Tokyo: The story begins with a confession.

Page 69

However, next year could be really dangerous. I really don't know where Yamato Academy found such a monster.

He looked at Kenichi Uesugi, who was preparing on the pitcher's mound, and his mouth watered.

If Kenichi Uesugi were on his team, he would be confident enough to declare victory at Koshien!

"Why is Uesugi-kun going to pitch again?" Watanabe Futa felt that the situation was developing in a way that was completely beyond his expectations.

"It should be fine, right?" Kasumigaoka Utaha looked somewhat worried, her eyes fixed on Uesugi Kenichi.

"Don't worry, Kenichi's pitching is even better than his swinging..." Kato Megumi said with a nonchalant smile.

Kenichi Uesugi stood on the pitcher's mound, picked up the baseball and weighed it in his hand. The weight was no different from the one he had thrown at the baseball stadium last time.

Catcher Kazumitsu Tanaka, standing in the catch zone, was taken aback when he saw that it was not Hideki Haneda standing on the pitcher's mound but Kenichi Uesugi. He quickly regained his composure after a moment of surprise.

Since it was already like this, it wouldn't make any difference who it was. Because he didn't know Uesugi Kenichi's pitching level, he simply placed his glove in the center and paired it with a straight ball that was in the center.

Kenjiro Uesugi nodded, then glanced at Tokiwa High School's fourth batter, who was staring intently at him. This fourth batter had left a deep impression on him; Yoshiki Haneda's pitches had been hit by him several times.

He took a deep breath, ran his fingers along the texture of the baseball, twisted his waist to the right, and threw the baseball as if he were drawing a bow.

His competitive spirit has been fully ignited as the game has progressed, and he's feeling frustrated that they're still trailing by a large margin.

But at least he still had some sense and didn't go all out, mainly because he was afraid his catcher wouldn't be able to catch his pitch.

Tokiwa's fourth batter kept a close eye on Uesugi Kenichi. As the strongest batter in the entire Tokiwa High School, he could naturally see the terrifying power in Uesugi Kenichi's two powerful hits. At least, he had never hit a home run with the pitches pitched by his own ace pitcher, Nakagawa.

He held the baseball bat in both hands, thinking he would teach number 13, who had cast a shadow over their entire team, a lesson, and at least show Uesugi Kenichi that he wasn't made of dough!

He saw Uesugi Ken wave his hand, and a blurry white streak flashed across his eyes.

Fake bet?

Just as he was about to raise his hand to report to the referee that the opposing pitcher had committed a foul, he heard a loud bang, like a firecracker exploding next to his ear!

He turned around in surprise and saw the opposing catcher lying on the ground, a white baseball still spinning in his glove.

This is this...

What kind of pitching is that?! Is it some kind of murderous baseball?!

Tokiwa's fourth batter looked at the Yamato Academy catcher, whose face was contorted in pain, then turned to look at Uesugi Kenichi with a look of utter terror. This ball, even though it was inside his glove, carried such power; if it had been aimed at someone else, what would have happened?

The umpire standing next to the catcher was surprised. He first shouted "Strike!" It had to be a strike, there was nothing wrong with it, a perfect straight ball down the middle.

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Chapter 136 Not a Drop of Urine in the Doping Agent

After the referee finished speaking, he quickly helped the catcher up and asked, "Are you alright?"

Tanaka Kazumitsu felt his head buzzing. He hadn't seen the ball being thrown at all, and just as he was wondering what was going on, he felt himself being sent flying.

He took off his glove and moved his right hand around, finding that it was mostly fine, except for some pain in his palm.

"I'm fine," he said to the referee, then looked at Uesugi Kenichi with lingering fear. He hadn't reacted in time, and he didn't know if he would have the courage to catch the ball if it came again.

After seeing that the catcher was indeed alright, the referee looked up at the speedometer, where a bright 178 was displayed on the screen.

He was completely stunned, his jaw almost dropped. He couldn't help but look at the other referees and found that they also looked like they had seen a ghost.

Such terrifying ball speed is completely out of the ordinary for high school games; even in professional baseball, you don't see ball speeds like this all the time.

