Ace of Diamond: Return of the Pitcher

Recently, Eijun's batting strength has been steadily rising, and everything seemed to be progressing smoothly.

But in reality, Sawamura has been feeling a little anxious.

Because his pitching has hit a bottleneck.

If it weren't for the fact that, a while ago, he had accidentally developed the Level 4 breaking ball, he would have made no progress in pitching from winter break until now.

On the contrary, because his pitching velocity has increased significantly, his high-level change-up has become less stable than before.

Pitching is an extremely delicate craft.

The way the ball is gripped, the strength of the grip, the force of the throw, the angle of the release, and even the feel of the ball...

If any one of these elements deviates, the consequences are unimaginable.

Sawamura's overall pitching speed has increased by nearly five km/h (3mph). Additionally, in the past six months, his physical development has been great, he has grown a bit taller, and his physical strength has improved considerably.

Even his palms have grown a size larger than before.

With so many changes, despite practicing every day, Sawamura still can't fully control or adapt.

Now, it's become difficult to throw his high-level breaking balls with the same precision and ease as before. Eijun has worked hard to completely master the pitch.

It was only later that he realized it wasn't as easy as he thought.

The reason is actually very simple—his pitching velocity has increased.

With a faster ball and sharper movement, the combination of the two has naturally made Eijun's pitching more unpredictable.

And the problem is precisely that—his pitching is too unpredictable.

Such a tricky ball, with such quick changes, unknowingly slips out of the strike zone.

When Sawamura realized this, he truly wanted to cry.

Before his regression, he suffered greatly due to his ball speed, which is why he paid such close attention to developing his velocity.

Now, his overall pitching speed is almost ten km/h faster than it was at this time before, to the point that, to some extent, it has exceeded his limits.

On the surface, this is certainly a good thing.

But good things come with risks.

Sawamura never anticipated that after his ball speed increased, his breaking balls would become so difficult to master.

The solution to mastering it isn't non-existent.

Eijun knew one way.

'Practice! Endless practice.'

As the ball velocity increases, his vision and perception must also improve accordingly. Otherwise, he would never be able to throw the ball as smoothly as before.

If it doesn't work once, try it ten times. If it doesn't work ten times, try a hundred times. If a hundred times doesn't work, try a thousand times. If a thousand times doesn't work, try ten thousand times.

With perseverance, even an iron rod can be ground into a needle.

Though Sawamura didn't know how much effort and dedication it would take, he had no other choice but to keep walking down this path.

As he walked alone on the field, Eijun looked up at the sky.

The sky was pitch black, and nothing was visible.

"Is it going to rain?"

Just as Sawamura fell into deep thought, he suddenly heard the sound of friction coming from the field.

He looked up.

A young man with golden hair was running while dragging a tire.

It was clear that he was already exhausted.

But he still continued to run forward, firmly.

"What a coincidence!"

Sawamura whispered to himself.

He hadn't expected to see Okumura here.

Originally, he thought that after failing to make it into the first team, Okumura would be somewhat down for a few days.

But Sawamura didn't expect him to bounce back so quickly and be so proactive.

He glanced up at Kataoka's office.

As expected, the lights were still on.

Normally, Sawamura is the last one to finish training. Sometimes when he goes to the baths, he runs into Kataoka.

In other words, Kataoka is usually one of the last people on the team to rest.

Any extra training by the players doesn't escape his notice.

Eijun knew this. It's not a secret for the older students who are more aware.

But the freshmen wouldn't know.

Okumura practicing extra wasn't likely to attract Kataoka's attention on purpose.

In other words, his actions were just routine, completely unconscious.

And this kind of behavior would certainly catch Kataoka's eye.

The training spot for the Kanto Tournament was given to someone else. Unfortunately, Okumura probably had no chance.

However, for the summer tournament, one of the training spots for freshmen may need to be shuffled.

Eijun even dared to assert that Kataoka would definitely promote Okumura before the summer competition.

'He's talented and hardworking enough.'

This was precisely Kataoka's weak point.

Everyone has their weaknesses, and Kataoka, being human, has his too.

For instance, he can never ignore players who are both talented and work hard.

The reason why Lee-Hyun made it into the first team was certainly due to his talent. But during that time, he was practicing like crazy, trying to master all kinds of baseball skills.

