The match against Raichi Todoroki and Yakushi High School was scheduled for the last day of the third week of July.
After completing his daily check-in that morning, Ushijima Wakatoshi received another reward.
[Ding! Treasure chest opened]
[Congratulations! You have obtained: Silver Slider]
On the way to the stadium, Ushijima walked calmly with headphones on, listening to music while reviewing the reward he had just obtained.
He opened the system panel again.
Name: Ushijima Wakatoshi
Height: 188 cm
Dominant Hand: Right
Physical Strength: Diamond
Speed: Gold
Ball Control: Silver
Hitting Ability:
Infield Short Hit (Gold)
Outfield Extra Hit (Gold)
Pitch Types:
Curveball (Silver)
Slider (Silver)
Screwball (Silver)
Sinker (Silver)
Two-Seam (Gold)
Cutter (Gold)
High-Speed Jet Ball (Gold)
Four-Seam Fastball (Diamond)
Forkball (Diamond)
Now he possessed nine different pitch types.
"Basically… that means I can throw almost every type of pitch a pitcher commonly uses," Ushijima thought.
The remaining ones were things like:
Butterfly Ball (Knuckleball)
Slurve
Changeup
And some forkball variations.
Forkballs actually had multiple versions.
Forkball: slower, with a sharper drop
Split-finger variation: faster, but with less vertical break
Even so, Ushijima still preferred fastball-type pitches the most.
Still, the newly acquired Slider gave him another weapon.
Now all he needed was practice to improve control and accuracy.
He continued thinking quietly.
"Most silver-level pitch types are already collected."
"And some even upgraded directly to diamond."
"So the system probably won't keep giving duplicates."
"From now on, the rewards will mostly be money… or higher-level abilities."
Then his thoughts shifted toward the tournament schedule.
The quarterfinals and semifinals would take place during this third week of July.
The final match, against Narumiya Mei and Inashiro Industrial High School, would happen in the last week of July.
Which meant:
Two more games before the final.
But there was a problem.
The Gold Chest from the monthly check-in would appear after the final, not before.
So before facing Narumiya…
He had no chance to upgrade his ball control again.
"If I want Gold-level control…"
"It'll have to be after beating Inashiro."
"And after that… comes Summer Koshien."
Soon, they arrived at the stadium.
People outside quickly recognized them.
"That's Seido!"
"The tall one—that's Ushijima Wakatoshi, right?"
"Yeah! Seido's freshman ace!"
"I heard he can throw five different pitches!"
"Five in his first year? That's insane!"
Some people compared him with Narumiya.
"But doesn't Narumiya know even more pitches?"
The crowd kept discussing.
But Ushijima didn't hear any of it.
He still had his headphones on.
After entering the stadium, they encountered the players from Inashiro.
It seemed their match had just finished.
Unfortunately, the locker room Seido would use was the one Inashiro had just occupied.
Standing outside the room, Ushijima looked down.
Inside stood Narumiya.
When the two pitchers saw each other—
The atmosphere instantly changed.
It felt like two kings meeting.
Both were currently the most famous pitchers in West Tokyo.
Seido's players looked toward Ushijima.
Inashiro's players looked toward Narumiya.
Both teams instinctively focused on their aces.
Narumiya spoke first.
"I also threw a complete game."
Everyone from Seido was surprised.
A Complete Game was one of the greatest honors a pitcher could achieve.
Ushijima had just accomplished it two days ago.
And now Narumiya had done it as well.
Narumiya looked extremely proud.
Almost like he was saying:
"See? I can do it too."
But Ushijima immediately replied calmly.
"You only did it in your second year."
"What's there to brag about?"
Narumiya's proud expression instantly froze.
Then Ushijima continued mercilessly.
"And you're a left-handed pitcher."
"Left-handed pitchers are rarer, so batters face them less often."
"So tell me…"
"As a rare left-handed pitcher, it took you two years to achieve a Complete Game."
"Is that really something worth bragging about?"
Narumiya's face turned bright red.
Ushijima continued attacking.
"I achieved mine four months after entering high school."
"And you?"
"It took you sixteen months."
"My first official high-school game was as a starter."
"And I shut out Ichidai Third High School completely."
"Tell me, Narumiya-senpai."
"When was your first official start?"
"When was your first Complete Game?"
"When was your first Perfect Shutout?"
Narumiya couldn't answer.
Ushijima smiled smugly.
"You want to compare yourself to me?"
"Aren't you afraid of being disappointed?"
Narumiya's face turned completely red.
Finally he shouted at his teammates:
"What are you all staring at?! Let's go!"
They immediately left.
Ushijima watched happily.
Narumiya turned back and shouted angrily.
"In the finals, I'll crush you!!!"
Ushijima shrugged.
"Take your time and learn the Changeup first."
"Stop talking!!! Mind your own business!!!"
Narumiya roared.
Ushijima added casually:
"Oh, right. I already mastered the Sinker."
"Funny… the so-called King of West Tokyo doesn't even throw one."
"Aaaaaah!!!"
Narumiya's mentality exploded.
"You haven't learned a Changeup either!!!"
Ushijima laughed.
"I'll learn it in my second year."
Narumiya finally snapped.
"Aaaaaaah!!!"
Both teams watched the scene in silence.
They all had the same thought.
How did Ushijima manage to provoke Narumiya so easily every time?
Even Kazuya Miyuki, who knew Narumiya well, found it unbelievable.
Narumiya Mei…
was completely being played by Ushijima Wakatoshi.