When everything finally settled down, Ken headed over to the bench and sat down with an excuse of resting before the final inning. Of course he still had plenty of stamina left in the tank since he'd only thrown 20 pitches total this game.
His real reason was to check if he had any notifications from the system. It was hard to tell, since the sound of the bat making contact with the ball was a similar sound.
Saying a little prayer in his heart, Ken opened up the system, only to see a flashing icon.
[Congratulations, user has completed the hidden task: Consistency is key]
# Hidden Task: Consistency is key
*Details: Throw 10 pitches above 100mph consecutively.
*Rewards: Upgrade pitching by 2 grades
'Eh!? There was this kind of thing?'
Ken felt elated as he read the mission window. He had not been expecting such a boon in the middle of a World Cup game.
'What's my pitching grade now?'
With that, he brought up his information, something he hadn't done in quite a while.
MAJOR LEAGUE SYSTEM
SYSTEM LEVEL: 4 (77,880/100,000 Major points to level up)
NAME: Ken Takagi
AGE: 16
TALENT ASSESSMENT: SS
POTENTIAL: SS+
MAJOR POINTS: 77,880
USER MENU:
-STATS
-MISSIONS
-SYSTEM SHOP
-LOTTERY (Locked)
-IMAGE TRAINING
-IDENTIFY
-TRAINING PLAN
-MENTOR
USER STATS:
>Physical Fitness: SS
>Pitching: SS+
>Fielding: B
>Game Intelligence: B
>Mental: SS
>Skills: 20
>Traits: 1
PHYSICAL FITNESS: (Avg. SS)
Balance and Coordination: SS+
Agility: SS-
Strength: SS
Stamina: SS+
"SS+! I'm so close to SSS…"
It suddenly made sense why he felt so different in his last pitch. With Showdown active, his pitching grade rocketed into the SSS grade, opening up a whole new sensation for him.
Ken felt his excitement reach a peak as he thought about the prospect of activating both Showdown and Limit Break at once. Just what kind of experience would he have when his pitching grade entered the realm of the professionals?
While Ken was in his own world, the game continued.
With Atsushi taken out of the lineup because they didn't need a DH anymore, Tomoya was up to bat. Since he'd just entered the game, he had almost no chance to get used to Anotnio's sidearm pitches.
Thus he was quickly struck out, which meant Riku would be back in the batters box.
Once again, Riku attempted a bunt, however this time he'd pushed it too far towards the fielder. What should have been a close match of speed was instantly put to rest as Antonio scooped up the ball and threw to first.
Just like that, Japan already had 2 outs in the 8th inning.
Masayuki's luck wasn't much better. Though he had hit the ball a fair distance, the right outfielder made an amazing diving catch to his left to secure the final out.
"3 outs, changeover!"
With the score still 6-5 in favor of Cuba, Japan only had the final inning to work their magic. If they tied the game it would go to extra innings, something that neither team wanted.
Since they needed to play a game every day, having to play longer games would just add to their fatigue over the long stretch.
Thankfully, the clean up batters would be coming out for Japan in the 9th inning, meaning they had as good of a chance as any.
But before this, Ken needed to come up and pitch.
As he made his way up to the mound, the crowd cheered loudly. While it wasn't the same as Koshien since the stadium was pretty much empty, it still made him smile.
"LET'S GO JAPAN! GO KEN, GO DAICHI!"
Hearing their mom's screams, both Ken and Daichi looked at each other with a grin.
"I should invite Mom to all my games." Ken said, half-jokingly.
Daichi chuckled in response, "Not if I do it first."
The two laughed before taking their positions. Though they were behind, they had confidence in their abilities. While they hadn't managed to hit against Antonio just yet, they still had another chance coming up.
"Batting 5th, Short stop, Sergio."
Jorge who was in the Cuban dugout watched closely on the field, his eyes trained on Ken's figure. He didn't feel the same aura that he felt while facing him, yet it was probably because he was so far away.
"Hey man, why are you brooding over here."
The sound of his brother's voice drifted into his ears, garnering his attention.
"Psh, I'm not brooding. I'm just watching the game." He said dismissively.
PAH
"Strike."
The two watched on in silence as Ken continued to pitch. There was a look of awe on their features, almost as if they were watching a real professional pitcher.
"He's fast…" Manuel said, breaking the silence between them.
"Mmm."
"Do you think that guy can compare…"
"Are you talking about Ryan?" Jorge muttered, deep in thought.
"Yeah. I got the same feeling when facing Ken." Manuel explained.
Jorge's expression flashed imperceptibly for a moment before he shook his head.
"It's close… But this guy is only a freshman." He stated.
"WHAT!?"
Manuel seemed to have heard the most preposterous thing in the world, not believing his ears. How could such a monster pitcher appear at only 16 years of age?
A wry smile crept onto Jorge's face at his brothers reaction.
"I have a feeling we'll be seeing him on the same stage in a few years time." He stated.
Since they were Senior's in High School, they were 2 years older than Ken. Of course their goal was to go onto college and be drafted into the Major's, so it was a rather large compliment coming from one of the best prospects in the nation.
While they were chatting, Ken had already struck out 2 of the Cuban players. He hardly seemed affected by the sun bearing down on him, nor the pressure of being behind.
It was like Ken was in his favorite place on the Earth, the mound.
WHOOOOSH
PAH
"Strikeout!"
"3 outs, changeover!"