In the office of the Seidou High School Baseball Team's coach…
A group of team executives had gathered to discuss the spectacle of the earlier match.
"That kid is truly amazing!"
Although up until now, Director Ota had preferred Kawakami more,
his perspective changed completely after today.
Zhou Hao's performance on the mound had no doubt left a tremendous psychological impact on the director of Seidou High School's baseball team.
The team's most lacking position—a pitcher—now seemed to have found the right candidate.
"Nine matchups, seven outs. Although he was hit for a double by Yuuki at the end and then gave up a home run to Toujou, his overall performance was still remarkable."
"He lost in the end largely due to physical exhaustion. Facing nine batters in a row like that is something rarely seen in official games."
Director Ota rubbed the back of his head with his pudgy hand as he spoke.
He was aware that Zhou Hao's performance wasn't flawless.
But that wasn't important.
Just imagining Zhou Hao stepping onto the mound for Seidou in the Summer Tournament filled Director Ota with excitement.
Today, they were the only ones who had the privilege of witnessing Zhou Hao's true potential.
In the future, many more people would come to see it for themselves.
By then, the shock on their faces would be even more exaggerated than that of Seidou's current players.
Coach Kataoka, who was overseeing the team, remained silent throughout.
His mind was also replaying Zhou Hao's pitching from earlier.
Compared to Seidou's other players, Zhou Hao's physical fitness and technique were clearly inferior.
But his innate talent was unmatched.
Although Coach Kataoka firmly believed that the sweat shed during practice never goes to waste…
If he were to be honest…
Hard work alone could never guarantee great achievements for a player.
Hard work brings progress, whether in baseball or anything else,
but that progress is always relative—to yourself.
On the real stage, those who rise to fame are always true geniuses.
And those who reach the very top?
They are the hardest-working geniuses.
Seidou's training regimen for pitchers was every bit as rigorous as that of other elite schools.
As the head coach, Kataoka could vouch for this without hesitation.
Yet despite this, Seidou's ace pitcher still lagged behind the aces of other powerhouse schools.
That's the difference raw talent makes.
Zhou Hao's physical condition and level of hard work still left much to be desired.
But he had a gift that others didn't possess.
First of all, Zhou Hao had extraordinary dynamic vision.
Coach Kataoka and the others didn't know Zhou Hao had a cheat-like ability—they just believed he had freakishly sharp eyesight.
That alone allowed him to hit most pitches despite not having an outstanding physique.
Once his physical attributes improved, he would undoubtedly become a monster-level hitter.
But Seidou already had enough talented batters.
If that were his only strength, Zhou Hao wouldn't be promoted.
Which brings them to Zhou Hao's second gift.
He had secretly trained in throwing the spiral pitch.
Although this was a reckless thing to do, with high risk of injury…
Zhou Hao had an extraordinary stroke of luck.
Not only did he avoid injury, he even developed a terrifying pitch in the process.
That spiral pitch alone was enough for Coach Kataoka to consider promoting him to the varsity team.
Not to mention his accurate fastballs and strong finishing spin.
With all three combined, Coach Kataoka had already begun planning how to integrate Zhou Hao into the team lineup.
"It's just a shame—his stamina is still too weak!"
That was the only regret.
If Zhou Hao had the stamina, he could very well become Seidou's true ace pitcher.
Even as a first-year, it wouldn't matter.
"There's still a month left. Focus on building up Zhou Hao's foundation. He won't be a starting pitcher in the Summer Tournament yet—only a pinch hitter or a relief pitcher in critical moments."
Seidou High School's baseball team had its pride.
Even without Zhou Hao, Coach Kataoka was confident in leading the team to the Koshien.
Zhou Hao was like an insurance policy—a hidden ace up their sleeve.
"Don't let up on Yoshida and Tanba either. Tell them the Summer Tournament will still revolve around them."
A pitcher's confidence has a massive influence on their performance.
Coach Kataoka was especially skilled in handling this.
"Let's proceed with the training plan. We'll announce the jersey numbers in a week."
Originally, the varsity roster of Seidou's team was already full.
With a limit of 20 players eligible for games, they had exactly 20.
But now, Zhou Hao's inclusion was set in stone.
Coach Kataoka may be confident about reaching Koshien—but confidence doesn't guarantee victory.
Zhou Hao, used strategically, might just be the key to turning the tide in a desperate moment.
But his promotion would mean one second- or third-year player would be cut from the lineup.
The next day, after Zhou Hao officially joined the varsity team, everyone resumed their usual warm-up jog.
This time, however, Zhou Hao surprised everyone.
Yesterday, he had been lapped by the varsity players—completely left behind.
It wasn't because he was trash.
While not particularly outstanding, Zhou Hao's physical strength placed him mid-tier in his class's physical tests.
He was by no means weak.
It's just that Seidou's varsity players were physical beasts.
When they ran full-speed, they were far beyond what any normal student could match.
But today was different.
Although Zhou Hao still finished last, he was only about 20 meters behind Miyuki, the second-last runner.
Compared to the lead runner, the gap was under 100 meters.
When he reached the finish line, Zhou Hao was gasping for breath.
"Be honest—did you take some kind of blue pill? Otherwise, how did your stamina improve so much overnight?"
Miyuki Kazuya asked in disbelief.
The gap between him and Zhou Hao didn't seem that big anymore.
"What the hell are you talking about? I don't even know what blue pill you're referring to."
Zhou Hao replied irritably, slapping Miyuki's hand away.
He had thought that, with his stamina upgraded by one point, he would at least be able to match Miyuki.
They were both first-years, unlike the upperclassmen who had been training at Seidou for one or two years longer.
The gap was still massive!
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