CRACK!!!
Yuki Tetsuya drove the ball sharply into the outfield.
"What?!"
Narumiya Mei clenched his fists in disbelief.
The moment the ball left the bat, Isashiki exploded off second base and charged toward third without hesitation.
Carlos immediately sprinted after the ball, using his elite speed to cut it off before it could roll any farther.
Scooping it up cleanly, he glanced toward home plate.
Isashiki was already racing home at full speed.
"Relay!"
Carlos fired the ball toward Narumiya.
Narumiya quickly positioned himself as the cutoff man.
THWACK!
The ball smacked into his glove.
Without wasting a second, he spun and fired a laser toward home.
WHOOSH!
The throw arrived in a flash.
"Damn it!"
Isashiki lowered his body and launched into a headfirst slide.
At the plate, Harada calmly received the throw.
Then he turned and swept his glove forward.
THUMP!
Harada's glove struck Isashiki's shoulder.
At almost the exact same moment, Isashiki's fingertips stretched toward home plate.
The entire stadium fell silent.
Players from both teams stared at the scene.
Everyone waited for the umpire's decision.
A tense second passed.
Then—
"OUT!"
The umpire's arm shot into the air.
A collective groan erupted from Seidou's supporters.
"Ahhhh!"
"So close!"
"Tch!"
Isashiki slammed his fist against the dirt before climbing back to his feet.
Meanwhile, Inashiro's players finally let out the breath they had been holding.
If that run had scored, the game might have completely slipped away.
"Change sides!"
Although Isashiki had been thrown out at home, Seidou still added two runs that inning.
The scoreboard now read:
Seidou 4 – Inashiro 0
Back in the dugout, Isashiki immediately pointed toward Ushijima.
"Did you see that?"
"That was a double!"
Yuki crossed his arms.
"I got a hit too."
Ushijima nodded seriously.
"Good work."
Then he smiled.
"Which means the pressure is now on the second, fifth, sixth, and seventh batters."
Instant silence.
Kuramochi.
Masuko.
Miyuki.
Shirasu.
None of them had recorded a hit yet.
Meanwhile, Isashiki had already collected two hits and multiple RBIs.
Yuki had contributed both a hit and a run-producing at-bat.
The first-years had all delivered.
Even Haruichi and Furuya had gotten hits.
In other words—
The underclassmen were carrying the offense.
"All the first-years who entered the game have contributed."
"The third-years have contributed too."
Ushijima glanced around the dugout.
"The second-years, on the other hand..."
His smile widened.
"...have accomplished absolutely nothing."
"..."
The silence became even heavier.
Even Kominato Ryosuke couldn't help laughing.
"Thankfully I'm injured."
"At least I have an excuse."
Kuramochi nearly exploded.
"DAMN IT!"
"How was I supposed to hit that?!"
"That idiot's fastball suddenly jumped over 150 km/h!"
"He completely lost his mind!"
Ushijima raised an eyebrow.
"Excuse."
"What?"
"I've thrown plenty of 150-plus fastballs to you."
"And Furuya has too."
"Between the two of us, you've probably seen hundreds."
He shrugged.
"So why didn't you hit it?"
Kuramochi's eye twitched.
"Stop talking already!"
The dugout burst into laughter.
Even Miyuki couldn't hide a grin.
Ushijima picked up his glove and looked toward him.
"The heart of Inashiro's lineup is coming up."
"What do you think?"
Miyuki's expression immediately turned serious.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the field...
The atmosphere inside Inashiro's dugout was far less cheerful.
From behind the dugout came a familiar voice.
"Damn it!"
"Damn it!"
"DAMN IT!"
Narumiya Mei was venting all of his frustration.
The entire team quietly pretended not to hear him.
Nobody wanted to get involved.
After all, everyone knew exactly why he was angry.
His Cutter had been hit.
His pride had taken a direct blow.
Eventually, Shirakawa broke the silence.
He repeated what Isashiki had told him earlier.
"Seidou's lineup regularly practices against Ushijima's fastballs."
Harada's eyebrows rose.
"What?"
"According to Isashiki, Ushijima personally throws batting practice."
"Every other day."
The dugout fell silent.
Hirai clenched his fist.
"So that's why."
"If they're constantly facing 150-plus fastballs, Mei's velocity alone won't overwhelm them."
Coach Kunimoto slowly stretched his neck.
His expression remained calm.
"I've told you before."
"You're not the only ones improving."
"Your opponents are improving too."
His words sank heavily into everyone's minds.
Harada unconsciously recalled what Ushijima had told him earlier.
Next year...
Will anyone be able to keep Mei under control?
His gaze drifted toward the freshman catcher.
Tadano Itsuki
The talent was there.
But right now?
He wasn't ready.
Not yet.
Harada quietly sighed.
The future would not be easy.
A few moments later, Narumiya finally emerged from behind the dugout.
His hair was a mess.
His expression was still fierce.
But something had changed.
"It's better now."
Everyone stared at him.
Shirakawa blinked.
"Better?"
"It doesn't look better."
"No."
Narumiya grinned.
A familiar, confident grin.
"I feel great."
The team looked at him in confusion.
Narumiya crossed his arms.
"We lost some runs."
"So what?"
"We'll score them back."
His eyes burned with determination.
"The game isn't over."
"It's only the fifth inning."
The atmosphere around Inashiro immediately shifted.
That was Narumiya Mei.
Frustrating.
Childish.
Stubborn.
Arrogant.
But above all else—
An ace who refused to stay down.
Bat in hand, Narumiya walked toward the field.
"Let's go."
Behind him, Harada watched silently.
Then he smiled faintly.
Looks like he's back.
At home plate, Harada stepped into the batter's box and scraped his cleats against the dirt.
Across from him, Miyuki studied every movement.
I haven't done anything today, Harada thought.
Then his gaze shifted toward the mound.
Toward Ushijima Wakatoshi.
Must be nice...
Playing with a pitcher like that, right, Miyuki?
Unlike their own ace.
A pitcher who was brilliant.
A pitcher who was irreplaceable.
And a pitcher who was an absolute headache to deal with.
Miyuki smirked.
Then gave the sign.
On the mound, Ushijima saw it and nodded.
The time had come.
To reveal another weapon.