CHAPTER 342: CHAPTER 193: THE FINAL DANCE (PART 2)

As Tandate Ryoki stepped onto first base and halted his advance after an unsuccessful attempt to move forward, the substitute bench and stands for Osaka Tsubaki erupted into a thunderous cheer.

After being locked down by Lin Guanglai for a full eight innings, in the bottom of the ninth, fourth batter Tandate Ryoki hit a single right as he stepped up, greatly boosting Osaka Tsubaki’s morale and granting them more tactical space to work with.

Before fifth batter Yasui Kouki entered the batter’s box, outside of Osaka Tsubaki’s player zone, Nishikawa Koji gestured at him several times, signaling players to execute a small-ball tactic.

As soon as he stepped into the batter’s box, Yasui Kouki turned the bat sideways, assuming a bunting stance: it’s worth knowing, he’s Osaka Tsubaki’s fifth batter, and this decision by Osaka Tsubaki is certainly shocking.

Because, with each player being a young talent from all across Japan, the Osaka Tsubaki team hardly ever resorts to small-ball tactics, nor do they deign to use them—every player, from the first to the ninth batter, from starters to substitutes, has both the ability and belief to hit singles; given that, why would they sacrifice an out count for merely advancing a base?

But in such a crucial moment with a chance to score, even the proud Osaka Tsubaki had to abandon the so-called principle of strength for that one point; in other words, it was precisely because of the immense pressure Lin Guanglai exerted from the pitcher’s mound that when a potential scoring opportunity presented itself, Osaka Tsubaki had to drop their pride and patiently execute small-ball tactics.

Of course, even though Osaka Tsubaki’s batter assumed a bunting stance, Waseda Jitsugyo couldn’t easily press their defense forward—after all, Osaka Tsubaki only opted for bunting this time, but that doesn’t mean they would only use a bunt this at-bat; the defense players of Waseda Jitsugyo, in the end, still harbored some caution against their opponent’s batting lineup, thus sticking with standard positions.

Tandate Ryoki on first base was restless, continuously drawing attention with his steps off and back to the base to distract Lin Guanglai and Waseda Jitsugyo’s other infielders—Tandate Ryoki, who could sprint 50 meters in just 6.8 seconds, wasn’t weak at stealing bases, leading Lin Guanglai to keep a close eye on him.

After picking off to first base twice to calm Tandate a bit, Lin Guanglai didn’t give Osaka Tsubaki much time to react, adjusting quickly to deliver the baseball from his hand.

Facing the incoming ball, Yasui Kouki, cautiously positioned at home plate, lightly tapped the bat he’d held sideways—

"Thump!"

With a crisp sound, the baseball instantly lost most of its energy, dropping to the ground and rolling at a relatively slow speed.

The location of the bunt was quite remarkable, though not perfectly along the baseline, it landed precisely between the pitcher and catcher, not very close to either.

Lin Guanglai on the pitcher’s mound was well-prepared, and responded swiftly to this ball:

He first shouted to his teammate moving towards the ball "I’ve got it," then quickly stepped down the mound, covering two steps in one stride as he ran towards the baseball’s location; bending down, he controlled the ball with his right hand and threw it directly towards first base.

Suzuki Daigo at first base, meeting the incoming baseball, took a big step forward with his right leg, successfully getting the out before Yasui Kouki could reach the base; after verifying his successful out, he still didn’t let his guard down, only relaxing once he confirmed that Tandate Ryoki had reached second base without further advancing, then throwing the ball back to Lin Guanglai on the pitcher’s mound.

One out, runner on second, next up for Osaka Tsubaki with their sixth batter, Kasamatsu Yuuya—this game, he had managed a triple due to an error in Waseda Jitsugyo’s defense, and as a sophomore, he’s expected to become Osaka Tsubaki’s new fourth batter by this autumn.

This time, Nishikawa Koji didn’t choose to have his batter bunt to advance, instead placing all their hopes on the sophomore Kasamatsu Yuuya—having a runner on third with two outs wasn’t unfamiliar for Osaka Tsubaki this game, but attacks were always perfectly neutralized by Lin Guanglai.

The more times Nishikawa Koji faced such a player, the more he sighed: indeed, regardless of the type of sport, in the end, it all boils down to a contest of talent.

Clearly, Osaka Tsubaki had amassed significant talent, yet in front of Lin Guanglai, most of their players seemed indistinguishable from ordinary kids, just like this—

"Strikeout swinging! Lin Guanglai, crucially with a runner in scoring position, struck out Osaka Tsubaki’s batter yet again and again! That’s his 13th strikeout of the game!"

The struck-out Kasamatsu Yuuya gloomily returned to the dugout without saying a word; he simply placed a hand on the next batter, Shiratsui Keita, signaling with his eyes to encourage him.

However, clearly, verbal encouragement alone couldn’t suddenly boost Shiratsui Keita’s batting skills, nor would Lin Guanglai suddenly lose his pitching touch—even as Shiratsui Keita fought wholeheartedly, and Tandate Ryoki seized the chance to steal third base, the barely 20-meter gap between third and home became a chasm separating a score and another shutout, looming before all of Osaka Tsubaki.

Shiratsui Keita was struck out by a decisive forkball from Lin Guanglai, ending the top half of the ninth inning—the score remained 0:0, with just one half-inning left until the end of regulation time.

"The bottom of the ninth inning... in the near century-long history of Koshien, countless histories start from this half-inning, countless successes or failures all begin from this half-inning, countless miracles occur in this half-inning—as the defending champions of the Summer League, will Waseda Industries create a new miracle in the bottom half of this ninth inning?"

Before the bottom of the ninth inning commenced, both teams’ players coincidentally lingered outside the field in round formations with their coaches delivering final remarks.

On Osaka Tsubaki’s side, Nishikawa Koji looked at his players, with those once prodigious faces showing a slight bewilderment from the unresolved match—a sight rarely seen among Osaka Tsubaki’s ranks.

Softly coughing twice to ensure all eyes were on him, Nishikawa Koji slowly began to speak:

"At this point in the game, there’s honestly nothing more I want to say to you all, except one request—the upcoming half-inning, hold the tie, then we’ll decide the winner in extra innings."

"This year’s performance has been flawless thus far. Now, we’re one match away from perfection—so, go out there, believe in your teammates, and think about how we defeated the opponents in spring!"

"No matter how confused or disheartened you are now, don’t forget, you’re part of Osaka Tsubaki; among all high schools in this nation, only you can break through from that monster!"

Across from them, outside of Waseda Industries’ bench, Izumi Minoru didn’t deliver a passionate speech like Nishikawa Koji, but instead calmly gazed at his assembled players, nodding at each before giving his concise and powerful instructions:

"In this next half-inning, I’m sure everyone knows what needs to be done."

"Seize every opportunity in the offense, and then..."

"For the school, for the team, for the third-year players, and for yourselves—"

"Go win!!!"