Diamond Ace: Monster Slayer

Chapter 224 Hongo Masamune
"It's still 0-0 after the first inning. It seems that the two teams are almost at the same level and neither can defeat the opponent's ace pitcher. Are Hongo and Okada of similar strength?"

"Stop being silly, idiot."

Fujio listened to his assistant's remarks and immediately responded back.

In terms of pitchers alone, there is no comparison between Teito High School and the Hokkaido overlord's troll Otomaki.

Among the pitchers of Teito High School, apart from Okada, there is only one pitcher who can take a shot, Mukai Taiyo.

There are no other reliable pitchers.

It is slightly stronger than the Troll Vine Scroll.

The troll Otojuan only has Hongo to rely on, and when Hongo falls, the troll Otojuan doesn't even have a substitute pitcher to catch up.

This is the disadvantage of Troll Da Tengjuan building the team with an ace pitcher as the core.

But even so, the Troll Vine Scroll still has the advantage.

Hongo has not lost any points since his first appearance in the Koshien stadium, no matter which team he faces.

The fact that the two met in the semi-finals proves that they have both overcome many difficulties.

No team has a smooth road to promotion.

This is true for the Giant Troll Vine Scroll and also for Teito High School.

Many of the top teams in Koshien were trampled upon by them.

Entering the quarterfinals before this game, the troll Daitomaki had just defeated last year's runner-up Kiryu High School.

I believe everyone knows the strength of Kiryu High School.

That person is a strong contender for the Koshien championship this year.

It is said that they use the largest metal bats for their daily swing training, and with the help of the ace pitcher Guangmei, this team has no weaknesses at all.

But such a team was shut out by the Troll Daitojuan in the quarterfinals.

How terrible it is, I believe it goes without saying.

The Giant Troll Daitojuan came to the semi-finals with this spirit. Facing Teito High School, which was not as strong as Kiryu High School on paper, they had no reason to admit defeat.

On paper, their strength is not as good as Kiryu High School, but that’s just what the troll Daitomaki thinks.

Teito High School doesn’t think so.

After all, they are one of the top four, how could they not be a match for Kiryu High School?
Entering Koshien, every team’s goal is to be the final champion.

Standing on this stage, they are the strongest team in their region, and in their eyes there is no difference between strong and weak.

It's nothing more than a bunch of the strongest people in each region fighting each other.

Teito High School is not willing to give up the opportunity to compete for the Koshien championship.

"Top of the second inning, the giant troll Otomaki is attacking, the fourth batter, the pitcher, is Hongo-san."

"Authentic, it's okay, right?"

Old man Nitta asked as he looked at Hongo who was walking out.

"It's going to be okay. Just wait and see my home run."

Hongo walked out with great momentum.

Perhaps he had already seen through Okada's weaknesses, otherwise he wouldn't have such strong confidence in hitting the home run.

"That's great. I hope you can have the same spirit in your next game against Seidou High School."

Hongxiang didn't like to hear it at that time.

Qingdao High School! Qingdao High School again!
Since you like Qingdao High School so much, why don’t you become their supervisor?

You old man!
"He's actually the fourth batter on the team."

Sawamura sighed.

Although this was an ace pitcher and fourth batter in high school, it is not common.

At least that's the case at Qingdao High School.

The pitcher of Seidou High School is usually assigned to the ninth batter position of the team, which is the last batter.

A back-to-back hit line in a back-to-back hit line.

Even a hitter like Akira Fōtani, who clearly has strong hitting ability, can only bat ninth when he is put in the starting lineup.

On the one hand, it shows the strength of Qingdao High School's batting line, and on the other hand, it shows the strength and versatility of Hongxiang's attack.

Being an ace pitcher and fourth batter is something many pitchers could never dream of.

Zhou Hui just watched all this quietly, wondering what strategy Didong High School would come up with when facing this ace pitcher.

In his opinion, admission is impossible anyway.

Even if he was admitted without recommendation, it couldn't be Jingyuan who was recommended.

That would be really embarrassing.

It doesn't fit the character of Teito High School at all.

As a national giant, it would definitely not look good to send someone as a recommendation.

