The Old Baseball Player System

The Shoto Junior High team managed to relax well on the bus. Coach Yamada instructed everyone to get off and start warming up thirty minutes before the game, and the Shoto players followed his orders. After everyone had completed their warm-ups, Coach Yamada led the entire team back into the stadium, and soon they found themselves standing in front of the dugout door.

Shun entered the dugout for the second time that day. This time, he went straight to his locker to put his belongings away, feeling much calmer than during the first round. He watched his friend Kenta climb the dugout steps, while the captain of Seiryu did the same on the opposite side.

"And? What's the result?" - It didn't take long for Kenta to return to the dugout, and as soon as he did, Coach Yamada asked him.

"We'll be batting first..." - Kenta said calmly.

"Huh? You lost again? You're terrible at coin tosses!" - The young samurai Ren complained after hearing his friend Kenta's words. Even though starting on defense was only a slight advantage, it was still an advantage. For some reason, Kenta seemed to always lose the coin toss, and their opponents always ended up with that edge.

"Shut up!" - Kenta snapped irritably. He knew very well that he didn't win coin tosses often, but it wasn't as if he could do anything about it, it was purely a game of luck, after all.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

"Oh, I get it!" - Unfortunately for Kenta, Ren wasn't planning to stop talking. The young samurai shouted as if he had made a groundbreaking discovery, catching everyone's attention in the dugout.

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"Get what?" - Shun asked curiously.

"It's our fault for making a lucky bastard the captain! Kenta's lucky in love, so it's obvious he'd have bad luck in games! Coach, we need to pick a new captain!" - Ren explained his theory enthusiastically, quickly turning to Coach Yamada and speaking seriously. Coach Yamada simply stared at the young samurai in disbelief, but before he could say anything, someone took action.

"Shut up, you idiot!" - Kenta yelled as he kicked the samurai in the rear.

"Ouch! What? It's true! This is the universe being fair! Even a lucky bastard like you has to have bad luck in something!" - Ren shouted in pain, but he didn't stop defending his theory.

"You little—" - Kenta was about to hurl even more insults at the idiot samurai when Shun stepped in front of him, catching his attention.

"Pft! Well, I'm heading out!" - Shun chuckled as he watched his two idiot friends being their usual selves just before the game. But since he was the leadoff hitter, he grabbed his bat and helmet and headed for the dugout steps.

"Oh! I'm coming too!" - Ren quickly said as he realized he also needed to get ready and wait for his turn in the on-deck circle. The young samurai hurriedly grabbed his equipment from the dugout locker and put it on clumsily as he followed Shun up the stairs.

Everyone in the dugout chuckled at Ren's antics, which lightened the atmosphere. Normally, the team would be tense before the game began, but now, they were relaxed without losing focus on the match.

Meanwhile, Shun walked calmly toward the batter's box. Since Kaito was still throwing warm-up pitches, Shun stopped midway and waited for the umpire's signal. As he waited, he noticed the stadium stands.

Shun looked at the bleachers, which were even more packed than they had been in the morning. He tried to spot his parents and little sister among the crowd but couldn't find them amidst the sea of spectators. All he could see were countless people looking in his direction, waiting for the game to start. Shun didn't react much to the packed stands, but the real surprise came when the umpire gave the signal for him to head to the batter's box.

"Yeeeeaahhh!" - A loud roar echoed through the stadium as the crowd cheered the start of the game. What surprised Shun, however, were the two loud chants that followed.

"Go Seiryu! Go Seiryu! Go Seiryu!" - The organized cheering section above Seiryu's dugout chanted energetically. At the same time, another loud cheer came from the section above Shoto's dugout.

"Sho- to! Sho- to! Sho- to! Sho- to!" - Shun turned, surprised by the noise, and when he saw the students in Shoto Junior High School uniforms, he was even more taken aback.

Shun knew that people at his school were aware the Shoto baseball team had qualified for the Kanto Tournament, but he hadn't expected them to come to the stadium to cheer. Since the first-round game was in the morning, the students hadn't been able to attend due to classes. Now, however, they were making just as much noise as the cheering section for an elite school like Seiryu.

Shun simply smiled as he observed Shoto Junior High's newly organized cheering section. He couldn't help but think they had shown up at just the right time. Playing under the pressure of Seiryu's dominant fan presence would have been challenging. Shun then resumed his walk to the batter's box. After all, while the cheering sections in the stands were important, the real game was played on the field.

Shun stepped into the batter's box with a calm expression, keeping his eyes on Seiryu's ace on the mound. Shun watched closely as Kaito began his windup, noticing that the pitcher's glove didn't move. Because of this, Shun knew a fastball was coming.

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"Strike!" - The umpire called as Shun stood still, observing Kaito's fastball, which landed perfectly in the middle of the strike zone.

"Yeeeeaahhh! Go Seiryu! Go Seiryu! Go Seiryu!" - Seiryu's cheering section erupted with excitement as their ace delivered the first strike of the game. Additionally, the stadium radar displayed 140 km/h, proving that Kaito was at his best right from the start.

Meanwhile, Shun didn't flinch as he continued to calmly watch Kaito on the mound. He had easily identified the pitch as a fastball and knew he wouldn't have trouble making solid contact with it, even at a blazing speed of 140 km/h. However, Shun had a reason for letting Kaito throw more pitches.

Not only did he want to avoid making it obvious that Kaito was tipping his pitches, but Shun also knew that Kaito had already thrown nearly 80 pitches earlier in the day. The more pitches Kaito threw, the quicker his incredible fastball velocity would drop. After all, while Shun had no trouble hitting 140 km/h pitches, the same couldn't be said for most of his teammates.