One out. No runners on base.
On the pitcher's mound, Furuya Satoru stared blankly at his pitching hand, confusion flickering in his eyes.
According to his own understanding, if he wanted to increase his pitching velocity, he had to use more strength.
Only by putting more power into the throw could the baseball fly faster.
That was common sense… right?
But right now, Furuya felt as if that "common sense" he had always believed in had suddenly gone off track.
"I didn't even put that much strength into that pitch… so why did the ball look even faster?"
That was the most generous interpretation he could give himself.
Deep down, he knew the truth.
Not only had his pitching speed recovered—
It had actually increased.
What the eye sees and what the pitcher himself feels are often two completely different things.
But the giant electronic scoreboard never lies.
Every pitch Furuya threw had its speed clearly displayed for everyone to see.
And from those numbers, one fact was undeniable—
His fastball had become faster.
And not just a little faster.
Compared to the first inning, his pitches in the second inning looked as if they had been reborn.
Naturally, Furuya wasn't the only one wondering about this.
Up in the stands, the beautiful reporter from Baseball Kingdom Magazine, Owada Akiko, asked the very same question.
"That first-year pitcher… his fastball looks even faster now. What happened?"
Beside her, Fujio, his cap pulled low, answered thoughtfully.
"Pitching is all about rhythm. It's not just about pouring all your strength into one point. Your entire body has to coordinate."
He continued calmly.
"Studies show that when pitchers consciously try to force more power into a throw, the extra tension in their muscles actually interferes with their mechanics. Those conflicting forces can prevent the ball from reaching its maximum speed."
Even as he explained it, Fujio himself found it difficult to believe.
This rookie Furuya Satoru was shining far too brightly.
Normally, when a freshman pitcher stumbles early in a game, about ninety percent of them completely collapse.
The disadvantage snowballs.
The situation becomes worse and worse with every passing moment.
But Furuya didn't collapse.
Instead—
He leveled up.
Today, the quality of his pitching was clearly even better than his previous peak.
What did that mean?
It meant he had achieved a breakthrough in the middle of the game.
Pitchers who could grow stronger every time they faced pressure…
Those were the ones destined for great futures unless something disastrous happened.
Not to mention, this first-year already had the ability to throw over 150 km/h.
With talent like that…
"Even after Zhou Hao graduates, Seido High School Baseball Team won't have to worry about their pitching staff."
And Fujio wasn't the only one thinking this way.
Throughout the stands, countless spectators were already praising Furuya's seemingly limitless potential.
This Spring Tournament Final might not mean much to the two teams competing.
Even though both sides behaved as if it mattered greatly, the result would not change their national reputation.
But for Furuya—
This game carried tremendous significance.
If he could perform brilliantly against the powerhouse Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team, his status within Seido would rise dramatically.
Forget about becoming the Ace in the future.
With Seido's current pitching lineup, if he could surpass Tanba and become the team's number two pitcher, he might even make national headlines before officially becoming the Ace.
Just like Zhou Hao had done the year before.
Watching another potential superstar bloom right before their eyes—
The crowd in the stands grew increasingly excited.
People waved their arms wildly and shouted encouragement.
They used every method they could think of to cheer for Seido's first-year prodigy.
Back in the dugout, Tanba's gloomy expression had long been forgotten.
At this moment, everyone simply wanted to witness the rookie's breakthrough performance.
"One more!"
"One more!!"
The voices echoed throughout the stadium.
Right now, everyone hoped that the young pitcher on the mound would strike out the next batter as well.
On the side of Inashiro Industrial, however, their sixth batter was furious.
The score stood at 2–1.
Although Inashiro trailed by one run, the game was still evenly matched.
Yet listening to the cheers from the stands, it felt as though Seido had completely taken over the stadium.
"Don't underestimate us!"
Inashiro Industrial might not be the national champions.
But they had just finished as runner-up at Spring Koshien.
Their strength was beyond doubt.
Being ignored like this…
Naturally made them angry.
The sixth batter raised his bat high, flames burning in his eyes.
He was determined to prove himself.
The way he stared at Furuya was filled with ambition and hunger.
He wanted to send the baseball flying into the sky with a single swing.
That fighting spirit was precisely what made Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team a true powerhouse worthy of their Spring Koshien silver medal.
Unfortunately for him—
None of that mattered to Furuya.
Furuya Satoru was completely immersed in his own pitching rhythm.
As long as he followed Senior Zhou Hao's advice and simply delivered the ball naturally—
No batter would be able to hit it.
At least, that was what he believed.
And so, that was exactly what he did.
No matter who stood in the batter's box—
He released every pitch cleanly and decisively.
"Boom!"
The baseball exploded toward home plate with a thunderous sound.
The sixth batter from Inashiro Industrial watched the pitch approach.
His pupils instantly widened.
Fast!
Even from the on-deck circle, the Inashiro players had already sensed it.
This first-year pitcher's fastball was no joke.
A pitch exceeding 150 kilometers per hour was the real deal.
He truly had the ability to back it up.
But now, standing inside the batter's box—
The sixth batter suddenly realized something.
Watching a pitch from the dugout or on-deck circle…
And actually facing it in the batter's box…
Were two completely different experiences.
At that moment, he felt the blood in his veins turn ice-cold.
Only now did the sixth batter of Inashiro Industrial realize the truth.
From the sidelines, a pitcher's ability might look like an eighty out of a hundred.