Being able to consistently maintain a pitch speed of 170 is enough to secure a place in professional baseball.

My God, with that kind of speed and hitting ability, why aren't you playing professional baseball? Playing in high school is just bullying! 11

The audience in the stands heard the crisp sound of the baseball going into the sleet even from a distance, and then saw the ball speed on the screen and immediately cheered loudly!

Although I don't know how he managed to throw that fast ball, it's awesome! It seems that changing pitchers isn't about surrendering; they really have the skill!

Seriously, if you have that kind of pitching ability, you should have played earlier. What kind of crap was that pitch before? It was so annoying to watch.

Upon seeing this shot, Tokiwa's coach collapsed to the ground, exclaiming, "Where the hell did this monster come from? That's a foul!"

I protest!

We need to drag this monster out for a urine test!

He guaranteed that his urine was full of stimulants, not a single drop!

After putting his gloves back on, Tanaka Kazumitsu paired another straight shot with a ball. He couldn't bring himself to pair it with any other type of ball, and even if he did, Uesugi Kenichi might not be able to understand it.

Kenjiro Uesugi nodded, picked up the baseball again, and sighed. Luckily, he had held back, otherwise he would have ruined his catcher before he could knock the opponent down.

After getting ready, he threw the ball again, at a speed similar to the previous one, 179 km/h.

Tokiwa High School's fourth batter remained motionless, not because he didn't want to move, but because the ball had already gone into the sling before he even had a chance to react.

Two good shots! Cheers erupted from the stands again. This shot was even faster than the previous one, proving that the previous shot wasn't just a fluke.

Many viewers who watched the match were completely captivated by Kenichi Uesugi's performance and decided to become his fans forever, until he retires.

After throwing the second pitch, Kenichi Uesugi didn't immediately throw the third. Instead, he lingered on the mound for a moment to see how the others would react.

In this situation, the best way to increase our chances of winning is to break the opponent's mentality.

He was now having some dark thoughts about whether to throw the ball at the opposing batters, injure them, and let them get on base, as long as he could keep the last one in the game.

After thinking about it, he gave up the idea; he simply couldn't bring himself to do it.

The fourth batter from Tokiwa High School breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that Uesugi Kenichi didn't throw immediately. He hadn't even realized that the baseball had gotten into the sling after two consecutive pitches.

His gaze was fixed on Uesugi Kenichi, and he thought to himself that this was truly a terrifying monster.

After carefully observing Kenichi Uesugi for a while and thinking about the two balls he had just hit, he realized that he couldn't wait until he saw the ball before swinging. Instead, he should wait until Kenichi Uesugi made his move and then immediately swing. That way, he might be able to hit the ball.

He soon saw Uesugi Kenichi make another move. He stared intently at Uesugi Kenichi's wrist, and as soon as his wrist moved, he swung it forcefully, staggering forward a step.

He glanced at it; the baseball was already firmly inside the catcher's glove.

"Out!" The referee waved his hand, his eyes full of admiration as he looked at Kenichi Uesugi. If he weren't under eighteen, he would have sent him to professional baseball right now, and he would have been a starter!

Three consecutive balls approaching 180 speed – this year's Koshien tournament has produced an incredible monster!

No one in the history of baseball over the past few decades has shown talent in high school that can compare to this kid's.

He's even started to imagine that if he could bring that talent to professional baseball, then for the next decade or so, Major League Baseball would be overshadowed by Kenichi Uesugi.

Tokiwa's fourth batter walked away somewhat dejectedly, and as he passed the fifth batter, he advised him: "Try to swing earlier, otherwise it will be too late if you wait until you see the ball to hit it."

Tokiwa's fifth batter nodded; he had just seen it from the sidelines—the ball speed was just too fast!

A ball traveling at nearly 180 km/h is a rare sight even in professional baseball!

The highest recorded speed at the Koshien Stadium throughout history is only 168 km/h.

168 and 178 may look similar, but there is a world of difference between them.

But there's no other way; we have to go even if we're afraid. We can't just surrender.

He nervously watched Uesugi Kenichi while holding the bat. Even though he was mentally prepared, he started swinging when Uesugi Kenichi threw the ball, but he still didn't hit a single pitch and was struck out by the 603.

