Miyuki Kazuya was in a good mood.
Although in the recent confrontation, they didn't manage to completely overpower their opponent, he was more satisfied with the result than if they had easily defeated them.
Oda Honjo had just withdrawn his bat, and if Miyuki Kazuya wasn't mistaken, this wasn't part of the tactic he had previously planned.
It was clear that Oda had initially intended to bunt.
But at the last moment, he hastily withdrew his bat.
It clearly shows that during his confrontation with Furuya, or to put it plainly, after seeing Furuya's pitch, Oda felt afraid!
It was because of this fear that he thought he wouldn't be able to stop Furuya's pitch with a bunt.
Or even if he did get the bat on the ball, he might not be able to place it in a good spot.
'So he backed down!'
This behavior, without a doubt, would likely infect the players who followed him.
They would subconsciously feel that Furuya was an insurmountable figure for them.
This weakness in momentum would have a profound impact on them!
The players would start to doubt their own abilities.
They would question whether they were capable of fulfilling the tasks they were responsible for.
And this unease would likely pass on to the next batter.
Fear is contagious.
When you're by yourself, perhaps it doesn't feel as terrifying.
But once there are more people, and those around you feel fear, even if you haven't felt it yet, you'll instinctively start to panic.
This is a weakness of human nature, and no one can avoid it.
A good catcher is undoubtedly like half a psychologist.
By observing even the smallest signs from Oda, Miyuki could almost immediately guess the state of the opponent.
The opponent was experiencing a problem!
For the Seidou High School baseball team, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Now they had to seize the chance to take down the opponent.
The opportunity was there. Whether they could grab it would depend on Furuya's performance.
Miyuki trusted him on this point.
He believed that Furuya would not let him down and would perform excellently.
And as it turned out, his belief was correct.
Furuya, in the next pitch, perfectly completed his task.
Vrooooooooo!
With all his might, he threw the baseball from his hand.
The ball's speed skyrocketed as it flew, reaching the batter in the blink of an eye.
Strong!
Extremely powerful!
Standing in the Batter's Box, Oda could clearly feel how exceptional Furuya's pitch was.
Fast!
No wonder he was the fastest pitcher in high school. The baseball didn't need any breaks; just its velocity alone was enough to make countless players feel helpless.
When facing this pitch, Oda wanted to run away.
It wasn't just a thought that came to him now; he had felt this way when they first faced each other.
With Furuya standing on the mound, the sheer gap in their abilities was enough to make anyone feel despair.
And he was just an ordinary person, so he naturally felt despair too.
It felt like no matter what he did, he couldn't cause any trouble for his opponent.
What kind of meaning did such a game have?
What meaning did such a confrontation have?
Over and over again, Oda asked himself, but he couldn't find an answer.
Helpless, he pushed that question aside and focused on what he could do.
Coach Hosho and his teammates believed in him, which is why he was recommended to be the leadoff hitter.
Even if it was a futile struggle, he still had to show his strength, prove his worth, and tell everyone.
He wasn't without resistance.
At the very least, he had to live up to those who had trusted him and given him the opportunity.
Determined, Oda raised his bat high.
He swung fiercely at the incoming baseball.
His plan was solid: he wanted to use all his strength to directly compete with Furuya's pitch.
His idea wasn't bad.
Compared to others, he had more belief in his own strength and potential.
He might not be top-tier, but through hard work, even facing the best players in the country, he believed he could still resist.
He knew he might have difficulty hitting Furuya's pitch.
After all, the pitch was so fast and powerful!
Even standing in the Batter's Box, he could clearly hear the sound of the ball scraping the air.
Such a pitch made it impossible for his opponent not to be on guard!
When Oda saw the pitch coming, he naturally had a sense of alertness.
But it wasn't just alertness—he had an intuitive feeling.
He knew it would be tough to hit this kind of pitch.
Because of this feeling, he made an effort to put all the strength he had into hitting the ball.
If he didn't have enough power, he would increase his swing size.
This was something he learned from Sawamura.
In the past, Sawamura sometimes struggled with power when facing power pitchers.
Whenever that happened, he would twist his body like a pretzel.
By using the force of acceleration, he would increase the power of his swing.
'Open your eyes and awe!! This is the Great Demon King's personal technique!!! Experience it well!!!'
Oda put in all his strength and swung the bat with everything he had.
With a bigger swing, his hit definitely had a lot of force.
Oda had never been this confident before.
He believed he could hit the ball with all his might.
But he calculated the beginning, and yet, he didn't account for the ending.
As he swung forcefully, the bat seemed to leave his control.
It was no longer listening to his command!
When he noticed Furuya's pitch had some variation and tried to adjust, it was already too late…
The baseball brushed past the bat, and neither of them made contact.
Kaboom!
"STRIKE!"
"STRIKE! BATTER OUT!!!"
Oda was struck out just like that.
Feeling deeply wronged, Oda couldn't understand why he failed.
Everything had gone just as he had predicted…
How could the final result be so different?
Behind the plate, Miyuki wore a slight smile.
Even though the one who was just dealt with had once been a teammate of Sawamura, he couldn't help but want to comment.
'Did he really think everyone could be the Demon King?'
Sawamura's Spiral Swing!
That unique stance has been analyzed and researched by many people.
Using the increased swing distance to apply force and acceleration to improve the effectiveness of the swing...
This is very consistent with physics.
But just because it's consistent with physics doesn't mean it's ergonomic.
If it weren't for Sawamura's incredible talent, he would never have been able to pull it off.
Others who want to do this need to either have the same talent as Sawamura or have an even deeper understanding of baseball.
Ordinary people would have no chance of doing what he did.
Even if they took a step back and just increased their swing size, maintaining the accuracy of their hit would still be difficult.
Oda did well, relatively speaking.
But unfortunately...
His opponent was Furuya.
The fastest pitcher in high school!
Chasing after his pitches, relying on theory alone, was not enough.
You also need solid fundamentals.
What Oda lacked now was just that.
…