Ace of Diamond: Return of the Pitcher

Sawamura Eijun's guess was absolutely correct.

None of the university or professional baseball players who had previously come from high school baseball looked down on high school baseball.

They weren't big-headed or overly self-assured. Instead, they viewed the Tokyo baseball team's players as equals, opponents at the same level as themselves.

From the start, their mindset was set in the right direction.

However, soon, they found it difficult to maintain that mindset.

At the beginning of the game, Tokyo's Prince Narumiya Mei threw a perfect start.

He made two professional baseball players and one university player go up and down in order without a hit or Walk.

This result was a bit embarrassing!

Especially since one of those players who was out was the number one draft pick in the previous year's draft and a key candidate for the current Rookie of the Year.

Yuuki Tetsuya.

This was an outright bitch-slap in the face. Even though they respected high school baseball players, after all, they themselves had come from high school baseball.

It was impossible for them to think they were worse than the players in the high school baseball teams.

To put it another way, after taking the college entrance exam and going on to university, the students who made it wouldn't look down on the high school seniors they once knew.

Anyone who manages to get through such a tough challenge is a hero.

But this doesn't mean that those talented university students would think their abilities were inferior to the high school seniors.

This is exactly the mindset of these professional and university players.

They respect these monsters selected from Tokyo, even if they have just formed a team and haven't yet built any real combat power.

They wouldn't look down on them.

But would they admit that these high schoolers are stronger than them?

Absolutely not.

They don't believe that for a second.

"It's time to show these little juniors what real professional baseball is," said Fumei Tsuyoi as he stretched his body, preparing to pitch.

His partner was the former captain and starting catcher of Inashiro Industrial High School's baseball team.

Harada Masatoshi.

"Fumei-senpai, how do you plan to deal with these kids?" Harada asked, contemplating before they went out to the mound.

In professional baseball, there's an emphasis on seniority, as well as a focus on strength. It's a strange combination of standards, but they oddly merge together.

Veteran players are respected, and strong players are equally respected.

If the other player has more experience and superior strength, they may even be a little famous. In that case, respect is even more necessary.

Although Harada Masatoshi was not on the same team as Fumei, he still had to address him as senpai.

Fumei lazily stretched and turned to look at the new Tokyo team.

With a disregarding look, he said, "Just a bunch of little kids, no need for any tactics."

'This was quite arrogant.'

Harada Masatoshi felt uncomfortable hearing this. He wanted to offer some advice, but seeing Fumei's attitude, he probably wouldn't listen.

So Harada didn't bother to argue.

'Did he really think the second-place winner for the MVP of professional baseball could be careless against these high school monsters?'

'How naive!'

Harada understood the strength of these high school players. Even without mentioning the Maou Sawamura, just in their Inashiro Industrial High School team alone, there were many outstanding players.

Any one of these players could stir up a storm in the professional scene.

Now, with so many strong, monstrous players gathered together, Harada didn't know what kind of impact they would create.

'If he didn't realize how high the stakes were, let him run into a few obstacles and learn the hard way.'

It wasn't that Harada was selfish; it was just that the professional baseball world was that harsh.

In any professional baseball team, if there's a vacant position, there's fierce competition to fill it.

There are plenty of players waiting to replace the starters and become new professional members.

In such a situation, asking desperately for teamwork was not naïve, but foolish.

Only by performing well and having enough strength could a player truly earn their place.

Everything else was just nonsense.

For players who had just graduated from school and entered the professional scene, the shock was tremendous!

The methods they followed in school were useless in the pros.

Top-tier teams like Seidou's baseball team were better off.

Since they adhered as closely as possible to the standards of professional teams, they didn't seem too out of place.

But for ordinary teams, especially those that emphasized seniority, the players truly understood how cruel the world of professional baseball could be.

In the professional world, no one was obsessed with seniority or manners.

It was all about strength.

The professional field was a tough environment. One mistake, whether on or off the field, could cost a player everything.

There was no tolerance, no patience like in high school.

So, professional baseball and high school baseball are completely different systems—almost like two separate worlds.

On the surface, high school baseball might seem more brutal, but the professional baseball environment could be far more unforgiving.

In such fierce competition, the flaws and weaknesses of human nature would be exposed even more clearly.

