"Amazing!"
Even the usually quiet and low-key Shirasu couldn't help but voice his admiration.
As Ushijima's dormmate, he knew better than most just how terrifying the first-year's batting ability really was.
The three people sharing their dorm all possessed strong batting skills.
Third-year Isashiki Jun.
Second-year Shirasu Kenjiro.
First-year Ushijima Wakatoshi.
All three were hitters.
What made it even more interesting was how different their batting styles were.
Isashiki Jun's style was pure power.
With his strong arms and explosive swing, he specialized in long hits. As long as the pitch wasn't completely unreasonable—even if it was slightly off—he could still track it down and send it flying.
Shirasu Kenjiro, on the other hand, was far more balanced.
He could hit long balls, short hits, and bunt when needed—but his true specialty was bunting. His control and precision made him deadly on the basepaths.
As for Ushijima Wakatoshi—
He specialized in infield short hits.
Purely infield hits.
He didn't yet have the power to send the ball deep into the outfield.
Unless he deliberately aimed for a defensive gap—using an infield hit that slipped through and rolled into the outfield—every ball he hit landed within the infield.
In that sense, compared to his two upperclassmen, Ushijima's batting skill set was more limited.
But within that limit—
He was terrifyingly refined.
Clang!
Clang!!
Clang!!!
Clang!!!!
Clang!!!!!
Tanba continued to throw.
Pitch after pitch.
Every single one was a breaking ball.
Each reached around 120 km/h.
Ushijima tracked every pitch.
But tracking didn't mean hitting cleanly.
Out of the five consecutive pitches—
He barely managed to keep up with three, sending them foul.
The remaining two, he bit into and forced into the infield.
And even though they were all curveballs, the trajectories were different.
The drop varied.
The break changed.
Which meant the contact points changed as well.
Curveballs with such a large vertical drop were never easy to deal with.
"Nine pitches so far," Miyuki said, eyes sharp as he analyzed.
"Aside from the second pitch—which was a fastball—all the other eight were breaking balls."
"Out of those eight—"
"He put three into the infield."
"He let two go."
"And he sent three foul."
"As it stands, against 120 km/h breaking balls…"
"Ushijima's batting average is thirty-seven point five percent."
"Less than four-tenths."
"Oi—!!"
Isashiki exploded immediately.
"Bastard, you're saying less than four-tenths like that's bad?!"
"Facing Tanba-senpai's vertical curve at over 120 km/h—"
"Can your batting average reach four-tenths?!"
"…!"
Miyuki froze.
For a moment, his expression turned awkward.
Then helpless.
Then amused.
Yeah.
When you put it that way—
This was already absurd.
This was Tanba's decisive pitch.
A vertical curveball at 120 km/h.
Against that pitch, Ushijima had already forced three balls into the infield.
He'd also managed to track and foul off three more.
Four-tenths?
Forget four-tenths.
If Miyuki himself faced that pitch—
A batting average of three-tenths would already feel like a miracle.
"…"
Coach Kataoka's voice cut through the noise.
"Last pitch."
Tanba was fully warmed up now.
After nine pitches, Ushijima had only managed to put three into the infield.
Technically, he hadn't struck him out.
Nine pitches. Three infield hits. No strikeout.
For the final pitch, Tanba decided to respond with everything he had.
"Hmph!"
Raising his leg, he poured all his strength into his arm. With his fingers ensuring perfect control, he unleashed his pitch with full force.
The baseball arced through the air like a whip.
Ushijima Wakatoshi, standing in the right batter's box, opened his eyes wide.
Pitch type: Vertical Curveball
Speed: 122 km/h
It dropped sharply, more than any of the previous pitches.
Ushijima gritted his teeth. He swung from top to bottom with both hands, tilting his body sharply toward Home plate.
Then, almost impossibly, he adjusted mid-motion—tilting the bat from bottom to top—tracking the plunging pitch as it screamed toward the inside low corner.
Clang!!!!!
A crisp metallic sound rang out. The bat had perfectly connected with the falling ball.
Whoosh!!!!
The baseball flew in a high arc, not very fast, and landed in the left side of the infield.
"What?!"
Tanba was stunned. His most powerful, decisive pitch—hit.
Coach Kataoka's eyes widened as well. He watched Ushijima forcefully connect with a pitch that very few batters could even hope to track.
In a real game, the Third Baseman would have fielded it immediately. Even with his blazing speed, Ushijima wouldn't have reached First Base.
Technically, this swing might not count as a hit in an actual match.
But the fact that he even managed to hit Tanba's best pitch at full strength was staggering.
"Tch~"
Ushijima spat to the side, slightly annoyed. He knew he had bitten into the pitch—but it would never make it past the infield. First Base was out of reach.
Still—he had done it. He had faced the Phantom God of Internal Battles at his peak and hit the ball.
"Oh ho ho~ What an incredible kid!"
"You managed to handle such an exaggerated vertical drop and change! Amazing!!!"
Isashiki's voice was filled with goosebumps.
Kominato Ryosuke, who understood batting techniques inside and out, knew his limits. He could never have connected with that pitch.
This was Tanba's strongest pitch, thrown at 100% of his ability. In the entire Japan high school baseball world, batters capable of hitting this pitch would not exceed the fingers on one hand.
And yet, Ushijima Wakatoshi—a first-year—had done it.
That alone was enough to demonstrate his terrifying potential.
"Alright, the showdown is over!" Coach Kataoka finally announced, satisfied.
Ushijima's aura slowly faded as he removed his glove.
Coach Kataoka, with his stoic, Yakuza-like face, couldn't hide his satisfaction.
In all his years coaching Seido High School, he had never seen a first-year batter this strong.
Even though Ushijima had only mastered Infield Short Hits so far, the potential for growth was enormous.
He was just a first-year. Two more years remained. Two years in which he could continue developing.
Perhaps, one year from now…
Ushijima's batting might even surpass that of Azuma Kiyokuni, Seido High's strongest cleanup hitter who had just graduated.