That might have been a very important factor.

Without someone like Kuramochi guiding him behind the scenes, even if Lee-Hyun had that unparalleled speed, he might not have caught Kataoka's attention so quickly.

"Are you interested in catching for me?"

When Okumura finished running with the tire, Sawamura suddenly made the offer.

Okumura's eyes widened.

A somewhat surprised expression appeared on his usually stoic face.

"Of course, I'm always interested."

No catcher would refuse an invitation from the team's Ace, especially someone like Okumura, who was hoping to become the main catcher.

After putting the tire back in the training room, Okumura still couldn't believe it.

If Eijun wanted someone to catch for him, it seemed that no catcher would refuse.

'Especially Matsumoto, his younger Kohai...'

'Why did he choose me?'

'Or rather, why help me?'

'After that guy (Miyuki) retired, the most important factor in selecting Seidou High's next catcher was who could completely catch Sawamura-senpai's pitches.'

The more they practice now, the more hopeful their future will be.

Sawamura's initiative in inviting him was, in a way, helping him.

"Why help me?"

Okumura frowned and looked at Sawamura.

Sawamura didn't shy away, smiling and confidently saying, "Why ask? Of course, it's because I have high hopes for you!"

"I have high hopes for you!"

Sawamura is the Ace of the team, and in the current Seidou High School, his presence is even more outstanding.

For any newcomer, hearing "I have high hopes for you!" from him is a huge encouragement.

Even if Coach Kataoka or the other coaches in the coaching staff were to hear it, they would take it seriously and carefully evaluate whether this newcomer has something they may have previously overlooked.

This is true even for ordinary players. But when it comes to catchers, the treatment is even more exceptional!!!

Sawamura is the Ace, and as such, he has a say in the selection of the team's main catcher.

If there are several candidates competing for the catcher position and their skills are evenly matched, the catcher who partners most comfortably with Sawamura, the Ace, is most likely to become the team's new main catcher, the number two player.

In this case, when Sawamura tells a freshman catcher, "I have high hopes for you," the weight of those words is even heavier.

It means that you are very likely to become the main catcher in the upcoming season.

If this had been said to someone like Yui Kaoru, or even Sawamura's Kohai, Matsumoto Jun, they would have been so happy they'd probably be floating in the air.

However, it was quite strange. When Okumura, the freshman catcher, heard these words, it seemed to have greatly agitated him.

"Is this what it is all that it is for you? A good pawn you chose to promote?"

His eyes turned sharp. He suppressed his anger and asked Sawamura.

Sawamura was taken aback by the question and turned his head to look at the boy in front of him again.

'Oh no not again…'

Sawamura wasn't unaware that the Kohai in front of him had some emotional scars. After all, before Sawamura regressed, they had teamed up for a year and knew a bit about each other.

So, when talking to Okumura, Sawamura tried to be lenient and did not act like a Senpai or an Ace.

Sawamura thought they were talking as equals.

For a pitcher to say to a catcher, 'I have high hopes for you!' isn't that just a normal, kind-hearted expression?

How could it provoke such a big reaction?

It was simply incomprehensible.

Sawamura smiled and said nothing further.

Okumura felt like he had punched Cotton—no response at all.

The most terrifying insult isn't when someone yells at you or hurls ugly words.

It's when they completely ignore you.

Sawamura didn't want to escalate the conflict, but in Okumura's eyes, it seemed like he was being looked down upon.

And it was precisely because Sawamura looked down on him that he was being ignored.

"I'm going to take a shower!"

Okumura stubbornly removed his catcher's gear and stormed off.

"Huh?"

Sawamura stood frozen in place.

Although Sawamura was a simple-minded guy, he was generally well-liked.

But he had never felt so awkward.

He was truly awkward!

Watching Okumura's retreating back, he opened his mouth stupidly and didn't know what to say.

In the end, he couldn't do anything about it.

Time is the best remedy for everything.

He believed that, with time, the misunderstanding between them would eventually be resolved.

Shaking his head, Sawamura decided not to dwell on it.

He still wanted to find someone to throw to.

"Stones from other hills may be used to polish jade."

Always practicing with Miyuki was certainly enjoyable, both physically and mentally, but it also limited his creativity.

