The Kanto Tournament finals between Seido High School and Inashiro Industrial were in full swing.
Bottom of the first inning.
Seido High School was at bat.
BOOM!
A blazing fast pitch screamed past the plate.
Standing in the batter's box, Kuramochi Yoichi's face turned pale.
It wasn't that he didn't want to hit the ball.
The problem was—
He simply couldn't.
With a velocity exceeding 150 km/h combined with Narumiya Mei's vicious pitching angle, Kuramochi had no chance of making solid contact.
All he could do was watch helplessly as the baseball shot past his eyes.
Even if he had forced himself to swing just now, the result wouldn't have changed in the slightest.
"Strike!"
"Strike!"
"Strike!"
"Strikeout!"
One out. Bases empty.
On the giant electronic scoreboard, the speed of the three pitches flashed brightly.
151 km/h.
150.5 km/h.
149 km/h.
Narumiya Mei had now stabilized his pitching speed around the 150 km/h mark.
Three consecutive Fastballs.
A clean strikeout.
The entire audience was stunned.
"This guy's pitching got even stronger?!"
"After Spring Koshien, Inashiro's Ace really evolved."
"How can he be this dominant?"
"It feels like the two teams' pitching styles completely swapped places."
"I thought I was the only one thinking that!"
The spectators buzzed endlessly in shock.
Previously, everyone believed Zhou Hao's greatest weapons were his blazing Fastball and terrifying Spiral Ball.
His reputation had been built on overwhelming velocity.
Yet today, Zhou Hao was primarily using Breaking Balls instead.
Meanwhile, Narumiya Mei—the pitcher once famous for combining Breaking Balls with finesse pitching—was overpowering hitters head-on with pure speed.
"The pitchers on these two teams are monsters…"
"Even without relying on their signature pitches, they still perform at championship level."
At that moment, Seido's second batter stepped into the batter's box.
Kominato Ryosuke.
Compared to most players, his frame looked rather small.
Seeing his build, many fans in the stands instinctively curled their lips.
From their perspective, Narumiya's pitches weren't something a batter like Kominato could handle through power alone.
"Just overpower him with Fastballs!"
The spectators enthusiastically offered what they believed was perfect advice.
And Narumiya Mei happened to agree.
"Fine. Let's do exactly that."
Against a technical batter like Kominato Ryosuke, using Breaking Balls or slow pitches was extremely dangerous.
No one understood that better than Narumiya himself.
As an elite pitcher, one of the most important abilities was adapting to the opponent.
Throwing pitches the batter excelled at hitting was simply asking for trouble.
Narumiya Mei would never commit such a basic mistake.
He raised his leg and fired the baseball decisively.
BOOM!
The white baseball exploded forward and reached Kominato Ryosuke almost instantly.
The moment he saw the pitch, Kominato's heart trembled violently.
He could feel the overwhelming pressure contained within Narumiya's throw.
The Ace of Inashiro Industrial was no longer the same pitcher he used to be.
Because this game had a strong possibility of entering extra innings, Narumiya had completely abandoned all restraint.
He was unleashing his full power from the very beginning.
And that meant only one thing—
Narumiya Mei believed with absolute confidence that he could continue pitching until the very end of the game.
Even if it dragged into extra innings.
Other powerhouse teams might not necessarily view defeating Seido as an absolute obsession.
After all, many of them first had to think about reaching Koshien before even considering Seido.
But Inashiro Industrial was different.
As bitter rivals in the same district, only one of the two schools could advance to Summer Koshien.
For them, this rivalry wasn't just competition.
It was survival.
Inashiro could defeat most opponents easily.
The only team truly standing in their path was Seido.
No one outside West Tokyo could fully understand how desperately they wanted to defeat Seido High School.
And as the Ace carrying the team's hopes on his shoulders, Narumiya Mei felt that pressure more than anyone else.
He wanted to defeat Seido more desperately than anybody.
And it was precisely because of that obsession that his growth had become so terrifying.
