After I was subbed out, the first-year team carried on the momentum into the offense Kanemaru managed to get a single by an error from one of the fielders of the senior team.
Then the next first year pulled a sacrifice bunt to get Kanemaru to second.
The Haruichi came up next with a wooden bat that surprised everyone.
He hit the first pitch way into the outfield and managed to get a RBI single for the first run for the team.
However, that was the end of the momentum as the seniors stopped it at one.
Then, with Masuko on the team now, they went on another hit fest throughout the course of the game.
The ending scores were 20 to the senior team, and 1 to the first-year team.
The only inning where the seniors didn't score was the inning I pitched in.
***
After the end of the game, the crowd who watched joyfully discussed it.
"Gotta say, the Seido batters are amazing." One said.
"In the end, the upperclassmen dominated." Another said.
"But that Furuya kid was something. He left a big impression, despite only throwing once."
"Don't forget that Sawamura that came on afterwards! He made a fool out of the senior team, even Masuko couldn't hit his pitches into fair territory. I got chills at that last pitch!"
"I know what you mean, for a rookie, he really had a dominating presence on the mound."
"We're really lacking a good pitcher, so he might become the saviour of Seido."
"It'd be a problem if he doesn't."
"I'm looking forward to the future of Seido with these two new pitchers on the team now. I'm definitely going to watch their games when I have time."
***
Inside one of the indoor practice areas, both Furuya and Miyuki were standing on opposite sides of the room.
"Geez! Do I really need to catch your pitch now?" Miyuki said.
"You've been promoted to the first-string already. You're gonna form a battery with me in the future." He continued.
He then gave Furuya a smirk.
"Or could it be… Did you feel something watching Sawamura pitch, monster rookie."
Furuya slightly flinched at that.
Furuya looked back at the inning where Sawamura pitched.
His calm, pressuring aura on the mound.
His versatile pitching arsenal.
His ability to give his teammates strength from just showing them his back while he pitched.
Furuya clenched his fist tightly, over the ball he was holding.
"I…" Furuya finally said after a pause. "I came to Seido to find a place where I belong."
He then started his windup.
"Please don't disappoint me, Miyuki-senpai." He said with cold, deep blue aura forming around him.
Miyuki smiled at the change in Furuya, he crouched down behind home plate and held out his mitt.
"Hahah, interesting! I like you, kid. Throw with all you have." He said.
Furuya went through his windup and threw the ball.
WHOOOOOSH
BOOOM
The ball landed in Miyuki's mitt perfectly, steam coming from the impact.
Furuya was stood still, his eyes were shaking.
'Its's been so long… since I last heard the sound of my pitch being caught by a mitt.' He thought to himself.
He feltlike he was dreaming.
"What's wrong?" Miyuki asked in a cheeky voice. "You're the one who dragged me out here. Don't hold back. Throw with everything you've got." He continued as he threw the ball back to Furuya.
Furuya then started his windup again.
'When I came to this, I made the right choice.' He thought as he threw another pitch.
WHOOOOOSH
BOOOM
***
In the Coaches' office, him, Rei and Ota were talking about the scrimmage.
"The first years took a huge loss, but some good came of it, correct?" Ota said.
"That small second baseman is the brother of Kominato In the third year." He continued. "No wonder his plays reminded me of him. There was also Furuya Satoru, who left everyone peechless with one pitch. And we all can't forget the performance of Sawamura Eijun, he truly took over the game with his pitching and shut down the upperclassmen's momentum to a complete standstill. He honestly didn't seem like a rookie at all."
"About Furuya and Sawamura." The coach replied. "I plan to make them both debut in the Kanto tournament. They both had qualities and strength on the mound that we need in the team. Furuya's pitch is so powerful that it looks like it rises. There aren't very many batters in Japan who can hit that pitch."
"What about Sawamura?" Rei asked whilst pushing up her glasses slightly with a smirk.
The coach glanced at her as she said this then paused for a moment, thinking deeply as he replayed the inning Sawamura pitched.
"First of all, he's a southpaw. We don't have any lefthanded pitchers. He has a self-taught form that he created making use of his incredibly flexible joints. It is grandiose and lethal on its own, deadly to all batters that face it. He also has a versatile arsenal in which he can execute perfectly with precision and accuracy. All he needs now is to progress his speed to another level. Speaking purely in terms of potential, he is much bigger than both Tanba and Furuya." The Coach said with a powerful aura forming around him as he spoke.
He had a grin on his face and his eyes had a glint to them.
"I'll switch between Tanba, Sawamura and Furuya until summer." He continued. "Both Sawamura and Furuya may be good in pitching, they are pretty much useless in both fielding and pickoffs. We need to train them both diligently in both aspects, for them to be ready for games.
"I-I see." Ota replied.
He was surprised by the praise the coach gave Sawamura.
Rei, on the other hand, was not surprised at all.
She knew how much Sawamura had improved in such a short amount of time that she was honestly frightened a little at what Sawamura would become in the future.
She was also incredibly excited.
