Chapter 520 - 520: A Shocking Opening Pitch—166 km/h!

The moment Coach Kataoka announced his decision, the Seido players visibly relaxed.

Although none of them had admitted it out loud...

After watching Yakushi's game footage, everyone had been deeply impressed by the team's explosive offense.

Furuya, Sawamura, and Tanba were all excellent pitchers in their own right.

But who could honestly guarantee they would shut down a lineup as dangerous as Yakushi's?

No one.

The game against Akikawa was the perfect example.

Seido had played well throughout the match.

Yet if Zhou Hao hadn't made that miraculous defensive play...

Akikawa would almost certainly have scored two runs.

Had that happened, Seido's perfect defensive record would have been broken.

Once an undefeated team lost its aura of invincibility, the psychological impact would be enormous.

Their intimidation factor against future opponents would immediately diminish.

Even the confidence of Seido's own players would inevitably suffer.

The consequences were simply too significant.

If there had been no alternative, Seido would still have faced the challenge head-on.

But there was an alternative.

Their ace.

Under those circumstances...

Why make things harder than necessary?

Not only the fielders...

Even the other three pitchers believed Coach Kataoka had made the right decision.

Yakushi deserved Seido's full respect.

Starting Zhou Hao was only natural.

"I'll take care of the opening innings."

Zhou Hao's voice wasn't loud.

Yet every word carried absolute confidence.

The moment he spoke...

The atmosphere inside the room changed.

The eyes of every Seido player became noticeably sharper.

Manager Ota rubbed his hands together excitedly.

"As expected of Zhou Hao."

"Just knowing he'll be on the mound puts everyone's mind at ease."

Standing nearby, Takashima Rei quietly adjusted her glasses.

Compared with the others...

She understood the significance of Zhou Hao's presence even more clearly.

Only when Zhou Hao stood on the mound...

Was this truly the complete Seido High School Baseball Team.

This...

Was the real national champion.

Originally, Takashima Rei had assumed Seido wouldn't need to reveal its full strength until at least the semifinals.

Now she realized she had underestimated the level of competition in West Tokyo.

Compared to Seido...

Most teams still fell short.

But that didn't mean the region lacked dangerous opponents.

Besides traditional powerhouses like Inashiro, Ichidai Third, and Seiko...

There were also emerging teams capable of causing major upsets.

They might not ultimately reach Koshien.

But they were still opponents Seido couldn't afford to underestimate.

After confirming Zhou Hao as the starter, Coach Kataoka shifted his attention to the remaining pitchers.

Starting Zhou Hao already demonstrated how seriously Seido regarded Yakushi.

But that didn't mean he intended to let Zhou Hao pitch the entire game.

Coach Kataoka had already made up his mind.

He wouldn't.

Every one of Zhou Hao's blazing fastballs...

Every devastating Spiral Ball...

Came with a cost.

Throwing them for a few innings wasn't a problem.

Pitching complete games over and over again...

Was another matter entirely.

No matter how talented Zhou Hao was...

His body had limits.

That was simply reality.

A reality no player could escape.

Because of that...

Even if Zhou Hao insisted he could finish the game himself...

Coach Kataoka would never allow it.

Doing so would prioritize short-term victories over Zhou Hao's future.

That wasn't Coach Kataoka's philosophy.

If immediate results had always been his only concern...

Seido wouldn't have endured those years of failing to reach Koshien.

He would have abandoned his developmental approach long ago.

Instead...

Seido had always developed players according to their individual strengths.

Perhaps that approach didn't produce the fastest results during their three years of high school.

But in the long run...

It gave them the greatest chance to succeed after graduation.

Coach Kataoka had always believed in that philosophy.

Despite years of pressure and criticism...

He had never wavered.

Nor would he start now.

There was no chance he would sacrifice Zhou Hao's future simply to win one game.

At the same time...

This decision served another purpose.

Coach Kataoka welcomed healthy competition within the team.

Especially among his pitchers.

Nothing motivated players more than having a worthy rival.

A strong competitor forced everyone to improve.

"Sawamura."

"Furuya."

The two freshmen immediately straightened.

"Be ready to enter the game from the fourth inning onward."

"Yes, Coach!"

Exactly when they would take the mound depended entirely on how the game unfolded.

As for the rest of Seido's lineup...

There was little left to discuss.

Their defensive alignment had already become their standard formation.

Everyone knew their role.

Naturally...

That also meant every opponent knew it as well.

Would Yakushi study their tendencies?

Almost certainly.

Would they prepare strategies specifically to counter Seido?

Without question.

As the reigning national champions...

Seido had long become the team every school wanted to defeat.

Any opponent with even the slightest chance would spend countless hours analyzing them.

Trying to hide everything through last-minute lineup changes would accomplish very little.

Coach Kataoka preferred a different approach.

Face every challenge head-on.

If the opponent had prepared special tactics...

Then let them use every one of them.

The Seido players had absolute faith in themselves.

Even if Yakushi knew every detail about their lineup...

Even if they had spent weeks devising countermeasures...

Seido still believed they possessed the strength to overcome everything through sheer ability alone.

This...

Was the confidence of a reigning national champion.

It wasn't something ordinary people could easily understand.

Time passed quickly.

Before long, the day of the West Tokyo quarterfinals arrived.

Even before Seido's team bus came to a stop outside the stadium, cheers erupted from the crowd.

"It's Seido!"

"They're here!"

"Who else could have an entrance like that?"

"The bus stopped!"