Every action he took radiated overwhelming confidence.
Narumiya Mei firmly believed—
He would absolutely defeat Seido.
Even in this all-out state.
WHOOSH!
The baseball roared past.
Kominato Ryosuke clenched his teeth tightly.
It wasn't that he didn't want to foul the pitch off.
He simply couldn't.
The movement at the end of Narumiya's pitch was too sharp.
Just making contact was already difficult enough, let alone controlling where the ball traveled afterward.
All Kominato could do was endure.
He patiently watched the first two pitches without swinging and quickly found himself cornered.
Two strikes.
Then came the third pitch.
BOOM!
Facing the incoming baseball, Kominato finally committed fully and swung.
HUM!
Bat met ball at last.
CLANG!
The crisp sound echoed across the stadium.
Kominato Ryosuke's batting technique was unquestionably elite.
Even against a 150 km/h Fastball, he remained calm enough to connect.
But the instant the ball touched the bat—
His expression changed.
The violent recoil traveling through his hands told him immediately:
He hadn't hit it cleanly.
"As expected of Seido's greatest rival…"
"The movement on this pitch is insane…"
The batted ball skipped off the ground.
Instantly, an Inashiro infielder charged forward like an arrow released from a bowstring.
Snap!
He cleanly fielded the bouncing ball and immediately fired it toward first base.
"Out!"
"Two outs, nobody on base!"
Inside Seido's dugout, both the players and supporters felt their scalps go numb watching the scene unfold.
"So strong…"
The feeling was almost identical to the memories etched into their minds from previous years.
Narumiya Mei truly resembled an undefeated legend.
Whenever Seido faced him, only one player had consistently managed to produce hits against him.
Zhou Hao.
Even Seido's current captain, Yuki Tetsuya, had struggled heavily against Narumiya in past matchups.
Now, seeing Narumiya's current form, everyone involuntarily recalled those previous battles.
And the more they remembered—
The heavier their hearts became.
Against a monster like this…
Could Seido really score?
Memories of last autumn's defeat resurfaced one after another.
An invisible pressure settled heavily over Seido's players and supporters alike.
It felt as though a massive stone was pressing down on their chests.
No one could relax.
Then—
The announcer's voice suddenly echoed throughout the stadium.
"Third batter, number one…"
"Pitcher, Zhou Hao!"
Just as Seido High School's players and supporters were sinking into despair—
That man stepped into the batter's box.
Zhou Hao.
And in that instant, everyone present could clearly feel the atmosphere around Seido change completely.
Whether it was the dugout or the cheering section in the stands—
It was as though an entirely different group of people had replaced them.
The previous tension and unease vanished instantly.
What replaced it was confidence.
Absolute confidence.
"Zhou Hao!!"
"Zhou Hao!!"
The Seido supporters were the first to erupt.
They shouted Zhou Hao's name at the top of their lungs, desperately hoping he could turn the tide of the game.
And the reason they dared to believe such a thing—
Was simple.
Because the one standing there was Zhou Hao.
To the people of Seido High School, Zhou Hao represented endless possibilities.
As long as he stood on the pitcher's mound…
Or inside the batter's box…
He was invincible.
He was all-powerful.
On the mound, Narumiya Mei inhaled deeply.
High leg lift.
Steady breathing.
While the spectators were still wondering whether Narumiya would challenge Zhou Hao head-on—
Narumiya had already answered with his actions.
His raised leg slammed down violently.
BOOM!
The baseball exploded from his hand with astonishing velocity.
At that moment, even Seido's players and supporters widened their eyes subconsciously.
Was it just their imagination?
Or had Narumiya Mei's pitch become even faster than before?
Behind home plate, Harada's expression became incomparably serious.
Like a warrior facing his greatest challenge, his eyes remained locked firmly on the incoming baseball.
Inside the batter's box, Zhou Hao activated his Sharingan.
Even so—
He still felt the terrifying speed of the pitch.
