Diamond No Ace: Life As Sawamura Eijun

Chapter 368: The Inevitable and the Battlefield

To be honest—

In Diamond no Ace, flashback-induced hits and scores weren't unheard of.

But the match against Ugumori? That was on an entirely different level. Other teams, at most, had their ace pitcher or cleanup hitter recall a defining moment in their past and briefly unleash some hidden potential.

Ugumori High?

Their entire team pulled it off.

A collective flashback sequence, leading to a simultaneous power-up. Sure, at that time, Furuya was dealing with a leg injury that affected his performance, but even then, scoring off him because of a dramatic flashback? That was insane.

It felt like something straight out of a shounen anime, like a protagonist team activating their plot armor at the perfect moment.

Back when I first watched this in my past life—

I seriously wondered if those guys had taken some kind of performance-enhancing drug.

"Well, let's put the flashback nonsense aside for now. The real problem is that guy's slow curveball and power curveball. How are we supposed to deal with that? In the original story, at least Inashiro Industrial got to test the waters first. But now, without Inashiro, we're the ones going in blind..."

As Eijun walked back to his dorm, he furrowed his brows, lost in thought.

One of the biggest challenges of being in Diamond no Ace's world was knowing things he couldn't openly share.

Unless he wanted to be treated like a lab rat for some experiment, how could he possibly explain how he knew about things that hadn't even been revealed in public matches yet?

He knew the best way to deal with Seiichi Umemiya was to crush him from the start—to rattle him early, rack up runs, and gain an overwhelming lead.

That way, the rest of the game would be smooth sailing.

"Alright. For the third round, I have to secure the starting spot."

Eijun figured this was the most reliable approach. It wasn't that he didn't trust Furuya or Kawakami—if Ugumori didn't have their ridiculous flashback power-up, the only real threat in their lineup would be Seiichi Umemiya.

But the issue was...

Ugumori did have that absurd ability to turn things around in dramatic fashion.

And Eijun had an advantage—he knew their lineup inside and out.

That meant dealing with them would be much easier for him.

"Yeah, that's the plan."

After going through all possible scenarios, this seemed like the best way to minimize risk. Plus, as Seidou's No. 3 batter, he could help ignite the offense.

If they could break through Umemiya early—

If they could force an early game-ending mercy rule—

That would be the ideal scenario.

"Good. First, let's take care of Nanamori Gakuen this Saturday. After that, I'll talk to Miyuki-senpai about it."

Eijun made up his mind.

What he didn't know at the time, however, was that the coaching staff had already planned out the starting rotation for the third round.

His plan?

It was doomed from the start.

...

October 9th, Saturday—Edo River Stadium

Seidou High School was set to face their second opponent in the tournament: Nanamori Gakuen, a private school from East Tokyo.

They were a mid-tier team in their region.

But for a school like Seidou?

The difference was clear.

It was like a King facing off against a Silver or Gold-ranked player in a solo match. Would there be any real challenge? Probably not—unless the opponent was secretly a high-ranked player using a second account.

From the perspective of the spectators—

The only question wasn't if Nanamori would lose.

It was how badly they would lose.

Most of the attention wasn't even on the match itself.

After all, if the reigning summer champions Teito High had easily knocked out this same team in seven innings, then there was no chance that Nanamori would put up much of a fight against Seidou.

That was the opinion of 99% of the audience.

The remaining 1%? That would be Nanamori themselves—clinging to a sliver of hope, or rather, indulging in pure fantasy.

"Oh? Kawakami is the starting pitcher today?"

"Well, it's just a small team. Honestly, Seidou doesn't even need to put in their main players for this one. They could use this game as a chance to train their backups."

"Still, they're a somewhat well-known team in East Tokyo. Can't get too careless."

"Sawamura is playing left field today, huh?"

"Yeah, he's a key part of the batting lineup now. At this point, if he's not on the mound, he's in left field—it's basically a given that he'll be in the starting lineup."

"Tsk tsk, Seidou really hit the jackpot this year."

"At first, everyone thought their biggest find was Furuya and his blazing fastball. But turns out, the real gem is Sawamura."

"Yeah, especially after the summer tournament. Sawamura's presence and importance to the team have only grown stronger."

"This fall, with Sawamura on the roster, Seidou's chances look pretty solid."

"Pfft, Teito got mercy-ruled in seven innings. What's there to worry about? The only games that matter in this tournament are probably the semifinals and finals—maybe against Ichidaisan, Yakushi, or Inashiro."

"Speaking of which, the other bracket is brutal—Yakushi, Ichidaisan, Inashiro, plus second-tier teams like Kasugaichi and Akikawa. Way more intense than this side of the tournament."

"Yakushi definitely got the luckiest draw in the bracket," one spectator commented with a mix of amusement and pity.

"A 30-something game winning streak in practice matches over the summer… tsk tsk, that's seriously impressive."

"Oh! Here they come!"

"Seidou!!!"

"Kings!!!"

The crowd erupted in cheers just as discussions about the tournament matchups continued. In an instant, a wave of excitement swept through the stands.

All eyes turned toward one direction.

The moment Seidou High School's First String stepped onto the field—led by Miyuki—the entire stadium focused on them. The deafening cheers rolled in like a tidal wave.

Across the field, the players of Nanamori couldn't help but feel the crushing weight of that pressure. Their expressions darkened as reality set in.

"The Ace of Diamonds is playing left field?" Nanamori's coach, Tatsuomi Hara, remained expressionless. Truthfully, from the moment the tournament draw was announced—

He had already given up hope.

In a second-round matchup where the opponent was either Seidou or Teito?

Coach Tatsuomi's reaction had been nothing but a helpless chuckle.

At this point, he was simply hoping they wouldn't get completely humiliated. Ideally, they could last the full nine innings.

But reality was even crueler than expected.

Especially after hearing that Seidou had destroyed Teito last week, ending the game in seven innings.

Coach Tatsuomi had long since abandoned any unrealistic dreams.

There was only one thought in his mind.

This is bullsh*t.

Of course, despite the grim outlook, neither he nor his team had any intention of simply rolling over.

Their mindset was clear:

If they were going to lose, they would at least lose with dignity.

They would show Seidou their resilience.

The slogans were shouted.

The fighting spirit was declared.

But no matter how you looked at it…

This was shaping up to be nothing more than a Bad End.

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

If you want to read 10 advance chapters ahead.

Visit my patreon: patreon.com/Leonzky