Sawamura was quietly running on the training field.
His current focus was stamina training.
If he wanted to become an ace, the endurance to pitch a complete game was absolutely essential.
“Ah!”
A sudden startled cry rang out.
Sawamura instinctively turned around—
A tire slammed directly into his back.
He staggered forward, then slowly pushed himself back up.
Standing in front of him was a girl wearing the Seido High School baseball manager uniform.
“I-I’m sorry!
Are you okay?” she asked, clearly panicked, her hands clenched tightly in front of her chest.
Sawamura looked at the tire, then back at her.
“Why is there a tire here?”
He briefly suspected she might have thrown it on purpose—but looking at her small frame, that seemed impossible.
Besides, if she had time to ask whether he was okay, she should’ve helped him up first.
There was no way he was completely fine after getting hit like that.
“Um… I was thinking, if you’re doing running practice, wouldn’t it be better to use this tire?”
Sawamura glanced at the tire again.
She wasn’t wrong.
In his previous life, he had used tire training before.
But after entering Seido, the warehouse keys were usually kept by the coaches or managers, and he hadn’t felt comfortable asking for them.
Now it had basically been delivered to him.
Thinking of that, Sawamura nodded.
“Thanks.
By the way, there’s a game today, right?
Aren’t you going to watch?”
“Ah… I forgot.”
“…You can forget something like that?”
The girl blinked, then lowered her gaze slightly.
“Actually… I’m not very confident in being a manager.
I’m clumsy, I make mistakes easily, and I don’t think I can be as amazing as the senior managers.
But… this is what I want to do.”
She clenched her fists a little tighter.
“Just now, I saw you, Sawamura-kun.
You didn’t go to watch the seniors’ game—you stayed here and trained instead.
I’ve always wanted to support players who keep working toward their goals.”
“Even if I’m not good enough yet… I’ll get better someday.
Just like you, Sawamura-kun.”
“So… please use this tire.
You’ll definitely become an amazing player.
I’ll be cheering for you.”
For a moment, Sawamura froze.
Even someone like him—who thought of himself as mentally mature—felt his face grow slightly warm.
He quickly turned away, grabbed the tire strap, and tied it around his waist.
“Ahaha!
You came at just the right time!
Honestly, my running these past few days hasn’t felt intense enough.
This is perfect training.”
He paused, then grinned wider.
“But one tire isn’t enough.
If I’m going to push myself, I need at least two.”
Without waiting for a response, he added a second tire and tightened the strap.
With a strong push from his waist, he began jogging—slowly at first, dragging both tires behind him.
“Haruno, what are you doing?
The bus is about to leave!”
Two girls called out from the entrance of the field.
“I’m coming!” the manager girl—Haruno—quickly replied.
She glanced once more at Sawamura dragging the tires across the field, then turned and ran off toward the gate.
After the team bus had left, the field fell quiet again.
But Sawamura did not stop.
As expected, he thought, it wouldn’t be long now.
Furuya Satoru would show up.
A few minutes later, a cold voice echoed across the field.
“I didn’t expect anyone else to still be here.
What, are you also not interested in the game?”
Sawamura turned his head.
There he was—Furuya Satoru.
“I just wanted to take advantage of the seniors being away to train harder and catch up,” Sawamura replied calmly.
His expression was steady.
If he hadn’t known Furuya from his previous life, he might have been fooled by that cold, distant aura.
But he knew better.
Inside, this guy was just… naturally clueless.
Furuya adjusted his glove and walked closer.
“Since it’s just the two of us, I’ll catch for you.”
“Sure.”
Sawamura actually wanted to see it too.
Whether Furuya’s pitching was still the same as in his previous life.
They went to the storage room, picked up their gear, and returned to the field.
Sawamura pitched first.
Furuya focused on the ball—
Each pitch looked like a clean strike in the air.
But when it entered his glove, it always seemed slightly off.
Like it was brushing the edge… ready to slip out at any moment.
This situation made Furuya uncomfortable.
He preferred the feeling of a straight fastball driving cleanly into the center of the glove.
“Hey… your ball feels gross.”
“Is that so?” Sawamura scratched the back of his head and laughed.
“My fastball has a bit of movement, so it’s not very straight.
Haha.”
“Then let’s switch.”
Furuya tossed the ball back.
“I’ll catch for you.
You pitch for me.”
Sawamura caught it and took a step back.
Honestly, he didn’t feel like getting hit by Furuya’s pitch—one mistake and it could be game over.
Furuya stood across from him, rolling his shoulder as he spun the white ball in his hand.
“I’m going to throw now.
Be careful.”
Sawamura locked his eyes onto Furuya’s glove.
The moment the glove rose—
Furuya released the ball.
In an instant, the white ball turned into a charging beast.
Sawamura barely had time to react.
Relying on his memory from his previous life, he suppressed his instincts and forced his glove upward above his head.
THUD!
The impact nearly ripped the glove from his hand.
Sawamura slowly lowered his glove, still feeling the sting in his arms.
Inside it, the white ball rested calmly.
He looked up at Furuya.
So this was his fastball.
Just like in his previous life—pure power.
At release, the ball seemed to sink slightly, only to rise again mid-flight.
From a batter’s perspective, it felt like it was crashing straight into them.
Easily over 140 km/h.
For a first-year, that kind of velocity was monstrous.
This was the rival he would fight for the ace number over the next three years.
No wonder Coach Kataoka placed so much hope on him.
If he were the coach, he would probably do the same.
In his previous life, Sawamura had already gone through decades of baseball experience in his mind.
By now, he had long since let go of the frustration of only truly holding the ace title for a short time.
What still lingered in his heart, however, was something else entirely.
That first-year hit-by-pitch that had ruined the seniors’ summer.
Even now, just thinking about it brought a dull ache of regret.
But that was in the past.
Now, there was only one thing he cared about.
Get stronger.
Defeat Inashiro’s Narumiya in the summer.
And bring Seido to Koshien with the seniors—so they could have the longest summer possible.
As for the ace number…
Sawamura never thought of it as the real goal.
To him, it was just a label.
The one who stood on the mound and carried the team’s responsibility—
That was the true ace.