After a brief moment of frustration and disappointment, Mima Soichiro quickly regained his composure.
Already behind in the count with two strikes, he stared intently at Kitamura Kou on the mound, his eyes burning with determination.
By all logic, after nearly eight grueling games at Koshien, Mima's stamina should have been approaching its limit.
Yet instead of fading, his presence only continued to grow stronger.
Under immense pressure, he seemed to break through his own limits, reaching an entirely new level.
Kou naturally sensed the change.
But it wasn't enough to shake him.
He lifted his leg, stepped forward, and drove his right arm forward with explosive force.
BOOM!!!
The baseball exploded from his fingertips.
The moment Mima saw the white blur rushing toward him, his mind entered a state of complete focus.
His body moved instinctively.
The bat sliced through the air with unprecedented smoothness.
BUZZ!
The swing was noticeably faster than any of his previous attempts.
PING!
The baseball barely nicked the bottom edge of the bat.
Foul!
The ball ricocheted off the backstop behind home plate.
Kou looked at Mima and sighed helplessly.
Sometimes he wondered whether Todoroki Raizo was simply cursed with bizarre luck, or whether Yakushi High School somehow possessed the aura of a villain organization.
Every time they faced a strong opponent, someone seemed to unlock hidden potential at the most critical moment.
It made him feel like the final boss in a video game.
The kind of boss whose sole purpose was to provide experience points for the protagonist's growth.
Seriously...
Why does everyone keep leveling up against us?
Even as he complained internally, a grin slowly appeared on his face.
The frustration vanished.
In its place came excitement.
Adrenaline.
Anticipation.
Pure competitive exhilaration.
Fine.
If I'm the villain...
Then I'll act like one.
And crush you beneath my feet.
With that thought, Kou stopped worrying about control.
At moments like this, precise pitching no longer mattered.
The greatest respect he could show his opponent was to face him head-on.
No tricks.
No hesitation.
Just pure power against pure determination.
Akaishi Osamu immediately understood what was happening.
Seeing the excitement sparkling in Kou's eyes, he knew persuasion was pointless.
Besides, if Kou could overwhelm Hakuryu's strongest hitter here, Yakushi's morale would soar.
With a helpless sigh, Akaishi set his glove directly in the center of the strike zone.
"He's back to his old habits again."
"But what can you do? That's our ace."
The moment Kou saw the target, his eyes lit up.
A fierce aura erupted from his body.
He raised both hands high above his head.
His left leg lifted.
Then—
STEP!
His left foot slammed into the dirt.
His waist twisted violently.
His right arm whipped forward.
And the baseball exploded from his hand.
BOOM!!!
The motion was smooth and explosive.
The ball shot toward home plate like a laser beam.
Mima remained completely focused.
The instant he recognized the trajectory, he unleashed another full-power swing.
BUZZ!
The bat seemed even faster than before.
But compared to the baseball's incredible velocity, the swing still looked painfully slow.
Behind the plate, Akaishi didn't dare relax for even a moment.
His eyes remained locked on the approaching baseball.
He knew better than anyone how dangerous Kou became when he abandoned control and threw with pure power.
If he wasn't careful, the ball could easily blow right past him.
THUMP!!!
The pitch missed its intended location entirely.
Kou had aimed for the middle of the zone.
Instead, the ball sailed high and outside, missing the strike zone altogether.
Fortunately, Akaishi remained fully focused.
Even so, he barely managed to react in time.
The impact slammed into his glove with terrifying force.
Pain exploded through the webbing of his left hand.
His face twisted from the shock.
The baseball continued spinning violently inside the mitt, threatening to tear itself free.
Only after several agonizing moments did the rotation finally stop.
"Haa..."
Akaishi let out a long breath.
"Thank goodness."
"If he keeps throwing pitches like that, even I'm eventually going to miss one."
The umpire was unusually late with his call.
Not because he was uncertain—
But because he was stunned.
Then he finally raised his hand.
"Strike three! Batter out!"
At the same moment, the radar gun flashed across the scoreboard.
156 km/h
The stadium fell silent.
Then the commentator exploded.
"INCREDIBLE!"
"Kitamura Kou has tied his personal record and set the fastest pitch of this year's Koshien Tournament!"
"One hundred and fifty-six kilometers per hour!"
"And he strikes out Mima Soichiro!"
The stunned crowd finally erupted.
Cheers thundered across Koshien Stadium.
"That's insane!"
"I could barely see the ball!"
"That kind of pitch could dominate professional hitters!"
"How is a high school student throwing that?!"
Even Tsukishima Aoba was speechless.
She had seen Kou throw at that speed before.
Yet every time it happened, it still felt unreal.
Her eyes remained fixed on the dazzling figure standing atop the mound.
She didn't even blink.
Nearby, Tsukishima Wakaba and Tsukishima Momiji threw their arms around each other and jumped excitedly.
What they were shouting hardly mattered.
What mattered was that Kou's pitching had completely overwhelmed Hakuryu High School.
Riding that momentum, Kou gave Hakuryu's second batter, Miyao, absolutely no chance.
Three pitches.
Another strikeout.
Yakushi High School was still trailing by one run.
But now the momentum had shifted completely.
And more importantly—
The top of Yakushi's lineup was coming up to bat.
This inning represented their best opportunity to tie the game or even take the lead.
Inside the Yakushi dugout, Todoroki Raizo delivered one final message.
"Listen up!"
"Don't think about getting another chance in the bottom of the ninth."
"This inning is all we've got."
"Right here. Right now."
"We need at least one run!"
"Kitamura is pitching."
"As long as we tie the score, we can win this game."
"Akiba! Mishima!"
"Find a way to get on base!"
"Understood?!"
"YES, SIR!"
The entire Yakushi bench roared in unison.
Meanwhile, in Hakuryu's dugout, Coach Sasaki delivered his own instructions.
"This inning starts with Yakushi's best hitters."
"They're going to throw everything they have at us."
"Do not relax."
"Do not lose focus."
"Fight for every single out."
"If we survive this inning..."
"We'll be one step away from victory."
"Understood?!"
"YES!"
Hakuryu's players answered in one voice.
Their fighting spirit burned just as fiercely.
Moments later, Hakuryu's fielders sprinted onto the diamond.
At the same time, Akiba Kazuma and Mishima Yuta stepped out of Yakushi's dugout.
Neither side was willing to yield.
Neither side intended to lose.
The decisive battle was about to begin.