Diamond No Ace: Life As Sawamura Eijun

"It's out… out… it's out of here!!! At the very last moment, the No. 3 hitter Yamaoka caught the trajectory of the inside fastball and pulled it hard—a pure power hit—launched straight to center field for a home run! In the top of the sixth inning, this hit by Yamaoka of Inashiro adds another run, allowing Inashiro to once again take control of the game!"

"OHHHH! Beautiful work, Yamaoka!"

"That was incredible, Yamaoka-senpai!"

"Haha! I knew you could do it, Yamaoka!"

"Awesome, our No. 3 hitter!"

"That's how it's done, Yamaoka!"

Inashiro Industrial, which had been somewhat suppressed up until now, erupted in full celebration.

As they watched their No. 3 hitter clenching his fist and running the bases, everyone shouted with all their might to cheer him on.

In stark contrast, Seidou High School was plunged into a terrifying silence.

But it wasn't just the home run—after all, giving up one run wasn't enough to rattle Seidou.

No, it was the figure of their ace on the mound, swaying as if he could fall over at any moment, and that clearly trembling left arm—now visible for all to see.

The expressions on Seidou's players turned from shock to fear.

Could it be… our ace…?

Almost everyone instantly recalled the collision at first base the day before.

The angle. The point of impact. The weight behind it.

And now, the tremble in his arm.

"No way…!"

"Eijun…"

"Sawamura-kun!"

As if sharing the same heartbeat, Wakana and Haruno covered their mouths, their eyes filling with pain as they looked at Eijun on the mound.

At that moment—

On the stands, Miyuki's former teammate Chris, Wakana, and the others, and on the field—Kuramochi, Haruichi—and in the dugout, Coach Kataoka and Coach Ochiai—all wore grim, anxious expressions.

Back on the field—

At home plate—

Miyuki had called for a time-out right after the home run, intending to talk to Eijun on the mound.

But in that moment, he couldn't say a word.

Miyuki just stood there, staring at the figure before him.

Eijun's hat was pulled low, but his left arm trembled visibly.

He didn't say anything.

But that silent, swaying figure… it said everything.

"Sawamura, you…"

Miyuki's lips curled into a bitter expression.

So that's it… that's what was wrong.

Only now did he finally understand all the small inconsistencies from the very beginning of the game.

The awkwardness in the first inning, the occasional lack of bite in his pitches—the strange things that didn't add up.

And this home run?

It wasn't because his ace pitched poorly.

It was because… he couldn't pitch properly anymore.

"Damn it!!!"

In that moment, Miyuki found himself overwhelmed with regret.

Why didn't I notice earlier?! What kind of "golden battery" am I supposed to be?!

Now even the 10,000 spectators in the stadium had started to notice something was wrong with Eijun.

Even those who hadn't seen clearly began to understand after hearing murmurs from the people in the front rows.

The stadium turned noisy and restless.

Everyone wore expressions of pity, sorrow, concern—and regret.

"What? Yesterday's collision at first base?"

"Are you saying Sawamura-kun has been pitching injured this whole time?"

"That left arm says it all, doesn't it?"

"No wonder he gave up runs so easily in the first inning—he was trying to get his condition under control."

"But why did he suddenly explode in this inning…?"

"Maybe because he knew he was near his limit, so he went all out to try and shut down Inashiro's top lineup one last time."

"But if that's the case…"

"He really can't pitch anymore, can he…"

"But if we don't let Sawamura-kun pitch, the next batter will have runners on base—"

"Look at him now! How could he possibly keep going like this!?"

"Uh…."

On the other side of the stands, Okumura Koushuu gripped the railing tightly with both hands, eyes fixed on Eijun standing alone on the mound.

Beside him, Seto Takuma let out a quiet sigh.

"Sawamura-senpai… what a shame…"

Over by Seidou's third base dugout, Coach Ochiai sighed softly and turned to look at Coach Kataoka.

Kataoka pressed his lips together tightly, his face stern. And then—his right hand slowly rose as he called out a name.

"Player change for Seidou High School. Replacing pitcher Sawamura-kun is… Cleanup hitter, pitcher—Furuya-kun!"

After a brief silence, the dugout's movement and the stadium announcement came as no surprise.

From the moment everyone saw the state Eijun was in, this was inevitable.

On the mound now stood Furuya, and gathered around him were Seidou's infielders.

Tojou and Maezono, who had only just realized the seriousness of Eijun's condition, wore expressions of disbelief.

Kuramochi and Haruichi clenched their jaws, a complex look on their faces.

It felt like just an instant, and yet also like an eternity.

Eijun slowly raised his head.

He glanced around at his teammates—each of them looking back at him with visible concern.

He forced a smile.

It was the same bold, carefree smile everyone knew, but behind it… was a bitterness too deep to hide.

"I really thought I could push through. Never expected to get rocked like that. As the ace, I really let you down… I'm sor—"

"DON'T APOLOGIZE!!!!!!"

Before he could finish, Kuramochi suddenly roared, unable to hold back his voice.

His harsh words cut through Eijun's sentence like a blade.

Eijun looked up at him in stunned silence. Miyuki and the others were also momentarily taken aback.

"Don't say you let us down, or that you're sorry, Sawamura! You're the best pitcher there is! Whether it's as our ace or our underclassman—you've already done more than enough. You ARE our ace! From here on out, it's our turn to step up as your seniors. One run? Big deal. I swear I'll get it back for you. Watch closely, Sawamura—we're going to win this game for you! So… don't apologize!!!"

That fierce expression.

That rare, deadly serious tone.

It wasn't just Eijun.

Everyone—Miyuki, Maezono, Toujou, Furuya, Haruichi—felt it. It shook them to their core.

In that moment, Eijun suddenly felt his eyes sting. His vision blurred.

His chest tightened.

He looked up at Kuramochi standing before him.

He opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out at first.

"…Yeah."

Finally, just one word left his lips.

Then he handed the ball over.

Furuya caught it.

"I'll leave the rest to you, Furuya."

And with those parting words, Eijun stepped down from the mound—slowly, one step at a time.

It was the first time the ace had ever been pulled from a game mid-inning for anything other than strategy.

But even so—

This too… was part of growing up.

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