Bottom of the fourth inning. Shun climbed the dugout steps, gripping his bat, his face showing signs of being shaken.
"I can't give up here!" - He said to himself, a flicker of determination shining in his eyes. The boy stepped into the left batter's box and looked at Kohei on the mound, with fire in his eyes.
"Huh? Still haven't given up? Hahaha, alright then, I'll finish destroying you!" - Sugawara was surprised by Shun's attitude given the current state of the game. Part of him admired the will to fight until the end, no matter what.
Well, the main reason was that the white-haired maniac found it more fun to destroy players who kept trying. Once they gave up, the fun was over.
Sugawara called for a fastball to the upper inside corner of the zone. The first pitch came.
WOOSH
DING
"Foul!"
"Tch! You're really annoying!" - Sugawara couldn't help but curse. There was no type of batter more irritating than Shun, he hit every strike into foul territory but didn't even flinch at pitches outside the zone.
Kohei signaled for another fastball, positioning his glove low and outside the zone. The second pitch came.
WOOSH
DING
"Foul!"
Once again, Shun easily fouled the pitch off.
"You bastard!" - Sugawara was irritated. He called for another fastball, positioning his glove above the zone. But for the first time in the game, Kohei shook his head on the mound, refusing the signal.
Both Shun in the batter's box and Sugawara behind home plate felt a terrible aura coming from the boy on the mound. They shivered from Kohei's intense presence, as if he were declaring war on the batter. He wanted to strike out the only player who had managed to hit off him earlier in the game.
"Is this what you want?" - Sugawara made a different signal, even surprised by Kohei's aura. He decided to let Kohei throw whatever he wanted. Kohei nodded at the signal and began his wind-up. The third pitch of the duel came.
"Curveball!" - Shun recognized the pitch as soon as it left Kohei's hand, the same pitch he had hit in the first inning. He swung confidently.
WOOSH
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PAH
"Strikeout!"
Shun stared blankly at the field, watching his captain strike out and walk back to the dugout with his head down. He saw Jiro sobbing on the bench, a towel over his head. He saw Sora clenching his fists in frustration. Then he saw his senpai, Junpei Kondo, the person whose spot he had taken in right field, crying as he looked at Kazuki.
He saw Kenta standing, fists clenched, tears in his eyes, forcing himself to keep watching the field. Next to him was Ren, the young samurai, head down, crying loudly. Shun felt the sense of helplessness grow even more as he watched his friends in this state.
WOOSH
PAH
"Strikeout!"
Shun heard the umpire announce the strikeout of the fifth batter. He watched the sixth batter walk to the batter's box with his head down.
WOOSH
PAH
"Strike!"
WOOSH
PAH
"Strike!"
After two strikes, Shun looked out at the field. This nightmare was finally about to end. Kohei threw the ball one last time.
WOOSH
PAH
"Strikeout! 3 outs, game over!"
The moment the umpire announced the end of the game, Shun heard a familiar voice in his head, one he hadn't heard in a long time.
[Hahahahahahahahaha! You arrogant brat, weren't you all high and mighty saying you didn't need my help? Enjoy this defeat, loser! Hahahahaha!]