The Old Baseball Player System

Shun and his teammates headed straight inside the stadium as soon as the bus parked. Since their game was the first of the day, Shun could see people still arriving at the stadium and heading toward the stands. He took a moment to think about his family, who should also be arriving soon. He wasn't sure if anyone else he knew would come to watch his game today, but he was determined to win regardless of who was in the audience.

The Shoto players quickly reached a door, and since it was their third time in this tournament, none of them hesitated to enter the dugout. Shun stepped through the door and saw the familiar dugout. He took a quick glance at the field but then turned his attention to organizing his belongings for the game.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

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As both teams settled into their respective dugouts, the spectators in the stands were also finding their seats. The Takahashi family arrived in the stands to watch Shun, but when they saw that the seats above Shoto's dugout, where they usually sat, were completely filled with students from Shoto Junior High who had come to cheer, they had to find other spots.

After searching for a while, they managed to locate a few empty seats near the dugout where Hokuto's team was. Despite being close to Hokuto's cheering section, they didn't hesitate and quickly sat down to claim their spots. While Aiko and Mika settled in and started sending messages on their phones, Yumi stood up, trying to spot her older brother in the dugout. Meanwhile, poor Kenshin was busy placing various items on the surrounding seats to save them for others who were on their way.

A few minutes later, a group of five young people arrived and greeted the Takahashi family before taking the seats Kenshin had saved. Mika quickly began chatting enthusiastically with her friends from Tokyo Nakanos. Being a Saturday, they didn't have school, so they were all able to come and watch Shun's game.

Of course, the three boys, Akira, Toji, and Satoshi, seemed even more thrilled, not because of the game itself but because they weren't studying for their final exams. It was obvious that their lack of baseball activity was starting to drive these baseball fanatics crazy. Even though they couldn't play, watching their friend's game was a nice change of pace, especially since Shun's opponent, Hokuto, had two players they knew from the U-15 national team.

A while later, Grandpa Jack also arrived, accompanied by his assistant coach Kazuma Ushida and two first-year players from Takenodai High School, Koji Hosoda and Kazuki Yamamoto, the former captain of Shoto Junior High. The four greeted everyone present and quickly took their seats, as the game was about to start.

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"We're starting on defense." - Kenta calmly announced as soon as he returned to the dugout. Although he was trying to maintain the composure of a captain, anyone who knew him well could tell he was a bit anxious. After all, they were finally facing Hokuto, the team responsible for eliminating them last year.

"Haha, you finally won!" - The young samurai let out a cheerful laugh upon hearing that his friend, who was usually unlucky with coin tosses, had won this time. Like Kenta, Ren's excitement for the game was apparent. Even though only a few players from the current team had been part of last year's squad. Ren was one of them, and he still remembered how Hokuto had crushed their team, not just on the field but also off it, leading more than half of the former team to quit the club.

"Are you ready, Sora?" - Shun approached the young pitcher and gave him a pat on the back as he spoke. Unlike his friends, Shun didn't seem anxious. However, that didn't mean he wasn't. In fact, Shun had spent so much time preparing for and imagining this game that his mind was now completely focused. It was a strange feeling for Shun, but he was more than ready for this match.

"Yes, Senpai!" - Sora responded with determination as he looked at Shun.

Shun could feel the boy's resolve and smiled in approval. He knew that the ones who had thought the most about last year's game were Sora and Jiro, the only pitchers who had faced Hokuto back then. Both had been overwhelmed by Hokuto's batters. But now it was clear that the Sora standing before him was determined to erase that poor performance and give his best in this game. And from what Shun had seen of Jiro, the young nerd shared the same mentality.

"Hehe, all right, let's go!" - Shun grinned at his kohai's determination and spoke confidently. He trusted Sora. Shun then began walking toward the dugout stairs with his other teammates. One by one, all the Shoto players emerged from the dugout and ran to their positions on the field, greeted by cheers and applause from their fans in the stands.

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As Sora began warming up with a few practice pitches, Hokuto's team gathered in their dugout, watching the young pitcher on the mound intently.

"Looks like you were right, Suga. They're starting with the screwball guy." - Kohei Sasaki, Hokuto's left-handed ace, commented with a smile as he observed Sora on the mound.

"Hmph! Of course! Just stick to the plan, and we'll take this guy off the mound as quickly as possible." - Yoshinori Sugawara, the white-haired maniac who was also Hokuto's captain and catcher, responded in a serious tone. Unlike his teammates, his gaze was locked onto a certain someone in right field.

'You better not disappoint me, blue-eyed idiot!' - Sugawara thought silently as he stared at Shun in right field. Only he knew how much he had been waiting for this match. After Shun had figured out a pattern in his calls and used it to win their practice game, not a single day had gone by without Sugawara thinking about his revenge. And there was no better stage than this, the semifinals of the Kanto Tournament, to crush the dreams of Shun and the rest of the Shoto Junior High team. Explore more adventures at empire

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With that, after Sora signaled that he was ready to the umpire, Hokuto's leadoff hitter, shortstop Isamu Endo, climbed the dugout steps and began walking toward the batter's box.