The Old Baseball Player System

Kenta left the dugout and walked to the umpire at home plate. He quickly greeted the umpire and the white-haired boy in front of him.

Without much delay, the umpire flipped a coin and, after seeing the result, looked at the white-haired boy and said:

"Your choice."

"We'll field first." – Sugawara said with an arrogant smile, then turned and began walking back to his team's dugout.

"Tch!" – Kenta gritted his teeth when he saw the white-haired boy's smug expression. He was irritated, but he quickly calmed down. He would wipe that arrogant smile off his face on the field.

Shun left the dugout, ready to bat. The boy was extremely focused, preparing to face the left-handed ace who had crushed him last time. However, when Shun looked at the mound, he was surprised.

He didn't see the tall, brown-haired boy he was expecting, but instead, a short, black-haired boy whose face clearly showed his young age. From what Shun could tell, this boy was probably in his first year of middle school.

"What the hell..." – Shun walked to the batter's box, confused. He expected to face Kohei, not a first-year pitcher.

PAH

"Strike!"

The umpire announced. Shun didn't even react to the fastball down the middle. The speed wasn't bad for a first-year, but it wasn't what he expected to face.

"Hey, why isn't your ace pitching?" – Shun couldn't hold back, he looked at Sugawara squatting behind home plate and asked.

"Huh? We have a game against a strong team the day after tomorrow. Since he pitched yesterday, he's resting today." – Sugawara said nonchalantly as he tossed the ball back to his pitcher.

"Oh." – Shun didn't know how to react when he heard Sugawara's words. He couldn't help but think this guy was underestimating him, but he quickly snapped out of his thoughts. He was in the middle of a game, if he wanted to prove anything, it had to be on the field.

Shun gripped his bat tightly as he watched the first-year pitcher throw his second pitch of the game.

WOOSH

DONG

Shun ran quickly as the ball was hit to left field, parallel to the foul line. Thanks to his speed, Shun reached second base without any problems, while Ren made his way to the batter's box.

WOOSH

DOONG

A strong hit to right field allowed Shun to score easily, while Ren took his place on second base.

Kenta then stepped up to bat with a determined look, the arrogant smile of Sugawara still fresh in his mind. The young pitcher on the mound did his best not to be shaken by the run he had just allowed. He started his windup and threw.

WOOSH

DOOONG

"Nice homer, Captain!" – Shun had just reached the dugout when he saw his friend hit an incredible home run out to center field. He shouted excitedly as Ren and Kenta trotted to home plate.

Daigo and Sora continued the sequence, both reaching base. Thus, the sixth batter stepped into the batter's box with no outs and two runners on base.

WOOSH

DONG

First-year Ryosuke hit a double to left field, clearing the bases and bringing the score to 5 runs. The top of the first inning finally ended after the seventh, eighth, and ninth batters were retired, leaving Ryosuke on base.

In this way, for the first time since receiving the system, Shun stepped onto the mound to pitch in a game. As he watched Toru Okada take his position in the batter's box, Shun began to feel nervous. Doubts started to fill his head, and he felt immense pressure on his shoulders, even with the substantial lead on the scoreboard.

Shun remembered last year's defeat, all the frustration he had accumulated over this time, and all the training he put in to change things. At that moment, as Shun recalled everything, a familiar feeling that hadn't surfaced in a long time appeared.

While feeling the eyes of the defenders behind him, hearing the cheers of his teammates in the dugout, and looking at the big glove of the catcher in front of him, he finally felt that emotion again. Shun smiled as a strange confidence filled his body, and without hesitation, he pitched.

WOOSH

PAH

"Strike!"

"What the hell is that?" – Toru cursed loudly as he looked back and saw the ball in Daigo's glove. The boy was sure the pitch was a fastball down the middle, but somehow it slid toward his knee before reaching home plate, almost dropping to the ground due to the break.

Shun felt even more confident after seeing Toru's reaction. The boy quickly threw another pitch.

WOOSH

PAH

"Strike!"

"Damn it!" – Toru cursed again. He watched this pitch closely and realized it had the same trajectory as the previous one. This time, he wasn't fooled and swung, considering the pitch would break toward his knees again. But for some reason, this pitch slid straight down, making Toru swing at nothing but air.

In the Hokuto Junior High dugout, Sugawara stood up from the bench as he watched Shun's pitches intently. A rare sign of surprise and excitement appeared in his eyes.

"I didn't expect this, it looks like this game will be interesting." – Kohei also stood up and spoke to Sugawara with a smile, but the white-haired boy didn't bother to respond, keeping his eyes fixed on Shun.

WOOSH

PAH

"Strikeout!"

Toru returned to the dugout frustrated after swinging and missing again. Shun's slider was simply too unpredictable. The second batter, Isamu Endo, took his place in the batter's box, looking at Shun with a challenging gaze. He didn't expect to face a pitcher who could strike out Toru with just three pitches today.

WOOSH

PAH

"Strike!"

WOOSH

PAH

"Strike!"

WOOSH

PAH

"Strikeout!"

Like Toru, Isamu couldn't make contact with Shun's sliders and was struck out with just three pitches. Then, it was the third batter's turn. Usually, the third batter for Hokuto was also their ace, Kohei, but since he wasn't in the game, a second-year player was chosen to fill the spot.

Unfortunately for the poor boy, he had no chance to shine on his day as cleanup hitter.

WOOSH

PAH

"Strike!"

WOOSH

PAH

"Strike!"

WOOSH

PAH

"Strikeout! 3 outs, changeover!"

"Yeaaaaahhhh!" – Shun roared as he left the mound. In his first inning after a year away from the mound, against the current Kanto tournament champions, Shun pitched an immaculate inning. 9 pitches, 9 strikes, 3 strikeouts.