"W-Whoa!!!"
The crowd froze for a moment—
Then exploded.
"I knew it! That last pitch against Seido had to be over 150 km/h!"
"This is insane! Two pitchers throwing over 150 km/h in West Tokyo at the same time?!"
"Wait, we can't be sure yet… what if it was just luck?"
"Yakushi High School just keeps surprising us!"
"Kou is so cool!" Tsukishima Momiji shouted excitedly.
Beside her, Tsukishima Wakaba smiled brightly, her eyes full of pride.
Tsukishima Aoba, however, fell silent.
As a pitcher herself—
She understood exactly what that number meant.
150 km/h.
And more importantly—
Control at that speed.
…He'll reach 160 someday.
The thought surfaced naturally.
And for the first time—
She realized.
That's the kind of pitcher I want to become.
Meanwhile—
The members of Seido High School in the stands…
And Ichidaisan watching from afar…
All felt the same thing.
Frustration.
So this was Yakushi's true strength?
Just when they thought they had seen everything—
Something even more terrifying appeared.
Like an endless abyss—
Impossible to fully grasp.
A faint sense of dread settled in their hearts.
On the other side—
Furuya Satoru quietly let out a breath.
…It's still slower than my 153.
For him—
That small difference mattered.
Inside the dugout of
Inashiro Industrial High School—
Everyone had already stood up.
Stunned.
They had known this pitcher was fast.
But not this fast.
Even Narumiya Mei hadn't reached that level.
And now—
There were two of them.
The same crowd that had mocked Yakushi earlier…
Fell completely silent.
That single pitch—
Was like a slap to their faces.
"Damn it! That's even faster than mine!"
Narumiya's voice rang out, sharp and defiant.
"Hey, Carlos! Hurry up and blast that brat's pitch!"
"If you can't, then get off the field and let me handle it!"
His shout snapped everyone back to reality.
That's right.
They were Inashiro.
The kings of West Tokyo.
It's just 150 km/h.
We've hit faster pitches in practice.
Who's afraid of who?!
Their confidence surged back.
In the batter's box—
Carlos Kamiya Toshiki steadied himself.
The shock faded.
Focus took over.
Good.
This makes it interesting.
On the mound, Kitamura Kou smiled faintly.
"It'd be boring if you kept underestimating me."
Second pitch.
BOOM!!!
Just as fast.
Just as sharp.
High—inside corner.
This time—
Carlos was ready.
He gritted his teeth and swung with everything he had.
Thump!!!
Too late.
Not even close.
The ball had already slammed into the catcher's mitt.
Carlos froze.
His expression darkened.
Same speed.
Same location.
So it wasn't luck.
Not even a slight drop in velocity for control.
He can throw 150… exactly where he wants.
For a batter—
That was terrifying.
Even someone like Carlos, confident against fastballs—
Could only rely on instinct and guessing.
In the stands—
Miyuki Kazuya spoke in a low, serious tone.
"Furuya… watch closely."
"This is the kind of pitcher you should aim to become."
"If you can learn even a little from him, it'll save you a lot of time."
Furuya nodded silently.
His usual drowsiness was gone.
His eyes locked onto the mound—
Onto the pitcher who had defeated him.
Even Sawamura Eijun, who was normally loud and restless—
Was completely silent.
Everyone—
Was watching.
"Kou," Akaishi Osamu signaled calmly from behind the plate.
"No need to waste more pitches."
"Finish him here."
Absolute confidence.
Kitamura caught the return throw—
No hesitation.
Third pitch.
BOOM!!!
The moment the ball left his hand—
Carlos moved.
He swung immediately.
A gamble.
Low—outside fastball.
And—
He guessed right.
The ball tore through the air—
Heading straight for the outside corner.
For the first time—
Carlos's bat met the timing.
And now—
Everything depended on that single moment of contact.