Chapter 283: The Emperor's Prototype
Sendo didn't dare refuse!
Isashiki watched Sendo standing there, one hand on each of their seniors' shining bald heads, and he wanted nothing more than to rush in and offer his own head as tribute — but getting punched over something that stupid? No thanks.
On Inashiro's side, cleanup hitter Harada was already in position.
Fifth batter Narumiya Mei stepped into the on-deck circle with a firm, unshakable expression — the shadow of the third-year "Emperor Narumiya" already beginning to appear.
The prince was beginning to grow into a king.
"Let's go!"
"Stop them!!"
Isashiki and Shirasu backed up a little; Sendo stayed exactly where he was.
They were fully leveraging Sendo's absurd defensive range — perfectly covering the gap between infield and outfield.
The outfielders took a few steps back. It was a risky alignment, but this situation demanded it.
If the ball sailed over the infielders' heads while the outfield was positioned deep, even the runner on first — Harada— could come all the way home.
But if they didn't play deep, Harada's power became a terrifying threat.
For power hitters, hitting a liner into the shallow outfield gap is actually harder than blasting a deep ball.
And if he really hit it that far, no defensive alignment would matter anyway.
It was all about trade-offs. A baseball field is too big to cover everything — they could only guard where hits most commonly fell.
If the ball flew toward center field, Sendo could still charge in from his deeper position.
The true showdown of this match was finally about to begin.
A single hit would tie the game.
A long hit — and Inashiro would win instantly.
A weak hit, a grounder, a pop-fly… or, like Seidou earlier, a sudden explosion of consecutive hits…
and Seidou would lose on the spot.
Life or death in a single instant.
And worse — baseball forces players to watch that instant happen.
It's even crueler than other sports.
In basketball, a buzzer-beater kills instantly — you don't know until the ball reaches the hoop.
But in baseball, that "deathblow moment" is like having a gun pointed at your forehead…
and the trigger is pulled slowly, letting fear build before the shot fires.
"Ever since Narumiya gave up that home run, I could feel his resolve as his partner. That obsession with victory… he even suppressed his own selfishness to stay focused. Amazing willpower…A home run — his first ever — the damage is never as small as he pretends. If possible… I want to end this game with my own hands."
Harada held the bat upright in front of him, glanced at Narumiya's imposing figure, then steeled himself.
Everyone's hearts were drawn tight — at any moment, the pitch that determined the game could suddenly appear.
The atmosphere even made Sendo restless, like someone with hyperactivity or someone pumped full of adrenaline.
This was what set him apart from normal players.
"Even a guy like him must be under immense pressure. There's no need to fear him."
Miyuki observed Harada's clenched jaw and bared teeth.
The pressure on him was enormous — the entire team's fate rested on his bat.
And with runners on first and third, and the next two hitters being the 4th and 5th of Inashiro's order,
Miyuki couldn't afford free passes.
Unless absolutely necessary, they had to attack head-on.
"No need for a home run…Just stick to your own hitting."
Coach Kunimoto prayed silently.
The more a hitter thinks about hitting long, the more he collapses.
Both dugouts held their breath — if they shouted now, they might break their players' rhythm, or snap their fragile mental balance.
Except for players like Raichi, most hitters would be thrown off by stray words.
The Seidou cheering section, the Inashiro fans, the entire stadium roared nonstop — but to the players, the outside noise was fading away.
Focus had reached its peak.
Even some of the Inashiro girls were close to tears — their team was one run behind.
"What… what's in Koshien?"
Sawamura whispered in the bullpen, overwhelmed by the atmosphere.
Harada breathed heavily, struggling for air — but kept his focus.
Kawakami's breath trembled too, but his fighting spirit did not.
"Yah!"
FWOOSH
THUD!
Harada stepped as soon as the pitch came.
"Ball! Outside!"
"He stepped immediately… aiming for right field? Even when he goes opposite field, this guy hits it unbelievably far."
Miyuki analyzed calmly.
There was no way Harada still had the mental capacity left to guess pitch sequences.
This was no longer strategy — it was pure willpower.
His ragged breathing had already given it away.
"If Sendo were the one batting… I'd be certain he'd already figured out my pitch sequence."
Miyuki sighed internally.
"That guy's mental strength is unreal.
Having him as a comparison really sharpens how I evaluate players' states."
"To maximize Kawakami's sidearm, we must hit every corner.
Inside pitches against this hitter require guts — but avoiding him will never win!"
"Let's attack inside."
Kawakami's heart tightened, but he nodded firmly.
"A pitcher must think like an ace. Right now — YOU are the ace!"
Kawakami remembered Tanba's words.
He could not back down.
"Score…I'll score…!"
Harada's body stiffened again — from the side, he looked like a short-legged gorilla.
"Let him hit it, Kawakami!"
"Everyone defend forward!"
