Ushijima Wakatoshi caught the ball, threw it back, then jogged calmly to his position in center field.
Coach Kataoka, standing in the batter's box, nodded in satisfaction when he saw his deep hit to left field successfully caught.
"Clang!!!"
The very next moment, another sharp metallic sound rang out.
A fast, well-placed long ball shot toward right field.
Ushijima, who had just returned to center, spotted the ball immediately and burst into motion.
Before he could even catch his breath, he was forced to sprint again—this time covering the gap between center and right field.
Shirasu reacted quickly and rushed over, but the distance was too far, and he was a step too slow.
Ushijima Wakatoshi, however, relied on his explosive speed and precise judgment of the landing point.
He dove forward.
Extending his long arms to the limit, he barely managed to snag the ball into his glove.
"Oh ho ho~ Amazing! He actually caught that?!"
"Yeah, looking at the landing zone, that should've been a clean hit to right field!"
"Exactly! That ball was already right field territory, yet the center fielder still covered it."
"This means Ushijima Wakatoshi's defensive range in center field is enormous—speed, footwork, and height all combined."
"Terrifying… Seido's strength this year isn't just their batting lineup anymore. Their defense has clearly improved by another level."
"With that speed and coverage, he's comparable to Inashiro's Carlos, right?"
"True. Carlos is also tall, fast, and plays center field."
"Oh ho ho~ Seido really has hope of reaching Koshien this year."
"The only uncertainty is still Tanba… after all, pitching decides everything."
…
Compared to the relaxed spectators outside the field, the players inside were in far worse condition.
Almost everyone was panting heavily.
Even Ushijima Wakatoshi—despite his Diamond-level stamina—was breathing hard.
As for the third-years like Yuki Tetsuya, they were already bent over with their hands on their knees.
"Clang!!!"
Another ball was hit.
This time, it flew toward the open space between left field and center field.
Isashiki tried to run for it, but his legs felt like lead.
He couldn't accelerate at all.
"Damn it ah ah ah ah ah~!!"
Unable to move, Isashiki roared in frustration.
But what hurt him even more was the sight that followed.
Ushijima Wakatoshi was already sprinting toward the ball.
A first-year… still running at full speed.
And him? A third-year senior, unable to move.
Did he really need a freshman's help to reach Koshien?
That thought struck Isashiki again and again.
"Thwack!"
Ushijima reached the falling baseball and secured it cleanly in his glove.
Turning around instinctively, his right hand clenched around the ball.
In that instant, he unknowingly put too much force into the throw.
Whoosh!!!!
The baseball exploded out of his hand, transforming into a white streak that tore through the air from the outfield to home plate in the blink of an eye.
The throw was incredibly fast—but its trajectory was slightly too high.
"!!"
Coach Kataoka, standing in the batter's box, froze.
Behind his sunglasses, his pupils contracted sharply as he stared straight at Ushijima Wakatoshi in center field.
Boom!!
Miyuki Kazuya had to jump to catch the ball.
The moment he landed, his expression stiffened.
Behind his glasses, his pupils widened as well.
"Miyuki." Coach Kataoka said calmly, calling his name without another word.
"Ah…" Miyuki responded, already understanding what the coach meant.
Because he had seen it too.
Even without a radar gun, Miyuki knew one thing for certain—
That throw was definitely over 145 kilometers per hour.
And that was just a casual throw back.
A speed even Seido's ace pitcher, Tanba, couldn't consistently reach.
More importantly, this happened after an intense training session, when everyone's stamina was nearly exhausted.
Yet even at his limit, Ushijima Wakatoshi could still throw at 145 km/h.
Then what about when he was at full strength?
"Time out!"
Coach Kataoka finally couldn't remain calm and immediately called for a timeout.
"Ushijima! Come here!"
Coach Kataoka's voice cut through the field.
At once, everyone turned to look at Ushijima Wakatoshi.
Earlier, no one had paid much attention—everyone was simply too exhausted.
Most of them had assumed that Ushijima had just thrown the ball a little too high while relaying it back to home plate.
Now that the coach had called him over, they instinctively thought—
Is he being lectured?
Ushijima Wakatoshi had a rough idea of what was coming. He jogged over calmly and stood in front of Coach Kataoka, waiting.
"What's the highest speed you can pitch?"
The moment those words left Coach Kataoka's mouth, the entire field froze.
Including the ace pitcher, Tanba, who stared blankly in disbelief.
Even Yuki Tetsuya turned to look at his cousin, confusion written all over his face.
He knew Ushijima could pitch—his second position was pitcher, after all.
But according to the team recorder, Ushijima's pitching speed during the position test had only been around 130 to 140 km/h.
That wasn't slow… but it certainly wasn't shocking.
Standing calmly in front of the coach, Ushijima Wakatoshi answered honestly:
"Around 150."
"What?!!!"
The response exploded across the field like a thunderclap.
Everyone stared at Ushijima in shock.
What they didn't know was that Ushijima had deliberately understated it.
After all, a Diamond-level Four-Seam Fastball was already world-class.
The world record was 169 km/h.
There was no way his maximum speed was below 160.
Coach Kataoka's expression darkened immediately.
"If that's the case," he said sternly, "then during the previous position test…"
"Why didn't you pitch seriously?"
"The team recorder reported that your speed was only slightly over 130."
Faced with the coach's questioning, Ushijima could only smile helplessly.
"I wanted to tell you before, Coach. But you ignored me."
"When did I ignore you?" Coach Kataoka shot back. He clearly wasn't about to take responsibility so easily.
"Right after my showdown with Senior Tanba," Ushijima replied honestly.
"I wanted to talk to you then."
"But Coach… at that time, you looked like a yakuza boss—expressionless and intimidating. You turned around and left immediately."
"You didn't give me any chance to speak."
Coach Kataoka froze behind his sunglasses.
Now that Ushijima mentioned it…
It did seem like he had left right away after that showdown.
To make his point clearer, Ushijima even pointed at Isashiki beside him.
"Senior even asked me then."
"He asked what I wanted to say. I told him it was nothing and that I'd wait for another chance."
Isashiki paused, then nodded.
"…Yeah. That did happen."
Miyuki Kazuya covered his mouth with his glove, barely holding back laughter.
The surrounding players also glanced at the coach, their expressions strangely complicated.
After a brief silence, Coach Kataoka spoke again.
"Even so, you should have told me proactively."
"With that kind of pitching speed, no coach would dare take you lightly."
Ushijima understood what the coach meant.
But he also spoke his true thoughts—this was his chance.
"The main problem is my control," Ushijima said seriously.
"At full power, I can reach around 150, but I can't control it well."
"So instead of pitching at maximum speed, I chose a speed where I could maintain accuracy."
"More importantly…" Ushijima hesitated for a moment, then spoke frankly.
"I don't really like being a pitcher."
"I prefer being a batter."
"If I showed my real pitching speed, I was afraid you'd make me focus on pitching and control training."
"Then I wouldn't have time to develop my long-hit ability."
"So I didn't fully reveal it before."
Silence.
Absolute silence fell over the entire field.
The players were completely speechless.
You have a 150 km/h fastball… and you don't want to pitch?
You already have terrifying speed, elite defense, and absurd Infield Short Hit success…
And you're still worried about not having long hits?!
At this level, even without power hitting, no one would blame him.
In fact, everyone would call him a monster already.
Yet this freshman was still unsatisfied.
For the first time, everyone truly realized—
Ushijima Wakatoshi's ambition was far greater than they had imagined.