If Fumei Tsuyoi became too proud and arrogant at this moment...

Harada's eyes flashed.

Then the promising 'Senpai' in front of him would probably be finished.

The professional baseball world was like rowing against the current—if a player doesn't improve, they fall behind.

A proud and arrogant player will eventually hit a wall.

Even though Harada gave up on trying to persuade Fumei, he still felt worried in his heart.

But when the real game started, Harada realized how naïve he had been.

Although Fumei had been loudly talking about how the other side was just a bunch of kids, once the game began, he didn't act recklessly.

On the surface, he said, 'Just a bunch of kids, no need to be meticulous,' but once the game started, he gave his all and fought fiercely against his opponents.

"STRIKE!"

"STRIKE!!"

"STRIKE! BATTER OUT!!!"

"STRIKE! BATTER OUT!!!!"

Paak!

Snap!

"OUT!!!!"

From Carlos to Shirakawa, and finally to the third batter, Miyuki Kazuya.

Harada was very familiar with these three players. He knew their abilities inside and out, especially Carlos and Shirakawa.

Back when he was on Inashiro's baseball team, those two were already key players. They had been fighting together for over a year.

They knew each other's strengths and weaknesses.

Harada wasn't exaggerating when he said that these two juniors were strong enough to make an impact even in professional teams.

Not to mention Miyuki Kazuya, who had already garnered attention from all professional baseball teams.

Any one of these three was a formidable opponent who made Harada cautious.

But in front of Fumei's pitching, they seemed like children.

Except for Miyuki Kazuya, who made contact with the ball, Carlos and Shirakawa didn't even touch the ball.

The three were easily solved.

Two Strikeouts and one Shutout!

It was a clean and decisive result, not messy at all.

Harada was quite surprised and gave Fumei a thumbs-up.

"Senpai is really..."

He wanted to say something, but couldn't find the right words.

He spent a while trying to come up with something but didn't manage to say anything.

"I told you, just a bunch of kids," Fumei said casually, rubbing his messy hair.

If Harada still believed his words now, it would just make him look like a fool.

Fumei was clearly showing disrespect on the surface, but in playing, he took them seriously.

Without a strong mental fortitude and incredible skill, it would be impossible to pull that off.

A textbook Professional Pitcher!

The three were solved so smoothly, which was a huge shock for the newly-formed Tokyo baseball team.

The top three batters were all famous high school players.

Yet, without even a splash, they were suppressed.

Everyone watching couldn't help but be shocked.

"How did his pitching feel like?"

Because they didn't have detailed information beforehand, they only realized the opponent's strength after taking the field.

So the data from the first three batters became incredibly valuable.

Hearing the question, whether it was Carlos, Shirakawa, or Miyuki Kazuya, they all had ashamed looks on their faces.

They knew the opponent was powerful, but the real confrontation felt entirely different.

Simply speaking, Fumei wasn't necessarily much stronger than the top pitchers in high school.

But the interesting thing was that this pitcher was very well-rounded.

They didn't understand him, but that didn't mean he didn't understand them.

And even if Fumei didn't understand, the catcher was very familiar with them.

Harada Masatoshi, who was the former catcher for Inashiro's team, had joined the professional league after graduation.

The kids in front of him were either former teammates or his biggest rivals. There was no way he didn't understand their abilities.

The opponent's strategy was clear: exploit the weaknesses of their team and bombard them relentlessly.

This was the opponent's plan, and it was clear to Carlos, Shirakawa, and Miyuki.

But even if they saw it clearly, they still felt reluctant to admit it.

They couldn't exactly tell everyone that they couldn't perform well because they were seen through, could they?

"The pitching is sharp!"

"The velocity is fast."

"Control is precise, aiming for the corners…"

Each of the three gave an evaluation, but they were all useless comments.

The three Aces on the team were all of this caliber.

If they didn't have this level of skill, how could they possibly have the confidence to call themselves the top pitchers in the country?

That would just be a slap in the face!

'Whether in strength of information, you are at a disadvantage!'

In the dugout, Coach Kunitomo shook his neck forcefully, making it crack.

He then fixed his gaze on the players on the field, his eyes flashing with sharp light.

'Only in such dire circumstances could you see who was really gold.'

…