Sawamura, on the pitcher's mound, didn't know about the players' feelings in the dugout.
He glanced up at the electronic scoreboard.
2:1!
Given the current situation, Japan's lead was negligible.
One home run or a few hits could change the situation entirely.
The American team!
Even if they were not the Dream Team they faced before, their strength was not to be underestimated.
Each of them was an elite among elites, stronger than half of Japan's players.
Even with this star-stuffed team, Sawamura isn't very confident of winning.
True, their teamwork was more than the sum of parts, but some individual players might still not match America.
Even though two of Sawamura's teammates were on that team.
It was obvious that before the game, American players had studied their opponents.
Though not thoroughly, they had done some research.
That was very different from knowing nothing.
Thankfully, Sawamura's current strength could not be countered by simple research.
Even if his partner were not Miyuki, Sawamura could showcase his pitching ability. He is confident in stopping them.
Sawamura was in good form today, absolutely confident.
But nothing ever goes according to plan.
Since it had come to this, he had nothing to say but focus on pitching well.
Wholeheartedly and meticulously, he aimed to bring out the greatest power of the pitches he could throw now.
ROAAARR!!!
The baseball flew like a sharp arrow, instantly reaching extreme speed.
Then, with unstoppable momentum, it slammed into the catcher's Mitt.
Boom!
During this, America's third batter was completely spaced out.
No one knew if he didn't want to swing or simply couldn't.
His motionless waiting was really annoying.
Not just Sawamura, even Renji behind the plate could feel the immense pressure brought by this American third batter.
To be honest, every American player was tough to deal with.
Especially the first few batters, starting from Francis, they all had their own unique styles.
Given some sunshine, they'd shine brightly; given some color, they could run their own dyeing shop.
If such players went all out,
then Japan team would be in big trouble.
To avoid this, they had to solve some problems.
They absolutely could not let the opponents do whatever they wanted comfortably.
With a plan in mind, Renji signaled Sawamura.
Seeing Renji's active attitude, Sawamura secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Honestly, just by looking at him earlier, the collapse wouldn't have been surprising.
At the home plate confrontation, Renji had effectively lost to Francis.
That was a huge blow.
Fortunately, Renji was mature and tough, and he endured.
This was something very rare and worth emphasizing.
The motionless third batter finally lost to Sawamura's relentless pressure.
Faced with the ball right in front of him, he had no choice but to swing his bat.
PAAK!
The young player had decent hitting ability, catching Sawamura's pitching style by the second pitch.
Unfortunately, although he caught the timing, the hit wasn't powerful enough.
He couldn't completely send the ball flying far.
Even after the ball was hit, the batter's palm was still trembling slightly.
He hadn't expected the ball to be so fast and powerful.
The ball was surprisingly heavy!
The baseball flew quite high but didn't travel far.
It was only about twenty meters before it fell vertically.
Sawamura, on the mound, raised his mitt high and steadily caught the ball.
On the pitcher's mound, Sawamura raised his mitt high. Inside that mitt, a faint white glow could be seen.
That was nothing but the white baseball that was captivating the entire stadium at that very moment.
The pitcher made a direct catch!
And it was a high fly ball of this caliber.
In such a situation, even if you try not to let the American players or the fans in the stands get carried away with wild thoughts, it's simply impossible.
The facts before their eyes had already proven everything.
A fan from Taiwan in the stands, interested in the Seidou High School baseball team, had also collected a lot of information about Sawamura. He knew Sawamura's various special techniques inside and out.
Even if he had never seen them firsthand before, the moment he saw this ball, one name instantly sprang to mind.
"Is this… 'The Swallows' Homecoming'?"
Even those fans who had only learned about Sawamura's skill online or on their phones felt the same when they saw this ball.
Not to mention the true fans who were intimately familiar with Sawamura's ultimate techniques and strength.
In the Japanese team's rest area, an unusual calm prevailed.
Despite Sawamura's stunning performance, the Japanese team's own rest area did not react with much excitement.
It felt as if Sawamura's performance was only natural.
These were feats a "Great Demon King" was supposed to accomplish; it would only be newsworthy if he failed. Since he succeeded, it was merely his normal display of strength, not something worth making a big deal about…
At this point, this was basically how the Japanese players felt.
Although it seemed a bit arrogant, you had to admit this greatly boosted morale.
The Japanese players were basically in that state.
When they saw Sawamura use "The Swallows' Homecoming" again, they felt very pleased inside, but they did not want to easily show this emotion.
In contrast, they preferred to maintain the composed and unhurried demeanor they had before.
Everything was going according to plan, everything was perfectly reasonable.
This image was undoubtedly one that everyone liked.
Only this kind of posture and appearance matched them.
As for the others on the field, they were nowhere near as calm as the Japanese players.
At this moment, their eyes were red.
Everyone knew the Great Demon King Sawamura was no ordinary player; they had mostly heard about him before the match.
But hearing was one thing, seeing was quite another.
At this moment, Sawamura seemed to emit a halo, standing tall.
He was like a benchmark, attracting countless gazes.
Everyone was watching, wanting to see what heights this benchmark would ultimately reach.
When people saw Sawamura use "The Swallows' Homecoming" again, their hearts were filled with complex emotions.
The scene before them moved countless people.
Three Outs, change of offense and defense.
The American players, after a hard-fought battle, finally scored one run.
It looked like it was very difficult for them.
But even so, their final result wasn't much better.
After scoring that run, Sawamura immediately retaliated tooth for tooth, blood for blood.
First, with assassin-like pickoff moves, he successfully eliminated the runner on base.
That wasn't all — immediately after, he used "The Swallows' Homecoming" to get the batter out.
Securing the third Out of the inning, he gave the American players no more time or opportunities.
Otherwise, the result could very well have been something no one wanted to see.
"What was that just now?"
"Looks like it was planned."
"You're right, it was definitely planned."
"One of the Great Demon King's signature finishing moves, 'The Swallows' Homecoming'."
…