Diamond No Ace: The Monster

Chapter 131: Shocking Osaka Kiryuu Team!

On the field, the players of Osaka Kiryuu High School's baseball team had long lost their initial smiles.

Before today's game began, they were eagerly looking forward to facing Seidou High School, especially to challenging Furuya. But now, it seemed their spirits had completely dampened.

In their eyes, there was only confusion and even a hint of fear.

The opponent standing before them was nothing like what they had expected based on their prior research.

"What on earth is happening?"

The players of Osaka Kiryuu High School were filled with bewilderment. Even the second batter, who had just returned to the dugout, couldn't explain it to his teammates.

Was there a mistake in their scouting information?

The answer was no.

From the batter's firsthand experience, he could confidently assure everyone on the team that their initial scouting was accurate.

Furuya's pitching speed was just over 150 km/h, a speed they could certainly handle.

As for Furuya's breaking pitches?

Before their practice game against Seidou, the players of Osaka Kiryuu High School had already studied them thoroughly.

According to their analysis, his unpredictable changeup shouldn't have posed much trouble.

The reason was simple: their skill level was impressive enough.

It's not just empty boasting—these players had genuine confidence when they stepped onto the field.

Even if they waited for the ball to come right into their hitting zone, they were certain they could launch Furuya's changeup for a solid hit.

This was the confidence of players from the so-called "Cosmic Team." Many of them had already been stars on their respective teams back in junior high, and not from the average school teams but from hardball leagues.

They had received professional-level training even before entering high school.

After being selected as top-tier talents and undergoing rigorous training at Osaka Kiryuu High School, it was easy to imagine just how formidable their skills were.

Naturally, they believed they could hold their own against Furuya.

However, what these prideful prodigies never expected was the explosive chemistry when Furuya combined his high-speed fastballs with his changeup.

"There's no need for everyone to be disheartened. A first-year pitcher throwing 150 km/h is a rare phenomenon—maybe once in decades," the coach of Osaka Kiryuu, Matsumoto, spoke up. Unlike his usual strict demeanor, he surprisingly offered some comfort to his players.

The Osaka Kiryuu players were taken aback by their coach's uncharacteristic approach. They stared at him, bewildered, almost thinking he must have had a sudden change of heart.

But just as they thought the coach was being unusually kind, his tone shifted.

"Understanding is one thing, but you are players of Osaka Kiryuu. Don't you feel any shame?"

"Are you really willing to lose to a first-year rookie?"

Seeing his coach back to his usual strict self, the players of Osaka Kiryuu High School felt a sense of relief.

Now this was the coach they knew.

The kinder persona must have been his hidden alter ego.

"Due to the changeup, when Furuya suddenly switches to a fastball, it feels incredibly fast from the batter's perspective," explained the second batter.

Coach Matsumoto nodded in agreement.

"His fastest pitch is around 150 km/h, while the changeup can drop to just over 110 km/h. That's a speed difference of almost 40 km/h. Naturally, when the pitch jumps back to 150 km/h, it looks much faster."

As one of the nation's top coaches, Matsumoto's keen insight quickly identified why Furuya's pitching was so formidable.

"What should we do then?" one of the curious players asked.

Holding back his urge to roll his eyes, Coach Matsumoto shot a glare at his player.

"Can't you muscle-brained guys think for once?"

Hearing their coach's reprimand, the Osaka Kiryuu players all lowered their heads in shame.

Matsumoto sighed internally. He wasn't unwilling to give his players a chance to learn and think. In fact, he often tried to encourage their growth.

Although their team had consistently excellent results, the number of professional players produced by Osaka Kiryuu was not as impressive as Seidou's.

Especially in recent years, even with their superior records and player performances, Seidou's graduates seemed to make a bigger impact in the professional arena.

Matsumoto had racked his brains over this issue.

Despite his efforts, his players seemed to be stuck in their habits of following orders without much thought.

Sigh!

This kind of adjustment can't be made overnight. Despite his frustration, Coach Matsumoto of Osaka Kiryuu High School still shared his strategy with the team.

"Choose one pitch to focus on!" he instructed.

"Furuya's combination of fast and slow pitches is indeed tricky to time, and even by the end of this game, we may not fully adapt to it. Since that's the case, we don't need to force ourselves to adjust. He primarily relies on two types of pitches; we only need to choose one to focus on and abandon the other."

The moment Coach Matsumoto finished speaking, he was met with looks of admiration from his players. However, this reaction only made him more exasperated.

Coach Matsumoto glanced over at the dugout of Seidou High School, where Coach Kataoka stood silently with his arms crossed, observing everything without saying a word.

"Sometimes, I truly envy you, Kataoka-san! Not only do you have such smart and capable players, but you've also managed to recruit a genius like Furuya," Matsumoto murmured to himself.

The idea that a coach as prestigious as Matsumoto could envy the head coach of Seidou High School would undoubtedly stir up quite a buzz if word got out.

But of course, Matsumoto was only thinking out loud. There was no way he would actually want to swap places with Kataoka.

Despite how detailed this conversation seemed, it only took a few brief moments for Osaka Kiryuu's team to discuss and decide on their strategy.

Not only did the players in the dugout understand the plan, but the third batter already standing in the batter's box knew it as well.