"If he is not recommended, then what can we do?"

Zhou Hui began to think.

As a super hitter, he only knows how to hit the ball well, but he doesn't know how to deal with hitters of his type.

Do you think it’s bullshit or not?
A person’s greatest enemy is indeed himself.

"A straight ball high into the inside corner."

The ball that comes up is the one closest to the hitter.

However, Okada's ball power is good enough, and he is not afraid of Hongo even if he throws the ball into the inside corner.

"Whoosh!"

The baseball rushed over with a spin, and Qian Xiangang's glove was already there.

"coming."

"Snapped!"

"nice shot!"

"The power and speed of the ball are both good, keep it up."

But after seeing this goal, Hongxiang's face was not filled with shock, but disdain.

"Is it just like this?"

Obviously, this level of pitching is nothing to this town.

He is the ace pitcher of Teito High School, but it turns out he is just like that.

"Look at Hongo's expression."

Sawamura noticed this immediately with his sharp eyes.

Hongo's expression was one of disgust, as if his expectations had not been met at all.

"Too proud!"

Even Isajiki Jun began to feel indignant.

How could such a pretentious boy appear in this place? It makes me angry just looking at him.

I haven't even pretended to be like this yet, why are you, a first-grade kid, joining in the fun?
"Don't worry."

Among the group of people from Qingdao High School, only Miyuki is calm at the moment.

"Okada hasn't used his strongest pitch yet. Let's wait until the curveball comes out and see what kind of expression this kid has."

Yuki smiled slightly.

After all, Okada is an ace pitcher who has been working hard at Teito High School for three years.

It's not something a first-grade kid like you can look down on!
"Next pitch, a curveball from the outside corner."

Okada nodded, then turned sideways to Hongo and began to exert force from all sides of his body.

"Whoosh!"

This pitching posture looks very powerful.

“Is it that big?”

The students at Qingdao High School were also surprised.

What is this for?
"When I played in Koshien, you were still in junior high school!"

"Whoosh!"

The white ball was pushed out from Okada's fingertips, but its speed was as slow as a snail, and it went towards the low-angle strike zone.

"Don't take me so seriously, okay?"

When Hongxiang saw the speed and trajectory of the ball, he had no intention of swinging the bat.

This angle, this ball speed.

Isn't it just a changing ball to trick him into swinging?

He was just stunned, not stupid yet.

Everyone can see that Hongo is stupid. It can be said that everyone knows it.

Not to mention the entire Troll Daitojuan, even in the entire Koshien team, he might be the only one who dares to fight with his own coach.

"Bad ball."

"Good choice!"

"Not bad!"

"Keep choosing!"

"The other side is starting to get scared!"

The boys of the Giant Troll Vine also began to get excited.

It was a good thing for them that they refused to confront Hongo head-on.

"Scared? Stop talking nonsense!"

After hearing what the troll Da Tengjuan said, Qian Xiangang was the first one who was unwilling.

He is only a sophomore now and is not that calm yet.

He gets angry easily and doesn't have the calmness a catcher should have.

"You must stay calm, you must stay calm, Xian Gang!"

Director Okamoto noticed the change in Qian Xianggang's eyes and felt afraid for Teito High School.

The fact that Qian Xiangang got so angry proves that Didong High School has lost its brain.

How can we still play this game?
"Their lounge is really noisy."

Zhou Hui looked at the troll Da Tengjuan’s lounge speechlessly.

What he likes most is quietness.

If we really play against such a team next time, we will be able to suppress him mentally.

During competitions, it is common to hear loud noises.

Whether it is in one’s own lounge, the lounge opposite or in the audience, there will be many people cheering and shouting.

Boos are inevitable.

If this were applied in a professional arena, it would be even more obvious.

If Zhou Hui really wants to gain a foothold in the professional arena, he still has a long way to go.

"Don't worry about it. Now it seems that he is aiming at your straight ball, so let's continue with the curve ball."

"Whoosh!"

The little white ball crossed the sky, and after entering the strike zone, it drew a beautiful arc, and then found the right position and went through.

"The change is good, this is exactly the effect we want!"

After seeing the changing curve of the baseball, Qian Xiangang burst into laughter.

