because Zhang Han had previously hit a Homerun and also got a hit. For the supporters of Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team, Zhang Han was undoubtedly their nightmare now.

And now, that enemy who once made them feel fear, who they felt was impossible to defeat, seemed to be contained by their Ace.

The eyes of Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team's supporters shone terrifyingly, as if they had seen dawn in the darkness.

Right here, right now…

They were constantly, ceaselessly, anticipating this moment of decisively taking care of Zhang Han.

On the pitcher's mound, Narumiya Mei's desire was several times stronger than that of the die-hard supporters in the stands.

Although, ever since losing to Seido last summer, Inashiro Industrial had won all subsequent games against Seido High School Baseball Team.

But Narumiya Mei's personal showdowns with Zhang Han had almost never resulted in a win; at most, they were evenly matched.

Now, it was finally his turn to prove himself.

After three gyroballs, there was an outside-corner Fastball.

One inside, one outside, this could definitely interfere with Zhang Han's judgment.

There was no need to overthink this last pitch.

"Whoosh!"

The white baseball came sweeping in like a whirlwind, instantly.

And this time, it was aimed at the inside corner.

In the batter's box.

Zhang Han watched the baseball fly in with wide eyes.

Perhaps it was because he had seen this pitch many times, or perhaps it was because he was too focused now.

Zhang Han didn't know why, but this time he felt the baseball coming a bit slowly.

Narumiya Mei's pitch speed was originally close to 150 kilometers per hour.

But now, in Zhang Han's eyes, it was at most 70 or 80 kilometers per hour.

At this speed, he could clearly see the angle and breaking ball of the incoming baseball, and he could even see the pattern on the baseball as it flew in.

It was too strange.

Zhang Han had only vaguely felt this before; this was his first time experiencing it firsthand.

He secretly clenched his teeth.

Although he didn't know the exact reason, he could indeed clearly see the breaking ball and angle of the incoming baseball now.

Now.

After getting a clear look, Zhang Han directly stepped out, fully extending his entire body.

Then he used all his strength to swing his bat in a 180-degree rotation.

"Ping!"

After being hit, the baseball flew high into the air.

Narumiya Mei's eyes widened in disbelief.

Someone actually hit it?

How was this possible?

Narumiya Mei couldn't understand it no matter what, and his partner Harada was the same.

At this moment, the general fans' excitement should have also arrived.

Their eyes were fixed on that white baseball until it flew away.

"It's flying, it's flying out!…"

The commentator roared hoarsely.

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