"Pinch hitter, Masuko." Coach shouted to the senior dugout.
'He's finally here.' I thought, watching as Masuko walked out of the dugout with his bat and helmet.
I had seen how much effort he had put into training in the last week after being demoted off the first-string, coming back to the room every night covered with sweat after working out.
He looked especially buffed up in his baseball uniform.
He had a certain, pressuring aura around him as he walked up to the batter's box.
He stopped just before stepping in.
"Sawamura-chan." He said in a very deep voice, making me flinch slightly.
It was the first time I had heard his voice since he still gave himself the silent treatment since I had come to school.
"I'm determined to be back in the first-string. Give me your all!" He continued.
"Yes, Masuko senpai!" I replied loudly, with a serious expression.
***
"YAHA!" Suddenly a cackle came from fence behind Miyuki, Miyuki turned and saw most of the first string standing there.
Kuramochi who had cackled, continued, "This will be good! A roommate battle!"
"OI! WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?!" Isashiki shouted at the top of his voice, making his presence known to everyone.
"WHAT'S THIS TURNOUT AGAINST THE FIRST YEARS? YOU SHOULD BE UP BY 200 RUNS!" He continued.
"SWITCH ME IN NOW!! I'LL PLAY!" He shouted as he walked towards the field.
Kuramochi managed to hold him back last second.
"Yaha, Jun-san, stop! You just finished hitting!" He said whilst holding Isashiki back.
"Be quiet and watch Jun." Yuki said in a calm voice.
He then turned towards Sawamura on the mound, who looked focused and calm despite going up against Masuko next.
"That's the kid who struck out Azuma-senpai, the man you respect." He continued, glancing at Isashiki. "You missed it when it happened, didn't you?"
"What? That was him?" Isashiki replied whilst staring at Sawamura.
He then calmed down a little, but he was stuck staring at Sawamura, taking in every detail of him.
***
'This is going to be a tough battle. I've got to go all out for it.' I thought, looking at Masuko stepping into the right handed batter's box with his pressuring aura.
'Max, activate Ace's Indomitable Will skill.'
[Activing 'Ace's Indomitable Will' skill.]
Suddenly, a rush of strength entered my muscles.
They were bursting with energy, ready to be unleashed.
I took a deep breath whilst looking towards Kariba who gave a sign for a four-seam high and inside.
I nodded and started my windup, planted my foot,
THUUUD
And threw.
WHOOOOSH
Masuko widened his eyes slightly when he saw the pitch form the batter's position for the first time, he kept his bat still, watching the ball.
PAAAH
The sound of the ball hitting the mitt was clean and crisp.
It was also significantly louder than the last pitches he threw.
'He's pitching faster.' Masuko concluded when he heard the sound.
The Coach also had the same thought, looking at Sawamura with slightly widened eyes.
'He didn't back down from a challenge and his pitching speed increased instead. This kid! He's finally going all out. Interesting!' He thought as he called a strike.
"Strike!"
"Nice pitch Sawamura! You're looking good!" Kariba said, throwing the ball back to the mound.
I caught it and let out a little breath.
'Masuko's a great batter. He instinctively felt the change of speed and let it pass to have a better look at it. He's really dangerous, I can't afford to hold back!' I thought looking at Masuko, who was staring right back at me.
I then looked at Kariba who called for a change up.
I nodded at this call without hesitation.
'He took a good look at my fastball to gauge the timing, he should swing on the next pitch.'
I started my wind up, planted my foot.
THUUUD
And threw.
Whoosh
Masuko just watched the ball calmly as it went past him, slowly going just below the strike zone.
Pah
"Ball!" Coach called.
'Crap! He didn't swing! Is he trying to have a look at my other pitches before settling on one?' I thought.
My mind was racing at full pace, but my face was still as calm as ever.
'I don't have many pitches in my arsenal to go play with if he decides to start fouling them off, looking for a good pitch. He hasn't seen my cutter yet. Let's go with that to throw him off a bit.' I continued thinking at a fast pace.
Kariba then called for a two-seam, low and away.
'Looks like Kariba is nervous; he wants to run away with that pitch.' I thought as I shook my head at the call.
He then called for a cutter which I nodded immediately.
I started my windup, planted my foot,
THUUUD
And threw.
WHOOOSH
Masuko looked at the ball coming towards him and swung with all his might.
His swing made the air around him swirl as he used all his momentum to strike the ball.
