Chapter 674 - 674: Fifth One

"My pitch is faster than his!"

Kuramochi was a bit dumbfounded, and the other teammates clearly hadn't expected Zhang Han to say that.

For a moment, the atmosphere was a bit cold.

Miyuki, on the other hand, looked at Zhang Han with great appreciation.

The former Zhang Han, although excellent in all aspects, gave people the impression of not being assertive at all.

As friends, this feeling was, of course, very good.

But as an outstanding baseball player, such a personality had quite a significant problem.

In competitive sports, strength is undoubtedly paramount, but sometimes, momentum is equally important.

Especially in the pitcher-hitter showdown, it's either the east wind overpowering the west wind, or the west wind overpowering the east wind.

Narumiya Mei had just dealt with Kominato Ryosuke, relying on a surge of momentum.

Kominato Ryosuke was, in effect, suppressed by his momentum, which is why he hit that last pitch the way he did.

If Narumiya Mei hadn't been able to display such momentum, the outcome might not have been what it is now.

Zhang Han used to have only technique, no momentum.

When hitting, it might not have been very obvious. But when he was pitching, this problem was quite serious.

Otherwise, his incredibly fast pitch wouldn't have left people with an impression of not being very strong.

One must know that Zhang Han is currently the fastest pitcher in the country, which is an extremely remarkable feat.

However, the deterrent he brought to opponents was far from reaching that level.

"Now, does he finally have the intention to compete with Narumiya Mei?"

Being able to compete with Narumiya Mei is, in itself, a form of confidence or momentum.

As long as this idea begins to sprout in Zhang Han's heart, his subsequent pitch will surely reach an even higher level.

As a partner, Miyuki was naturally very happy to see this scene.

The game continued, with Yuuki stepping up to the batter's box next.

Narumiya Mei's understanding of Seido High School Baseball Team, just as the Seido teammates had guessed before, had reached a point of extreme familiarity.

So when he pitched, he barely hesitated, directly using a low-angle three-pitch sequence.

"Thwack!"

"Strike!"

Yuuki didn't swing at the first pitch, a forkball.

Not only did he not swing, but he didn't even move his feet.

"This guy's waiting stance is as annoying as ever."

Harada Masatoshi thought, displeased.

Because Yuuki remained completely still, it was very difficult to judge what kind of pitch he was preparing to hit based on his stance and movements.

In this situation, they could only grit their teeth and display their strength.

On the other side, the players of Seido High School Baseball Team all tightly shut their mouths in tension, not even daring to breathe heavily.

Although they couldn't tell themselves, Zhang Han and Captain Yuuki had previously said that the two of them could distinguish the types of pitches Narumiya Mei threw.

The captain didn't swing at the first pitch, which meant the first pitch wasn't the one he was waiting for.

In this situation, the teammates were naturally nervous.

They were afraid that their actions might affect their captain's observation.

For the second pitch, Narumiya Mei threw a curveball.

Unable to judge what kind of pitch Yuuki was preparing to hit from his movements, Narumiya Mei could only showcase his low-angle pitches one by one.

Even if it was a breaking ball, when thrown by Narumiya Mei, the pitch speed was not slow at all.

In almost the blink of an eye, the baseball thrown had already traversed more than ten meters of space, appearing in front of home plate.

Yuuki, who had been motionless, fixed his gaze on the incoming baseball, his eyes suddenly becoming incredibly bright.

Curveball.

Now.

"Boom!"

Like a flash of lightning, the bat swung out a blur.

"Ping!"

Then people heard the sound of the bat hitting the baseball.

The hit baseball flew almost 20 centimeters above the ground, moving forward without any sign of dropping.

Facing this ball, which resembled an earth dragon, the fielders of Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team tried their best to stop it.

But they had only just made a stopping motion, and before they could even act, the baseball had already flown past their eyes.

So fast.

Inashiro's entire infield defense was almost completely overturned by this one pitch.

These battle-hardened elite players, facing a ball that was incredibly fast, had no time to react.

"Safe!"

Finally, the baseball flew all the way to the outfield before landing and bouncing.

It was also because the baseball's flight speed decreased after bouncing that the Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team's outfielder successfully stopped the ball.

But by the time he stopped the ball, it was already too late.

Yuuki had already run to First Base, and he didn't stop there; he quickly advanced towards Second Base.

Harada, the catcher for Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team, stood up excitedly.

"Second Base!"

Yuuki running to Second Base, as opposed to staying at First Base, had a completely different meaning.

Especially when the batter standing behind him was Zhang Han.

That meaning was even more significant.

Not only was Harada nervous, but the other players and supporters of Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team, almost everyone, felt their hearts clench.

The Inashiro Industrial outfielder was completely sprawled out when he got the ball.

There was no other way; even though that ball had already landed and bounced twice, it was still very fast.

It was hard to imagine that a ball at such a height could be hit so far.

To be on the safe side, and to prevent the baseball from getting past him, the Inashiro Industrial outfielder completely dove, blocking the baseball's path with his body.

This meant that by the time he picked up the ball and got back up, he had delayed a little.

And it was precisely because of that slight delay that Yuuki unhesitatingly moved towards Second Base.

"Don't even think about getting past!"

The Inashiro Industrial outfielder's eyes were red.

He disregarded the pain in his body and threw the baseball in his hand with all his might.

He wanted to stop Yuuki no matter what, and he absolutely would not let Yuuki get to Second Base.

But by the time he threw the ball, he was still a step too slow.

Before the baseball arrived, Yuuki had already dove and touched the Second Base bag with his hand.

"Safe!"

One out, runner on Second Base.

At a critical moment when Seido High School Baseball Team was trailing, their captain bravely stepped up.

He secured a double.

In the stands of Seido High School Baseball Team, all the cheerleaders, including the second team, and supporters, excitedly raised their hands at this moment.

"Seido! Seido!"

They seemed to have already seen the hope of Seido High School Baseball Team tying or even taking the lead in the score.

"Fifth hit, a hit!"

Fujio, a veteran reporter for Baseball Kingdom Magazine, wrote these five words in his notebook.

Besides Zhang Han, Seido High School Baseball Team finally had someone else cleanly get a hit.

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