WHOOOOOSH
PAH
"Strike!"
*DING*
Ken felt great after the pitch. Inwardly he knew that he'd gone faster than the previous one. After receiving the ball back from Yuta, he turned to the Jumbo screen and felt his eyes widen.
'160km/h?'
He blinked a couple of times in confusion, not knowing when or how his pitches had gotten so fast in such a small amount of time.
'It must be because of my skill showdown.' He thought.
[Correct. User currently has SS grade pitching thanks to Skill showdown]
Ken nodded and was about to thank Mika for her input, until his face froze.
'Wait, did you say SS grade? Showdown is only meant to increase my grade by 2, meaning I should have S+ at most right?'
He suddenly turned pale. If his Limit Break skill had triggered, it would add another 2 grades onto his pitching. However, there was a drawback to this skill which would decrease all his grades by 1 for 5 minutes.
'I can't afford to have my pitching drop to an A+ against the Shinjuku opening batters…'
Yet in the next moment, Mika's words filled him with shock.
[User has pitched 100mph and has been upgraded to S+ Grade Pitching]
'Eh?'
Now that he thought about it, he remembered hearing a notification upon pitching the last ball. Since he was on the mound though, there was no way he'd open up the system window in front of so many people.
While it was likely impossible, he was worried someone might notice it.
He couldn't help but let out a grin, reveling in the unexpected reward. It seemed that hitting certain milestones would give special rewards, something he couldn't have been sure of until now.
As he turned his attention back to Yuta, he suddenly noticed the crowd were cheering loudly, breaking into a chant in time with the drums.
"YOKO HAMA"
"YOKO HAMA"
It seemed that his feat of reaching 160km/h or 100mph was well received by the crowd. He felt a wave of happiness, but quickly tried to control himself. He still needed to get Tatsuo out or none of it would matter.
The last swing had felt awfully close to hitting the ball despite the overwhelming speed he threw it at. Therefore he needed to be careful with the next one.
BA BUMP
BA BUMP
Tatsuo felt his dull heart beating out of his chest after experiencing the last ball. There was no hint of frustration in his face, quite the opposite actually.
He entered the batters box once more and couldn't help but grin. His batting stance had been altered again slightly, with his knees bending a little more.
'Throw me another fun pitch.' He said in his heart.
He didn't want this feeling to end, so he was clinging on tightly.
Yuta was at a loss of what to do next. He could tell that if the bat made contact with the pitch it would be sent flying into the stands. After stressing for a while, he finally locked eyes with Ken on the mound.
The deep brown eyes seemed to penetrate his mind, injecting him with his fight spirit.
'I'll beat him. No matter what.'
Unknowingly, a smile formed on Yuta's face as he stared back, finally finding his confidence.
'What the hell am I so worked up for? This is Ken we're talking about.' He thought, chastising himself for his earlier worries.
Ever since Ken had joined the team, he'd never let them down whether it was batting, pitching or even training. He was always there, leading by example, not afraid to get in the trenches when he was needed.
'Okay Ace, give me one down the middle.'
"Hehe, don't mind if I do." Ken uttered, lifting his leg in the next moment.
"Sayonara."
Imbued with the pitching upgrade, Ken's body flowed with power and finesse as he extended his long leg outwards. The Earth seemingly trembled as his foot struck the ground with authority before his arm whipped out from the side and sent the ball rocketing forwards.
Like a bullet, the ball shot towards the middle of the strike zone, intending to maul through anything that got in its way.
'Yes! This is it!'
"Hahahaha"
Tatsuo couldn't help but laugh with pure joy as he locked onto the ball. He twisted his body and swung with all of his might, wanting to send the ball into the crowd.
'Maybe I'll be able to smile like that too after I hit this ball?'
His mind replayed the scene of Ken jogging around the bases after his home run. He felt a bout of anticipation as his bat approached the ball.
The timing of the swing was immaculate, setting up for a perfect encounter between bat and ball. If it made proper contact, there was no doubt that the ball would disappear amongst the crowd in the next moment.
WHOOOOSH
Yuta braced himself, feeling a pit form in his stomach. As he watched the ball, he heard the brutal sound of the bat cutting through the air before it appeared in front of him.
'Damn it.'
DING
PAH
"Foul tip! Stikeout!"
"ORYAHHH!"
The Yokohama players went crazy, despite it only being the first out of the innings. It became even more odd when the next chant broke out from the team.
"RA MEN"
"RA MEN"
"RA MEN"
Tatsuo who had felt the ball nick his bat suddenly felt odd. He looked around in confusion before seeing his friend Kei motioning him to come back to the dugout.
He turned to see Ken on the mound who was wearing a triumphant grin and juggling the rosin bag in his hand. In the next moment he turned around and headed back to the dugout.
Apart from Kei, the entire Shinjuku dugout were facing a real crisis. If their genius couldn't get a hit from this pitcher, then what chance did they have?
"Are you frustrated?" The tall teen with blond hair spoke up, his tone gentle.
Tatsuo frowned, feeling as if he had a stick caught in his throat. He merely nodded in response, still gripping his bat.
In the next moment he felt a large hand pat the top of his head startling him for a moment.
"Looks like you're finally playing baseball, Tatsu."
Kei's face broke into a smile, his features softening, finally feeling like he had finally gotten through to his friend.