When it came time to make a substitution, he thought for a moment and said to the sixth batter, "Try moving a little above the center."

The sixth batter nodded, but he didn't have high hopes of hitting the ball. He tried to hit it a little higher as instructed by the fifth batter, but he still missed three times and went down in a somewhat comical manner.

The spectators on the sidelines couldn't help but stand up and applaud. It was truly a divine pitch; all three men were struck out without using a single extra ball. It was clean, decisive, and incredibly entertaining.

Next, the Tokiwa High School team completely lost their composure. When facing Kenichi Uesugi at the end, they completely lost their courage and made huge mistakes. They failed to throw the expected walk and were hit with a home run by Uesugi Kenichi.

The game ended in a daze among the Tokiwa High School players, the epidemic prevention alarm sounded, and the final score was 10-11.

From the moment Uesugi Kenichi started pitching, Tokiwa High School failed to score again. This outcome was unexpected by everyone. Tokiwa High School, which originally aimed to reach Koshien, fell in the first round. They can only wait until next year to compete in Koshien again!

The Tokiwa team members on the field still felt like they were dreaming. Many of them knelt on the ground and cried bitterly. A whole year's hard work had just collapsed like this. They couldn't accept this fact at all.

Chapter 137 Kato Megumi's Guidance

After the match, Uesugi Kenichi received a hero's welcome, surrounded by layers upon layers of people, their fanatical expressions seeming to want to tear him apart.

If the stadium hadn't sent someone to escort him, he wouldn't have known how to get out of the stadium.

His performance in this baseball game was truly amazing. Some people who have watched baseball for over a decade have never seen such an outstanding young man in high school.

Coach Xiang Cheng was also very excited. Winning this game was really beyond his expectations. He never thought that Uesugi Kenichi's pitching ability was even better than his batting ability.

Although it may not involve any fancy ball variations, and with such high speed it would be difficult to change the ball, that's okay. This one move alone is enough to dominate Koshien and become the nightmare of all batters.

If Uesugi Kenichi continues playing like this, making it to Koshien Stadium isn't entirely impossible.

However, he was troubled at the moment. The pitcher was good, but the lack of a matching catcher was a big problem. After only catching two innings, catcher Kazumitsu Tanaka had already sprained his wrist.

If I had to take on all of these, my hands would be ruined!

To thank Uesugi Kenichi for his outstanding contributions, Coach Xiang Cheng specially rented another car to take all of Uesugi Kenichi and his group up there.

The bus was filled with laughter and joy; many people still found it hard to believe that they could actually defeat Tokiwa High School.

They even defeated Tokiwa High School, so can they really look forward to a spot in Koshien?

It's almost impossible for a high school baseball player not to dream of playing in Koshien, but many only dare to dream about it, since qualifying is already very difficult.

Their region is the notorious Tokyo region, which, despite having two slots, is much more difficult to enter than other regions.

But now it seems there is real hope. If we can really make it to Koshien, that would be a great honor for our ancestors, something we could brag about for over a decade.

Kenichi Uesugi felt a little uncomfortable looking at the admiring glances his classmates were casting at him.

At this moment, he regretted helping them win. Now that they had won, would they still be able to play the following matches?

If he fights, how much of his time will he waste? If he doesn't fight, it's cruel to give someone a glimmer of hope only to take it away.

Even after returning home, he was still somewhat troubled and didn't know what to do.

Seemingly sensing his worries, Kato Megumi approached him after the meal.

"Are you worried about the upcoming matches?" Kato Megumi handed her a cup of tea.

"Thank you." Uesugi Kenji nodded without denying it. He wasn't surprised that Kato Megumi could see the reason for his troubles. She was a kind and intelligent girl who had a clear understanding of everything.

"Actually, there's no need to worry. This is actually a very good thing," Kato Megumi said with a smile, as she poured herself a cup of tea and took a sip.

"What do you mean?" Uesugi Kenichi hesitated for a moment, as if he had guessed what Kato Megumi wanted to say, but he wasn't entirely sure.

"What does Kenichi think of our studio's current reputation?" Kato Megumi didn't answer immediately but asked something else.