"They're so cool!"

"The players from other schools are good-looking too, but Seido's players just have a completely different presence."

"Their uniforms are amazing."

"One day, I'm going to join Seido... and win the national championship with them!"

Ever since Seido claimed the national title the previous summer, the school had become the dream destination for countless talented middle school players.

Most of those newcomers were still fighting for spots on the third string.

Only a handful had already distinguished themselves.

One of them...

Was Oshima.

If Seido managed to win another national championship this year, the program would finally leave its painful past behind.

For years, Seido had repeatedly fallen short of Koshien.

Those disappointments had left deep scars on everyone connected to the team.

Even after finally reaching the summit...

Many still preferred not to dwell on those difficult memories.

But things were different now.

The more successful Seido became...

The more elite prospects it would attract.

Oshima himself was proof of that.

Among the first-year class, both rookie pitchers had already displayed tremendous talent.

Everyone believed they possessed limitless potential.

But if someone asked who was most likely to become the face of Seido's next generation...

Eight out of ten people would probably answer the same way.

Oshima.

His performances had simply been too dazzling.

Even on a roster filled with national champions...

He had established himself as an indispensable regular in just a few months.

"We're preparing for today's game, so it isn't convenient to accept interviews."

"We'll be happy to speak with everyone afterward."

Coach Kataoka politely declined the reporters' requests.

In the past, Seido's coaching staff had always been extremely cautious around the media.

Young players were easily influenced by praise.

And reporters often loved dramatic headlines.

Coach Kataoka worried that excessive attention might inflate his players' egos.

Once they lost sight of themselves...

Their growth would inevitably come to a halt.

Fortunately...

Things were different now.

The current Seido players had long grown accustomed to interviews and media attention.

As reigning national champions, they had experienced almost everything.

They still appreciated compliments.

But they no longer allowed praise to cloud their judgment.

Every member of the team understood one simple truth.

Stay grounded.

Because the higher you climb...

The harder you fall.

"The quarterfinal matchup between Seido High School and Yakushi High School..."

"Begins now!"

"Yakushi High will bat first!"

By the time Seido took the field...

The stadium was completely packed.

Some spectators were even standing in the aisles rather than miss the game.

Not even Seido's coaches had expected such overwhelming attendance.

But it was hardly surprising.

This was the most anticipated matchup of the tournament so far.

Top of the first inning.

Yakushi came to bat.

Their leadoff hitter...

First-year Akiba.

Before studying Yakushi in detail, even the Seido players hadn't fully appreciated just how talented their freshmen were.

Yakushi's upperclassmen were already a formidable group.

The team had reached the quarterfinals in the fall and the Round of 16 during the Spring Tournament.

They were no pushovers.

Yet after the arrival of Yakushi's three first-year stars...

Even many of the veterans had quietly stepped aside.

There was no helping it.

The newcomers were simply better.

Now...

One of those freshmen stood in the batter's box.

Akiba.

The instant he looked toward the mound and saw Zhou Hao...

His heart nearly stopped.

During their strategy meetings, this had been the one scenario Yakushi feared most.

Coach Todoroki Raizo had analyzed Seido in great detail.

He had repeatedly emphasized one possibility.

"If we have any chance of beating Seido..."

"It'll be because they underestimate us."

Throughout the tournament, Seido had often rested Zhou Hao against weaker opponents.

Coach Todoroki had secretly hoped...

That they would do the same against Yakushi.

Unfortunately...

That hope had vanished.

Seido had shown them complete respect.

Their ace had taken the mound from the very first inning.

Seeing Zhou Hao standing there...

Akiba couldn't stop his heart from pounding.

He even regretted all the confident things he had said before the game.

After all...

No one could guarantee victory against a pitcher like this.

On the mound...

Zhou Hao calmly looked down at the baseball resting in his hand.

Behind the plate, Miyuki Kazuya flashed the sign.

His intention was simple.

Feel out the batter first.

No need to reveal everything immediately.

But Zhou Hao had different plans.

Akikawa had fought with incredible determination.

Yet at the end of the day...

Their entire team revolved around Yang Shunchen.

Yakushi was different.

They didn't rely on a single superstar.

Every player in their lineup possessed genuine ability.

In that respect...

They resembled a professional team more than an ordinary high school squad.

Akiba was the perfect example.

Despite knowing exactly who stood on the mound...

Despite believing deep down that defeating the nation's number-one pitcher was almost impossible...

He still gripped the bat tightly.

He refused to surrender before the first pitch.

Zhou Hao noticed everything.

Yakushi's confidence wasn't an act.

It was part of who they were.

If Seido didn't crush that confidence from the very beginning...

This game could become far more difficult than anyone expected.

Yakushi had only one objective.

Defeat Seido.

But Seido's ambitions reached much farther than a single game.

They couldn't afford to hold anything back.

Zhou Hao moved.

His front leg lifted smoothly.

He drove forward.

His arm whipped through with perfect mechanics.

Every movement flowed naturally into the next, as though lifted straight from a textbook.

The instant spectators saw his delivery...

An inexplicable feeling swept through the stadium.

Something extraordinary...

Was about to happen.

BOOM!

The moment the baseball exploded from his fingertips...

A deafening crack echoed across the field.

Akiba's heart sank.

When he finally saw the pitch...

Despair washed over him.

How is anyone supposed to hit that...?

POP!

The baseball crashed violently into Miyuki's mitt.

The electronic scoreboard flashed the pitch speed.

166 km/h.