The Old Baseball Player System

WOOSH

DING

"Fuck!" - Hokuto's leadoff hitter, Isamu, cursed after making weak contact with Sora's very first pitch of the game.

PAH

"Out!" - The young samurai, Ren, easily caught the weak liner that flew straight toward him, securing the first out of the game. The crowd cheered loudly, excited by Sora's quick first out, while Isamu returned to the dugout with his head lowered, slightly embarrassed at being taken out so quickly.

But, contrary to Isamu's expectations, he wasn't met with criticism or angry words from Sugawara. Surprisingly, the white-haired maniac was silent, his sharp eyes fixated on Shoto's catcher.

"They really threw a screwball right off the bat..." - Kohei muttered, observing with a curious gaze. That wasn't a common choice to open a game, unless, of course, they had predicted that Isamu intended to swing at the first pitch.

"Seems like this catcher isn't half bad either..." - Sugawara murmured, his eyes locked on Daigo behind the plate. Naturally, Sugawara was irritated. After all, he was the one who instructed Isamu to swing at the first pitch. Now, seeing that his plan had likely been anticipated, his pride was wounded.

Kohei watched his white-haired friend silently simmer with rage and smirked. Now that the game had begun, Sugawara could channel all of that anger into his batting. Kohei climbed the dugout steps, waiting in the on-deck circle, but he didn't have to wait long.

WOOSH

DING

"Out!" - After just three pitches, Hokuto's second batter, center fielder Toru Okada, was eliminated with a fly ball that ended up in Kenta's glove. The Shoto cheering section grew even more energetic after another quick out. Thanks to this, Sora would now face Hokuto's best hitters with two outs already on the board, making the situation far less stressful.

Unfortunately for Sora, even with two outs, relaxing was not an option when facing Kohei. In addition to being a stellar pitcher, Kohei was clearly Hokuto's second-best hitter, boasting excellent vision and raw power. He demonstrated this perfectly in his first at-bat against Sora. After letting a fastball go by and fouling off a curveball in the zone, Kohei swung his bat hard at Sora's third pitch, a low-zone screwball.

WOOSH

DONG

The ball shot toward center field, but Ryosuke acted quickly. Though he couldn't stop the ball from bouncing, his swift positioning allowed him to recover the ball promptly and throw it to second base, forcing Kohei to stop at first.

"Nice play, Ryosuke!" - Shun shouted from right field, his voice brimming with enthusiasm. He was surprised that Ryosuke had opted for the safer play instead of diving for the ball, but he was genuinely glad the young player had made that choice. What could have been a double, putting a runner in scoring position for Hokuto's cleanup hitter, had turned into a simple single. It wasn't an ideal situation, but it was certainly the best possible under the circumstances.

"Hehe!" - Ryosuke grinned after hearing Shun's praise. He gave Shun a thumbs-up before jogging back to his spot in center field. After all, the inning wasn't over yet.

Meanwhile, on the mound, Sora breathed a sigh of relief at Ryosuke's excellent play, though he couldn't hide his frustration with himself. He had entered this game determined to shut down Hokuto's batters and avenge last year's defeat. Yet, in his first duel with Kohei, his best pitch had been hit to center field.

"Haaaa, breathe, breathe..." - Sora murmured to himself, trying to calm down. The young pitcher closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and when he opened them again, his focus was entirely on Hokuto's fourth batter, who was walking toward the box.

Shun observed the scene from right field and smiled. It looked like Sora had managed to compose himself and refocus on the game, even after allowing a hit. That was a good sign, it showed that the young pitcher was truly locked in.

Sugawara stepped into the batter's box with an eerily calm expression, his eyes fixed on Sora. At that moment, the white-haired maniac was utterly determined to send Sora's pitch as far as physically possible.

Daigo crouched behind the plate and felt a chill run down his spine as he took in Sugawara's expression. He knew just how dangerous Hokuto's captain could be with a bat in his hands, so caution was a must. But he also couldn't afford to back down.

Trusting both himself and Sora's pitches, Daigo decided to start the duel aggressively, aiming to neutralize Sugawara as quickly as possible. He signaled for a fastball and placed his glove high and inside, just above the strike zone, hoping to induce either a swing and miss or a harmless fly ball to end the inning.

Sora didn't hesitate after seeing Daigo's aggressive call. He nodded before setting himself on the mound. Quickly, Sora lifted his left leg high, drove forward, and planted his foot forcefully on the ground. His body twisted as his arm whipped forward, launching the ball with all his strength toward Daigo's glove.

'Perfect!' - Daigo thought as he watched the ball rocket toward him. It was precisely the pitch he had called for, perfectly placed to deceive the batter. When Sugawara's bat entered his field of vision, Daigo smiled. His plan had worked!

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Well, at least in his mind, it had...

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WOOOOOOSHHHH

DOOOOONNGG

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Your next chapter awaits on empire

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A deafening sound silenced the entire stadium as the metallic bat smashed into the baseball. With a powerful swing, Sugawara sent Sora's "perfect" pitch soaring toward center field, far out of Ryosuke's reach.

"Yeeaaahhhh!" - Hokuto's fans erupted into cheers as they watched the ball land deep in the center field bleachers. A two-run home run to open the scoring.

Meanwhile, on the mound, Sora stared in shock toward center field, where the ball had landed. Suddenly, Kohei, who had been on first base, appeared in his line of sight, trotting slowly as he rounded the bases. Shortly after, the cause of his disbelief, Sugawara, came into view, trotting confidently with his fist raised, heading straight for home plate.

The Shoto players on the field and in the dugout could only watch the mound in silence, unsure of what to say. With a single swing, Hokuto's captain had silenced the entire Shoto team. Such was the power of a hitter like Sugawara.

It was a promising start for Hokuto Junior High but a brutal beginning for Shoto Junior High and their pitcher.