Chapter 86: The Intense Practice Begins

Ten minutes later.

After finishing his warm-up, Huangqian Yangyi walked to the pitcher's mound while loosening his shoulders.

"Huangqian, you go ahead and throw a few pitches to Ono to get used to it," Yuki Tetsuya said.

Yuki Tetsuya was worried about whether Ono Hiroshi would be able to catch Huangqian Yangyi's pitches.

Ono Hiroshi crouched in position, his protective gear already on, "Huangqian, come on!"

Whoosh!

Huangqian Yangyi raised his arm and threw the baseball.

Pop!

The sound of the baseball entering the glove.

Ono Hiroshi's pupils flickered; the power of the ball entering the glove surprised him, especially the way he could clearly feel the ball darting around even after catching it—a moment of carelessness could easily lead to a dropped ball.

"Nice ball!"

Ono Hiroshi threw the ball back, "Huangqian, a little faster."

Although this pitch was the fastest Ono Hiroshi had ever caught, it was clear that Huangqian Yangyi had been holding back.

"Alright!"

Huangqian Yangyi threw three more pitches, each faster than the last, and finally, when the speed reached 150, Ono Hiroshi dropped the ball.

"Haha, Ono, not easy to catch, right?"

Miyuki, who had been secretly observing from the side, spoke up immediately upon seeing this.

Ono Hiroshi glared at Miyuki; this jerk, he must have been waiting for him to drop the ball.

"One more time!" Ono Hiroshi was unconvinced; it was his first time catching such a fast ball, so dropping it was normal, and he believed he wouldn't drop it a second time!

Huangqian Yangyi naturally obliged, and sure enough, Ono Hiroshi was able to catch it on the second attempt.

"That's enough, come on, Senior Jiecheng," Huangqian Yangyi said, turning his head to Yuki Tetsuya, who had been waiting for a long time.

Jiecheng picked up his bat, walked to the batter's box, and immediately set his batting stance.

Seeing this, Huangqian Yangyi didn't dare to be careless and nodded toward Ono Hiroshi, who immediately realized this was a request for him to call the pitches.

Because it was a limited practice where the pitch types were known in advance, it was undoubtedly advantageous for the batter, but for the catcher, it required very careful pitch calling.

With a four-seam Fastball and a Changeup, generally speaking, one must never throw a Changeup right away; the strength of a Changeup lies in the massive speed difference from the Fastball, used to disrupt the batter's timing, so throwing it at the start would be suicide.

Ono Hiroshi understood this; the first pitch had to be a Fastball, and there wasn't much he could do other than pray that Huangqian Yangyi could throw the ball perfectly into his glove.

Low and outside! Fastball!

Ono Hiroshi made his decision, and Huangqian Yangyi nodded slightly upon receiving the signal.

Soon, the first pitch was thrown; a Fastball with a speed close to 150 km/h flew out, and the bat in Yuki Tetsuya's hands swept past Ono Hiroshi's eyes.

With a pop, the baseball drilled into the glove, and Yuki Tetsuya swung and missed.

"A bit late," Yuki Tetsuya said softly.

Ono Hiroshi let out a long breath and said, "Senior, watching you swing up close is terrifying."

"Heh." Yuki Tetsuya smiled, though he was secretly pleased inside.

After receiving the baseball back from Ono Hiroshi, Huangqian Yangyi said nothing and just waited quietly, wanting to see when Ono Hiroshi would call for a Changeup.

Then he saw the signal for a Changeup.

Wait, that fast?

Huangqian Yangyi was surprised for a second, then understood; with only Fastballs and Changeups available, only by catching him off guard could he possibly make Yuki Tetsuya swing and miss.

This was a psychological battle between the catcher and the batter; if Yuki Tetsuya was thinking the same thing, then it would be playing right into the opponent's hands.

Huangqian Yangyi didn't say anything; he would throw whatever Ono Hiroshi called, as they had agreed from the start.

Gripping the baseball for a Changeup, Huangqian Yangyi looked at Ono Hiroshi's glove, lifted his left leg slightly, and threw the ball.

Changeup!

Just as the baseball flew from his fingertips, Yuki Tetsuya's pupils widened slightly, forcing himself to suppress the instinct to swing, waiting until the ball had flown a distance before committing.

Whoosh!

The bat and the baseball crossed paths.

Swung too early!

Yuki Tetsuya looked back at the baseball already caught in the glove, feeling shocked; even with his preparation and deliberate delay in swinging, he was still a bit early—just how slow was this ball?

Ono Hiroshi was also stunned; he hadn't expected Huangqian Yangyi's Changeup to be this slow, and when Yuki Tetsuya swung just now, he had felt sure it would be a hit.

Amazing! A look of excitement appeared in Ono Hiroshi's eyes; if such a Changeup were used in a game, it would surely torture the opponent until they were in a miserable state.

If only he were a First String catcher too, Ono Hiroshi couldn't help but fantasize.

"Ono, what are you laughing at?" Huangqian Yangyi found it strange to see Ono Hiroshi crouching there with the ball, laughing.

"No, it's nothing."

Ono Hiroshi blushed and threw the ball back.

The Changeup practice lasted less than 20 minutes before ending; Yuki Tetsuya left carrying his bat with satisfaction, as he had managed to hit the ball several times toward the end once he was prepared.

Conversely, Ono Hiroshi felt downcast; how could he have been hit so many times?

"Don't overthink it; this is a limited-pitch practice, so getting hit is normal. If Senior Yuki couldn't hit a single ball, that's when we should be worried," Huangqian Yangyi said, patting Ono Hiroshi on the shoulder.

"Yeah, I know, but I'm a catcher; no matter the situation, it never feels good when the ball gets hit," Ono Hiroshi said.

Huangqian Yangyi paused for a moment and laughed, "Look at you saying that; I'm the pitcher, and I'm not like you."

"That's because you're strong to begin with," Ono Hiroshi rolled his eyes at him.

"Fine, fine." Huangqian Yangyi shrugged helplessly.

After the practice ended, Huangqian Yangyi looked back at Miyuki and Tanba; he didn't know how long they had been throwing, but there hadn't been much communication between them, with Miyuki constantly speaking in a guiding manner while Tanba mostly just responded with a grunt.

Huangqian Yangyi really didn't know how to describe these two; it felt just like a CEO and his tsundere...

Ahem, off-topic.

Just after finishing washing up back at the dormitory, a knock came from outside the door.

Opening the door, Yuki Tetsuya was smiling, holding a shogi set in his hand.

Uh...

"I accompanied you for pitching practice, now it's your turn to accompany me for a game of chess," Yuki Tetsuya said calmly.

Sigh~

"Fine, five games at most, no more than that." Huangqian Yangyi felt helpless; it would be one thing if he could win, but as a complete novice, even if Yuki Tetsuya himself was a terrible player, he still couldn't handle him.

Hmm, he would lose because he was a novice, definitely not because he was also a terrible player himself.

In the blink of an eye, the day of the match arrived.

Jingu No. 2 Stadium, 1/8 Finals.

Seido High School takes on Kenda Takasaki Academy.