Then,
SHWWIIIIK
PAAAH
"Strike!"
'Huh?' Masuko thought, with a calm expression. 'The ball disappeared. Is this the pitch that Tanba struck out on? Interesting. Sawamura-chan is good!'
Masuko did not seem fazed at all after seeing the cutter.
This made me a little annoyed, but I kept my cool.
Kariba then called for a low, inside four-seam.
WHOOOOSH
CLINK
"Foul!"
Then a two-seam, low and away.
WHOOOOSH
CLINK
"Foul!"
A Change up.
Whoosh
Pah
"Ball!"
'Shit! He's like an iron wall, holding back every attack coming at him!' I thought, staring at Masuko with my golden glowing eyes with a calm face.
I then flashed a bright grin at him.
'This is so exciting. I've never felt so alive.
My grin confused all three of Masuko, Coach and Kariba.
'Why is he smiling in this situation?' Kariba thought.
I then went back to my calm expression.
'I need something different to get him to strike out. Something he won't expect. Hmmm… Oh? Would that work? I haven't been able to grasp it fully but maybe with the combined skills of 'Windup' and 'Ace's Indomiatable Will', I might be able to pull it off.' I thought.
Kariba called for a pitch, which I shook my head.
He then called for another, in which I shook my head again.
"T-Timeout, please!" Kariba called out to the Coach.
"Time." Coach responded.
Kariba then jogged over to the mound.
I put my glove over my mouth, and he did the same.
"What's wrong Sawamura? You've been pitching great so far." He asked as he got to me.
"I know, but great isn't going to cut it if we want to get Masuko-senapai out." I responded.
I then looked directly into Kariba's eyes with my own.
When he looked at my eyes, he suddenly got chills down his spine.
"We need to risk it all for this. I have a pitch I haven't shown you yet because it's not completed yet. But right now, I feel like a can throw it." I said to him with a determined voice.
"What pitch is it?" Kariba asked.
"A Splitter." I responded.
Kariba looked a little shaken at that.
"A-Are you sure you want to do this? We still have another ball to waste, and Masuko has only seen the cutter once, why don't we throw that again? I'm not confident to catch a splitter so suddenly." He said.
I put my hand on his shoulder, moving in slightly closer, looking into his eyes.
"Right now, Masuko is in the zone. He is trying to put pressure on us by fouling off every strike we give him right now. I don't know if he will be able to hit my cutter fair, but I'm sure he will be able to touch it for a foul. Right now, we need something he's not expecting. Something to make him swing at. You remember what I said in the bullpen? This is Seido, a place where we all fight past our limits to improve. Look around the field." I said to him.
He looked behind me and saw the other players on the field.
Despite not being involved in this inning at all, due to Sawamura's perfect pitching so far, they all had a certain confident aura around them.
They looked ready to pounce at anything that came their way.
"You see that? That's what we did. Me and you. Our performance so far has made everyone else filled with confidence and adrenaline. Listen, the perfect pitching is an art that only happens when a pitcher and a catcher come together as one. So be confident in yourself Kariba. We can do this! All you need to do is place your mitt just below the strike zone in the middle and trust me to get the pitch to you. Trust me Kariba, I can do this." I said to him with fire burning in my eyes.
Kariba got chills all over his body again.
'Damn, something about Sawamura just makes me want to trust him every time. What is this?' He thought.
"Okay, let's do this. I trust you." He spoke.
I held up my glove.
"Let's go monster-slaying, partner." I said to him with a smile.
He smacked my glove.
"Yeah!" He said, turning away and walking back to Homeplate.
I drew out a big breath.
'This is going to take my everything. Okay, let's review the pitch. Take my index finger and middle finger on the outside of the glove, just beyond the two seams.' I thought as I brought the ball into my glove and got the grip right.
Once I got it in the right position, I looked over and saw Kariba ready in position.
'Okay, when I throw, I need to make sure to snap my wrist more to get more spin on the ball during it's flight.' I thought as I started my windup.
I planted my foot down on the mound with the most force I could muster.
THUUUUD
The air and dirt around my foot flew away my foot from the stomp.
I then twisted my hips with as much momentum and power my body could endure.
I then tightened my throwing arm, whipping it with immense speed over my shoulder, generating as much speed and power my muscles could take, using all the energy I had left.
Then, right at the release of the ball, I snapped my wrist through aggressively, giving the ball more spin.