"Finish him!"
"You can do it!"
"One more!"
"Show your spirit!"
Seeing Tetsu's terrifying expression, Sendo patted the grass three times with his fingertips.
If Coach Nakanishi were here, he'd notice — Sendo's focus was now on par with his seniors.
"Kawakami!"
"Finish him!"
"Harada!"
"Everything comes down to your fighting spirit now.
How fiercely will you pitch?"
Coach Kataoka could say nothing else — the rest was up to them.
"Kawakami-senpai…"
Sawamura felt the fighting spirit of his seniors, and the overwhelming presence of their opponent.
Especially Narumiya Mei — a terrifying imperial aura radiated from him.
"Yassan! You really do have this kind of side to you…I understand how you feel! We're partners, after all!Though I STILL haven't forgiven you for trying to defect to that guy!"
Narumiya grinned.
"HARADA!!!"
"Yeah!!"
At that shout, Harada snapped out of his stiffness.
"Just save me a little bit of the good stuff, okay?
(At that moment Harada realized how stiff he'd been.)
It wouldn't be fair if you ate it all yourself!"
Narumiya laughed.
Seeing that smile, Harada's face flushed.
Kawakami was already starting his motion.
Harada suddenly remembered the coach's declaration: "One run and we win."
His body relaxed completely.
FWOOSH
BOOM
CLINK!
"Foul!!"
The second pitch was a slider — Kawakami's best of the entire day.
If Harada had still been stiff, this would have ended Inashiro.
"Yes!! Perfect timing!"
"Harada!"
"Good swing!"
"Powerful pitch!"
"Keep attacking, Kawakami!"
"That was close…If not for Mei… it would've been over. But now — this match won't end so easily."
Harada regained strength, pressure gone.
Kawakami's spirit burned brighter.
FWOOSH
"Ball!"
A high outside pitch.
FWOOSH
POP!
"Strike!"
A razor-thin inside pitch barely brushing the zone —
even Harada thought it was the same outside pitch and didn't swing.
Kawakami's control had reached near-Yang level precision.
Harada was being cornered — but he still wasn't shaken.
The velocity wasn't unhittable.
If he copied Sendo — swing at anything uncertain — he could still fight.
That was the job of a cleanup hitter.
"Let's finish him with this, Kawakami. Throw your BEST pitch — right here."
Even with Harada's calm, Miyuki believed completely in Kawakami.
"Just a little sharper…"
"Yaa!!"
FWOOSH
"This pitch is perfect — the angle is beautiful! The batter swings — this should—"
BOOOOM
PING!
But the hit exceeded every expectation.
The ball shot past the infield — screaming into the outfield.
"Tetsu!! Sendo!!!"
"Are you kidding me?!"
Isashiki saw the ball sailing past and glanced at Sendo charging from behind —but he knew he had to go for it.
Even though—
He couldn't reach it.
"Yamero!"
Isashiki leapt — one desperate attempt.
Everyone ignored Sendo.
All eyes focused on Isashiki's glove.
"Yamero!!!"
Tears burst from Isashiki's eyes in midair.
The ball hit the ground.
"A clean hit!! A long ball!! The runner from third scores — the game is tied…!!"
"The game is—!"
"The runner from first has rounded second!!!"
Isashiki didn't have time to get up.
Everyone turned to the baserunner — the ball was long gone.
It felt like time stopped.
As the ball hit the turf behind him, Isashiki felt wind brush past.
"Is this… the wind of despair?"
He thought blankly.
"Harada rounds third — the game—!"
FWOOOSH
THUD
SLAM!
A cloud of dust exploded around home plate.
"OUT!!!"
Before the dust even cleared, the umpire's call rang out.
A difference of even 0.1 seconds was glaring to an umpire —and this play had been faster by at least 0.2 to 0.3 seconds.
There was no room for argument.
The entire stadium gasped.
Everyone assumed the moment the ball landed, the game was over.
No one had watched the outfield.
Except—
Sawamura.
Isashiki.
Miyuki.
They were the only ones who saw Sendo.
Even Coach Nakanishi and Fumino didn't dare imagine his state.
They didn't want to know.
The more gifted a player is, the harsher the mental blow.
And Sendo was a true monster of talent.
Yes —
Sendo's speed at that moment was unprecedented.
The more concentrated the mind, the more power the body can release.
To Sendo, the ball seemed to crawl across the grass.
A genius takes the greatest damage from failure —
but a genius also has the strongest refusal to die.
Sendo chased it down.
He caught it.
But he didn't know if he had enough time —so he flicked the ball upward lightly, like a basketball behind-the-back transfer, but thrown upward instead.
He twisted his body in the smallest possible motion, stabilized his center, and stepped forward — putting everything into the throw.
And with those long fingers and huge hands—
He launched the ball.
The rest—speaks for itself.
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