But that perspective only shows fragments of the whole picture.
Only when you stand in the batter's box—face to face with Furuya Satoru's pitches—
do you truly understand how terrifying this first-year monster really is.
If he didn't fight back now…
he would be completely swallowed by that overwhelming pressure.
Grinding his teeth, Inashiro's sixth batter swung his bat with all his strength, almost throwing it at the ball.
Deep down, he knew the truth.
The chances of making contact were extremely small.
And even if he somehow managed to touch the ball, the result probably wouldn't be good.
But even so—
He had to swing.
Because if he didn't, the suffocating pressure would crush him.
Even if it was only for the sake of his pride, he had to try to send that baseball flying.
"Fly, damn it!"
With that desperate shout in his heart, he poured every ounce of strength into the swing.
But the result was merciless.
The bat sliced through the air—
And completely missed the baseball.
Bat and ball crossed paths without ever touching.
"Pop!"
"Strike!"
Behind home plate, Miyuki Kazuya couldn't help but grin.
At last—
He had successfully brought out Furuya Satoru's true pitching strength.
"Finally…"
Even as he sighed with relief, Miyuki silently thanked his lucky stars.
Thank goodness he hadn't lost faith earlier.
No one knew better than him how tense he had been when Furuya's control started wavering.
But he never allowed that anxiety to show.
Against a powerhouse like Inashiro Industrial, even the smallest crack would be ruthlessly exploited.
Seido High had done the exact same thing to many opponents before.
The moment the enemy showed weakness—
Seido's lineup would pounce like a pack of wolves.
Once they seized the momentum, the game would spiral completely out of control.
Their previous victories against Ichidai Sankou and Teito were perfect examples.
After those games, the team had seriously analyzed why their wins had come so easily.
Of course, Seido's strength played a major role.
But they also admitted that luck had been on their side.
The most crucial factor was simple—
Their opponents had not been fully prepared.
That allowed Seido to continuously expand their advantage until the game snowballed beyond control.
In some matches, their opponents couldn't even last a full nine innings.
If Zhou Hao were pitching today,
Miyuki wouldn't have been worried at all.
With Zhou Hao on the mound, even the worst situations could be turned around.
But today—
Zhou Hao couldn't pitch.
Which meant Miyuki had to shoulder an enormous amount of pressure.
If Seido fell behind now, the consequences could be disastrous.
That was a result Miyuki absolutely refused to accept.
And something the Seido High School Baseball Team would never tolerate.
Fortunately—
The first-year rookie Furuya Satoru proved far more capable than anyone had expected.
The moment he stepped onto the mound this inning, he entered an incredible rhythm.
Not only were his pitches landing in the strike zone—
They were becoming stronger with every throw.
The batters of Inashiro Industrial were clearly shaken by this performance.
They stood in the batter's box, caught between aggression and hesitation.
It was obvious they desperately wanted to win.
Every batter wanted to crush the ball the moment it came.
But the harder they tried—
The deeper they fell into Furuya's rhythm.
Soon, even the idea of hitting a simple single felt impossibly distant.
Just making contact had become a luxury.
"Bring it—no holding back!"
Seeing Miyuki's signal, Furuya felt as if he had been injected with pure adrenaline.
His pitching became even sharper.
The baseballs he unleashed felt like blades slicing through the air.
"Whoosh!"
The white ball tore through the strike zone like a rifle bullet.
The sixth batter of Inashiro swung with everything he had left.
Exactly as Miyuki expected.
At this point, the batter wasn't even aiming for a hit anymore.
If he could simply nick the ball and send it foul, that would already count as a victory.
But the more desperately he swung—
The further his bat drifted from the baseball.
Again and again, the bat sliced through empty air.
"Pop!"
"Strike!"
"Strike two!"
"Strike three!"
"Strikeout!!!"
He never even touched the ball once.
Two outs. Bases empty.
Inside the Inashiro Industrial dugout, Coach Kunimoto's expression had darkened completely.
His face looked as though ink could drip from it at any moment.
Other people might not understand what was happening.
But Kunimoto understood perfectly.
He knew exactly how hopeless his players were beginning to feel.
They were swinging at pitches far outside the strike zone—
terrified that if they hesitated for even a moment, they would be completely overwhelmed.
It was wrong.
Completely and utterly wrong.
But the cruel truth was—
Furuya Satoru's pitching had shattered their confidence.
His pressure had crushed their nerves.
The batters of Inashiro Industrial could no longer execute a normal at-bat.
Cruel as it was—
That was reality.
A first-year rookie had already broken them psychologically.
At this rate, they might truly lose this game today.
With neither Ace pitcher on the mound,
their team was actually being suppressed by Seido High School.
Not a single player from Inashiro could accept that.
Even their head coach, Kunimoto, found it nearly unbearable.
We have to do something… anything.
Just as that thought formed in his mind—
Furuya fired another pitch.
"WHOOM!"
The seventh batter of Inashiro, who had originally planned to watch a pitch or two, suddenly changed his mind.
Watching Furuya's blazing fastball streak past the plate—
That was something he simply couldn't endure.
He had to swing.
Without thinking, he whipped the bat through the strike zone.
Only after committing did he realize what he had done.
"Pop!"
"Strike!"
"Strike two!"
"Strike three!"
"Strikeout!!!"
Three batters retired in order.
Side retired.