Chapter 511 - 511: In the World of the Sharingan

Ping!

"Foul!"

Ping!

Another foul ball.

One after another, baseballs were sent screaming into foul territory.

Only now did the players and supporters of Akikawa High School finally understand.

Earlier, they had found it strange.

Why were Seido's supporters getting so excited over a few foul balls?

Now they knew.

There was a reason for their excitement.

They were witnessing the return of Seido's Demon Batter.

If this duel continued, Yang Shunchen would inevitably be placed at a disadvantage.

Whether he could ultimately retire the batter was one thing, but even if he succeeded...

How many pitches would it cost him?

No matter how exceptional Yang's stamina was compared to other high school pitchers, no one could endure an endless battle of attrition.

Throwing that many pitches in such a short span of time placed a tremendous burden on any pitcher.

That was exactly why opposing teams hated facing this Demon Batter.

Against Seido's other hitters, failure usually meant surrendering a hit.

Against Kominato Ryosuke, however, the suffering never ended.

Every pitch became a test of patience.

Worse yet, there was no way of knowing when the torment would finally stop.

The coaches and players of Akikawa had already realized this.

Their expressions grew more serious with each passing second.

The more they understood the situation, the more they realized just how troublesome the batter standing at home plate truly was.

This matchup was proving far more difficult than they had anticipated.

What should they do?

Yang Shunchen's greatest weapon wasn't overwhelming velocity or a devastating breaking ball.

His strength lay in his completeness.

His control, composure, fielding, and game management all bordered on perfection.

But precisely because of that, he struggled against a batter like Kominato Ryosuke.

As Akikawa's bench desperately searched for an answer, Yang Shunchen made his decision.

From the mound, he gave a subtle signal.

Whoosh!

The baseball shot from his fingertips.

Standing in the batter's box, Kominato never took his eyes off the ball.

With his extraordinary pitch recognition, he immediately judged its trajectory.

The pitch was drifting outside the strike zone by roughly the width of a baseball.

"His control really is incredible," Kominato thought.

"But control alone isn't enough to beat me."

He calmly watched the pitch pass by.

Pop!

"Ball!"

Just as he expected.

After a lengthy battle, the count had reached full.

Three balls. Two strikes.

Both batter and pitcher had been backed into a corner.

Victory or defeat would be decided by this next pitch.

The atmosphere in the stadium tightened instantly.

The spectators unconsciously held their breath.

It was as if even the sound of breathing might disrupt the duel unfolding before them.

A pitcher-batter showdown of this caliber was rare.

And with Seido involved, it was even rarer.

The neutral spectators were captivated.

Akikawa's supporters were captivated.

Even Seido's most devoted fans watched without blinking.

Yang Shunchen prepared to throw again.

Behind the plate, the catcher set his mitt and subtly shifted it toward the edge of the strike zone.

The home plate umpire's eyes widened.

He had never encountered a pitcher quite like Yang.

The mound stood over eighteen meters from home plate.

No matter how good a pitcher's control was, absolute precision should have been impossible.

There would always be some margin of error.

Mechanical flaws.

Variations in release point.

Tiny inconsistencies.

Yet Yang Shunchen seemed to defy that reality.

Wherever the catcher set his target, the ball arrived.

Again and again.

Without fail.

Because of that consistency, the umpire had unconsciously formed an expectation.

This pitch would be a strike.

Whoosh!

As the ball raced toward the plate, every nerve in Kominato Ryosuke's body came alive.

He was exhilarated.

Facing an elite control pitcher was like scaling a towering mountain.

The challenge itself was intoxicating.

And reaching the summit brought a satisfaction unlike anything else.

Then he saw it.

The ball drifted slightly inside.

In an instant, Kominato reached his conclusion.

It's outside.

The pitch was close, but not close enough.

He kept the bat firmly on his shoulder.

"I win."

The baseball continued toward the plate.

A walk.

That was what he expected.

Then—

Pop!

The ball struck the catcher's mitt.

"Strike!"

"Batters out!"

Three strikes.

Strikeout.

For a brief moment, Kominato wondered if he had misheard.

He slowly turned around and stared at the umpire.

The umpire met his gaze.

"Is there a problem, player?"

There was a trace of guilt in the man's voice, but no intention of changing the call.

Of course there was a problem.

And not a small one.

But the decision had already been made.

Arguing now would accomplish nothing.

Worse, it would only damage both his own image and Seido's.

It would make it seem as though Seido couldn't accept defeat.

After a moment, Kominato shook his head.

"No. No problem."

Two outs.

Bases empty.

Back in Seido's dugout, the players had clearly noticed what had happened.

"If that's the case, then we can't even take pitches that are close to the zone."

"At this rate, his strike zone is practically an entire ball wider than normal."

"I never imagined there'd be a pitcher in high school baseball who could push control to this level."

Given Seido's experience, they had faced plenty of pitchers known for exceptional command.

But Yang Shunchen was something else entirely.

Among the nation's elite pitchers, none could be said to have poor control.

But to wield control the way Yang Shunchen of Akikawa High School did...

That was something entirely different.

A true one-of-a-kind talent.

There was probably no other high school pitcher capable of reaching such a level.

"Third batter, Number 1, Outfielder, Zhou Hao!"

With two outs recorded, Zhou Hao stepped into the batter's box.

The players in Seido's dugout still looked full of confidence.

After all, in their memories, there had never been an opponent Zhou Hao couldn't overcome.

The real question was whether Yang Shunchen had the courage to challenge him directly.

The spectators in the stands, however, held differing opinions.

"Zhou Hao's up."

"With his abilities, he should be the perfect counter to Yang."