WHOOOOOSH
The ball flew at great speed towards the plate, right in the middle.
Masuko, who saw this, instantly swung his bat with as much power as he could.
'Down the middle, I'll take this on beyond the fence.' He thought.
Then, suddenly,
SHUM
The ball dropped below his bat at the last second, making him swing at air.
BAANG
The ball landed perfectly into Kariba's mitt with force.
Silence.
Just complete silence around the field.
"Strikeout! Three outs, change!" Shouted the Coach.
"SHHAAAAAAAA!!" I shouted at the top of my lungs, pumping my fist.
'I did it! I finally pulled off the splitter! That was my best pitch in both my lifetimes! Let's go!!!' I screamed in my own head.
*Ding*
A notification came up on a screen in front of me.
[User has pushed beyond his limits and threw a perfect splitter in the process.
You have been rewarded with the skill 'Hongo's Splitter'.
Congratulations User.]
'Huh? Hongo's? WAIT!! The Hongo? Hongo Masamune? The ace pitcher for Komadai Fujimaki Hich School who led his team to nationals in the manga?' I asked.
[That is correct User, the pitch you just pitched right now was more like Hongo's splitter than Sawamura's. So, the system awarded you this skill instead.]
'Wait! So, does this mean I can get skills from other players as well, not just Sawamura's?' I asked in shock.
[Correct, User.]
'HOLY SHIT!' I exclaimed.
I then went into deep thought about the new knowledge I had just received.
***
"SHHAAAAAAAA!!"
When Miyuki saw Sawamura scream his lungs out, he got goosebumps
'This kid! Was that his splitter? I thought he said it was still uncontrollable. Did he just complete it in that pressuring situation?' He thought.
He then smiled widely with determined eyes.
'I want to catch that pitch.'
"Yaha! Sawamura's good! He made Masuko-san strikeout." Kuramochi cackled.
"I want to hit that last pitch." Yuki said calmly.
"ARRRGGHHH! Let me play! I want to smash a pitch like that!" Isashiki shouted, loudly.
Miyuki looked at the first-string players.
They all had a competitive aura around them as they looked at Sawamura.
Miyuki looked back at Sawamura as well, he was now thinking deeply about something.
'He's probably reviewing the last pitch.' Miyuki thought.
***
"SHHAAAAAAAA!!"
"Yosh!" Kariba said in response to Sawamura's shout.
As Kariba stood up to go to the dugout, He heard a voice behind him.
"Kariba."
Kariba turned and looked startled as it was the coach that called out to him.
"Was that a splitter that Sawamura just threw on the last pitch?" Coach asked him.
"Y-Yes coach. Sawamura said that he hadn't completed it before this game but said he felt he could throw it in this situation!" Kariba replied, standing straight.
"Is that what you and Sawamura talked about on the mound?" The coach responded.
"Well, he said we should throw the splitter, but I told him I wasn't confident. He then said that perfect pitching is a work of art where the pitcher and catcher come together as one and that I should be more confident in myself. He also said to trust that his pitch would land where I put my mitt. I haven't been catching long for Sawamura, but throughout that time, he has always thrown to where my mitt is, not once has he made an error. He's like a robot." Kariba seemed to open the flood gates and spew all his thoughts out at once.
He then realised what he did.
"Ah! Sorry, Coach! I went on a rant!" He said.
"No, it's fine, you can go." The coach replied, looking over at Sawamura who was now looking deep in thought.
"Sawamura!" The coach shouted to him.
***
"Sawamura!"
I was forced out my thoughts as I heard a call to me.
'I'll think about this all later.' I thought as I turned to the voice.
I saw coach standing there with a grin.
"You pass as well, Sawamura! You can start training with the first-string from tomorrow onwards!" The coach shouted to me.
*DING*
[User has completed the mission: Perfect debut]
[Rewards:
>1 random A-tier physical elixir
>1 random silver tier pitching skill
>20 Ace points]
[Do you want to received rewards now?]
'No, not right now.' I thought, looking at coach with a grin.
I then bowed and shouted.
"I won't let you down coach!"
"Alright, you're being subbed out. Go put some ice on your shoulder." He replied with he's usual frowning face.
"Yes!" I said whilst turning towards the dugout.
'Nice! I'm on the first string now! Now I just need to improve as much as I can. I can't get complacent now that I have been given a chance!' I thought with a clenched fist.