Due to the excessive powder on his fingertips, he wasn't able to get enough spin on the ball, which meant the next fastball would be lacking movement.
His eyes locked onto the ball, watching its course.
"Hmph!"
WHOOOOOSH
DONG
Leo smacked the ball, popping it high into the air. He looked at it briefly before clicking his tongue in annoyance as it went into the foul zone.
Ken breathed a sigh of relief. If that ball had been struck properly, the game would have been over.
Just as he was returning to his position on the mound and was about to call for a new ball, he heard the crowd gasp collectively.
"What's happening?" Ken muttered, looking around the field.
While he'd been preoccupied, a figure had his eyes on the foul ball that had been popped into the air. He ran towards the edge of the field and didn't think twice before standing on the rolled up tarp.
"Kuro!?"
The whole field was shocked at his next move.
Without caring about the consequences, Kuro jumped into the empty seats and landed hard, letting out a squeal of pain in the next moment.
*DING*
"What is he doing!?"
All anyone could see was a glove remaining in the air before a loud shout ensued.
"YEAHHHHHH!"
"HAHAHAHA"
Kuro yelled and screamed in triumph, holding up his glove as if he were hoisting up the World Cup trophy.
"N-No way…"
The umpire came over and told Kuro to show him the ball to which he complied.
After a few seconds, the umpire shouted.
"OUT! GAME SET!"
"O-OHHHH YEAH!"
Only now did the Japanese players on the field suddenly understand what was happening. Riku, Aki and Masayuki who were close by rushed at Kuro and manhandled him back onto the field before hoisting him up.
Kuro's face was filled with tears, though it was unknown if it was from the pain of the earlier impact, or if they were tears of joy.
Ken felt his whole body become jelly as the showdown skill wore off, causing him to fall to his backside in fatigue.
"Hah… Hahaha. We did it." Ken muttered, letting out a tired laugh.
"Big bro!"
Daichi ran over with his arms wide open and tears in his eyes as he threw himself at Ken's figure on the ground.
"OOOF"
Suddenly Ken was assaulted by Daichi's bodyweight, yet he was too devoid of strength to move him. He could only suffer as the sweat-soaked teen assaulted him over and over.
"Y-You stink! Get off me."
Only after a few moments did Daichi get up, his face wearing a devilish grin.
"WE DID IT KEN!"
Unfortunately for Ken, the rest of the team had now converged onto the mound to celebrate with their ace.
Aki was like a bullet as he ran forward in order to be the first to pile onto Ken. Yet like a guardian angel, Daichi quickly lifted him to his feet just in time, causing the guy to fall face first into the mound himself.
Everyone ignored the figure and huddled around Ken, ruffling his head so much that his hat fell off.
Meanwhile, Leo, Santiago and Sam walked off the field with their heads lowered. They had been so close to making the come back and securing the win, yet the gutsy play from Kuro had dashed their hopes.
Mark smiled wryly, feeling a mixture of emotions. Disappointment that his team didn't win, yet a big sense of pride because of how his Grandson's had performed in this World Cup.
He placed his hand on Leo's shoulder.
"Hold your head up high Captain, you led your team properly and played a wonderful game." Mark said, his expression showing pride.
It was then that Leo's usually stoic expression began to crumble as tears began to fill the corner of his eyes. Yet he composed himself in the next moment, giving the coach a nod before returning to the dugout.
"OH YEAHHHHH BABY!"
Ai was on her feet in Rie's lounge, pumping her fists and dancing around like a madwoman. One would think that she was the one who had won the World Cup instead of her boyfriend.
Funnily enough, at the same time in Yokohama…
"HAHAHA THAT'S MA BOY!"
Tetsu began to do a jive in front of the TV, waking up Tsukasa from his nap. The guy looked as if he'd just been to war, yet he didn't complain about being woken up.
"He won?"
Tetsu gave his brother a questioning glance, as if asking him why he was awake.
"Yeah… Now go back to sleep, you're bothering me."
Tsukasa didn't know whether to laugh or cry, so he took a brief drink and tried to go back to sleep as instructed.
Back on the field, both Coach Takashi and Chris had joined their players in the celebration. The Head Coach was wearing a blissful expression, his smile almost looking perverted.
SPLASHHH~
In the next moment, someone poured the iced water all over both of the coach's in a single movement.
"Hehehehe~"
Riku giggled like a school girl as he reveled in his feat.
The two coach's didn't seem to mind, in fact it made them feel invigorated.
Chris looked around and finally found his two sons. Without even thinking, he walked forward and brought them both into his embrace, squeezing hard.
"I'm so proud of you both!"
Both Daichi and Ken hugged their father back, feeling very happy in this moment.
In the crowd, a woman was covering her mouth as she began to cry and weep with joy. Seeing all of her boys on the field after victory filled her with so much pride.
She wanted nothing more than to run onto the field and celebrate with them, yet she'd probably be put in cuffs before making it a few feet onto the field.
Thankfully, Ken and Daichi had not forgotten about her.
"Mom! We did it!" Daichi said with a wide grin.
"Mmm. Well done." She said, pulling him into an embrace.
Tetsuhiro happened to see the interaction on the jumbo screen and frowned deeply.