"Not necessarily. Kominato was supposed to be a counter too, wasn't he? Look at what happened."

"Until they actually face each other, nobody knows who'll come out on top."

On the mound, Yang Shunchen lifted his head and stared at Zhou Hao.

Whether it was instinct or something else entirely, he could sense an overwhelming threat emanating from the batter before him.

Every fiber of his being warned him that this man was dangerous.

Extremely dangerous.

It almost felt as though he had no chance of winning.

But Yang Shunchen wasn't someone who relied solely on intuition.

Instinct was important, but it didn't determine the outcome of a game.

Zhou Hao, the nation's undisputed number one player, stood like a towering monument before every high school baseball player.

As long as a player possessed even a shred of ambition, they dreamed of toppling him from that pedestal.

Yang Shunchen was no exception.

He had thoroughly studied Seido's information.

And among all the reports, the one he had examined most carefully was the file on Zhou Hao.

If Akikawa wanted to defeat Seido, they had to confront this ace head-on.

There was no avoiding it.

Otherwise, they would never be able to break Seido's spirit.

To Seido, Zhou Hao was both their sharpest spear and their strongest shield.

Whether attacking or defending, he always stood at the forefront.

No opponent had ever managed to shake his confidence.

And Seido's players firmly believed in him.

As long as Zhou Hao stood on the field, they would never surrender.

No matter how powerful the opponent was, they would fight until the very end.

More importantly, they believed that if they continued battling long enough, victory would eventually tilt in their favor.

Time and time again, reality had proven them right.

By now, that belief had become absolute faith.

The duel began.

Yang Shunchen set himself and delivered the pitch.

Whoosh!

The moment the ball left his hand, the players in Seido's dugout could already predict its general trajectory.

This was the experience of a national powerhouse.

The instant a pitcher began his motion, they could often estimate the pitch's course with eighty or ninety percent accuracy.

They might not know the exact final location, but they knew one thing for certain:

The ball was heading toward the strike zone.

Even if it missed, it wouldn't miss by much.

Realizing this, many Seido players felt a shiver run down their spines.

"Akikawa's ace is really going to challenge Zhou Hao head-on?"

They couldn't fully understand his decision.

But they respected it.

At the same time, some of them were already wondering if they should start celebrating.

Inside the batter's box, Zhou Hao had already activated his Sharingan.

To him, Yang Shunchen's pinpoint control was meaningless.

No matter where the ball was hidden, it couldn't escape his sight.

He could clearly see its trajectory.

Its timing.

Its final destination.

Everything.

The more precise a machine became, the easier it was to exploit its patterns—

Provided you could understand how that machine operated.

And in Zhou Hao's eyes, Yang Shunchen was completely transparent.

His intentions.

His calculations.

His concerns.

His strategy.

Zhou Hao could see all of it.

Then suddenly, his eyes lit up.

"This is it."

Gripping the bat tightly with both hands, Zhou Hao unleashed his swing the instant the ball entered his range.

BOOM!

Akikawa's catcher was startled.

He had expected Zhou Hao to swing.

But he hadn't expected him to swing so decisively.

There was no hesitation.

No probing.

No attempt to gather information.

The moment he recognized the pitch, he attacked.

What kind of confidence was that?

Before the catcher could process it, the ball had already been launched.

Ping!

The Seido supporters weren't surprised in the slightest.

They had seen this countless times before.

This was Zhou Hao.

Anyone who dared challenge him head-on rarely walked away unscathed.

Yang Shunchen wasn't the first.

And he certainly wouldn't be the last.

The pitch was driven deep into the outfield.

A hint of surprise appeared on Zhou Hao's face.

He had expected the ball to carry all the way into the stands.

After all, Yang Shunchen's fastball wasn't particularly fast.

But he had underestimated the "Precision Machine."

Though lacking overwhelming velocity, Yang's pitches possessed excellent late movement.

Even with a full-powered swing, Zhou Hao could only drive the ball into the outfield grass.

Akikawa's outfielder sprinted desperately toward the landing point.

But he was just a step too late.

Pop!

The ball bounced off the ground.

The moment he saw it drop safely, Zhou Hao exploded into motion.

He rounded first base without slowing down and charged straight for second.

Two outs.

Runner on second.

Some spectators couldn't help but sigh.

"What a shame."

"The outfielder reacted just a little too slowly."

If he had been a fraction faster, the outcome might have been completely different.

He had been close enough to make the catch.

Had Zhou Hao been retired there, it would have been a monumental moment for Akikawa.

Instead, all they could do was watch as he safely reached second base.

Many wondered what Akikawa's players were thinking.

Would Yang Shunchen regret challenging him?

The answer came immediately.

Yang raised one finger and calmly shouted to his teammates.

"Just one more out! I'm counting on everyone!"

As the ace, he stepped forward at exactly the right moment.

Rather than blaming anyone, he entrusted the team to finish the inning with him.

His words instantly energized Akikawa's players.

"It's only one more out!"

"Throw whatever you've got!"

"With us behind you, that ball isn't touching the ground again!"

Two outs.

Runner on second.

Akikawa's fighting spirit burned hotter than ever.

The next batter hadn't even stepped into the box yet, but they already looked ready for battle.

"Fourth batter, Number 3, First Baseman, Yuki Tetsuya!"

The next man to step up was Seido's cleanup hitter.

Yuki Tetsuya.

Yang Shunchen took a deep breath.

Despite Yuki's fearsome reputation—and despite the rumors that his strength rivaled Zhou Hao's—

Yang didn't back down.

Not even for a moment.

Whoosh!

He lifted his leg and fired the pitch.

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