Ace of Diamond: Return of the Pitcher

Lee-Hyun was extremely depressed.

In the Seidou High School baseball team, he was probably the only one who felt down after being selected into the top 20.

But in reality, Lee-Hyun felt completely unworthy!

Coach Kataoka and the Seidou High School baseball coaching staff didn't know what went wrong, but they directly placed him into the top 20.

As a result, he, who was originally a small and insignificant player in the team, suddenly became the center of attention.

Several players who participated in the joint training but did not make the first team, including the three who had just been dropped from the first team, all looked at him as if he were their enemy.

Not only were these direct competitors dissatisfied, but even the other teammates who were watching felt deeply indignant.

The other two players selected were Takatsu and Yui.

Whether from individual ability or considering the future of the team, their selection was totally deserved.

Even if others were a little unhappy, they couldn't voice their complaints.

After all, in the eyes of most people, it was well deserved for these two to be selected.

But Lee-Hyun was different.

When it came to speed, he was indeed unique in Seidou High School.

No matter how unconvinced the other players were, they had to admit this.

However, when it came to overall strength, the situation was drastically different.

Not to mention the players from the first and second teams, most players from the third team could now easily surpass Lee-Hyun.

So how did a player like Lee-Hyun get directly promoted?

It wasn't just the other players who couldn't understand it; even Lee-Hyun himself couldn't understand.

His own coach was too inexperienced to make such a reckless decision.

Yes, reckless.

In Lee-Hyun's view, Coach Kataoka and the Seidou High School coaching staff's actions were highly reckless.

If they had just thought things through—considering the current situation of the third-year students and how they planned to use him in the future—he would have understood.

As far as Lee-Hyun felt, even if he was promoted, it should have been closer to the summer tournament.

They couldn't possibly waste his secret weapon on the Kanto Tournament, right? Or did Coach Kataoka only plan to use him in the Kanto Tournament?

These were things that Lee-Hyun couldn't figure out.

So, his mind was in complete turmoil.

The way his teammates looked at him also made him feel very uncomfortable.

It was as if he had only managed to get everything he wanted through the backdoor. It was incredibly awkward.

Lee-Hyun hated this feeling so much that he even wanted to talk to Coach Kataoka directly about it.

If his abilities were really not enough, he would not cling to the first team.

Before he could report to Coach Kataoka, he purposely talked with his mentor, Kuramochi.

Although his mentor didn't seem particularly reliable, he was still the person Lee-Hyun felt closest to on the team.

Whenever he felt confused, Lee-Hyun still hoped to communicate with Kuramochi.

In Dormitory 5.

Lee-Hyun hesitated, unable to speak up.

Sawamura immediately understood that he had become a 'third wheel'.

"Do you think I'm in the way?" he asked, looking at Lee-Hyun with interest.

Lee-Hyun's face turned bright red.

To be honest, Sawamura had always been kind to him, though mostly because of his relationship with Kuramochi. But their relationship had become quite close as well.

However, some things were easier to discuss with his mentor than with his older teammates, even those he was closer to.

Sawamura, understanding this, didn't push him.

He knew that, in Lee-Hyun's mind, he wasn't as important as Kuramochi.

Although Kuramochi was rough around the edges, he had a strong sense of friendship and he cared for others.

This was probably influenced by his experiences back home, where he had grown into a person who valued loyalty above all else.

"Then you two can talk," Sawamura said, grabbing his wooden bat from next to his bed and walking out.

To be honest, he wasn't particularly curious.

Everyone goes through moments of confusion, and Lee-Hyun, who had just been officially added to the first team, was no exception.

For this, Sawamura had no choice but to let Lee-Hyun work through things on his own.

"Say what you need to say!" Kuramochi, clearly annoyed, said. Lee-Hyun's hesitations were starting to irritate him.

Why couldn't his Deshi be as bold as Sawamura's Kohais?

Look at Hirota—he did whatever he wanted, even going to Sawamura to ask Coach Kataoka to restart the welcoming match.

Thinking about it, Kuramochi shuddered involuntarily.

It was fine to have a generous personality, but if he were like Hirota, it could turn into a disaster.

Coach Kataoka didn't tolerate any nonsense. If Hirota had actually done that, it would have been like making trouble for himself.

