Narumiya Mei suddenly spun and fired the ball to First Base.
Kanzaki Ryou's eyes widened—
He lunged backward and slapped his hand on the base just before the ball smacked into the glove.
"Phew… close one."
Kanzaki stood up and dusted himself off, meeting Mei's proud, chin-lifted expression.
I'm watching you. Don't even think about stealing.
Heh.
Kanzaki smirked.
Little Blondie had noticed him.
Hardly surprising—Mei was a lefty, and with his body facing first base, reading Kanzaki's footwork wasn't hard.
With the element of surprise gone, Kanzaki dropped the idea of stealing.
Mei's next pitch came—a Slider.
Yuki swung, and the ball cracked off the bat—
—foul ball.
After two Niceballs, fouls weren't strikes.
But Mei's pitch mix was dangerous.
Inside Forkball.
High inside Straight.
Low outside Slider.
Three pitches in three locations.
Yuki's expression never changed. His mind was calculating.
He's shown everything we know he has. What comes next?
Behind the plate, Harada Masakatsu was sweating. The pressure from Yuki's disciplined batting was suffocating.
Come on. Use your best pitch and finish him.
Harada signaled—
Forkball.
Narumiya Mei nodded, hid the ball deep inside his glove, lifted his right leg high—
—and an overwhelming aura exploded off him.
Ace presence.
Yuki frowned slightly. His grip changed. A quiet blue "flame" of focus seemed to burst around him.
"!!!"
Kanzaki nearly jumped.
Gas canister mode?!
The two auras clashed invisibly—the pitcher's killing intent vs. the captain's iron will.
Mei unleashed the pitch.
Yuki slammed down with a full-body swing, bat descending like a blade.
CLANG!
The ball was chopped downward, rolling sharply.
Narumiya Mei broke from the mound instantly, scooping the ball in stride.
Damn it—it's over.
Kanzaki had been forced to run the moment Yuki hit the grounder. The instant the ball rolled in front of the mound, Kanzaki knew.
Mei fired to First.
Yuki was out.
First baseman turned and snapped it to Second—
the throw whooshed past Kanzaki's shoulder—
SMACK.
Kanzaki Ryou slid too late.
"ROOOAR—!!"
"DOUBLE PLAY!!!"
"NARUMIYA MEI!!!!"
The stadium exploded.
In a flash, the entire inning flipped.
Inajitsu's defense was sharp, fluid, perfect.
Mei and his infield had erased Seidou's chance in one stroke.
Kanzaki jogged back to the dugout, annoyed but laughing.
"Little Blondie really is amazing."
Yuki arrived with him, exhaling slowly.
"That pitch was heavy."
"You hit it well, Yuki-senpai," Kanzaki said. "Anyone else would've broken their wrists."
Yuki chuckled, eyes drifting to Azuma Kiyokuni stepping into the box.
Failure to capitalize stung him. He wanted badly to grow stronger.
Watching someone stronger hit was the best training.
"Kanzaki, your batting is impressive," Kominato Ryosuke said as Kanzaki sat.
Kanzaki turned. Ryosuke was smiling, eyes narrowed.
"Ryosuke-senpai, I only got lucky. Compared to your hitting, I'm not even close."
"You're quite humble."
Ryosuke patted Kanzaki's shoulder gently.
"If you give up even one run… I'll personally give you extra physical training."
"Eh?"
Kanzaki froze.
That was… a threat.
Ryosuke continued smiling without blinking.
He didn't say aloud what he was thinking:
If Inajitsu scores on Kanzaki… does that mean our own Seidou lineup is weaker? Absolutely not.
"HA!!!"
On the field, Azuma Kiyokuni roared, spit flying as he swung his bat like a berserk beast, glaring at Mei.
Mei shrank his neck.
Why does this gorilla play baseball instead of terrorizing a jungle?!
Still, his eyes sharpened.
Azuma was dangerous—one of the few batters who could smash his pitches.
Mei threw with everything he had.
Two Niceballs.
Then four straight intense pitch exchanges—foul after foul.
Mei bent down, grabbing the rosin bag.
His hand was drenched with sweat.
This is the strongest batter I've ever faced.
Even more pressure than their cleanup hitter.
Azuma, sweating heavily, also adjusted his stance.
The last pitcher who forced him into this kind of duel—
—was Kanzaki Ryou.
If Kanzaki fully adapted to high school baseball by summer, even Azuma would struggle to keep up.
Mei threw again.
Azuma stepped forward—two steps, wide swing—
BANG!
A full-force collision.
--------------
Support me at patréon com/DaoOfPeeking