"Even Harada right now… to be honest, he's starting to struggle to keep Narumiya in check."
"If Masatoshi Harada weren't both highly capable and his senior, Narumiya might not listen to him at all."
Miyuki Kazuya nodded in agreement.
That alone proved how terrifying Inashiro was this year.
"If we're going to defeat them, it has to be this year's Inashiro."
"Next year, they'll be much weaker."
"The match the day after tomorrow is the one we absolutely have to win."
Miyuki smiled.
"Yeah… but you're pretty willful too."
"I just don't like throwing slow breaking balls," Miyuki complained, leaving Ushijima Wakatoshi momentarily speechless.
Ushijima scratched his head and chuckled.
"It's mainly because I'm too strong. If I don't take some risks, where will my opponents find openings?"
"…Wow." Miyuki didn't hold back at all. "That's some confidence."
After leaving, they boarded the bus back to school.
Once they arrived, everyone immediately began extra practice.
There was no special reason—
they were just impatient.
Bang!!!
The sound of bats echoed across the field.
The starting lineup, except for Ushijima Wakatoshi and Miyuki Kazuya, focused on batting practice.
Ushijima didn't join the pitching drills.
Instead, he stood to the side, quietly observing.
102 pitches today… not bad.
Still—
he couldn't ignore one problem.
His control.
Although it had improved, it still wasn't at the level he wanted.
And because of that, the full power of his pitches hadn't reached the absolute top tier nationwide.
Even though—
Diamond: Four-seam, Forkball, Slider
Gold: Two-seam, Cutter, Sinker, Shootball
All seven of his pitches were already at a national level.
But none had reached the peak of that level.
To achieve that—
he needed Gold-level control.
Ushijima knew rushing wouldn't help.
Even now, he was already more than strong enough to compete with Inashiro.
We'll settle everything on the field…
Besides—
he still had something he hadn't shown.
His full-power fastball.
If he unleashed it completely…
"The only consolation is that all the training these past months—pitching drills, control practice, batting—has paid off."
"My control has improved naturally… without relying on any special abilities."
"It's not obvious—but it's real."
"Heh…"
Looking down at his hands, Ushijima clenched his fists.
"The match the day after tomorrow…"
"I'm really looking forward to it."
"I hope they can force me to use it."
That night, the entire team gathered in the cafeteria for a meeting.
"To be honest, Narumiya didn't show his full strength in today's match," Chris began.
"Sakurazawa's batting lineup is relatively weak, and he knew we were watching."
"They deliberately held back."
"Just like us."
"Ushijima didn't show his forkball, slider, or curveball either."
"Both sides are hiding their true strength."
"But I believe…"
Chris smiled slightly.
"Our pitcher has held back even more."
The team exchanged knowing smiles.
Narumiya Mei was strong—
they all acknowledged that.
But their pitcher?
He was something else entirely.
Almost no one in high school baseball could match him.
Not even Narumiya.
"What do you think, Ushijima?" Coach Kataoka asked.
Ushijima answered calmly:
"It's simple."
"The match against Inashiro will be a pitcher's duel."
"It depends on who gives up runs first—Narumiya or me."
"Whoever allows the first run…"
"…is more likely to lose."
Everyone nodded.
That assessment made perfect sense.
With both teams having elite pitchers—
the game would hinge on the smallest mistake.
"Also," Ushijima continued,
"I think we should adjust the batting order."
"Oh?" Coach Kataoka leaned forward. "Let's hear it."
The room fell silent.
All eyes were on Ushijima.
He picked up the scouting notes and began explaining.
"Narumiya is a proud and arrogant pitcher."
"That comes from his overwhelming strength."
Everyone agreed.
That much was obvious.
"When he faces batters…"
"The stronger the opponent, the more serious he becomes."
"I reviewed all of Inashiro's previous games."
"And there's a clear pattern."
"When facing the first three batters…"
"He only uses about half his strength—especially against weaker teams."
"But against the core lineup…"
"He raises his level significantly."
"This shows two things."
"His confidence in himself."
"And his tendency to underestimate weaker hitters."
"In his eyes, batters who aren't strong enough…"
"…aren't worth his full effort."
"He only takes strong opponents seriously."
The room fell into stunned silence.
His analysis wasn't just technical—
it was psychological.
He had completely dissected Narumiya's mindset.
"And on our team…"
"There are only three people who can make him go all out."
"First—Miyuki Kazuya."
"They've known each other since Little League."
"No one understands Miyuki's ability better than Narumiya."
Miyuki scratched his cheek, smiling awkwardly.
The others looked at him with teasing expressions.
"Second—Yuki Tetsuya."
"Last year, he was the only Seido batter who managed a double against Narumiya."
"Even Azuma-senpai couldn't get an extra-base hit."
"In the finals, Narumiya will definitely go all out against Yuki."
"We need to be prepared for that."
Yuki, standing with his arms crossed, nodded slightly.
"And third…"
Ushijima paused briefly.
"…me."
"My pitching threatens his position as the 'No.1 pitcher in West Tokyo.'"
"He's proud—and rightfully so."
"But because of that…"
"My presence puts pressure on him."
"Especially now that the media compares us—"
"One as the left-handed king."
"The other as the right-handed king."
"So when Narumiya faces me at the plate…"
"He won't hold anything back."
"He'll go all out."
Ushijima finished speaking.
The room remained quiet.
Every teammate was deep in thought—
processing everything he had just laid out.