"Sinker…? Really?"
"They were hiding this pitch the whole time?"
"So the captain got taken out by that just now…?"
Kiryu's dugout was already restless.
Doubt.
Confusion.
Pressure.
Every batter's thoughts were written all over their faces.
And Miyuki saw all of it.
Crouching behind the plate, he quietly smirked.
Got you.
He set his glove in the exact same inside-low position as before.
Same target.
Same posture.
But beneath the glove—
his fingers flashed a different sign.
A trap.
On the mound, Ushijima understood instantly.
No hesitation.
He delivered.
The ball left his hand.
Same speed.
Same starting path.
"SINKER!"
The fifth batter reacted immediately.
He remembered the last pitch clearly.
Low. Heavy. Sinking.
He swung early—
Bang!!
Contact.
But—
"…Huh?"
The feeling was wrong.
Not heavy.
Not sinking.
The ball flew straight up and drifted foul.
"Foul ball!"
Two strikes.
The batter stared at the field in disbelief.
"…It wasn't a sinker?"
"That was a slow fastball?!"
"They used the sinker's image… to mess up my timing…"
"Damn it… what a dirty trick…"
His teeth clenched.
Now his mind was a mess.
Next pitch.
What is it?
150 fastball?
145 cutter?
Two-seam?
Sinker?
Slow fastball?
His brain couldn't decide.
And that tiny hesitation—
was already fatal.
Third pitch.
Same arm swing.
Same release.
"SINKER…? Or four-seam?"
He swung to cover both possibilities—
Bang!
The bat barely clipped the ball.
"…What?!"
It didn't sink.
It drifted sideways.
Two-seam.
The weakly hit grounder rolled back toward the mound.
Ushijima stepped forward calmly.
Fielded.
Turned.
Throw.
"Out!"
Clean.
Efficient.
Merciless.
The crowd exploded.
"This is insane!"
"They shut out Kiryu for two whole rounds using only three pitches… and now they add the sinker?!"
"That's four different fastball types!"
"And they're all around 140–145 km/h!"
"How is a batter supposed to guess that?!"
"That's not pitching anymore—that's torture!"
"It's basically luck at this point!"
Switch sides.
Five innings.
No hits.
No runs.
Kiryu's powerful lineup—
completely sealed.
Kuramochi kicked Ushijima lightly.
"Haha! You monster!"
Masuko pumped both fists.
Kominato smiled. "You're scary, junior."
Isashiki shoved his head playfully. "Stop bullying them already!"
Even quiet Shirasu laughed.
The whole bench was buzzing.
Ushijima removed his cap and wiped the sweat from his forehead.
He looked at Chris.
"What was the sinker's speed?"
"135+," Chris answered immediately.
"…Tsk."
Ushijima frowned.
Too slow.
Miyuki blinked. "That's still nasty though."
"I've never thrown it at full power," Ushijima said calmly.
"I focused on movement and control first."
"If I force the speed higher… I might lose command."
After a pause, he added,
"But if we can push it to 140 or 145… and still control it…"
"…then even Inashiro won't touch us."
The seniors exchanged looks.
That wasn't arrogance.
That was planning.
This first-year was already thinking about the next tournament.
No wonder everyone trusted him.
"Then let's build around the sinker from the sixth inning," Miyuki said.
Ushijima nodded.
"Yeah. I'll practice it in real games."
Kuramochi grinned.
"Throw whatever you want. We've got your back."
"That's right," Kominato added. "You carried us five innings. Time for us to work."
The mood grew lighter.
Confident.
United.
Bottom of the fifth—
Seido scored again.
Scoreboard:
Kiryu — 0 0 0 0 0
Seido — 2 1 0 0 2
Five runs.
Still no hits allowed.
From the sixth inning onward,
Ushijima began centering everything around the sinker.
The movement was sharp—
but the control wavered slightly.
A few pitches drifted outside.
Thankfully, the defense held firm.
Otherwise…
even an ace could crumble.