PAAAAAKKKKK!!!!!!!
The small baseball was forcefully hit and sent flying.
After hitting the ball, Sawamura maintained his stance, holding the bat. It took nearly a second before he finally pulled the bat back and tossed it aside.
Refreshing!
A feeling of immense satisfaction filled Sawamura's heart.
As soon as he hit the ball, it felt like he had removed a huge obstacle in front of him.
It was as if the road had cleared ahead of him.
At that moment, time seemed to stand still.
Everyone in the stadium, their eyes following the baseball, wondered where it would land.
The ball, under the watch of tens of thousands of eyes, flew all the way to the left field bleachers.
Crash!
The baseball hit the ground heavily, bouncing a long distance after landing on the bleachers.
A teenage boy leapt up, grabbing the ball before anyone else.
A ball hit into the bleachers in a Koshien home run game is a benefit for the audience.
Whoever gets it can take it home as a souvenir!
This is already exciting enough, but it was even more thrilling because Sawamura had hit this home run.
Not long ago, Sawamura had tied his own single-season Koshien home run record with 7 home runs!
During the last game, people had hoped to see this scene.
Unfortunately, even though the game ended, Sawamura never got the chance to hit a home run.
So now, everyone's hope was placed in today's game.
When this game started, many of Sawamura's loyal fans were hoping to see him break his record with a home run.
Especially during Sawamura's first at-bat against Hongou, many fans eagerly awaited the moment.
They hoped the unbeatable "Great Demon King" could silence the biggest suspense from the start of the game.
But unfortunately, this remained a fantasy for Sawamura's exclusive fans.
During their first encounter in the first inning, although there were some twists and turns, the final result was Sawamura's clean and decisive defeat.
He hit a high fly ball that was caught by a player from the Komadai Fujimaki High School team.
At that moment, Sawamura's loyal fans were devastated.
Although they knew the game wasn't over, as long as there were no three Outs in the bottom of the ninth inning, anything could still happen.
There was still a chance for Sawamura to shine and hit a home run again.
Looking at Sawamura's previous performance, the likelihood of that was very high!
But strangely, his loyal fans, who should have been full of confidence in him, began to doubt.
Was everything really alright?
The teammates and supporters of the Seidou High School Baseball Team began to ask themselves these questions, but never got a definitive answer.
Hongou Masamune!
Seidou High School's baseball team had faced Komadai Fujimaki High School several times. Initially, Seidou's players and their loyal supporters had a high opinion of Hongou.
This opinion was unanimous!
They believed Hongou had top-tier national-level skill.
With a super fastball of 153 km/h, plus precise control and sharp breaking balls, having any one of these would be enough to rank a pitcher among the nation's best.
Hongou possessed all three and had mastered them to a very high level.
You could tell just from watching his performance that he was a pitcher of extraordinary strength.
Hongou Masamune was incredibly powerful!
This was well understood by every member of the Seidou High School Baseball Team and their loyal supporters.
But when Seidou faced Hongou before, under Sawamura's lead, the team always easily overcame their opponents, even Hongou.
But today, Hongou had fully unleashed his power.
Not only were the other players helpless, but even the spiritual pillars of Seidou, Sawamura, and Miyuki had been overwhelmed in their first encounter with him.
People now realized that the guy they had never taken seriously before was truly terrifyingly strong.
Even the Great Demon King, Sawamura, couldn't easily get a hit off him.
This impact came fast and strong.
The Seidou players were completely unprepared.
By the time they realized it, it was already too late.
They could only watch as the situation unfolded.
A sense of fear began to spread.
Even Sawamura's loyal fans began to wonder if their idol could continue to break records.
They tried to reassure themselves that it would be fine, but deep down, they were anxious.
Hongou's earlier strength had been overwhelming. From the perspective of Seidou's supporters, it was tough to stand against such a formidable opponent.
But the Great Demon King was still the Great Demon King. He had never let his true supporters down.
In this game, during the second round of confrontation between Sawamura and Hongou, everyone was trying to figure out how to defeat Hongou.
This was the bridge Seidou had to cross to continue moving forward.
Even though Hongou still seemed incredibly powerful in the second round, it was a good opportunity to strike while he was confident.
The Seidou supporters, especially Sawamura's loyal fan club, were still uncertain about the outcome.
But when Sawamura stepped up to bat, he didn't waste words.
With one clean, solid swing of his bat, he sent the ball flying out of the field.
The fans in the stands were stunned for a while before they understood what had just happened.
It was like boiling water—everyone in the stands erupted in excitement.
Fans stood up, wanting to share their joy with everyone around them.
They wanted to spread their happiness.
The score was now 1:0!
The deadlock was broken.
As Fujio, a veteran reporter from Baseball Kingdom Magazine, once said, in a balanced pitching duel, the first team to score usually locks in the victory.
Because both teams had ace pitchers, no one else could make much of an impact.
In this situation, Sawamura's home run and the run he scored were far more significant than just one point.
It contained the will of many people.
Not only that, but this home run also allowed Sawamura to break his own record!
The most home runs in a single Koshien tournament.
Sawamura had set this record with incredible strength, far beyond anyone's expectations.
To be honest, since Seidou High School entered this Koshien, they hadn't faced any easy opponents.
Not to say they couldn't handle it, but most of their opponents posed a serious threat.
In this context, every hit and every base they reached was earned through their own effort.
Sawamura's home run record was no exception. He broke and refreshed this record with his own strength.
This alone was enough to drive Sawamura's loyal supporters wild.
It was incredible!
The next scene was truly electrifying!
"His 8th home run!"
At first, the commentator hadn't noticed. His mind was too focused on the game.
But when the cheering died down and the staff reminded him, he suddenly realized.
Sawamura had broken another record!
This guy was a record-breaking machine!
Up until now, he had shattered records for pitchers.
But that wasn't all.
He was also breaking records in batting.
And no one could stop him.
The commentator praised Sawamura endlessly.
When Sawamura returned to the dugout, he was treated like a hero.
His teammates were ecstatic.
As expected of their Ace, he was reliable in the crucial moment.
On the surface, it seemed like Seidou was not leading the game, but they always had the upper hand.
They scored first, which seemed to be only natural.
But in reality, things were not so simple.
The extreme always leads to reversal.
At that point, if Sawamura hadn't hit the ball out of the park, the game could have taken a turn.
Sawamura had prevented that.
He proved that a king is a king, and a challenger is a challenger.
Even if the players from Hokkaido were fierce, the final victory still belonged to them.
Sawamura's home run was crucial. It not only gave Seidou a point, but it also restored their confidence.
No matter how tough the opponent was, Seidou would win in the end!
Seidou High School Baseball Team: The King of Baseball!
With a score of 1:0, it was Miyuki's turn to bat.
Sawamura's home run set the tone for the rest of the game.
Now, Hongou looked like a real monster.
It was hard to find any weaknesses in him.
A normal confrontation would not be easy to win.
Seidou had struggled with Hongou for a long time because of this.
But now, Sawamura had hit a home run.
For a confident pitcher, such a hit was especially damaging.
'It was the perfect time to strike!'
Miyuki knew this was the opportunity to capitalize, he had gotten enough hits after Sawamura to know his job.
For him, whether it was a big cat or a small cat, the important thing was catching the mouse.
No matter the method, victory was the key.
...