Unaware of his words, Daichi crouched down and called for a fastball, all the while chanting a mantra in his head.
'One more out…'
'One more out…'
It wasn't just him. The Japanese players on the field chanted the same inwardly.
Whatever fatigue that had built up over these past 2 weeks had seemingly vanished now that they were so close to the finish line. All it would take was a few more pitches before victory or defeat.
Ken breathed out a deep sigh and collected himself before nodding.
"Hup!"
The ball flew out of his fingertips at 100mph, its target the inside of the strike zone. Like many big men, they had trouble adjusting their bodies in order to make full contact on inside pitches.
Yet no one told Sammy that.
WHOOOOSH
DONG
The moment the bat made contact with the ball, the crowd erupted in cheers. The sound it made caused the Japanese team's heart to sink as they frantically looked for the ball.
"Left!"
Just like Santiago's hit, this ball was sent over Aki to an almost identical spot, bouncing before Riku received the ball.
"Hold!"
Right before Riku was about to let loose a throw towards first base, Aki yelled out from his position. A few moments later Sam arrived at first base, struggling to catch his breath after the all out sprint.
"Aki why did you stop me throwing?" Riku said with a frown.
Aki didn't even respond, pointing to Santiago retreating back to 3rd base after seeing that Riku still possessed the ball.
Riku seemed to be satisfied with the answer in the end. It was far too risky to make the throw to 1st base for a possible out when Santiago would have more than likely made it to home plate if it was safe.
While it may have been the right call, Japan were now in a much worse position than before. With a runner on 1st and 3rd, any large hit could have dire consequences.
However, their biggest problem had only just arrived.
"Batting 4th, Catcher, Leo."
At the mention of Leo's name, the home crowd went crazy. Somehow the game had come full circle and the hero who had collected the first run had returned at the midnight hour to save the US team.
Ken and Leo's gazes met as he approached the batters box. Along with the strength filling his body from his showdown skill, Ken felt a burning sensation in his veins.
'I won't lose.'
These words did not need to be spoken out loud to be understood. Leo's whole being seemed to be reciprocating this phrase, leading to their aura's clashing head to head.
The whole stadium felt the suffocating atmosphere which threatened to swallow them all.
In the final inning with 2 outs and 2 runners on base, the Japanese Ace was facing the US Captain with the entire game on the line. Even a fully paid staff of writers could never concoct such a poetic and powerful moment.
Michael was at the edge of his seat, his face filled with worry. These past 2 innings had been brutal for him to watch as a self-proclaimed Ken fanboy.
Even his friend who had been cheering for the home team vehemently all game was now completely silent as he watched on nervously.
'You can do it Ken…'
"Timeout please."
Daichi's voice interrupted the stare down between the two, causing Ken to frown a little in response. He saw his brother jogging up to the mound and could already tell what he was thinking before he opened his mouth.
"You want to walk him?" Ken asked, his tone steady.
Daichi nodded and was about to continue, yet was interrupted.
"Before you speak, let me ask you this… Do you want to walk him because you think I can't beat him? Or is it because you think the next batter will be easier?" Ken asked.
Despite being cut off, Daichi didn't look upset. He thought for a while before answering the latter.
Ken nodded, "That's all I needed to know." He said with a wide grin.
"OI EVERYONE!"
Ken raised his head back and yelled out from the middle of the field, getting all of his teammates attention. The umpire almost jumped in fright at the sudden yell in a foreign language.
"DO YOU TRUST ME!?"
There was a small silence before Hiroki on first base piped up.
"YEAH!"
Next, Aki and Kuro yelled out.
"YEAH!"
"OF COURSE!"
Then like a pack of barking dogs, the rest of the players on the field yelled out their acknowledgments.
Riku, Masayuki, Ichiro, Tomoya. They all shouted out loud, filling the field with a cacophony of voices.
"DAMN RIGHT I DO!"
Chris even joined in on the chorus, yelling out his thoughts.
"Hehe… And how about you little bro? Do you trust me?" Ken said, his face turning up into a grin.
Daichi was gobsmacked, not expecting such an approach from his brother. Yet the fact that their teammates were willing to answer in such a fashion showed just how much they trusted Ken in such a situation.
He was left with no choice but to accept the verdict since the whole team had decided for them.
"I may not trust you around my desserts, but when it comes to anything else… I trust you with my life." Daichi said, holding out his fist for a fist bump.
"Hahaha! That pudding was delicious by the way." Ken said with a wide grin, giving his brother some knuckles.
Daichi could only shake his head and laugh on his way back to home plate. After seeing the expression of the umpire, he felt a little awkward after causing such a scene.
He bowed in apology, doing his best to speak some English.
"Imu sorry."
The umpire sent a thumbs up, feeling a little odd at the earlier display.
"Play ball!"
Now that the timeout was over, play was now resumed.
"Well, time to live up to my teammates expectations of me." Ken said out loud with a chuckle.