From this perspective, having a Kohai like Hirota would be troublesome enough.

Looking at Lee-Hyun now, however, Kuramochi felt less annoyed.

Lee-Hyun wasn't an Embarrassment-Generating-Machine like Hirota and didn't have the same presence, he at least didn't cause trouble.

After Sawamura left, Lee-Hyun finally relaxed.

For some reason, every time he faced Sawamura, he felt a tremendous amount of pressure.

Whether on the field or in private, that pressure never went away.

Sawamura was a big deal now, reports and articles about him are filling the media.

Everyone is talking about him, his teammates, the coaching staff, and even his classmates in school often mention him.

All of that unintentionally makes an aura around him.

Now that Eijun was gone, he could finally relax.

He then fully explained his thoughts and the difficulties he had recently been facing in Kuramochi.

"Are you stupid?" Kuramochi said, hands on his hips, looking at him in disbelief.

Lee-Hyun lowered his head, truly not knowing how to respond.

"Have you ever thought about why our Coach selected you for the first team at this time?" Kuramochi asked.

Lee-Hyun shook his head vigorously.

Although he already had many guesses in his heart, the real situation hadn't unfolded yet.

All his guesses were bound to remain just that—guesses.

Kuramochi shook his head helplessly.

"Exactly because you've been promoted now, you'll have a chance for further promotion during the summer tournament. If you weren't promoted now, how could Coach Kataoka bring you into the first team once the summer tournament starts?"

"For us third-year players, this is the final summer. According to your plan, you'd give the Kanto Tournament to a third-year player, and then replace them for the summer tournament. Do you think they'd be okay with that?"

"Without a solid foundation of ability, you only have speed. If you weren't selected for the first team in the Kanto Tournament, and then suddenly brought in during the summer tournament, doesn't that feel strange to you?"

A few questions in a row completely stunned Lee-Hyun.

He kept thinking it over as he returned to his dorm, but he still hadn't fully understood what Kuramochi was trying to say.

"It's okay if you don't understand it yet. Just do as I say for now."

Unknowingly, the date had already reached May 15th, and there were less than two days left before the first round of the Kanto Tournament.

Superintendent Kataoka had someone report Seidou High School's list of participants to the organizers of the Kanto Tournament.

The battle for the main roster, which seemed incredibly lively, was finally settled for now.

Although many were dissatisfied, Superintendent Kataoka's authority was unquestionable, and no one could challenge it.

In the end, everyone had to accept the result.

Lee-Hyun being selected for the big list—how many people thought it was unreasonable?

At least half of the 120 players at Seidou High School were dissatisfied.

Their strength was absolutely no worse than Lee-Hyun's, so why was Lee-Hyun chosen when they were not?

Of course, saying this is a bit shameless since there are certainly players stronger than them.

But even so, if there were selections to be made, they could've chosen Mimura or Seki.

There was no way Lee-Hyun should've gotten a spot.

But despite this seeming unreasonable, the situation calmed down in just a few days.

With the lead of the seniors, everyone's thoughts quickly changed.

There was a reason Lee-Hyun was selected.

Seidou High School is not the kind of team where everyone is just friendly and good-natured; it's a school for champions.

The selection criteria for the main team at a champion school like Seidou High are, of course, those players who can help Seidou win.

As for the substitute spots, it doesn't really matter who gets them. After all, the main team at Seidou High is strong enough, and there's no need to rely on a substitute to turn the tide.

In this context, Lee-Hyun's role is much more significant than that of a typical substitute.

This is something anyone with a little understanding of baseball can clearly see.

Additionally, from the perspective of developing new players, Lee-Hyun is also very valuable.

Not to mention his frightening speed, his talent, and his ability to learn baseball are also unmatched by ordinary players.

Since enrollment, Lee-Hyun has only been playing and learning baseball for a little over a month. In this short period of time, he's already begun to show signs of becoming a true baseball player.

He no longer looks like a complete newbie.

Although, to the veteran players in Seidou High School's baseball team, Lee-Hyun still has a lot of flaws.

But they have to admit that Lee-Hyun's progress has been astonishing. He will undoubtedly become a very important member of Seidou High School's baseball team in the future.