It was hard to believe, but it was the truth.

When Sawamura practiced with Miyuki, he had so much fun that he unconsciously stopped thinking as much.

On the other hand, different catchers had different styles, and working with them might help Sawamura develop new ideas.

Wasn't that how he developed his Level 4 Breaking Ball before?

Now, with a little help from fate, there were three promising catchers on Seidou's team.

If Sawamura didn't seize this opportunity, he would be wasting fate's kindness.

Since Okumura wasn't the right fit, he decided to find someone else.

He went to the dormitory where Furuya Satoru and the others stayed and directly invited Yui Kaoru to practice with him.

Yui Kaoru had obviously already taken a shower and was getting ready to rest.

Hearing Sawamura's invitation, he was somewhat in disbelief.

He looked up at the dormitory clock, the hour hand pointed to 9, and the minute hand pointed to 11.

It was past 9 p.m.!

"Now?"

He asked uncertainly.

Sawamura also felt a bit embarrassed. Dragging someone out of their rest to practice with him at night seemed a little too much.

"Are you going to rest? Sorry about that. Then, you can rest first, and I'll find someone else!"

"It's fine, I can do it anytime!"

Yui quickly shook his head and, by that time, had already put on his catcher's mitt.

Sawamura was so moved that he nearly shed tears.

'Compared to the moody Okumura, this little guy had such a lovable personality.'

Sawamura even wanted to check if angel wings had sprouted from his back.

"I'll go too!"

Furuya, who had been about to rest, immediately abandoned his plan to sleep when he saw Sawamura still wanting to practice.

He had been trying to pull Sawamura down from the Ace position, so how could he rest before Sawamura?

"Alright! But if you have done the massage, you will just watch."

"I didn't yet!"

"Okay! Okay! Jeez, you too can be a pain."

While practicing together, Sawamura couldn't help but murmur about his previous interaction with Okumura.

It wasn't that he was intentionally complaining to others, but Sawamura was never one to keep things bottled up inside.

He would say whatever was on his mind.

Fortunately, both Yui and Furuya were not chatty types.

He believed that when the conversation reached their ears, they would keep quiet.

Sawamura thought of others too kindly.

"Eh?"

"Is this true?"

"Did that happen?"

"Man, the freshmen these days…"

He thought they wouldn't gossip, but he didn't expect that by the next day, the matter was already in the headline!

Sawamura even wanted to call up Furuya and Yui to ask them why they were so loose-lipped.

The most unreliable words in the world are, "I have a secret to tell you, but you must never tell anyone."

Sawamura himself couldn't keep a secret, so how could he expect others to?

As a result, the rumor about Sawamura and Okumura having a conflict became an open secret in the Seidou High School baseball team by the next day.

In reality, the two hadn't even argued. It was just a small misunderstanding.

Takuma, Okumura's friend, went straight to him when he heard the news.

"What happened?"

'How could it be that, just after joining the team, Okumura had such a bad relationship with the number one person on the team?'

'It was unimaginable.'

'Before entering the Seidou High Baseball Club, Okumura had greatly admired Sawamura-senpai.'

"I'm disappointed! I thought he was a straightforward guy, but I didn't expect him to be such a person."

"Waaaaa!" The Poor Takuma was screaming!

After hearing Okumura's explanation, Takuma felt like cracking open his friend's head to see what was inside.

'Facing the olive branch extended by the Ace of the team, it was foolish not to accept it and even act petty?!'

'Did he think this was some kind of primary school game?'

'Only someone easygoing like Sawamura-senpai would have let it go. Anyone else would have blacklisted Okumura by now.'

"Maybe it's more of a psychological issue with you," Takuma said, trying to reason with him.

The wolf boy became even more annoyed when he heard that.

Originally, Okumura had some regrets.

He had projected his resentment toward the former Coach onto Sawamura. But after hearing the 'NEWS' the next day, his regret faded away.

It was one thing to try to use others, but he didn't expect Sawamura to go behind his back and spread rumors.

It was really disrespectful.

After dinner, when Okumura went back to the dormitory to change, Miyuki also went straight to him.

"I heard you had a conflict with Sawamura?"

...

T/N: The edgy Wolf Boy strikes again!

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