Manaka Kaname stepped into the batter's box with only one thought in mind—
Crush Ushijima Wakatoshi.
But Ushijima had no intention of giving him that chance.
The moment Manaka set his stance, Ushijima fired a two-seam fastball at nearly 140 km/h.
Bang!
"Strike!"
The umpire's arm came down decisively.
Manaka swung late, missing cleanly, his teeth clenched in frustration.
Behind the plate, Miyuki Kazuya let out a quiet chuckle.
Ushijima's two-seam loses some control once it passes 140, she thought.
But if the batter swings… even a bad pitch becomes a good one.
Ushijima's four-seam fastballs earlier had all hovered around the same speed.
Four-seam or two-seam—both were fastballs.
The difference was movement.
To the batter's eyes, the trajectory looked identical.
Fastball.
That single thought was enough to trigger a swing.
But just before reaching the plate, the ball shifted sideways.
That subtle lateral movement was often all it took to make a bat miss.
If the batter anticipated it, he might still adjust.
But if he didn't—
He'd swing through nothing.
Thump!
The second pitch slammed into Miyuki's glove.
"Two strikes!"
Manaka glared fiercely at Ushijima on the mound.
Ushijima said nothing.
He simply lifted his leg and threw.
The third pitch screamed toward home plate.
Manaka's eyes widened as he swung with everything he had.
Bang!!!
The bat made contact—
—but the ball shot straight up, arcing high into the infield.
Manaka froze.
"Damn it… first two pitches were 140—two-seam and four-seam…"
"The third one was even faster. My timing was completely off."
Ushijima stepped down from the mound, tracking the falling ball calmly.
He raised his glove.
Caught it cleanly.
"Out!"
With that, Ichidai Sankō's central lineup went down in order.
"Unbelievable!"
"Three up, three down—even against the heart of their lineup!"
"Two innings, six batters—three strikeouts and no hits!"
"Seido's first-year pitcher is no joke."
"Yeah… this is way too strong for a rookie."
Back on the field, Ushijima was immediately surrounded by teammates.
Yuki Tetsuya laughed loudly. "Nice pitching!"
Ushijima grinned and lightly kicked his cousin. "Did I embarrass you?"
"Not yet," Yuki replied calmly. "Let's see how you hold up later."
To outsiders, their exchange felt strangely casual.
"Huh… Yuki's been talking a lot today," Isashiki muttered.
Yuki immediately returned to his usual aloof expression.
"Alright," someone called out. "Get ready—it's our turn to bat."
"They said they'd return everything tenfold," Coach Kataoka said sternly.
"Eight runs isn't enough. We've only taken five this inning."
Ushijima could only smile helplessly at the coach's intensity.
Scoreboard:
Seido High — 5
Ichidai Sankō — 0
The third inning began.
Seido's leadoff batter: Shirasu Kenjirō.
Second batter: Ushijima Wakatoshi.
The two roommates stepped out from the dugout together.
"Seventh batter, Shirasu Kenjirō!"
The stadium announcer's voice echoed.
Ushijima squatted in the on-deck circle, quietly observing.
On the mound, Shirasu wasted no time.
He swung decisively at the second pitch.
The ball shot forward, skimming the ground.
Shirasu sprinted toward first.
"Safe!"
The first-base umpire waved his hand.
Ushijima stepped into the right-handed batter's box with a relaxed smile, eyes fixed on Manaka Kaname.
This was his second at-bat.
Last time, he'd singled and driven in a run.
Now, he had a runner on base again.
Shirasu looked toward the bench.
Coach Kataoka gave a subtle signal.
Shirasu understood immediately.
Manaka stared at Ushijima.
We meet again… already?
"Come on!"
Manaka unleashed his best pitch—a high-speed curveball.
The moment he released it, Shirasu broke for second.
"Steal!" the first baseman shouted.
But Manaka didn't even glance at the runner.
Right now, only Ushijima mattered.
Whoosh—Snap!
The ball slammed into the catcher's glove.
The catcher jumped up, ready to throw—
—but Shirasu was already a step from second.
It was pointless.
They had become completely numb to Seido's base-stealing today.
Now on second, Shirasu glanced toward the bench.
No further signals.
He knew—this was as far as he could go on his own.
In the batter's box, Ushijima thought calmly.
A 135 km/h curveball…
Yeah, my batting average drops against breaking balls over 130.
But that doesn't mean I can't hit them.
I'm just not good against pure fastballs.
Against breaking balls—even fast ones—I'm better than most.
Manaka set again.
The second pitch came.
Ushijima recognized it instantly.
Pitch type: Slider
Speed: 137 km/h
Movement: Sliding inward, breaking late
Ushijima tightened his grip.
He swung.
Bang!
The bat smashed the ball cleanly.
"What?!" Manaka spun around in shock.
The ball bounced near second base and shot through the infield toward the outfield.
Shirasu had already been moving the moment Manaka began his pitching motion.
Even without a steal sign, he trusted Ushijima completely.
If it's him… the ball will land.
Ushijima's specialty wasn't power—
—it was infield hits.
The ball landed exactly as expected.
By the time the shortstop reacted, Shirasu was already nearing third.
After touching third base, Shirasu looked up.
The coach waved wildly.
"Go! Go! You can make it—run!"
Shirasu didn't hesitate.
He turned and charged for home with everything he had.