Not only can he help Seidou win, but he also has great potential to be developed.

Superintendent Kataoka and the coaching staff at Seidou High School have promoted Lee-Hyun, and now it doesn't seem so hard for people to accept.

Most of the players on Seidou High School's baseball team have been convinced.

Since Superintendent Kataoka and the coaching staff can see the highlights in Lee-Hyun, it's clear they've also put in a lot of effort.

Everyone quickly turned this sentiment into a positive drive.

So, during their practice sessions, they worked even harder.

Of course, not everyone was so convinced.

In the previous practice games, Hirota and Okumura, who had performed particularly well, were very dissatisfied.

It seemed like they had a lot of pent-up frustration that urgently needed to be released.

During regular practice, they were always firmly aiming for the main team.

For example, during batting practice, if they saw someone in the main team get three hits, they would have to get four hits.

They performed even more dazzlingly than the main team players.

Such performances didn't go unnoticed by the Seidou High School baseball coaching staff.

"At that time, only the substitutes for the main team were considered. Isn't that a bit inappropriate?"

Some assistant coaches had even openly raised this issue.

If Superintendent Kataoka had truly followed his words and disregarded past achievements, Hirota and Okumura would also have had a good chance of making the main team.

At the very least, their chances would not be any worse than Lee-Hyun's.

"Forget about them for now!"

Superintendent Kataoka, wearing sunglasses, spoke in an unusually serious tone.

Faced with this, the assistant coaches naturally had nothing to say.

Coach Ochiai stroked his chin, looked at Superintendent Kataoka, and thought to himself,

'He's really strict!'

Of course, Superintendent Kataoka had noticed the efforts of Hirota and Okumura.

That's not possible to overlook.

In fact, Superintendent Kataoka not only noticed but also made very detailed plans for the two of them.

However, he did all of this secretly, never mentioning a word about it to them.

He let them go through their confusion and frustration, allowing them to grow through it.

Once they were reborn from the ashes, he believed that both would surely explode with even more astonishing strength.

Just like Takatsu did before.

Takatsu had been placed in the second army and remained in obscurity for a year.

On the surface, it seemed like Superintendent Kataoka had never cared. But who knew that he had specifically written a training plan for Takatsu?

"No wonder his students are so outstanding. Superintendent Kataoka really knows how to develop players."

Coach Ochiai admired him and glanced at Superintendent Kataoka.

Not every superintendent can devote themselves so wholeheartedly to their players.

When you think about it, Superintendent Kataoka is truly an anomaly.

The day's training ended, and the members of Seidou High School's main team were getting ready to head to Gunma Prefecture.

Gunma Prefecture is the venue for this year's Kanto Tournament.

Tomorrow, they would head to the venue, and that night, the players of Seidou High School's baseball team did not relax.

They were still doing extra training.

In the indoor baseball stadium.

Sawamura Eijun and Miyuki were experimenting with new breaking balls.

Things weren't going very well.

Because Sawamura's physical condition had improved to an unprecedented level, his breaking balls had changed significantly.

But, with the increase in his ball speed, control had become even more difficult.

At times, he even ended up throwing several balls outside the strike zone.

"This unstable state needs to be fixed," Miyuki said, frowning as he looked at Sawamura.

'Perhaps it was because he was too anxious, but it seemed that Sawamura's progress had hit another bottleneck.'

Even though Miyuki knew full well that Sawamura was already one of the best pitchers in the country, he was still unsatisfied.

He believed Sawamura could do even better.

How much better, he wasn't sure.

But this thought had never changed.

Sweat trickled down Sawamura's face, with a few drops landing in his eyes, making them sting.

"Let's call it a day. I need to calm down."

Sawamura was the one to suggest stopping.

Previously, he and Miyuki had practiced together many times, but it was always Miyuki who asked to stop.

Otherwise, Sawamura would throw like he was desperate, not knowing how to balance effort with rest.

This was the first time Sawamura had suggested ending the practice himself.

Miyuki counted the number of balls thrown and nodded.

"We must figure out what's wrong with your pitching as soon as possible. Otherwise…"

"Otherwise, what?" Sawamura asked.

"Otherwise…It would be late for me to see it."

…