"Another thing." The coach said. "I plan to make two batteries during the training before the tournaments. I will put Furuya with Miyuki so he can help him with his control and accuracy. As for Sawamura, I want to pair him up with Chris."
"Chris? But isn't he on the second-string, Coach? I thought you promoted Sawamura to the first-string." Ota replied.
"Sawamura will still be on the first-string and he can still have some pitching sessions with Miyuki to help Miyuki get familiar with his pitching. However, I want Chris to work with Sawamura and help him strengthen his body and his existing pitches. Christ will be better for that than Miyuki." The coach continued.
"Is it all really what it is?" Rei asked with a cheeky tone, as if she knew exactly what Coach was thinking. "Are you sure this isn't a plan by you to help Chris back on his feet after his injury?"
"You're right. That is also a reason for this. Chris' eyes have become muddy and grey. I know his love for baseball is still in there somewhere, but right now he is struggling. Trying not to drown with the pressure of recovering. I want him to see Sawamura's love and attitude for baseball from up close. Maybe he can be the one to help Chris out of his depression the most." The Coach finished.
Both Rei and Ota looked at each other with sympathetic gazes, everyone knew about Chris' condition but he was very mature and closed off his feelings so there was only so much they could do.
***
SWIING
SWIING
SWIING
I finally stopped swinging my bat after an hour of constant swinging.
I was breathing deeply and sat on the ground on the field.
'Okay, let's have a look at these rewards.' I thought as I pulled up the system.
'I still can't believe that I got 'Hongo's splitter' skill, that is an OP skill to have. Max, so it's true that I can get other people's skills if I can complete certain conditions?' I asked,
[That is correct User. However, creating a skill based on someone else's skills are extremely difficult. You were very lucky to accomplish this feat. I suggest you don't focus on trying to create other people's skills and focus on sharpening your own as it will be more beneficial to you in your progress.]
'Hmmm, so you're saying that the chances are so low that it's not worth me focusing on that path to get stronger. I see, I will take your advice. That god I manged to get the skill though, it will help me considerably.' I replied.
I then looked at the rewards I received from the mission.
>1 random a-grade physical elixir
>1 random silver tier pitching skill
>20 Ace points
'Okay, lets start with the pitching skill.' I thought, pressing on the section for the skill.
Suddenly flashing lights from fireworks appeared on the screen, then the words of the skill faded in.
When I saw the skill, my eyes widened.
[User has been rewarded the skill 'Pickoff Specialist']
[Pickoff Specialist (passive): A pitcher's trusted skill to get runner on the bases out.
Effect: While the runner is on base, they speed will decrease slightly while running in between bases, and their reaction time will be slower when you throw either a pitch or a pickoff.]
"Holy shit!" I shouted looking at the skills description.
"So, it's basically a debuff skill to runners on base when I'm pitching. That's OP!" I continued.
'It's definitely something I need right now. With this skill, I now just need to focus on fielding as a pitcher in training.' I thought.
I then looked at the a-grade elixir and took a deep breath.
'This will really hurt, but I'm sure the benefits will out way the pain entirely.' I thought.
I looked around to make sure there was nobody around.
When I saw I was alone, I called out to Max.
'Max, activate the a-grade elixir and activate mute function.'
[Implementing random A-grade physical elixir.]
[Activating mute function.]
Suddenly I felt an excruciating pain throughout my body.
It was 100 times worse than the other elixirs.
Truly I hadn't known pain until this moment.
I tried to keep myself awake but eventually, I passed out.
When I woke up, it was already dark, suggesting it had been an hour or so.
The first thing that I noticed was the disgusting, rotton smell infecting my nose.
I instantly gagged and almost threw up right there.
I looked over my body and saw a black sticky substance around my body and clothes.
'Ah! I forgot to take off my clothes so I wouldn't get this crap on them.' I thought.
When I moved my muscles while standing up, I felt immense power within them. I felt lighter, and more solid.
When I clenched my fist, it felt like I could make a dent in in iron pole just from squeezing.
'Haha! This feels amazing!' I thought with joy.
[User's strength stat has increased from A- to A+. Congratulations host.]
"Let's go!" I said while pumping my fist.
'Now my pitching speed will increase with a boost in my strength.
'Max, show me my stats.'
ACE SYSTEM
SYSTEM LEVEL: 1 (75/100 Ace points to level up)
AGE: 15
TALENT ASSESSMENT: A-
POTENTIAL: (SS-)
ACE POINTS: 75
USER STATS:
>Physical Fitness: A-
>Pitching: A
>Batting: C+
>Fielding: D
>Game Intelligence: B-
>Mental: A+
Skills: 10
PHYSICAL FITNESS: (Avg. A-)
Balance and Coordination: B+
Agility: B-
Strength: A+
Stamina: B+
"Wait! My stats went up a lot! Even my potential increased as well." I said with wide eyes.
'I know it's been a while since I looked at the system but jeez, I've improved a lot.' I thought with a smile.
'This just motivates me to do more. I still need to improve on my fielding and batting. I also need to improve on my agility, balance and coordination and stamina. I want every stat to be 'A's.'
I then went to wash myself of all the black, foul smelling, substance and returned to my room for the night.