"Focus on the changeup and ignore the fastball?" he thought.

In their previous exchanges, three out of the four pitches Furuya threw were changeups. It was clear that at this stage, Furuya was leaning heavily on his changeup.

And this was not surprising.

Even without being close to Furuya, the players of Osaka Kiryuu could guess that those intimidating high-speed fastballs would take a heavy toll on a pitcher.

Even for a seasoned professional, consistently throwing at such a high speed wouldn't be sustainable for long.

For a first-year high school rookie like Furuya, the strain must be immense.

To maximize Furuya's effectiveness on the mound, Seidou's strategy was likely to be a balanced approach: primarily using changeups with a few high-speed fastballs mixed in.

Given this strategy, it's likely that 60-70% of Furuya's pitches would be changeups.

"Focus on the changeup, wait for it to reach the hitting zone, and then swing," the third batter of Osaka Kiryuu thought to himself, raising his bat high like an angler poised to catch a big fish.

In the catcher's position, Miyuki observed the batter intently. He then glanced over at the Osaka Kiryuu dugout, seeming to notice something.

"Bring it on!"

With a decisive glint in his eyes, Miyuki opened his mitt wide for Furuya, signaling his pitch choice.

Without any hesitation, Furuya took a powerful step forward, and the baseball shot out of his hand like a bullet.

Boom!

The white ball sliced through the air, leaving a noticeable sonic boom in its wake.

For a brief moment, the home plate umpire felt an urge to dodge the ball. Furuya's pitch was so intense that it seemed like it could seriously injure anyone it hit.

The umpire, who made a living officiating games, had no intention of risking his life.

Of course, this thought only flashed in his mind for a split second. In the end, the umpire did not move.

It wasn't because of some incredible self-control, but simply because the pitch was so fast that by the time he realized it, the ball was already nestled in Miyuki's glove.

Smack!

"Strike!"

The large electronic scoreboard displayed the speed of the pitch clearly:

152 km/h!

Compared to the beginning of the game, this pitch was even faster.

The supporters of Seidou High School in the stands were practically glowing with excitement.

"Just like Furuya! Even in this situation, he still managed to increase his speed to over 150 km/h?"

It was truly unbelievable!

These Seidou fans weren't just cheering out of surprise, but also because they knew what Furuya had gone through recently.

To see him perform like this on the field in such a tough spot was beyond their expectations.

They couldn't even imagine how fast his pitches would be once he fully recovered to his peak form.

"I can barely hold myself together!" one fan exclaimed. "The scariest part is, this player is still growing!"

The fans' faces were flushed with excitement, gazing at the young figure on the mound.

Furuya's potential was clear to them, and they couldn't help but feel a sense of pride in their team's rising star.

Meanwhile, the players of Osaka Kiryuu High School seemed relatively composed.

Furuya's first pitch was a high-speed fastball, which they had anticipated.

Previously, Furuya had mixed in three changeups before throwing a high-speed fastball.

Although he had thrown the fastball at the end, the image of those changeups still lingered in the minds of the Osaka Kiryuu batters.

If Furuya were to throw another changeup, they might be able to take advantage of it.

He needed to strengthen the impression of his fastballs.

"Either the second pitch or the third one, a changeup is definitely coming," Coach Matsumoto said, his usual calm demeanor fading. He stood up and moved to the front of the dugout, fixated on the matchup.

The Osaka Kiryuu players followed suit, all standing and watching attentively. Their every movement did not go unnoticed by Seidou's catcher, Miyuki.

Miyuki squinted, sending another signal to Furuya.

The atmosphere was electric.

"Boom!"

The next pitch, a fastball, shot through the air with incredible speed.

"Smack!"

"Strike!"

With a 2-0 count, Furuya had the batter on the ropes. The Seidou players in the dugout stared in disbelief—what was going on?

Was Furuya abandoning the fast-slow combination for good? Was he going to use a changeup to finish the batter off?

Even the Seidou players weren't sure anymore, and the Osaka Kiryuu team, including their coach and batter, were left perplexed, frowning at Furuya on the mound.

"This has to be a changeup next. Aim for that!" Coach Matsumoto thought, his face twisted in frustration. He couldn't believe that a first-year like Furuya could be so insightful.

On the mound, Furuya paused for a brief moment but, trusting his partner, he didn't hesitate. He took a step forward, shifting his weight, and the ball rocketed from his hand.

"Boom!"

The sound of the ball cutting through the air was deafening.

Before the Osaka Kiryu team, including their coach, could even react, they were stunned.

"Three fastballs in a row?"

"Did he see right through our plan?"

By the time the ball reached Miyuki's glove, the Osaka Kiryuu players knew this at-bat was over.

And indeed, it was.

The third batter of Osaka Kiryuu, just like their second batter, watched helplessly as the third pitch flew by without swinging.

"Smack!"

"Strike three! You're out!"

"Three outs! Side retired!"

The Seidou supporters in the stands erupted in cheers.

"Wow!!!"

"Nice job!!!"

The excitement in the Seidou dugout and throughout the stadium was contagious.

------------

If you want to read 20 chapters advanced.

Visit my patreon: patreon.com/Shu_21