"A living Fastball…"
Narumiya Mei's growth had exceeded even Zhou Hao's expectations.
Even with the Sharingan, Zhou Hao couldn't completely dissect the movement of the pitch.
This was no longer something an ordinary pitcher could achieve.
At this moment, Narumiya Mei had truly become Zhou Hao's greatest rival.
Zhou Hao didn't swing.
He could only watch as the first pitch blazed past him.
SNAP!
"Strike!"
First pitch strike.
The supporters of Inashiro Industrial instantly exploded with excitement.
In their eyes, Narumiya Mei had successfully suppressed Zhou Hao.
If that was the case—
Then wasn't three outs just around the corner?
Inside Inashiro's dugout, the players' eyes gleamed with excitement.
They couldn't wait to witness the moment their Ace defeated Zhou Hao.
This would be proof.
Proof that Inashiro Industrial could stand above even Seido.
"Quick!"
"Finish him off!"
A cold glint flashed through Narumiya Mei's eyes.
Zhou Hao hadn't swung.
Which meant even Zhou Hao couldn't confidently deal with his pitching.
For Narumiya, that realization was incredibly satisfying.
It proved that his pitching had truly reached another level.
Even the nearly invincible Zhou Hao found it difficult to hit his balls.
"Not good at handling overpowering Fastballs?"
"If I don't exploit that weakness, wouldn't I be disrespecting all our preparation?"
The players of Inashiro Industrial had long since thoroughly researched Zhou Hao's strengths and weaknesses.
And Narumiya Mei trusted that information completely.
BOOM!
The second pitch screamed toward the plate.
Seeing the incoming baseball, Zhou Hao slightly opened his mouth and pressed his tongue against the roof of it.
His body instinctively wanted to swing—
But he forcefully suppressed the urge.
Again, he watched the baseball fly past.
SNAP!
"Strike!"
Two strikes.
Zhou Hao was cornered.
At that moment, the Inashiro supporters in the stands were so excited that their entire bodies trembled.
Their blood felt like it was boiling.
Striking out Zhou Hao—
The number one player in the country—
Was something countless powerhouse teams had dreamed of accomplishing.
Yet nobody had ever succeeded.
But now…
They saw hope.
Maybe—
Just maybe—
Zhou Hao would finally fall here.
The thought alone made them shiver with excitement.
"One more pitch!"
"Just one more!"
The fans roared wildly.
And Narumiya Mei clearly shared the same thought.
He lifted his leg high once more before stomping down violently.
THUD!
Dust exploded upward from the mound.
Everyone could tell—
The famous Tokyo Prince had unleashed every ounce of his strength.
He wanted to strike Zhou Hao out completely.
He wanted to leave behind an unforgettable impression on Seido High School…
And on every single person watching this game.
Inashiro Industrial would not lose to anyone.
Not even to Zhou Hao.
BOOM!
The white baseball tore through the air like a beam of light.
In the blink of an eye, it had already reached home plate.
Inside Seido's dugout, everyone's pupils shrank violently.
Even faster?!
Narumiya's previous pitch had already reached 152 km/h.
Could he still go beyond that?
And just as everyone was still processing that thought—
Zhou Hao swung.
The motion looked simple.
But in reality, it was unbelievably precise.
BOOM!
Zhou Hao's bat met the baseball perfectly.
No deviation.
No hesitation.
CLANG!!
The sound of solid contact exploded across the stadium.
Behind the plate, Harada's calm expression shattered instantly.
His pupils contracted violently.
He nearly coughed up the breath stuck in his chest.
"He hit it?!"
"Zhou Hao actually hit it?!"
Not only Harada—
Even the players and coaching staff of Inashiro Industrial were visibly shaken.
According to all the information they had gathered, Zhou Hao struggled the most against overpowering high-speed Fastballs.
And Narumiya Mei's pitching perfectly fit that category.
Theoretically, Zhou Hao should have had extreme difficulty making contact.
Yet now—
He had done exactly that.