"So, Kanzaki-san… do you have any ideas?" Kawakami asked.
Kanzaki Ryou smiled lightly.
"Practice one more pitch."
"A changeup?" Ono Hiroshi asked curiously.
It wasn't as if they hadn't considered it. But Kawakami's fastball wasn't particularly fast to begin with, so a changeup wouldn't create a large enough speed gap. On top of that, mastering a changeup wasn't something that could be accomplished in a short period of time.
The curveball he was currently working on was already giving both Kawakami and Ono a headache.
Kanzaki shook his head.
"No. Not a changeup. The pitch I'm talking about shouldn't be too difficult for Kawakami."
Hearing this, the two exchanged glances. Kawakami immediately asked,
"Then… what pitch is it?"
"Slow sinker."
A voice suddenly came from the doorway.
Kanzaki instantly broke out in a cold sweat.
Weren't you planning to keep hiding just now!?
It's only been a few seconds!
Ochiai Hiromitsu walked in calmly.
Everyone except Kanzaki looked confused. Although they had noticed someone sneaking around and observing their training over the past few days, among the entire Seidou Baseball Club, only Yuki Tetsuya and Kanzaki Ryou knew Ochiai's true identity.
"Excuse me… who are you?" Ono Hiroshi asked cautiously.
Ochiai stroked his small mustache and glanced at Kanzaki.
"It's a slow sinker, right?"
Kanzaki nodded helplessly, sighing inwardly at the man's sharp intuition.
"Coach Ochiai," Kanzaki said directly, "you're coming out now? Not planning to observe anymore?"
Ochiai's eyes darted slightly.
He had originally planned to watch for another couple of days, but when he saw Kanzaki about to reveal the idea he was preparing to use himself, he couldn't help blurting it out.
"C–Coach?"
The others stared at Ochiai in shock.
So the suspicious guy who kept peeking from corners was actually a coach?
"Cough." Ochiai stroked his mustache again, adopting the posture of an enlightened master. "I am the Technical Director."
"Technical… Director?" Arima Kazusa blinked in confusion.
At that moment, Ono Hiroshi frowned, then suddenly exclaimed,
"I remember now!"
"You're the coach from Sagara High! You appeared briefly on TV during last year's Koshien broadcast!"
"…Ah."
Ochiai didn't quite know what expression to make.
"Yes, that's me," he said stiffly. "But now, I am the newly appointed Technical Director of Seidou High School's Baseball Club."
He deliberately emphasized the words Technical Director.
"Coach, did you just say 'Slow Sinker'?" Kawakami asked eagerly.
"Well," Ochiai replied, raising his chin slightly, "your sinker is already quite good. If you can also master a slow sinker, it will definitely become a powerful weapon."
"Really?" Kawakami blurted out unconsciously.
Ochiai narrowed his eyes at him, then after a moment, turned to Kanzaki.
"Kanzaki, you explain it."
"Me?" Kanzaki was momentarily stunned.
Isn't this literally your job…?
"Mm. I think you can explain it well," Ochiai said, maintaining his air of mystery.
Left with no choice, Kanzaki organized his thoughts and spoke.
"Compared to a normal sinker, the slow sinker sacrifices some velocity in exchange for greater downward and lateral movement," Kanzaki explained.
"You can think of it as a sinker-version of a changeup."
"Of course, it's not as slow as a true changeup," he continued, "but the speed difference is enough to disrupt a batter's timing and induce weak contact or swings and misses."
After hearing Kanzaki's explanation, Kawakami nodded slowly.
He wasn't completely unfamiliar with the slow sinker—he just hadn't seriously tried practicing it.
Now that both Kanzaki and this new coach were recommending it, Kawakami felt it might really be worth attempting.
"Let's try it now," Ochiai said. "Throw a few first."
"Your curveball isn't fully developed yet, but it's serviceable for now. Instead of stubbornly forcing progress on it, trying a different pitch might yield unexpected results."
Kawakami looked at Ono Hiroshi.
Ono shrugged, offering no objection.
Finally, Kawakami turned to Kanzaki.
"Give it a try," Kanzaki said calmly. "There's nothing to lose."
He trusted Ochiai's judgment—and he was genuinely curious to see whether Kawakami could make the slow sinker work.
Whoosh—
Kawakami took a deep breath, as if making an important decision, then nodded firmly.
Ochiai glanced at Kanzaki, silently noting how much trust this ace commanded within the team. Even when developing a new pitch, his teammates instinctively sought Kanzaki's approval.
"The grip is basically the same as a regular sinker," Ochiai instructed.
"But hold the ball deeper. Use your palm to apply pressure—this will reduce speed."
"Understood."
"Alright, let's try," Ono said.
The two moved into position.
Ono squatted down and set his glove in the middle of the strike zone, quietly waiting.
Kawakami rolled the baseball in his palm, loosening and tightening his grip several times, trying to feel it. Then he nodded.
A moment later—
The ball was released.
Too high.
Ono frowned. His glove was centered in the zone, but the pitch floated well above it.
However—
The speed was clearly slower.
And the downward and horizontal movement was noticeably stronger.
Smack!
The ball landed in Ono's glove.
Kawakami's face immediately lit up.
He hadn't expected any success on his first try.
"Nice ball!" Ono said, tossing it back.
"Next one—focus on controlling the trajectory."
"Mm!" Kawakami nodded excitedly.
Am I… actually talented?
Whoosh!
The second pitch—
Thud.
It hit the ground.
"Your body's too stiff," Ochiai said calmly.
"Don't deliberately restrain your arm. Be natural."
"Okay."
The third pitch.
The fourth pitch.
After nearly ten throws, Kawakami's slow sinker was still unstable.
"No need to rush," Ochiai said.
"When you practice it in the future, make sure your release motion matches your sinker exactly. Otherwise, batters will read it easily."
"Understood, Coach."
Seeing Kawakami's earnest attitude, Ochiai nodded with satisfaction and turned to leave.
Meanwhile, Kanzaki led Arima Kazusa to the side to warm up.
They still had that little wager to settle.
After twenty minutes of warming up, Arima finally couldn't hold it in anymore.
"Senpai… can we start now?"
"Heh." Kanzaki chuckled. He'd thought the kid would last a bit longer.
"Alright," he said, smiling faintly.
"Let's see what you've got."
"Okay!"