"Strike three!"
"What?!"
Kominato Ryosuke, who had already started walking toward first base, froze in surprise.
He stopped, turned around, and looked at the umpire with confusion.
The umpire raised an eyebrow.
"What's wrong?"
Kominato squinted slightly, then smiled awkwardly.
"Nothing."
But deep down, he understood.
Once the umpire made the call, nothing he said would change the result.
If the umpire believed that pitch clipped the corner of the strike zone, then it was a strike—no matter what.
Back in Seido's dugout, Kominato Haruichi was stunned.
"What?! Onii-san actually…"
"…struck out looking?"
He could hardly believe it.
A strikeout looking—three strikes without even swinging the bat.
For a batter as skilled as his brother, that was extremely rare.
"Tch! Now we can't even rely on the corners anymore."
Isashiki Jun, the next batter, looked irritated.
From that one pitch alone, he had already realized something important.
Miyuki Kazuya was also staring at You Shunshin on the mound.
"No matter where the catcher sets his glove… he can throw the ball exactly there."
"And now even the umpire is starting to trust his control."
Ushijima Wakatoshi chuckled quietly.
"This guy is terrifying."
"To be honest…"
"If someone like him played for Seido…"
He paused slightly.
"Or rather, if his teammates were as strong as our first string…"
"…then even dominating Koshien wouldn't be impossible."
"At the very least, no one in Tokyo could truly stop them."
"Even Inashiro would have a hard time beating them."
Ushijima's words made the entire Seido dugout fall silent.
They had all seen it clearly.
You Shunshin's pitch speed wasn't overwhelming, but his control was terrifying.
A fast pitch with poor control could still be hit.
But a 140 km/h pitch placed exactly where it needed to be—
That was far more difficult to deal with.
"Bang!!"
Isashiki stepped into the batter's box aggressively.
After watching three pitches carefully, he swung on the fourth.
"Got it!"
The ball shot toward right field.
Isashiki sprinted down the baseline and safely reached first base.
"Don't underestimate me!" he shouted arrogantly while standing on the base.
On the mound, You Shunshin watched him calmly.
His stance is completely unstable…
Yet he still managed to hit the ball that hard.
Now it was Seido's fourth batter.
Yuki Tetsuya stepped up to the plate.
The duel began immediately.
On the second pitch, Yuki swung with full power.
CRACK!
The ball soared toward left field.
But fate had other plans.
Akikawa's left fielder stumbled while running—yet somehow managed to stretch out his glove.
The ball dropped directly into it.
Caught.
Out.
Yuki Tetsuya was eliminated.
With that, the inning ended.
"…Seriously?"
Even Ushijima couldn't help sighing.
"That kind of luck…"
"It seems the baseball gods aren't on our side today."
Isashiki stomped back into the dugout angrily.
"Damn it!"
Then he pointed straight at Ushijima.
"Hey, Ushijima!"
"Strike that guy out!"
"Did you hear me?!"
"I want you to strike him out!!"
He repeated it three times for emphasis.
Ushijima glanced at him with clear disdain.
"If you're so good…"
"…why don't you do it yourself?"
He casually tossed the pitcher's glove toward Isashiki.
The meaning was obvious.
If you're so capable, you pitch.
"Hahaha!"
The entire Seido dugout burst into laughter.
Ushijima's blunt reply instantly lifted everyone's mood.
"Damn it!"
"Our four strongest batters were shut down!"
Isashiki grumbled while grabbing Ushijima's shoulder.
"You're the ace—so hurry up and raise the team's morale!"
After some playful arguing, the team returned to the field.
So far, both teams had shown excellent defense.
But it was clear to anyone watching—
Seido's batting lineup was stronger.
"Fourth batter, right fielder—Shiratori!"
Akikawa's cleanup hitter stepped up to the plate.
On the mound, Ushijima looked toward Miyuki.
The two quickly agreed on the pitch.
"Play!"
The umpire signaled the start.
Miyuki set the target.
Shiratori focused intensely.
Now then…
But before he could finish thinking—
Ushijima had already thrown the pitch.
"WHOOSH!"
The baseball shot toward him at around 145 km/h.
Straight toward his chest.
Shiratori instinctively jumped backward.
"SMACK!"
The ball slammed into Miyuki's glove.
"Strike!"
Miyuki smiled slightly.
"Nice pitch."
Behind the plate, the umpire swallowed nervously.
What is it with these Chinese pitchers…?
Akikawa's pitcher relied on perfect control.
Wherever the catcher placed the glove, the ball went there.
But Seido's ace—
He was the complete opposite.
He attacked batters aggressively.
Over and over, he threw high inside fastballs that looked like they might hit the batter.
A 145 km/h pitch flying toward your chest would make almost anyone instinctively dodge.
Most pitchers avoided throwing that close inside because the risk of hitting the batter was too high.
But Ushijima didn't hesitate at all.
His pitching style was overwhelmingly bold.
"Damn it…"
Shiratori clenched his teeth.
He had already noticed something strange.
"In the first inning, his pitching pattern was completely different."
"He started with outside pitches and mixed the corners."
"That's why our first three batters couldn't predict anything."
"But now…"
"In the second inning, against the cleanup lineup…"
"He suddenly switched back to his usual inside-attack style."
"And the first pitch is a chest-high inside fastball."
Shiratori's face darkened.
"This guy's nerve…"
"…is seriously infuriating."
To him, that pitch felt like a direct provocation.
Miyuki noticed the anger on the batter's face.
Then he set his glove again.
At that moment—
Ushijima bent slightly and casually made a gesture with his pitching arm.
Miyuki blinked in surprise.
Then he grinned.
"Wow…"
"Compared to most pitchers…"
"…this guy's personality is really awful."