If he comes like this, he will definitely not be able to hit him.

"do not underestimate me."

His eyes locked onto the center of the baseball, and he swung the bat and hit it.

"Qiang!"

The metal bat hit the baseball, and the small white ball took off and quickly went over the infielder's head.

"Oh no, we can't let him fly like this!"

Qian Xian had just taken off his mask and was about to give some instructions to the outfield.

But baseball didn't give him this opportunity at all, it was like a meteor with a tail, flying in the air.

"It looks like it's going to be a home run."

Looking at the speed and angle of the baseball, Zhou Hui immediately determined that the ball would become a home run.

The reason why Hongxiang can have such a fast and powerful pitch proves that his arm strength is definitely good.

Due to his arm strength, his striking ability is naturally at an upper level.

After all, isn't Fōgiya Akatsuki the same?
The only difference between him and Fōgō Akatsuki is that this kid Hongo knows how to use his own skills instead of just fighting blindly.

Skills are the mountain that Fōtani Akira needs to climb in order to surpass Hongo.

Fōgiya Akira's playing style is exactly the same as Hongo's.

Both of them are fastball and heavy-ball pitchers, but what makes Hongo better than Kouya is that he can control the ball in every corner of the strike zone.

As for Akatsuki Fūdani...

Even if you let him pitch for 800 years, he would never be able to perform like this.

Sometimes skills are more important than strength.

Xiao Jiangu understood this, but he just couldn't live up to it.

There is simply no way to do the technique well.

The baseball flew out and landed in the audience seats in left field.

Hongo's first hit was a home run!

Hongo looked at the flying baseball, threw away the bat while standing at home plate, and started running the bases step by step.

Qian Xiangang couldn't believe what he saw.

Okada was a third-year ace pitcher after all, but his most proud ball was hit by a first-year kid.

What a huge blow it must have been to him!
When they came to Koshien, everyone was the same, with the goal of becoming the final champion and dominating the country.

But now they have been dealt a heavy blow.

Not only did he get three strikeouts in the first inning, but he was also hit a home run by a first-year kid.

Either of these two is hard to accept.

Looking at Hongo running the bases, old man Nitta's eyes lit up.

Your own disciples can also become famous!
When God closes a door for you, he will also open a window for you.

In the eyes of Mr. Xin Tian, ​​losing Zhou Hui and gaining his hometown is the true meaning of this sentence.

Qian Xian just took off his mask, revealing the braid on the back of his head, and looked towards the pitcher's mound.

At this moment, Okada looked at his right hand silently and couldn't believe it.

"How on earth did he catch such a big curve ball?"

Kuramochi was surprised even in the audience.

If you let him go out there and hit a single, it would be good enough.

What's more, it was a home run.

The most shocked person was Danbo.

After seeing Hongo's performance, he even began to fear the next game.

Okada's curveball doesn't seem to be worse than his. Since Hongo can hit his ball, it should be easy for him to hit his own ball as well.

His famous skill, which made him famous, might seem like a trivial goal in the eyes of his fellow townsmen.

Although the game has only been played for two rounds, the victory of the Troll Vine seems to be a foregone conclusion.

"No, the game isn't over yet."

Danbo shook his head, denying the thought in his mind.

The game hasn't ended yet, and there's no way they can lock in their next opponent so quickly.

What if we can’t prepare for the giant troll to be overtaken by Didong High School?

These are all things that could happen.

But with this idea in mind, it can be clearly felt that Tamba is really afraid of the pitcher in front of him named Hongo!

"Whoosh!"

"Qiang!"

"Snapped!"

"Out! Three outs! Attack and defense switch!"

Facing the next batters, Okada managed to keep his mentality stable and let them go up and down three times before he could deal with them all.

However, the lost point made him feel extremely guilty.

How to catch up with this point is still an unknown.
According to coach Okamoto, they might not have a chance to see Hongo's pitching before the seventh inning.

"Why is this kid so scary?"

On the way back to rest, Okada had a question when he saw Hongo, the giant troll Otomaki, enjoying himself leisurely.

Could this be the legendary child of destiny?

……

(End of this chapter)