Chapter 367: Psychological Issues

Although he failed to hit Furuya's pitch, Seto Takuma did not feel discouraged in the slightest; instead, he was even more excited.

"My turn."

After Okumura Koshu said this, he walked to the Batter's Box, and just like Seto Takuma, he failed to hit any of the three Fastballs.

As a Catcher, Okumura Koshu had seen baseballs flying toward him far more often than Seto Takuma, but even so, Furuya's fastball still left him unable to react; if he were crouching to catch, he might have barely been able to block it with his mitt, but holding a bat, he truly found it hard to handle.

Further on, the smaller Yui Kaoru managed to make contact with an outside Fastball on the second pitch, but the sheer power caused his swing form to completely collapse, and the baseball popped high into the air before landing in Huangqian Yangyi's hands.

His hand was numb.

As Yui Kaoru felt the tingling sensation spreading through his fingers and palm, he had his first intuitive realization of Furuya Satoru's pitch speed.

151 kilometers per hour, and even at that speed it was so heavy; he dared not imagine how terrifying Huangqian's pitches would be, as with his current level, it would likely be impossible for him to catch them at all.

Well, for the short term, I'll make catching Furuya's pitches my goal!

After another three pitches, Miyuki called out, "Next, throw a Breaking Ball."

"Mm." Furuya nodded happily.

A few more minutes passed, and the First Year trio was thoroughly crushed once again.

After Furuya finished pitching, Sawamura took the mound.

The number of times the three could make contact with the ball increased significantly, but they couldn't hit any of them to a good spot; as the frequency grew, it even began to make the batters gradually irritable.

"The type that pitches specifically for the batter," Yui Kaoru remarked.

"Two completely different styles, huh? Interesting." Okumura Koshu actually spoke more than usual, and his gaze toward Sawamura showed even more interest.

Just then, Seto Takuma asked again, "Senior, are you really not going to pitch?"

Huangqian Yangyi looked at him, "One pitch. You three, stand behind Miyuki."

No sooner had he finished speaking than three people suddenly appeared behind Miyuki.

So fast!

Picking up a ball and walking to the Pitcher's Mound, Huangqian Yangyi didn't even warm up; after exchanging a look with Miyuki, he threw the ball over quite casually.

Boom!

The sound of the baseball slamming into the mitt was like a cannon.

The three First Year youngsters were stunned for a long time, unable to recover.

"Aniki, why was it only 156 kilometers per hour? Did you hold back?" Sawamura asked with his head tilted.

"Don't be ridiculous, I'm wearing slippers right now!"

Unlike Sawamura's foolish appearance, after seeing Huangqian Yangyi's pitch from the front, the three youngsters' feelings shifted from fear and dread to excitement and thrill, and finally, their eyes all lit up.

The next day, early morning.

On the field of the Seido High School Baseball Club, nearly a hundred members began their training without a single one missing.

In the line where the First Years were running, upon hearing that Yui Kaoru and the others had actually hit Furuya and Sawamura's pitches and even watched Huangqian Yangyi's pitch from the home plate position, Yuki Masashi was filled with regret.

Because he lived relatively close by, he went home to sleep every night, never expecting he would miss out on so much.

Although he would do his own training after returning home, if he lived in the Seishin Dormitory, he could not only foster friendships with his peers but also get closer to the seniors; most importantly, he could have had the chance to hit a pitch from Huangqian Yangyi.

And from what they said, the Captain and Vice Captain would even hold small classes in the dormitory; this was all valuable information, things that could help him improve, and he had just missed it like that.

No, I have to live in the dormitory too!!

Making up his mind, Yuki Masashi suddenly accelerated and ran to the front of the line.

I'm coming too!

Although Yui Kaoru was small, he moved his feet exceptionally fast.

"Hey! You two!"

Seto Takuma cursed under his breath and chased after them with Okumura Koshu.

"Don't speed up!"

"The rhythm, the rhythm!"

"That's too much!"

"Control your speed!"

"Don't mess up the rhythm, you jerks!"

The other new students behind them complained one after another; these four guys would fight every time they trained, making it miserable for everyone else.

Especially that Okumura Koshu, with such poor stamina, yet he still insisted on chasing after Yui Kaoru and Yuki Masashi—just causing trouble for no reason!

If they had that kind of fighting spirit, they should use it to eat faster during meals.

"Yo, the First Years are really full of energy today, all howling away."

"Hahaha, maybe they were stimulated by seeing the seniors' match yesterday."

"Those four little guys are like that every day, it's nothing rare."

"The one in the very front is Yuki Tetsuya's younger brother, right? I'm really looking forward to him."

"The one behind him was the captain of the world tournament during his Little League days; he's also quite a formidable figure."

During Seido's training, even at such an early morning hour, there were still quite a few onlookers stopping to watch from outside.

In the Dugout, after finishing a set of pitching drills, Huangqian Yangyi gave himself a break and came to Coach Kataoka's side to watch the new students' training with him.

"Your training volume has decreased recently. Are you feeling unwell?"

Coach Kataoka stood with his arms crossed; although he didn't turn his head, Huangqian Yangyi could feel his concern.

"A little, but it's not my body."

Hearing Huangqian Yangyi's reply, Coach Kataoka's brows furrowed tightly, and Coach Ochiai, Takashima Rei, and Department Head Ota all leaned in nervously.

"What's going on?" Coach Kataoka asked.

Huangqian Yangyi thought for a long time, "I don't know how to describe it; I just feel like I can't get motivated, and I'm always losing focus during pitching practice."

Once the words were finished, the expressions of the four leaders all changed.

"Sports burnout, mental fatigue; these are psychological illnesses caused by excessive participation in competitions and training. Losing focus during practice is the most typical symptom," Ochiai Hiromitsu said in a deep voice.

Upon hearing this, everyone present was stunned. Indeed, ever since Huangqian Yangyi entered Seido, Seido had been constantly chasing championships, never missing a single tournament they could participate in. Although the manager would deliberately have Huangqian Yangyi reduce his mound appearances, putting him in the outfield more often to act purely as a power hitter.

But he was, after all, the team's ace. Even when playing as an outfielder, he had to be mentally prepared to return to the mound to pitch at any time. Over the course of two years, it had always been like this.

Huangqian Yangyi himself was also bewildered. No way, it's that serious? He had thought it was just poor sleep causing a lack of concentration.

"Huangqian, don't participate in today's training. Go to the hospital with Department Head Takashima for a full physical examination, and focus on seeing a psychiatrist," Manager Kataoka said very seriously.

"Is, is it that exaggerated?" Huangqian Yangyi was somewhat surprised.

"It must be taken seriously. For an athlete, in the vast majority of cases, psychological problems are even more terrifying than physical ones!"

After Takashima Rei finished speaking, she didn't give Huangqian Yangyi a chance to talk, pulling him toward the outside of the field.