A Chunin reward—at a time like this?
Zhou Hao was momentarily stunned.
He'd thought the system might be flexible, but now it seemed this thing really followed its rules to the letter.
It had said six pitching games, and not even a single inning short.
However, there was no time to draw the reward just yet.
Standing firmly on the pitcher's mound, Zhou Hao raised his leg, stepped forward, and released the ball in one smooth motion.
Boom!
In the batter's box, the fifth batter of Ikeda High School could only watch helplessly as the baseball screamed past him.
His entire body trembled.
Only when facing Zhou Hao directly did he truly understand how terrifying his pitches were.
The baseball spun with such violent rotation that, for a moment, it looked as though it might drill straight into him.
"W-what a monster!"
Pop!
"Strike!"
"Strike!!"
"Strike!!!"
"Strikeout!"
Two outs. No one on base.
In the stands, Seidou's supporters were ecstatic.
"Amazing!"
"That's it—he's completely scaring them stiff!"
Ikeda's core batters looked utterly lost in front of Zhou Hao's spiral ball.
That sight alone gave Seidou's bench an incredible surge of confidence.
They no longer even needed to worry about defense; they could focus entirely on analyzing Akahoshi's pitch.
"There has to be a way to break through his cut ball!"
Strike!
Strike!!
Strike!!!
"Strikeout!"
Three up, three down.
Six consecutive strikeouts. Zhou Hao's dominance was absolute.
The stands erupted in cheers as Seidou's fans shouted his name.
And as the game moved into the bottom of the second inning with Seidou back on offense,
Zhou Hao finally had a moment to check his Chunin reward.
[Congratulations to the Host for advancing to Chunin! Basic stats are now increasing gradually.]
Upon reaching Chunin level, Zhou Hao's overall physical foundation improved—
strength, speed, agility, explosiveness—an all-around boost.
However, this growth wouldn't happen instantly.
It was a gradual enhancement, different from a sudden increase in stamina.
How much he'd improve by the end remained to be seen.
Still, Zhou Hao wasn't too concerned about that right now.
His attention shifted to the second part of the reward.
[Congratulations to the Host for advancing to Chunin! You may now select a Chunin Skill Reward.]
This time, the system offered him two choices.
Option One: Shadow Clone Technique
Description:
After mastering the Shadow Clone Technique, the Host can perform illusion-level feints.
Whether pitching or fielding, the Host can act with the precision of a magician.
While true clones cannot be created, the technique induces visual dislocation in opponents—
creating the illusion of multiple afterimages.
Zhou Hao couldn't deny his interest.
He could already picture how this might amplify his pitching.
His Vanishing Ball and Illusion Ball would reach new heights with this skill.
But realistically, Zhou Hao's current pitching repertoire was already more than enough.
He didn't urgently need another enhancement in that area.
When the time came, he would unlock new skills naturally.
So for now, the Shadow Clone Technique felt like icing on the cake.
In contrast, the second option was far more tempting.
Option Two: Body Flicker Technique
Description:
A ninja's sudden burst of speed used for rapid movement, escape, or support.
When activated, the Host's short-distance acceleration becomes unrivaled.
Within a distance of 25 meters, no one can surpass this speed.
Even Usain Bolt would fall behind.
This was more than simple speed—it was an explosive burst.
Top sprinters still need acceleration time to reach full speed.
The Body Flicker Technique cut that delay almost to zero.
Moreover, this skill could be upgraded—up to Level 7—
each level increasing the effective range from 25 meters
to 30, 35, and even up to 60 meters.
At Level 7, Zhou Hao could literally break the world record for a 60-meter sprint.
Even the 100-meter dash wouldn't be out of reach.
On the baseball field, its uses were countless.
After hitting the ball, even if it wasn't a home run,
Zhou Hao could dash the bases faster than anyone alive.
For fielding, paired with his Sharingan's predictive vision,
his defensive coverage would become nothing short of superhuman.
"Body Flicker Technique—without question."
Having made up his mind, Zhou Hao chose immediately.
[Congratulations, Host! You have learned the Body Flicker Technique (Level 1).]
[Skill Effect 1: Instantly accelerate across a distance of four meters.]
[Skill Effect 2: Speed increased by 15% within a 25-meter range.]
"So it's that strong, huh…"
Although Zhou Hao was considered the slowest runner on the team,
his training had already caught up with Seidou's intense regimen.
Now, with a 15% boost and an instant four-meter burst—
In base running terms, Zhou Hao was untouchable.
He might very well be the fastest player in Seidou now.
While he was still mulling this over, the second inning quietly ended.
Akahoshi, Ikeda's ace, managed to retire three batters in a row—
including Miyuki—using his trademark cut ball.
Then came the top of the third.
Zhou Hao returned to the mound,
and once again, his Spiral ball mowed down three more batters in succession.
"Nine!"
"Nine consecutive strikeouts! That's our Zhou Hao!"
Though the score hadn't changed much,
the flow of the game clearly belonged to Seidou.
The difference in dominance was undeniable.
As the bottom of the third inning began, Seidou's offense stepped up again.
Ping!
Isashiki Jun hit a high fly ball—
but the Ikeda outfielder positioned himself perfectly and caught it with ease.
Pop!
"Out!"
One out. No runners on base.